Former Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders took some criticism when the university decided to retire his number after his final season, and now a rookie year NFL honor is drawing more controversy.
Sanders rose up from the bottom of the Cleveland Browns depth chart in his first NFL season, starting in the No. 4 spot but working his way up to starter after a series of trades and injuries cleared the way. Though he showed some promise, Sanders largely struggled in leading a Browns offense thin on talent.
Despite those struggles, Sanders found his way to a Pro Bowl berth after some other top quarterbacks dropped out — leading to more criticism for the former Buffaloes signal caller.
NFL Puts Shedeur Sanders in the Spotlight
NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported on Monday that Sanders earned a Pro Bowl selection, filling the spot vacated by New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye when his team reached the Super Bowl. As Schultz noted, it was a rare honor for a Browns quarterback.
“Sources: #Browns QB Shedeur Sanders has been added to the Pro Bowl roster as a replacement. Sanders is the first 5th-round rookie to make a Pro Bowl since Puka Nacua,” Schultz wrote, adding, “Shedeur Sanders is the first #Browns QB to make the Pro Bowl since Derek Anderson in 2008.”
The decision was met with some strong pushback, leading some NFL insiders to suggest that the league added the polarizing quarterback to the Pro Bowl in a bid to boost ratings. Fox Sports reporter Ralph Vacchiano noted that several quarterbacks had stronger statistical seasons and should have been picked over Sanders.
“I get that Drake Maye is going to the Super Bowl and a bunch of other AFC quarterbacks are nursing injuries. But did Trevor Lawrence, Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, CJ Stroud and Aaron Rodgers all say no?” Vacchiano wrote in a post on X.
Bleacher Report’s Timothy Rapp added that Sanders wasn’t even the best rookie quarterback on Cleveland’s roster, at least by the metrics.
“[Sanders] had a QBR of 18.9 and a passer rating of 68.1,” Rapp wrote. “For context, his teammate and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel had a QBR of 31.5 and a passer rating of 80.8 across 10 appearances. Gabriel wasn’t great either, but his touchdown-to-interception ratio was 7-to-2, which sure looks better than what Sanders provided.”
Shedeur Sanders Could Face Fight for His Job
Sanders could face another battle for playing time in 2026, this time with some tougher competition. While the Browns cleared the way for Sanders and Gabriel by cutting ties with Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco over the course of the year, both will likely compete with incumbent starter Deshaun Watson upon his return.
Watson returned to practice late in the season after having suffered — then re-aggravated — his Achilles in 2024. Then-head coach Kevin Stefanski said Watson had been working hard to return.
“He’ll be out there today, which is outstanding for Deshaun,” Stefanski said, via the team’s official website. “He’s has been working so hard, rehabbing, so finally to get out there on the practice field with his teammates to go through individual, I think this is really great for him. So, excited for him. His focus, my focus is obviously getting him back to playing football, practicing football, which he hasn’t done in over a year. So, it’s a good next step for him.”
NFL Decision on Former Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders Sparks Controversy