Sports
NFL analyst Nick Wright raised eyebrows this week when he voiced serious concerns about Shedeur Sanders‘ path to making the Cleveland Browns‘ 53-man roster.
While many expected a storyline centered on whether the Colorado standout could challenge for a starting quarterback role, Wright believes the more immediate battle is simply whether Sanders can make the team at all.
Shedeur Sanders touchdown throws has Cleveland fans excited to see him as the starting QB
The Browns selected Dillon Gabriel in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft, well before taking Sanders in the fifth.
That draft-day decision alone, Wright argues, shows the franchise’s initial preference, making Gabriel the player Sanders must now overtake if he wants to stick in the NFL.
“The Browns valued Gabriel more,” Wright said on First Things First. “The Browns took him in the third round. They took Shedeur in the fifth round, with that said, and acknowledged, it is a big problem for Shedeur, if the answer to this question isn’t him.”
Shedeur‘s path to the NFL may depend on winning the backup battle, not starting
Despite Sanders‘ high-profile college career under his father, Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders, and the media buzz that’s followed him, Wright believes Shedeur‘s first NFL test will be more about survival than stardom.
With Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett already on the Browns’ roster, and Cleveland likely to carry only three quarterbacks into the regular season, the room is crowded and competitive.
“Neither one of these guys is going to break camp the starter. It’s going to be one of the veterans,” Wright explained. “If Shedeur wants a chance, if there is going to be a chance for Shedeur, to prove his believers right, either prove his father right, prove himself right, his singular battle is move ahead of Gabriel on the depth chart.”
That assessment could be a humbling reality check for Sanders, who entered the draft with the expectation he’d be viewed as a future face of a franchise. Instead, he finds himself in a logjam behind seasoned NFL veterans and a rookie the team drafted ahead of him.
Still, Shedeur Sanders has made a career out of exceeding expectations. At Jackson State and later at Colorado, he proved doubters wrong, rising to national prominence with his poise and deep-ball accuracy.
This news was originally published on this post .
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