‘Tom Brady Said No to Shedeur (Sanders)’: Raiders Under Scrutiny Despite ‘Fired Up’ Pete Carroll’s Ecstasy

It wasn’t just Deion Sanders whom Shedeur could depend on. The young QB was mentored by Tom Brady during his college days. A couple of years ago, Brady invited Shedeur to come work out in Tampa Bay, and that turned into a mentor-mentee relationship. “He took me in his truck in to this high school field,” he reminisced at the NFL combine and shared how he filmed everything the veteran had to say. Shedeur, from time to time, goes back to listen to those recordings and gets amazed when things suddenly click, and how accurately he is able to apply Brady’s tricks.

Similarly, the retired NFL player also revealed his admiration for the Colorado Buffs QB back in 2023 when he shared, “Naturally, he’s very proactive.” So, as the 2025 NFL Draft was inching closer, fans started speculating whether the Raiders, where Brady is a minority owner, would choose Shedeur Sanders. But where did things go wrong?

The Raiders shocked the board by taking the former Boise State RB, Ashton Jeanty, with their first-round pick. With this, Tom Brady’s influence is once again in the spotlight, but also under scrutiny. And it’s just tough luck for Shedeur Sanders. In an X post on April 24, Skip Bayless made a bold assumption in all caps — “ASHTON JEANTY WILL BE VERY GOOD. BUT HE WON’T BE AS VALUABLE AS SHEDEUR. SO I HAVE TO ASSUME TOM BRADY SAID NO TO SHEDEUR.” With round 1 officially done, Shedeur has still not been drafted.

The Giants passed him twice. Then, the Browns (No.5), Raiders (No. 6), Jets (No. 7), Saints, and Steelers (No. 9 and 21) all walked past him, which is surprising because those were teams that looked in need of a QB. So he will be available for the second round on Friday. Concerns about his arm strength and athleticism were discussed in the recent weeks leading up to the draft, and while the Sanders family paid no heed to it, the current scenario has raised questions about how far down the signal-caller will fall. But what does the quarterback have to say about the situation?

Shedeur spoke to those who were present on his draft watch site and shared: “We all didn’t expect this of course, but I feel like with God, anything’s possible, everything’s possible, and I feel like this didn’t happen for no reason. All this is of course is fuel to the fire. Under no circumstance, we all know this shouldn’t have happened, but we understand we’re onto bigger and better things. If tomorrow’s the day, we’re going to be happy regardless.” Father Deion Sanders shared a clip of Shedeur saying this and captioned it, “Thank You God.” But perhaps Shedeur shouldn’t forget that Brady himself got drafted in the sixth round as the 199th overall pick!

While the Sanders family is staying positive, Ashton Jeanty will be relieved. He is a prized acquisition coming in as a Heisman finalist with 2,601 rushing yards this past season, ranking second in NCAA history only behind Barry Sanders. A violent, speedy runner who can take over games, the kind that the Raiders’ new HC, Pete Carroll, loves. As someone who loves to run the ball, Carroll couldn’t contain his excitement. He posted a hyped “We’re fired up!! RAAAAIIIDDDEERRRSS!!” on X, celebrating Jeanty’s selection like it was a touchdown. But some people are wary of Ashton Jeanty as Las Vegas’ pick.

As FOX Sports’ Craig Carton put it before the draft, “Not a knock on Jeanty; he is probably the best, certainly at running back in the draft. But when I say Raiders, do either of you say, man if they just had a running back, they would compete for a division title? No.” So this decision hasn’t shielded the Raiders’ front office from growing scrutiny.

Tom Brady is mentoring, advising, and influencing the culture, and apparently, the picks, too. So when a guy like Shedeur Sanders, a steady QB with 7,364 yards and 64 TDs at Colorado, is still on the board, and your team needs a quarterback, you have to wonder what went down behind those war room doors. And that too after the QB’s pointed interest in the franchise.

What was Shedeur Sanders’ cryptic message for Las Vegas before the draft?

Shedeur Sanders wasn’t hiding his interest. He told Raiders star Maxx Crosby on The Rush podcast’s latest episode—“First, of course, I’m thankful to be a part of and to be able to lead a new franchise and take them to new heights and new levels… You’re going to get a consistent player day in and day out. Not too high, not too low, all the time. So, you’re going to see a lot of improvements everywhere through the franchise very quickly.”

No fluff there considering his numbers—nearly 72% pass completion and just 13 interceptions in two years. So, analysts like Skip Bayless believe passing on Shedeur Sanders could haunt Las Vegas, especially with the team’s ongoing QB uncertainties.

He could’ve spent a year learning behind Geno Smith. Sure, Ashton Jeanty may be the RB1 in the draft, but positional value? RBs don’t move the team like QBs do. We never know if this is a tactical football move or a branding misstep. Tom Brady might have seen something in Shedeur Sanders. But one thing’s clear: If Shedeur Sanders delivers elsewhere and the Raiders can’t keep up, there’s going to be heat.

Hey, amid all this, let us not forget that the second round is coming up, and the whole narrative could quickly change. What do you think?