Shedeur Sanders: From Draft Day Disappointment to Ohio Inspiration

Shedeur Sanders’s path to the NFL has been anything but predictable. After what many considered a surprising slide down the draft board, the former Colorado Buffaloes quarterback found himself selected by the Cleveland Browns in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, pick number 144. The drop was a stark contrast to the pre-draft hype that had surrounded Sanders, with some analysts projecting him as a potential first-round pick. The NFL’s collective assessment of his talent clearly differed from some of the more optimistic pre-draft evaluations.

Despite the disappointment of the draft weekend, Sanders’s resolve remained unshaken. His focus immediately shifted to proving himself and earning a spot on the Browns’ final roster after training camp. Demonstrating this commitment, Sanders wasted no time immersing himself in preparations for the challenges ahead.

Only a few days after the draft, on Tuesday, May 7th, Sanders was already looking to fine-tune his skills. He reached out to his trainer, Ryan Adams, seeking potential workout partners. Adams, in turn, contacted Milan Parris, a talented wide receiver from Walsh Jesuit High School in Ohio. Parris was engaged in a training session with a group of players from Glenville High School – Pauly Sadler, Devron Mills, and LeMarques Greenwood II – in Euclid, Ohio. Upon receiving the call, the young athletes quickly made their way to St. Ignatius High School’s practice field in Cleveland to meet and train with Sanders.

Parris, reflecting on the unexpected opportunity, expressed his initial disbelief. “When I got the call, I just looked at my phone. It was like, ‘There’s no way,’” he told the Akron Beacon Journal. He admitted to looking up to Sanders, particularly admiring his journey to Colorado and the opportunities he was creating for himself and his family. The chance to work with him was a surreal and unexpected experience. "After how he just got drafted to the Browns and how the draft went, I mean, honestly, I look up to him. He’s going to Colorado, doing all this stuff, and that’s something I want to do one day to provide for my family. Seeing it, it was crazy. It was the last thing I would’ve expected.”

For two hours, Parris engaged in intensive drills with Sanders, absorbing knowledge and advice from the seasoned quarterback. They worked on route running, refined technique, and discussed various aspects of the game. Parris was eager to capitalize on the chance to learn from an NFL draft pick.

The experience wasn’t lost on Parris. He acknowledged the initial awe he felt, but quickly shifted his focus to the task at hand. “I was definitely starstruck at first but, I mean, business is business and once the football is set down I’ve got to be serious,” Parris said. He saw this as a potential audition, a chance to showcase his abilities to a player who might one day be throwing him passes in the NFL. “By all means, that’s the NFL guy. I wanted him to know that maybe he could be throwing to me one day.”

Parris also noted the differences in the football used by Sanders. “The ball was definitely coming a lot harder than the high school balls. … It’s a little harder to track the ball because there’s no stripes on it because it’s an NFL ball, but it’s a little bigger. The balls coming at you are pretty powerful.”

Sanders offered specific guidance on route running, emphasizing the importance of timing and fluidity. Parris, who is committed to play for Louisville, said, “A lot of his routes were based off of timing. Now that he’s transitioning to the next level, we were working on a lot of that. He was giving us good tips. Sometimes we’d have trouble hesitating through our routes or getting to the break and he was just like, be loose, be comfortable, and that will definitely you make a lot better.”

Parris understood the unique nature of the opportunity, recognizing that it might not be repeated. He made a conscious effort to absorb every detail, knowing that the lessons learned could prove invaluable to his development. “The drive there was definitely nerve-wracking,” Parris said. “I was going through all types of things in my head. I had to get my head together before I arrived. On the way back, I was in shock. My family was calling my phone and, honestly, I was just trying to soak it all in.”

The chance encounter and training session provided a boost to Parris’s confidence and aspirations. The experience underscores Sanders’s willingness to connect with and inspire young athletes in the community.

As Sanders turns his attention to minicamp and the rigorous training camp ahead, he continues to leave a positive mark on the lives of those he encounters in Ohio. Despite the unexpected challenges he faced during the draft process, he is winning over fans with his work ethic and genuine desire to improve.

Whether Sanders’s new fans will become his future teammates remains to be seen, but his impact on the young athletes he worked with is undeniable. The story highlights the power of mentorship and the ability of athletes to inspire others, even in the face of personal setbacks. It showcases Sanders’s commitment to hard work and his desire to contribute to the community, even before officially beginning his NFL career. He is taking the negative of the draft and turning it into a positive. While the draft may have been a humbling experience, it appears to have fueled a new sense of purpose and determination in Sanders, both on and off the field. He wants to show why he should have been picked earlier in the draft, and his work ethic is second to none.