Shedeur Sanders Cites Tom Brady, Brett Favre, Josh Allen, Mike Vick as Inspirations

If you're a Hall-of-Fame quarterback or one of the best athletes who has ever played the position in NFL history, congratulations because you helped influence the way Shedeur Sanders plays on the field.

On the All the Smoke podcast (starts at 1:02:30 mark), Sanders cited Tom Brady, Brett Favre, Josh Allen and Michael Vick as quarterbacks he has tried to model his game after.

Based on the list Sanders was running through, it's surprising he didn't name Patrick Mahomes. But there are only so many quarterbacks who you can take things from.

Sanders has earned significant buzz as an NFL draft prospect, though he elected to return to Colorado for the 2024 season before going pro next year.

One AFC scouting director told ESPN's Matt Miller in December that Sanders would have been the No. 3 quarterback in the 2024 draft class.

"I had no idea he could spin it like that," the scouting director said of Sanders. "You saw him against small-school dudes before Colorado, but he came in dealing, and his poise in the pocket really impressed me. He would be in the QB3 conversation this year if he came out."

In September, Kyle Crabbs of Athlon Sports described Sanders as a "patient passer" who doesn't get rattled in the pocket and has the "field vision to see the defensive pursuit of both him and his receivers."

Crabbs did note the "nuances" of the position were a primary area for Sanders to improve because "his consistency in ball timing to some routes and targets may not always be perfectly synced."

Last season was Sanders' first year against Power 5 competition. He played his first two college seasons in FCS at Jackson State.

Sanders fared very well in his debut year with the Buffaloes. He threw for 3,230 yards, 27 touchdowns, three interceptions and completed 69.3 percent of his attempts in 11 games.

If Sanders can showcase more of that ability and improve in some subtle areas of the game, he could join some of his inspirations as being a very early draft pick in 2025.