2025 Dynasty Rookie Early Look: Shedeur Sanders, QB Colorado
Shedeur Sanders has been a divisive prospect his entire collegiate career. There are many who love him – he’s been my QB1 in this draft class for two years – and many more who hate him. There are a lot of reasons to love Sanders: he’s a competitor, he’s succeeded at every level, he has faced extreme media scrutiny and stood up to it, and he’s a damn good quarterback. The doubters say he would be a nobody if his dad wasn’t NFL Hall of Fame player Deion Sanders. Others say he doesn’t have elite athletic traits. And many more complain that he is all flash and no glory.
There is going to be more debate surrounding Sanders than probably any other prospect in this draft class. So hearing through the noise is going to be important.
Sanders doesn’t have elite physical traits, but he is really good at doing all the things that make a good NFL quarterback. He is an above-average athlete, despite the current narrative. He doesn’t run a 4.4-second 40-yard dash, but he can move in the pocket and use his legs when necessary. He doesn’t have a rocket arm, but he throws with precision and can layer the football all over the field. Let’s dive a little more into the positive and the negative you get with this prospect.
Recruitment
Sanders grew up outside of Dallas, Texas. He went to private Trinity Christian High School in Cedar Hill. Sanders led his team to multiple private school state championships. He finished his career with a 47-5 record with 12,627 passing yards and 166 touchdowns.
Sanders was a high three-star, low four-star recruit who originally committed to Florida Atlantic before his father, Deion Sanders, was hired as the head coach at Jackson State. After that, Shedeur flipped his commitment to the Tigers. After two successful seasons at Jackson State, Sanders transferred to Colorado when his dad got the head coaching job there and was considered one of the top quarterback transfers in the country.
Collegiate Career
Sanders spent two years at HBCU Jackson State to start his career. He piled up over 7,000 yards passing with 70 touchdowns and only 14 interceptions in his two seasons. Sanders led the Tigers to a 23-3 record in his two years at the helm and an HBCU Football Championship in 2022. The school’s first title since 1996.
Sanders transferred to Colorado his junior year. Along with his father, they turned a 1-11 team into a 4-8 team with five losses by one score in their first year in Boulder. In 2024, the Buffaloes finished 9-4 and just missed out on making the Big 12 Championship game.
Sanders was able to throw for 3,230 yards with 27 touchdowns and only three interceptions in his junior year despite poor offensive line play. Sanders was the most sacked quarterback in the country.
Sanders was able to follow that up with one of the best seasons in school history. He completed 74% of his pass attempts, which is the sixth-best percentage all-time in college football. He was third in the country in passing yards with 4,134 and second in passing touchdowns with 37, even though he was again the most sacked quarterback in the country.
Sanders’ total college production is eye-popping. In his career, he completed 70.1% of his passes for more than 14,000 yards passing yards with 134 touchdowns and just 27 interceptions.
He finished his career winning the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year Award and the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award.
Strengths
- Throws an extremely accurate deep ball
- Nice touch and throws a very catchable ball
- Great toughness, stays cool under pressure, and doesn’t get rattled
- Can move in the pocket and make off-platform throws
- He has been consistently good and successful at every level
Weaknesses
- Has a tendency to hold the ball too long and take way too many sacks
- Footwork needs improvement – can float to the side on his drops
- Inconsistent with his anticipation on quick routes
- Sometimes fades on throws as opposed to stepping into them
Draft Value
Courtesy of NFL Mock Draft Database.
Sanders has been projected as a top-three pick in this draft since October. In mock drafts, he is going as pick one, two, or three almost every time. The farthest he has fallen is the sixth pick to the Raiders.
The debate leading up to the draft is whether Sanders or Miami quarterback Cam Ward will be the first quarterback selected in April’s NFL Draft.
The top three teams in the draft all need a quarterback. The Tennessee Titans are slotted into the top slot. Will they stick with Will Levis, who they took at the top of the second round in 2023 out of Kentucky, or will they move on? The Cleveland Browns have the second pick. They have Deshaun Watson under contract through 2026, but he has been a massive disappointment and is trying to recover from a torn Achilles.
The New York Giants moved on from former first-round pick quarterback Daniel Jones during the 2024 season. QB would seem to be high on their priority list. The Las Vegas Raiders have the sixth pick and have already been linked to Sanders. Will he fall to six or will the Raiders have to trade up if they want Sanders?
It doesn’t seem likely that Sanders would make it out of the top five, much less the top ten, but we have seen crazier things happen.
Dynasty Outlook
The scouting process still looms over Sanders, but he is currently being predicted to be one of the top two quarterbacks off the board in this draft. Unless something crazy happens between now and the draft, it seems difficult to see a situation where Sanders isn’t one of the top two quarterbacks off of the board.
The top players off of the board in fantasy drafts should be Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, Arizona wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan, and the two quarterbacks Sanders and Ward.
In 1QB dynasty fantasy leagues, Jeanty and McMillan are likely to be the 1.01 and 1.02 in rookie drafts with Sanders or Ward dropping near the end of the first round or somewhere in the mid-second round depending on when and where they are drafted.
In superflex or 2QB leagues, Sanders and Ward could push Jeanty and McMillan for the top spots in fantasy drafts. The landing spot for Sanders could ultimately determine how much fantasy managers want to invest in him come draft day. But if he goes to say the Giants, Sanders might entice some to take him at the 1.01.
- 2025 Dynasty Rookie Early Look: Shedeur Sanders, QB Colorado - January 17, 2025
- 2025 Dynasty Rookie Early Look: Ashton Jeanty, RB Boise State - January 15, 2025
- 2025 Dynasty Rookie Early Look: Tetairoa McMillan, WR Arizona - January 10, 2025
