It's officially prospect bowl season—with the East-West Shrine Bowl set to be played next Thursday in Frisco, Texas and the Senior Bowl kicking off next Saturday in Mobile.
The week leading up to said showcases are used as fact-finding missions more than the actual game, with teams on-site to speak with prospects ahead of the NFL draft. The Tennessee Titans—who hold the No. 1 pick in this year's draft—met with quarterback Shedeur Sanders at the Shrine Bowl on Friday.
.@ShedeurSanders just went into this interview room at the @ShrineBowl headquarters to meet with the @Titans, among others.
— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) January 24, 2025
Chad Brinker, Mike Borgonzi, Brian Callahan and many others from Titans staff in there. pic.twitter.com/RoqxBHTzpf
Additionally, Titans assistant Payton McCollum is notably serving as quarterbacks coach for the West Team—the same team that Sanders is on.
Tennessee head coach Brian Callahan spoke to team reporter Jim Wyatt about their meeting with Sanders on Friday evening.
“You can tell he's been raised right,” he said. “He’s mature. He has a really poised way about him, and he seems like a really good kid. I enjoyed talking to him. And, you could tell he’s a guy who has been in the spotlight. He knows how to handle himself. He’s been paid money, so he has a financial perspective.”
Sanders, the son of Deion Sanders, spent the last two seasons playing quarterback for his father's Colorado Buffaloes. In 2024, he led the Big 12 conference in passing yards (3,926), passing touchdowns (35), completion percentage (74.2%), and efficiency rating (168.8) in the regular season. The Buffaloes' campaign ended with a 36-14 loss to the BYU Cougars in the Alamo Bowl. Both Sanders and his teammate Travis Hunter—the 2024 Heisman Trophy winner—are expected to be among the top selections in April's NFL draft.
A 3-14 finish to the 2024 season led the Titans to fire general manager Ran Carthon and hire former Chiefs executive Mike Borgonzi in his place. After playing yo-yo with signal-callers Will Levis and Mason Rudolph all season long, they're now primed to select a quarterback at the top of the draft—even after president of football operations Chad Brinker said on Wednesday that they, "won't pass on a generational talent with the first pick."
Perhaps Sanders and Hunter are both in play for Tennessee.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Shedeur Sanders Meets With Titans Brass at East-West Shrine Bowl.
