2025 NFL Draft Quarterback Scouting Report - Shedeur Sanders, Colorado
Hey all,
Back with another edition of my 2025 NFL Draft QB Scouting Series! This week, I’m doing an eval on Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders. I have the full written eval below but don’t have a video attached for this post. I’m trying to make a shift to try to keep my Substack focused on written evals and my YouTube channel have videos going forward. If you want to check out the video, for Sanders, you can check it out with the link below:
Video Link for Shedeur Sanders Eval:
Now, let’s see how Sanders graded out!
Shedeur Sanders
Height: 6’2”; Weight: 215 pounds
Age on Draft Day: 23 years and 2 months
Class: RS Junior
Overall Grade: 3/4 (Good Starter)
2024 Games Charted: Nebraska, Kansas State, Utah, BYU
Totals from Games Charted:
Short Throw Accuracy on Platform: 74/88 (84.09%)
Short Throw Accuracy off Platform: 32/42 (76.19%)
Medium Throw Accuracy on Platform: 42/50 (84%)
Medium Throw Accuracy off Platform: 11/18 (75%)
Intermediate Throw Accuracy on Platform: 18/24 (75%)
Intermediate Accuracy off Platform: 14/22 (63.64%)
Deep Throw Accuracy on Platform: 8/16 (50%)
Deep Throw Accuracy off Platform: 3/7 (75%)
Left Side of Field Accuracy: 63/88 (71.59%)
Middle of Field Accuracy: 46/58 (79.31%)
Right Side of Field Accuracy: 90/118 (76.27%
Total Accuracy: 199/264 (75.38%)
On Platform, Way Off Target Throws (Vertical/Horizontal): 3/2 (0.75/0.5 per game)
Off Platform, Way Off Target Throws (Vertical/Horizontal): 3/4 (0.75/1 per game)
Sacks/Fumbles: 19/1 (4.75/0.25 per game)
Deflections/Pass Interference: 6/1 (1.5/0.25 per game)
Throwaways/INTs/Dropped INTs: 7/5/0 (1.75/1.25/0 per game)
Drops: 8 (2 per game)
Designed Runs/Scrambles: 2/12 (0.5/3 per game)
Success vs Blitz: 18/41 (43.90%)
Success vs Pressure: 55/109 (50.46%
Footwork: B
Pocket Presence: D
“Playmaking”: B-
Short Throw Accuracy: A-
Medium Throw Accuracy: A
Intermediate Throw Accuracy: A
Deep Throw Accuracy: B-
Throw on the Run: A
Success Against Pressure/Blitz: C+
Arm Strength: B
Release: A-
Ball Security: C+
Top Starter Potential: B-
Strengths:
Ball placement
Release
Scramble ability
Improved footwork
Willingness to attack the whole field
Areas of Improvement:
Questionable arm strength
Dropback will need work
Hero ball tendencies
Tendency for big losses
Poor against blitz/pressure
Comp: Tua Tagovailoa
At the time of writing his profile, Shedeur Sanders is most peoples’ top quarterback for this year’s draft. I understand the excitement and though I am a bit lower on him, I still recognize there is a lot to like about Sanders. Starting with his best attribute, his release. Sanders has one of the quickest, most efficient releases in this year’s draft and pairs very well with his accuracy and ability to throw at diverse arm angles. He has a good understanding of how to layer throws into coverage and sneak balls into tight windows. This understanding of proper ball placement also shows in his 50/50 ball opportunities and his ability to get the ball to his receiver to help maximize the yards they can get after the catch. He also throws the ball with great arc to drop it over defenders and into buckets down the field. Sanders is also one of the best quarterbacks in this class at reading a defense and showed the ability to use his eyes to move defenders and work through his progressions. Some quarterbacks in this class have a tendency to favor one area of the field but Sanders isn’t afraid to attack all areas of the field which will translate well to the NFL. There are definitely some areas he can improve as a pocket passer which will get into later, but he is a very capable pocket passer and did a better job stepping up in the pocket this year. His toughness can’t be questioned with the types of hits he’s willing to take to deliver an accurate ball to his receiver. He is closer to a pure pocket passer than a great scrambler but he is more of a “clay” statue than a “stone” statue in the pocket meaning that he can still pick up yards and has a little wiggle to him. He doesn’t always escape pressure cleanly but when he does, he does a great job keeping his eyes downfield. Though he can fall into hero ball tendencies, his ability to never give up and lead his team despite getting no help from his defense is admirable. Mechanically, his footwork has taken a step forward this year especially when being pressured. Though his dropback could be cleaned up, it has a good rhythm to it. Also, though he can bounce in the pocket, he does a good job keeping his feet flat to give himself a good platform when he lands. His mechanics on the move are also some of the best in the class and he does a great job resetting his base and getting his toes and body aligned with his target to deliver an accurate ball.
Where I differ greatly compared to the consensus is in two areas with Shedeur Sanders. First, I’ve seen several writers boast about his arm strength dating back to last year and still early in this pre-draft process. Personally, I just don’t see it and I’m wondering where this is coming from. Sanders’ arm strength isn’t a dealbreaker for me but it definitely isn’t elite or a cannon like I’ve seen some suggest. This becomes very clear if you watch the velocity of his balls to the opposite side of the field and deep down the field. The ball often floats towards his target often lacking zip and will often lead to defenders having more time to make a play on the ball. The other area I greatly disagree with the consensus on is Sanders being good against pressure and blitzes. Sanders does have some good improv skills and has slightly reduced his hero ball tendencies but still falls into the trap of trying to do too much in games. He needs to do a better job knowing where his checkdown or outlet are to survive early pressure and not take a loss. Speaking of taking a loss, some quarterbacks take small losses on sacks but Sanders will often take huge, drive-derailing sacks due to his tendency to trail back in the pocket and misread his blocks. This not only compromises his protection but also creates even more difficult throws for him to make which is even more apparent with his lack of elite arm strength. If you want a clear example of the effect of this, watch Sanders’ game against Kansas State. It’s the perfect encapsulation where he showed his excellent accuracy but had back-breaking sacks that ended up being a big part of the reason the team lost. There are just too many times when he loses track of the pass rush and either is too slow in releasing the ball to avoid a loss or just isn’t willing to throw the ball away. On top of that, it also creates extra hits that he’s taking and though I gave him credit for his toughness, he needs to avoid some of the big hits he takes to keep himself upright. Though he can read a defense, I really want to see him multitask better at times making subtle movements in the right direction in the pocket and keeping track of pressure to be able to extend plays without needing a heroic effort. Mechanically, though he’s made improvements, his dropback is more of a backpedal right now and he can bounce in the pocket as I mentioned before. Also, his base can sometimes fluctuate in width, and in general I think he is too over-reliant on his upper body which he can’t get away with as much with his arm strength. He also has a tendency to pat the ball before releasing it which slows up his process. Sometimes that delay can cause a delay in his ability to hit a pass catcher beating a blitz as the rolling coverage has enough time to cover the hole. This led to Sanders needing to pull the ball back and take a sack on a number of occasions.
As much as there is to like about Sanders, I think a lot of his weaknesses are being widely ignored. Todd McShay recently talked about it at the time of writing this eval, but the best quarterbacks in the NFL either have elite arm talent and/or great rushing ability. Sanders has neither right now and when you combine his difficult beating pressure/blitzes and his tendency to trail back in the pocket, it starts to look like a recipe for disaster. More often than not, players with those limitations and those key areas of improvement often don’t pan out in the NFL. Now what separates Sanders from those previous players is his great accuracy. But if he continues to derail drives in the NFL like he did in college, he may get a short leash in the NFL. On paper, he’s a more talented player, but Caleb Williams came in with a lot of the same struggles against pressure/blitzes and trailing tendencies, and many people, including myself, were willing to excuse that because of his arm talent and scramble ability. Despite those traits, he has experienced a lot of struggles in the NFL and I think things could be potentially worse for Sanders. I still think Sanders could be a solid quarterback, but I think a lot of people need to start being honest about his limitations and questionable ceiling. As for a comp, due to both having questionable arm strength and sometimes being a bit slow to react to pressure/blitzes but having great accuracy, a little bit of scrambling ability, and quick release, I have Tua Tagovailoa as Sanders’ comp. Like Tua, I think Sanders may become what most people a disappointment after multiple years of hype. However, similar to Tua, I think he will still be a capable quarterback for a team for multiple years and will be capable of elevating an offense thanks to his accuracy. The big thing for Sanders to make more of a favorable impression than Tua is to minimize the big losses and mistakes he has been making in college. If he does that, then he could get closer to the higher ceiling some are giving him.