Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders (12) jokes about his signing bonus during a press conference before day two of NFL rookie minicamp at the Cleveland Browns training facility on Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Berea, Ohio. Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Former NFL Player Believes Shedeur Sanders 'Galvanized' Cleveland Browns Rookies

Originally posted on Colorado Buffaloes on SI
By Kyron Samuels | Last updated May 13, 2025 7:30 PM ET

Cleveland Browns rookie minicamp has been completed, and former Colorado Buffaloes superstar Shedeur Sanders has impressed not only on the field but also through his interactions with the media and fans. One of, if not the most, critiqued aspects of Shedeur’s pre-draft evaluations was how the media storm would affect an organization and how Sanders specifically would operate under that continuous spotlight.

Albeit a small sample size, Sanders is proving to be able to handle himself one interview, press conference, community visit, and social media post at a time. National television host Emmanuel Acho, who is a former NFL player himself, took notice to that facet of Shedeur’s post-draft stint so far. As the field will always be the most important factor, the way Sanders is navigating what was seen as a negative coming in has been impressive.

“I don’t think I’ve been more fond of Shedeur than I am right now,” former NFL player and current Fox Analyst Emmanuel Acho said. “And not just what he said post-presser, but even on social media. I’m scrolling social media late last night after watching the games. . . . It was a picture of the whole rookie squad. I think the team is gathering around and galvanized by Sheduer, especially the rookies.”

Another interesting topic broached by Acho was the fact that Shedeur himself is customarily a somewhat reserved man. On the field, Sanders is as eclectic and competitive as they come. Off the field, he doesn’t speak very often. Sanders has a podcast with relatively modest engagement and often appears on the “Well Off Media” vlogs via YouTube, but that’s no different than any other player in modern athletics. Rarely is Sanders delivering a message.

“If we’re being honest, Shedeur doesn’t talk that much. It’s the people around Shedeur that do all the talking. Yeah, Shedeur has held his wrist up, but I couldn’t care less about that. It’s a lot of people in the camp. But what i’ve heard about Shedeur at this juncture and time, I’m loving what I’m seeing,” Acho said to close the segment.

While Shedeur is just now beginning his journey in the National Football League, he’s certainly making bright impressions that surpass all the pre- and post-draft narratives. Most people just wanted to see how he’d fare on his own accord away from Colorado coach Deion Sanders. For as great as that display and connection were, all good things must come to an end. Shedeur’s left the nest and appears to be flying just fine so far.

The Browns are a little more than two weeks away from the first full team activities with both the rookies and vets combined. The true beginnings start then, but the test run before the lights get even brighter couldn’t have gone much better for Shedeur.

This article first appeared on Colorado Buffaloes on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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