The Cleveland Browns made waves during the 2025 NFL Draft when they selected Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round.
The Browns were the team most heavily linked to Sanders during the pre-draft process, and the team saw him basically fall into their laps when he slid down the draft boards.
Sanders’ fall was unprecedented as he was touted as a borderline first-round pick, but instead lasted until Day 3.
It’s unbelievable value for a Cleveland franchise desperate to find its long-term solution at quarterback, and Sanders now has the opportunity to learn and grow under someone like head coach Kevin Stefanski.
There’s understandable hype and excitement for Sanders due to his pedigree and upside as a prospect, but he won’t be relied on to start right away.
In fact, Sanders has an ideal situation as far as his rookie year is concerned, via Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
“Shedeur Sanders has an unbelievable luxury. He may not see it like this, I’m sure he doesn’t, but he has an incredible luxury of not having to do anything in his rookie year, just fading into the background as much as possible, and just learning,” Rapoport said.
From The Insiders on @NFLNetwork: After months of discussion, #Browns QB Shedeur Sanders finally took the practice field on Friday. pic.twitter.com/xkxHvolw3G
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 10, 2025
As Rapoport noted, Joe Flacco is in line to start the 2025 NFL season for Cleveland, so Sanders and Dillon Gabriel should begin the year learning behind the scenes.
This is an excellent setup for Sanders, who can use his first year to develop without the pressure of needing to win games right away.
It might not be the rookie year fans are hoping to see out of someone like Sanders, but this feels like the best way to ensure he’s as successful as possible.
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