American football player
_(cropped).jpg) Sanders in 2023 | |||||||||
| No. 41 – Denver Broncos | |||||||||
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| Position: | Linebacker | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | (2001-12-31) December 31, 2001 (age 22) Dallas, Texas, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 233 lb (106 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Billy Ryan (Denton, Texas) | ||||||||
| College: | |||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2023 / round: 3 / pick: 67 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of Week 16, 2024 | |||||||||
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Drew Sanders (born December 31, 2001) is an American professional football linebacker for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Alabama, where he was a member of the team that won the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship, before transferring to Arkansas in 2022. Sanders was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the third round of the 2023 NFL draft.
Early life
Sanders grew up in Denton, Texas. He initially attended Lake Dallas High School, where his father was part of the school's coaching staff, and played linebacker and quarterback. As a freshman, Sanders passed for 392 yards and two touchdowns and also rushed for 438 yards and eight touchdowns. At the end of the school year, he transferred to Colleyville Heritage High School after his father was hired to a coaching position there. He committed to play college football at Oklahoma as a sophomore. Sanders transferred a second time after his sophomore year when his father was hired at Billy Ryan High School. He flipped his commitment from Oklahoma to Alabama during his junior year. Sanders was a 5-star recruit during his senior season, and ranked the #22 player in the country by 247Sports.
College career
Sanders played mostly on special teams during his freshman season and made nine tackles. As a sophomore, he became a starter in place of Christopher Allen following an injury. Sanders finished the season with 24 tackles, one sack, 2.5 tackles for a loss, and two passes defended. Following the end of the season, he entered the NCAA transfer portal.
Sanders ultimately transferred to Arkansas.
Sanders started at middle linebacker for Arkansas in all twelve games of the 2022 season, leading the team in tackles (103) and sacks (9.5). He was named to the 2022 College Football All-America Team and was a finalist for the Butkus Award. Sanders elected to forgo participation in the 2022 Liberty Bowl as well as his senior season to enter the 2023 NFL draft.
Professional career
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 4+3⁄8 in (1.94 m) |
235 lb (107 kg) |
32+1⁄8 in (0.82 m) |
9+3⁄4 in (0.25 m) |
4.66 s | 1.61 s | 2.68 s | 4.38 s | 7.18 s | 37.0 in (0.94 m) |
9 ft 10 in (3.00 m) | ||
| Sources: | ||||||||||||
Sanders was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the third round, 67th overall, of the 2023 NFL Draft. He played in all 17 of the Broncos' games in 2023, starting 4 games and logging 24 combined tackles with one fumble recovery.
During Denver's offseason program in April 2024, Sanders suffered a torn Achilles tendon and underwent successful surgery shortly thereafter.
On November 26, 2024, Sanders was activated off the PUP list.
References
- Gosset, Brian (July 8, 2017). "Dual-threat QB from Lake Dallas transfers to Colleyville Heritage". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Retrieved July 23, 2022.
- Holland, EJ (December 12, 2018). "Denton Ryan star, Oklahoma pledge Drew Sanders talks his commitment status, Sooners' season and more". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved July 23, 2022.
- Gosset, Brian (June 26, 2018). "Oklahoma commit leaving Colleyville Heritage for district rival". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Retrieved July 23, 2022.
- Zenitz, Matt (April 29, 2019). "Alabama lands highly-ranked linebacker". AL.com. Retrieved July 23, 2022.
- Caplan, Callie (April 29, 2019). "Denton Ryan star athlete Drew Sanders switches college commitment from Oklahoma to Alabama". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved July 23, 2022.
- Hollowell, Kendell (February 26, 2021). "Drew Sanders is Primed for a Big Sophomore Campaign". Tide 100.9. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
- Rodak, Mike (September 9, 2021). "Alabama's five-star OLB depth softens blow of Chris Allen injury". AL.com. Retrieved July 22, 2022.
- Walsh, Erin (January 11, 2022). "Report: Alabama LB Drew Sanders, Former 5-Star Recruit, Enters Transfer Portal". Bleacher Report. Retrieved July 23, 2022.
- Al-Khateeb, Zac (January 11, 2022). "Several Alabama players, including former 5-star linebacker Drew Sanders, enter transfer portal". Sporting News. Retrieved July 22, 2022.
- Rittenberg, Adam (January 16, 2022). "Alabama Crimson Tide LB Drew Sanders transferring to Arkansas Razorbacks". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 22, 2022.
- Thamel, Pete (December 6, 2022). "Arkansas LB Sanders to skip bowl, enter draft". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
- "Drew Sanders Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
- "2023 NFL Draft Scout Drew Sanders College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
- DiLalla, Aric (April 28, 2023). "Broncos draft LB Drew Sanders with 67th-overall pick". DenverBroncos.com. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
- "Drew Sanders 2023 Stats per Game - NFL". espn.com. Retrieved May 20, 2024.
- Levine, Ben (May 21, 2024). "Broncos' Drew Sanders Suffers Torn Achilles". Pro Football Rumors. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
- Heath, Jon (November 26, 2024). "Broncos activate LB Drew Sanders to 53-man roster". Broncos Wire. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
External links
From the Denver Broncos website, personal: "Drew Sanders was born on Dec. 31, 2000"
| Denver Broncos 2023 NFL draft selections | |
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