Shedeur Sanders won’t be working out at the NFL Combine.
The Colorado star and potential No. 1 overall draft pick has opted not to throw at the combine this week in Indianapolis. Instead, according to the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Sanders “plans to focus on his interviews with teams” at the combine. He will then throw at his Pro Day ahead of the NFL Draft.
#Colorado QB and potential top pick Shedeur Sanders plans to focus on his interviews with teams at the NFL Scouting Combine, helping them continue to learn him as a person.
He’ll allow his four years of film to speak loudly, then throw at his Pro Day with four draftable CU WRs. pic.twitter.com/Ai1Ul6I4lV
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 23, 2025
While it’s not too surprising, considering the growing trend in the league of players to skip working out at the combine in favor of doing it on their own terms, Sanders’ absence will be among the most significant at the combine.
Sanders, the son of NFL Hall of Famer and Colorado coach Deion Sanders, threw for 4,134 yards and 37 touchdowns with just 10 interceptions last season with the Buffaloes. He finished in eighth in the Heisman Trophy race, and played an integral part in fellow Colorado star Travis Hunter’s Heisman Trophy run. The Buffaloes went 9-4 last season, which marked the program's third winning campaign in the last two decades.
Both Sanders and Hunter are expected to be top picks in the NFL Draft in April. chof360 Sports’ Nate Tice and Charles McDonald had Hunter going No. 1 overall to the Tennessee Titans in their latest mock draft. They then had Sanders going No. 3 overall to the New York Giants, which made him the second quarterback off the board behind Miami Hurricanes star Cam Ward. It's unclear if Ward is going to throw at the combine or not.
Several of the top quarterbacks selected in last year's draft didn't throw at the combine, either. Caleb Williams, who went No. 1 overall to the Chicago Bears, skipped the combine. Former Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels, who went second to the Washington Commanders, and Drake Maye, who went third overall to the New England Patriots, didn't throw either. Michael Penix, who went No. 8 overall, was the highest-drafted quarterback to throw at the combine last season.
In the end, Sanders’ choice not to throw in Indianapolis likely won’t hurt him too much. He will still get to interview with teams and make his impression there, and then get to throw in his own environment in the near future. Where he ends up going in the draft, and how these choices impact that, remain to be seen.
