Browns Digest

Cleveland Browns Make Major Shedeur Sanders Announcement

The Colorado quarterback is officially a Cleveland Brown.
Gavin Dorsey|
Nov 16, 2024; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders (2) looks on during the first quarter against the Utah Utes at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Nov 16, 2024; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders (2) looks on during the first quarter against the Utah Utes at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

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Cleveland Browns

The wait is finally over.

Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders, predicted by many as a top-two quarterback in the 2025 NFL Draft and a surefire first-round pick, has a home at last after the Cleveland Browns ended his slide on Saturday. The Browns took Sanders in the fifth round with the No. 144 overall pick in one of the most puzzling sagas in recent draft history.

The Browns officially announced their selection of Sanders in a social media post.

Sanders was frequently connected to the Browns in the pre-draft process, and now Cleveland gets a first-round talent on a fifth-round contract. After selecting Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel in the third round, it was widely assumed that the Browns were out of the running for Sanders, but the Colorado quarterback found his way to Cleveland nonetheless.

According to Spotrac, Sanders' contract would've been valued at a four-year deal worth approximately $46.5 million if he had been taken with the Browns' No. 2 overall pick and roughly $14.6 million if a team had traded back into the first round to nab him at No. 32 overall. Instead, Sanders' fifth-round deal is estimated at $4.6 million in value, about $1.1 million in annual salary.

The Browns now have five quarterbacks who are set to be under contract in 2025. In addition to Gabriel and Sanders, Cleveland has veterans Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett, as well as Deshaun Watson on injured reserve.

While no one knows who Cleveland's starting quarterback will be next season, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said that Gabriel would have the opportunity to compete for the starting job in his post-selection press conference on Friday. Coming off a 3-14 season and needing excitement on offense, it's safe to say that Sanders will be a contender to start under center in orange and brown.

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Gavin Dorsey
GAVIN DORSEY

Gavin Dorsey is the Lead Writer for Northwestern Wildcats On SI and assists in covering a handful of other teams in the On SI network, including the Cleveland Browns, Cleveland Cavaliers, Cleveland Guardians, Houston Texans and Ohio State Buckeyes. Before joining On SI in February 2025, he wrote for the Star Tribune and Inside NU while broadcasting college sports for both radio and television. Dorsey is a graduate of Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism, where he also studied psychology. In his free time, he enjoys running and being outdoors. Dorsey is currently a freelance writer for the Associated Press, covering Chicago area sports teams.

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