With the 2025 NFL Draft just over a month away, anticipation is building over where top prospects will land. Early on, Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders were seen as near-locks to be top-three picks, but that may have changed following the NFL combine and the start of free agency. With growing speculation around Sanders’ draft stock, could the once-projected No. 1 overall pick experience a significant drop?
Legendary NFL RB Vouches for Sanders’ Capability
Sanders’ draft positioning continues to be a hot topic in mock drafts across the NFL media landscape. While the Colorado quarterback has his share of critics, he also has some high-profile supporters.
"We're not talking football but his swagger? That's the problem? Go get you a difference maker."@CutOnDime25 on Shedeur Sanders' case for being the No. 1 pick pic.twitter.com/nme32Hotkk
— The Facility (@TheFacilityFS1) March 18, 2025
Members of Fox Sports’ The Facility recently discussed whether Sanders could still prove to be the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft. Two-time Super Bowl champion running back LeSean McCoy believes so, arguing that most of the criticism stems from off-field “issues” rather than his actual on-field performance.
“If he can tell a story by watching his tape, by listening to his interviews, you would say yes,” McCoy said. “But everything we keep hearing is everything but his tape. They’re worried about the way he rocks his chain, ‘I don’t know if I want a quarterback who wears his hat backward,’ ‘he’s like his daddy’—every excuse you can think of other than me in the pocket elevating a team that didn’t have a lot of talent.”
McCoy pointed to Sanders’ ability to perform despite playing behind a weak offensive line at Colorado, highlighting the quarterback’s raw talent. He also noted that when Sanders was at Jackson State, he left the program in a better place than when he arrived.
The former Eagles running back added that other draft prospects have far more serious off-field concerns than Sanders. McCoy believes doubting the 6-foot-2 quarterback because of his swagger and confidence is unfair.
“If you want a franchise quarterback, a difference-maker, go get a kid that doesn’t talk about it—he just goes out there and does it,” McCoy said. “Every time you watch Shedeur, from Jackson State all the way to Colorado, he’s carried a team and they’ve won games with him.”
Sanders’ Draft Position According to PFSN
In Anthony Pasciolla’s most recent mock draft, he used PFSN’s Free NFL Mock Draft Simulator to build his projections. In this scenario, Pasciolla still has Sanders going in the top three, landing with the New York Giants. He explained why Sanders and New York could be the perfect fit.
“It turns out Shedeur Sanders didn’t wear New York Giants-themed cleats for nothing, even though he isn’t going off the board at the top spot in this scenario. The Giants weren’t able to steal Matthew Stafford away from the Los Angeles Rams, and it remains to be seen if they can land Aaron Rodgers in free agency. Their only promising route may be the draft.
“Sanders is a near-perfect fit in New York. Regardless of how he performs on the field, he’s a popular player and the son of an NFL legend joining one of the biggest markets.”
Doubting Sanders’ on-field talent appears to be an unpopular stance. However, if his off-field persona is enough to hurt his draft stock, it will be up to NFL general managers to decide if the risk outweighs the reward.