Deion Sanders To Blame For Shedeur Sanders Draft Slide?

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Former Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders was selected in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. All eyes have been on Sanders, who despite being one of the most talked about draft selections, was a day three pick.
It was a stunning turn of events to see the 2024 Big 12 offensive player of the year and projected first round pick fall all the way to the fifth round.
It has left many fans around the league wondering, why?
Jason McIntyre Says Deion Sanders Is To Blame For Shedeur’s Draft Slide

Jason McIntyre filled in for Colin Cowherd on “The Herd” on Monday. McIntyre reacted to Colorado coach Deion Sanders’s most recent appearance on the show “Say What Needs To Be Said” with Asante Samuel. In this podcast, Sanders talked about his son, Sheduer’s NFL Draft slide and the reports that Shedeur was unprepared for pre-draft interviews.
“When you sit up there and say something like, ‘He went into a meeting unprepared,’ like, dude—Shedeur Sanders?” Deion Sanders said. “Who’s had six different coordinators, who has still functioned and leveled up every time we brought somebody new in…and you gonna tell me he was unprepared? You gonna tell me he had on headphones?”
McIntyre claims that Deion is the reason for teams not wanting to select Shedeur.
“This my friends is why Shedeur Sanders fell in the draft. I thought it was 50 percent Deion, 50 percent Shedeur, I’m now thinking, NFL teams, front offices, were just like ‘No, thank you’ on Shedeur Sanders preciously because of this,” McIntyre said. “It’s the beginning of June and Deion is already complaining about his son and what went down at the draft.”
McIntyre added that Browns coach Kevin Stefanski is going to have his hands full every media session. There will constant questions about his “fourth string quarterback” and what comments his dad made instead of how star players like Myles Garrett are playing.
.@jasonrmcintyre reacts to Deion Sanders continuing to speak out about his son Shedeur falling in the NFL Draft pic.twitter.com/Y2SVbuZ44P
— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) June 2, 2025
“Shedeur has an uphill climb in Cleveland and I think a lot of it has to do exactly what Deion is saying on this podcast,” McIntyre said. “It ain’t going to end here. This is going to continue anytime Deion steps in front of a microphone.”
MORE: Deion Sanders Reveals Colorado Buffaloes' New Strengths Post-Shedeur Sanders, Travis Hunter
MORE: Travis Hunter Turns Heads With Route Running During Jacksonville Jaguars OTAs
MORE: Shedeur Sanders Proving Himself As Teammate With Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns 2025 Quarterback Room

Shedeur Sanders is one of four quarterbacks that has been taking reps for the Cleveland Browns. The other three are Dillon Gabriel, Joe Flacco, and Kenny Pickett. The lone quarterback that was on the Browns roster last season and returning this season will be Deshaun Watson.
Watson has not taken reps this offseason due to his ongoing recovery from his achilles tear suffered last season. His timeline to return could play a big role in who ends up starting the majority of games for the Browns in 2025.

Cory Pappas is sports writer for USC Trojans On SI and Oregon Ducks On SI. Since starting in March of 2024, he has been writing breaking news stories, game previews, game recaps, and more across College Sports, the NFL, MLB, NBA, and Olympics for Total Apex Sports. In addition to writing, Cory is also a sports data scout for Sportradar. He covers live sporting events ranging from college athletics to semi-pro and professional. Before joining the industry, Cory graduated from the University of Oregon in 2022. He ran track for Oregon's club Track and Field team. Before Oregon, he played varsity basketball and track and field in high school in Walnut Creek, CA. Cory is using his lifelong passion for sports and writing together.
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