Ahead of the 2025 NFL draft, the Las Vegas Raiders were heavily linked to quarterback Shedeur Sanders — and it made sense.
The Raiders had a high pick and a desperate need for a quarterback, and Sanders had a relationship with minority owner Tom Brady.
However, despite having several chances to draft Sanders, the Raiders never did and he ultimately fell all the way to the fifth round, where the Cleveland Browns finally snatched him up.
Las Vegas faced no shortage of criticism for passing on Sanders in every round before he was drafted, but that decision is looking a lot better after Sanders' ugly debut in Week 11.
Sanders got the nod thanks to an injury to Dillon Gabriel and he went on to complete just 4-of-16 passes for 47 yards while also tossing one interception. Sanders was sacked twice, as well.
Sanders' best pass came on the Browns' final drive when Cleveland was driving to tie the game.
The Colorado product completed a 25-yard pass to rookie tight end Harold Fannin Jr., which gave the Browns some hope before their late-game drive was stifled.
Now, it's not surprising that a rookie struggled in his debut, but Sanders looked completely overmatched and didn't show any semblance of being ready for the moment.
Granted, there's still a long way to go before we can write Sanders off, but as of right now it looks like the Raiders made the right call to not draft him.
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