When Shedeur Sanders gets his first NFL start for Cleveland against Geno Smith and the Raiders, I see two franchises that clearly do not have their QB of the future on the roster.

– Luke, Oregon outlier

Kiz: Doomed to finish no better than last place in the AFC West, the Raiders passed last spring on the opportunity to take a shot on Sanders with the sixth, 58th, 68th, 98th, 99th, 108th and 135th picks in the NFL draft, before settling on the selections of no-way-they’re-pro quarterbacks Tommy Mellott of Montana State and Cam Miller of North Dakota State. Stupid is as stupid does. So do not be surprised if Sanders reminds the Raiders of their mistake. Could he struggle mightily, as rookie quarterbacks often do? Yes. Absolutely.  But the knuckleheads here at Kickin’ It Headquarters would be shocked if Sanders doesn’t throw his first TD pass as a pro … and if he’s in a position to lead the Browns to an upset victory in the fourth quarter, we wouldn’t bet against him.

C’mon, Shedeur. Let’s throw two or three interceptions, get sacked four or five times and have no touchdowns in Las Vegas. Yeah, that would work for me.

– D.G., built for speed

Kiz: We understand why folks love to hate on Sanders. There’s nothing understated about the Son of Prime. He’s a showman first and a football player second. Bright and brassy, Sanders is about as subtle as all the neon on the Las Vegas Strip. Although the Raiders cornered the market as the NFL’s outlaws years ago, when was the last time they were good enough to be worthy of anyone’s fear or loathing? Sanders was born to play for the Silver and Black. If the Raiders don’t trade for him in the offseason, they’re doing it wrong.

Let’s be real, Sanders is starting by default for the Browns. Nothing else. Next week, he sits on the bench again.

– Doug, Omaha, Nebraska

Kiz: In all of the NFL, there are no bigger clowns than the Browns. Remind me, what football organization did the Rockies raid to find their new president of baseball operations? But I digress. How Brownie would it be for Cleveland to not start Sanders until so late in the season that the best he can do is win a game or two and cost the team any shot at a top-five pick in the 2026 draft? 

Kiz, that was an excellent column you wrote on Avs captain Gabe Landeskog. Thanks for explaining why we all love Landy so much. Your analysis is spot on.

– R., happy Avs-aholic

Kiz: The ingredients of a winning culture can seem mysterious and elusive until you observe how much the presence – or absence – of Landeskog means to the Avalanche.

And today’s parting shot is a clapback from Chiefs Kingdom.

I wouldn’t call a 22-19 victory by the Broncos “wrecking” the Kingdom or “crushing” the Chiefs. When y’all in Denver have nine consecutive division championships, five Super Bowl appearances and three rings with Bo Nix, then maybe you will have finally crushed it like Patrick Mahomes. Get over yourselves.

– Shayna, tomahawk chopper