Berea, Ohio - Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders re-worked from his new NFL home as he accidentally dropped to three days after the 2025 NFL draft.

Sanders - Watched the draft from Canton, Texas, to Cleveland, where he stood on the hill in a black T-shirt, grey shorts and a pair of Nike Air DT Max'96s. In the clip posted to X, Sanders leaned sideways as if defending a player in a basketball game, then spins and rushes toward the top of the mountain.

A few days later, on the blue indoor driving range, located in the suburb of West Cleveland, Sanders wore a white, long-sleeved shirt and black shorts, calling for a lower center handover with a command rhythm, then rolled to the left and then passed the ball to a group of volunteers, as the explosions throughout the training facility were heard.

These personal exercises – away from the crowd and cameras – are the prelude to Sanders’ next professional milestone, which will be held next week: his first NFL practice.

The first stepping stone of Sanders’ career will unfold Friday when the Browns have a three-day rookie small training camp. The former Colorado star will join his fellow teammates and many undrafted rookies and trial players, aiming to get started – and in some cases keeping their careers.

Sanders will arrive at the camp with a lot of spotlights for a fifth-round draft pick. His celebrity grew up as the son of Professional Football Hall of Fame member Deion Sanders, who had transformative success in two college football programs before slumping from potential first choice to day 3 choices into the plot around him.

Since Derek Anderson in 2007, in Cleveland, a team without a Pro Bowl quarterback, the Sanders are expected to gain the chance to compete for a starting job. However, he will have to overcome many challenges as this fall QB1 – especially a crowded quarterback room, tends to take a trend of unwise sacks and a draft slot, with a poor record that can produce successful quarterbacks, not to mention a week 1 starter.

However, Sanders is embracing the road ahead.

“I’m Sanders,” he said after being selected as No. 144 in the draft: “So, no matter what choice I choose, it’s always expected.”

Sanders is trying Only Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott has achieved over the past 15 years, a feat - becoming a week 1 starter to become a rookie in the Day 3 draft. Since 1967, he has also tried to do something that only four people do: in the fifth round or later. But while history isn't on the side of Sanders, his unique situation at Cleveland - lacking clarity in the Browns' QB room - and his talent relative to his draft slots might have laid the foundation for him.

During the draft, Brons general manager Andrew Berry traded Cleveland's 166th and 192nd picks to advance to Sanders' 144th place. The value-conscious executive did this in part because Sanders’ talent became too tempting, and the Browns couldn’t move on in the fifth round even after choosing former Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the previous two rounds.

"(Sanders is) we think we can go beyond his draft," Berry said.

Prescott, Dallas won the fourth round draft in 2016 (135th overall), followed his path as he started as a rookie: current starter Tony Romo suffered a back injury in the preseason, while the backup game, current Saints head coach Kellen Moore broke his leg in training camp. The rest is cowboy history. Prescott went on to win 13 games and NFL Rookie of the Year honors in his first season, starting a career that included 3 Pro Bowl Choices and second place in MVP (2023).

The chance of hitting the team's first steal this season in the fifth round is even longer. According to Elias Sports Bureau, only four quarterbacks in the common draft era (dating back to 1967) selected in the fifth round or later have started in their team's season opener as rookies: Randy Hedberg (Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1977), James "Shack" Harris (Buffalo Bills, 1969), Dan Darragh (Buffalo Bills, 1968) and Dewey Warren (Cincinnati Bangladeshi, 1968).

If there is a 2024 starter Deshaun Watson expected to miss most of the 2025 season, he has suffered a proper fatal injury and if the Sanders can emerge from the quarterback room including Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett and Gabriel, he will be the first round of the fifth round of his team’s season in the fifth round of his team’s season, he will stand out in his team’s season.

The number of passers selected after the third round is also rare, which continues to be productivity for multiple seasons. According to ESPN Research, nine such quarterbacks have made multiple Pro bowls, including seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady, a sixth-round draft pick. The most recent one is Prescott.

Mark Brunell, the 118th overall pick in the 1993 draft, is the only quarterback in the fifth round draft in the past 40 years, and will soon win 10 games as the NFL starter QB.

For these rear-wheel quarterbacks, there is a lack of immediate playing time and long-term success. The draft is usually reserved for developing passers or players who expect to start a career as a backup for established starters.

However, in Cleveland, Sanders joined a QB room that had no clear leader and offseason workout plans are underway. Flacco, 40, started the 2024 season as the Indianapolis Colts advanced to Anthony Richardson and was then inserted into six games. Pickett is the 20th pick in the 2022 draft and is a backup for Jalen Hurts with Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles. Like Sanders, Gabriel is a rookie, adapted to the NFL and a player foreshadowed by many draft analysts, and it's the 3rd day option, not the 94th overall pick.

"We want every player to play," Berry said when asked about Sanders' chances to be a starter. "It's simple."

Former Colorado Lajohntay Wester stood on the second floor of the Host Frisco Hoth Hotel in January in East West Shrine Bowl and pondered the best performance in their time Sanders was teammate.

He thought for a moment before fading Sanders' back shoulder into receiver Travis Hunter, who beat North Dakota in August last year with the 31-26 season opening ceremony.

In the play, Sanders slapped the shotgun, quickly swirling his vision frame to the hunter and laying the ball perfectly on his broad shoulders, and he further extended and grabbed the acrobatics despite his defender being draped over him.

Sanders’ draft slides are attributed to the lack of fusion of elite physical traits in the eyes of the assessors and the rock-biased process with the team. The drama Wester quotes is an encapsulation of Sanders’ best features (accuracy and confidence in the pocket), which allows him to differentiate himself in OTA and boot camp.

In his final college season, Sanders ranked first in completion rate (74%), while his 6.5% off-target was the third-highest mark in the FBS. Although 24.6% of his pass was on the screen route, the seventh highest score in the FBS, Sanders still excelled on deeper pass attempts, completing his 54.0% attempts that showed up at least 10 aerial yards, the ninth highest speed in the country (Gabriel ranked fifth in 59.7%).

"Decision-making. It's the biggest, best thing you can do," Sanders said at the Shrine Bowl. "That's my skill. ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Sanders also protected the ball. His 2.1% interception rate is ranked 36th among 124 qualified FBS quarterbacks, and he has listed the experience of six offensive coordinators in four college seasons, which is beneficial for his transition in the NFL. But one major area of ​​improvement pointed out by analysts, evaluators and Sanders himself is his tendency to accept sacks.

No one in the FBS has taken 16 more sacks than any other quarterback in the past two seasons. In Colorado, Sanders is protected by a boring offensive line without the support of a strong running game. However, despite the on-screen passes at one of the NFL's highest speeds, Sanders averaged 2.96 seconds last season, ranking 110th in the FBS, above the national average of 2.76.

"We think he's a highly accurate pocket passer," Berry said. "He did a really good job of protecting the ball. He has enough physical characteristics, both the strength of the arm and the ability to move. Like all young players, there are a lot to improve. I think there's probably a lot already saying about the number of sacks he's taking. Some of them are environments, while others improve on his final side. But he's certainly more picky.

During the prefab cycle, the current NFL quarterback coach told ESPN that decisions in pockets are the most important thing for rookie passers entering the league.

"Your scoring chances are harmful behind the NFL stick," the coach said. "I think if you have a negative performance on NFL Drive, your chances of scoring on that drive are down to 15%. I think it's different in college because these guys are explosive and have a deeper range of talent."

"You can stand behind the stick and the final score remains unmoved, but it's not the case because everyone is very good. One, I think, is the decision making, just make sure they take the risk of the calculation and the controlled aggression. Then I think, for the most part, it's comfortable in a messy pocket because the space for defense is more aggressive and athletic and capable.

Both can be honed and developed by continuing practice and representation, the coach added.

"Sometimes I'm trying to do too much," Sanders said on the Scout Combiner in February. "So it's just a mindset from the mindset of things or the ambition mindset, where you're going to succeed and not succeed. Sometimes I'm caught playing Heroes, but I know where I messed up and now I'm going to fix it on a next level."

When Sanders took it The Browns practice facilities field is the first time Friday, and he won’t be a franchise face, but as a late draft pick, his draft marks that he will have to completely outperform his game to be a starter or top backup in the coming months.

Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said practice reps may not be evenly distributed among quarterbacks, but he will divide them in a way that is “just to every player and fair to the team”.

After the long wait of Sanders waiting for the draft weekend, he thanked the Browns for providing the opportunity — he will have the chance to catch it in the coming months.

“We did tell him that the place you chose really doesn’t matter,” Berry said. “It’s something you did since then because it’s the reality of all the guys we chose this weekend.”