Day 3 of the NFL Draft brought an end to Shedeur Sanders' unexpected slide, as the Cleveland Browns selected the Colorado quarterback with the No. 144 pick in the fifth round. Sanders' fall throughout the draft drew significant attention, particularly due to his ties with Las Vegas Raiders part-owner Tom Brady.

Brady, who became a minority owner of the Raiders in October, has a well-established connection to Sanders through his friendship with Deion Sanders and his mentorship of Shedeur. According to The Ringer’s Todd McShay, Brady is “very much involved” in the Raiders’ draft process, including input on their first-round selection.

Charles Robinson, senior NFL reporter for Yahoo, highlighted the situation Saturday on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“Tom Brady knows Deion. Brady mentored Shedeur. Brady is advising the Raiders on the QB spot, and they’ve passed on Shedeur 8 (!) times so far — with 6 picks and 2 trade downs. There’s zero chance Brady and the Raiders are wielding a Sanders grudge. Zero. And yet they’re passing,” Robinson wrote.

Shedeur Sanders lands with Browns after Raiders, Tom Brady pass amid draft slide

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Sanders, 23, entered the 2025 NFL Draft widely projected as a top-five pick. He threw for 4,134 yards on 74% completion, with 37 passing touchdowns, four rushing touchdowns, and a 168.2 passer rating in his final season at Colorado.

Despite his production under Deion Sanders' leadership, the Las Vegas Raiders opted not to draft him, instead focusing on building around veteran quarterback Geno Smith.

Before his selection by Cleveland, Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre offered Sanders encouragement.

“Heck, I didn't care when I got drafted, I just wanted a team to give me a chance wherever I went,” Favre tweeted. “It's what you do when your [number] is called that matters, not when you were taken. On top of that, the team that drafted me didn't even want me.”