The Shedeur Sanders storyline over the weekend was one that won’t be forgotten anytime soon. In fact, it may go down as one of the most talked-about draft stories for years to come. Sanders went from being a projected top-three pick to a fifth-round selection on day three—a drop-off unlike anything we've seen before.
There are still many questions about why teams continued to pass on Sanders, especially with so many quarterbacks selected ahead of him. Stephen A. Smith placed the blame squarely on Shedeur’s father, Deion Sanders.
“NFL teams don't want to deal with Shedeur Sanders because of his dad's influence and they 'can't admit it,’” Smith said. “[Shedeur's] not gonna just take instructions ... he's going to challenge your football intellect.”
This rumor has been circulating for some time, but Mel Kiper pushed back on that narrative, dismissing it as false.
“The NFL gets it! They know everything! No, they don't! The guys who have slid have done pretty well... there's a lot of fake news out there surrounding the Sanders family with Shedeur and Deion,” Kiper stated.
Adam Schefter hinted that Sanders might not be one of the first quarterbacks taken on day two, but even he didn’t expect Sanders to fall as far as he did. The Colorado QB was reportedly being heavily pursued by the Giants, but the reason New York passed on him has since come to light.
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“He ‘didn't have a great interview’ with HC Brian Daboll. The ‘preparation wasn't there’ for an install package, Daboll called him out, and Sanders didn't like that,” Todd McShay reported.
This sheds light on why the Giants chose to trade up for Jaxson Dart instead. Getting called out by the head coach during a critical interview—and reacting poorly to it—isn’t a great sign, especially at the professional level.