Shedeur Sanders Ready for 'Whatever Role' Amid Browns' QB1 Battle After NFL Draft

Cleveland Browns draft pick Shedeur Sanders knows there will be few guarantees as he joins a crowded quarterback room.

In his conference call with reporters Saturday, Sanders kept it broad in terms of his expectations at rookie minicamp.

"Get there and handle my business, do what I have to do," he said. "Whatever role that is, I'm just thankful for the opportunity so that's all I can ask for. The rest is on me."

With Sanders falling all the way to the fifth round, the question is no longer whether he'll be a starting quarterback in Week 1. Instead, the focus is on his chances of being the second quarterback on the depth chart.

The Browns already had Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco before adding both Sanders and third-rounder Dillon Gabriel. Deshaun Watson, who's recovering from a second Achilles tear, is looming in the background as well.

For Sanders, the 2025 draft was a massive reality check.

A little over a year ago, Deion Sanders suggested his son and Colorado teammate Travis Hunter could engineer a move to a preferred team. As recently as last month, Shedeur looked like a top-five pick.

Now, the Buffaloes star is facing a much different journey in the pros.

As The Athletic's Jeff Howe explained, part of the reason for Sanders' unexpected drop was that his fame isn't something teams necessarily want in a backup quarterback. Plenty of fans will remember the spectacle surrounding Tim Tebow on the New York Jets in 2012.

"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 said. "The face of the franchise is, well, supposed to be the face of the franchise."

Cleveland's rookie minicamp will offer an early glimpse into how much the spotlight will continue to follow Sanders when he's not positioned as the savior of his franchise.