Browns' Shedeur Sanders shares head-scratching excuse for bad turnover vs. Bears

On a day when Deshaun Watson's numbers looked much better than the actual tape, Shedeur Sanders did little to gain ground in the Cleveland Browns' QB1 race.

He looked better in the pocket when he first took the field, but it all went downhill after a failed fourth-down conversion on his first drive. Sanders regressed to his rookie-season form with an overthrown pass that led to an interception. While the play design showed that he made the right read, it was just a bad throw.

However, when asked about the moment, the second-year quarterback said he was mad about the execution, but he also thought the ball was sandy. In fact, he claimed that's also why Dillon Gabriel threw a pick of his own shortly after.

Shedeur Sanders says the football was "sandy"

“That was just a moment just to laugh at between us, honestly, because it was the right decision,” Sanders said, per Cleveland.com. “I talked to him when he got to the sideline. I said, ‘Hey, what happened?’ He’s like, ‘Bro, the ball is sandy.’”

Sanders wobbled throws and sailed one past his receiver, which are two things he constantly did at Colorado and as a rookie. As for Gabriel, it was more of the same for the former third-round pick, who had reportedly made some noise in training camp.

“I said, ‘Bruh, I know the ball’s sandy.’ So it was just a good moment to just talk about it and laugh about after it’s over. But the decision-making and being able to execute what’s out there was the best thing,” added Sanders.

Of course, there are additional challenges that come with playing in a place like Soldier Field, and it's not like that can't or won't be a factor. That said, he won't have room for that type of excuse when he takes the field with the starters at home on Saturday vs. the Buffalo Bills.