NFL Draft Trade: New York Jets Predicted To Trade To Select Shedeur Sanders?

The Jets recently signed free agent quarterback Justin Fields to a two-year contract worth $40 million. With this signing, the odds are that they will not use their top-ten pick on a quarterback. If Sanders were to fall, it would not be surprising if the Jets traded back in.

Fields was drafted in the 2021 NFL Draft with the No. 11 pick by the Chicago Bears. He spent the 2024 season with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Fields did not start every game as the Steelers made the switch to Russell Wilson once he was healthy.

Fields passed for 1,106 yards and five touchdowns in 2024. Fields has not had the best NFL career, but he has experience playing, which the Jets may find valuable. If Sanders falls, an open competition would be welcome.

Drafting a rookie is always a risk, but Sanders is a talented prospect. In 2024, Sanders passed for 4,134 yards and 36 touchdowns. Sanders’ downfall was that he was sacked 42 times, but if the Jets can bolster the offensive line, they could have their quarterback of the future. 

Sanders can go anywhere from the No. 1 overall pick to falling to the end of the first round. The Colorado quarterback has been falling in draft projections in recent weeks. Sanders was said to be arrogant during the NFL Scouting Combine.

ESPN analyst Ryan Clark suggested that the recent tumble in Sanders’ draft stock is due to racial bias.

“It’s about the bravado he carries. It’s about the fact that he looks a certain way. It is about the fact that the color of his skin sometimes at the position can be questioned,” Clark said. “I believe Sanders is going to have to deal with that until he gets on the field.”

Throughout the 2024 regular season, the discussion was whether Sanders or Miami Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward would be the first quarterback taken off the board. There are many quarterback-needy NFL teams, and the belief was that Ward and Sanders would be the two players that teams would fight over.

While Sanders is being counted out, he still has the confidence that he will be a top pick that can help change the culture and lead teams to a winning record.

“You should know history repeats itself over and over, and I’ve done it over and over, so there should be no question why an NFL franchise should pick me,” Sanders said at the NFL combine. 

While there is the chance that Sanders will fall to the bottom of the first round, leading to a team like the Jets to trade back in for him, many NFL executives believe that Sanders is still a top pick.

“Shedeur is one of the most pro-ready QBs in the past decade,” an NFL executive told Athlon Sports. “Tom Brady is his mentor… What could be better for a prospect? Anyone who is ‘cooling’ on him needs to hand in their resignation immediately. They don’t belong in the league.”

The New York Giants and Cleveland Browns, who both hold top-three picks, are the known teams to have scheduled a Top-30 visit with Sanders. Only time will tell where Sanders ends up in the upcoming draft. 

The 2025 NFL Draft is April 24-26, 2025 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin.