Shedeur Sanders' surprising slide into Day 3 of the NFL draft has ended.

The Cleveland Browns traded up with the Seattle Seahawks to select Sanders with the 144th overall pick in the fifth round Saturday. Cleveland gave Seattle its 166th and 192nd picks.

After being selected, Sanders posted to X: "Thank you GOD."

Shilo and Shedeur dancing after Shedeur got drafted by the Cleveland Browns.

(via shilosanders/Twitch) pic.twitter.com/qPrVXCoF4c

Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 26, 2025

The Browns were linked to Sanders after spending extensive time with him throughout the draft process but ultimately passed on him multiple times. Cleveland traded back with the Jacksonville Jaguars from its No. 2 slot to No. 5, getting a trade package that included the 36th pick (which the team used on running back Quinshon Judkins) and a 2026 first-round pick. Cleveland selected defensive tackle Mason Graham with the fifth overall pick.

The Browns passed on Sanders again at the end of the third round, selecting quarterback Dillon Gabriel with the 94th pick. When asked why the team opted not to go with Sanders, general manager Andrew Berry on Friday night noted that there were four rounds remaining and that he remained impressed with Sanders. A team source said that despite the pick of Gabriel, Sanders remained on the team's board.

Berry told reporters Saturday that as the team entered Day 3, there were discussions about possibly targeting Sanders if he continued to fall. Berry said there was an early run on some of the players that the team had targeted in the final rounds and as Sanders continued to be available, the decision to trade up for him came together quickly.

"We talk oftentimes about quarterback being the most important position in the sport," Berry said. "We obviously spent a lot of time with Shedeur throughout the process. He's highly accurate, can play well from the pocket, very productive college career. And we felt like it wasn't necessarily the plan going into the weekend to select two quarterbacks, but we do believe in best player available, we do believe in positional value. We didn't necessarily expect him to be available in the fifth round. So, we love adding competition to every position room and adding him to compete with guys that are already in there, we felt like that was the appropriate thing to do."

Berry later said: "Once it got to a point where it felt like it was a pretty steep discount, we just felt like, especially relative to the alternative ways that we could use this selection, this made the most sense."

Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said earlier in the week that every player in the quarterback room will compete to be the starter. This offseason, the Browns acquired Kenny Pickett in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles and signed Joe Flacco in free agency. Deshaun Watson is expected to miss a significant portion of the 2025 season after retearing his right Achilles tendon.

Since the franchise returned to Cleveland in 1999, quarterback stability has escaped the Browns. Forty different quarterbacks have started for the team during that time frame, 10 more than the next-closest team. Sanders joins a reshaped quarterback room with an opportunity to compete for a starting role early on.

During the predraft process, the Browns met with Sanders at the East-West Shrine Bowl and again at the NFL scouting combine. Cleveland also hosted Sanders on a visit, and then a large contingent traveled to Boulder, Colorado, to have dinner with him and Hunter the night before their Pro Day workout.

"We felt good with him as a person," Berry said. "He works hard, he's a really good kid, he wants to be great. His teammates loved him at Colorado, and I know he'll come in here ready to work, ready to try and put his best foot forward in all areas of competition."

The team's decision-makers often praised Sanders not only for his on-field credentials but his upbringing as the son of Pro Football Hall of Famer and Colorado football coach Deion Sanders.

A four-year starter in college -- Sanders spent his first two seasons at FCS Jackson State, playing for his father before transferring to Colorado to follow him -- Sanders led the FBS with a 74% completion rate last season, and his 37 passing touchdowns were second most in the FBS. A second-team All-American selection, Sanders was named the 2024 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year and won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award as the nation's top upperclassman quarterback.