Coach makes Colorado football’s Deion Sanders-Shedeur Sanders Heisman Trophy claim

First of all, Feldman interviewed one former Pac-12 head coach who remained anonymous to protect his identity and had nothing but high praise for Sanders. He called the junior quarterback already an “NFL guy,” even saying that his father is “going to try to win Shedeur the Heisman” this season, though he did question whether he would be the first overall pick.

“He’s an NFL guy,” the former Pac-12 head coach said as he reportedly faced the Colorado football team last season. “Is he the first pick of the draft? I don’t know, but I think he’s a real dude. I think he throws it well. He’s accurate. I think he’s a first-round draft pick, I think Deion’s going to try to win Shedeur the Heisman, I think they’ll be good. They have good wideouts. Their O-line will be better. I think they’ll be way better and they’ll have a good year.”

Last season, Sanders threw for 3,230 yards, 27 touchdowns, and three interceptions in what was a really good season for one of the nation’s more exciting slingers. However, the team itself had a disappointing year as after they started hot winning three straight with one victory against a ranked TCU, but then they would lose eight of the next nine games to close out the season.

Shedeur Sanders compared to other Pac-12 quarterbacks

Feldman spoke to another former Pac-12 coach and originally questioned if Sanders would be good as other quarterbacks in the same conference who are now in the NFL. These include No. 1 overall pick in the last draft in Caleb Williams with the Chicago Bears and out of USC, or Atlanta Falcons’ Michael Penix Jr. out of the University of Washington, or even Bo Nix who was drafted by the Denver Broncos out of the University of Oregon.

However, this other coach said that he was “more impressed” and went in to how Sanders could be successful not just in his potentially last season with the Colorado football program, but in the NFL. They would mention that “he got pummeled” this past season as offensive line play for the Buffaloes was poor, but he has a great ability to “make plays and extend plays” if he can be kept upright.

“I was more impressed with Shedeur than I thought I was gonna be,” the other former Pac-12 head coach said to The Athletic. “But I didn’t think he was as good as some of the other (Pac-12) quarterbacks we saw, like (Michael) Penix and Caleb (Williams) and (Bo) Nix. But I will say, it was hard to tell with how much pressure he was under. He got pummeled. That was as hard as it gets, but if they can keep him upright, he can make plays and extend plays. I do think it’ll be a better evaluation this year of what he can really do.”

Sanders’ competition at the No. 1 overall pick

If there is any competition for who could be the No. 1 overall pick besides an exciting player like Sanders, it is most likely Bulldogs quarterback Carson Beck. When Feldman spoke to a veteran SEC defensive coordinator, they flat out said that he will be the first pick of next year’s draft as he goes into his intangibles and what makes him the best prospect.

“I think he’ll be the No. 1 overall pick,” the SEC defensive coordinator said to Feldman. “A few things really stood out to me after playing him. He runs better than you think because he doesn’t do it often and he has such a quick release. He gets rid of it fast as s—. And he’s really intelligent. He’s one of the few quarterbacks who doesn’t look to the sidelines all the time. We were showing 0 (blitz) and he got them into a little quick screen. He’s really impressive.”

Beck more prototypical than the Colorado football star in Sanders?

Last season for the Georgia football team, Beck threw for 3,941 yards, 24 touchdowns, and six interceptions leading them to a 13-1 record going 8-0 conference in conference play. Feldman spoke to a defensive coordinator of a top 25 team where he experienced Beck have a stellar game where the opponent is a mystery due to the coach being anonymous.

Besides the level of play from Beck which was impressive since it was his debut season as a starter, this coach gave praise to his measurements. He would specifically say that Beck has a “prototypical first-round QB look to him” and that he does not think “there is a better quarterback in the country right now” when talking about his “size, accuracy, accuracy on the deep ball” and more.

“He played lights out against us,” the defensive coordinator of a top 25 team said. “He’s got that prototypical first-round QB look to him. His touch on the deep ball was tremendous. I don’t think there is a better quarterback in the country right now in terms of his size, accuracy, accuracy on the deep ball. I think he throws a better deep ball than Jayden Daniels.”

In any sense, a player like Sanders should not be focused on their NFL draft stock as of the current moment as the college football season is right around the corner. Since it could be his last season for the Colorado football program, Shedeur Sanders wants to end it on a bang as he looks to take the Buffaloes to new heights and even achieve some individual accolades like a possible Heisman Trophy.