One thing that has always been a certainty: Deion Sanders can sell. When he was about to be drafted in 1989, he had plenty of draft competition such as RB Barry Sanders, OT Tony Mandarich, LB Derrick Thomas, RB Tim Worley, QB Troy Aikman, and DE Trace Armstrong all trying to be known and get their piece of the pie.
Green Bay Packers vs Atlanta Falcons
Deion was taken fifth by the Atlanta Falcons in spite of all his gold chains and watches. He was a spectacle and preached the Gospel of Deion to whoever listened to how great he was.
And as it turned out, he was absolutely correct. Deion could cover receivers. He could bait quarterbacks and act like he was beaten only to shift into that other gear he had and intercept the ball instead. He took two teams to the Super Bowl and won and brought a third club out of the gutter.
Now, it’s his oldest son’s time to be drafted. The vast array of press conferences is the same strategy minus the heap of gold chains, but this time around the message isn’t “I am the greatest” but “I can change your team for the better.”
While Deion has not been the Manning dad who has stated which teams his son will not play for, or has taken the John Elway approach that he will suit up for everyone “except the Colts who hold the first overall pick,” it has been perfectly clear that if a franchise drafts Shedeur, you also get the father.
Shedeur Sanders just might be the most intriguing player in the entire 2025 NFL draft, and certainly the most discussed. And that is by design. By talking about him, it keeps everyone’s mind that he should and could be a first-round draft pick.
Plenty of draft sites have Shedeur out of the first round completely. Others have him lasting in the lower half of the first round while many believe he could be selected in the top five. If he gets shut out of the first round completely, the top half of the first round is where the NFL needy clubs are all huddled together and, in all likelihood,d would hear his name on Day 2.
But being Deion’s son, Day 2 is not an option. Being drafted out of the Top-10 is also not an option. Taken by the Cleveland Browns at pick #2 is what Deion is expecting. He can relent that Cam Ward from Miami is a more polished NFL prospect at quarterback, but after that, why isn’t his son the next player taken?
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On Thursday, Shedeur was getting ready for yet another interview to tell the world how good he is and the wonders he is ready to install with his future roster. Shedeur was at the Ford Center Field inside the Dallas Cowboys’ practice facility complex in Frisco, Texas for the Big 12 Conference joint Pro Day being covered by NFL Network. With his father a former Cowboys icon, Shedeur is always welcome at any Dallas facility.
Oklahoma State v Colorado Photo by Andrew Wevers/Getty Images
NFL Network had just gotten Shedeur on set for an interview as numerous players were about to go through drills and workouts for NFL coaches, scouts, and executives in the 12,000-seat facility. Then a message blared over the intercom system. The message was explaining to the NFL community that Shedeur would not be working out today.
Weeks earlier, Shedeur did not work out at all at the Combine and told anyone who asked he was going to wait for his Pro Day.
As the interview began, Shedeur looked towards the camera and stated with a look of surprise sporting a sheepish grin:
“I didn’t expect to hear my name today. I didn’t expect that.”
There was a reason for the audio announcement to the coaches and scouts. When Shedeur announced at the Combine that he would forego their physical skills and then perform at his Pro Day, what he meant was he would perform at the University of Colorado Pro Day scheduled for April 4, not the mixed Big 12 Pro Day.
Even though all 32 NFL teams were in attendance for this event, both father and son are expecting the same full slate of teams for Shedeur’s day at his home field to watch him do anything physical.
There have been unconfirmed rumors of concerns related to Sanders’ presentation during interviews with teams.
Wasn’t that Deion 36 years ago?
And that may be true about Shedeur. Just ask yourself if anyone wouldn’t want their quarterback to be full of themselves and believe all the details and promises are indeed the pending outcome. Winners are confident. Winners are braggarts. Winners believe what the others only talk about doing.
NCAA Football: Colorado at Kansas Nick Tre. Smith-Imagn Images
With Shedeur, add the fact that he is Deion’s son and things only become amplified. Either you’re gonna be watching or you’re gonna be talking about it.
But in this environment, were NFL teams expecting Shedeur to workout and do drills? Did they think this Pro Day was “the” Pro Day for that to transpire? There was rumbling among the NFL folks who traveled all this way to see him perform. Not working out - again? What the? The perception was that Shedeur had backed out of another event to throw and the negativity began to fester.
The news got back to Deion, and it hit a nerve with the Hall of Famer. When NFL Network questioned Deion, he stated:
“We’ve always been through adversity. We’ve always been challenged with adversity and the naysaying and the doubting. He is built for that. He’s the most qualified young man that plays that position that’s built for that, and to be in front of the lights and to continuously shine.”
Then Deion went a step further and offered that one NFL club was the reason for the misconception. He had something to say about lies that he believes are being spread around about Shedeur in the pre-draft process.
“We like to call that stuff out, though. I know who it is. You’re going to make me call him out. You know what team, yeah, all right? You gotta understand it. Don’t make me pull behind the curtains and step in that thing.”
Which “step in that thing” is part of the issue. If a team drafts Shedeur, how much of Deion are they going to get as well?
Oklahoma State v Colorado Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images
If the team’s starting quarterback is struggling, is the father going to constantly become a guest on team podcasts and local sports radio shows asking why his son isn’t taking the helm instead?
Meanwhile, in Dallas, Deion was threatening to “out” the individual or the team that he explained was spreading lies about his son.
All of this is utterly exhausting, and in the end, it means absolutely nothing. Keeping Shedeur’s name in the conversation of the draft is Deion’s strategy - and it is working.
Will that be in Cleveland?