Browns Insider Declares Shedeur Sanders 'No Longer Special'
Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders suffered a historic fall in this year's NFL draft.
After being projected as not just a first-round pick, but possibly a top 10 selection, Sanders fell all the way to the fifth round, where the Browns took a chance on him with the No. 144 overall pick.
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Sanders enters this offseason fighting for a roster spot with two veterans in Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett and another rookie in Dillon Gabriel.
And at least one Browns insider thinks Sanders' chances of making the team grow smaller and smaller. Cleveland.com's Terry Pluto believes Sanders is "no longer special."
'For Shedeur Sanders, the reality is he's no longer special. Not in the eyes of the NFL. Only 7% of starters come from the fifth round,' Pluto wrote. 'It's true that Sanders has impressed the Browns with his work ethic and serious approach to learning the offense. He seems to have connected with [Joe] Flacco. He's also had some good days in front of the media during the Browns' spring camps.
"But these are glorified touch football practices. If the real NFL were like this, Flacco would already be enshrined in the Hall of Fame.'
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Browns offensive coordinator Tommy Rees offered intel on how the young quarterback has adapted during OTAs.
"He's worked his tail off," Rees said. "He's putting in a lot of work as all those guys are. You can tell on the mental side of the game, learning the system and calling it and having that rhythm to it, he's put a lot of time and work and effort into that. When you do that, the game starts to slow down and you can focus on finding completions. He's done a good job of that as camp has progressed."
But as Pluto points out, OTAs and minicamps are just glorified flag football scrimmages. And Sanders will have to impress a lot more than he has.
Related: Ex Browns QB Johnny Manziel Gives Vote of Confidence to Shedeur Sanders
Related: Browns No. 1 Pick Named to Preseason All-Rookie Team
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 23, 2025, where it first appeared.
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