A shocking NFL Draft slide finally comes to an end in the fifth round as Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders officially lands with the Cleveland Browns.
The team selected Sanders with the 144th overall pick after trading up to the slot for the quarterback. When the fifth round began at 12 p.m. EST on Saturday, Sanders held long +2500 odds on DraftKings Sportsbook to be drafted by the Browns, likely a product of the team selecting quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the third round on Friday.
The 2024 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year, Sanders led the conference in passing yards (4,134), touchdowns (37), and completion percentage (74.0%). He takes care of the ball with 67 touchdowns to just 13 interceptions in two years of FBS play, and his 71.8% career completion percentage marks an FBS record. The Colorado product excels in the short and intermediate passing game, a strength which provides a potential floor in the game manager genre of signal-callers.
While Sanders was often mocked as a first-round talent, a fall into the second round didn’t feel impossible — this slide to the fifth round feels unprecedented, though. This is a player who remained in the running to enter the NFL as a top-10 pick just days ago, yet multiple QB-needy teams passed on him several times over. What drove this drop-off?
Several factors work against Sanders. He’s no perfect prospect on the field due to taking excess sacks by holding the ball too long and trying to extend plays rather than throw it away. According to reports, Sanders’ team interviews didn’t play out well during the pre-draft process, either. Ever since entering the NCAA, Sanders’ personality has polarized pundits and fans alike. Just like his father, he doesn’t shy away from spectacle, but his numbers backed up the talk. To general managers and coaches on the clock, these off-field aspects likely created concerns about Shedeur’s coachability.
Few quarterbacks chosen with Day 3 selections pan out as more than a backup — you can count the number of starting quarterbacks in the league that weren’t first-round picks on one hand. However, Sanders isn’t the typical fifth-round quarterback.
Again, he was a projected first-round pick in most mock drafts just a matter of days ago. Sanders clearly possesses raw talent and a level of upside unmatched by any other prospect remaining on the board. The range of outcomes feels relatively wide, but there’s certainly a world where the 23-year-old becomes a top-half starting quarterback in this league. At some point, the tantalizing upside absolutely must outweigh the negatives on his prospect profile. It took five rounds, but a team finally recognized that and it’s almost fitting the Browns appear willing to take that gamble.
Which player emerges as Cleveland’s starter will be one of the most fascinating storylines in the NFL once training camps begin. The Browns’ quarterback room currently includes five signal-callers between Deshaun Watson, Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel, and Sanders.
Of course, Watson continues rehabbing a major ligament tear with one of the worst contracts in sports, and his play certainly isn’t starting-caliber. Flacco still has a bit of juice, but the 40-year-old clearly won’t be a long-term option at the position. The Browns traded for Pickett last month, but at a low cost for a player who didn’t flash enough to keep a starting spot during his Pittsburgh tenure. As for Gabriel, he possesses plenty of experience and produced well in college, but comes in shy of six feet tall and lacks next-level athleticism.
From the looks of it, a wide-open quarterback battle lies in the cards for Cleveland. A roster cut may also loom, though Gabriel and Sanders presumably would remain safe in such an instance due to the draft capital invested in each. Cutting Watson incurs a massive nine-figure dead cap bill due to his guaranteed money, so he’s a tricky cut, too.
Can Sanders compete for a starting spot? 100%, and there’s a chance he might even trot onto the field from the jump once Week 1 rolls around in September. Given the fifth-round draft capital, he’ll just need to prove himself before the team hands over the reigns under center.
Interestingly enough, DraftKings Sportsbook already lists Sanders with +1500 odds of winning 2025-26 Offensive Rookie of the Year, the sixth-best odds of any player. He’s capable of taking over as the starter and entering the running for the award, so watch for him to make some noise once training camps are underway in July.
