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When the Cleveland Browns drafted Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft -- two rounds after taking fellow quarterback Dillon Gabriel -- they invited a huge spotlight on their quarterback competition this offseason. 

With veterans Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco already signed prior to the Draft, things are not only crowded in the Cleveland QB room, but there's plenty of uncertainty as well. Flacco is 40 years old, Pickett had a less than stellar first two years in Pittsburgh before being sent to Philadelphia as a backup last year and then they tossed in two rookie QBs, one who had the most stunning Draft week slide in history. 

All of that puts Browns coach Kevin Stefanski and his staff under quite the microscope as they navigate the QB competition this season, particularly given Sanders' popularity and very vocal following. While Pickett is the frontrunner to be starter, any struggles will lead to calls for Sanders to get a shot. 

Stefanski joined ESPN Cleveland radio on Friday and was asked about Sanders' popularity and whether it can cause problems in the locker room, and he not only brushed that aside but offered high praise for the rookie quarterback. 

"Shedeur's a great kid," Stefanski said. "And whether it's a following that he's earned -- I mean, that's something that he's done a great job of, interacting with fans. But he's a great, great kid. He's working like crazy, just like all the guys."These rookies, my office is downstairs. They've gotta walk by my office as they come in, and they come in early. Shedeur, like all those guys, he's in there early. He's getting his work done. He's working really, really hard. I like everything there is about Shedeur."

Given all of the talk in the lead up to the Draft and during Sanders' slide was about the reported bad interviews he had and how teams began questioning his leadership and work ethic, this is a notable quote from Stefanski. Sanders, for his part, has said all the right things since falling to the fifth round and arriving in Cleveland. He recently shrugged off any awkwardness between himself and Gabriel, praising his fellow rookie QB and noting that they're "cool." 

We'll have to wait until later this summer to see how the Browns depth chart shakes out, but for now it's nothing but positivity in Cleveland regarding their QB competition.