Dak Prescott falls behind as Shedeur Sanders' $3,800,000 NIL value soars through the roof after TCU win: Reports

Shedeur Sanders had a monster game in his 2023 season opener with the Colorado Buffaloes. Deion Sanders’ son threw for 510 yards and four touchdowns in their victory over nationally ranked TCU. He helped four receivers go over 100 yards, including two-way player Travis Hunter.

The win made the younger Sanders a bankable star in terms of endorsements. The sports business website On3 puts Sanders on top of their college football NIL list with a $3.8 million valuation. Before the TCU game, his NIL was at $1.3 million, tying him with Florida State quarterback Jordan Travis.

After the win, Sanders’ potential NIL earnings increased by $2.5 million, leapfrogging Arch Manning, Caleb Williams, Bo Nix and Marvin Harrison Jr. Meanwhile, Hunter’s NIL valuation improved to $1.8 million, putting him fourth on the list.

To put Sanders’ NIL valuation in perspective, he could pull in more money than Dak Prescott's base salary for 2023. While Prescott signed a four-year, $160 million contract extension with the Dallas Cowboys in 2021, his 2023 base salary is $1.7 million. That’s a prorated value, meaning he could earn less if he misses games.

For full disclosure, Dak Prescott agreed to convert $29.2 million of his 2023 salary into a signing bonus. Without this strategy, he could have a $30.9 million base salary for the upcoming season.

Instead, the restructuring allowed the Cowboys to soften his deal’s cap hit. They could distribute the bonus’ total amount throughout the contract’s validity to free up more space.

There’s nothing wrong with this approach because NFL teams do it to go under the salary cap. They devise ways to fit their players' salaries in compliance with the league’s hard cap policy. That’s why it isn’t surprising that Prescott’s base salary will jump from $1.7 million this year to $29 million in 2024.

---

Shedeur Sanders NIL deals

Sanders signed his first NIL deal with Beats by Dre in August 2021. Four months later, he agreed to an NIL deal with Tom Brady’s clothing line, Brady Brand.

Shedeur Sanders became the first athlete from a historically Black college and university (HBCU) to sign an NIL deal with Gatorade the following year. He also lent his name, image and likeness to PLB Sports to launch the No. 2 BBQ Sauce.

Sanders agreed to NIL deals with Actively Black, Under Armour and Mercedes-Benz in 2022. He also appeared in the Super Bowl LVII commercial for Oikos Yogurt with his family, including his father, Deion, and brother, Shilo.

Beats by Dre also included him in their first “Beats Elite” class with Williams, Sam Hartman, Quinn Ewers and Michael Penix Jr.

Sanders initially committed to play college football for Florida Athletic before joining his father at Jackson State. He transferred to the University of Colorado Boulder when his father was hired as coach. Shedeur Sanders’ collegiate football record improved to 21-3 after the TCU victory.