Former University of Colorado star Shedeur Sanders was not selected in the first round of the NFL Draft

Shedeur Sanders from Colorado was not selected in the first round of the NFL draft on Friday. While many of the top college football players gathered in Green Bay for the 2025 NFL Draft on Thursday night, former University of Colorado star Shedeur Sanders spent the evening watching the first round on television.

At 23, Sanders was one of the most talked-about players in this year’s draft. Many predictions suggested that the Pittsburgh Steelers would choose him with their 21st pick, but opinions varied widely. Some believed he could be picked as early as third overall, while others thought he might not be selected in the first round at all.

Shedeur, often labeled a ‘nepo baby’ due to his famous father, Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, feels that having Deion as a dad has helped him navigate the expectations and pressures of football from a young age.

Surprisingly, Shedeur chose to stay home during the draft, a decision that saved him from an uncomfortable experience at Lambeau Field. He waited through the entire first round, only to find out that his name wasn’t called. “Draft time can feel like it’s dragging on forever,” explains Leigh Steinberg, a veteran NFL agent who has worked with many top players. He cites the example of former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who faced a long wait before being picked 11th in the 2004 draft. “It’s like slow torture. Every second feels like a minute.

For someone like Sanders, the hardest part wasn’t just the wait; each moment that passed meant his chance to make a big paycheck in the NFL was shrinking.” However, in March, some NFL team members felt that Shedeur came off as “arrogant and full of himself,” as well as “unprofessional and not really engaged” during his interviews at the Scouting Combine. This is an event where NFL teams assess college athletes before the draft, when they select new players.