Shedeur Sanders Chosen By The Cleveland Browns In 5th Round

After a long wait that saw the former all-conference standout go four rounds without his name being called, Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders officially found his NFL home on day three of the NFL Draft.

The Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year was shockingly selected by the Cleveland Browns with its newfound 144th overall pick after the franchise traded in front of the Philadelphia Eagles to select the 23-year-old quarterback.

Cleveland’s draft move was met with substantial shock as the franchise bypassed Sanders multiple times the past two draft days and even used its 94th overall pick to take Oregon Ducks’ signal caller Dillion Gabriel over the Buffaloes’ star.

Browns general manager Andrew Berry provided some context behind Cleveland’s puzzling draft decision to double dip on quarterback selections with its midround selections.

“We talk often times about quarterback being the most important position in the sport,” Berry said. “We obviously spent a lot of time with Shedeur throughout the process. He’s highly accurate, can play well from the pocket, very productive college career. It wasn’t necessarily the plan going into the weekend to select two quarterbacks, but as we talk about, we do believe in best player available. We do believe in positional value, and we didn’t necessarily expect him to be available in the fifth round.”

Both Gabriel and Sanders are multiyear starters that had success at the college level. Gabriel threw 155 career touchdown passes during his six-year college career as well as 18,772 passing yards.

Sanders finished with a career 70% completion percentage during his four-year college tenure with 134 touchdowns to just 27 interceptions and 14,347 passing yards.

Sanders and Gabriel join a crowded Browns signal caller room that already features NFL players such as 17-year veteran Joe Flacco, former Eagles backup quarterback Kenny Pickett and former Pro Bowler Deshaun Watson. The expectation from Berry is that “Every player will compete, simple as that.”

Sanders met his official draft selection with smiles, laughter and dancing amongst his family during a live stream held by his older brother Shedeur Sanders. On a conference call with Browns media members, the embattled star showcased gratitude and excitement.

““I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity, throughout everything,” he said. “I don’t ever focus on the negative or even think about the negative, because the positive happened so fast.”

The focus never wavered from Sanders despite his recent slide, a viral draft day prank call from college frat students that alluded to him being picked by the New Orleans Saints and a potential uphill battle before him when it comes to making Cleveland’s final roster.

“The main thing, I’m just proving — coach (Kevin) Stefanski and (general manager Andrew) Berry — that they are right,” Sanders said. “That’s it. They’re right about picking me. I’m a good decision. I’m a good draft pick for them, to be able to come in there and do what I need to do.”