INDIANAPOLIS – Somebody had to say it. Why not Shedeur Sanders himself?
“If you ain’t trying to change the franchise or the culture, don’t get me,” the former Colorado quarterback defiantly declared on Friday during a lively media session at the NFL scouting combine.
“So, you should know, history repeats itself over and over and I’ve done it over and over.”
So there. Consider Sanders’ message as a memo to NFL teams – especially those at the top of the upcoming NFL draft needing a franchise quarterback – plotting their moves.
There’s no denying that that Sanders, 23, was a significant catalyst for the impressive turnarounds at two programs directed by his Hall of Fame father, Deion Sanders. First Jackson State. Then Colorado.
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Now the NFL is calling, and no player typically means more for changing a culture than the quarterback. Thus, the logic and warning from the quarterback who led college football with a 74% completion rate last season.
“I’ve done it at two locations already, so it’s simple,” Sanders said when asked why he’s equipped to ignite a similar culture change at the highest level. “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 off of?
“Because I did it 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.”
It was interesting to hear Sanders – who passed for 7,364 yards and 64 touchdowns the past two seasons at Colorado — suggest his pedigree might be a turnoff to some. But hardly shocking. His father, for as accomplished of an athlete he was in his heyday and for the substantial impact that he has on college football as “Coach Prime,” has always had detractors.
After all, “Coach Prime” is proud, flamboyant and unapologetically Black. Add success to that mix and, well, haters will hate.
Then again, perhaps a progressive NFL shot-caller will process such a subplot as a substantial layer to Sanders’ potential as a change agent. In other words, the kid has a perspective and thicker skin that could be essential when the heat turns up amid NFL pressure.
No doubt, Sanders – who his dad identifies in his cell phone as “Grown” because of his maturity – sees it as an asset.
“You think I’m worried about what critics say or what people got to say?” Sanders said. “You know who my dad is? They hated on him, too. So, it’s almost normal. Without people hating, it’s not normal for us. So, we like the adversity. We like everything that comes with the name. That’s why we are who we are.”
Still, there’s riveting debate about exactly where that Sanders name will fall in the draft. The teams with the top three picks in the draft – the Tennessee Titans, Cleveland Browns and New York Giants – are all undoubtedly in need of a quarterback. Ditto for the Las Vegas Raiders and New York Jets, slotted sixth and seventh, respectively.
Sanders, of course, thinks he should be the No. 1 pick overall. Yet there are some who contend that Miami’s Cam Ward is the best quarterback prospect in the draft. And with other premium talents at the top of the draft, including Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter and Sanders’ college teammate, Travis Hunter, there’s a wide range of opinion for how the board will flow.
One noted draft expert, ESPN’s Mel Kiper, had Sanders falling out of the top six picks in his latest mock draft.
“The number of where you go don’t matter,” Sanders said. “I referenced Tom Brady because he was the best of the best in all categories. He didn’t go first. So, the number picked, again, don’t matter. I wasn’t the top-rated quarterback coming out of high school because it’s a lot of exterior things that people like and they don’t like about me. I’m realistic about my family and everything that people say comes with it.”
Brady’s influence on Sanders has been palatable. A few years ago, Brady reached out to Sanders and invited him to Tampa for a workout. Since then, the winningest quarterback in Super Bowl history has been a resource that he’s able to tap when questions arise.
And that initial workout lesson?
“I filmed everything” Sanders reflected. “So now even sometimes I go back and just listen to the things that he said at that time and it registers, everything that he said back then registers and it applies. So, that’s what I’m thankful for.”
Sanders checks so many boxes. A big, accurate arm. Elusiveness. Production. Leadership. The trait he’s most proud of?
His mental game. He called it the ultimate cheat code.
“Yeah, because I know nothing can faze me,” he said. “No pressure, no situation. These cameras, nothing fazed me. I grew up with it.”
Put that in the memo, too.