Despite his precipitous fall to the fifth round and the 144th pick in the NFL Draft when the Cleveland Browns finally called his name, Shedeur Sanders' draft nightmare could be a thing of the past already. General manager Andrew Berry has already said the Colorado product will have a chance to compete for the starting job — and that's a job he could win when you consider the competition consists of Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel.
While he's being given the chance to compete, that's also far from a guarantee. Sanders will have to earn everything in Cleveland, especially as a fifth-round pick. The hope, of course, is that his brutal draft weekend will serve as a wake-up call and give him a chip on his shoulder. The talent is there for him to be, at minimum, a serviceable NFL quarterback. This could be the fire that needed to be lit under him in order to live up to his potential, though.
Should that not happen, though, the crowded Browns quarterback room also offers a severe downside for Sanders. Namely, Cleveland doesn't (or at least shouldn't) feel a ton of pressure to keep a fifth-round rookie on the roster. That is to say, if he doesn't come with the right mentality or perform up to par, he could quite conceivably be cut.
If that were to happen, there's a chance another NFL team comes calling. There's also now a chance that he could be heading north of the border, if he would be willing to do that.
Shedeur Sanders rights acquired by CFL's Toronto Argonauts
On Monday, the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL added Sanders to their negotiation list, per Dave Naylor of TSN. For those unfamiliar, that would mean that if the rookie is unable to land on an NFL roster at the end of the preseason and training camp and would be willing to play in the CFL, then the Argos would have the exclusive rights to add him to their roster in Toronto.
The @TorontoArgos added quarterback Shedeur Sanders to their @CFL negotiation list TODAY. #CFL #Argos
— Dave Naylor (@TSNDaveNaylor) April 28, 2025
No disrespect to the CFL and the fine people of Canada, but there would be few things more sobering for Sanders after this whole process than his only option to be playing the CFL. That's not exactly what the hype train coming out of Boulder would have you believe would be the quarterback's fate.
Let's be clear, the likelihood of Sanders going to Toronto and the CFL is exceptionally low. Not only is pride at play but, even if he weren't to make the Browns, one of the other 31 teams — though probably not a team that he reportedly disrespected in the interview process — would surely take a flier on him as a practice squad addition at minimum. Having said that, it only furthers the idea that this whole process should be a wake-up call.
We're legitimately at a point where a CFL team having interest and the rights to Sanders is a worthwhile consideration. Again, it's not likely, but it's also not impossible at this point. When a player who was once projected to be a top-three pick in the draft slips to No. 144, it feels like anything could be on the table.
Ultimately, I firmly believe that we'll see the best Sanders has to offer in Cleveland. Not only is the competition not all that stout, but he truly seems like a good, albeit somewhat misguided in his entitlement, kid. This should all be motivation for him and it's likelier than not he'll be on the Browns by my estimation.
But if he's not, he's got Toronto's number now.