Draft experts have rated Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders as a top-five pick since the end of the 2024 season. Alongside Miami’s Cam Ward, he is viewed as one of the two best quarterbacks in the 2025 NFL Draft.
However, with the NFL Combine in full swing, draft rankings are starting to shift, and it no longer looks like a guarantee that a team will pick Sanders in the top five.
Shedeur Sanders References Tom Brady as Reason He Is Not Worried
ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. released a new mock draft ahead of the NFL Combine. In the draft, he had Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter going first to the Tennessee Titans. That was not a surprise. However, it was surprising to see Sanders fall to No. 7 to the New York Jets.
When Sanders held his media availability at the NFL Combine, he was asked whether he cares where he is drafted. He referenced Tom Brady when he said it did not matter when he was picked in the first round.
“The number where you go don’t matter. That’s why I reference Tom Brady because he was the best of the best in all categories. He didn’t go first. So, the number don’t matter. I wasn’t the top-rated coming out of high school because there were a lot of exterior things people like and don’t like about me. I’m realistic, and I’m realistic about my family and everything that people say it comes with.
“It’s extremely important to keep your mental in the best place because that’s where my game is played. My game’s not played from my legs and not even just my arm. So, the longevity of all of the all-time greats, what’s Tom Brady’s best trait? His mental, his ability to think.
“So, if you have those traits of greatness, and I know where I’m heading, then why wouldn’t a franchise pick me? You got the ultimate cheat code. It’s easy meeting with people because I’m gonna be myself, so you’re either gonna like it or you don’t.”
.@CUBuffsFootball QB @ShedeurSanders says he has traits of greatness. And, he said where he’s picked in the NFL Draft won’t define him.
The @Titans have already spent time with Sanders during the draft process. pic.twitter.com/74VsyFw56p
— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) February 28, 2025
Brady was famously drafted at No. 199 overall in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL Draft. He was obviously not viewed as a top prospect at the time but would go on to have arguably the greatest career by a quarterback in NFL history.
In PFSN’s most recent mock draft, in contrast with Kiper’s, analyst Jacob Infante projected the Las Vegas Raiders to trade up to No. 1 overall to select Sanders.