Deion Sanders Says He Will Intervene In NFL Draft Process Rodgers Play In 2025? More

Shedur Sanders will likely be a first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, but his father will play a role in where he lands — that and more in today’s NFL Notes.

Deion Sanders says he will intervene if the wrong team drafts his son

Deion Sanders has always been a polarizing figure in football, and he might grab the headlines this spring if he doesn’t like where his son and Colorado quarterback Shedur Sanders is drafted. On FS1’s “Speak,” former NFL wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson asked Sanders if he would step up during the draft if the “wrong” team drafted Shedur.

“Yes, but I won’t do it publicly. I’ll do it privately.” Sanders said. “I want to be a dad until the cows come home, and with Travis too.”

Sanders is referring to Travis Hunter, who, like Shedur, is likely a first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Hunter is considered by many to be the top prospect in the 2025 draft class, and The Athletic’s Dane Brugler recently ranked him No. 1 in his Top 50 Big Board.

As for what the “right” situation is for Shedur, Sanders offered this:

“Somebody that can handle the quarterback that he is and somebody that can handle understanding what he’s capable of,” Deion Sanders said. “Someone who’s had success dealing with quarterbacks in the past, or someone and an organization that understands what they’re doing. Not just throwing yourself out to the wolves if you don’t have the team’s support and infrastructure.

“Forget about the (offensive) line. He’s played with lines that weren’t great, but he’s been able to do his thing. But just the infrastructure of the team and the direction of where we’re going.”

As we know, teams at the top of the NFL Draft generally lack most or all of these things, so things could get very interesting as we approach next spring’s annual event.

The NFL Scouting Combine will remain in Indianapolis through 2026

Speaking of the NFL Draft, its annual scouting combine will remain at Lucas Oil Stadium — home of the Indianapolis Colts — through at least 2026. NFL Executive VP Peter O’Reilly made a statement in a statement on the Colts website:

“Indianapolis and the NFL Combine have a proud history together, so we are thrilled to continue our long-standing partnership with Visit Indy, the Indianapolis Colts and the local community for this event in 2026,” O’Reilly said. “Our partners in Indy have successfully hosted the football evaluation process for decades, and recently we’ve worked together to grow and evolve the personalized fan experience, bringing tens of thousands of fans closer to the league’s future stars.”

Will Aaron Rodgers be playing in 2025?

New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers was asked this week if he plans to play in 2025. “I think so, yes,” Rodgers said asked by local journalists.

Rodgers turns 41 on Dec. 2, but says the Jets’ disappointing season hasn’t changed his desire to play football. As Rodgers recovers from an Achilles tear he suffered last season, he said this spring that he hoped to play “two, three or four more years.”

The question will be, do the Jets want him back? Or does anyone for that matter? Rodgers’ passer rating of 86.8 is a career low, and he has yet to have a game with more than 300 passing yards this season. The Jets offense has been poor this season under Rodgers, ranking 26th in scoring and yardage. He is under contract with New York through 2025 and will carry a $23.5 million cap hit next season.

If the Jets decided they were better off without him — or if he had a change of heart and decided to retire — they would have to take a dead cap hit of $49 million next season. So there is no easy way out for the Jets.

Jon Gruden Inks deals in bar stool sports

Former NFL coach Jon Gruden has joined Barstool Sports under a multi-year contract, the company announced via a video on his X account. Gruden, who previously coached the Raiders and Buccaneers, stepped down from his Raiders role in 2021 following reports of controversial emails. Despite the earlier incident, Gruden, 61, has expressed interest in coaching again, even discussing a potential college football coaching role in September with CBS Sports.

“Yes, I’m interested in coaching,” Gruden told CBS. “My dad was a college coach, I was a college coach at Pitt, my wife was a cheerleader at Tennessee when I met her. Hell, I’m interested in coaching. I know I can help a team, I know I can help young players getting better and I know I can hire a good staff and that’s the only thing I can guarantee. But yeah, I’m very interested in coaching at any level, period.