Shedeur Sanders was already extremely popular even before making his way to the NFL, especially due to his college stint at Colorado.
Having played for the Buffaloes under his father, Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, some believe his last name has given him more attention and recognition than he might otherwise have deserved.
Shedeur Sanders’ Ranking Sparks Fresh Debate About Deion Sanders and His NFL Hype
Mike Sando’s 2026 NFL Quarterback Tiers survey for The Athletic ranked 35 NFL quarterbacks based on confidential ballots cast by 21 executives and 29 coaches overall. Sanders finished at the bottom of the list, receiving one Tier-3 vote, 37 Tier-4 votes, and 12 Tier-5 votes.
During a segment on “The Odd Couple with Rob Parker and Kelvin Washington,” the hosts discussed the release of Sando’s annual NFL Quarterback Tiers. While discussing whether Patrick Mahomes deserved to be the consensus QB1 in Tier 1, Rob Parker argued that the Kansas City Chiefs QB is no longer the best quarterback in the NFL due to his performance over the last few years.
However, while criticizing the rankings surrounding Mahomes, Parker highlighted one area where he believed the evaluators got the decision right, bringing Shedeur into the conversation.
“I think you lose credibility seriously in this list,” Parker said. “I take this list with a grain of salt, except for when it comes to Shedeur Sanders. That’s the only thing they got right.”
Shedeur was once seen as a potential first-round selection, but his draft slide eventually led to him being selected in the fifth round, where the Browns drafted him with the No. 144 overall pick.
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Sando believes the draft outcome may have been a more accurate reflection of Shedeur’s actual talent than the attention that came with being associated with Deion, and Parker shares a similar view.
“I think they’re more accurate on Shedeur, not the fans who just like him and his name and his flair and all that,” Parker said. “If you really look at the numbers, he was the worst starting quarterback in the history of the NFL to start a game… I thought he was terrible… If his name were Joe Smith, he wouldn’t be on a team.”
In The Athletic’s survey, one executive said Shedeur struggled with accuracy at all three levels of the field and questioned whether the Cleveland QB could improve, adding that there was “a huge gap between him and competent QB play.”
A defensive coordinator said Shedeur struggles to work through coverages and is somewhat “heavy-footed.”
Shedeur completed 56.6% of his passes for 1,400 yards, 7 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions during his rookie season. He finished the season with a 63.0 PFN QB Impact, ranking second-worst in the league behind only Tennessee Titans QB Cam Ward.
