Darius Slayton is already going to bat for the Giants’ potential first-round pick.
The veteran receiver downplayed criticism surrounding Shedeur Sanders patting the football before throwing during the Colorado quarterback’s pro day workout last Friday.
Some, including new Jets safety Andre Cisco, raised flags about Sanders’ patting tendency and how that could possibly work adversely against him in the NFL.
“😂😂I promise he can pat the ball and be just fine if DB’s was so good at breaking on ball pats they’d all have 8+ picks a year,” Slayton posted Saturday to X.
“Same guys that fall for a 2 man dagger concept and give up the dig on 3rd&long every season all season long talkin bout a ball pat what a joke😂.”
It seems a virtual lock at this point that Miami’s Cam Ward will be the first quarterback drafted — likely by the Titans with the first overall pick — and Sanders likely will be the second signal caller selected.
Sanders, the son of NFL legend Deion Sanders, has been linked to the Browns with the No. 2 pick and the Giants with the third selection, but some wonder whether he may slip.
Friday marked a chance for Sanders to wow executives and coaches around the league, which included a 14-person Giants contingent that featured coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen, among others.
Sanders completed 62 of 67 passes during his workout, per The Athletic, but a roughly 1:45-minute video from the Overtime X account showcasing highlights instead led to some critiquing how Sanders pats the ball before delivering a pass.
The argument is that Sanders is giving defensive backs extra time to defend a ball by doing so.
“Boy better stop patting that ball, we breakin onnat earlyyyy,” Cisco quote tweeted the highlight reel, which has 13.7 million views as of Monday morning.
Slayton’s quote tweet came above a different tweet criticizing Sanders that featured the same workout, which an X user labeled “concerning.”
When someone asked Slayton about his take while relaying Cisco’s comment, he provided further context.
“There’s these large fellows called lineman who are in between line of sight so if a QB isn’t 6’4-6’5+ you lose them behind the OL all the time so if i can’t see the QB throw it to me how in the Flying Dutchman is a DB gonna see him pat it BEFORE he throws it,” Slayton said.
Cowboys pass rusher Micah Parsons eventually joined in on the action, responding to Slayton’s initial remark by questioning Slayton’s view.
“You realize at Pat on the ball can be difference between a sack or a throw away/completion?” Parsons tweeted.
Slatyon, who re-signed with the Giants on a three-year, $36 million deal this offseason, responded to Parsons by noting how Tom Brady — arguably the best quarterback in NFL history — also patted the ball.
The 28-year-old later posted a video showing some of the game’s best quarterbacks patting the ball before throwing.
“Tom Brady literally the king of getting the ball out fast patted the ball when he threw,” Slayton posted. “So actually no patting the ball is not the difference.”
Slayton will soon find out whether his positive support for Sanders proved to be a strong first impression on the Giants’ quarterback of the future or another team’s heir.
With the No. 3 pick, the Giants are expected by many to possibly land Sanders, fellow Colorado star and two-way phenom Travis Hunter or star Penn State pass rusher Abdul Carter.
The first round of the 2025 NFL Draft begins Thursday, April 24.
