Former QB Cam Newton Labels Giants as Perfect Draft Fit for Shedeur Sanders

There are still over three months before the start of the 2025 NFL Draft when top collegiate prospects like Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders will discover the city where they’ll begin their hopefully long professional football careers.

To those on the outside, it almost doesn’t matter that the clock. When it comes to following the son of NFL legend turned Colorado head coach Deion Sanders in his pre-draft process, and where he’ll call his first NFL home, he might as well be a New York Giant in some people’s book.

One of those firm believers is former NFL MVP quarterback and sports media personality Cam Newton, who thinks the writing is all but on the wall for Sanders to land in the Big Apple come April.

“Talent-wise, I do think Cam Ward is more talented than Shedeur. If I’m Shedeur, that’s not something to shun away from. I wouldn’t want to go to Nashville if I was Shedeur. I would want to go to the Giants. … It’s a perfect fit. That aura,” Newton said in a recent episode of the popular debate show First Take on ESPN.

“The thing that I love about Shedeur is his ability to not waver, ‘He’s this, he’s that,’ his aura is engulfing. That can be intimidating, and when you think about all the teams in the league, there’s a handful of teams that will embody that. I can see everybody in New York [embracing him]. That’s who he is.”

Daniel Jones gave everything he could to the Giants, but it just didn't work out after almost six seasons. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Jones was always a professional in everything he did on and off the field, but it didn't match up with the right intangibles or numbers.

His most recent season saw faults in his progressions and decision-making, which led to the Giants embarking on a 3-14 campaign that was uglier than the statistics, including eight touchdowns and seven interceptions with a 63.3% completion rating.

With Jones officially a failed draft project, the Giants are back in the market for one of the incoming prospects' services. The noise surrounding their pairing with Sanders has grown louder as the first phase of the offseason process has been completed with the college all-star events.

During the recently completed Shrine Bowl, the Giants were reportedly among a handful of teams that met with Sanders and had even asked him not to perform in the game, presumably to spare his health for future evaluation at the NFL scouting combine later this offseason.

The two sides have even spoken glowingly of one another with the cameras rolling in front of them. General manager Joe Schoen had plenty of praise for the young man's character and what he brings to the game, while Sanders mentioned looking forward to playing against the Dallas Cowboys.

The glaring number of hints even started before that, as the Giants sent front-office personnel several times to scout Sanders while he was still playing with the Buffaloes en route to a nine-win and Big 12 co-championship season.

Sanders showed he can thrive in the same spotlight that New York offers a young quarterback of his potential by powering his school behind a 4,100+ yard passing line with 40 combined touchdowns and a 74% completion rating that was the best mark of his career and that saved a previously miserable power five conference program.

Jan 14, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders laughs as he watches the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Denver Nuggets during the second half at the American Airlines Center. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

With his dual-threat abilities and gifted touch with football, the young man has enamored the Giants organization and lined up a bunch of supporters for him to land there, the last of them being Newton, who was once a top overall selection himself.

The same mix of confidence and athleticism could be the long-awaited solution to the Giants’ lackluster offense's quarterback position, turning it around to compete next season.

It might be tempting if the Giants are blessed enough to get their selection of either Sanders or Cam Ward at the third overall slot. Still, to those like Newton, Ward could be gone sooner than that, and it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world to get the flashy name involved in a city hungry for something to talk about when it comes to football again.

“In New York, I think they bumped their heads enough times, and hopefully they’ve learned from the Saquons, they’ve learned from the Odells,” Newton previously stated. “They’ve learned from having stars in their building and not doing right by them.

“I think New York presents a bigger pool for the Sanders name. What would that look like? And if we’re talking about business alone and opportunity alone. This is not even about Deion; it is more or less about Shedeur, right? I think Shedeur has him written all over it as a New York Giant.”

All the excitement is building rapidly for the next superstar to emerge in New York. However, it still needs to be tamed until the Giants see how the first two selections go with the Titans and Browns ahead of them and potentially licking their chops over the same two passing candidates to revitalize their inept offenses.

If Sanders is there, the energy in the room feels like they won’t waste two seconds thinking about snagging him to fulfill their most important need on the roster. Until then, let the mock drafts be the only thing that keeps the fanbase and the Sanders family supporters dreaming until April.

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