What Are We to Make of Shedeur Sanders’ Slide?

Draft Behavior Dynamics

The Draft represents a ritual that allows players to live their dream. We see and expect most of them to be humble, grateful, and emotionally overcharged by a franchise’s arbitrary decision to enlist their efforts. In most cases, it means life-changing wealth, opportunity, and, most importantly, gratification.

Once again, common wisdom and perception make us expect a certain type of humility from draftees regardless of their pedigree. They receive their welcome into the world of professional sports. It’s a graduation ritual that feels so symbolic that it captivates fans who may even project in quite a parasocial way.

In all fairness, many of these draftees don’t even have to be humble about it, especially those selected in the first round. They’ve sacrificed much of their time on the altar of their ambitions and have earned the right to feel like their draft position reflects their work and dedication.

However, there are instances when this common attitude simply doesn’t show up in an NFL prospect. Do we see it as confidence, or do we see it as arrogance? Is that young man a powerful proponent of their own talents, or is he just an ingrate? What does their background say about their attitude?

A Son of Prime

Shedeur Sanders is a living, breathing dilemma from this point of view. He’s a work in progress that represents a unique instance of departure from common wisdom.

NFL franchises in need of a quarterback passed on him almost aggressively. Discourse around him, before and after the Draft in Green Bay, has been unprecedented for a prospect without the ‘generational’ label stamped on him. His story has put a chokehold on traditional and new-age sports media ever since the Draft actually happened.

What are we to make it? Is this a cartel-like operation with the scent of collusion? Are we just reckoning with the reality of an overhyped prospect with an overinflated ego? Was this a present-day buck-breaking moment that shows the parameters of expected behavior?

As with every single instance when strange things happen, the truth appears to be somewhere in the middle. We’re not even close to training camp season when this article is being written. Shedeur’s NFL play (if he sees the field) is what will clarify some questions after the fact. 

Until then, let’s join hands with virtually every single talking voice around the NFL and enter this discussion. Isn’t it so that there aren’t enough people talking about it?

The Pathology of The Draft Fall

For us to have a fall, we need to have betrayed expectations that do not reflect the reality of a draft.

We have had plenty of Draft-day falls in the last few decades. Some are all about overthinking the prospect and a possibly antiquated belief in low positional value. 

Kyle Hamilton and Derwin James were amazing prospects who had no business falling as far as they did, despite them being safeties. It wouldn’t be surprising if Malaki Starks proves to be a similar case. One can even add Derrick Henry to this discussion since he’s arguably the only Hall of Fame-level running back playing today. As a prospect, he was a Heisman winner who fell to the 2nd round.

Prospects like Malik Willis and Will Levis were prompted-up prospects in the context of various QB-needy teams drafting high. In other cases, agent-fueled psy-ops blur the lines between reality, consensus, and media perception.

The most famous draft fall in recent memory has to be the fall of fellow QB Aaron Rodgers – the mercurial golden arm from NorCal. Every single one of us knows his story, how the Niners went for the safer prospect and how teams who already had a quarterback decided to draft for need.

Shedeur Sanders is such a singular case because of the nuance of this fall. He wasn’t an elite prospect, but the quarterback price, coupled with need and general perception, basically had him go long before where he actually fell. 

The drastic plunge of his Draft-day(s) stock and his status as coming from an NFL bloodline made things even more complicated and shocking.

Given the magnitude of his fall, questions have arisen to a degree that has prompted articles like this one.

Don’t Believe The Hype?

According to the 2025 NFL Mock Draft Database Consensus Big Board, Shedeur Sanders was the 12th-ranked prospect that people have associated first with the #1 pick to Tennessee, then to the QB-needy Giants, to the Saints, and, most conspicuously at the end of the Draft build-up process, to the Steelers at #21.

Other consensus big boards had him lower than 12th. For example, SportsInsider had him at 32nd, while Pro Football Focus, with its highly respected, data-driven approach, had him at #45.

What this shows is that the NFL coverage world had him as a 2nd-round prospect at worst. Add the so-called ‘quarterback tax’ to the mix (the tendency to overdraft a QB based on need and management/coach hot seats, a la Justin Fields and Ryan Pace-Matt Nagy).

What you have is a series of circumstances that show us that the general perception was quite positive about him, compared to his actually falling to #144.

The hype was real in terms of him being a possible first-round pick. His status as Neon Deion’s son, his role in the turnaround of Colorado’s football program, his rapport with Travis Hunter, and his outstanding accuracy numbers were legitimate reasons to rate him quite highly.

Another detail that has generated a lot of hype is his personality. The ‘Legendary’ theme of his Draft party generated quite a few reactions on social media, but incidents like his watch-flexing and his showcased grudge-fueled reaction against Colorado State’s QB after a victory against their rivals have painted a portrait of supreme confidence arrogance, depending on where you stand.

It appears like NFL franchises, even those who needed a quarterback, didn’t buy into that, even if his hype has definitely translated into attention and engagement. As we know, it has become very easy to monetize these two. 

NFL teams seem to have a different idea about their branding.

The Interview Process

It has become customary for American sports media to launch new information into the realm of context-starved fans whenever something shocking occurs. We were all scrambling for answers as soon as the Luka Dončić trade happened, and the Sanders situation was no exception, even if the magnitude wasn’t as high.

Why do these stories pop up? Firstly, because the reality of what just happened prompts journalists to investigate to the best of their abilities. Secondly, teams try to justify their decisions in covert PR handling, especially when said decisions are unpopular or just seem counterintuitive.

We can see with the naked eye why Sanders would be a tough proposition for some teams that have a certain type of self-perception and ‘culture’ tied to their organization. 

However, the NFL is a business that thrives on good, excellent, and incredible players within competent systems. Passing on bringing a talented player just because of vibes is not a good business decision, especially when that player plays at the most important position in your sport.

This is how tales of poor interviews (and an overall half-baked Draft process) started to get out into the world.

Leaks and Instances

According to Mike Florio’s NBC Sports article on Sanders’ fall (one of his many pieces of input on the matter), an anonymous NFL General Manager characterized Shedeur’s Draft process as ‘recruiting.’ This would basically mean that, in his eyes, NFL teams had to convince him that he wants to go there rather than the other way around. It certainly felt like the Eli Manning situation, even if Eli was, admittedly, a better prospect than Shedeur.

In another instance that is quite clearly much clearer about what transpired, Sanders had a disastrous interview with the Giants. The New York Post’s Eric Richter, with information via MMQB and Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, reports that a meeting between Sanders and Giants HC Brian Daboll was the root of the disconnect.

The report suggests that, as part of the standard interviewing procedure for quarterbacks, Sanders received an ‘install package’ that many teams provide in order to do a practical test. 

The conclusion was that Sanders, either due to a lack of preparation or simply because of a lack of concentration/interest, couldn’t identify a set of purposeful errors. Their mission was to test the attentiveness and know-how of the interviewed QB, and Sanders failed in doing so.

Another key point that seems to speak about Shedeur’s attitude in this sense was the fact that the involved Giants staff (probably Daboll), called out Sanders for not identifying the errors in the package. 

As a result, Sanders basically felt like the Giants blindsided him, leading to a tense atmosphere that culminated in the Giants trading up and opting for Jaxson Dart. At that moment, this was particularly surprising since several bookmakers identified by BetOnValue had Dart at +350 odds to go in the top 10 of the Draft, especially when compared to Sanders, who was -170 to go in the same space.

Even if none of them went into that particular echelon, Sanders’ hype (aka his perceived value) translated as badly as his interviews seem to have done. Getting drafted before Dart, Tyler Shough, and even Dillon Gabriel is the type of sting that both Shedeur and his father must be feeling still.

How Much Does It Go Back To Prime?

Speaking of Mr. Prime Time himself, there are plenty of things to attribute to him when it comes to who Shedeur Sanders is both as a man and as a football player.

However, before proceeding with this particular section, it’s safe to say that none of us actually knows Shedeur Sanders. We have a better understanding of who Deion is due to how long he has been in the public zeitgeist. His influence, while immense, is quantifiable to a degree since Deion Sanders, the player and personality, has been a proven quantity for almost 4 decades.

In such a case, we can only take from what we have of Shedeur, the public personality who happened to be a highly touted (at least theoretically) NFL Draft prospect.

From his declarations of faith and the love that teammates like Travis Hunter have for him, Shedeur seems like quite a likable guy when in his corner. When not, he turns into a certain kind of competitor who has the attitude of his father.

In fact, Deion publicly stated that he wasn’t a proponent of trash talk while on the field since he mostly believed that playing is all business. However, the swag is something that a boy, then a teenager, and then a young man can easily inherit from his father.

Working toward the goal of getting drafted and being a legitimate NFL player must have made Shedeur feel like he’s doing his best to work toward a goal that he deserves to reach. He has placed emphatic confidence in his talent, and it has produced good results, especially considering the state of the Colorado program before they got there.

Narrative, Control, and the Rule of Leverage

We can see why Prime’s shadow loomed over Shedeur’s Draft process. He has publicly expressed his desire for him to go to some type of team in the sense that his son was the hottest commodity in the 2025 NFL Draft. 

That’s okay when considering that quarterbacks shoulder the blame and long-term effects (like career ruination) of a franchise’s incompetence in developing and supporting them. They are also the faces of a franchise that may simply be somewhere between serial losers and eternal bridesmaids.

What starts settling in is the attention. NFL franchises are, at their core, corporations within a self-governed alliance that are participating in the same structure. They form, at the end of the day, textbook definitions of a cartel that rules over professional gridiron football. They have their own interests, their incorporated operations, and, extremely importantly, control over their own image.

From a cultural standpoint, Deion Sanders has always been a disruptor. He disrupted fashion, he disrupted the uppermost standards of being an NFL cornerback, he disrupted sustainable two-sport activity (shoutout to Bo Jackson), and, most importantly from this point of view, he disrupted the dynamics of player mobility in terms of choosing a team.

Oh, and he has also disrupted the visibility and cultural atmosphere of college football. Shedeur Sanders is a prime example of that, especially as a rich kid leading that group.

What Deion Sanders has always had was Prime Time. This has always been an alter ego that is not at odds with the image of the man (a la Jon Jones and Johnny Bones, for those who know), but a symbiotic relationship between a man, his ambitions, and his abilities.

For NFL franchises, Prime Time was Deion’s leverage. Nowadays, Coach Prime is the evolution of that alter ego, and it interacts with two different structures: social media and the NCAA.

What Deion has tried to do with Shedeur is to disrupt the NFL Draft system in the aforementioned Manning way.

However, what Deion has always had, and what Eli had, was that exact leverage.

Bang For Their Buck or You’re Out

We return to the ability of Shedeur Sanders.

No, he was not much worse than his hype – certainly not a Day 3 type of prospect. No, he was not Andrew Luck or even someone less physically talented like Joe Burrow (no strays, just stating facts). His play in the Big 12 was good, but with gaping holes and an unimpressive physical profile.

Sanders was a good prospect. He can prove to be a steal.

But Sheuder Sanders is also a headache in the making from some franchises’ point of view. His father brings a lot of attention with a certain flavor and intensity that teams, especially those that are very guarded about their image scalability and PR background, want to control. It’s the narrative that Prime has always been so good at controlling, supported by his stellar play.

He also has a certain type of attitude that we haven’t seen since Josh Rosen (which, by ‘virtue’ of association), is a major red flag. That attitude may or may not be resonating with certain fans, especially when your fan base has a certain profile that may not mesh well with the face of your franchise.

When the player and their upside represent a prospective value, that value must exceed the possible complications created by that quarterback. That’s why players with allegations tied to their name survive in the League if they’re stars and superstars.

As the saying goes, the NFL is the ‘What have you done for me lately?’ sports entity, and the leash is always short when the complications far exceed prospective value in the eyes of these teams. The other saying, the one that says that the NFL is a copycat league, shows how easily this type of perception can propagate.

Once Shedeur Sanders started to feel troublesome for NFL franchises, his value tanked both in terms of Draft capital and in terms of his perception as a future commodity.

Conclusion

As a foreclosing word, one would be remiss not to mention the validity of the racial aspect of this discussion. This is a highly sensitive subject that certainly has a seat at the table of discourse surrounding this subject, even if it played a role or not in this unprecedented draft plunge.

However, despite several covert references to this aspect, we elected not to delve into this facet of the discussion because it deserves an informed perspective and profound contextualization. If you’re a fan of the NFL and would like to see this perspective, there is content out there that can tackle this situation from a racial dynamics point of view.

We’ve done our best to discuss ability, popular cultural impact, and basic business dynamics that you see in the NFL Draft on a yearly basis. 

Given that the Sheuder Sanders fall is quite unprecedented from multiple points of view, it’s in the best interest of us, as fans, to analyze it to the best of our abilities. If he turns out well, your team may have missed out foolishly. If he doesn’t amount to anything, your team might have dodged a bullet.