University of Colorado head coach and Pro Football Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders offered some fatherly advice to his son, Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders, before undergoing surgery to alleviate blood clots this week.
In a video posted on Well Off Media’s YouTube account (beginning at the 16:35 mark), Deion strikes up a FaceTime conversation with Shedeur while in his hospital bed, awaiting surgery:
Deion stressed the importance of making the safe, smart play, saying, “Checkdown, checkdown, checkdown. Don’t be scared of that checkdown. Everybody else using it.”
Shedeur played four collegiate seasons under Deion with the first two being at FCS Jackson State and the final two being at Colorado.
Collectively, Shedeur posted a 36-14 record as the starter at the two schools, and in his final college campaign at Colorado, he completed 74.0 percent of his passes for 4,134 yards, 37 touchdowns and 10 interceptions en route to being named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year.
Sanders was widely expected to be one of the first quarterbacks off the board and a likely first-round pick in the 2025 NFL draft, but he experienced one of the most shocking falls in recent memory, dropping all the way to the Browns at No. 144 overall in the fifth round.
At the start of training camp, Sanders was one of four quarterbacks battling for a roster spot in Cleveland, but through attrition, he is now up to No. 2 on the depth chart.
The Browns traded Kenny Pickett to the Las Vegas Raiders before the season started, and on Tuesday, Cleveland traded Joe Flacco to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Rookie third-round pick Dillon Gabriel took over as the Browns’ starting quarterback last week, and with Flacco out of the picture, Sanders has moved into the backup role by default.
It is unclear if or when Sanders will get a chance to see some game action this season, but he is now one injury or a couple of poor Gabriel performances away from getting on the field.
If and when that happens, Shedeur would perhaps be wise to take his Hall of Fame father’s advice on taking what the defense gives him.
