Shedeur Sanders' Confrontation With Cleveland Media Member After Preseason Win

Cleveland Browns rookie Shedeur Sanders turned heads in his NFL debut in a preseason matchup against the Carolina Panthers on Friday night, and the former Colorado Buffaloes star confronted one of his biggest critics among the Cleveland media after the game.

Aug 8, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders (12) on the sideline during the second half against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium. | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Cleveland Browns rookie Shedeur Sanders turned heads in his NFL debut in a preseason matchup against the Carolina Panthers on Friday night, and the former Colorado Buffaloes star appeared to confront one of his biggest critics among the Cleveland media.

ESPN Cleveland's Tony Grossi has been rather critical of Sanders throughout training camp, and the Browns rookie quarterback had something to say to Grossi after throwing two touchdowns against the Panthers:

Aug 8, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders (12) reacts after the game at Bank of America Stadium. | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Shedeur Sanders Confronts Tony Grossi:

In a behind-the-scenes video posted to Deion Sanders Jr.'s YouTube channel, Well Off Media, Shedeur Sanders is seen confronting Grossi in the tunnel after the game.

“Tony, I be hoping you have something positive to say about me. You only say negative stuff about me. And I’m like, ‘I ain’t do nothing to you,'" Sanders said to Grossi.

Shedeur Sanders addresses Cleveland-based sports journalist and Browns analyst Tony Grossi, who’s known for being critical and biased toward him.

“You always say negative stuff about me. I didn’t do nothing to you. I’ve never seen you say anything positive about me.”

(🎥: Well… pic.twitter.com/SGpmmyXF74

— The Art Of Dialogue (@ArtOfDialogue_) August 9, 2025

The response from Grossi cannot be heard in the clip, but the Browns rookie doubled down on his stance:

“I ain’t hear nothing positive you’ve ever said,” the 23-year-old responded.

It was a relatively light-hearted moment, as Grossi and Sanders shared a laugh after Grossi's response.

“Come on, bro. What I do? What I do to you Tony?” Sanders said as he walked away.

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Apr 30, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) reacts during the first half in game five of first round for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Overwhelming Reaction to Sanders' Preseason Performance

Sanders finished the game with 138 passing yards, completing 14 of 23 attempts. After facing limited reps in practice before the preseason matchup, Sanders' performance has caught the attention of many. Even Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, a native of Akron, Ohio, reacted to Sanders' game on Friday.

Still, the Browns rookie is not satisfied. Sanders might be his hardest critic, as he shared his reaction to the game when speaking to the media.

"So, it's just the small details that of course we practice on and we talk about. Towards the end I'll say we got a little sloppy and we overall gonna finish it up, and that's going to be a point of emphasis going into this next week. But, I was just thankful just to share that moment with everybody," Sanders said after the win.

As for Browns coach Kevin Stefanski, the Cleveland coach seemed please with the development of Sanders.

Aug 8, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski looks at the scoreboard during the second quarter against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium. | Scott Kinser-The USAToday Network via Imagn Images

"The situations were invaluable for Shedeur and all of our offense," Stefanski said. "We got a third-and-1 where he had a quarterback sneak. I mean, there's just a lot of football and that's by design with him getting a ton of reps in this game, and he'll get a ton of reps next week as well. That's all part of our development of our young players."

Sanders and the Browns have two preseason games remaining against the Philadelphia Eagles (Aug. 16) and Los Angeles Rams (Aug. 23). If Saners continues to impress, will he have a real chance at winning the starting job for Cleveland?