Shedeur Sanders Press Conference: "Take Everything to the Next Level"

Added: 2026-05-06

[00:00:00]Okay. How y'all doing? Good. How you doing?

[00:00:03]>> Good. Good.

[00:00:05]>> Well, how did how's your first practice outside here with Todd Monkey?

[00:00:09]>> Uh, practice was great today. It's a lot of new energy. It's a lot of great new players we have and uh I'm loving what we doing.

[00:00:19]>> What's your mindset after uh after your rookie season? It seemed like you you spent a lot of time in in Cleveland working out. Why was it important for you to to be here instead of, you know, go anywhere else and work out? Uh well, this is the most important thing I have to do in my life. Uh I have a house here. I'm comfortable. Um and I wanted to take everything to the next level within myself. I know it's some things that uh I wanted to like improve and I took a lot of time to like self-reflect and just view a lot of things just from a different perspective honestly. And uh I think I think I covered a lot of ground with that.

[00:00:54]has mentioned at the owner's meetings um that he felt like uh you really kind of took it to heart what it takes to be a pro in this league and that part of sticking around you know you you work really hard on things your body looked different um is that does he have that right that that you kind of figured that whole thing out >> what does that mean does he have that right >> did did Jimmy Hasslam characterize that correctly that you kind of figured out everything that it takes to be a pro in this league and really put your heart into it >> well no I don't I don't really know I don't really know everything at all.

[00:01:25]Like I'm open to learning every day on just different things just in life. I learned how to cut my beard the other day. Um I I try to learn something new every day cuz I'm not I'm not one that just thinks my way is the best way. Um so I like to just learn different point of views, different perspective of a lot of things. And uh just come just come here with a renewed mindset and just approach life with just a renewed mindset just about how I view everything.

[00:01:54]as you everybody sort of matures, you know, as they grow. How do you feel like you've matured the most from this point last year to to today in terms of overall, you know, your overall growth?

[00:02:06]>> Uh, I think I think you got to take stuff day by day. I think you can look at things is um like with your goal. I think if you if you if you have like short-term things you want to accomplish and use your time extremely important and knowing what negativity to not let like in your everyday circle and just everything you do like everything matters. So I think I just uh recalibrated my life to to to view everything as fun.

[00:02:34]>> We're in the early weeks and months here working with coach Monkin like what's it been like learning this offensive system >> for you?

[00:02:41]>> Yeah, coach Monin great. Coach Mugan great and all the other coaches on the staff is extremely great. Um you can understand they embrace you just as a person then they push you each and every day you know uh in the mean room and on the field in the weight room like it's a new vibe. It's a new energy. The only thing we missing is y'all. We need y'all to have a new vibe, new energy. I know y'all want us to win. So we need some winning energy here. You know what I'm saying? We can't we can't have too much negativity going on. And uh you know, you want our players to to be the best version of ourel for y'all, you know. So I think it's it's a community thing. I think we all like as a as a group have to because everybody's going to have kids. Everybody has that. You don't want to be you don't want your kids to be the side effects of, you know what I'm saying? What you done did in life, the negativity and all this different type of stuff. You you don't want that. So let's let's approach even this, you know, like with a better attitude like even coming from y'all also.

[00:03:39]>> You're learning this playbook. What do you what do you like about it and maybe what how it fits your skill set?

[00:03:45]>> Um I like the ability to just play. I like um um I like I it's a lot of different things like within the playbook. Like obviously we haven't mastered it um yet.

[00:03:57]It's still early on, but I I I I take advantage of each and every day, each and every second of my time, each and every hour to be able to go out to practice, you know, today and just be able to fully function out there to be able to know everything. Like to me, that's what success is. Like you got to know, you got to like put your margin of success for what you think, not for what others think. So be able to go out there, operate new system, a lot of things thrown at you fast, a lot of things it's like, okay, it's a win, >> you know? So that's how you view it.

[00:04:26]>> Sorry. What feels the most different for you out here in these first reps of this year's mini camp compared to your rookie year?

[00:04:33]>> Well, honestly, I mean, I was in practice a little more, but but no, honestly, it's just the vibe, the the the overall feeling just of the team, you know? It's it's the overall feeling of the responsibility of our players.

[00:04:47]Like, there was one play uh I threw Malachi a go ball and he slowed down. I said, "Hey," I gave him that look. I said, "Bro, we can't afford that, bro."

[00:04:55]you say we can't afford that. So then you give guys chances and things go your way, things don't. But at the end of the day, y'all have a serious deeper connection and then know, okay, now know what this showed me. So the next time he got there, he lined up oneonone, then he was able to go get it. So it's just a responsibility that each and every one of us take, you know, to hold each other accountable for everything. Even in the quarterback room, it's a great relationship in there. Nobody feels any type of way towards each other. We all focus on what we have to do as individuals to get better.

[00:05:28]>> One season, how like have you learned to kind of take care of your body, you know, into the off season? What have you kind of done differently that might have changed from your original regimen?

[00:05:37]>> Well, I think it's about I think it's honestly about like um talking to coach.

[00:05:44]I think coach coach just spoke life into me and then like when you do that then you just get the best result for me honestly. Like that's what you get. So he like I I was here one day and he was like, "Well, if you want to if you want to be the best quarterback you want to be, then you got to do that on a daily thing, on a daily regimen, on daily time." So that's what clicked for me.

[00:06:05]And then I was like, "Okay, I need to I need to improve this area." And it's just one step at a time. You got to do this, you got to do this, you got to do this. And you keep adding things as as you start getting momentum and everything. So I think it's just I think it's just um having coach, you know, just talking to you, you know, like I think that's it. Just a relationship.

[00:06:25]I'm a relationship based person. So I take relationships extremely serious.

[00:06:29]>> How do you feel about this year's competition compared to last year's competition?

[00:06:34]>> What you mean by that?

[00:06:35]>> That competition for the starting.

[00:06:36]>> We compete against ourselves cuz life is a long time. You get what I'm saying?

[00:06:41]Our time is it's on God's time, you know? We we just we just come in and every day put our deposits and and what we supposed to do and build towards our craft. But it's not our time. If we thought we had control of anything, then we'll be fools, you know? That's not up to us. It's up to us to approach every day uh and take advantage of each and every rep and each and every time even when people even when players aren't even when we not in being able to to um take advantage of those reps also. So I guess >> it's not on our time. Is this your time?

[00:07:14]>> What you mean?

[00:07:15]>> This your >> your time?

[00:07:17]>> That's up to me. That's not up to me. I go out there every day and focus on what I can't control. If I focus on something I can't control, then I'll be living the wrong way.

[00:07:26]>> What do you think about when a year ago you weren't even drafted yet, right? And all that's happened in that year, like when you think back on that, what stands out the most?

[00:07:36]>> I'm thankful.

[00:07:37]I'm thankful. I'm thankful that everything happened how it happened. I'm thankful that uh my appreciation for a lot of things is what it is now. Uh I'm I'm thankful that I don't I don't really have to chase. I'm thankful I got a great family. Thankful I I got to see great people that I'm able to be inspiration to people cuz I mean like I think I'm just thankful overall. Like I don't look at anything as a negative.

[00:08:03]When you start looking at things as a negative and that's when you grow spite and hatred, you know, and nothing positive comes out of that. So I I view everything as just like I'm just happy.

[00:08:12]I'm thankful. I'm blessed. You know, I was in a position to where I can handle everything that comes my way. So now I feel bulletproof.

[00:08:20]>> Was last year a humbling experience for you, Shadore, after all the >> What does humbling mean?

[00:08:26]>> Well, you know, you had that, you know, you were the the man in at Colorado at Jackson State probably in high school and not right away here. So I'm asking, was that >> I feel like I was a man.

[00:08:39]I don't let nobody else dictate how I feel about myself. If you allow that, then then then you living for the wrong reasons. I I I know who I am as a person, as an individual, and just being a child of God. So, I can't let nobody dictate how I could feel about myself.

[00:08:57]And if I allow that, then I got then I'm not mentally strong. I got to be able to be mentally strong in each and every situation that life throws at you.

[00:09:04]Shador, uh, obviously you talked a lot last year about how Deshawn mentored you guys and helped you guys in more like a classroom setting and that he was out on the field a little bit later in the season. Like how has your relationship with him kind of grown and what's it been like with him in the first couple weeks, especially now he get to be out on the field full time?

[00:09:21]>> Yeah, it was great. He's a vet. He he did a lot. He accomplished a lot in his career obviously. So like we when when I have questions about certain things, I ask him like what you think about this and and I just like hearing his perspective of um problems that I could have or the way how I think about things and just see hearing the way how he think of things and hearing the way how Dylan think of things and hearing the way coach think of things like all those things you just gain other people's perspective to form your own thought and what you want to do.

[00:09:55]>> We good. shoulder going back to learning the offense this year. What would you describe as some of the similarities to last year's offense and differences and how have you seen yourself like come to learn some of the new principles?

[00:10:06]>> Um the similarities >> I mean it's 11 it's 11 on 111 I think I don't really try to like I don't try to compare anything. I don't try to live in no comparison world like I try to forget the negatives take the good things you know and just move forward. So like respectfully, I just don't want to talk about like last year or anything cuz it it doesn't help us move forward. Like we not in last year no more. We're in this year. So I don't even need to think about anything last year but review tape and review. Okay, what could I have done better in certain situations? How could I manage the line of scrimmage better?

[00:10:44]How could I know each and every details where the alignment they're on where it's plus two, minus two if they're in the edge split? Like all these different details like that's what I take from from last year. I don't really take no comparison thing.

[00:10:57]>> And I guess on that note, how how have you gone about learning the playbook?

[00:10:59]What's your process for learning new concepts and new terminology?

[00:11:03]>> Um, I think I know how I learn. I know how I learn. So, knowing that I know how I learn is great, you know, and the coaches are able to like communicate in different ways to to help you learn. And that's why I appreciate the coaching staff honestly cuz it's like you could say somebody don't know how to learn but it's like does that how did a person get all the way to this level if he don't know how to learn? So then you got to change the perspective and think does he not know how to learn? Oh >> might drop you. But does he not know how to learn or do I not know how to communicate with him? It's just simple as that. Like, so I'm just thankful that my coaches now like are extremely embracing.

[00:11:50]>> Are you back in the two?

[00:11:52]>> Yeah, it feels good.

[00:11:53]>> Pops one and two, you know. Pops one and two. I wanted to end I wanted to end 12 on top. And whoever got 12 jerseys, please save those. Those are like a real life stock, you know, and I I got to be successful. So those will the profit margin will be good one day. So just save all those 12 jerseys. Do do not sell them. Do not get rid of them cuz they're in person stop. Appreciate it.

[00:12:13]>> Thank you.