Known as more of a pocket passer with an ability to throw accurately to all three levels of the field, it’s no secret that Shedeur Sanders’ biggest weakness is his poor physicality. Yes, it’s strange that a son of Deion Sanders isn’t known for his athletic prowess. That’s exactly what Hall of Fame receiver Cris Carter pointed out while talking about Shedeur’s game.
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Though he did not mince words about the former Buffs QB’s athleticism, Carter is very excited to see Shedeur ply his trade at the NFL level. He believes even if his league career doesn’t hit stardom, Shedeur will still find a job related to the game. Beyond the field, Carter has been in awe of how Shedeur carries himself.
But, as far as the game is concerned, Carter is less than impressed by what he has seen of Shedeur so far. Kay Adams asked Carter to “size up” the Colorado alum next to Cam Ward. And his take shed light on the aspect that makes Deion’s son a little outdated for today’s game.
“Shedeur is more of a pocket quarterback. Even though he’s Deion’s son, he’s not a great athlete. He’s a decent athlete but not a great one. But his ability to be able to throw the ball to all three levels. His timing, understanding the offenses, you know I believe those reasons put him, the reason why they’re so close in ability,” Carter told Adams.
Shedeur is indeed known as an average athlete compared to Ward. He is unlikely to provide high rushing volume and relies more on his arm to move the ball downfield. That said, Shedeur’s arm strength is also average. He is accurate, though.
Shedeur is tailored to a style of play that was more popular 10-15 years ago. Of course, pocket passers still exist and always will. But the game is starting to gear more toward dual-threat quarterbacks like Ward. Think of Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen, and Jalen Hurts.
Carter went on to talk about how Shedeur and Ward are different types of QBs who can help teams in different ways.
“I believe Shedeur probably is a little bit ahead in the passing game timing aspect, and Ward is a little bit of a better athlete and can provide a little more plays on the edge because of his overall athleticism,” added Carter, who then praised Shedeur’s personality.
Carter revealed that he had met the driver who was driving Shedeur and his family around during the lead-up to the College Football National Championship. The driver had nothing but good things to say about Shedeur and the way he carried himself, held his brother to a standard, and talked to people.
Carter thinks that these finer attributes of Shedeur’s personality matter, and that teams will love him for that.
Carter on Ward’s abilities as a QB
Carter is infatuated with Ward. But he also thinks the rest of the nation is too, and wants everyone to not be overexcited. He pointed out that all were excited about another QB prospect last year who could extend plays outside the pocket.
But over time, that strength in college became a weakness in the NFL. So, he thinks Ward will have a natural learning curve.
“He’s a phenomenal talent,” Carter said about Ward. “I like the way his arm pops. I also love the way that he can extend the play. But I do think there’s going to be a learning curve. He’s got a lot of the same abilities as Caleb Williams that we praised in college… That prolonged holding of the football, which we saw in Chicago this year, was not an asset. But analyzing him, it was a tremendous asset.”
It’s an interesting comparison that has been overlooked up to this point. It’s easy to get caught up in the hype and the potential impact of quarterback prospects, but sometimes we forget to think about how it will play out.
For Williams, it was a bit of an underwhelming first campaign with the Chicago Bears that started as generational hype. He struggled and ended up with a passer rating of 87.8 with 3,541 yards, 20 touchdowns and 6 interceptions in 17 games in 2024. In comparison, rookie Jayden Daniels had a passer rating of 100.1 with 3568 yards, 25 touchdowns and 9 interceptions in 17 games.
The same sort of discourse as Williams is starting to surround Ward. We’ll see if he can live up to it or if he stumbles out of the gate.
