Shedeur Sanders at best when 'pressure's on' late in Browns OT loss
· Yahoo Sports
NEW ORLEANS ― There were the first three quarters of Shedeur Sanders against the New Orleans Saints. Then there was the version of the Browns quarterback who showed up in the fourth quarter and overtime.
The first version struggled to get the Browns offense going with any consistency. The second got them within a two-point conversion throw of another improbable escape, only to fall 23-22 in overtime to the Saints.
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"Yeah, I would say I feel the best when a lot of pressure's on," Sanders said after finishing 19-of-31, 297 yards, two touchdowns, five sacks and a 114.6 passer rating. "That's when I feel the best, honestly. And the Saints did a great job of, of course, their get back on tracks, third-downs menu and how they got to their scheme. But I think in my mind, I think about things like an algorithm, so it's not going to take me long, I would say, to figure what I need out within the scheme of our offense and what we need to do to move the ball down the field and do what we have to do. But they did a great job overall. Their coverages, their pressure."
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Sanders, starting due to Deshaun Watson being out due to the effects of a concussion during the week, was 9-of-16 for 110 yards after his fourth-and-2 pass from the Saints 42 fell incomplete with 10:32 remaining in regulation. That merely set up a final 5:33 of regulation, as well as one overtime possession, where he transformed into a different quarterback.
Sanders was 10-of-15 for 187 yards in that stretch. It started with a 64-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver KC Concepcion for a 13-9 lead with 5:21 remaining, and ended with a 39-yard touchdown to tight end Harold Fannin Jr. with one minute left in overtime to pull the Browns within 23-22, pending what ultimately was a failed two-point conversion try.
"He gave us a chance at the end," Browns coach Todd Monken said. "He really did. Made some plays, made some plays with his legs to extend plays and get us first downs. Heck, when we were in four-minute or close to four-minute, he got us a third-down conversion. Unfortunately we got the holding call, but I'm really proud of him, really proud of him."
Monken turned to his offense, led by the second-year quarterback, to try and go win the game. The pass on the out route ultimately ended up being low and wide, not that it mattered when the officials flagged right tackle Tytus Howard for holding.
The Saints wasted no time declining the penalty and celebrating the win. Monken wasted no time saying "we're going to go for the win right here and it's going to be win or lose."
"Yeah, if we were going to score, we were going to go for it." Boston said. "You know what I mean? Like, you want, you play to win, you don't play the tie. So, we was playing to win the game and it just didn't work out for us this time."
"This time" is key, because the Browns' 5-4 record has been built on the kind of frenetic, hair-on-fire wins that this would've been as well. The only different, legitimately, is the quarterback, with Watson having started the first eight games.
The Browns come back home for one more game before a much-needed bye against a Houston Texans team that's 3-5 but dangerous with a young quarterback in C.J. Stroud and a rugged defense led by defensive end Will Anderson.
Monken wouldn't discuss if he had a quarterback controversy after the game. Sanders initially dodged a question on if he felt he shown enough to start over Watson against the Texans, but then tried to spin it towards his own grwoth.
"Honestly, but I control what I control," Sanders said. "What I think in the grand scheme of things don't really matter. I think being a great teammate, being a great, whatever role I have on the team I could do, because you got to look at a bigger picture. We out here connecting with each other, growing, learning in different areas. So if I'm playing, then yes, I'm growing in this area. If I'm not playing, then I'm growing in this area. So in every area you growing, so you can't really ever look at the situation as negative."
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Shedeur Sanders at best when 'pressure's on' late in Browns OT loss
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