Shedeur Sanders on being Browns' No. 3 QB: 'I'm thankful' - ESPN

BEREA, Ohio — Days before the Browns' preseason finale against the Los Angeles Rams in late August, Shedeur Sanders lined up for a rare practice rep against Cleveland's first-team defense.

With star pass rusher Myles Garrett in his peripheral vision, the rookie quarterback went to work against the starting defense with a group of third-string roster hopefuls.

In the coming days, Sanders' spot on the Browns' 53-man roster was officially secured. He was one of three quarterbacks — along with Joe Flacco and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel — to stick with the team. Those August practice reps in the lead-up to the final preseason game, though, were a glimpse of his immediate NFL future. Since then, Sanders has been running the scout team as the No. 3 QB and continuing to learn as he waits for his opportunity — one his father, Pro Football Hall of Famer and Colorado coach Deion Sanders, has predicted will arrive this season.

A month into his rookie season, and amid discourse around his decision not to go to Baltimore and back up Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, Shedeur Sanders recently told ESPN he was «thankful» for his situation in Cleveland.

«It's fun going out there and competing every day,» Sanders told ESPN in an interview last week. «I'm thankful for my situation. I'm thankful I'm able to see ball in a different light and to be able to get a different perspective than I have and I'm able to grow mentally, physically, emotionally, everything, to become my best self.

»So that's [what] I'm so excited about, is that whenever I'm able to showcase it, you know what, even if it's this year or not this year, I know at the end of the day I'm getting closer to where I want to be."

Sanders has had an unexpected start to his NFL