NFL
By: Mark T. Wilson
Entering the 2023 season as the starting QB for the Colorado Buffaloes, Shedeur Sanders has his future in his hands. While that can be said of almost every CFB player, for Sanders, this holds plenty of weight. In his first two seasons under his father Deion Sanders at Jackson State University, Sanders more than raised a few eyebrows with his play. Now, he’s on to bigger things and a bigger stage and that should set him up for a great future. Possibly in the NFL.
Last season while at JSU, Sanders passed for 3732 yards, 40 TDs, and 6 INTs while completing 70.6 percent of his passes. Just those numbers alone would have had him in Heisman talk with the likes of Caleb Williams and CJ Stroud. But he wasn’t eligible. As far as his team goes, the Tigers went undefeated in regular season play so that would also place him in the conversation as well. Shedeur Sanders is a baller but in the eyes of many, he was at the wrong school.
For some lame reason, the same love that players like Bryce Young and Anthony Richardson receive, Sanders and the rest of the players at HBCUs don’t. But how can you ignore numbers? If his Sophomore season was good, let’s see what he did as a Freshman. In 2021, Sanders passed for 3231 yards, 30 TDs, and 8 INTs while completing 65.9 percent of his passes.
Is Shedeur Sanders Ready For 2024 NFL Draft
Yes, you read those numbers correctly. In just 2 seasons as the starting QB, Sanders has passed for over 6900 yards with 70 TDs while throwing under 15 INTs. How are those not Heisman numbers? But it’s hard to win a Heisman while playing at an HBCU. That’s the drawback, but not anymore.
Sanders is now in the Pac-12 and will share the same field as NFL hopefuls Caleb Williams and Bo Nix. This is the stage he needs but for the college experts, Sanders doing well is not what they need. If he can manage to repeat his numbers from the previous seaosn, that will force everyone to start paying attention to the talent level at HBCUs.
No one expects Colorado to win a National Championship (besides Deion) this coming season but everyone will have their eyes on what Sanders does. And that includes prepping his son for the 2024 NFL Draft if he chooses to forgo his senior season.
Shedeur Sanders has the arm strength to make it. He has the bloodlines to be successful, all he was missing was the stage. There are no more excuses as to why he’s not mentioned as one of the best players in College Football. If we were to compare stats between Sanders and some of the QBs who were drafted in the 2023 NFL Draft, Sanders would be at the top of the list. But because their resumes have a stamp of approval from Alabama, Florida, and Ohio State, Sanders gets ignored.
Winning means everything in the CFB. In order to have your name as a Heisman hopeful, your team can’t be treading water, they must be dominant. But in order to be drafted, you must stand out on an individual platform. To think that Sanders is not capable of that states you haven’t been paying attention to this young kid. And for most, that is the truth. They just don’t know about this kid. But best believe, they will this season.
