The puzzling case of Shedeur Sanders — and where the star Colorado quarterback and son of Deion Sanders could get selected in the 2025 NFL Draft — added another layer Wednesday, when an NFL personnel man described Sanders to ESPN as a “fringe starter.”
The outlet reported that out of the six “high-level personnel evaluators” it consulted, only two considered Sanders a first-round prospect — and one from the NFC compared him to former first-round pick Teddy Bridgewater, who has started just two games since the 2021 season.
“Fringe starter who makes good decisions and does some good things but won’t get you over the top,” the NFC personnel man told ESPN.
At times, though, Sanders has been pegged by someone who could become the second quarterback taken behind Cam Ward and go as high as No. 2 to the Browns.
He starred at Colorado for two seasons after following his father from Jackson State, and in 2024, Sanders collected a 74 percent completion percentage and threw for 37 touchdowns while rushing for another four.
The Giants, who hold the Nos. 3 and 34 picks in the opening two rounds of the draft later this month, provided a telling hint that they’re at least considering Sanders or Travis Hunter (and perhaps both) by sending 14 representatives from the organization — including head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen — to Colorado’s pro day last week.
Their opportunity to make him the third player selected could be thwarted by the Browns snagging him one pick before them, but an AFC executive cautioned ESPN that taking Sanders in the top 10 would be a risk that they, personally, couldn’t take.
“If it was me, I couldn’t do that,” the executive told the outlet. “Not [a] great athlete, not big, not strong, undisciplined game, comes with scrutiny. Is he going to be good enough?”
Sanders reportedly completed 62-of-67 pᴀsses — with three of those incompletions categorized as drops — during his pro day, according to The Athletic, but criticism started to mount after a patting tendency before throwing a pᴀss became clear based on video.
Another AFC executive told ESPN that Sanders “needs to be in a timing offense,” while also acknowledging that he didn’t have any issues with his “personality.”
And all of this, the months of speculation and praise and criticism, will reach a conclusion April 24, when the first round of the draft begins in Green Bay and Sanders either gets picked early or starts sliding.
The Giants, despite signing Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston, still need to locate their quarterback of the future.
The Browns, who added Kenny Pickett via trade from the Eagles, still need a starter, too.
But the Bridgewater comparison — and even the one from another executive that Sanders could end up being a Kirk Cousins- or Baker Mayfield-esque quarterback with less arm strength, according to ESPN — didn’t exactly provide an optimistic look at his draft outlook.
