With the drastically underwhelming quarterback play the Las Vegas Raiders have gotten from Aidan O’Connell (174.8 yards per game, six touchdowns, three interceptions) and Gardner Minshew (201.3 yards per game, nine TDs, 10 interceptions) this season, one would assume the team will make an aggressive effort to upgrade at the QB position this offseason.
With just three passers in the free-agent class who could be legit starters in 2025 — Sam Darnold, Russell Wilson and Justin Fields — it’s more likely the Raiders turn to the draft to find their new QB than free agency, and the team has been linked to Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders for the better part of two months.
Both Shedeur and his father, Colorado head coach Deion Sanders, have subtly dropped hints that Vegas is where they’d both like the 22-year-old to land, but with the Raiders projected to draft eighth overall, the team would have to trade a haul to jump into the top three to get him.
Multiple reports indicate that Raiders minority owner Tom Brady will have a say in the team’s next QB, so if the team does trade up for Shedeur, he would likely have to sign off on it.
But what does Brady think of the 6-foot-2 senior? Well, according to Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports, the seven-time Super Bowl winner holds the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year in high regard.
“From what I’ve been told about Brady’s opinion of Sanders — which he has shared with a handful of NFL coaches and executives over the past 18 months — there is a great amount of respect for Sanders’ focus on preparation, his ability to learn and adapt, his accuracy and determination in the pocket, and his toughness to take hits and still be resilient,” Robinson wrote.
“I’ve been told that Brady has also been impressed that Sanders has avoided the pitfalls of being thrust onto the center stage of college football’s limelight after transferring to Colorado to play for his father, Deion. … He also stayed in school for four years and developed, which is something Brady has repeatedly and publicly said he values in a young quarterback.”
Fox broadcaster and Las Vegas Raiders minority owner Tom Brady before a game between the Minnesota Vikings and the Green Bay Packers.
Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images
Shedeur led the country in completion percentage (74.0), and ranked second in touchdown passes (37), fourth in passing yards (4,134) and eighth in yards per pass attempt (8.6) among QBs with 300 or more drop backs, per Pro Football Focus.
He was also named to the All-Big 12 first team and won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm award, given annually to “the nation's top quarterback who best exemplifies character, scholastic and athletic achievement.”
It’s believed Shedeur and Miami’s Cam Ward are neck-and-neck to be the first QB taken in the 2025 draft. The New York Giants, who are projected to draft fourth overall, have been linked to Ward by multiple reports.
If Ward goes to New York at No. 4, Shedeur could possibly slip to Vegas at No. 8, though the Cleveland Browns (No. 3) and New York Jets (No. 7) could also swoop in and grab a QB if Vegas doesn’t move up.
