Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders is dealing with more pressure this preseason than perhaps at any other point in his life.
Sanders rolled through a trying, yet in many ways charmed, existence at Colorado over the past two years. He, his father and head coach Deion Sanders, and future Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter changed the fortunes of the Big 12 program in just two years — and all of three of them bolstered their fame and made millions of dollars doing it.
Sanders entered the NFL draft as a prospective first- or second-round pick. Instead, he dropped all the way to the fifth round in an unprecedented slide that made the entire proceedings as much about him as every other draftee combined, at least in terms of what topics consistently dominated the conversations over the weekend.
He arrived in Cleveland to compete with fellow rookie QB and third-round pick Dillon Gabriel, as well as veterans Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco. Almost immediately, the team made it clear that Sanders would need to work his way up from the QB4 spot to earn any shot at starting, or at playing time of any kind, come the regular season.
Then, amid extensive media coverage and scrutiny around the league on a more or less daily basis, Sanders’ father ended up hospitalized with an undisclosed illness that has caused him to lose significant weight. It isn’t the first time in recent years that Deion Sanders has dealt with serious health issues, as blood clots in his legs have resulted in hospitalizations, surgeries and the amputation of two toes.
Shedeur Sanders Focused Solely on Browns’ Preseason Work
Sanders spoke about his father’s health issues earlier this week amid the intense position battle he’s facing during Browns mandatory minicamp.
“I don’t know what’s going on,” Sanders said, per Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. “So I’m here not to talk about Pops, I’m here to be the quarterback of the Cleveland Browns. I’m focused on learning this playbook and everything I’ve got to do to be the most successful quarterback and best teammate I could be. Outside of that, I don’t really have no thoughts or really opinions on anything outside this game.”
Sanders’ father was in the hospital in Texas at the time of his comments, and it remained unclear when he might rejoin the Colorado football team in Boulder.
Deion Sanders Posted Health Update to Social Media on Wednesday
GettyColorado head coach Deion Sanders.
Deion Sanders posted a message to X regarding his health on Wednesday, June 11.
