Strike 2: As the saying goes, “It’s not what happens to you that matters, it’s how you handle it.”

We’re about to find out how Shedeur Sanders handles the first real “setback” of his football career, as well as the first true job/playing time competition of his life.

There are a myriad of reasons why the former Colorado Buffaloes quarterback fell so far in the recently completed NFL Draft. While some questioned his physical skills, if you actually watched him play, you know the arm strength, while not elite, is just fine. You know his feet are better than most want to give him credit for – he made and extended plenty of big plays on the run while wearing CU colors. You can’t question his physical toughness after all the hits he took over two seasons, his passing accuracy is top shelf, he can make all the throws from the pocket and knows how to go through his progressions.

He didn’t become a fifth-round pick because of a lack of physical skills. He fell from where most thought he would be drafted because he was dismissive of the pre-draft process (likely because his father/coach mistakenly thought he could continue to call the shots), deciding not to work out in front of scouts on numerous occasions – instead hosting his own overblown and hype-filled “Showcase.” It’s been reported – and not anonymously – that he was late, aloof and even slightly combative in at least one meeting with an NFL team. In general acting like he was God’s gift to football.

And two years filled with showboating on the field didn’t help either.

You can sum all this up in one word: Arrogance. It’s a family trait, and the apple don’t fall far from the tree.

And the NFL don’t like it.

No doubt scouts also spent time with former CU offensive coordinator Sean Lewis (now the head coach at San Diego State), who Shedeur basically ran out of Boulder by being uncoachable. You may recall Lewis giving up his play calling duties for CU late in the 2023 season. That was because Shedeur wouldn’t run the plays Lewis was sending in.

Lewis no doubt let them know that Sanders was the direct opposite of a “system QB,” which is not what control freak NFL coaches want to hear.

Now, the page turns. The draft is over, Sanders has become part of a crowded quarterback room in Cleveland where he will – for the very first time in his life – have to compete internally for a roster spot and playing time. His father won’t be making any of the decisions. He will arrive in the league as just another mid-round draft pick, a trio of veterans AND another earlier draft pick, former Oregon QB Dillion Gabriel, ahead of him on the pre-camp depth chart.

So the question becomes not why Sanders fell in the draft, but how he will handle his new, unfamiliar and uncomfortable position. He’ll get a lot of attention when he first arrives on the shores of Lake Erie, and not much of it positive. Soon after that, he will fade into the background – a place he’s never resided – and begin his battle to become an NFL starting quarterback.

For once, nothing is guaranteed.

The real question is, through all of this, has Shedeur learned anything about humility? It’s a concept that’s foreign to the Sanders clan, but it’s something he’d better learn, and quick. After he was selected by the Browns, Shedeur was gracious, which is a great start. Accepting what happened and focusing on how he can make the most of it needs to be his lone priority now. Not selling watches, not recording rap songs, and not being a runway model in Paris. No more special treatment.

Now it’s got to be 100% about the Cleveland Browns playbook, while also learning how to be coached by someone who doesn’t care who his father is.