During the latter half of the 2024 NFL season, it appeared that Shedeur Sanders was destined for the Las Vegas Raiders.
The Raiders were on track for a top two pick in the NFL Draft, and all indications were that they were enamored with Sanders. And why wouldn’t they be?
After all, Las Vegas is in severe need of a quarterback, as its situation under center over the past couple of seasons has been among the league’s worst.
But then, the Raiders fell to sixth in the draft order, all but eliminating them from Sanders contention. Or did it? More and more speculation is surfacing that Sanders could slip in the first round, which could provide Las Vegas with a chance to select him.
However, ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. actually thinks the Raiders will pass on the Colorado Buffaloes star, and he wouldn’t be the first person to make such a prediction.
Instead of Sanders, Kiper has Las Vegas choosing Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty at No. 6, even with Sanders on the board.
“I thought about Sanders here, especially given the link between him and minority owner Tom Brady. It’s absolutely plausible. Give it another month, and Las Vegas might even be considering trading up for him,” Kiper wrote. “But free agency still has to play out, and any number of available signal-callers could fit into this offense.”
Here’s the thing: the Raiders do not know if they’ll actually have a shot at bagging Sanders in April, so they may want to consider making a move for a quarterback in free agency.
But unless they do something like sign Sam Darnold to an expensive multi-year deal, it won’t rule out the possibility of them still selecting Sanders.
No one was just inventing Las Vegas’ interest in Sanders. It seemed very real, and the only reason why the signal-caller is no longer bound for the desert is because the Raiders fell so far in the draft order.
Had Las Vegas owned one of the top two picks, I don’t think anyone would even be suggesting that they would potentially pass on Sanders in order to take Jeanty or anyone else.
