Shedeur Sanders’ long wait ends when Browns take him in the 5th round of the NFL draft

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Shedeur Sanders’ long wait finally has ended.

The Cleveland Browns selected the Colorado quarterback and son of Hall of Famer Deion Sanders in the fifth round with the 144th overall pick in the NFL draft on Saturday. That ended a stunning fall for Sanders, the most recognizable player in this draft class after his attention-getting college career.

Draft forecasts generally rated Sanders behind only Miami’s Cam Ward – who went first overall to the Tennessee Titans – among quarterbacks in this class. Five quarterbacks were taken before him instead, with one of them going to Cleveland when the Browns picked Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel in the third round.

After such a long delay, Sanders let out his emotions once he finally got the call a couple of days later than expected. In video shared on X by the NFL, he can be seen putting on a Browns cap after his name was announced and performing a celebratory dance at his family’s Texas home and jumping into a swimming pool.

“Thank you GOD,” Sanders said in an X post.

Sanders now is suddenly part of a crowded Browns quarterback room as Deshaun Watson sits out the upcoming season with a torn Achilles tendon. Sanders and Gabriel join Kenny Pickett and 40-year-old Joe Flacco.

The Browns traded their own fifth-round pick (No. 166 overall) and a sixth-round selection (No. 192) to Seattle in exchange for the No. 144 pick that they used on Sanders.

The history of the draft includes plenty of stories of quarterbacks waiting much longer than expected to get drafted. Sometimes it ultimately worked out just fine for them.

Dan Marino was the sixth quarterback taken in the famous 1983 draft class and went 27th overall to Miami, where he would spend his entire Hall of Fame career. Aaron Rodgers was supposed to go among the first few picks in 2005 but went 24th to Green Bay, where he went on to win four MVP awards. More recently, Will Levis was considered a near-certain first-round pick in 2023 but slipped into the second round before Tennessee took him at No. 33 overall.

But it’s hard to come up with a fall as steep as this one.

Sanders was one of the most recognizable names in college football the last couple of years while teaming up with 2024 Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter – taken second overall by Jacksonville – and playing for his father.

He finished eighth in the Heisman balloting last season while throwing for a school-record 4,134 yards and helping Colorado go 9-4. The Buffaloes had gone 4-8 in Sanders’ first season there in 2023 after he spent two years playing for his dad at Jackson State.

Most forecasts heading into the draft had Sanders going much sooner.

That’s now how it’s turned out.

The New York Giants traded up to get the 25th pick on Thursday but opted for Mississippi’s Jaxson Dart. Three other quarterbacks went Friday. New Orleans selected Louisville’s Tyler Shough in the second round. In the third round, Seattle chose Alabama’s Jalen Milroe and Cleveland took Gabriel.

Gabriel was responsible for a Football Bowl Subdivision record 188 career total touchdowns during a six-year college career that also included stops at Central Florida and Oklahoma.

Even after taking Gabriel on Friday, Browns general manager Andrew Berry praised Sanders while replying to a question about the Colorado quarterback’s surprising slide.

“All I can say is this,” Berry said. “The time that we spent with Shedeur and what he’s done throughout his college career is impressive. He’s an impressive young man. He’s a really good quarterback. Sometimes fit comes into play. I’d also say this – there are three or four more rounds of the draft. It’s less about where you get picked than what you do after you get picked. Getting to know him over the course of the spring, he has a ton of resolve. And I think he’s going to find himself in a really good spot.”

That spot ended up being with Berry’s own team.

One criticism of Sanders was the fact that he was sacked 94 times the last two seasons at Colorado. Concerns also arose about his arm strength. There also were worries about how he would adapt to playing for someone other than his father.

Yet there also is plenty of reason to believe Sanders could succeed. Denver wasn’t in need of a quarterback with Bo Nix coming off an exceptional rookie season, but Broncos coach Sean Payton offered a warning Friday as he discussed Sanders’ surprising fall.

“There will be this chip on his shoulder and beware because this guy’s going to play in this league,” Payton said.

Earlier Saturday, some other familiar names got taken.

Cam Skattebo, the versatile running back who led Arizona State to a surprising College Football Playoff appearance, went in the fourth round to the New York Giants with the 105th overall pick. Tennessee running back Dylan Sampson, the 2024 Southeastern Conference offensive player of the year, went 126th to Indianapolis.

Three more players from Ohio State were selected in the fourth round, meaning 10 players from the reigning national champions have now been drafted. Linebacker Cody Simon went 115th to Arizona, safety Lathan Ransom 122nd to Carolina and edge rusher Jack Sawyer 123rd to Pittsburgh.

The final day of the draft also featured the trade of a quarterback, as Seattle sent Sam Howell and its fifth-round pick (No. 172 overall) to Minnesota for the Vikings’ fifth-round selection (No. 142). Seattle then used the No. 142 pick on Notre Dame defensive tackle Rylie Mills.