Shedeur Sanders is full of gratitude – and at the top of Browns depth chart | Opinion

No, the draft is not an exact science.

And look at him now. One year later, Sanders, 24, is anything but a man defined by the draft drama. With a new coach in Todd Monken calling the shots, Sanders has a legitimate shot at beating out Deshaun Watson and Dillon Gabriel for the starting job.

In fact, given his improvement over the course of his rookie year, when he started the last seven games (3-4) and wound up in the Pro Bowl Games as an injury replacement, now the expectation is that Sanders will head into the coming season as QB1.

The first time the Browns hit the field in a practice under Monken, Sanders took the first quarterback reps with the first-team offense.

“He was first man up,” Monken responded when it was pointed out.

Watson, it should be noted, rotated with Sanders in taking first-team snaps.

Browns coaching change boosting Shedeur Sanders

Still, it’s a different flow for Sanders, who didn’t take any first-team reps last season until an injury to Gabriel opened the door for him to crack the starting lineup. And while Sanders didn’t want to dwell on last year, he certainly sent a message of gratitude – intended or not – about the difference in the coaching influence. Monken, the former Ravens offensive coordinator, filled the vacancy created with the firing of Kevin Stefanski.

Sanders didn’t mention Stefanski by name, but he didn’t have to.

“Coach Monken is great,” Sanders said. “And all the other coaches on the staff (are) extremely great. You’ve got to understand they embrace you just as a person and then they push you each and every day, in the meeting room and on the field, in the weight room. Like, it’s a new vibe. It’s a new energy.”

Sanders has spent much of the offseason in Cleveland, which has been noticed. During the recent NFL owners meetings, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam told reporters that it spoke to the quarterback’s “dedication for wanting to be an NFL quarterback and understanding what it takes.”  Haslam added that “his body looked better.”

Naturally, someone followed up on Tuesday asked Sanders about his training regimen. Interestingly, he seemingly took it as a cue to heap more praise on Monken.

“I think it’s honestly about like talking to coach,” he said. “I think coach just spoke life into me. And when you do that, you get the best result from me.”

On top of gratitude, this emerging bond with Monken was a prevailing theme as the media-savvy quarterback – now wearing No. 2, the number he wore at Colorado, Jackson State and in high school – held court.

As Sanders put it, “I’m a relationship-based person, so I take relationships extremely serious.”

Sanders embracing Todd Monken's playbook

Which apparently helps, too, in learning Monken’s playbook. Remember, as Sanders languished as a fourth-stringer well into training camp last season, there were rumblings that he struggled with Stefanski’s playbook.

Not so much now, apparently, as it relates to Monken’s system. And as much as he didn’t want to look back on last year, when his relationship with Stefanski seemed strained, Sanders finished off his session with what sounded like a laser dart – wrapped in glowing praise for Monken & Co.

“I know how I learn,” he said. “So, knowing that I know how I learn is great…and the coaches are able to, like, communicate in different ways to help you learn. And that’s why I appreciate the coaching staff, honestly, because you could say somebody don’t know how to learn, but it’s like, how did the person get all the way to this level if you don’t know how to learn?

“So, then you’ve got to change the perspective and think, ‘Does he not know how to learn? ... Does he not know how to learn or do I not know how to communicate with him?’ It’s just simple as that. So, I’m just thankful that my coaches now … are extremely embracing.”

The moral of this story: What a difference a year makes.

Contact Bell at jbell@usatoday.com or follow on X: @JarrettBell

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Shedeur Sanders starts Browns' offseason as QB1 over Deshaun Watson