Micah Parsons was surprised that Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders conducted a postgame interview after losing on his NFL return.

On Sunday, the Browns suffered a 23-22 overtime loss to the New Orleans Saints. Deshaun Watson missed the game as he was in concussion protocol, allowing Sanders to come in and make his first start of the season.

Sanders fared fairly well. The sophomore quarterback completed 19 of 31 passes for 297 yards and two touchdowns, including a key combination with receiver KC Concepcion that allowed the rookie to score the first touchdown of his career on a 64-yard reception.

Harold Fannin Jr. had a 37-yard catch-and-run touchdown with a minute to go in overtime. But the two-point conversion to win the game came up short — even though it would have been negated anyway because of a holding call against Browns tackle Tytus Howard.

Denzel Boston also had a 60-yard reception and finished with a team-high six catches for 98 yards, only for the defense to give up the go-ahead touchdowns to Tyler Shough and the Saints at the end of regulation and again in overtime.

Still, Sanders’ performance was solid in Watson’s stead, who had cleared concussion protocol but was inactive for the game. But even in defeat, Sanders still had to speak at the podium - which confused Parsons.

“The fact that they had an interview for him after a loss is crazy,” the Green Bay Packers pass-rusher said on ‘The Edge with Micah Parsons’. “I’ve never seen that in the NFL. Like I saw that he had a hype video out. Like when he was going to be the starter.”

Sanders spoke to the media after the Browns’ loss to the Saints, where he was asked whether he felt he had done enough to supplant Watson as the starter. He said: “I think that’s a setup question, honestly. I control what I control.

“But what I think, in the grand scheme of things, doesn’t really matter. I think being a great teammate, being a great whatever role I have on the team, I could do, because you got to look at the bigger picture. We’re out here connecting with each other, growing, learning in different areas... You can’t really ever look at the situation as negative.”

Even in defeat, Sanders’ performance sparked a debate about who should be Cleveland’s starting quarterback moving forward. Watson has been effective in the fourth quarter, but has faltered throughout games before pulling a win out of the bag late, and Bill Cowher believes the Browns should turn to Sanders.

“I would just say this moving forward: Shedeur Sanders should be the starter for this football team,” Cowher said on CBS. “He’s gonna be the future, and I think what he showed today - his resiliency, he continued to come back, he made great decisions, he extended plays.

“I love the way he played and I would move forward with Shedeur.”

Watson has thrown for 1,806 yards and seven touchdowns with just three interceptions in 2026. He has also tallied five fourth-quarter game-winning drives, highlighting his ability to come alive when it matters.

With Watson in the final year of his infamous contract, it’s unclear if the Browns are contemplating a change, or when the change might come. But Browns head coach Todd Monken will roll with the veteran for now - and he will face his former team when the Browns host the 3-5 Houston Texans at Huntington Bank Field on Sunday, Nov. 15.