The Las Vegas Raiders need a quarterback.
If Shedeur Sanders gets his wish, then the Raiders will have one.
Las Vegas owns the sixth overall pick in the draft and have been linked to Sanders due to the affinity that minority owner Tom Brady has with the Colorado quarterback.
And vice versa.
The two have a close relationship going back a few years after Brady signed Sanders to an NIL deal with his apparel brand back in 2022.
At the time, this is what Brady had to say about Sanders in a statement.
“Shedeur Sanders is the perfect ambassador for Brady,” the seven-time Super Bowl champion said.
“He embodies everything we look for in a Brady athlete and his character and values align perfectly with our brand.
“Not only is he an exceptional football player and quarterback but he is one of the most influential players of his generation, and we’re thrilled that he’s officially joining the Brady family.”
Nearly three years later, Brady’s voice could be the deciding factor whether or not Sanders becomes a Raider.
At the scouting combine in Indianapolis, Sanders was asked about Brady and his relationship with the game’s greatest player.
Sanders didn’t mince his words.
“Tom Brady, he’s an all-time great,” Sanders said.
“Being able to have that resource, being able to have that person I’m able to talk to and call whenever I’m having questions about the game, he’s able to relate to it, because he did it at the highest level.
“It’s truly amazing. I’m thankful for that.”
He also shared that he had met with the Vegas brass.
“I met with [Vegas] here, I met with a lot of teams [at the combine],” Sanders said.
“It’s truly exciting, being able to meet coach [Pete Carroll] and everybody with the organization and staff.
“So, if they call me and they say, ‘Come on and visit,’ you know I’ll be there.”
Outside of the obvious close relationship the two share, Sanders has also been compared to Brady with how he looks on the field.
Yahoo Sports’ Jori Epstein reported that one anonymous NFC assistant coach likened the way Sanders plays to how Brady once did.
“The assistant believed Sanders’ personality would be infectious, his pocket presence and mechanics looking “Kind of (Tom) Brady-esque,’ Epstein wrote.
“He’s tough as nails. I think players will buy into the swag, the confidence. He knows his limitations and he plays to his strengths: his pocket presence, awareness, toughness to hang in there.”
No one is saying that Sanders is the next Brady.
That would be ludicrous.
What is being said, is that it almost makes too much sense for Brady and the Raiders to draft Sanders with the sixth pick.
The draft is less than two months away, so all the questions, smokescreens, connections, rumors will all be put to bed soon enough.
Until then, the Sanders to Sin City talks will only be getting louder.
Stay up to date with the latest from across the NFL via our talkSPORT Facebook page, and subscribe to our Endzone YouTube channel for news, views and exclusive interviews as we build up to the NFL Draft.
