Shedeur Sanders Cleveland Browns Kevin Stefanski Body Language
© Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Shedeur Sanders was the biggest story of the 2025 NFL Draft. The son of Deion dropped out of the first, second, third and fourth rounds to be selected with the No. 144 overall pick by a team that already drafted a different quarterback just two rounds prior.
His first minicamp with the Cleveland Browns was a perfect example of why he slid to Day 3.
Sanders, by all accounts, was mostly out-played by Dillon Gabriel during the first few practices of his NFL career. And yet, the majority of the questioning throughout the entire weekend focused on the former and not the latter.
Cleveland posted multiple clips on social media during rookie minicamp. There were four more posts that involved Sanders than posts that involved Gabriel— including a “day in the life” style video.
.@ShedeurSanders' first day on the job was full of memorable moments pic.twitter.com/3lZL77UfcB
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) May 12, 2025
Those clips were the highest-performing posts of the entire weekend by a large margin. The numbers for Sanders posts were/are much higher than for Gabriel posts even though Gabriel was drafted higher than Sanders. It gets the people going!
One particular clip from Sunday morning was the ultimate glaze. Shedeur Sanders under threw a “deep” pass over the middle on a play that would’ve resulted in a sack during a real live game because the quarterback was stagnant in the pocket. The Browns celebrated the throw as a “BOMB.”
I have to give credit where credit is due. The social media team in Cleveland knows exactly what it is doing. They are doing their job. Sanders draws the highest viewership so he should be the focus. That is the proper approach.
However, it serves as a great example of why Sanders dropped in the NFL Draft. His status as a highly-scrutinized divisive figure in sports and pop culture creates a bigger headache than it is worth.
Kevin Stefanski was visibly annoyed when he was asked why Gabriel got first-team reps over Sanders. The reporter would not let up. The head coach wanted so badly to move on.
#Browns Kevin Stefanski when asked why Dillon Gabriel got the first rep over Shedeur Sanders… pic.twitter.com/Si2ETyPX4n
— Brad Stainbrook (@StainbrookNFL) May 9, 2025
To draft Shedeur Sanders in the first and second round would create an expectation for him to be in the mix for a starting job. To draft him in the third, fourth or fifth rounds does not create that same expectation but teams chose to pass on the “value pick” because of the media circus that the Cleveland Browns experienced during rookie minicamp. It will only get worse/louder as the year goes on.
If the question is not “why isn’t Sanders starting over a struggling Kenny Pickett or Joe Flacco,” it will be “is Sanders improving and how do you see his outlook for the future?” This is just the beginning.
Grayson Weir BroBible editor avatar