An NFL analyst has called out critics who celebrated Shedeur Sanders’ surprise NFL Draft slide.
The Colorado Buffaloes quarterback was expected to be one of the top prospects selected in the first round, but was overlooked by all of the teams on the clock through 32 picks on Thursday night.
He will now wait for his fate to be decided heading into Friday and the start of Round 2.
Sanders enjoyed a prolific 2024 college season and posted an all-time FBS record with a 71.8% career completion rate, but his stock began to slide after he emerged as one of the most polarising prospects on the NFL Draft board.
He was blasted as the ‘worst interview ever’ by an anonymous NFL coach, and the discourse around Shedeur appears to have seriously shifted his potential landing spots.
While NFL stars can expect to feel the heat from fans and analysts alike should they make mistakes or fail to live up to expectations, much of the recent criticism around Sanders has felt overly personal.
As the son of Pro-Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, he has perhaps been put under the spotlight more than any other player coming out of college this year.
Once it became clear Shedeur would not be taken in the first round, some of those critics took to social media to troll the 23-year-old, and even ‘celebrate’ his disappointment.
That response did not sit well with Fox Sports analyst and former linebacker Emmanuel Acho.
“Thinking Shedeur Sanders should not be a first round pick is no crime, but celebrating him falling in the draft is just weird, very weird behavior,” he wrote on X.
Acho added that he ‘feels’ for Sanders after his draft experience.
He wrote: “Thinking you’re getting drafted in RD1 & not getting drafted freaking sucks!
Sanders will wait for his NFL future to be decided on night 2 of the draftGetty Fellow quarterback Cam Ward was picked first overall by the Tennessee TitansGetty“It’s humbling, embarrassing, and devastating.
“I remember going to my brother and Aaron Williams draft parties, and the tears, confusion and pain of a dream delayed really just sucks.
“I feel for Shedeur.”
Sanders will surely be drafted on night two of this year’s draft, when teams will make their second and third round selections.
But by just falling out of the first round, he has already suffered a major financial blow.
Had Sanders been drafted in the top five, as once projected, his rookie contract would’ve been worth substantially more than any he will likely sign now.
Shedeur, son of Hall of Famer Deion, will lose out on more than $30m by slidingGettyThe difference between a top-five contract and a late first-round deal can be as much as $30million, according to sports business analyst Darren Rovell.
“After not getting taken at No. 21, Shedeur Sanders has now lost $30m vs being taken No. 1,” he wrote, as the Pittsburgh Steelers passed on the QB.
By the end of the night, Rovell claimed that Sanders had lost ‘$34m and counting’ by slipping out of the first round, as the further he falls, the larger the gap becomes between what he could’ve earned and what he will.
Despite suffering disappointment on night one of the draft, Sanders sent a defiant message about his future.
“I don’t feel like this happened for no reason. All this is of course fuel to the fire,” he told a crowd at his draft party.
“We all know this shouldn’t have happened. But we understand, we’re on to bigger and better things.
“Tomorrow’s the day. We’re gonna be happy regardless.”
The 2025 NFL Draft continues on Friday night.
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