While being the son of one of the greatest athletes of all time has its privileges, it also creates an immense amount of pressure and unreasonable expectations.
This is what Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders is navigating at the moment.
He has faced hype and media attention that is nearly unfathomable for a fifth-round NFL Draft pick.
Jason Lloyd of The Athletic recently compared Sanders to Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James.
“In some ways, I can empathize with Shedeur similar to how I empathize with Bronny James. Both are young men born to Hall of Fame legends just trying to make their path in their father’s sport. Bronny never asked to play on his father’s NBA team, that was all LeBron’s construction and manipulation. Similarly, Shedeur never said he would or wouldn’t play for certain NFL teams. That was Deion’s doing. The noise always seems to follow Shedeur, even though he isn’t the one clanging the cymbals,” Lloyd wrote.
Shedeur Sanders has done a great job since coming to Cleveland in terms of trying to forge his own path, and it’s becoming more clear that his father won’t be as involved as many feared he would be.
The QB recently said that he told his father to stay away from training camp because he has work to do and doesn’t want any distractions.
It was one of the wisest things he has said since coming to Cleveland, as he knows the kind of firestorm it would have caused if Deion Sanders came to camp while his son was fourth on the quarterback depth chart.
Shedeur Sanders will have a chance to prove himself when he starts the first preseason game against the Carolina Panthers.
Hopefully, he can set himself up for a rookie year that is more productive than the one Bronny James had in the NBA.
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