Shedeur Sanders went from the nation's top NIL earner to Cleveland’s bubble player. Now he’s fighting just to make the Browns roster this year. Sanders lit up the field for the Buffaloes and thought he’d walk into the NFL with a starting job.

But the decision was reportedly entirely up to general manager Andrew Berry, according to Cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot. The Browns didn't play to take Sanders heading into Day 3 of the draft, but saw it as "a no-brainer" when he was still available in the fifth round.

ESPN NFL Draft analyst Matt Miller has attributed Shedeur Sanders’ unexpected slide to the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft to missteps in his pre-draft process.