The assumption for most of the offseason has been that Shedeur Sanders will go at some point over the first 10 picks of the 2025 NFL Draft. He wasn’t really looked at as a possibility for the Pittsburgh Steelers until he came in for a pre-draft visit late in the process. Suddenly it doesn’t seem all that unrealistic that he could fall to the Steelers at No. 21 overall.
The New Orleans Saints have been connected to Sanders at No. 9, especially since Derek Carr’s shoulder injury news broke last weekend. According to Adam Schefter, the Saints aren’t in love with Sanders.
“It doesn’t sound like the Saints are in on Shedeur Sanders at this point,” Schefter said via ESPN’s Get Up this morning. “It sounds like they like him, but don’t love him. It sounds like they’d look at him, but wouldn’t ultimately pick him at nine. I could be wrong, but that’s what I’m reading and hearing from people I’m talking to, that Shedeur wouldn’t necessarily be the pick at No. 9.”
If Cam Ward goes at No. 1 as expected, the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants seem like they are leaning toward the blue-chip prospects in Abdul Carter and Travis Hunter.
The other teams that could potentially surprise along the way would be the Las Vegas Raiders at No. 6, the New York Jets at No. 7, the Indianapolis Colts at No. 14, and maybe even the Seattle Seahawks at No. 18. The Raiders might be the biggest threat after hosting Sanders for a pre-draft visit and NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero saying they could be in play for him.
If the Browns, Giants and Saints are all out, then that greatly increases the odds of Sanders falling.
It’s then a fair question to ask that if all those QB-needy teams don’t want Shedeur, should the Steelers? Sanders has been labeled as one of the most difficult evaluations in this draft class with opinions all over the place on him. Some have him as a second-round talent while others have him as the best passer in this class. If reports are to be believed, Mike Tomlin really likes Sanders. That would obviously go a long way toward the Steelers ultimately selecting him.
If he does slide past nine, then the biggest threat might be the possibility of the Giants, Browns or Saints trading back up into the first to leapfrog the Steelers. If Sanders is who they want, it figures to be a stressful evening for Omar Khan and company.
