The NFL Draft rumor mill is working overtime when it comes to Shedeur Sanders. Just weeks away from draft night, the Colorado quarterback who once seemed destined for the top 10 now finds himself battling whispers of a potential first-round slide. But here’s the kicker – Sanders’ loyal supporters aren’t buying the negative hype one bit.
Shedeur Sanders: Draft Star or Draft Day Drama?
After lighting up college football with 14,347 passing yards and 134 touchdowns during his time at Jackson State and Colorado, you’d think Sanders’ draft stock would be rock solid. Instead, the son of NFL legend Deion Sanders has become draft season’s most polarizing figure. His decision to skip the in-person draft festivities at Lambeau Field has only fueled the speculation fire.
Skip Bayless captured the situation perfectly: “I am still convinced that Shedeur has declined that invitation… because he’s just sick and tired of all the endless negativity. And he doesn’t want to be stuck in the ‘green room’ getting shamed on national TV if he falls through the first round as some predict he will.”
Fans Stand Firm: Shedeur Sanders Will Be a First-Round Pick, No Matter the Rumors
Sanders’ supporters have a simple response to the draft skeptics: Look at the tape. In his final season with Colorado, Sanders threw for a jaw-dropping 4,134 yards with 37 touchdowns against just 10 interceptions. He took home the Johnny Unitas Award and finished eighth in Heisman voting – all while running for his life behind one of college football’s shakiest offensive lines.
What’s driving Sanders’ fans crazy is how disconnected the criticism seems from reality. While anonymous NFL coaches throw around labels like “brash,” “arrogant,” and “entitled” – with one assistant even claiming Sanders gave “the worst” interview he’d ever experienced – the actual on-field product tells a completely different story.
The mock draft landscape perfectly reflects this confusion. Some analysts see Sanders as a top-three pick heading to the Giants, while others have him tumbling completely out of Thursday night’s festivities. The Steelers at 21 and Saints at 9 keep popping up as potential landing spots, showing just how wide the spectrum of opinions really is.
The Historical Parallels of Draft Night Drama
We’ve seen this movie before. Remember Lamar Jackson sweating it out until the very last pick of the first round in 2018? Two MVP trophies later, those 31 teams that passed on him are still kicking themselves. And who could forget Aaron Rodgers’ excruciating green room wait back in 2005? That painful night is now just a funny anecdote in his Hall of Fame career.
Sanders himself seems completely unbothered by all the noise. His recent one-word social media post says it all: “Legendary.” He expanded on that mindset: “That keeps me going and makes me be the best. You gotta be legendary across the board. On the field, off the field, in the classroom, in the community—with the cars. You just gotta be legendary.” When pressed about the criticism, Sanders kept it simple: “I truly don’t care what people have to say.”
KEEP READING: Shedeur Sanders NIL Net Worth
Even if the unthinkable happens and Sanders slides out of the first round, teams like the Browns and Giants are lurking at picks 33 and 34. For Sanders’ believers, it’s not a question of if he’ll succeed – it’s which NFL team will be smart enough to grab him before they have to spend years watching him torch their defense.
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