All Chicago Bears fans knew the moment that the Cleveland Browns turned to rookie fifth-round quarterback Shedeur Sanders, the matchup was coming for that defense.
Sanders is coming off the best performance of his young NFL career in the 31-29 loss to the Tennessee Titans in Week 14. Sanders completed 54.8% of his passes for 364 yards and three touchdowns to one interception, adding a rushing score.
Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen got a chance to watch film on the rookie and shared his assessment with the media on what he saw out of the young signal caller.
"I think he does a good job," Allen said via ESPN's Courtney Cronin. "Obviously, you still see some signs of a rookie quarterback. But in terms of being a rookie and composure in the pocket. I think you have one pass to Fannin down the defensive left side line, where he stood in the pocket, took a shot in the pocket, yet presented a really good ball for the receiver to catch. So I see a guy that's got good pocket presence. I see a guy, when he's out there, that can create. So I think he poses some significant challenges."
Allen might have some tricks up his sleeve for Sanders
As Bears fans have witnessed from an outsider's perspective with Sanders, he put up big numbers against the Titans, but has shown good progress. He's been able to get more accurate with the football, and his stats continue to increase week by week.
As everyone knows, defensive coordinators love to face rookie quarterbacks, as it's a way to get them exotic new looks they haven't seen before. Allen has a chance to use some of his key defensive players to throw Sanders off.
Nickel corner C.J. Gardner-Johnson has been a prime example of this for Chicago, as he has been used to come off of a blitz, with three sacks on the season. Lining him up in the box will give him chances to get unblocked and rush Sanders into either a sack or some mistake.
Cleveland appears they will be without at least three starters on the offensive line, including center Ethan Pocic and guards Wyatt Teller and Joel Bitonio. This is where Allen can attack the middle of the line with different stunts that Sanders wouldn't anticipate.
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If Allen has any hand in this game, he is going to try to make Sanders' life miserable in the pocket in Week 15.