by: Steve Samra 35 minutes ago SamraSource
Nobody backed Shedeur Sanders harder than ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. during the 2025 NFL Draft . Some thought it made him looked silly, but the analyst received some vindication over the weekend after the quarterback’s debut for the Cleveland Browns .
It was only Week 1 of the preseason, but Sanders showed up and showed out. He went 14-of-23 passing for 138 yards and two touchdowns. During ESPN’s Monday edition of Get Up , Adam Schefter reacted to it all, naming Kiper Jr. as the biggest winner of the entire weekend due to Sanders’ performance.
“Mel Kiper Jr,” Schefter proclaimed, alluding to Kiper pounding the table for Sanders during the 2025 NFL Draft. “I know it’s only one week. It’s a little early and we don’t want to get too carried away, but who had a better weekend this weekend than Mel Kiper Jr.? I don’t know if he was on the Chesapeake Bay or where he was in Baltimore eating crabs, but I do know that the one player that he touted all through the draft shined on Friday night.
“Here’s the thing, it’s one game, but I will say this, he passed the eye test. Shedeur Sanders looked like he belonged. He looked like he could play. When you watch these rookies, early on, some of them — it just feels like they belong. It felt like Friday night that he did.”
Moreover, Schefter won’t get too hyperbolic when it comes to Sanders just yet. However, early returns have him reminded of two pretty good quarterbacks who also rose to prominence in the preseason before taking over starting gigs, like Sanders could in Cleveland.