Shedeur Sanders’ abbreviated rookie season has ended with a surprising bid to the Pro Bowl.
The Cleveland Browns fifth-round pick was added to the Pro Bowl Games roster in place of Drake Maye, who is out for the games ahead of the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX.
“Thank you God. I’m beyond excited and extremely grateful for all the love and support from the coaches, players and fans,” Sanders said in a statement on the team’s website. “This wouldn’t be possible without the support behind me. Still a lot to do.”
Maye, starter Josh Allen and Justin Herbert were initial Pro Bowl selections for the AFC. Allen and Maye were among the top two fan vote-getters.
A standout quarterback in the draft, Sanders was the second QB taken by the Browns in the 2025 NFL Draft (No. 144 overall, 50 spots behind Dillon Gabriel) and the third overall to play for Cleveland this season. Joe Flacco was on the bench for Gabriel, who was sidelined with a midseason injury to Sanders.
The former Colorado QB ended up starting seven games for the top-ranked Browns and finished with a 3-4 record, including wins over the Raiders, Bengals and Steelers in the postseason. In eight games during his rookie season, Sanders completed 56.6% of his passes for 1,400 yards, seven touchdowns, 10 interceptions and a 68.1 passer rating.