The conversation around Shedeur Sanders’ draft slide refuses to die down. Months after he shockingly tumbled to the fifth round, speculation about the quarterback’s fall has ranged from Sanders’ poor interview sessions to the NFL colluding with teams to teach him a ‘lesson.’
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This discourse has further intensified after Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson dropped a bombshell on the Roggin and Rodney show on AM 570 LA Sports.
The legendary running back claimed that he heard directly from an NFL source that teams were told to stay away from Shedeur Sanders.
“I tell you this much, what I heard from someone that’s in the NFL that the NFL told [teams] don’t draft him, do not draft him,” Dickerson said. “We’re going to make an example out of him. And this came from a very good source, a very good source.”
The ex-Colts RB further alleged that the league officials eventually called the Browns after the former Buffs star slid further than anyone expected.
“Somebody called the Cleveland Browns and said, ‘don’t do that, draft him,’ because they weren’t going to draft him either… They were forced into drafting him because somebody made that call to them.”
Unsurprisingly, Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson, two NFL veterans who believed in Dickerson’s line of thinking before he went public, weighed in on his statements.
Ocho said that this fallout was glaring when he revisited the quarterbacks drafted ahead of Shedeur Sanders.
“Man, Mel Kiper [ESPN Draft analyst] was losing his mind,” Ocho said, recalling draft night.
“He was a top-three pick in the first round. We all knew that. If you watch the game of football, if you look at the quarterbacks that went before Shedeur, I mean, hello. The only one who’s looked decent this preseason plays in New York. Outside of that, the Saints still don’t have a quarterback. The Steelers still don’t have a quarterback. I mean, come on, man,” the Bengals legend added.
Sharpe, meanwhile, tried to balance Johnson’s fire with context, reading back Dickerson’s full quote before pointing out how league politics often blur with football decisions.
The Broncos legend even drew parallels to the 2014 Michael Sam situation. He noted that while some believed it was his sexuality that prevented him from making it to the big league, the NFL ultimately cares about production above all else.
“The NFL is a business,” he said. “Can you do whatever your position is? If you’re a quarterback, can you throw? If you’re a DB, can you break on the ball? I don’t care about all that other stuff,” he added.
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Despite Sharpe’s caveat, his conversation with Ocho leaves little doubt that the NFL’s handling of Shedeur reflects the league’s willingness to protect its power structure, even if it means sacrificing transparency.
Whether fans believe Dickerson’s remarks or dismiss them as hearsay, the fact remains that the Saints, Steelers, and several other franchises passed on a quarterback many saw as a top-five talent. And they did so while still searching for answers under center, which is truly a paradox that continues to puzzle fans and analysts alike.
