Browns owner Jimmy Haslam says Shedeur Sanders wasn't his pick
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Browns owner Jimmy Haslam says Shedeur Sanders wasn't his pick originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The Browns have suffered from a revolving door situation at quarterback for the greater part of the past three decades. As of now, they have five quarterbacks with one who is on the PUP list.
To say Shedeur Sanders going to Cleveland was unexpected is an understatement. The 144th overall pick in April's NFL Draft has tried to forge his own path in the 'Party of Five'. However, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam took zero credit for being involved in the process of picking Shedeur.
Meeting with reporters on Tuesday, Haslam was asked about making the call on Shedeur.
"If you've told me Friday night (of the draft) driving home we were going to pick Shedeur. I would say that's not happening," Haslam said. “We had a conversation early that morning and then we had a conversation later that day. I think we had the right people involved in the conversation. At the end of the day, that’s Andrew Berry’s call. Andrew made the call to pick Shedeur."
Haslam’s answer tells a story of the organization's logic going into Day 3 and wanting to feel out if Sanders would be available. During those conversations, Berry was sold on Shedeur when others didn't seem to be. But Haslam did his job by staying out of having the final say. He's trusting Berry to be the GM and letting his decisions make or break his tenure with the Browns. That's the mark of a good owner who's trusting the process.
Related: Deion Sanders says Shedeur rejected visit to Browns training camp
Still, the fact that there were conversations suggests a plan was brewing as Sanders experienced a slide down the draft board. We'll stay tuned to see if taking Shedeur as a fifth-rounder was the biggest steal in NFL history or a bad call.
Related: Sean Payton shares heartwarming reaction to Deion Sanders: 'Football is better with him'
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 30, 2025, where it first appeared.
