Cleveland Browns Could Be Contemplating Surprise Shedeur Sanders Trade

Monday, June 22nd, was supposed to be a slow day for Browns news.

The team is currently away from its facilities in Berea following the conclusion of mandatory minicamp, allowing the players to take one last break before the official start of training camp.

The local sports media in Cleveland, and potentially the Browns front office, however, had other ideas for the expected quiet period.

Shedeur Sanders on the Trade Block?

Local media personality Tony Rizzo of ESPN Cleveland mentioned during his morning show that the Browns were fielding calls on potential starting quarterback Shedeur Sanders. This news is shocking, to say the least, as Shedeur is currently in a quarterback competition with Deshaun Watson for the Browns' starting job.

"There are talks and ongoing calls about the availability of Shedeur Sanders," - Rizz's antenna is UP about the Browns QB situation right now 👀👀👀 pic.twitter.com/T6XyD4jffl
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) June 22, 2026

Sanders, a 2025 fifth-round pick, started the most games of any quarterback for Cleveland in 2025. Despite this, one must question his value, as his statistics, advanced or otherwise, were unimpressive, even though he did show flashes in his rookie campaign.

Are the trade rumors simply a way to drive attention during a dead period in sports news, or is something much more complicated brewing in the background at the Browns' front office?

The Brendan Sorsby Gamble

That is where Brendan Sorsby becomes the interesting wrinkle in any potential Sanders trade conversation. Sorsby, the 22-year-old quarterback, was set to play his redshirt senior season for Texas Tech before checking himself into rehab for a gambling addiction. Now, after lengthy legal battles, Sorsby has opted to enter the NFL supplemental draft.

The supplemental draft has now made it possible for a team like the Browns to add a potential first-round talent at a discounted price, due to the unique, blind bidding process that the supplemental draft follows. If the Browns are high on Sorsby, they could be laying out the framework to deal Sanders if they do indeed land Sorsby.

The Verdict on a Deal

The chances of Shedeur Sanders being dealt are slim to none. The Browns are not an organization to show their hand in terms of what they are planning, even having used the media in the past to misdirect their true intentions.

#Browns GM Andrew Berry said he believes Travis Hunter’s first home is at WR and his second home is at CB. If he’s the pick, they’d want to be smart about how they start him — but Berry made it clear: “He’s great at both.”

He compared Hunter to Shohei Ohtani, saying if he plays… pic.twitter.com/tuUJ1Zt46K
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) April 17, 2025

This, however, does not seem to be the case in this instance. When asked about potential interest in Sorsby via the supplemental draft despite his off-the-field issues, Browns head coach Todd Monken went as far as to say, “It’s a tough angle to go down that road and think that will be your franchise quarterback.”

That is a strong statement against Sorsby, especially coming from the man who would be his head coach and play-caller if he ended up playing for the orange and brown. It also makes it hard to imagine a strong working relationship between Sorsby and Monken.

The Browns most likely are not going to deal Sanders. In fact, the only world in which a Sanders deal makes sense is a world where the Browns add Sorsby via the supplemental draft, and Todd Monken already shut that down. Sanders will be a Brown and most likely start a majority of games in 2026.

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