With the 2025 NFL season right around the corner, Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles are preparing to defend their Super Bowl title and are doing so this week with a joint practice against the Cleveland Browns. Before Hurts became a two-time Pro Bowl selection, an All-Pro quarterback and a Super Bowl MVP, he was someone many doubted could stick at the NFL level.
Although his primary focus heading into 2025 is repeating the success of last season, Hurts also used his experience on Wednesday to help out Browns rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders. The son of Deion Sanders, Sanders won Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year in 2024, then went from being a projected first-round pick to plummeting to the fifth round, where the Browns selected him with pick No. 144.
Not only is Sanders attempting to prove he is better than the five quarterbacks taken before him, he's also hoping to show the team that drafted him that he is worthy of a roster spot. Despite dazzling in the Browns' first preseason game, throwing for 138 yards and two touchdowns while completing 14 of 23 passes, Sanders still showed up as the fourth quarterback on the team's depth chart.
However, Sanders unfortunately suffered another setback on Wednesday, as it was revealed that he suffered an oblique injury that kept him out of practice. Still, Hurts made sure that Sanders knew he was there for him, as he was spotted driving Sanders to the locker room in a golf cart after the practice.
Jalen, a gracious host, gave Shedeur a ride back to the locker-room area. pic.twitter.com/9p3lsbjgz6
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) August 13, 2025
Although this storyline may have been forgotten, NFL insider Ian Rapoport reported that the Eagles planned to select Sanders in the 2025 NFL Draft, but the Browns traded up to get him.
From our NFL Draft coverage: The #Browns traded over the #Eagles to take QB Shedeur Sanders. pic.twitter.com/QvRdy7zNCJ
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 26, 2025
Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski had previously said Sanders would start the team's preseason game against the Eagles this week if both Dillon Gabriel and Kenny Pickett were still banged up, but this oblique injury could sideline him for the foreseeable future.
Sanders certainly shouldn't rush back from injury, but his future with the Browns, who also have Joe Flacco and Tyler Huntley on the roster, has gotten quite murky.
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