Where will Shedeur Sanders land on Night 2 of the NFL Draft?

Photo Credit: George Walker IV/Associated Press

Apart from the massive trade that saw the Jacksonville Jaguars trade up to the second pick with the Cleveland Browns to select two-way playmaker Travis Hunter, the story of the night was his former college quarterback, Shedeur Sanders, falling out of the first round.

There is no clear answer to why Sanders fell out of the first round after being predicted to go to the New York Giants as early as the third-overall pick. The Giants even traded back into the first round to take a quarterback, but it was Jaxson Dart and not Sanders.

A two-year starter at Colorado, Sanders was known for his passing accuracy, finishing his college career with a 71.8 percent completion rate, an all-time FBS record. Sanders struggled mightily in the running game, finishing his two seasons at Colorado with negative rushing yards. A lot of teams are looking for quarterbacks who can do both, like Josh Allen, Jalen Hurts, and Lamar Jackson, which is also why the Giants liked Dart more than Sanders, because of his mobility, size, and speed.

Were teams thrown off by his celebrity personality? Well, a majority of NFL players are viewed as celebrities in this age of social media, but does Sanders feed too much into it? His dad, Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, was his son’s head coach at Colorado and talks a big game on behalf of his son. The Sanders had a custom draft room built just for Shedeur, with his brand “Legendary” plastered all over. While Sanders appeared on the broadcast’s coverage of the first round last night, it wasn’t for the reasons he wanted.

In a post-round speech given to friends and family at his draft party, the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year said that he ‘didn’t expect this’ and ‘this shouldn’t have happened.’ Sanders also mentioned that he believes this happened for a reason and that ‘tomorrow’s the day.’

With it now being “the day” that Sanders is expected to get drafted, let’s look at where Sanders could land.

Cleveland Browns

After their trade with the Jaguars, the Browns have two of the first four picks in the second round, with the first pick in the round, No. 33, being their own, and pick No. 36 from the Jaguars. The Browns need a long-term answer at quarterback. It all depends on whether they like next year’s class more than this, which seems to be the case. The Browns have two healthy quarterbacks on their roster, a 40-year-old Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett, who is on his third team in four years. DeShaun Watson, 29, is expected to miss significant time after rupturing his Achilles twice in a year. We all can agree that due to his on-field play and off-field controversy, the Browns’ acquisition of Watson has been a failure, even Browns owner Jimmy Haslam called it a ‘big swing-and-miss.’ After finishing 3-14 last year, the Browns have a lot of areas to improve. Are they willing to take a flyer on Sanders with one of their two premium second-round picks, or will they wait till next year to find their answer under center?

Las Vegas Raiders

The Raiders could be a wild card in the Shedeur Sanders sweepstakes on Friday night. After hiring Pete Carroll to be the team’s new head coach and trading for his former quarterback in Seattle, Geno Smith, the Raiders might be set for the next few years. However, Smith will turn 35 during the first half of next season. With many teams now focusing on building for the future, no matter what players they currently have, like the Atlanta Falcons at quarterback in last year’s draft, it would be wise to find Smith’s successor sooner rather than later. Some scouts and analysts have compared Sanders to Smith which could pique Carroll’s interest. The Raiders have the fifth pick in the second round but selected running back Ashton Jeanty with a top-six pick yesterday, which could deter the Raiders from going with another skill-position player at a premium pick.

New Orleans Saints

The Saints hold pick No. 40, the eighth pick in the second round. With major injury concerns surrounding 34-year-old starting quarterback Derek Carr and no real answer behind him, the Saints could look to find their next passer in the second round. Under new head coach Kellen Moore, the Saints addressed the offensive line in the first round by taking tackle Kelvin Banks Jr., but could Moore look to Sanders to be the team’s next franchise quarterback? Sanders would fit well in the Saints’ system and would have more success playing in the dome at Caesars Superdome. However, reports suggested that the front office liked Dart and Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough over Sanders, but with Dart now off the board, could the Saints pivot to Sanders?

New York Jets

The Jets signed 26-year-old quarterback Justin Fields to a two-year, $40 million contract this offseason. New head coach Aaron Glenn spoke highly of Fields and how he fits what the Jets are looking for. They even took offensive tackle Armand Membou with the seventh-overall pick after taking a tackle 11th overall last year, to give their run-heavy quarterback as much protection as possible. However, Fields has been inconsistent, to say the least, since being drafted by the Chicago Bears 11th overall in 2021. Fields is with his third team in five years and hasn’t had more than five wins in a season as a starting quarterback. While the Jets are confident in Fields, history suggests they should have a backup plan if things don’t work out. Would Sanders be that guy? A big personality heading to one of the biggest markets in sports. The Jets could certainly take Sanders with the 10th pick in the second round, but with the faith they’ve put in Fields, they may focus on getting him a pass-catching weapon instead of Sanders.

Los Angeles Rams

After trading out of the first round with the Atlanta Falcons, the Los Angeles Rams acquired the 46th-overall pick, which will be their first selection of the 2025 NFL Draft. They likely won’t go quarterback here, with needs on the offensive line and at numerous defensive positions. There is one factor that could lead to Sanders being a Ram. Starting quarterback Matthew Stafford is 37, and his age has shown in his lack of mobility. There were even questions around his future when the Rams began shopping him in trades, with a move to the Giants almost panning out before Stafford eventually restructured his deal to stay in Los Angeles. Even with Stafford still playing at a high level, there is cause for concern if he gets hurt, and no clear plan at his position beyond 2025. Sanders’ game-management skills and accuracy are similar to what Stafford has been able to do under head coach Sean McVay, but after acquiring an extra first-round pick in next year’s draft, the Rams could be targeting a more favorable quarterback class to find Stafford’s eventual replacement.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers have a glaring need at quarterback, but don’t have a second-round pick because of the D.K. Metcalf trade. The Steelers are still waiting on a decision from free agent Aaron Rodgers, who could be starting under center for the six-time Super Bowl champions next season. Unless Sanders falls to the third round, where the Steelers hold the 19th pick in the round, they will likely miss out on the quarterback. Having passed on Sanders in the first round for a defensive tackle, the Steelers may not be as high on him as people think. There are other developmental passers that the Steelers can focus on in the mid-to-later rounds.