The NFL sent a loud message to Shedeur Sanders during the 2025 NFL Draft. Whether he was not ultimately considered an elite talent or the teams around the league felt that he was not worth his baggage, Sanders fell to the fifth round and was the second quarterback that the Cleveland Browns selected.
There was a faint idea that the Las Vegas Raiders would consider drafting Sanders because of his history with minority owner Tom Brady. A social media photo with new Raiders quarterback Geno Smith added fuel to this fire as well, but the team's new regime made it clear that they would not be swayed or make Sanders the successor in Las Vegas.
As Sanders kept falling in the draft, the idea that the Raiders could select him in the middle or late rounds resurfaced. However, they did not do so, opting to fill bigger needs instead.
Raiders reportedly passed on Shedeur Sanders for one key reason
The Athletic's Mike Sando reviewed the 2025 NFL Draft and added extra insight for each team in the AFC. Sando noted that no team passed on Sanders more than the Raiders did, doing so nine times, including two trades down in the second round.
An anonymous NFL executive offered Sando a viable explanation for why Las Vegas passed on him so many times and instead took North Dakota State quarterback Cam Miller in the sixth round.
"My guess is that Pete doesn’t want to do Geno (Smith) the way Atlanta did (Kirk) Cousins,” The executive said. “Atlanta was able to do that to Cousins because they didn’t have a previous relationship. For Pete, let’s face it: How long is he going to coach that team? Does he really want to start his last chance by alienating the quarterback he just got?”
Related: Raiders boldly let Shedeur Sanders know how they really feel
Carroll's relationship with Smith was the driving force in bringing him to Las Vegas, so the veteran coach was not going to sabotage that by using premier draft capital on another quarterback. As Sanders' fall continued, analysts began noting that he would be drafted as a backup, and teams wanted to avoid the shadow he would cast behind the starter.
The Athletic's Jeff Howe commented on the situation before Day 3 of the draft when Sanders had not been selected yet. He offered a reason why he was falling, and it gives context to both the Raiders' decision and the NFL executive's viewpoint.
"Quite frankly, while many teams absolutely place a priority on the backup quarterback position, it's usually better when the player is more anonymous than not," Howe wrote. "The face of the franchise is, well, supposed to be the face of the franchise."
Sanders is anything but anonymous right now, and the Raiders were lucky to avoid the circus that he and his family bring. It is unlikely that they'll regret that decision down the road.
