INDIANAPOLIS — Shedeur Sanders started and ended his media session with the same word.
Not only is “Legendary” the slogan for his growing brand — including a clothing line and a podcast — but it’s also what the son of Hall of Famer Deion Sanders wants to become as an NFL quarterback.
“We went from Jackson State to Colorado and changed two programs back-to-back,” Sanders said Friday in reference to his joint path, transferring along with his father getting hired as head coach at both schools. “You don’t think I could come to an NFL franchise and change a program again? It’s history. It’s always going to repeat itself.”
It’s what New York football fans need to hear given the Giants and Jets both are hunting for a quarterback of the future.
The Jets are starved to end the NFL’s longest playoff drought (since 2010) while the Giants regime of Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll needs a lifeline to get off the hot seat entering Year 4.
“If you’re not trying to change the franchise or the culture, don’t get me,” Sanders said. “If you have those traits of greatness, and I know where I’m heading, then why wouldn’t the franchise pick me? You got the ultimate cheat code.”
Sanders wore a sparkling necklace and a big smile while speaking with swagger and energy.
He fielded questions long after an NFL media relations employee tried to end his scheduled interview at the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine.
“You think I’m worried about what critics say?” Sanders said. ‘You know who my dad is? They hated on him, too. Without people hating, it’s not normal for us. So, we like the adversity. We like everything that comes with the name. That’s why we are who we are.”
Sanders and Miami’s Cam Ward are the two surefire first-round quarterbacks in the 2025 draft class, but it appears that Ward is gaining separation in some scouting circles.
Some coaches and scouts praised Sanders’ toughness and accuracy in conversations with The Post.
“What makes him so special?” teammate and projected top four pick Travis Hunter said. “His accuracy and love for the game.”
Others this week questioned whether Sanders holds the ball too long (92 sacks over the last two seasons) and is missing a generational skill.
“Sometimes I was trying to make too much happen,” Sanders admitted. “That just comes from a do-or-die mentality, to where you’re going to succeed and not succeed. And sometimes I got caught up playing hero ball, but I understand where I messed up and now I’m going to fix it at the next level.”
The league-wide expectation is that Ward will be selected before the Jets’ turn at No. 7. Sanders still could be on the board, and the Giants’ heavy scouting presence at Colorado during the fall has created a perception within the league (smokescreen or truth?) that they might prefer Sanders at pick No. 3.
Sanders and Giants star Malik Nabers played catch on the streets of New York when Sanders was in town to support teammate Travis Hunter at the Heisman Trophy ceremony.
It was not long after Nabers was under fire for saying the Giants played “soft” and griping about his touches in a 30-7 loss on Nov. 24.
“It was truly just getting to know him because we have relatability,” Sanders said. “I went through scrutiny also. So I told him, ‘Bro, certain things you can and you can’t say because they want to paint a certain type of picture of you and don’t let that happen.’ So, since then, he been good, he been smiling, he been fun. Even when he’s frustrated … just take it day by day. But I was able to understand him.”
One reason that Sanders is knocked is that he makes music. There’s an old school of thought that other interests are a distraction from football, but Sanders fired back.
“Why would somebody criticize you for being at home and being able to express yourself the way you want to express yourself, [when] you could be out being wild doing all this type of stuff — driving as fast as you can on the road?” Sanders said. “If anything, I feel like some GMs, they appreciate that — that you’re in a controlled environment.”
The Raiders, who pick No. 6, are another possible landing spot for Sanders. He has a longtime student-teacher relationship with minority owner and retired quarterback GOAT Tom Brady through his father.
“The number of where you [are picked] don’t matter,” Sanders said. “Tom Brady was the best of the best in all categories. He didn’t go first. I wasn’t the top-rated quarterback coming out of high school because it’s a lot of exterior things that people like and they don’t like about me. I’m realistic.”
But will he become legendary?
