The Cleveland Browns were spit-roasted by the NFL community after passing on Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders multiple times in the 2025 NFL Draft, instead choosing to select linebacker Carson Schwesinger and running back Quinshon Judkins in the second round as well as Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the third round.
The Browns corrected their initial error by taking Sanders anyway, albeit in the fifth round with the No. 144 overall pick after a trade up with the Philadelphia Eagles. Sanders is arriving in a very crowded quarterback room that already features veteran Joe Flacco and former first-rounder Kenny Pickett.
With Deshaun Watson unlikely to play this season, it seems likely that one of either Flacco or Pickett will begin the season as the starting quarterback in Cleveland. Sanders, however, may have changed the entire calculus on the fly.
Sanders may come into the league with his status as a fifth-round pick hanging over him, but he is also the type of player who could lean on his superior accuracy and propensity to strike quickly down the field to beat out both veterans and rookies alike to win the Week 1 quarterback job.
Shedeur Sanders selection saved Cleveland Browns' quarterback room
Sanders is by no means a perfect prospect, but he is a player that has tremendous accuracy down the field, the ability to fit the ball into tight windows, avoid costly turnovers, and place the ball in the perfect spot down the field could make him the best option for Cleveland as they try to find a Week 1 starter.
Sanders is a better athlete than the aging, decrepit Flacco, has a much better arm than recent third-rounder Gabriel, and doesn't have the limited physical skills of recent trade acquisition Pickett. In terms of his ceiling, Sanders is without question the best option on the board.
It might be unconventional to start a fifth-round pick on Day 1 of the Draft, especially when you brought in two quarterbacks in the offseason and drafted a player ahead of Sanders in Gabriel beforehand. However, in terms of talent, Sanders should be able to win out against inferior competition.
Sanders has been humbled after starting his career as a fifth-round pick and fourth-string quarterback. However, the same guy who made Jackson State a program that was on the tip of everyone's tongue and helped forge Colorado into college football's greatest show should have no problem making his mark in Cleveland.