Shedeur Sanders says he's 'capable of doing better' than some quarterbacks in the league right now

It’s been a tough start to the NFL season for some quarterbacks. But Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders, who is clearly itching to get out on the field, thinks that he can measure up with the rest of the league.

After a competitive race for the Browns’ QB1, Sanders and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel lost out on the starting job to Joe Flacco. While waiting on the bench, Sanders — who has yet to play a regular-season snap — said Thursday that he thinks he could do better than some of the other NFL starters.

“If you see the quarterback play in the league right now, I know I’m capable of doing better than that,” Sanders said, via ESPN Cleveland.

Sanders, who had a solid preseason debut but struggled during the rest of the preseason, has been listed as the team’s QB3 on its depth chart throughout the season, behind Gabriel. But Sanders said that he’ll be ready to take the field whenever his moment comes.

“I don’t think playing (or) not playing is in my hands,” Sanders said, via ESPN Cleveland. “Based on the situation … I’ll be out there and I’ll be ready to play. I’m ready to play right now.”

The ever-confident Sanders does have some grounds here, with a wave of starting NFL quarterbacks under scrutiny. Though Cleveland head coach Kevin Stefanski says he’s sticking with Flacco despite a rough Week 3 performance, other starters are finding themselves in hot water.

Michael Penix Jr., a second-year with the Atlanta Falcons, was replaced by Kirk Cousins after some struggles in Sunday’s game. And in the most high-profile move, the New York Giants benched veteran Russell Wilson in favor of rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart, just before a tough matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers. Then there’s the more subtle struggles: Over in Jacksonville, Trevor Lawrence is seemingly waving off his coach, while Washington Commanders QB Marcus Mariota is accidentally colliding with his.

It’s unclear whether Sanders, a once-promising QB candidate who slipped to the fifth round, would actually be able to walk the talk on the NFL stage.

But if playing and proving himself is his most important goal, it does seem to be a good thing that Sanders reportedly turned down the Baltimore Ravens and Philadelphia Eagles in the draft. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson and Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts are two QBs who are starting the season off strong, without any signs of getting benched anytime soon. Jackson in particular has been dominant, with 722 pass yards and nine passing touchdowns in the first three weeks.

For now, Sanders will have to wait and see how things shake out in Cleveland.