Total Pro Sports
Shilo Sanders, son of NFL Hall of Famer and Colorado head coach Deion Sanders, has had a solid college football career, but the road to the 2025 NFL Draft isn’t looking easy. Even with years of experience and plenty of highlights as a safety, he didn’t get an invite to this year’s NFL Scouting Combine. That’s a pretty big deal, as it usually means teams don’t see him as a top-priority prospect.
That said, missing the Combine doesn’t mean the dream is dead. It just means the path to the league might take a little more work.
Shilo started his college football journey at South Carolina in 2019. As a freshman, he didn’t see much playing time, just four games, two tackles, nothing crazy. But in 2020, his role expanded, and he finished with 32 tackles, a tackle for loss, and a pass deflection. After that season, he hit the transfer portal and landed at Jackson State, where his dad was coaching at the time.
That move turned out to be a game-changer. In 2021, he had his breakout season, 39 tackles, four interceptions (which tied for second in the SWAC), seven pass breakups, and two forced fumbles. He even earned second-team All-SWAC honors. But just when things were looking up, an ACL injury in 2022 cut his season short. He played only seven games that year, managing 20 tackles and one interception before being sidelined.
After rehabbing, he transferred again, this time to Colorado, to play for his dad and alongside his younger brother, Shedeur. In 2023, he started all 11 games and put together a strong season: 70 tackles, an 80-yard pick-six, four forced fumbles, and three pass deflections. He made his presence felt, showing off his ability to change games, like when he forced a huge fumble against Colorado State. In 2024, he played eight games and posted 55 tackles, one sack, and one forced fumble. By the time his college career ended, his stat sheet was legit, 217 total tackles, six interceptions, seven forced fumbles, and 13 pass deflections.
Despite all he’s accomplished on the field, the selection committee left Sanders off the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine invite list. That’s not ideal. Only 25 safeties received invitations, and his absence says a lot about how teams currently view him. The Combine is where the so-called top prospects get to showcase their skills, meet with teams, and boost their stock.
Still, he did get to play in the 2025 East-West Shrine Bowl, where he had five tackles and a pass deflection. On top of that, he recorded the highest max acceleration among all defenders at 6.39 yards per second squared, something that should turn some heads. But not everyone was impressed.
Some reports from the Shrine Bowl practices claimed he struggled, which he wasn’t happy about. He pushed back against those takes, saying he had a strong showing and proved he could cover receivers. He’s confident...
