"Gotta teach a rookie how to stay in rookie's place": C.J. Gardner-Johnson takes shots at Shedeur Sanders after Browns QB's horrific outing vs. Bears

Shedeur Sanders had a poor outing in the 31-3 loss to the Chicago Bears on Sunday. The quarterback completed 18 of 35 passes for 177 yards and three interceptions while getting sacked five times. He had a passer rating of 30.3, one of the worst by any quarterback in 2025.

Following the game at Soldier Field, Bears cornerback C.J. Gardner-Johnson admitted that he and the rest of his teammates on defense were eager to dish out some classic lessons to the rookie. That was what they were able to do, as he had his worst performance since becoming a starter.

"It’s about time he ran into some problems," Gardner-Johnson said about Sanders, per Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times. "He’s a great young player. They’re a great young group that’s playing hard, physical. He’s just going against a lot of vets that have something to play for. Sometimes you gotta teach a rookie how to stay in a rookie’s place.

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Gardner-Johnson and the Bears' defense were outstanding throughout the game on Sunday, drawing commendation from Shedeur Sanders himself. In his postgame press conference, the quarterback admitted to the brilliance of the Bears' defensive setup while disclosing his feelings on the game.

“They just had a great defensive scheme, and I enjoy playing against them," Sanders said. "I enjoy playing in that because it was definitely a little challenge. So, I look forward to learning from that and look forward to understanding exactly how things were on film and just be able to learn from it.”

Shannon Sharpe slams Shedeur Sanders for trying to outrun Bears DE

In a number of situations on Sunday, Shedeur Sanders tried to outrun Chicago Bears defensive ends to make plays, but failed most of the time. Shannon Sharpe believes it was a bad idea for the rookie quarterback, as he doesn't seem to have the ability to do that.

“He’s gonna have to learn,” Sharpe said on Nightcap. “He keeps bubbling! He’s not gonna outrun defensive ends in this league. But somehow he thinks he is. You’re not your father, Shedeur; you don’t have that kind of athleticism. Sometimes, you can step up and then go! But you’re trying to bubble? It ain’t gonna happen.”

Speaking further on the show, the Pro Football Hall of Famer stressed that Shedeur Sanders has to get better at throwing in freezing conditions. He pointed out a couple of plays where the rookie had wide-open receivers and floated the ball high, instead of firing a crisp line drive.

Edited by Farouk Yusuf