It always felt like Shedeur Sanders and the Cleveland Browns were destined to end up together.
Dating back to the start of the pre-draft process, there were plenty of people mocking the Colorado Buffaloes star to Cleveland, even as high as the No. 2 overall pick, initially.
As teams conducted more thorough evaluations on Sanders, though, plenty of questions emerged about how his particular skill set would translate to the NFL. The truth behind Sanders' tumble through the first two days of the NFL Draft and all the way into the fifth round begins there.
It certainly doesn't end there, though. Sanders is uniquely brazen, much like his father, NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, who coached his son at Colorado these last two seasons, and HBCU Jackson State before that.
What Sanders would call confidence, teams seemed to interpret as brashness and arrogance during meetings at the NFL Combine. Throw in simply being the son of one of the most high-profile football figures and you get a precipitous fall into Day 3 of the draft.
Sanders slipping out of the first round was expected. Falling to pick 144 was not. Which is why as general manager Andrew Berry explained, the team believed he was "mispriced" relative to the round of the draft and handed in a card with his name on it.
It made for a humbling weekend that Sanders took in stride.
"I would say I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity, throughout everything," said Sanders. "I don’t ever focus on the negative or even think about the negative because the positive happens so fast, and it’s a change of emotions. For me, it was just playing quarterback. That’s what it’s about. You can’t be up too low or anything."
Sanders managed to post the best completion percentage in college football last year, despite playing behind one of the weakest offensive lines in the sport. His poise and decision-making are things the Browns emphasized as being key things they look for in quarterbacks.
Still, he's human and anyone would feel slighted by what played out regarding his draft stock. Being passed over multiple times but 31 other teams leaves Sanders motivated to prove the rest of the league made a big mistake.
"Yeah, of course," Sanders said about whether he has something to prove. "The main thing I'm just proving, I'm just proving Coach Stefanski and Mr. Berry that they were right. That's it. That they were right about picking me. That I'm a good decision, I'm a good draft pick for them to be able to come in there and do what I need to do."
Despite what was said about him in recent months, Sanders believes he's a perfect fit for the Browns. The rest, as he emphasized, is up to him.
"Get there and handle my business, do what I have to do, whatever role that is, I’m just thankful for the opportunity," he said. "That’s all I could ask for. The rest is on me.”
