Deion Sanders just led Colorado to its best season since 2016 as its head coach, with a 9-4 record that can be attributed to the play of expected first-round picks Shedeur Sanders (Deion’s son and the team’s star quarterback) and wide receiver/cornerback hybrid Travis Hunter.
With both of those superstars set to enter the NFL Draft this year, Colorado will be hard-pressed to continue the improvements it has shown in Sanders’ first two years as head coach.
To that extent, Sanders, a Hall of Fame cornerback in his own right who earned an NFL Defensive Player of the Year award and eight All-Pro selections throughout his career, has brought in tons of notable NFL talent to join him on the Buffaloes’ coaching staff.
Hall of Fame running back Marshall Faulk will be commanding the running back room in 2025, while Hall of Fame defensive tackle Warren Sapp will serve as a senior quality control analyst for the defense.
Now, a former NFL quarterback and Super Bowl-winning coach is joining their ranks.
Byron Leftwich Joins Deion Sanders Coaching Staff at Colorado
Even with Faulk controlling the running back room, Coach Prime needs someone he trusts to develop the offense in a post-Hunter and Shedeur world.
To that end, according to Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz, former NFL quarterback Byron Leftwich will join Sanders and company in Boulder for the 2025 season.
Former #Bucs OC Byron Leftwich is back in coaching as he is joining Deion Sanders’ staff at Colorado.
Leftwich interviewed for multiple NFL jobs this past cycle (Pats HC, Seahawks OC) but now makes the move to college. pic.twitter.com/KsgGOhtVdb
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report)
At one point, Leftwich was a hot head coaching candidate in the NFL and a finalist for the Jacksonville Jaguars’ job. However, he hasn’t coached since being let go after Tom Brady’s final season with the Buccaneers, though he did reenter the coaching cycle this offseason when he interviewed for notable positions with the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks.
Though no role has been specified for Leftwich at this time, it’s easy to assume that he’ll have a prominent role with the team’s offense, with a targeted focus on the quarterback room.
With Shedeur departing for the NFL, Leftwich will certainly play a part in quarterback Julian Lewis’ development. Lewis was a 4-star recruit and the No. 6 QB in 247Sports’ composite rankings for the 2024 class. Lewis will have to compete with Liberty transfer Kaidon Salter for the starting signal-caller job in 2025.
Leftwich is a student of Bruce Arians, originally having played under him with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2008 and 2010. He then joined Arians’ coaching staff with the Arizona Cardinals in 2016 before getting promoted to offensive coordinator with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2019.
The two had great success together, with multiple top-10 offenses under their stewardship. Leftwich called the plays for multiple 5,000-yard passers with the franchise (Jameis Winston and Tom Brady). He won a Super Bowl with the Buccaneers in 2020.
Under Sanders, Leftwich should have room to flourish at the collegiate level while reestablishing himself as a viable NFL coaching candidate.
Sanders himself had been mentioned in numerous NFL coaching rumors this offseason, but he’s all but silenced that noise by assembling his Hall of Fame staff. As a coach, Coach Prime has had successful stints at Jackson State and Colorado, with an all-time college coaching record of 40-18.
