Colin Cowherd isn’t going to criticize Shedeur Sanders for his backwards hat at the NFL combine because he assumes Deion Sanders will.
The prospective NFL quarterback had the gall to attend the combine and meet with teams while wearing a backwards hat this week. A few years ago, that move would have been all Cowherd needed to believe Sanders was destined to be an NFL bust. But Friday afternoon, Cowherd stopped short of ripping Sanders when pressed by co-host Jason McIntyre, leaving his dirty work for someone else to handle.
“I’m not a backwards hat guy for quarterbacks. I don’t love it. But the combine is just, you’re in street clothes. You’re not representing anybody!” Cowherd insisted. “He doesn’t play for Colorado, he doesn’t play for an NFL team, he doesn’t have an employer…this kid doesn’t have an employer right now.”
He doesn’t have an employer, but he’s meeting with potential employers, prompting McIntyre to wonder what would have happened if he wore a backwards hat the first time he met Cowherd.
“I’ll tell you right now, I would not have hired you,” Cowherd said, noting that it’s different when that attire is worn during a job interview, needing to be reminded that the combine is essentially a job interview for football players entering the NFL Draft.
“I guess you could argue it’s a little bit of a job interview,” Cowherd said before admitting, “I don’t love it. I’m not bashing it, I don’t love it. I bet you Deion calls him.”
Wait, you bet Deion calls his son to say turn the hat around?
Cowherd is being smart here, he knows the potential firestorm that could be created by ripping Shedeur Sanders for his hat, particularly from people who are unfamiliar with the bit. But leaving the dirty work for Deion? Come on. Deion might command respect and demand accountability from his players, but he definitely isn’t worried about backwards hats.
In recent years, even Cowherd has started to soften his stance and admit some of the absurdity surrounding his long battle with backwards hats. But assuming Deion Sanders is going to call Shedeur about his backwards hat might be the wildest take this theory has ever seen.