Why a CFL team has Shedeur Sanders’ negotiating rights

The Browns aren’t the only professional football team with rights to Shedeur Sanders. 

The Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League also hold negotiating rights with the former Colorado quarterback, it was revealed earlier this week. 

But that doesn’t mean Sanders is gonna jump ship from the NFL any time soon. 

The Argonauts’ rights only apply if Sanders ever decides to play in the CFL, meaning he would be forced to negotiate with Toronto and only Toronto. 

“The CFL has utilized a negotiation list where teams can “claim” a player’s rights *IF* they ever decide to come up north of the border,” a blog on the CFL website reads. “The CFL began releasing a few names here and there periodically, but now the full list is available for all to see from each of the nine teams.”

Sanders’ focus is far from the CFL at the moment. 

After being drafted in the fifth round by the Browns, Sanders is competing with Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel for the starting quarterback job in Cleveland. 

There’s already chatter that Sanders is on the bottom half of the depth chart, though.

Former NFL wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh said last month he believes the QB competition has narrowed down to Dillon Gabriel or Kenny Pickett, despite there being earlier reports saying that Sanders and Flacco were performing well in minicamp.

In June, Sanders was cited for two speeding tickets in two separate incidents, once for allegedly going 91 mph on a road that has a speed limit of 65 mph, and again for going 101 mph, 41 mph over the posted speed limit.