Eric Dickerson, Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinee and one of the league’s most prominent running backs, has claimed that teams in the National Football League were instructed not to draft Shedeur Sanders during the 2025 NFL Draft. Sanders, formerly a standout at Colorado, was selected in the fifth round despite widespread expectations that he would be chosen earlier.
Dickerson expressed his concerns about how the process unfolded for Sanders. He stated on the Roggin and Rodney Show, as reported by Christian Arnold of the New York Post: “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 (…) We’re going to make an example out of him. And this came from a very good source, a very good source.”
While many believed Sanders would be among the top prospects off the board, reports following his slide suggested that interviews with teams may have raised additional questions about his fit and readiness.
Dickerson said he learned from a trusted source that a call was made to advise at least one team not to select Sanders. According to Dickerson: “I won’t say who — 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 a call to them (…) He was not gonna get drafted, to basically show you this is what happens when you do this. When I say it came from a good source, I say it came from a very, very good source.”
Dickerson did not reveal any names or provide further evidence supporting his claims.
Sanders’ unexpected fall continues to generate discussion among fans and analysts regarding possible reasons behind it and its implications for future prospects entering the league.
