The field marshal of the Colorado Buffaloes, Shedeur Sanders, was not selected in the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday.
Sanders, 23, was one of the most polarizing prospects in this year’s NFL draft. Many simulated drafts predicted that Sanders would land with the Pittsburgh Steelers with selection 21 in the first round, although the opinions varied from third place in general to the outside the first round completely.
The Steelers finally led the Oregon Derrick Harmon’s defensive Tackle in that place.
The only other quartback taken in the first round after the general selection No. 1 Cam Ward was Ole Miss Jaxson Dart. The New York Giants negotiated for selection 25 to select Dart.
The son of the member of the NFL Hall of Fame, Deion Sanders, the chief coach of the Buffaloes, Shedeur Sanders, was the offensive player of the year Big 12 in his senior campaign in Colorado, completing 74.0% of his passes with 37 Touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
Sanders began his university career in Jackson State, a historically black university, in 2021, when his father was the chief coach. After two seasons with the Tigers, he followed his father to Colorado, where he spent another two years.
The buffaloes won only one game the year before Sanders arrived. In their second season they won nine, their maximum since 2016.
In the period prior to the Draft, the explorers and coaches raised questions about Sanders both inside and outside the field.
According to reports, a Quarterback coach referred to him as “shameless” and “arrogant.” Another assistant coach told NFL Network that he had “right” after what he described as “the worst formal interview” of which he had been part.
“He has a lot of right,” said Nfl Network’s Anonymous Anonymous Assistant. “It takes unnecessary captures. He never plays in time. He has a horrible body language. He blames teammates … but the most important thing is not so good.”
In the countryside, Sanders has been criticized both for his lack of strength of the arm and for his decision making. In his two seasons with the Buffaloes, he took 94 captures.
But it has also been praised for its precision, completing more than 70% of its releases in the last two years.
“I really have no room for negativity, so he doesn’t play a factor in my life,” Sanders told NBC News this month about the criticism he has received. “I understand that the easiest thing in the world is to be negative instead of positive. I really don’t care what people have to say.”
He added: “I am happy that everything is happening in this way. I really like chaos, because it shows you who is really there. I would not change anything, because this adds to the story.”
