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Tyler Shough being drafted ahead of Shedeur Sanders has fans in disbelief
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With the 40th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, the New Orleans Saints selected Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough.
The Saints had been linked to former Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders multiple times throughout the first 2 rounds of this year’s draft. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. suggested Thursday night that New Orleans could take Sanders with the ninth overall pick, then said prior to the start of the second round that it would be one of the biggest blunders in recent draft history if New Orleans didn’t take Sanders with its second-round pick.
Kiper had Sanders as the fifth-best prospect on his board entering the draft. Not only did New Orleans disagree with his assessment of the quarterback class, but it seems everyone in the NFL did.
When the second round closed, Sanders was still on the board.
Some have suggested that Sanders didn’t “slide” out of the first round on Thursday night, opining instead that he was never in that range to begin with. But very few expected him to be the fourth quarterback to come off the board (or worse).
Cam Ward was the No. 1 pick. Former Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart was a bit of a surprise at No. 25, with the New York Giants trading back into the first round to select him. Shough being drafted over Sanders caught many off guard.
The 6-foot-5 passer from Louisville is 25 years old. He’ll turn 26 in September. He spent 7 seasons in college — 3 at Oregon, 3 at Texas Tech, and 1 at Louisville — but played more than 8 games in a season only 1 time. He suffered 3 significant injuries in consecutive seasons while with the Red Raiders, and threw for more than 3,000 yards only once in his career.
By contrast, Sanders had at least 3,200 yards in each of his 4 collegiate seasons. Sanders’ lowest yardage total (3,230 in 2023) was better than Shough’s best.
That contrast had fans and several media members in disbelief over Sanders’ tumble down the board.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
