With an injury-laden offensive line, the Cleveland Browns entered Week 15 with multiple moves. One of them was signing their highest-graded guard, according to PFF, to the active roster. However, in a loss where their rookie quarterback, Shedeur Sanders, was sacked a career-high five times, Dellinger had to pay the price as the team waived off the debutant. Now, to enter Week 16 against the Buffalo Bills, the team has turned to an ousted Cowboys player for help.

“French appeared in games at center for the Colts in 2023,” wrote ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi on X. “So, after losing Garrett Dellinger to waivers, French could serve in a similar backup center/guard role if needed on Sunday.”

However, as it was with Dellinger, Wesley French might also be a backup.

French was signed by the Indianapolis Colts in 2023 as an undrafted free agent. He appeared in 17 games with them, including three starts, before the Cowboys signed him to their practice squad earlier this year. Dallas signed him temporarily to address injuries at his position in September, and released him in November since starting center Cooper Beebe was activated from the Injured Reserve.

For Shedeur Sanders, the move is about survival as much as development.

Although the Browns have only won one game with Sanders under the center, the Dawg Pound has seen enough development from the fifth-rounder to keep him as their starter. However, while the rhythm was just starting to click, Cleveland suffered multiple O-line injuries and other moves.

Browns face O-line dilemma amid Shedeur Sanders’ development

First, they moved OL Ethan Pocic, RB Jerome Ford, and offensive tackle Dawand Joneson to injured reserve on Tuesday and signed OL Darrian Dalcourt and DT Keith Cooper Jr. to the practice squad. The next day, they signed OL Jeremiah Byers, RB Trayveon Williams, and CB Trey Avery. Finally, on Saturday, they waived wide receiver Jamari Thrash for Dellinger. However, they undid the last move as the Browns fell 31-3 to the Bears.

For the Browns, who are no longer looking to win but get some effective reps for their rookie QB, this move could be good.

The Colorado product has shown that he does not break under pressure. Just take his complete pass in the Chicago loss despite having a defensive lineman all over him and falling right after the throw was made. Still, adding French could give Cleveland’s interior line insurance, helping keep pressure off the rookie’s face and allowing him to operate without the pocket collapsing snap after snap.

However, after losing multiple offensive linemen for the season, French might still be a temporary fix. With the majority of the offensive line injured and Dellinger now waived off for wide receiver Jamari Thrash, it’s becoming tougher for the young quarterback, Sanders, to click with the new faces again.

It is important to mention that, unlike fellow rookie QB Dillon Gabriel, Sanders never received any first-team reps until he had to take the field against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 11. Despite that lack of chemistry, he quickly showed off his arm strength and running legs with impressive plays. But a changing O-line has brought back all the troubles for him.

Against the Chicago Bears, Sanders had a few accurate throws and was sacked five times. The opposing defense logged three interceptions as well. That isn’t a good look if the Browns want to proceed with this roster in 2026 as Sanders tries to work with them against a team like the Bills with Josh Allen under center. However, the head coach Stefanski doesn’t seem too concerned about Sanders’ future.

Kevin Stefanski focused on Shedeur Sanders’ growth

As disastrous as Week 15 was for the Browns, Stefanski isn’t using it to judge the 23-year-old QB’s progress. Speaking to the media, he sent a reassuring message to Sanders, telling him to treat the Bears game as just another game and not let it shake his confidence. More importantly, he urged the rookie to view it as a learning and growing experience.

“The sky’s not falling,” said Stefanski. “Look at history in terms of young players, and sometimes there’s moments that aren’t going to go your way, and you learn from those. So that’s no different for any position, no different for Shedeur versus any other player. There’s going to be really good games. There’s going to be games you want back. There’s going to be plays you want back, great plays.”

Despite inclining to keep Gabriel as their primary signal caller for most of the season, it was clear that Stefanski understood that this was all part of the learning curve for a young player and is now focused on Sanders, who has excited Berea from the get-go.

In fact, this confidence post-game was seen in Shedeur as well, who reflected on the performance with a positive mindset. He’s taking this loss as a moment to analyze his play and learn to get better. In the game, he completed 18 of 35 passes for 177 yards with 24 rushing yards on two attempts. His development may appear slow, but it has been consistent. That’s something Stefanski is counting on.

With the Bills all but locked into a postseason spot and Cleveland already eliminated, Sunday’s matchup is less about the standings and more about evaluation. Whether Wesley French actually sees the field remains uncertain, but his presence gives the Browns another interior option as they continue testing combinations around Shedeur Sanders.