Shedeur Sanders continues to be under the media’s and fans’ scrutiny in his second season. According to former All-Pro and Super Bowl-winning running back LeSean McCoy, the Browns QB’s draft-day slide has altered the young quarterback’s NFL mindset.
“I think if he was the first-round quarterback, his confidence [would’ve] been even better, even bigger,” McCoy said on Speakeasy. “Being a fifth-round pick and doing your first-round, your confidence ain’t the same. And talking to him, I can tell a little difference.
“As a player, your confidence is everything. I know from being a rookie Shady to now, I’m me. That’s way different. So, I do think if Shedeur was the first-rounder, it would be different on the conference and how the team and the GM treat me. When you feel like you’ve been there, they treat you like you don’t even count. It’s like, ‘I don’t even belong here.’ I think he’d be a different story if he was first round.”
There have been players in the NFL who made a mark as rookies, even though they were selected in the lower rounds of the draft. Sanders’ stock tanked in 2024 due to multiple media narratives, and perhaps a belief that his game would not be up to the mark. But he could not secure a higher spot on the depth chart because it already had better quarterbacks: Joe Flacco and Dillon Gabriel.
Gabriel, who was an absolute standout for the Oregon Ducks, was drafted in the third round. In the days leading up to the draft, his film outshone Sanders by miles. However, it was only after Gabriel struggled as a rookie that Sanders got to surprisingly lead the Browns throughout the rest of the season.
Nevertheless, through the eight games he played (seven starts), Sanders completed 56.6% of his passes for 1,400 yards and scored seven touchdowns. Later in the offseason, he continuously evolved and became a prospect for the QB1 role.
While a fifth-round selection undeniably makes the journey much harder, it hardly determines a player’s final destination. The NFL is littered with legendary quarterbacks who successfully overcame the exact feelings of being an “outsider”. Tom Brady was a sixth-round pick, but he went on to win seven Super Bowls. Brock Purdy was a seventh-round pick, but he hovers over a 104.0 passer rating. And Kurt Warner went undrafted before he became a Hall of Famer.
Sanders, for the second time in his career, is headed for a backup role, with Deshaun Watson leading the charge in the battle for the starting job. And many analysts supported the young quarterback. After all, he has the necessary talent to write his story. But this time, his draft turnout has little to do with his results.
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The post “I Don’t Even Belong Here”: Shedeur Sanders’ Draft Status Has Made Him Feel Like an NFL Outsider, Says Legend appeared first on EssentiallySports. Add EssentiallySports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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