- A reporter describes his personal observations about quarterback Shedeur Sanders during his tenure at Colorado.
- The quarterback is known for his celebratory ‘watch flex’ and has a flair for showmanship, similar to his father, Deion Sanders.
- Concerns for his NFL career include a tendency to hold onto the ball too long and a history of back injuries.
In the final weeks of his final college season at Colorado in 2024, I got the chance to ask quarterback Shedeur Sanders a certain question about his craft.
This was on Nov. 21, 2024. I would end up watching every one of his 24 starts at Colorado and covered 17 of them in person, plus two spring intrasquad games. In this case, I wanted to know what he had learned from the private quarterback trainer he worked with to improve his game.
His answer provided a glimpse into the kind of player he is. It’s also one of 15 personal observations to share about him now as he takes a bigger stage again, this time as he makes his second NFL start for the Cleveland Browns on Nov. 30 against the San Francisco 49ers.
1. He’s super-serious about his craft
This especially showed when I asked what his private trainer Darrell Colbert Jr., meant to his development as a player. “Everything,” Sanders replied. The rest of his answer showed how important it is for him to work on little details year-round on his own time and dime.
He said it started off with Colbert watching old videos from his days in Jackson State, then working with him on his throwing motion and footwork. “Everything changed,” Sanders said. “Everything’s better. Footwork’s better overall… We just cleaned up a lot of things, just overstriding and tidying up everything.”
2. He’s a good kid, man
He’s always been polite and gracious with reporters, even if they’re kept at a distance in controlled settings. One time in April 2024, I watched him oblige fans at a restaurant in Boulder by posing for pictures with them and even signing autographs on one man’s cheek and another’s bald head.
3. He’s having fun and confident, not arrogant
Some social media critics might have had their sensibilities offended by what he said on CBS before and after his starting debut on Sunday in Las Vegas. ‘I’m who they been looking for,” Shedeur Sanders said before the game after being asked what he hoped to show his team and fans.
It might have sounded to some like he was calling himself the Browns’ savior, but so what? He believes in himself and doesn’t mind putting pressure on himself like that. Isn’t that better than him saying he thought he’d be the next Browns flop? As his father Deion Sanders says, “Don’t let my confidence offend your insecurity.”
4. He should have been a first-round draft pick
He fell to the fifth round in the NFL draft in April, and five other quarterbacks were picked before him. But there’s no way all five of those players are better than him — and not just because of his accuracy, which was 71.8% in major college football, ranking as the highest ever with a minimum of 875 attempts, according to sports-reference.com.
NFL teams have been historically terrible at forecasting a quarterback’s ability and sometimes overlook a player’s talent for other bad reasons.
5. He’s ‘Grown’
That’s what his father nicknamed him because of uncommonly premature maturity. He doesn’t seem to get angry or ruffled. It showed in his team’s 24-10 win on Sunday when he said afterward he felt “very relaxed” for his starting debut. His father said this week on the ‘Colorado Football Coaches Show’ that Shedeur has been analyzing opposing defenses since age 7. At the same time, he’s only 23 and still might be prone to getting speeding tickets.
6. His watch flex is celebratory and sometimes edgy
This is his signature celebration move. He did it again after beating the Raiders, raising his wrist to the crowd and leading Browns fans to go wild. He said in 2023 he came up with the move on his own spontaneously, creating a cultural moment that soon could reignite. Some have interpreted it as unsportsmanlike at times, like when he flexed to the Arizona State student section after a win in 2023. But those same fans had chanted ‘overrated’ at him earlier.
7. He’s coachable and adapts
He’s had seven offensive coordinators since his first year of college in 2021: Michael Pollock, Jason Phillips, T.C. Taylor and Brett Bartolone at Jackson State, followed by Sean Lewis and Pat Shurmur at Colorado. Now it’s Browns offensive coordinator Tommy Rees calling plays for Cleveland.
8. He does need to work on some things
He is known to hold onto the ball too long for the same reason people mistakenly think he’s arrogant — because he believes in himself to make a play. I can’t unsee that time in the Alamo Bowl last year when he kept going backward trying to make a play on 3rd-and-3 from the BYU 7-yard line. He ended up getting sacked for a 23-yard loss, forcing his team to settle for a field goal.
9. He’s a tough SOP (Son of Prime)
His team gave up the second-most quarterback sacks in the nation in 2023 (56) and got better in 2024 but still gave up the most sacks in the Big 12 Conference (43). That’s a lot of beatings for a quarterback, but isn’t that kind of what the NFL wants — a quarterback who shows he can take it and get back up for the next play?
10. His back might be an issue
This is the obvious downside to those beatings. He missed his final game in 2023 because he had a fractured back. He downplayed it, but I don’t know if there’s such a thing as a “minor” broken back. He also recently had some issues with his back in Cleveland.
11. Appearance matters to him
And there’s a good reason for it. As his father says, if you look good, you feel good. And if you feel good, you play good. After he beat TCU in his first game for Colorado in 2023, he made sure there was no food stuck in his teeth before talking to reporters. Before appearing at a pop-up retail event in Boulder as a college student in 2024, he pulled up in a Tesla Cybertruck and parked right in front before making his grand entrance in the crowded restaurant.
12. He’s a showman
He is his father’s son in this regard, but he’s less flamboyant than this father. Besides his confident statements, he’s still got the watch flex, the cars, the jewelry and even his personal “Legendary” merchandise with a dollar-sign logo. It’s all part of that persona that he inherited from the master of marketing and endorsement deals — his dad. Self-promotion is smart for business.
13. He knows the Tom Brady story
He also knows Tom Brady, the legendary NFL quarterback. Brady fell to the sixth round of the NFL draft in 2000 before winning seven Super Bowls. Shedeur fell to the fifth round in April. Brady didn’t get a chance to start a game until the previous starter was knocked out of a game with an injury in 2001. Shedeur didn’t get his first chance to start until the previous starter also was knocked out with an injury. It doesn’t mean he’ll win seven Super Bowls, but it does add fuel to his dreams.
14. He might be his father’s favorite in one respect
Deion Sanders has two daughters and three sons. He likes to rank his children from time to time even if he really loves them the same. Shedeur is his youngest son and the first to play in an NFL game, which undeniably delighted the father this week. The Pro Football Hall of Famer was still gushing about it Nov. 25 even though his team is 3-8 this season.
15. He’s built for this
Combine his father’s genes and mentorship with Shedeur’s personal dedication to his craft. Add that to his previous success, toughness, accuracy and willingness to be coached.
What’s the sum of all of that?
An NFL starting quarterback who’s just getting started.
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com