Deciphering the reasons behind Shedeur Sanders’ stunning free fall in the NFL draft

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders, left, talks with quarterback Shedeur Sanders (2), Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)

It’s not often that the 144th overall pick is the biggest story of the NFL draft.

But Shedeur Sanders was not the usual 144th pick and his situation transcended football. The narrative around Sanders blurred lines between sports, race and culture.

The former University of Colorado quarterback was the center of a three-day spectacle of cringe that will live in football lore for a long time. Sanders fell from a potential top-five overall selection on Thursday to the fifth round on Saturday in an excruciating slide that had his supporters fuming and detractors laughing.

The Cleveland Browns finally ended Sanders’ misery with the No. 144 selection, adding the 23-year-old to a crowded quarterback room that includes Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel and the injured Deshaun Watson.

Five quarterbacks were selected in this year’s draft before Sanders, including Gabriel and No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward, who went to the Tennessee Titans.

Sanders — the son of Pro Football Hall of Famer and Colorado coach Deion Sanders — has been among the biggest stories in college football over the past four years, first at Jackson State and then with the Buffaloes. The quarterback’s play on the field, and occasionally brash personality on and off it, have made him one of the sport’s lightning rods.

Below, The Associated Press examines some of the potential reasons for Sanders’ free fall, using the QB’s own words, his father’s comments, the analysis of pundits and his on-the-field performance.

Shedeur Sanders: The personality

WHAT THE SANDERS SAID: “You’ve got to understand, when that last name is on your back, you’re going to be attacked and ridiculed by naysayers,” Colorado coach Deion Sanders said.

From Shedeur Sanders: “I’m going to just be myself so you either like it or you don’t.”

WHAT OTHERS SAID: The younger Sanders carries himself with supreme confidence — much like his father did when he was a two-sport start in the NFL and Major League Baseball in the 1990s. But some pundits who cover the league (usually using anonymous sources) said Sanders’ confidence could annoy NFL personnel, particularly during the interview process at the league’s combine. The elder Sanders was occasionally outspoken on social media about his son’s talent, taking on critics.

“All of these things began to add up for teams, and I’m not saying that is right that it added up for teams, but it did, clearly, add up for teams. ... This is clearly a way for the NFL and its teams to let him and anyone else after him know — you can’t comport yourself in this way moving forward,” said Jonathan Jones, an NFL analyst for CBS.

WHAT SANDERS DID: The younger Sanders might be brash — he set up a customized room for draft night — but he reportedly maintained a 3.9 GPA at Colorado and was never involved in any off-field incidents that would point to serious character concerns.

READING BETWEEN THE LINES: J. Kenyatta Cavil, the interim dean of education and sports studies at Texas Southern University, said the pushback when it came to Sanders was not a surprise.

Cavil said Deion and Shedeur Sanders did a remarkable job of controlling the younger Sanders’ career, moving from a private high school to Jackson State to Colorado. That proved to be a problem.

“That’s what’s unique in this dichotomy, is you have a coach and a son, for a period of time, who could control the space,” Cavil said, later adding: “They had this ability to transform spaces that allowed them to be their unique and authentic self, which is not always acceptable in the social structure.”

Shedeur Sanders: On the field

WHAT HIS SUPPORTERS SAID: “This is a guy who’s extremely accurate. He’s extremely mobile. He has a lot of mental horsepower. He played the game at a high level,” said former NFL player and front-office executive Louis Riddick, now an ESPN analyst.

WHAT OTHERS SAID: The main criticisms against Sanders’ football skills are that he takes too many sacks, isn’t overly athletic and doesn’t have great arm strength. He had opportunities during the pre-draft process to address those concerns but didn’t always take advantage of opportunities to work out for scouts.

“For a player who had a variety of questions, both about the talent level, how he would fit into an NFL system, how he would adjust from his play style in college, but also about the potential culture shock of for the first time playing for someone who is not his father, there were opportunities that Shedeur Sanders could have taken there,” NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero said. “He seemed to feel he was an elite category where he could choose the few teams he wanted to go to.”

WHAT SANDERS DID: Sanders had a productive four seasons in college and finished his career with 50 games played in four seasons — two at Jackson State and two at Colorado. He completed more than 70% of his passes for 14,353 yards and 134 touchdowns with 27 interceptions. He finished eighth in last year’s Heisman Trophy voting while teammate Travis Hunter won the award. Hunter was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars with the No. 2 overall pick.

READING BETWEEN THE LINES: It’s not uncommon for a good college quarterback to be overlooked, even with great stats, because of concerns ranging from size to speed to arm strength. Famously, seven-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback Tom Brady was the 199th overall pick out of Michigan in 2000 before embarking on one of the most successful careers in NFL history. But none of those overlooked quarterbacks had transcended the football world the way Shedeur Sanders had during his college career.

Shedeur Sanders: In the NFL

WHAT SHEDEUR SANDERS SAID: Despite the embarrassing draft free fall — which included a prank call orchestrated by the son of an Atlanta Falcons coach and President Donald Trump weighing in — Sanders will have a chance to prove his worth in the NFL. His first chance is with the Browns, who have added multiple quarterbacks in the offseason in an effort to find a long-term solution.

“I’m truly thankful to have, is the opportunity for people to actually see the real me and not be able to see stuff that could be true or not,” Sanders said.

WHAT OTHERS SAID: Browns general manager Andrew Berry traded up in the draft to land Sanders after he fell to the fifth round, feeling any possible problems were worth the risk.

“We felt like he was a good, solid prospect at the most important position. We felt like it got to a point where he was probably mispriced relative to the draft. Really, the acquisition cost was pretty light, and it’s a guy that we think can outproduce his draft slot.

READING BETWEEN THE LINES: Cavil — the Texas Southern interim dean — said he expects the news cycle will move quickly and Sanders will have something of a reprieve until the Browns’ training camp begins in the summer. In the meantime, more will come out about the quarterback’s draft free fall. What really matters is how he performs from this point forward.

“A year from now, for the rest of his career, whatever success he has or doesn’t, people will come back to this point,” Cavil said. “It’ll be a story of overcoming all these obstacles or somebody that couldn’t get it done.”

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David Brandt, The Associated Press

AP Pro Football Writer Rob Maaddi contributed to this report.