Shedeur Sanders is victorious in NFL starting debut

Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns and NFL analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.

LAS VEGAS, NV

Instant takeaways from Browns 24-10 win over Las Vegas Raiders …

1. A legend is reborn: Shedeur Sanders did what 13 Browns rookie quarterbacks in their expansion era couldn’t do. He won his first NFL start with a commendable performance in front of a disgusted Raiders home crowd that included Sanders’ dad, Deion. Sanders added the long ball to the Browns’ offense with completions of 52 and 39 yards, but it was a 66-yard catch-and-run with a short screen pass by Dylan Sampson that put this game away. It ended a 13-game Browns losing streak on the road and upped the Browns' record to 3-8, matching their win total of last season. Quinshon Judkins’ two TD runs on direct snaps gave the Browns an early 14-0 lead and unleashed a defensive assault on Raiders quarterback Geno Smith, who was sacked 10 times, including three by Myles Garrett. Garrett now has 18 sacks in 11 games. Sanders showed much improvement over his relief outing last week when he was hounded by relentless blitzing by the Ravens. The Raiders sacked Sanders only once while he completed 11 of 20 passes for 209 yards. He was intercepted once and finished with a passer rating of 87.3. 

2. Ballgame: One of Sanders’ shortest passes of the day broke the backs of the Raiders. On third-and-9 from the Browns’ 34, Sanders flipped a pass of about two yards to the right flat to running back Dylan Sampson, and the rookie did the rest, navigating a couple blocks and sprinting to the end zone for a 66-yard touchdown. That play surpassed a 52-yard Sanders pass to Isaiah Bond as the Browns’ longest play of the season. It capped Sampson’s best game. He also had a 26-yard run to set up a field goal. Smith finally found the end zone at the 5:04 mark on a 5-yard pass to Ashton Jeanty.

3. They’ll take it: The Browns got a big break when linebacker Jamal Adams was flagged for unnecessary roughness on a tackle of Sampson after a short reception in the fourth quarter. It was a cheap call. The 15-yard penalty jumpstarted the Browns to a field goal. Sampson followed with a 26-yard run to the Raiders’ 19. The Browns moved backwards from there, but Andre Szmyt saved them with a 53-yard field goal just inside the left upright to push their lead to 17-3.

4. Tough to watch: The third quarter was an exercise in offensive futility by both teams. In three possessions, the Browns punted twice, committed four penalties and netted 45 yards. But they maintained their 14-3 lead because the Raiders were worse. Smith turned it over on downs twice, first by taking his seventh sack of the game at the Browns’ 43 and then by misfiring for Tre Tucker, who was open in the end zone. Prior to that ill-advised fourth-down gamble by Pete Carroll, Smith’s first-down pass for Tucker in the end zone hung in the air long enough for Denzel Ward to close to the ball and break it up. Smith’s third-down pass for Tucker was then dropped, followed by the miss on fourth down.

5. Just boo, baby: The Raiders were booed loudly as they slinked to the locker room at halftime, down by 14-3. It was the sixth time in the first half the home crowd reacted with disgust. The Browns’ defense dominated Smith, sacking him five times and limiting the Raiders’ offense to 2.7 yards per play and 1 of 9 on third downs. The Raiders' first three series netted two yards. The only surprise of the first half was Garrett had only one of the five sacks.

6. Shedeur on the rise: Sanders’ first half was a big improvement over his second-half relief outing last week. He was 7 of 11 for 127 yards. A 52-yard completion to Isaiah Bond behind cornerback Darnay Holmes, on which Sanders was flushed to his right by rusher Tyree Wilson, was his best throw and set up the Browns’ second of two Judkins’ direct snap touchdowns. It was the longest offensive play of the season for the Browns and gave them their largest lead in the first quarter, 14-0. Later, Sanders suffered his first interception when defensive end Charles Snowden dropped into coverage and Sanders didn’t see him throwing short for Jerry Jeudy. Sanders did a good job of eliminating his deep run backs from pressure. He was sacked only one time.

7. Gage the rage: The Browns’ first touchdown was set up on a 44-yard punt return by Gage Larvadain. It was the longest play of the year for a Browns returner. A 14-yard penalty for tripping, on punter Cole Ford, took the ball to the Raiders’ 13. And those were covered in two plays by Judkins, who scored the first of his two TDs on direct snaps.

8. Oh, Jerry: One of Sanders’ best plays was in moving to his right out of the pocket to buy time for Jeudy crossing the middle of the field. Sanders put the ball on the money some 20 yards at the 50, but as Jeudy ran with the ball safety Jeremy Chinn tomahawked it out of his hands from behind. It went as a 39-yard completion. The Raiders recovered the fumble but couldn’t capitalize. Another three-and-out by Smith resulted in a punt and more boos.

9. Prime in the house: Deion Sanders strode to the Browns’ sideline during pre-game warm-ups. Coach Prime was decked out in a light brown hoodie and wore a white cowboy hat. He watched the game from a suite and was shown reacting to his son’s ups and downs throughout the telecast of the game.

10. Pre-game notes: Offensive tackles Cam Robinson and Jack Conklin, who each suffered knee injuries in the last game, were both made active for the game. Inactives for the Browns were: quarterback Dillon Gabriel, running back Rocket Sanders, guard Zak Zinter, offensive tackle Cornelius Lucas, receiver Jamari Thrash and defensive end Alex Wright.