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Cleveland Browns are not the only professional football team that has rights to QB Shedeur Sanders

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By Brandon Little | Last updated Jul 7, 2025 12:36 PM ET

The Cleveland Browns made headlines by selecting two quarterbacks in the 2025 NFL Draft. Drafting Dillon Gabriel in the third round was unexpected, but landing Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round was an even bigger surprise.

Cleveland already had Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett on the roster and plans to award the starting job to the best option among the four healthy quarterbacks. We may not see Deshaun Watson on the field at all during 2025.

As a fifth-round pick, Sanders isn’t guaranteed a roster spot, and the Browns are under no obligation to keep him. His first priority will be making the team. In a worst-case scenario where the NFL doesn’t pan out for Sanders, another league would likely welcome him.

The Toronto Argonauts currently hold Sanders’ CFL negotiation rights, meaning if he were to play in the CFL, the Argonauts would be the only team with the rights to sign him.

Rap: Shedeur Sanders listed on CFL negotiation list with Toronto Argonauts holding his negotiating rights.
— Underdog NFL (@UnderdogNFL) July 4, 2025

This isn’t unusual—CFL teams often add high-upside, high-risk players to their negotiation lists. These players are frequently drafted in the middle to late rounds of the NFL Draft.

None of this matters—until it does. For now, Sanders has a valuable opportunity in front of him with Cleveland. Going out and winning a spot on the depth chart has to be the main goal. Training camp begins in less than three weeks. Sanders has already went through OTAs with the team and looked good there under limited chances.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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