Nobody will be happier when Shedeur Sanders comes off the board during the 2025 NFL draft than ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. Not Deion Sanders, the quarterback’s father and Pro Football Hall of Famer who has coached his son for basically his entire life. Not even Shedeur Sanders himself.
Kiper is the frontrunner based on the longtime draft analyst’s relentless comments during a first-round broadcast that exceeded three hours. As the picks unfolded, the conversation on the ESPN set often returned to a prospect whose name wasn’t called over the first 32 selections Thursday night.
Shortly after commissioner Roger Goodell formally put the Tennessee Titans on the clock to set up the selection of Cam Ward first overall, the lovefest for Sanders from Kiper’s mouth began. For one minute and 45 seconds, he argued why Sanders would fare better in the NFL than Ward in his opinion, continuing a months-long crusade of projecting Sanders as the best future quarterback in the class.
“(Ward) can do things Shedeur can’t do,” Kiper said. “But if Shedeur gets an offensive line in front of him – the exact same thing I said about Tom Brady when he came out as a sixth-round pick … when you look at Shedeur Sanders, everything you want an NFL quarterback to be, he has.”
What does Kiper see in Sanders? Toughness in the pocket. An unflappable mindset. Executing in high-leverage spots.
“This notion that he’s not that athletic is ridiculous nonsense,” Kiper said.
The Cleveland Browns (picking fifth after the deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars) and New Orleans Saints – picking ninth and the best fit for the former Jackson State and Colorado signal-caller, according to Kiper – did not turn in draft cards with Sanders’ name on it. With the Denver Broncos on the clock at No. 20, Kiper couldn’t square that Sanders had fallen into the 20s.
“Shedeur, I’m amazed right now that he’s still on the board, as I was with Aaron Rodgers,” Kiper said, referencing Rodgers’ slide from possible No. 1 pick in 2005 to 24th when the Green Bay Packers finally picked him up.
The Pittsburgh Steelers, considered a potential Sanders destination, were on deck. Once they were on the clock, Kiper reared back and fired once more.
“I’m taking Shedeur Sanders,” Kiper said. “I prefer him in New Orleans – I don’t know what the Saints were thinking, that’s their decision, I disagree with it – but if I’m Pittsburgh, Shedeur Sanders, to pass on him at this stage at pick 21, come on.”
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That’s when Kiper compared Sanders’ “slide” – in quotes because plenty of people in the draft ecosystem, from scouts to front-office personnel to media members, had a second-round grade on Sanders – to other quarterback greats who suffered similar fates on draft day.
Lamar Jackson. Dan Marino. Joe Montana. Drew Brees. (He also bizarrely referenced Peyton Manning, who went first overall, but only after others convinced former Indianapolis Colts GM Bill Polian to take him over eventual bust Ryan Leaf? This all according to Kiper, of course.)
Kiper could barely contain himself when the New York Giants traded with the Houston Texans to acquire the 25th pick, where they drafted Mississippi’s Jaxson Dart as QB2 of the draft.
“I like Jaxson Dart,” he said, “I love Shedeur Sanders.”
No kidding, Mel.
Kiper noted Giants head coach Brian Daboll’s preference for a more mobile option behind center such as Dart. The hangup for Kiper, and apparently the main reason why he had Sanders ranked ahead of Dart, was the latter’s performance against top competition in the Southeastern Conference.
“Three big spots, didn’t come up big,” Kiper said of Dart. “Shedeur consistently did despite being harassed.”
Kiper then delivered another listicle of quarterbacks who were taken before other quarterbacks, this time bringing up Brett Favre and Geno Smith as guys who had to wait. ESPN host Mike Greenberg incessantly referenced the network’s “Draft Day Predictor” – whatever that means – to contextualize the apparent surprise of Sanders not being picked.
Kiper wasn’t alone in his defense of Sanders. Another ex-Colorado quarterback, Joel Klatt, offered support on NFL Network’s (a former employer of Deion Sanders) broadcast.
Kiper owns a blotchy track record when it comes to sticking up for quarterbacks who have fallen in drafts of yesteryear. He pounded the table for ex-Notre Dame quarterbacks Jimmy Clausen and Brady Quinn, neither of whom had any semblance of sustained success in the league.
You wouldn’t know it by listening to him, but Kiper actually has Sanders ranked eighth on his “Best Available” list ahead of Rounds 2 and 3 of the draft Friday. No quarterback was taken in the second round (or third or fourth) of the 2024 draft, and only Will Levis (Titans) heard his name called in the second the year prior.
The Browns hold two of the first four selections in Round 2 and could use one on Sanders. But if the Saints, picking 40th, pass on Sanders for a second time, somebody on the ESPN set is gonna have to check on Kiper.
And when Sanders finally is picked, the producers should hand Kiper a cigar and Greenberg should start spraying some champagne in his direction. Then maybe we can, you know, focus on the players who were drafted with a last name that isn’t Sanders.