Insider: Steelers Rival Could Make Wild Shedeur Sanders Move

Shedeur Sanders' slide in the 2025 NFL Draft was among the top storylines that emerged from the event, as the Pittsburgh Steelers and several other quarterback-needy teams passed on him numerous times before the Cleveland Browns selected the Colorado star with the No. 144 overall pick in the fifth round.

When asked about the Browns' decision to take Sanders after previously nabbing another signal caller in Oregon's Dillon Gabriel during the third round, CBS Sports insider and Browns sideline reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala admitted she was caught by surprise.

"I'm stunned," Kinkhabwala said on 93.7 The Fan. "There's a way that I can answer this and I can toe the line and be a responsible sideline reporter and all of that. But I'll tell you, it completely, absolutely blew my mind in every way possible. Especially after they had taken Dillon Gabriel."

The Browns have been active on the quarterback market all offseason, as Deshaun Watson is likely to miss a majority of the upcoming season after retearing his Achilles.

They first sent Dorian Thompson-Robinson and a 2025 fifth-round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles in March for former Steelers first-rounder Kenny Pickett, whom they've already declined the fifth-year option for.

Cleveland then signed Joe Flacco last month, who led the team to a playoff berth in 2023 and spent last season with the Indianapolis Colts.

Now, with those two veterans plus Gabriel and Sanders on the roster, there's a bit of a logjam behind center.

To that point, Kinkhabwala pushed back on the notion that Sanders is guaranteed to make the initial 53-man roster.

"How do you know? " Kinkhabwala said. "Shedeur Sanders is a fifth-round pick ... I mean there's no [guarantee], and then maybe he's on the practice squad."

Once a projected top-three pick, Sanders has seen his stock fall quite a bit recently. He'll have an opportunity to impress throughout the summer and perhaps gain some favor back, but clearly there's also a chance that he loses out on a spot and is waived during final roster cuts, which could either lead to him being claimed by another team or landing on a practice squad somewhere around the league.

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