Ex-ESPN star Jemele Hill on what Black people 'need to accept' in Shedeur Sanders drama

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Columnist Jemele Hill offered her own take on Shedeur Sanders’ draft slide over the weekend as he fell to the fifth round and was taken by the Cleveland Browns.

Hill appeared on "The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz" on Tuesday and dismissed the narrative that Sanders fell so far in the draft because he was a confident Black man, which pundits claimed throughout the weekend and even going as far as accusing NFL teams of colluding with each other to make sure the former Colorado Buffaloes star dropped.

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She didn't think Sanders' draft slide was about race "at all" and offered a suggestion to Black people in her diatribe.

"The bottom line is maybe we should accept the fact — and this is not to say that Shedeur Sanders cannot go on to have a great NFL career, can’t do great things — but maybe we, as Black people need to accept the fact that Deion Sanders may have overplayed his hand a little bit," Hill said. "And there’s no crime in him infusing all the confidence in Shedeur. I was not bothered by the wrist flexing, none of that. NFL teams, if you’re talented enough, they don’t care. And we have seen this countless times."

Hill pointed to the Baltimore Ravens selecting defensive end Mike Green in the first round. The former Marshall standout faced accusations of sexual assault in the past and set a school record with 17 sacks for the Thundering Herd in 2024. The Ravens said they investigated the claims thoroughly.

"In the NFL, they make these talent decisions all the time, but if the talent is worth it, they don’t give a damn if he showed up in gold-plated everything, flashing whatever, as long as you can play. That’s all they care about," she said.

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Hill also lamented the lack of attention on No. 1 pick Cam Ward because of the whirlwind that was the coverage of Sanders throughout the weekend.

Ward had a stellar season with the Miami Hurricanes after he transferred from Washington State. Ward entered the collegiate ranks with Incarnate Word as he was a zero-star recruit. He ultimately bet on himself and proved to be one of the best quarterbacks in the nation.

"But the person I really feel sorry for is Cam Ward. Cam Ward went No. 1. Cam Ward was a zero-star recruit from a two-parent home — because you know how we like to throw that around on some respectability type of stuff," Hill said. "He is a fantastic player, confident, did all the things, drafted No. 1, and with the way people have so embraced this narrative that Shedeur was done so wrong, it’s like they’re basically making Cam Ward sound like he’s Steven from ‘Django.’ 

"And I’m like, you don’t even know this kid! Suddenly, he’s painted in this light because, 'Oh, the NFL will accept that type of Black but not this type of Black.’ It’s like do you know how many players, how many Black players, went ahead of Shedeur Sanders? It’s a lot of them."

Ward will likely be the Week 1 starter for the Tennessee Titans, while Sanders will have to move up the depth chart in hopes of getting some playing time in 2025.

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