It was somewhat fitting that Shedeur Sanders was the post-draft story of the weekend NFL theater.
Fitting, because Shedeur Sanders — a star quarterback from Colorado who also happens to be the son of superstar cornerback/self-promoter Deion Sanders — was the story before and during the weekend draft in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
Heck, he was raised and played for Coach Prime. Maybe we now should call Shedeur QB Matinee.
Shedeur was ranked among the top overall prospects and fell to 144 overall over the weekend.
Worst yet, he fell to Cleveland, who has the population of Hixson and the net worth of Sale Creek in its QB room. Heck, Shedeur was the No. 1 QB of ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper’s board before the worst free fall since Swayzye jumped from the plane in “Point Break.”.
Forget being second overall, Shedeur was the second QB selected by the Cleveland Browns, who earlier took Oregon signal caller Dillon Gabriel.
It has been reported that Shedeur was terrible in the pre-draft process, and that makes sense. What right-thinking NFL operation wants to hand the keys to a multi-billion-dollar operation to someone who refused to throw multiple times and apparently was among the worst interviews multiple executives have experienced?
He refused to throw at the Senior Bowl. He did limited stuff at his pro day. He decided not to throw at the NFL combine. Where I come from, folks who refuse to put up better shut up.
So this is a bigger picture than just a talented QB1 from college. These draft drops happen often — shall we not forget any number of names from Brady to Barkley to Leonard to Brock Purdy.
The crank call aside — Shedeur was a victim of a hateful prank call from the son of Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich pretending to be an NFL exec — the assertions of Sanders’ fall being about outside factors of all sorts of -isms seems preposterous.
I forever believe that the locker room — especially in the NFL — is among the last bastions of meritocracies in the world.
If you are polka-dotted and help teams win, you will be welcomed with open arms.
W’s are about outcomes rather than boxes checked on an application.
But the real concerns about Shedeur’s attitude and the fact that he has only played for his dad since middle school are real.
Think about the invited drama. Think about a hot-seat head coach — and any coach picking a QB in Round 1 is feeling the singe in his britches — hearing about ownership hiring Deion Sanders around week 6 this fall.
It left him to the humbling tumble, which could be a win-win for both player and franchise.
But the free-fall aside, this screams win-win for player and program. In round five, the reward far outweighs the risk.
Shedeur is on the short list of names in this draft who could become the face of a franchise moving forward. Travis Hunter is there. Cam Ward is there. Maybe Saints’ second-rounder Tyler Shough is in that conversation.
But Shedeur has already been listed by multiple odds-makers with an over/under of 2.5 starts at QB for the Browns next year.
Jaxson Dart, the second QB taken by the QB-starved Giants, has an over/under of 1.5 for comparison.
Now factor in that if you consider if the Browns had traded first-round picks with Jacksonville and taken Shedeur with pick 5 rather than round 5, no one would have batted an eye.
That’s the ultimate draft day win. That’s value, because no matter how many pundits drop draft grades where no team gets worse than a C+, making the most of your picks in terms of value determines the success of every draft. Period.
So here we are. Will Shedeur be this generation’s Tom Brady — a multi-contract starter taken on the third day, or could he be an afterthought who will be calling plays for his daddy in three years wherever Coach prime is calling home?
Either way, a fifth round roll of the dice was assuredly worth it.
And as the dust settles, I not sure which was the biggest surprise over this draft: Shedeur Sanders fall from the top of Mel Kiper’s board or the misfit toys that have been the Cleveland Browns completely changing its fanbase’s mood in a weekend.