Why Shedeur Sanders told NFL teams not to draft him

Shedeur Sanders' historic draft slide could've ended sooner.

The Baltimore Ravens were planning to draft the Colorado Buffaloes quarterback in the fifth round with the 141st overall pick. However, he was opposed to the idea of being Lamar Jackson's backup and wanted a situation to play immediately, according to a report by ESPN's Adam Schefter.

"Sanders knew that Jackson, a two-time MVP and one of the top players in the league, was not going to be losing his job as Baltimore's starting quarterback anytime soon," Schefter said. So the Ravens passed on Sanders and the Cleveland Browns traded up to select him three picks later. 

But was this all part of the plan put forward by Deion Sanders? 

Nearly a full year before the 2025 NFL Draft, Coach Prime appeared on the Million Dollaz Worth of Game podcast and said there were certain NFL cities his sons, including Travis Hunter, would not go to. "All this is subjective because I know where I kind of want them to go," Sanders said. "And let's not forget Shilo (Sanders)... But I know where I want them to go. There's certain cities where it ain't going to happen. It's going to be an "Eli" (Manning). We ain't doing that." 

This was the first time Sanders played the role of agent and openly wanted to control his son's future. The narrative continued during the season and throughout the draft process. Shedeur Sanders tried to pitch at a few teams on his "preferred" list, including the New York Giants, Las Vegas Raiders and Miami Dolphins. This came by way of interviews, appearances and wearing specifically branded coloways of his father's Nike signature shoes. 

In the end, Cleveland was the unlikely place with Deion even ripping his son's current teammate, Joe Flacco, for being too old before the Browns took him on Day 3. Shedeur is listed third on the depth chart as the emergency QB behind Flacco and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel. The crowded quarterback room was reduced by one before the season with Kenny Pickett being traded to the Las Vegas Raiders and Tyler Huntley getting released. This cleared a path for Sanders to make Cleveland's 53-man roster.

We'll see when Sanders gets his first real experience to come off the bench for the Browns. For now, it's all about development at the next level. 

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