Shedeur Sanders’ NFL Draft nightmare took a cruel twist Friday when his hopes were momentarily lifted only to be immediately crushed.
Sanders had been tipped by some – including his father – to be a top-five pick but he embarrassingly became the biggest shock of the draft.
Cam Ward and Jaxson Dart were the only quarterbacks selected in Thursday’s first round while his humiliation continued Friday.
The former Colorado quarterback continued to plummet falling out of the second and even third rounds.
And as his agonizing wait dragged on, some cruel prankster decided to add salt to the wound.
During his second draft celebration, Shedeur Sanders, with his father, former NFL star Deion Sanders, by his side, finally got the call he had been eagerly waiting for.
Shedeur Sanders was the victim of a cruel prank call during the NFL Draft Friday
The quarterback plummeted out of the second round and continued sliding down the third
The incoming call appeared to be from an NFL team front office when Sanders first picked up, striking up a conversation.
‘Good, I’ve been waiting on you,’ Sanders could be heard saying in response to the caller asking how he was.
But the call suddenly took a turn for the worst as the caller cryptically said: ‘[You’ll] have to wait a little longer.’
Sanders was left looking puzzled before realizing that he was a victim of a prank call.
The moment was caught on Sanders’ livestream of his draft party, which was swiftly cut off following the humiliation.
As the third round picks dwindled and Sanders remained undrafted, the unsettling situation has now extended into the following day, prolonging the young quarterback’s agony.
It had appeared that Sanders could finally get the nod Thursday night when the New York Giants traded back up to the first round but Brian Daboll’s side opted to draft quarterback Jaxson Dart instead.
Entering Friday night, many expected Sanders to be taken with the first pick of the second round by the Cleveland Browns. Instead, the Browns passed on him at picks 33 and 36.
Sanders’ father, Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, believes he warranted a top-five draft pick
Then, the Saints, whose quarterback Derek Carr is an injury doubt for the upcoming season, had the 40th pick and were believed to be in the market for a new signal caller but once again, Sanders was overlooked – this time, in favor of Tyler Shough.
No other quarterbacks were taken in the rest of the second round, leaving draft analysts confounded by how far Sanders had fallen.
Then came the chaos of the third round. With the 28th pick of the round and the 92nd pick overall, the Seattle Seahawks chose Alabama’s Jalen Milroe in a stunner.
But then two picks later, in perhaps the most staggering development of the night, the Browns took a quarterback by selecting Oregon gunslinger Dillon Gabriel.
Gabriel had been projected by ESPN’s Mel Kiper as the eighth best quarterback in the draft class – making this an absolutely mindboggling decision.
Meanwhile, Cam Ward, the former Miami quarterback, was selected by the Tennessee Titans with the No . 1 overall pick.
Now, at best, Sanders will be the sixth quarterback taken off the board in the draft when the process reaches its conclusion on Saturday afternoon.
There had been speculation ahead of the draft that Sanders’ stock had tanked among certain teams.
His character in particular had been targeted following the combine with anonymous team sources branding him ‘brash’ and ‘arrogant’ following interviews.
Concerns about Sanders’ arm strength have become an issue in recent weeks, although his father, Pro Football Hall of Famer Sanders, laughed at that notion.
In 50 collegiate games, Sanders threw for 14,347 yards, with 134 touchdowns and 27 interceptions. He completed 70.1 percent of his passes and ran for 17 more scores.
