On paper and in game action, Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders has excelled so far this season. The Buffaloes signal-caller has completed 74.8% of his passes, throwing 15 touchdown passes against two interceptions.
However, one Pac-12 assistant coach apparently believes that Sanders’s gaudy numbers are not quite what they seem.
“I think they want to rack up some stats for Shedeur. He really holds on to the ball a long time. I think he takes sacks because he doesn’t want to affect his completion percentage,” a Pac-12 assistant coach who suggested Colorado “had some tells” told The Athletic in an article published Thursday.
Sanders has been sacked 25 times in five games in 2023. The sacks he’s taken have deflated his season rushing total to minus-43 yards in 49 attempts.
“He’s playing a little different than he did earlier in the season. Before he showed that, he was willing to step up and escape through the B-gaps. Now, he’s retreating more,” the assistant said.
Any change in Sanders’s style of play, regardless of motivation, would presumably coincide with the fact that the Buffaloes’ schedule has been drastically more difficult of late. After opening with wins over TCU, Nebraska and Colorado State, Colorado has lost to Oregon and USC in succession.
Sanders and the Buffaloes have a chance to right the ship Saturday evening, when Colorado visits Arizona State at 6:30 p.m. ET.