Rex Ryan shares bold take about Browns' response to Shedeur Sanders debut

Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders endured what he referred to as a "rough" regular-season debut when he replaced injured starter Dillon Gabriel (concussion) in what became a 23-16 loss to the Baltimore Ravens that dropped Cleveland to 2-8 on Sunday. 

During Monday's edition of the ESPN "Get Up" program, former NFL head coach and current analyst Rex Ryan passionately discussed what he saw from Browns players once Sanders entered Sunday's game at the start of the second half.

Rex Ryan suggests Shedeur Sanders looked out of place in debut

"Why is there such a disconnect here? Is it the kid’s fault? Is it the organization’s fault? I have no idea, all right. But I am going to say this: the only energy I saw in the entire stadium was when that kid popped on the field," Ryan said about Sanders, per Adam Zagoria of NJ Advance Media. "When Shedeur walked on the field, you know who was wanting to see him play? The dang fans. And you know who never cared? His teammates. What the hell is going on in Cleveland? What is going on in Cleveland? And so to me, it’s like, are you not giving this kid a chance from day one? Why the hell did you trade him for him in the first place?"

Back in late September, Ryan said he felt Sanders "should be embarrassed" he wasn't starting over Gabriel this fall. Ryan also suggested he had been told by somebody within the Browns that Sanders hadn't been working hard enough from springtime workouts through the early days of the season. 

That said, Sanders had been buried on the Cleveland depth chart from the final day of the draft up until the club traded Week 1 QB1 Joe Flacco to the Cincinnati Bengals on Oct. 7. Against the Ravens, Sanders completed just 4-of-16 passes for 47 yards with zero touchdowns, one interception and an intentional grounding penalty. He was also sacked twice in the losing effort. 

Browns, Shedeur Sanders situation is "very strange"

As Daniel Oyefusi shared for ESPN, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed that the second half of Sunday's game was Sanders' first time playing with the Cleveland starting offense since the draft. Former NFL player and ESPN analyst Damien Woody doesn't understand why that's the case. 

"That is very, very odd, something like that," Woody said during "Get Up" about Cleveland's handling of Sanders. "Usually, as a backup, you would have, maybe on a Friday, you might get a couple. To have the starting offensive line not hear your cadence at all is very strange. I find it very odd."

With Gabriel in the concussion protocol, Sanders is on track to start when the Browns play at the Las Vegas Raiders (2-7) on Nov. 23. As of Monday morning, ESPN BET had Cleveland as a three-point underdog for that contest.