The Cleveland Browns drafted Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round after the former Colorado Buffaloes star underwent an unprecedented slide down NFL draft boards after being a consensus top ten pick in projections.
Now, someone is shining light on why the fall from grace may have transpired. Hall of Fame running back Erik Dickerson was not shy to reveal what he has been told to the public.
“I tell you this much, what I heard from someone that’s in the NFL, that the NFL told [teams] don’t draft him, do not draft him,” Dickerson said according to Christian Arnold of the New York Post. “We’re going to make an example out of him. And this came from a very good source, a very good source.”
“I won’t say who — somebody called the Cleveland Browns and said, ‘Don’t do that, draft him,’” Dickerson continued. “Because they weren’t going to draft him, either. . . They were forced into drafting him, because somebody made a call to them.”
Dickerson that the league’s initial plan was for Sanders to go undrafted.
“He was not gonna get drafted, to basically show you this is what happens when you do this,” he said. “When I say it came from a good source, I say it came from a very, very good source.”
Fans reacted to Dickerson’s words on soical media.
“Dude’s ego is toxic, regardless of talant. If anyone couldn’t notice this it’s Dickerson,” one fan wrote on Twitter.
“Major flaw in this rumor.. the commissioner’s office works for the owners. Goodell has no real authority other than what the owners allow him to have. He can’t tell the Browns to do anything,” another fan added.
“I don’t know what is and isn’t true, but I know that many people who believe this scenario, adamantly deny that the league manipulates things like making sure Taylor’s team makes it to the SB. If one is true the other is likely true as well,” someone else wrote.
It’ll be interesting to see if more information on the situation comes to light after this revelation.