Stephen A. Smith reportedly texted Chris Rock about how Deion Sanders caused Shedeur’s shocking draft slide

Speculations have been rampant in sports media on what made NFL teams pass on Shedeur Sanders for four rounds in the 2025 NFL draft. Many have wondered if Deion Sanders had anything to do with the dramatic slide.

Some analysts have argued that this was simply a matter of NFL teams making a point by showing Deion Sanders who has the power to make decisions in the league. Sanders's arrogant rhetoric going into the draft has mostly been held responsible.

Tony Rock, the brother of comedian Chris Rock, brought a new perspective on the whole thing. Speaking on "The Green Room Podcast", Rock revealed a conversation his brother had with ESPN analyst, Stephen A. Smith.

Smith apparently told Rock that Coach Prime was responsible for Shedeur's downgrade, but not because of what he said. NFL coaches didn't want to draft the Colorado QB to save their own jobs.

"Stephen A. Smith texted my borther and said, 'Honestly, I don't think it had anything to do with Shedeur. If you're an NFL head coach, drafting Shedeur meant that you were more than likely also drafting your replacement in Deion. If Tomlin drafts him and they don't win the Super Bowl, Deion would immediately be the coach next year. If Deion was a bad coach, Shedeur would've went in the first round." Rock reported. (1:30)

While this explanation is very different to what most insiders have conveyed, it falls in line with the general sentiment that NFL teams didn't want to deal with the media circus that Shedeur Sanders and his family bring.

According to some analysts, like Fox Sports' Joel Klatt, once he fell off the second round, Sanders was no longer seen as a starter. At that point, teams started to wonder if all the media hassle that surrounds him was worth it for a backup.

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Browns' GM Andrew Berry: Deion Sanders wasn't part of the calculations to select Shedeur Sanders

Despite all the speculations, the team that eventually picked Shedeur Sanders maintained that his father didn't hamper or improve his draft stock. Cleveland Browns' general manager Andrew Berry said in his most recent press conference that Deion Sanders didn't factor into their valuation of Shedeur Sanders:

“I can’t say if that was a factor or not for other teams, but that was not a significant factor for us,” Berry said.

“Our personal relationships and interactions with Deion, that’s really been all positive from our perspective,” he added. “And I mean that organizationally, not just me and Kevin. Really, all of us who have interacted with Deion, and the people out in Colorado. We don’t typically penalize prospects for their parents.”

This would seem to imply, that for the Cleveland Browns, Shedeur Sanders was always a fifth round pick. Regardless of what teams really thought of his athletic ability, the reality is that Shedeur now has to earn his keep.

He has his work cut out for him ahead of the 2025 season. He'll have to beat Kenny Pickett and Dillon Gabriel for the backup job.