Shedeur Sanders negotiated $9.24 million of $17.7m NFLPA royalty payment while with Colorado Buffs football

Shedeur Sanders negotiated $9.24 million of $17.7m NFLPA royalty payment while with Colorado Buffs football originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Former Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders recently cashed in on a $17.7 million royalty check from the NFL Players Association for his rookie season in the NFL with the Cleveland Browns.

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As Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio relayed, a large portion of that payment was negotiated while he was still a member of the Buffs, and before he slipped from being a projected first-round pick to an eventual fifth-round draft slide in 2025. Mainly, on trading card NIL. In addition, Florio foresees another big payment after Sanders recently switched his jersey number to the No. 2 he wore in Boulder as he broke several CU records under center.

“Most player royalty through the NFLPA come from group licensing deals, which compensate players for jersey sales, trading cards, video games, and other collectibles. As one source suggested, the $9.24 million payment to Sanders in May 2025 may have reflected his individual trading-card guarantee — something that likely would have been negotiated before he slipped from round one to round five in the 2025 draft,” Florio wrote.

“Sanders could have a large payment in next year’s LM-2, too. In March, Sanders changed his number from 12 to 2; any jerseys that fueled his royalty payments for his first NFL season will need to be replaced.”

With that one $9.24 million payment alone, Sanders nearly broke Tom Brady’s previous single-season payout ($9.5 million).

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Shedeur Sanders will keep himself relevant beyond the Browns

Shedeur was done no favors in his ongoing quest to outcompete Deshaun Watson as the Browns’ QB1 when his younger brother Shilo started verbally attacking insider Mary Kay Cabot for claiming Watson should win the job.

Luckily for Shedeur, his monetary value means he’ll get extra chances most former fifth-round picks usually don’t receive in the future. Sanders’ legendary, record-breaking career in Colorado will also extend his window beyond any potential Cleveland release.

It’s staggering to see a player who was a QB4 for most of his first preseason become the highest-paid player via his player marketing. Sanders has built something bigger than anyone could’ve ever imagined.

Especially because he was not exactly Rookie of the Year material last season.