The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been active in the undrafted free agent market, picking up plenty of attention for signing former Colorado safety Shilo Sanders. The son of legendary two-sport athlete and Buffaloes head coach, Deion Sanders, wasn’t selected over the weekend but will still have a chance to crack the professional level with the Buccaneers.
The draft didn’t go like anyone in the Sanders family anticipated. Shilo Sanders obviously didn’t hear his name called while quarterback Shedeur Sanders, one of the projected top prospects, fell all the way until the fifth round.
Nov 29, 2024; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes safety Shilo Sanders (21) reacts in the second quarter against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Regardless, Sanders is doing his part to make the most of the situation. He gave a shoutout to the Buccaneers for believing in him in a recent post on social media.
“Thank you God for everything! Thank you Buccaneers for believing in me!” Sanders wrote on Instagram.
During his senior season at Colorado, Sanders finished third on the team with 67 tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack, two pass deflections, one forced fumble, and two fumble recoveries, one of which he returned for a touchdown. He had two outings of 10+ tackles, including a season-high 13 tackles in a 37-21 loss to Kansas on November 23.
Sanders spent six seasons at the college level. He started off with South Carolina before transferring to Jackson State to play under his father. Sanders stuck with Primetime once again when he was hired as the coach at Colorado.
Oct 19, 2024; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Colorado Buffalos safety Shilo Sanders (21) against the Arizona Wildcats at Arizona Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Head coach Todd Bowles already sees a scenario where Sanders helps the team on defense and on special teams.
“I think he’s a good football player. He’s a heck of a tackler and he knows the game very well — he can see the game very well so giving him a chance to play, we think he has a shot to help us from a safety standpoint and from a special teams standpoint,” Bowles said earlier this week.
Sanders will get his first opportunity to don pewter and red at Tampa Bay’s rookie minicamp in a few weeks.
