In less than one month, the Cleveland Browns will go on the clock in the NFL draft.
The struggling franchise, which won just three games last season, will select No. 2 overall and should be in a position to draft quarterback Shedeur Sanders of Colorado, as the vast majority of analysts now believe that Miami's Cam Ward will be the first pick overall -- either by the Tennessee Titans or some franchise trading up into that spot.
Sanders' father and Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders has been clear since last fall that there are some teams his son simply isn't interested in playing for, though he's never explicitly named those organizations. On Thursday, March 27, Sanders made his thoughts on the Browns drafting his son crystal clear.
"Shedeur has told me, he’s talked to me intently about all the visits he’s had with all the teams, so I know where his heart is, I know where he wants to go," Sanders said during an appearance on "The Skip Bayless Show," which airs on YouTube. "If it’s New York it’s New York. If it’s Tennessee, if it’s Cleveland, if it’s still the Las Vegas Raiders, if it’s New Orleans, if it’s any of those teams that are seeking a quarterback, I’m happy with it, man. Because I know what he’s going to do to the organization."
NFL draft expert Todd McShay appeared on March 20 edition of "The Bill Simmons Podcast" and indicated that Cleveland was one of the teams at the draft combine Shedeur Sanders showed real interest in joining, as opposed to a couple of other organizations with which his interviews were lackluster, according to sources with those teams who sat in on the meetings.
McShay added that Sanders is unlikely to get past both the Browns at No. 2 and the Giants at No. 3, which makes it far less likely that a team like the Raiders or Saints will get a crack at the QB unless they trade up with the Titans to No. 1 overall.
Cleveland finds itself in a difficult salary cap situation due to the two years remaining on Deshaun Watson's massive and catastrophic contract, and finding a legitimate QB at value is perhaps the franchise's only way out of its current circumstances.
Shedeur Sanders represents that opportunity, he and his father are both okay with Cleveland as a destination, and the Browns should have the right of first refusal on Sanders come draft night.
