Shedeur Sanders Unveils Photo of 1st NFL Rookie Card After Being Drafted by Browns

It's not every day that a fifth-round draft pick generates plenty of hype for a rookie card, but Shedeur Sanders is far from a typical fifth-round draft pick.

The Cleveland Browns' newest quarterback revealed his first Panini Instant rookie card for his NFL career on Thursday:

Notably, the card has "Pick #144" on the front, which is where Sanders fell to as the draft progressed.

He was one of the biggest names of the draft going into the event, and it became the biggest story of the entire event when he wasn't selected in the first round. That story only grew as teams continued to pass on him in the second, third and fourth rounds.

The Browns eventually stopped the slide with a fifth-round pick, which isn't what the Colorado product who was once seen as a surefire first-rounder envisioned as he turned his attention toward his NFL career.

Cleveland also selected Oregon's Dillon Gabriel in the third round, which made the pick all the more noteworthy.

While Sanders surely didn't want to fall so far in the draft, going to the Browns does give him an opportunity to compete for a starting role right away.

The 2024 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year likely won't have to worry about Deshaun Watson, given the veteran's Achilles injury. That means competing against an unproven Kenny Pickett, a 40-year-old Joe Flacco and a fellow middle-round draft pick in Gabriel.

Winning the starting job would make that first rookie card all the more valuable.