The Browns’ reaction to the Shedeur Sanders pick was subdued, like their other selections

Editor’s note: We’ve updated this article to reflect that the reactions by Andrew Berry and Kevin Stefanski to the Sanders’ pick were actually similar to other reactions. This article and the headline have been updated to reflect that.

The Cleveland Browns made a big draft move on Saturday, selecting Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft. The move came after the team spent a late third round pick on Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel.

It was a curious move to add a second rookie to the quarterback room, but not entirely shocking. And the chance to land Sanders in the fifth round offers some value for a guy many thought would go on day one, if not day two.

The reactions in the Browns war room suggests a top-down approach to this pick. General manager Andrew Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski were seen offering polite clapping but not much in the way of excitement about landing Sanders this late.

As Ollie noted, this suggests maybe Browns owner Jimmy Haslam had some say in this pick. And Adam Schefter offered some details that might back that up. He indicated Deion and Shedeur had “developed a relationship with Jimmy Haslam during the pre-draft process.”

A social media user went back and put together other times Cleveland’s brass was shown after making a selection and noticed they had the same reaction as when Sanders was selected:

There are a host of reasons Haslam might have pushed for the team to pick Sanders. At the end of the day, NFL owners are the ones who are paying the bills and get to have final say if they so choose. It’s generally not ideal for an owner to be making football decisions, but the richest person in the room usually has the most power when it comes to final decision-making.

Whatever the reasoning for drafting Sanders, as Terrell Owens once told us, “Get your popcorn ready!”