Sanders’ Pitch to Browns Goes Viral at Combine
Cleveland Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett wants to win a Super Bowl, and he isn’t confident in doing so without a trade to a contender.
The Browns, in response, have refused to trade him, envisioning him as a part of their future, ending his career with the team that drafted him first in 2017 before heading to Canton.
If Cleveland isn’t trading him, though, then every move made this offseason should be with bringing him a championship in mind.
And there’s no quicker way to do that than finding a franchise quarterback. With the No. 2 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, that could very well be Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
Speaking at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Sanders warned the Browns and other suitors about his NFL plan of changing an organization’s trajectory. “That’s the plan. If that’s not what you’re trying to do, don’t get me,” Sanders said.
“If you ain’t trying to change the franchise or the culture, don’t get me. You should know history repeats itself over and over, and I’ve done it over and over, so there should be no question why an NFL franchise should pick me.”
Sanders isn’t the biggest, fastest, or strongest passer to come out in recent memory. He wouldn’t have been a top-three pick in 2024, when Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, and Drake Maye raced to the top of the class. Yet, his profile remains intriguing.
He’s taken a ton of sacks, but been forced to make plays out of structure behind an unserious offensive line. Sanders is accurate, poised in and out of structure, and isn’t going to turn the ball over a ton.
Perhaps most importantly, his football character is legitimately good and he’s helped turn around two programs. “I say being a leader, that’s my best trait overall,” he said. “Everything’s mental. So, if I play my game from the neck up, I’ve got to be able to adjust to my players, to have them relate to me, to get to know me, and for us to make everything smooth.”
The Browns badly need a new leader under center. Deshaun Watson, for several reasons, isn’t leading Cleveland into its next era of prominence. Sanders can’t rid the Browns of a bad contract or the stench of the move.
Related: Stafford Signing Bad News for Browns’ Quarterback Search But he can help forge a new identity, move past the chaos of the Watson era, and return the Browns to relevance if not competitiveness. Sanders is more than willing to bank on itself to bring about that kind of change.
“You don’t think I could come to an NFL franchise and change the program again? It’s history. We’ve done it before; it’s always going to repeat itself.”
Kevin Stefanski Shuts Down Narrative About 2025 QB Draft Class
The Cleveland Browns came away with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft after finishing last season with a 3-14 record.
It wasn’t the season the Browns were hoping for as there was some optimism they could compete for a playoff spot, but those hopes were quickly dashed.
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Deshaun Watson failed miserably as the starter and then tore his Achilles, exacerbating the need for Cleveland to find a replacement either via the draft or free agency.
The Browns have been linked to veterans like Sam Darnold and Kirk Cousins, though they could look to start fresh with a rookie from this year’s draft.
The top two prospects are Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders, but after them, there isn’t a lot of enthusiasm.
However, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski recently shut down the notion that the draft has just two worthwhile quarterback prospects, via Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com.
