Every offseason, NFL front offices face the perennial question: is our quarterback situation secure? For a fortunate few teams, the answer is a confident “yes” for the foreseeable future, spanning six to ten years. Yet, plenty of others find themselves in a scramble, searching high and low for the next franchise face.
For those squads still in search of a reliable starter, the urgency cannot be overstated. Franchise quarterbacks are like gold dust—prized, and often elusive. While they occasionally shine in the NFL Draft or make waves in free agency, they’re an even rarer find via trades.
This season, several quarterback prospects have emerged, with the potential to drastically reshape the fortunes of their future teams. Among them, Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders has generated buzz, although his stock appears to be slipping following the NFL Combine.
Sanders entered the pre-draft conversation as a highly regarded prospect, at one point even being touted as the top quarterback in this draft class. However, recent evaluations have him settling into the QB2 spot behind Cam Ward, currently ranking as the No. 4 player on the Mock Draft Database’s Consensus Big Board. Unfortunately for Sanders, some notable draft analysts have him sliding out of the top ten entirely after the Combine.
Dane Brugler from The Athletic predicts Sanders could drop as far back as No. 21, where the Steelers might seize the opportunity to draft him. “He could go in the top six or fall out of the first round entirely, and neither outcome would be a shock,” Brugler notes. While teams may not see him as a first-round talent, the right front office might take the gamble on his abilities. If he does slip past the top ten, Pittsburgh could find it an intriguing chance to address their quarterback concerns.
On a similar note, Lance Zierlein of NFL.com suggests that Sanders could be nearing the end of the first round, indicating the Browns could potentially take a leap and trade up to pick him at No. 29. “Sanders’ slide is over, as the Browns flip their No. 33 overall pick and an additional selection to the Commanders in order to take a swing at a QB of the future,” Zierlein writes.
Given some whispers about Sanders struggling in team interviews at the Combine, his decline in these drafts likely hinges on evaluations of talent rather than any single misstep in those conversations. Brugler points out that while Sanders is regarded as a highly accurate passer with solid overall skills, he faces questions about his size, arm strength, and any elite traits that would typically entice teams in the first round.
While there’s certainly a chance he could thrive in the NFL, the potential for Sanders to slide down the board remains very real if quarterback-hungry teams at the top aren’t sold on him.
Ultimately, the true test will unfold come April when teams finalize their drafts and make decisions that could shape their franchises for years to come.
