BOULDER, COLORADO - AUGUST 29: Shedeur Sanders #2 of the Colorado Buffaloes celebrates after throwing his 100th career touchdown during the third quarter against the North Dakota State Bison at Folsom Field on August 29, 2024 in Boulder, Colorado. (Photo by Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)

Shedeur Sanders Looks The Part Against FCS Level NDSU

September 1, 2024 | Daniel Kelly | Articles

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BOULDER, COLORADO – AUGUST 29: Shedeur Sanders #2 of the Colorado Buffaloes warms up prior to the game against the North Dakota State Bison at Folsom Field on August 29, 2024 in Boulder, Colorado. (Photo by Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)

I’m doing the same thing with Colorado quarterback (QB) Shedeur Sanders this season as I did with QB Caleb Williams last season when he played at USC. I’m writing a scouting report after every game he plays in.

Nobody is going to know Sanders better than I do. On top of that I evaluated Sanders in 10 games last season with Colorado and three games in 2022 when he was playing at FCS Jackson State.

As the season kicked off for both Colorado and North Dakota State University (NDSU), all eyes were on Sanders. It comes with the territory of being the son of Colorado’s head coach and Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders.

Shedeur did not fail to get the cameras aimed in his direction starting pre-game when he flexed his watch. I’m not a fan of him doing this because I think it makes him more of a target being the smallest guy in the pocket.

WATCH FULL GAME HERE

Keeping things in perspective

Before I slip on my ‘NFL colored glasses,’ and talk about how Sanders’ performance (26 out of 34 for 445 yards, 4 touchdowns and one interception) translates to the NFL, it’s important to keep things in context.

Sanders looked great against FCS NDSU.

There is something to be said for ‘level of competition.’ It’s a piece to the evaluation puzzle. I learned this from Dick Haley (God rest his soul), who was the Jets’ Director of Player Personnel (and architect of the Steelers’ dynasty of the 1970s). He impressed upon me it’s important to consider who the prospect is going up against.

With that said, Colorado is in the FBS (higher level of college football competition) than NDSU.

I found the Bisons’ defensive depth chart for this game and looked up the names of the four listed starters in their secondary at cornerback (CB) and safety (S) in nflmockdraftdatabase.com (mainstream draft media grading).

#24 (CB) Anthony Chideme-Alfaro
#10 (CB) Marcus Sheppard
#35 (S) Sam Jung
#27 (S) Ryan Jones

I also looked up the four backup defensive backs listed on their depth chart.

#17 (CB) Jailen Duffie
#18 (CB) Jaquise Alexander
#22 (S) Hudson Artz
#29 (S) Darius Givance

No information was found ⎯meaning mainstream draft media doesn’t recognize any of these defenders in the database. Based on this information, I will safely conclude that the talent level Sanders was throwing against in this game was low.

What stood out?

Colorado QB #2 Shedeur Sanders touchdown pass vs. NDSU (2024) pic.twitter.com/HnqfLtq1DS
— FIRST ROUND MOCK (@firstroundmock) September 1, 2024

With that in mind, Sanders looked better in this game than I recall seeing him before. He looked like a different guy.

Confident
Good ball handling in the pocket
Good pocket mobility (good looking movement)
Quick and accurate downfield throws
Smart throwing decisions (threw it away a couple times when nothing was there)
Poised under pressure (one sack)
Good job keeping eyes downfield under pressure (poised)
Decent ball placement (I charted two passes defended) and he had the one lucky interception that went off a shoe
Good mixture of short, intermediate and deep passes (14 short passes charted)

The bullet points that are in bold were the most notable improvements over last season.

Any negatives?

The big thing that stands out is Sanders is not a great or even a good running QB. He’s an average looking runner. It was the same story on his previous seasons of game film.

Sanders didn’t get his daddy’s wheels.

In his six rushing attempts in this one he didn’t look like anything special, twice getting cut off at the edge by the sideline.

He was also inconsistent going through his progressions (looking around at his receiving options before throwing). He did it sometimes, but at other times he locked in with the target.

NFL takeaway

31 Scouts were at this game representing 19 teams according to ESPN —and this is what one of those scouts had to say about Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders. pic.twitter.com/xPa2IBLBlA
— FIRST ROUND MOCK (@firstroundmock) September 1, 2024

I had an UDFA (undraftable free agent) grade on Sanders last season, and while there is cause for optimism, I am anything but sold. I need to see him play like this against FBS teams on Colorado’s schedule, which includes five top-25 matchups.

It’s a good start, but there’s a big difference between playing NDSU and lining up against NFL teams and that’s how I watch these games.

Through NFL-colored glasses.

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, and has written for Sports Illustrated (Lions, Jets, and 49ers), NFL Draft Diamonds, and Yardbarker, as well as a featured guest on ESPN Radio and Fox Sports Radio. For more information about him visit his website at whateverittakesbook.com. Follow on Twitter @firstroundmock.