Shedeur Sanders Not Checking NFL Boxes

Colorado quarterback (QB) Shedeur Sanders fought back against No. 9 USC admirably, but he didn’t look like an NFL franchise prospect in the process of losing 48-41.

How can that be?

Sanders went 30-of-45 (67%) for 371 yards while throwing four touchdowns and one interception for No. 41 ranked Colorado. Plus, he added another touchdown on the ground.

CLICK TO WATCH COLORADO VS. USC

I’ve come under fire for my takes on Sanders. I even had a chance to explain what I saw in Sanders prior to the USC game on The Odd Couple with Chris Broussard and Rob Parker on Fox Sports Radio (a little past the 29-minute mark). As I shared, when Iooking at college QBs, I look at them through NFL glasses and have developed six boxes that translate to success in the NFL.

1. Professionalism (how they carry themselves on and off the field).

2. Going through progressions (seen by their heads moving around scanning the field and going through their reads prior to throwing the football).

3. Quick release time (the average release time in the NFL is between 2.0-2.8 seconds).

4. Good downfield ball placement (putting the ball in the receiver’s hands in an ideal location downfield so they can continue running through the catch and then picking up yardage).

5. Downfield ball security (keeping defenders from getting hand(s) on the football when it’s in the air)

6. Doing it against high-level competition (level of competition does play a role in the draft evaluation process).

Professionalism Box #1

I give Sanders credit against USC for no unsportsmanlike conduct.

Going through progressions Box #2

In the NFL, it’s about QBs often going through multiple reads (progressions) while in the pocket.

Against USC, he locked in and quickly threw to his first short route level read on 26 of 45 attempts (58%). Then on non-short throws, he locked in with his first read most of the time. I charted him doing it eight times.

Quick release time Box #3

Even the television announcer said against USC, “They’re doing a nice job getting the ball out of [Sanders] hands, he’s not sitting back in the pocket.”

He had one deep attempt in this game when hitting a wide-open receiver down the middle for a touchdown.

Sanders was sacked three times against the Trojans when he held the ball too long.

Good downfield ball placement and ball security Box #4 and #5

His ball placement was inconsistent against USC. He even missed a couple of short screen passes.

Outside of the interception against the Trojans, I charted three passes that were disrupted by defenders, including a couple of short passes batted down near the line of scrimmage. It wasn’t pretty.

Doing it against high-level competition Box #6

For two straight weeks, they’ve dropped games to top-10 ranked teams (USC and Oregon).

Scouting conclusion

Like I said, I credit Sanders for continuing to battle to the end. That’s his best attribute this season.

I’ve evaluated Sanders in every snap through the first five games. He looks like a marginal undrafted free agent prospect projecting as a No. 3 QB/practice squad prospect in the NFL.

While Colorado beat top-20-ranked TCU to open the season, the other two victories have come against lowly-ranked Nebraska and unranked Colorado State.

I’m unimpressed by Sanders’ unsportsmanlike conduct against Nebraska and Colorado State (and I can’t imagine NFL teams going for it either). I also didn’t like how he disrespected Oregon’s field pre-game.

Sanders leads the nation in being sacked (25 times). He’s shown a tendency to hold the ball too long processing college-level defenses and has lacked mobility (average-looking runner). He locks in with receivers about half the time pre-delivery and mostly has thrown short passes in an elementary one-to-two-read system both at Jackson State and Colorado. That’s not how the NFL works.

He also admitted to struggling to read Nebraska’s defense.

The one thing he had going for him was his ball placement (which I credited him for at Jackson State and Colorado in the first three games). However, both traits fell off against higher-level college competition against Oregon and USC (one interception and nine pass breakups).

The NFL game is only faster and much more complex.

Daniel Kelly is a former NFL Scout with the New York Jets. He was hired on the regime which featured Bill Parcells, Bill Belichick, Scott Pioli, Mike Tannenbaum, and Dick Haley. He is currently the Editor-in-Chief for First Round Mock, contributes at Yardbarker, and has written for Sports Illustrated Lions, Jets, and 49ers, as well as a featured guest on ESPN Radio and Fox Sports Radio. For more information about him visit his website at whateverittakesbook.com. Twitter @firstroundmock.