About a month after a dramatic slide in the NFL Draft, talk is growing that Shedeur Sanders could start at quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. The former HBCU Player of the Year at Jackson State and standout at Colorado has made headlines throughout mini-camp — and the buzz keeps building.
Tony Rizzo of ESPN Cleveland discussed a recent report expressing hope that Sanders will be the Browns’ starting quarterback.
“Something tells me this is going to work out in a weird way,” Rizzo said. “The Browns told you they liked Dillon Gabriel more when they drafted him in the third round. But maybe Shedeur can impress enough to change their minds.”
Sanders was picked by the Browns in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft. That came after early talk of him being a top-five selection. His fall to Day Three became a major storyline and sparked debates on-air and online.
“Listen, in that building, there are people who believe that Shedeur can 100 percent be the starter of this football team,” Kimberly A. Martin said on ESPN’s Get Up. “You said it’s up to the Browns to give him the chance. It’s also up to Shedeur to do the work. People there say he’s soaking up everything like a sponge.”
If Shedeur gets on the field — starter or not — he’ll be breaking a barrier for HBCU quarterbacks. He spent two years under his father, Deion Sanders, at Jackson State. He won SWAC and FCS Freshman of the Year in 2021 and SWAC Player of the Year in 2022 before transferring to Colorado.
No HBCU quarterback has taken an NFL snap since 2015. That year, former Alabama State star Tavaris Jackson subbed in for Russell Wilson with the Seahawks. Jackson was also the last HBCU quarterback drafted before Sanders.