Shedeur Sanders could make multiple teams immediately regret not drafting him

Since being drafted in the fifth round by the Cleveland Browns, Shedeur Sanders has made it clear that he isn’t focused on proving people wrong. While that may not be his focus, the young quarterback will have the opportunity to do just that as a rookie. More specifically, Sanders will be able to prove a few teams that passed on him in the draft wrong.

On Wednesday, the NFL released the official 2025 schedule, and the second half of the Browns’ schedule has a few teams that were in the market for a quarterback during the draft, but decided to pass on Sanders multiple times. With those games being later in the season, there’s a chance those teams will have to face the rookie quarterback, even if he isn’t the Week 1 starter in Cleveland.

Shedeur Sanders could make multiple teams immediately regret not drafting him

The teams in question are the Las Vegas Raiders on the road in Week 12, the Tennessee Titans, who Cleveland will host in Week 14, and the Pittsburgh Steelers in Weeks 6 and 17. All three teams were once linked to Sanders before ultimately passing on him and taking other quarterbacks in the draft.

Tennessee, of course, selected Cam Ward with the first-overall pick. The Raiders signed Geno Smith this offseason, but Sanders was still believed to be an option for the future in Vegas. Instead, the Raiders passed on him seven times and ultimately drafted Cam Miller in the sixth round.

The Steelers were the most surprising team to pass on him because they still don’t have a quarterback. Even if the land Aaron Rodgers, like everyone assumes they will, a 41-year-old quarterback isn’t a good enough reason to pass on Sanders four times. Now, Pittsburgh could end up being the most embarrassed, as it has to share a division with the talented quarterback. If Sanders pans out, it would be like the Ben Roethlisberger experience in reverse.

It could also work in Sanders’ favor that these games are near the end of the year. Not only does that give him time to get into the starting lineup, but it also gives him time to find his footing. It could make the games more consequential, allowing the rookie quarterback the opportunity to deliver these teams devastating losses late in the year. If Sanders can pull this act of revenge off against these teams, the only franchises left for revenge would be the New York Giants and New Orleans Saints.