Shedeur Sanders to Raiders? Draft expert makes case against Colorado QB joining forces with Tom Brady's franchise

The NFL Combine is on the horizon but one man who will not be throwing on the day is Colorado's star quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Earlier this week, Deion Sanders' son announced he won't throw at the combine but NFL teams will have an opportunity to catch his talents in action when he throws at Colorado's Pro Day, though a date is yet to be set for that event.

In any case, it appears ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr.'s much-awaited pre-Combine mock draft did not take Sanders' decision into consideration but regardless has him slipping past the QB-needy Cleveland Browns, New York Giants and even Tom Brady's Las Vegas Raiders to fall to the Jets to serve as Aaron Rodgers' successor.

Brady, who has been somewhat of a mentor towards Sanders, has had nothing but praise for the Colorado QB but Kiper Jr. outlined one scenario where the Raiders pass on Sanders.

"Free agency still has to play out, and any number of available signal-callers could fit into this offense. Sam Darnold might be the answer. Justin Fields could bring upside. Russell Wilson has the Pete Carroll connection from Seattle. So right now, I'm looking at other positions here," Kiper Jr. wrote.

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Exploring the likeliest landing spot for Shedeur Sanders in the 2025 NFL Draft

NCAA Football: Alamo Bowl-Brigham Young at Colorado - Source: Imagn

A few weeks ago, the NFL landscape was entirely different. Aaron Rodgers was the lone big name on the market with another tier of quarterbacks like Sam Darnold and Justin Fields also expected to be available.

Now, it appears Matthew Stafford has also entered the fray with reports he is looking to earn about $50 million a year, $10 million less than the highest-paid quarterback in the league.

With that in mind, more teams could be looking at veteran QBs this time of year, which could possibly lead to Shedeur Sanders sliding further down the board.

Sportskeeda insider Tony Pauline also reports that there are concerns around Sanders not making as much of a leap this year as Miami's Cam Ward, further complicating matters.

That said, it's difficult to see Brady's Raiders passing on an opportunity to bring Deion Sanders' son to Sin City. The Raiders tried and failed to draft Jayden Daniels last year and instead landed with tight end Brock Bowers, who had an amazing year. But it's difficult to see the franchise letting another opportunity to get a franchise QB slip from their hands.