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Cam Ward, Shedeur Sanders a contrast in the competition to be No. 1 QB in 2025 NFL draft
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- Cam Ward, Shedeur Sanders a contrast in the competition to be No. 1 QB in 2025 NFL draft
INDIANAPOLIS — They stood some 25 yards apart in a giant exhibition hall inside the Indiana Convention Cente r on Friday. They stand so much closer to each other than that in the conversation of the potential "quarterback of the future" for the Cleveland Browns .
Both Miami 's Cam Ward and Colorado's Shedeur Sanders stood in front of a mass of cell phones, cameras and microphones at the NFL scouting combine on Friday. Each one was asked why he should be the player who is the No. 1 pick, or at least become the No. 1 quarterback for some woebegone franchise flailing into the abyss.
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Could one be the savior for a woebegone franchise like the Browns, who have the No. 2 overall pick in the draft? Or perhaps the Tennessee Titans , who sit one spot ahead of them at No. 1?
"That's the plan," Sanders said. "If that's not what you're trying to do, don't get me. If you ain't trying to change the franchise or the culture, don't get me. So you should know, history repeats itself over and over and over and I've done it over and over and over. So it should be no question why an NFL franchise should be."
Neither Ward nor Sanders were going to sway either the Titans or the Browns, or another team trying to trade up for them, with their words to a swarm of media Friday. They're not going to do so with workouts on Saturday, since neither will be participating in the combine's on-field portion.
That made the 15 minutes or so they spent some 25 yards apart Friday their one public moment of the week. And their one moment this week they could be compared and contrasted against one another.
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The moment of truth, though, will come April 24, when one will be selected before the other in the first round of the NFL draft. That could come as soon as the No. 1 overall pick.
Former Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders speaks to the media during the 2025 NFL scouting combine Feb. 28, 2025, in Indianapolis, Indiana.
"Yeah, we play around, we joke around with it," Ward said. "It really don't mean nothing. The draft pick will never mean anything. At the end of the day, you've got to show whether you can prove it each and every Sunday. You can't just do it one year and just show up the next year. You've got to do it every time you step on the field."
The contrast of the two players on the field is as different as it is off the field. Ward, who most have ranked higher, is the big-armed gunslinger who'll find his way into trouble and throw his way out of it just as quickly, while Sanders is the prototypical passer who'll stand in the pocket and deliver an accurate strike even if it's not with the strongest of arms.
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Ward flashed a winning smile while remaining in a serious tone amid a barrage of questions Friday. Sanders, meanwhile, flashed a self-assured personality as he made it clear he's the one who can raise a team the same way he raised both Jackson State and Colorado in college.
"I've done at two locations already, so it's simple," Sanders said. "So that's why, when people say I'm not one of the top quarterbacks or the top quarterback, it's what are y'all going based off of? Because I did it year, year after year after year, and you see the progression. So, obviously, it's got to be some type of external hate that you have for the family, for the last name, for anything. Because I know I proved myself on the field."
Miami quarterback Cam Ward speaks on stage during a news conference before the 2024 Heisman Trophy Presentation on Dec. 14, 2024, in New York City.
Sanders, rightly or — probably to an extent — wrongly, does come with the extra layer of scrutiny because of his ultra-famous Pro Football Hall of Fame dad and college head coach, Deion Sanders. Then again, one could close his eyes and listen to the younger Sanders talk and swear it was his father, right down to the confidence.
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Ward isn't lacking in confidence, either, especially on the field. However, it's unavoidable when contrasted alongside Sanders to notice the more reserved delivery.
Want a contrasting style from Ward that says he's the best quarterback in the draft? He'll tell you to pop in one of the dozens of films from his five years of playing, from Incarnate Word to Washington State to, finally, Miami.
"The tape says everything I believe and I'm honest to that," Ward said. "But I think just what separates me from everybody is the way I approach it, the mindset that I have going onto the field each and every game. And, I mean, coming from my journey, not a lot of people can do that, and so I just think it shows the work that I'm willing to put in whether I go first round or second round.
"At the end of the day, that draft pick don't mean nothing. It's all about establishing yourself once you get the opportunity."
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Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Shedeur Sanders, Cam Ward a contrast in race to be No. 1 QB in draft
