Deion Sanders Hurt Shedeur Sanders Draft Stock? Cleveland Browns GM Disagrees

Did Colorado Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders factor into his son, quarterback Shedeur Sanders, falling into the fifth round of the NFL Draft before being selected No. 144 overall by the Cleveland Browns?

According to Cleveland general manager Andrew Berry, "Coach Prime" had little if nothing to do with the Browns' evaluation of Shedeur Sanders. In a press conference after the draft, Berry and Cleveland coach Kevin Stefanski were asked about Deion's role in the pre-draft process.

“I felt like our personal relationship and interactions with Deion, that’s really been all positive from our perspective, and I mean that organizationally, not just me and Kevin (Stefanski). But really, all of us who have interacted with Deion and the people out in Colorado. We don’t typically penalize prospects for their parents, so to speak. So I can’t say if that was a factor or not for other teams. But that was not a significant factor for us," Berry said.

Dec 28, 2024; San Antonio, TX, USA; Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders and quarterback Shedeur Sanders (2) talk with the media after the game against the Brigham Young Cougars at Alamodome. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Berry, Stefanski, and the Browns chose Sanders after already drafting Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the third round, but they said they were excited to bring in the Colorado quarterback and give him a chance to compete.

"He's highly accurate, can play well from the pocket, very productive college career, and we felt like it wasn't necessarily the the plan going into the weekend to select two quarterbacks, but as we talked about, we do believe in best player available," Berry said. "We do believe in positional value. And we didn't necessarily expect him to be available in the fifth round. And so we love adding competition to every position room. and adding him to compete with the guys that are already in there."

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"Our expectation is for him to come in and work and compete. Nothing is promised, nothing will be given," Berry continued.

Sanders and Gabriel join a quarterback room that consists of NFL veteran Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, and an injured Deshaun Watson.

The Browns originally held the No. 2 overall pick in the draft, but they decided to trade out of the second selection. Cleveland then picked Michigan defensive lineman Mason Graham with the No. 5 pick in the draft, waiting until the later rounds to draft both Gabriel and Sanders.

After selecting Gabriel in the third round, Stefanski was asked if the rookie quarterback would be given a chance to compete for the starting job.

Feb 27, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Cleveland Browns coach Kevin Stefanski speaks during the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

“I think all of our players are competing for starting jobs, but the most important part for any player walking into our building is really focusing on the work that it’s going to entail, because, as you know, it’s a lot coming at these guys early," Stefanski said. "So, we’ll get our hands on them in a couple of weekends at the rookie minicamp. But we anticipate all of our players to carve out a role, whether that’s as a starter, as a backup, and it’s really no different here.”

Berry also confirmed that every player is expected to compete when asked if Sanders would be considered for the starting role.