It's definitely happening.
For the better part of the last three months, the Raiders and Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders have been flirting. And really, it's just been Sanders consistently Tweeting about them. But that counts as flirting now.
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The Raiders need a franchise quarterback in the worst way, and if you believe the rumors out there, have supposedly put the onus on GM Tom Telesco to find one in the draft this year. Ownership mandates never really end up going that well, but the Raiders are uniquely positioned to luck out this year: they currently have the first pick in the draft. Isn't losing fun now?!
The Sanders-Raiders connection is well-established at this point, even if most of it has technically been "subtle" messaging so far. But if this weekend was any indication, things are about to get a lot more obvious in the coming weeks. And actually it's not even just in the coming weeks – it's already happening.
Deion Sanders asks Antonio Pierce to draft Shedeur and Shilo at recent Las Vegas event
An Instagram video from one of Deion's kids found its way onto SportsCenter's account this weekend, and it shows a clip from a recent event in Las Vegas that featured both Antonio Pierce and the Sanders family.
"You are truly the best," Sanders told Pierce during a speech he was giving at the event. "Now I just need for you to do one thing: I need you to draft those Sanders boys."
I mean, I can't say I'm surprised to see this? Can anyone? It's not like Shedeur-to-the-Raiders is this brand new phenomenom. Everything about this is very on-brand for everyone involved. And I love it. Who knows how good Shedeur will be at the next level, but at the very least, the idea of him being the Raiders' franchise QB is a ton of fun. Anything is better than Gardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell.
It's not unwarranted either. After a record-setting two years as Colorado's QB, Sanders was awarded the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm award last week, given each year to the best upperclassman QB in the nation. Where he lands in next year's draft depends on what Big Board you look at, but something tells me that when Deion Sanders talks to the Raiders about drafting his franchise QB son, the Raiders are going to listen.