Why Browns insider thinks Shedeur and Deion Sanders 'made a big mistake'

Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders recently suggested that quarterback Shedeur Sanders, Deion's son, informed both the Baltimore Ravens and Philadelphia Eagles during the 2025 NFL Draft that he didn't want to serve as a backup for either Baltimore star Lamar Jackson or Eagles starter Jalen Hurts. 

For a piece published on Wednesday, Cleveland Browns reporter Jason Lloyd of The Athletic explained why the Sanders camp "made a big mistake" with its handling of the predraft process that resulted in the Browns taking a flier on the signal-caller via the 144th overall pick of this year's player-selection process. 

How Shedeur Sanders could've developed with Ravens, Eagles

"Had Shedeur developed as Jackson’s backup for a year or two, the Ravens could have used well-placed media sources to build his stock enough to trade him to an organization that needed a starter in exchange for something higher than a fifth-round pick," Lloyd wrote. "...Sanders would have been better prepared to start in the NFL after sitting and learning for multiple years inside one of the NFL’s gold standard franchises, and the Ravens would’ve received a worthy return on their investment of a fifth-round pick."

Regardless of what Shedeur Sanders did and/or didn't say while meeting with teams ahead of the draft, it's now clear that all 32 clubs felt he wouldn't be ready to win September regular-season games as a rookie. Meanwhile, those running the Browns have had QB1 Joe Flacco and 2025 third-round draft pick Dillon Gabriel ahead of Sanders on the depth chart since the start of springtime workouts.

Sanders largely looked overwhelmed and not ready for primetime when he took five sacks and completed just 3-of-6 pass attempts for 14 yards in Cleveland's preseason finale versus the Los Angeles Rams.

Why Shedeur Sanders should want to develop as a backup

During a recent appearance on the "New Heights" podcast, Deion Sanders hinted that Shedeur Sanders didn't want to spend his entire debut pro campaign learning about life in the NFL while sitting on the bench. That said, Lloyd noted that one unnamed NFL coach said during the summer that Shedeur Sanders "plays on tape delay" and is "incredibly late delivering the ball. I mean, nowhere close to where the ball should go on some plays."

Shedeur's struggles against the Rams on Aug. 23 seemed to show such assessments are accurate. 

It's too early to know if the people responsible for the Browns drafting Sanders will still have their jobs by the time the halfway point of January 2026 arrives. For now, it certainly appears as if the current Browns regime is in no rush to put the first-year pro on the field against a live defense in a meaningful game. 

Thus, one can't help but wonder how further along Shedeur would be in his development had he spent the summer employed by what is currently one of the most respected organizations in the NFL.