As teams evaluate every little character trait to find out whether a college athlete is worthy of being their first-round NFL draft pick, Shedeur Sanders is attempting to show some leadership.
Sanders, the Colorado quarterback who is one of four players rumored to be in the mix to be the No. 1 pick in next month’s draft, came to the defense of Ohio State quarterback Will Howard after the national champion misfired on lots of throws in a brutal NFL Combine showing this past weekend in Indianapolis.
“I don’t understand y’all hating on @whoward_he just won a natty,” Sanders tweeted Sunday. “It’s hard to throw to WR’s that you don’t know, everyone run routes different !”
Sanders’ leadership has been scrutinized at times during this draft process, with Deion Sanders’ son questioning his teammates at times.
One tweet isn’t going to sway a team’s opinion of him, but it was a noteworthy reaction while the Titans — should they keep the No. 1 overall pick — decide which player to draft.
Miami quarterback Cam Ward, Colorado two-way phenom Travis Hunter Jr. and Penn State pass rusher Abdul Carter are the other three players rumored to be in the running for the first pick.
Ward is the betting favorite across multiple sportsbooks to be selected first.
Sanders’ tweet Sunday night supported Howard, who, despite winning the national title, is not seen as a sure-fire prospect and likely will be more of a Day 3 project.
A clip of Howard’s disastrous performance Saturday went viral Sunday, thanks to a 46-second cut-up of him missing receivers on seven throws with the caption: “Worst combine performance ever?”
Howard threw too far in front of one receiver, behind another, too high for one and air-mailed several throws down field in a poor showing.
The good thing for Howard is the combine is not always reflective of a player’s ceiling and, as Sanders noted, these receivers are not the elite playmakers he threw to at Ohio State.
The unfamiliarity with the receivers is one reason why top quarterbacks now frequently opt not to throw at the combine with Sanders and Ward skipping it this year.
This year’s quarterback class, headlined by Ward and Sanders, is considered a weaker group, especially compared to last year’s crop that saw six players drafted in the first round.
Sanders has been linked to the Giants, Titans, Browns, Raiders and Jets, who all pick in the top seven.
The NFL draft begins April 24 and runs through April 26.
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