In a revealing and wide-ranging interview with Garrett Bush’s The Barbershop, Colorado coach Deion Sanders opened up about the struggles his son, Shedeur, endured before and during the 2025 draft, when he fell all the way to the fifth round.
The outcome hurt Deion significantly because, as he explained to Bush, he couldn’t do anything about it.
“That was the first time in my life that I couldn’t fix it,” Deion said. “I’ve always been able to fix it, with all my kids. But as that bulljunk was going on and everything was — I couldn’t fix it. And he wanted me to fix it. And I didn’t have the power to fix it. And that hurt, because I felt like I wasn’t there for my son. Why we didn’t have an agent? Well, you’re projected to go what, first or second, right? . . . I’ve been through this. So why do you need that? You know, it don’t make sense to give somebody four or five percent — three percent, whatever they get now — and you know where you’re slotted.”
Not having an agent arguably contributed to the free fall, because there was no one to relentlessly push back when the “bulljunk” started to fly.
“It was some ignorant things came out about [Shedeur] pre-draft and all that, and that was a lie,” Deion said. “Like he would never go into a meeting with headphones on. He would never go into a meeting unprepared. Like, that’s just not who he is. There’s no way he could accomplish the things he accomplished without being prepared. . . . So all that stuff was a lie, man. Now that bothers me. It didn’t bother him, but that bothered me. Because I knew where it came from. But we never, you know — we took the high road. I never said where it came from. I know. I’m connected like that with a lot of people. I was that before I was a coach. So we knew what time it was. So when people were talking in the Cleveland media and saying this and saying that, we just sit back and laugh, man.”
It’s unclear whether an agent could have changed things, frankly. One problem was the perception (fueled by comments Deion had made) that Deion would be eyeing the head-coaching job of the team that drafts Shedeur. What coach in his right mind would have signed off on drafting Shedeur early in the process, if it also meant potentially signing his own eventual pink slip?
Here’s what Deion said, in January 2025: “The only way I would consider [coaching in the NFL] is to coach my sons.”
During the podcast interview, Deion said this to Bush: “I never wanted their job. I love Colorado, man. I love my kids that I have in that locker room. I love the staff. I love all of it. I ain’t trying to coach in no NFL. And I think a couple people may have thought that. And they thought if they brought him in, it would be that.”
Yes, because in January 2025, Deion opened that door, whether he meant to or not.
The reasoning that Shedeur didn’t need an agent because he was supposedly going first or second in the draft doesn’t explain his brother’s decision to not have an agent. Shilo wasn’t considered to be a high-round prospect. He could have used a skilled agent to help boost his stock throughout the pre-draft process. (After he wasn’t drafted, Shilo quickly hired an agent — and he promptly landed an opportunity to make the 53-man roster in Tampa Bay.)
As to Shedeur, either the perception that he’d be a top pick was incorrect or he initially was regarded in the upper echelon of the draft pool and he fell. If it’s the former, a good agent would have better set the family’s expectations. If it’s the latter, a good agent would have given advice aimed at preventing a nosedive.
Deion said, “I’ve been through this.” But his talent was undeniable, and generational. He didn’t have to play the pre-draft game. He was still going to be a top-five pick. Shedeur needed to submit to the process, fully and completely. As one source told PFT after the 2025 draft ended, there was a perception that Shedeur conducted himself as if he was being “recruited,” not “interviewed.” Given the importance of the quarterback position generally and the fact that Shedeur wasn’t a no-brainer, once-in-20-years prospect, Deion’s approach from 1989 wasn’t going to fly in 2025.
Currently, none of that matters. Shedeur had a chance to compete last year. He earned the ability to start seven games. He’ll compete this year with Deshaun Watson for the QB1 position in Cleveland. If Shedeur wins the job, he’ll have the opportunity from Week 1 to blossom as an NFL quarterback.
All players, no matter where they’re drafted, will determine whatever their NFL career is going to be. Agent or no agent, the talent and the performance as demonstrated day-in and day-out will reveal the player’s NFL fate. That’s where things currently stand for Shedeur, as he prepares to show a brand-new head coach that he has the skills and abilities that should have resulted in him being taken at the top of the draft.
Put simply, from this moment on, whatever happens is entirely up to Shedeur Sanders. Not an agent. Not Deion. Not anyone but Shedeur.
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