Shedeur Sanders explains why Pat Shurmur is the right offensive coordinator for him

The Colorado Buffaloes made a change at offensive coordinator before the end of the 2023 season. In the offseason, they made it official by parting ways with former OC Sean Lewis and handing the keys over to former NFL head coach Pat Shurmur.

As Colorado gets down to business preparing for the 2024 season with their spring football practices, star quarterback Shedeur Sanders was asked about his relationship with Shurmur and what makes him the right offensive coordinator in Sanders’ eyes.

“He understands me as a person,” said Sanders. “I feel like that’s the main thing with anybody. You gotta have somebody that understands you. Somebody that you don’t have to change or you don’t have to act any type of way for; that you know that’s not judgmental.”

“That’s why I feel like a lot of players like playing for dad (Deion Sanders) because a lot of people don’t like the untraditional way of things of how college athletes do things or just anything in general. So, Coach Pat, we have a great relationship. He understands me [and] accepts me for who I am. And I feel like that’s the most important thing when having a quarterback-offensive coordinator relationship.”

Lewis and Sanders did not appear to have a strenuous relationship with one another from the outside looking in. However, once the season was over and the buffaloes moved on to Shurmur, Sanders did admit that his former OC’s playbook and play-calling style did not particularly fit his game.

Sanders opens up on Colorado’s sack issues last year

Last season, the offensive line could do very little to stop opposing defenses from getting into the backfield and disrupting the play of Sanders. The Buffaloes’ offensive line gave up a total of 56 sacks last season, 52 of them at the expense of Sanders.

Colorado anticipates significantly different things in 2024 with Shurmur at the helm. But during the Buffaloes’ spring practice, Sanders took a moment to reflect on the high number of sacks he took last season and revealed that he was to blame primarily for all the hits he took in 2023.

“Well, me personally, I don’t put blame; I don’t throw the blame on the players or anything like that,” said Sanders. “Because everybody is out there trying their hardest. I am also so. I would never knock somebody for what they’re doing; I know they’re trying their hardest cause they’re out there with me.”