“Combine is not designed for you to make money”: Warren Sapp sends clear message to Shedeur Sanders & Co. as he shares an eye-catching story

Shedeur Sanders was criticized when he opted against partaking in the on-field workouts at the NFL combine. However, Colorado's senior quality control analyst, Warren Sapp, has defended the Buffs quarterback and a few others for their choice to skip the workouts at the scouting combine.

In an episode of "Thee Pregame Network" released on YouTube on Sunday, Sapp shared his thoughts on the combine.

"The combine is not designed for you to make money," Sapp said (0:42). "I'm gonna give you my experience. I was a top-10 pick. So, when I came to the combine, the New York Giants came to me as soon as I walked through the door I got a f****** starter jacket with the Giants.

"You know that big-a** starter jacket we used to love back in the day. I was like, are you gonna give me a red, white and blue with New York on that? I was like, 'Whaaaat? Yeah, I'll take your test.'"

Sapp then explained a mental evaluation test at the combine that he wasn't particularly fond of and how he left it midway.

"[They had] 454 true or false questions," Sapp said. "I got to about 250 and I looked up and said, 'what pick y'all got? oh the 27th.' OK, you keep that jacket, buddy."

Sapp went on to reaffirm his stance on the combine later in the video while sharing his views on the showpiece event.

"The combine is not to make money, the combine is to find a talent," Sapp said (7:04). "And then they'll be like, OK, we can get him in the third round or something. That's all it's about. I went from top five to No. 12. Somebody got a bargain and got Derrick Brooks out of it."

Sapp also recalled a story of how former NFL defensive end Mike Mamula made the best use of his combine drills to get the No. 7 pick in his draft class.

"Cause there was a workout warrior in our draft and I don't got a problem with Mike Mamula," Sapp said. "But Mike went out there and lit the combine up. Ran a 4.65-second 40-yard dash, broad jump of almost 11 feet, did a vertical jump of 39 or maybe 40 inches, I mean, just ripped it up.

"Short shuttle was low as hell, but I mean, you can learn how to do it. He's a lineman and getting off is our thing. And changing direction, you can really do some special things and he did."

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers drafted Sapp with the No. 12 pick in 1995. The defensive tackle played nine seasons with them and helped the Buccaneers win the Super Bowl in 2003. Sapp also played four years with the then-Oakland Raiders from 2004 to 2007.

Sapp joined Colorado as the program's senior quality control analyst in 2024. He worked with Shedeur Sanders for one season when the quarterback led the Buffs to a 9-4 record.

Shedeur Sanders' draft stock reportedly takes a hit after Colorado QB opts against working out at NFL combine

Former Colorado Buffaloes QB Shedeur Sanders - Source: Getty

According to reports, Shedeur Sanders' draft stock has fallen in the past few months. More recently, there are suggestions that his stock has taken a hit because he did not participate in the on-field drills at the NFL combine.

Sanders, who won the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year in his final year at Colorado, also did not play in the East-West Shrine Bowl in January.

Several draft analysts have claimed that Miami quarterback Cam Ward is now tipped as the first quarterback to be taken off the board, ahead of Shedeur Sanders.