The Cleveland Browns shook up their quarterback room Tuesday, shipping Joe Flacco to the Cincinnati Bengals and bumping Shedeur Sanders to QB2 behind rookie starter Dillon Gabriel.
The sudden move led to endless chatter across the football community. But nobody defended the rookie signal-caller quite like his mom, Pilar Sanders.
Shedeur Sanders’ Mom Drops Savage Message About Son’s Backup QB Role After Joe Flacco Trade
Pilar posted a Friday Instagram reel showing off her cooking skills, frying some tasty shrimp and lobster with the caption “It’s Friday!” It seemed innocent enough. Then a fan commented asking if she was cooking all that food to celebrate Shedeur’s backup role. Her response was in no way less than pure mama bear energy.
View this post on Instagram
Pilar clapped back with a statement that left no room for interpretation. “For Shedeur’s yes – we know 2 has always been 1 – the matrix will try to make u believe anything hahahahah – never fall for tall tales”. Her son might wear the QB2 label, but she sees him as the real QB1.
The “matrix” comment suggests she believes the depth chart is smoke and mirrors. In her eyes, Shedeur’s the top dog regardless of what the official roster says. Her message came just hours after Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed the depth chart adjustment Friday.
The Joe Flacco trade sent the veteran quarterback and a sixth-round pick to Cincinnati for a fifth-rounder. Quite frankly, it was one of the more surprising moves in Browns’ recent memory.
The deal left Cleveland without an experienced backup behind Gabriel, surprising even head coach Kevin Stefanski. But for Pilar, the internal shake-up only reinforced her belief that her son belongs at the top of the depth chart.
Shedeur Sanders Breaks Silence After Browns’ Shocking Joe Flacco Trade
While his mom fired off bold predictions, Shedeur took the high road, praising Flacco’s mentorship during their time together in Cleveland. Sanders said Flacco helped him tremendously and that he leaned on the veteran for wisdom.
#Browns back-up QB Shedeur Sanders speaks exclusively to @fox8news @John_Sabol about the trade of Joe Flacco to the #Bengals. pic.twitter.com/PDQF6ihBz1
— P.J. ZIEGLER (@PJFOX8) October 7, 2025
The rookie added, per Bolavip, “I’m happy that I’m able to figure out all this different stuff about myself… We’re just teammates, relationships, everybody. I’m just thankful that we get up and are able to have something that we do and we love every day.”
The best part? He acknowledged the backup role gave him a perspective he wouldn’t have achieved as an immediate starter.
Browns listed him as their QB2 on Tuesday’s unofficial depth chart for their upcoming game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Whether Pilar’s prediction comes true remains to be seen.
But Shedeur’s got his mom in his corner for sure, who is not buying the backup single-caller narrative at all.
