Loyalty Divided: Sanders vs Bears Puts Black Fans in the Middle

There will be many supporters of Shedeur Sanders amongst Bears fans who also want his team to lose.

When the Bears take on the Cleveland Browns this Sunday at Soldier Field, don’t be surprised if you hear some Bears fans cheering for Shedeur Sanders as well. The fifth-round draft pick had the best game of his young career last week but was pulled in an act of stupidity by his head coach, Kevin Stefanski, on a play that would have tied the game. Sanders, the son of outspoken Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, has been subjected to being blackballed by the league, according to Hall of Fame running back Eric Dickerson and anyone else who has a brain and heartbeat. One demographic that has consistently supported Sanders, though, has been Black Americans, who see him as Colin Kaepernick 2.0.

“How he has been handled in Cleveland… I definitely think there has been a dual narrative surrounding him,” says Maya Akai, a longtime sports journalist in Chicago. “In reality, we all know he wasn’t really a fifth-round pick. Let’s be honest, the Cleveland organization has been a hot mess forever. Stefanski just isn’t a competent head coach.”

While Stefanski may not be the next Vince Lombardi, there appear to have been unseen forces within the Browns organization and NFL that have hindered Sanders' progress during the season. That hasn’t been lost on Black Americans who have seen this movie played out before against outspoken Black athletes like Colin Kaepernick, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf (Chris Jackson), Craig Hodges, and others. Many, despite not being Browns fans, demonstrated their support by purchasing Sanders' #12 jersey after his draft. Therefore, it will be no surprise to Donnovan Robinson, who hosts Bears game-day parties at The Family Den on the South Side, if a few Sanders fans are in attendance this week at the game and in local bars.

Robinson grew up a Bears fan and remembers when Vince Evans became the first Black quarterback for the Bears back in 1977, getting his first action at quarterback a year later when starter Bob Avellini was injured. Like Evans, the Bears' current quarterback, Caleb Williams, is a graduate of USC and has led Chicago to their best start in years while they are competing for a division title. That said, he also loves what Sanders is doing.

“Sometimes your name will hold you back,” Robinson said. “He wants to make a name for himself, and he can’t help the name attached to him and where he comes from. We have to remember he is playing for a white man’s organization, though, since I have yet to see a Black NFL owner in my lifetime. All that said, do I want to see him come into Chicago and be great? Excuse me, hell no! We are the Chicago Bears. We bleed blue and orange.”

Black American Bears fans find themselves in an awkward position regarding the Sanders situation as the Bears compete for a playoff spot this season. Ultimately, as Robinson stated, they are cheering for the Bears and silently applauding Sanders from within.  

Ken Davis, former host of The Under Center Podcast for NBC Sports, says he is hoping Sanders has a great showing in the game. He wants another team, which may be undecided on a future franchise quarterback, to see Sanders do well, just so he can get the heck out of Cleveland.

“I want him to succeed like he was on my fantasy team starting, but I want the Bears to win,” Davis said. “I’ll be happy if he throws two or three touchdowns with an interception. I want the Bears to win, but as long as Sanders has a good game and the rest of the Browns suck, I think I’ll be cool with that.”

Nobody wants to see Sanders fail. He hasn’t been put in the best situation, but Black coaches and quarterbacks rarely are. Davis believes that some people in power may have found Sanders' bravado too overwhelming at times, and they may have wanted to teach him a lesson. He said it is dishonest to pretend like he wasn’t a legitimate first- or second-round pick. Davis said Sanders is never given credit for just how good he was in college at both Jackson State and Colorado. Citing a suspect offensive line, he said Sanders stared many defenders down and took hits that many kids would not have had the bravery to do.  

“This kid has been through a lot since he was drafted,” said Akai, who is a recovering Bears fan but also has a side-piece team in the Vikings. “I wouldn’t feel bad at all if people give him a round of applause as he takes the field Sunday. After what he has been through, I think he deserves it.”

Rapper and entertainer Luther Campbell, founder of 2 Live Crew, has been a supporter of Sanders from the beginning. He has consistently called out the NFL and Cleveland Browns for their treatment of the young quarterback. He said at the end of the day, the problem isn’t Sanders, but something greater.

“Cleveland’s problem isn’t the players,” he began. “It’s the administration and the media. And this is exactly why people can’t wait to leave.”  

The Family Den, located at 8940-44 Stony Island, is a wonderful place to watch this week's game between the Bears and Browns if you're not brave enough to sit outside in the -10 degree wind chill. The atmosphere is great, the drinks flow, the food is delicious, and the name of the place speaks for itself. Most importantly, though, Bear Down!