Shedeur Sanders was the face of the 2025 NFL Draft, and his precipitous fall to the fifth round became the lead story. The Cleveland Browns ended his long wait with the 144th overall pick, and Michael Strahan relayed a message from seven-time Super Bowl Champion Tom Brady on Good Morning America.
Tom Brady Has Simple Message for Shedeur Sanders
Sanders was considered QB2 heading into the 2025 NFL Draft, but his free fall began after the New York Giants traded up to select Jaxson Dart at No. 25. Many teams and draft experts were split on how Sanders will transition to the NFL, and this caused his stock to fall late in the pre-draft process.
His on-field production spoke for itself. Sanders threw for 4,134 yards and 37 touchdowns while leading FBS with a 74.0% completion rate in 2024. However, there were concerns about his arm strength and average athleticism. Many pundits recognize his toughness and pinpoint accuracy, but weren’t sure his overall game translates to the next level.
A drop out of the first round wasn’t overly surprising, but a fall to Day 3, and Dillon Gabriel getting drafted ahead of Sanders was. Gabriel was widely considered a late Day 3 pick who projects as a career backup, but the Browns made him a top-100 pick.
Cleveland now gets the media circus that will likely follow Sanders. The team traded for Kenny Pickett and signed veteran Joe Flacco earlier this offseason, so both rookies will be competing for the backup and third-string roles.
Sanders was arguably the highest-profile prospect of all time, and Strahan had some words of encouragement after the quarterback’s embarrassing draft weekend. The long-time Giant had a well-thought-out explanation for Sanders’ fall, and threw in a message from Brady.
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Strahan said, “Shedeur Sanders, I don’t think this kid definitely should have dropped to the fifth round. I hate that we have unnamed sources. If you’re gonna say something that bad to disparage the kid, put your name on it.
“If there’s a good quarterback, people want a good quarterback. You want so many quarterbacks who have no amount of production like he had. It’s about numbers when it comes to quarterbacks. I spent time with Tom Brady this past weekend, and we watched the draft. As Tom said, ‘It doesn’t matter where you’re picked.’
“Economically, this may have hurt Shedeur Sanders, but opportunity-wise it didn’t because he’s on a team where I think he’s got a good shot to make a difference. I think the kid’s gonna be a great player.”
Brady is the most famous late-round pick of all time. The New England Patriots selected him 199th overall in the 2000 NFL Draft after six quarterbacks had already been taken. He went on to win seven Super Bowls and is arguably the greatest football player of all time.
Brady is the epitome of his message to Sanders, and the Colorado product will need to embrace that mindset to have a successful NFL career.