More than a dozen scouts and evaluators weighed in on Sanders' strengths, weaknesses, comps and draft stock heading into the 2024 season.
Shedeur Sanders dazzled at times in his first season at Colorado, as he completed 65.9% of his passes for 3,230 yards and 27 touchdown passes to three interceptions. Jordan Reid is an NFL draft analyst for ESPN, providing in-depth scouting on the nation's top pro prospects. Jordan joined ESPN in 2021 and also contributes to SportsCenter and ESPN Radio. He played quarterback at North Carolina Central University and then went on to coach there from 2014-18.
His QBR on passes of 10 or fewer air yards was an impressive 81.3 last season, and he had a 76.8% completion rate on those throws. Sanders' efficiency in those areas was among the best in the country, despite playing behind a leaky offensive line that frequently forced him off his spots, mostly notably in a"Watching that Oregon game, he didn't have a chance behind that group," an NFC area scout that covers the West Coast area said.
After the Colorado transfer, all eyes were on Sanders to see how his game would translate to Power 5 football. He exploded out of the starting block, orchestrating a memorablein Week 1 over TCU. Sanders made multiple high-level throws that kept the Buffaloes in that game and eventually led an upset victory over a team that was in the College Football Playoff the previous season.against Colorado State in Week 3, arguably Sanders' best performance of the season.
"When they actually protected him, you just simply can't teach the poise that that kid plays with," said one scout from an AFC team."They crumbled after those first few games, but in those first games, Shedeur showed that he's capable of operating at a high level when he has time."The upside with Sanders is evident, but there's still plenty he needs to show in order to be viewed as a potential first-round pick that can be developed into a franchise quarterback.
"Deion has been the kid's coach all of his life. Everyone knows that he's running that show and that's not going to change moving forward," an NFC executive said. Compounding mistakes was also a frequent issue, as he seemed to press to make plays too often. Sanders showed a tendency to run backward or look to exit out the side of the pocket instead of climbing vertically or up in the pocket when there was room to do so. When forced to move, Sanders had a 53.2% completion percentage, which ranked 73rd in the country.
Newly hired offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur brings a pro-style scheme that will have Sanders perform more of the concepts that will be asked of him in the NFL. One variation we can expect more of in 2024 is the incorporation of more plays under center. In 2023, Sanders had just six dropbacks from that platform. The increase in under-center snaps creates more opportunity for play-action passes and true dropback concepts.
But there are NFL people who already have Sanders in the first round based on what he has put on tape thus far in college and his potential.
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