Behind the Mystifying Slide of Shedeur Sanders in NFL Draft

Colorado QB and son of Deion is finally drafted by Cleveland in the fifth round
Posted Apr 27, 2025 7:55 AM CDT
Would He Be in the Top 5? Nobody Predicted 144
A screen shows Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders after being chosen by the Cleveland Browns with the 144th overall pick during the third day of the NFL football draft, Saturday, April 26, 2025, in Green Bay, Wis.   (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Maybe the biggest story in the NFL draft centered not on the first pick but on the 144th. On Saturday, the Cleveland Browns selected Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round, reports the AP. It was a stunner because at one point, Sanders—son of former NFL phenom and Colorado coach Deion Sanders—was thought to be a first-round lock, maybe even a top-five overall pick. But team after team passed him by, starting on Thursday night. In fact, five quarterbacks were picked before him.

  • There was no clear explanation for the slide, as evidenced by the struggles of TV analysts over the last two days, per Awful Announcing, which rounds up examples. "There's a combination of factors going on here," said Joel Klatt as teams kept passing. "This is not on the field. If this is just about his playing ability, he's going to be drafted by this point. So, it's off the field. It's personality. It's fit with an organization. It's a meeting that didn't go the right way. But, one thing that I do know is: this guy can play."
  • One common idea offered was that teams feared that Deion Sanders might end up being a "meddlesome father," per the Athletic. And what NFL coach wants that kind of hassle for a backup quarterback?
  • One of the more damning assessments came via the NFL Network, which quoted an anonymous NFL assistant coach who said Sanders was "the worst formal interview I've ever been in in my life." The coach called the 23-year-old "entitled," and said he was quick to blame teammates and had "horrible body language."
  • The player himself was only positive after being selected. "Nothing really affected me the last couple of days, just really pushed having faith, understanding God really had me," Sanders said. "I know I've got to clean up some things in my game for me to be at my best, but that's why I take each offseason one at a time and fix it." He said the "main thing" going forward was proving that the Browns were right to pick him, per Fox Sports.
(More NFL draft stories.)

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