On Thursday, the Pittsburgh Steelers will go on the clock with the 21st overall pick in the NFL Draft. It feels like the defensive line and quarterback spots are in the most significant need of upgrading. If the Steelers decide on a QB, Shedeur Sanders feels like a strong possibility. There’s a lot to like about Sanders. However, some have found things to criticize him for as well. He’s extremely confident, but some don’t like that personality as much as others. Others worry about his father, Deion Sanders, and wonder whether he might complicate things in Pittsburgh. Former NFL GM Doug Whaley thinks those concerns are baseless.
“I’ll be the first to say, for people to think Deion Sanders is going to meddle in the Pittsburgh Steelers if his son’s here, you have to be absolutely crazy,” Whaley said on 93.7 The Fan on Wednesday. “… There has not been one report from a teammate saying he [Deion] was a bad teammate. Everybody loved him as a teammate ’cause he respected the game… And I think he respects the NFL, the game, his son, and more importantly, Mike Tomlin and the Steelers.”
Shedeur Sanders has lived in the spotlight, and it’s always been that way. His father is one of the more infamous athletes the country has seen, excelling in and playing both football and baseball professionally. Deion Sanders was never short on confidence; his son is no different.
Sanders has made no efforts to keep his admiration for his father quiet. After he visited with the Steelers during the pre-draft process, he made a remark that Mike Tomlin had a lot of the same traits his father had, which is clearly a compliment.
However, not everyone views that as a positive thing. Wherever Shedeur goes in the draft, it will be his first time playing football at a major level without his father. Deion coached him at Jackson State, and Shedeur moved with him to Colorado for the final two years of his collegiate career. Deion is a massive personality, and anything he does makes headlines. Although he’s committed to Colorado and hasn’t said anything regarding a potential move to the NFL, that hasn’t stopped people from wondering what might happen if Shedeur’s situation as a rookie is less than stellar.
One leg up the Steelers have on other teams is their stability. For example, if Sanders were to go to the Giants, it’d be a regime that is essentially on their last leg. If things go badly in 2025, although it may end up baseless, speculation would fly regarding Deion. For Pittsburgh, it’s not an issue. Mike Tomlin is the most stable head coach in the league, and those rumors wouldn’t carry as much weight.
Whaley’s most crucial point is regarding Deion’s teammates. Shedeur has been raised by a father who’s never had a bad thing said about him by a former teammate. Likewise, none of Shedeur’s teammates have said anything negative about him either. For all the talk about Shedeur and his personality, there’s little reason to believe it will actually be a problem.
