Being the son of a Hall of Famer can put you in the spotlight from a young age. Colorado Buffaloes safety Shilo Sanders knows all about that.
Heading into the NFL with 33 total starts at the collegiate level, Sanders looks to hear his name called in the upcoming 2025 NFL Draft.
Shilo Sanders’ Draft Profile and Measurements
- Height: 6’0″
- Weight: 195 pounds
- Position: Safety
- School: Colorado
- Current Year: Graduate student
Sanders’ Scouting Report
A three-star prospect coming out of high school, Sanders generated attention for his high level of play at Trinity Christian High School in Cedar Hills, Texas. He was a versatile player, scoring four offensive touchdowns and intercepting five passes on defense. He ultimately committed to play college football at South Carolina.
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Only playing in four games for the Gamecocks in 2019, Sanders maintained his eligibility and took a redshirt year. As a redshirt freshman the following year, he played in nine games and started four at safety in a COVID-shortened season. He finished the year with 32 tackles, one tackle for a loss, and a pass deflection.
With his father, Deion, becoming the head coach at HBCU institution Jackson State, the younger Sanders entered the transfer portal and committed to play for his father. He also joined his younger brother, Shedeur, who joined the team as a quarterback recruit out of high school that same year.
He didn’t play in the Tigers’ spring 2021 season – their fall 2020 season had been postponed, and he was just coming off a full year with South Carolina that fall – but stepped into the defensive rotation in the fall.
Sanders played in 13 games in 2021, starting in eight. He ended the year second-team All-SWAC, finishing with 39 total tackles and four interceptions. He also added two forced fumbles into the mix as Jackson State made an appearance in the Celebration Bowl.
The 2022 season was an abbreviated one for Sanders, who tore his ACL seven games into the year. Nevertheless, he started in two of those games, tallying 20 tackles and an interception. Interestingly enough, he finished that year with a personal-best five pass deflections, despite it being the fewest games he played in a non-redshirt season.
As “Coach Prime” departed Jackson State for Colorado, his two sons on the team followed suit. Stepping into the starting lineup at safety, the older of the Sanders brothers played in 11 games and started all of them.
He ended the year with a career-high 70 tackles, intercepting a pass for an 80-yard touchdown against Colorado State. In his debut with the Buffaloes, he had 10 tackles and helped his team upset TCU, who had just been in the national championship the year before. He also finished 2023 with four forced fumbles.
Sanders served in a starting role for Colorado again in 2024. This marked his sixth and final year in college football, having redshirted in 2019 and earning an extra year of eligibility for the COVID-shortened 2020 year.
In the eight games he started and played, he had 55 tackles and two tackles for a loss. He added a forced fumble and his first career sack, though he only had one pass deflection.
Strengths
- Experienced starting defensive back whose ample playing time over the years shows in how he processes in coverage.
- Quick going through his reads, identifying route concepts and picking up on a quarterback’s progressions.
- Aggressive acting on his reads, allowing him to properly close in on a receiver and force an incompletion in coverage.
- Versatile defender with significant reps as a deep safety, in the box, and in the slot over his collegiate career.
- Offers good athleticism with loose hips and nice acceleration coming out of his breaks.
- Has good closing speed as a tackler shooting downhill.
- Longitudinal agility is solid, as he’s able to work his way downhill coming out of his backpedal and explode out of the gate.
- Finished with seven forced fumbles in college.
- With a return average of 29.8 yards per interception, he’s creative with the ball in his hands and capable of returning picks for a large gain.
Weaknesses
- Attacked a security officer after reportedly disrupting a high school class in 2016.
- In trouble with Mercedes-Benz for missing payments on a car after previously having filed for bankruptcy.
- Sixth-year senior who’s 25 years old, making him an older collegiate prospect entering the league.
- Doesn’t have elite physicality in run support.
- Ability to consistently wrap up with proper weight distribution and good form needs work.
- Appears a bit too high in the pads at times, both breaking down as a tackler and working his backpedal in coverage.
- Doesn’t deconstruct blocks incredibly well when he’s tasked with playing in the box.
- Interception and pass deflection production decreased when he made the jump back to a Power 4 school.
Current Draft Projection and Summary
On the field, Shilo Sanders has the ability that should land him with an NFL team.
With significant collegiate experience, a high football IQ and solid athletic ability for the safety position, Sanders is an effective coverage defender with a penchant for forcing fumbles.
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The problem is that Sanders’ concerns don’t come entirely on the field. He could improve his form and physicality as a tackler and ability at the catch point, however. There are reasons to be concerned for his financial issues and assault lawsuit, and he’s just an older rookie entering the NFL to begin with.
With a couple factors playing against him, Sanders feels like a late-round pick, at best. His tape indicates he could be worthy of a selection late in Round 6 or some time in Round 7.
The fact he didn’t earn an invitation to the Combine indicates the NFL consensus sees him going undrafted, though he certainly should have his fair share of suitors in undrafted free agency.