Fifth-round rookie Shedeur Sanders made his highly anticipated NFL debut in Sunday’s 23-16 loss to the Ravens after starter Dillon Gabriel left the game at halftime due to a concussion.
Sanders struggled mightily, completing 4 of 16 passes for 47 yards and an interception. The Browns were outscored 13-0 in the second half against a Ravens team now on a four-game winning streak.
It was one of the worst quarterback debuts in recent memory (minimum 15 passes for the notes below):
Sanders had the most inefficient NFL debut (-0.80 EPA per play) by a quarterback since Ian Book in 2021 (Book’s only career start).
Sanders averaged the fewest yards per dropback (1.7) in an NFL debut since Ryan Lindley in 2012.
Sanders averaged the fewest yards per attempt (2.9) in an NFL debut since Quincy Carter in 2001.
Sanders had the lowest completion rate (25%) in an NFL debut in 41 years (1984 Scott Stankavage).
That’s about the worst possible company you could ask for, outside of maybe Carter, who had one productive season in Dallas.
It was possibly the worst half of football all year. There have been 116 second halves where a quarterback had 20-plus dropbacks this season — and Sanders’ NFL debut had the worst EPA per play (-0.80) of all of them.
To his credit, he offered an honest assessment after the game.