GREEN BAY, Wis. — In the midst of more than 150 picks in four rounds of the NFL draft Saturday, the primary focus was on the when, where, who and why surrounding Shedeur Sanders.
After more than two days of waiting, the questions were answered when the Cleveland Browns finally stopped Sanders’ inexplicable free fall through the draft ranks, trading up to select the Colorado quarterback with the sixth pick in the fifth round and No. 144 overall.
Cleveland, which already had taken Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the third round, sent picks 166 and 192 to Seattle to take Sanders.
Sanders, the son of NFL Hall of Famer and current Colorado coach Deion Sanders, passed for 14,347 yards with 134 touchdowns in his college career, two seasons at Jackson State, then two at Colorado.
He had been projected by some as a possible first-round pick, but draft analysts, fans, and even President Trump were confounded by Sanders’ slide.
Even with Deshaun Watson in danger of missing all of the 2025 season after re-rupturing an Achilles tendon, the Browns quarterback room includes recently re-signed 17-year veteran Joe Flacco and 2022 first-round pick Kenny Pickett, acquired in a trade with Philadelphia, as well as Gabriel and Sanders.
Seven players from national champion Ohio State were drafted Saturday, raising the Buckeyes’ total to 14, one short of Georgia’s single-draft record of 15 in 2022.
Defensive linemen were the primary focus in the fourth, with half of the 10 selected listed as edge rushers.
Six running backs were taken in the fourth round, including Arizona State’s Cam Skattebo, who capped his college career with an eye-catching performance in the College Football Playoff. He went to the New York Giants at pick No. 105.
When asked in a post-draft interview what he wanted Giants fans to know what he was bringing to the organization, Skattebo said, “I’m bringing a hard runner, someone that’s going to score a lot of touchdowns, and do whatever I can to put us in the best position to win.”
In the 39-31 double-overtime loss to Texas in the CFP quarterfinals, Skattebo threw a 42-yard touchdown and then ran for a touchdown and two-point conversion as ASU erased 16-point deficit in the final 6 1/2 minutes to force overtime. He carried 30 times for 143 yards and had eight catches for 99 yards, as well as a touchdown in the first overtime.
Skattebo, who transferred to Arizona State after two years at FCS school Sacramento State, ran for 1,711 yards and 21 touchdowns last season and also had 45 receptions for 605 yards. He was the first Big 12 player ever to have at least 1,500 rushing yards and 500 receiving yards in the same season, and first FBS player to do it since Christian McCaffrey in 2015.
Six quarterbacks were taken in the sixth round. Syracuse’s Kyle McCord went to Philadelphia with pick No. 181, and Ohio State’s Will Howard was selected by Pittsburgh four picks later. McCord spent three seasons at Ohio State, then transferred to Syracuse, where he completed 66 percent of his passes for 4,779 yards and 34 touchdowns. Howard transferred after four seasons at Kansas State and led the Buckeyes to the national title.
Notre Dame’s Riley Leonard went to Indianapolis at No. 189, Florida’s Graham Mertz to Houston at No. 197., and Vegas took both Montana State’s Tommy Mellott (No. 213) and North Dakota State’s Cam Miller (No. 215).
Indiana’s Kurtis Rourke was the first quarterback taken in the seventh round, going to San Francisco at No. 227. Quinn Ewers of Texas went to Miami four picks later.
Kobee Minor, a cornerback from Memphis, earned the Mr. Irrelevant tag as the 257th and final player picked.
Brock Purdy, the current San Francisco 49ers quarterback, is one of the most successful “Mr. Irrelevants”, as the last player picked in 2022.
–Jim Hoehn, Field Level Media
