Before and after Shedeur Sanders’s preseason debut, the media have been awash in “rhetoric” surrounding arguably the most famous fifth-round pick in NFL history.
Before the former Colorado Buffaloes standout completed 14 of 23 passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns in the Browns’ 30-10 win over the Carolina Panthers, those like Robert Griffin III claimed the Browns were setting him up to fail. Meanwhile, Dan Orlovsky pleaded for those narratives to stop, and Cleveland radio host Ken Carman insisted Sanders was being given a fair shake.
Even before training camp, some were waxing poetic about Shedeur’s potential, while others warned of a cautionary tale. But no matter what was being said in the media, Deion Sanders insisted his son wasn’t paying it any mind.
“He is thankful and appreciative in the opportunity,” Colorado’s head coach said via 247Sports. “He doesn’t get caught up with the rhetoric with the media. He was coached through that when he was a kid, so we’ve always gone through that, and he has always navigated his way. Some of the stuff is just ignorant, but he far surpasses that, and I can’t wait to see him play.”
Still, we know Shedeur pays attention to some of the “rhetoric,” especially locally, given his confrontation with ESPN Cleveland’s Tony Grossi after his debut. Sanders wanted to know what he had done to personally ruffle Grossi’s feathers, which, as Baker Mayfield could tell you, isn’t exactly hard to do if you’re a Cleveland Browns quarterback. The exchange ended on a lighthearted note, but it showed that despite his father’s assurances, Shedeur is keenly aware of what’s being said about him.
Shedeur Sanders addresses Cleveland-based sports journalist and Browns analyst Tony Grossi, who’s known for being critical and biased toward him.
“You always say negative stuff about me. I didn’t do nothing to you. I’ve never seen you say anything positive about me.”
(🎥: Well… pic.twitter.com/SGpmmyXF74
— The Art Of Dialogue (@ArtOfDialogue_) August 9, 2025
How could he not be? It’s a lot easier said than done to just tune out the noise. Shedeur was raised in a media environment that scrutinizes his every move and molded him into the story — whether he deserved to be or not — of the 2025 NFL Draft. He’s always going to be acutely aware of the rhetoric. It’s how he handles it that’ll tell his story.
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.