You can question Shedeur Sanders’ debut performance for the Cleveland Browns, but Emmanuel Acho won’t let Rex Ryan question his body language.
Sanders made his NFL game debut for the Browns Sunday afternoon, coming off the bench after fellow rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel suffered a concussion. And there was plenty to be critical of Sanders about after he went 4-of-16 for 47 yards, one interception and a fumble in Cleveland’s 23-16 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. But after Ryan questioned whether Sanders even cares about his team and the game Monday morning on ESPN’s Get Up, Acho came to the rookie quarterback’s defense.
.@EmmanuelAcho SOUNDS OFF on Rex Ryan’s recent comments about Shedeur needing to “get over himself” 😳
WE ARE LIVE IN THE SPEAKEASY RIGHT NOW DISCUSSING HURTS AND THE EAGLES ➡️ https://t.co/PPJyxAYjBg pic.twitter.com/PTcLUG21C4
— Speakeasy (@speakeasytlkshw) November 18, 2025
“If Rex Ryan wants to talk crazy about Shedeur Sanders, then let me talk crazy about Rex Ryan,” Acho ranted Monday night on Speakeasy. “Because Rex Ryan made some imbecilic remarks. Like, truly imbecilic remarks. How in the world are you going to criticize Shedeur Sanders’ body language after that game? If there’s one thing Shedeur Sanders did great in that game, it was his body language. He came onto the field after halftime, out of surprise. ‘Hey, offense, let’s get into it. Hey, crowd, let’s get into it. I know our team is sucked up to this point. Offense ain’t scored no points up to this point. I think maybe a field goal. Defense had done some things. Hey, let’s get into it.’
“Then after the offensive line was throwing nothing but look-out blocks, ‘Hey, Shedeur look-out!’ Offensive line was throwing nothing but look-out blocks. Shedeur Sanders still maintained his poise, still maintained his on-field integrity,” Acho continued. “And, Rex Ryan, you want to continue to attack Shedeur time after time after time. Are you not tired? Are you not tired of coming at Shedeur? Truly. And the first time, Rex, I was with you… this is dumb.”
The first time came after Sanders claimed he was capable of providing better quarterback play than some of the current starters around the league. Ryan accused Sanders of running his mouth, which prompted the rookie quarterback to mime answers the next time he was approached by reporters.
Sanders has been a lightning rod for attention since before the NFL Draft, much of it to no fault of his own. But he’s still given critics like Rex Ryan plenty of ammunition during his rookie season with the Browns. You can question some of his comments, and you can certainly criticize his debut. But Ryan was reaching when he questioned Sanders’ body language and whether the quarterback cares.