Lately, Shedeur Sanders has become public enemy number one. Scouts, self-proclaimed draft experts, analysts, and even fans have all taken turns throwing shade his way.
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Not long ago, he was projected to go No. 1 overall in the draft—now, some are questioning whether he’ll even hear his name called on Day 1. It’s a tough fall from grace! But if there’s one silver lining for the Colorado QB, it’s that he still has people in his corner, backing him all the way.
NFL author John Frascella recently shared a compiled clip of Shedeur’s Pro Day workout session. In the caption, he penned how Shedeur was making extra movements (ex: a hitch route) and performing unnecessary double-taps before releasing the ball. Frascella found that concerning, noting that “NFL defenders close windows quickly.” Well, Giants wideout Darius Slayton wasn’t buying that critique—he found the assessment funny, to say the least.
Slayton, a wideout Shedeur could be throwing the pigskin to next season since the Giants hold the No. 3 pick, gave Frascella a reality check. He started with the obvious: “I promise he can pat the ball and be just fine.”
Why, you ask? Slayton said that if defensive backs were really that good at breaking on a microsecond double-tap, almost everyone would rack up 8+ interceptions. Case in point: only two players in the secondary reached 8 or more INTs.
He also pointed out how defensive guys still fall for basic route combos like a “two-man dagger concept.” They even give up key conversions on 3rd & long. So, Shedeur has got nothing to worry about.
I promise he can pat the ball and be just fine if DB’s was so good at breaking on ball pats they’d all have 8+ picks a year. Same guys that fall for a 2 man dagger concept and give up the dig on 3rd&long every season all season long talkin bout a ball pat what a joke https://t.co/8EmvJSPIjP
— Darius Slayton (@Young_Slay2) April 5, 2025
Under Slayton’s comment, a user named Nick tried to be cheeky and shared newly signed Jets safety Andre Cisco’s tweet about the same issue he saw in Shedeur. “Boy better stop patting that ball, we breaking onnat earlyyyy,” he wrote.
Slayton clapped back, breaking it down for Nick like he was four, starting with, “There’s these large fellows called lineman who are in between line of sight so if a QB isn’t 6’4-6’5+ you lose them behind the OL all the time…”
What the Giants wideout meant was that if a quarterback isn’t particularly tall, ball-hawking safeties and corners won’t even notice the extra taps behind the offensive line.
Slayton added that even he doesn’t always see the ball coming until it’s already in the air. To drive the point home, he threw in a humorous Pirates of the Caribbean “Flying Dutchman” reference, questioning how a DB is supposed to break on a throw they can’t even see.
There’s these large fellows called lineman who are in between line of sight so if a QB isn’t 6’4-6’5+ you lose them behind the OL all the time so if i can’t see the QB throw it to me how in the Flying Dutchman is a DB gonna see him pat it BEFORE he throws it. https://t.co/sbUrJgdc6Q
— Darius Slayton (@Young_Slay2) April 5, 2025
With all that, Slayton better be catching passes from Shedeur next season. However, there’s a good chance the Colorado star doesn’t go at No. 3 but slides down to a team like the Raiders (No. 6) or the Jets (No. 7)—maybe even the Steelers (No. 21) or the Rams (No. 26), if he’s unlucky. Wherever he lands, though, Shedeur will definitely want to silence the haters who just won’t get off his back.
