Shedeur sanders fell to the second round, could he be in play for the New York Jets?
Perhaps the most polarizing prospect in the entire 2025 NFL Draft is Shedeur Sanders, who, when drafted, will become a second-generation NFL player, following in the footsteps of his Hall-of-Fame father, Deion Sanders, who coached him at Colorado.
Sanders led the nation in completion percentage in 2024, with a 74.0 percent figure, and was largely expected to be a first round, if not a top-10 selection.
Sanders' fall isn't a total shock, as his character concerns only increased during the pre-draft process, giving questionable and "uncomfortable" interviews with teams and trying to control his own narrative while putting off teams. His slide doesn't come as a surprise to The Athletic's Nick Baumgardner, who had a strongly worded post-first-round analysis of the situation.
"The only people who seemed confident Shedeur Sanders would be a top 10 selection in this draft were Shedeur Sanders and his agents/PR team. He had opportunities at the Shrine Bowl and the combine to compete and prove he was ready to lead an NFL team right away next season and he opted against both — instead claiming his college tape was all NFL teams needed to see." Baumgardner wrote.
"It wasn’t and, frankly, his approach to this pre-draft process should be a lesson in what not to do for future quarterbacks. You cannot simply declare yourself something you aren’t and hope nobody checks you on it. The reality here is that Sanders is a good football player, a quality prospect and someone who could eventually turn into a functional starter so long as he’s surrounded by talent and a strong offensive line. But the questions about his arm talent, size, pocket processing and general over-confidence were very real."
That all being said, Sanders is a quarterback who by many accounts could have easily been a first-round talent, and the New York Jets' quarterback situation longterm looks murky at best. The team signed Justin Fields to a two-year, $40 million contract. Beyond that is anybody's guess.
Amid understandable rumors that the Jets might get connected here (see below), Shedeur offered his take on the wait.
“We all didn’t expect this,'' he said. "Just more fuel to the fire. Tomorrow is the day, We going to be happy regardless.''
The Jets hold the No. 42 pick in the 2nd round, and while there are a few QB-needy teams ahead of them, Sanders falling or a trade up could be in place. The Cleveland Browns have the first pick of Day 2 with No. 33, as well as No. 36, and could certainly select Sanders. If they too pass on Sanders, the Las Vegas Raiders and New Orleans Saints were both heavily linked to Sanders and passed on him in the first round, and both teams have picks before the Jets.
If the Browns pass on Sanders with No. 33, the Jets' best bet would be to try and trade up with the Houston Texans at No. 34 or the Tennessee Titans at No. 35.
