• The numbers behind Shedeur Sanders’ debut need context: His 66.7% accurate-pass rate and 9.4-yard average depth of target look strong at first glance, but four deep attempts were responsible for most of that vertical profile. Removing those shots drops his aDOT to just 1.56 yards downfield, revealing a debut built largely on quick-game and behind-the-line concepts rather than sustained aggression.

• Production against the blitz: When the Raiders brought extra rushers, Sanders remained calm and aggressive. He completed only two of his five attempts but generated 69 yards on those completions. The result was a 78.0 passing grade, seventh at the position.

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Cleveland didn’t need Shedeur Sanders to be perfect in Week 12. They just needed him to be better than what they saw a week ago — and he was.

After a historically rough relief appearance in Week 11, Sanders’ first NFL start delivered something the Browns haven’t seen in a long time: explosive-play flashes and enough composure to end a 17-game losing streak by Cleveland quarterbacks making their first start.

Let’s break down the numbers from his Week 12 starting debut, but first, some quick context on the introduction to NFL action he had to work past.

Week 11 was as bad as it gets

Sanders’ Week 11 cameo was about as rough as an NFL debut can be.

Inserted with 12:43 left in the third quarter after Dillon Gabriel exited with a concussion, Sanders went 4-of-16 for 47 yards, one interception and two sacks, finishing with a 13.5 passer rating. He made one big-time throw but also recorded three turnover-worthy plays, moving the chains just three times on passing plays.

His 27.4 PFF grade ranked dead last among all quarterbacks that week and 192nd out of 199 qualifying first-start game grades in our database since 2006.

Cleveland finished with just 187 yards of offense, including only 64 with Sanders under center. Gabriel had completed 7 of 10 for 68 yards in the first half.

The only acceptable takeaway entering Week 12: it couldn’t get worse.

Week 12: A real starting debut and real improvement

Sanders didn’t light up the box score in his starting debut, but he made the plays Cleveland needed and avoided the Week 11 snowball. He finished 11-of-20 for 209 yards, one touchdown and one interception, with one big-time throw and one turnover-worthy play.

All told, he generated 10.45 yards per attempt, the 15th-best single-game mark by a Browns QB since 2006.

Accuracy and Depth of Target

Sanders’ accuracy profile was one of the bright spots of his first start. His 66.7% accurate-pass rate ranked seventh among quarterbacks in Week 12, and when paired with an official average depth of target of 9.4 yards — the sixth-highest of the week — it initially paints the picture of a rookie pushing the ball vertically with confidence.

In reality, that aDOT figure was heavily inflated by four specific throws: the 52-yard strike to Isaiah Bond, a 39-yard completion to Jerry Jeudy in the second quarter, and two deep incompletions that traveled 31 and 34 yards in the air. Once you remove those four attempts, Sanders’ average depth of target collapses to just 1.56 yards beyond the line of scrimmage.

Now, that isn’t a criticism or even a judgement; it’s just context. Those numbers help explain the why behind his box score. The underneath-heavy distribution shows that most of his work came on quick, low-risk throws, even though the official aDOT suggests a more aggressive profile.

Six of his attempts came behind the line of scrimmage, and another six in the short range between 1 and 9 yards. He tested the intermediate level (10-19 yards) only twice, and the four deep shots (20-plus yards) mentioned earlier represented the entirety of his vertical passing profile. Two additional plays were simply throwaways.

The efficiency of those throws varied across the field. Sanders was most productive behind the line of scrimmage, completing five of six passes for 86 yards, including the touchdown to Dylan Sampson that turned a simple check-down into a 66-yard score.

His short-area passing was more uneven — four completions on six attempts for 32 yards and the interception — while his two intermediate throws fell incomplete.

The vertical game produced the most juice, as he went 2-for-4 on deep attempts for 91 yards, including the best throw of his afternoon.

From a clean pocket

Rookie quarterbacks typically rely on clean-pocket situations to steady themselves, but this was one area where Sanders struggled to generate meaningful production. He completed six of his nine attempts for 93 yards and a touchdown from clean pockets, posting a 137.7 passer rating. But the underlying process didn’t match the efficiency of the box-score line. His average depth of target was only 6.6 yards, none of those throws qualified as big-time throws or turnover-worthy plays, and just one of the completions moved the chains.

That combination led to a 50.4 clean-pocket passing grade, which ranked 26th out of 27 qualifying quarterbacks for the week.

Under Pressure

Sanders’ most promising work came under duress. And he had to be sharp, because no quarterback in Week 12 faced pressure more frequently. He was pressured on an NFL-high 57.1% of his dropbacks, a figure that forced him to operate outside structure for a lot of the afternoon.

Despite that, he handled the chaos reasonably well. Sanders completed five of his 11 attempts for 116 yards under pressure, producing one big-time throw and one turnover-worthy play. He took only one sack and moved the chains three times, though the passer rating on these throws sat at just 46.0.

His 52.8 passing grade, however, ranked 13th among 27 qualifiers, a relatively respectable showing given the environment.

Against the Blitz

This was his strongest situational split. When the Raiders brought extra rushers, Sanders remained calm and aggressive. He completed only two of his five attempts but generated 69 yards on those completions, with both moving the chains. His average depth of target jumped to 18.4 yards — tied for the second-highest mark of the week — and his lone big-time throw came against a blitz, the off-platform bomb to Bond. The result was a 78.0 passing grade, seventh at the position.

This is the play style PFF loved on his college tape: calm, decisive and willing to attack downfield when defenses challenge him.

When Not Blitzed

The picture changed when Las Vegas sat back in coverage. Against standard four- and five-man rushes, Sanders completed nine of 15 attempts for 140 yards with a touchdown and an interception. None of his throws in these situations qualified as big-time throws, while one earned a turnover-worthy designation.

He moved the chains only twice and finished with a 36.9 passing grade, ranking 25th among the 26 quarterbacks with enough snaps to qualify.

Play Action vs. Non-Play Action

The Browns didn’t lean heavily on play action, and the results were modest. Sanders completed two of his four attempts for 56 yards using play fakes, generating one first down and a 95.8 passer rating. His passing grade on those throws came in at 45.4, ranking 19th for the week. On traditional dropbacks, he went 9-for-16 for 153 yards, the touchdown and the interception, with three first downs and an 83.6 rating. His non-play-action passing grade — 55.1 — also ranked 19th.

Screen Game vs. Non-Screen Game

Cleveland leaned on screens to get Sanders comfortable, and the rookie took the freebies. He attempted five screen passes, completing four for 69 yards and the touchdown to Sampson. Those throws carried an average depth of target of -6 yards but produced a perfect 158.3 passer rating.

Everything outside the screen game was much tougher. Sanders completed seven of his 15 non-screen passes for 140 yards and the interception, producing only three first downs and a 52.1 passer rating. His lone big-time throw and turnover-worthy play both came outside the screen structure, and his passing grade on those plays settled at 47.3, 24th among 27 quarterbacks.

The bottom line

In the end, none of this should be taken as a sweeping judgment. It’s one start. The sample is tiny. But it was also a clear step forward from what we saw in Week 11, and that matters for a rookie quarterback trying to recalibrate his footing.

We liked Sanders coming out of the draft for a reason — back-to-back seasons with 88.0-plus PFF grades, poised under pressure and a clean-operation style that translated every week on his college tape.

If he continues stacking practice reps and settles into the speed of the NFL game, the Browns should start to see more of that version. There’s plenty of runway left, and this was at least a move in the right direction.