Former NFL Stars Share Fiery Take About Browns QB Shedeur Sanders

Deion Sanders was a Hall of Fame cornerback, talking the talk and walking the walk as he locked down wide receivers for more than a decade. Browns rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders, the Colorado coach's fourth of five children and third son, has received a lot of flak for living a similar lifestyle and using his play on the field to back up his confidence off of it.

Much of the heat the younger Sanders has received is a product of the social media era and the "Prime" brand surrounding the family. Several teammates and former players who know Sanders have spoken out about the unfair criticism he takes, including ex-Cincinnati Bengal Chad 'Ochocinco' Johnson.

Johnson, an exuberant NFL player in his own right, discussed the topic on his and Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe's "Nightcap" YouTube show on Sunday night. The former wide receiver said that most of the people who hate on Sanders' flashiness are from the older generations, rather than young NFL fans who love the personalities of their favorite players.

"Yes, some of the hate does come from his father, but also some of the hate is going to come from him and what he's been able to accomplish so far," Johnson said. "What people mistake for arrogance or cockiness, which is merely confidence, some people don't like that. Some people want you to be humble. They want you to dim your light because it makes them uncomfortable."

Johnson acknowleged how Sanders' lifestyle and confidence differ from the prototypical idea of an NFL quarterback's behavior, but pointed out the "double standard" that Sanders is held to compared to other quarterbacks that border the line between confident and cocky.

Sharpe and Johnson imitated former Browns QB Johnny Manziel's "money" gesture as an example, but a more recent instance could include Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield. The former No. 1 overall pick is a fan favorite, despite toeing that confident-cocky line throughout his career.

"I hope he doesn't change anything," Johnson said. "Just put his head down, do the work you need to do, handle your business and change the quarterback position, which hasn't been good for the Browns consistently in a very, very long time... I'm wishing him well."

Sharpe also weighed in on the difficulties Sanders has faced so far, emphasizing the double standard that Cleveland's new rookie quarterback has dealt with.

"You're not going to be able to win with people," Sharpe said. "If I dress nice, 'Oh, he's trying to show off.' If I dress down, 'He's broke.' Ain't no in between. They're projecting. The man's confident, the man believes in himself. Everybody that's ever accomplished anything has believed in themself. If I don't believe in me, who else is going to believe in me?"

As a fifth-round pick, Sanders will set out to prove that all 32 teams that passed on him were wrong. However, despite being surrounded by a cloud of outside negativity, Sanders has repeatedly said that he is instead trying to prove himself right.