The sports world was shocked to see Shedeur Sanders slide out of the first round on Day 1 of the NFL Draft. The former Colorado football star was initially projected as a top-five pick in mock drafts with many floating him as a potential No. 1 pick.
Following some negative reports on his pre-draft interview, Sanders’ stock had dipped. However, most pundits still viewed him as a first-round selection. His free-fall into the second round was met with mixed reactions from fans and analysts.
Given the recent comments on Sanders’ supposedly poor body language and entitled nature, many media members were losing belief in the 23-year-old quarterback and praying on his downfall.
FOX Sports analyst RJ Young stood up for Sanders via Twitter, firing shots at the media for its criticisms of the former Buffaloes signal-caller. Young suggested that the media has held Sanders to a different standard of expectations than other quarterbacks have faced in the past.
“They say Shedeur Sanders needs to be humble,” Young wrote in an April 25 tweet. “No one tells Joe Burrow to be humble. No one tells Aaron Rodgers to be humble. No told Tom Brady to be humble.”
Deion, Shedeur’s father, also attracted plenty of polarizing attention ahead of the draft. Young also called out the Sanders doubters for dragging Deion, a former Super Bowl champion and the current Colorado head coach, into pre-draft discussions as a negative influence on his son’s NFL journey.
“Saying Deion Sanders is a problem for Shedeur Sanders is like saying Archie Manning was a problem for Peyton, Eli and Arch,” Young tweeted.
Before draft night, Coach Prime actually insisted that he has never tried to influence Shedeur’s NFL landing spot. Despite these comments, many media members still suggested that Deion’s involvement could hinder the beginning of Shedeur’s career.
Shedeur will surely find his NFL home on Friday night when the second round of the draft is announced.