There’s just something about Pilar Sanders and the way she shows up for her children, loud, proud, and always from the heart. Her energy is magnetic, her love, visible. In an Instagram reel back in April, she shared photos of Shedeur Sanders and Shilo Sanders with a special message: “confident ladies produce confident babies. No apologies.” It cuts deep, revealing their love. So when Coach Prime Deion Sanders is trying to recover fast from his health scare, she takes the front ground.
It took her straight to the Buccaneers training camp IG reel that showed the confident Shilo Sanders cutting across, jumping to divert the ball. In a moment of adrenaline-pumping up, he then raised both his arms, signaling his arrival. And just like his hardcore supporter, Pilar also joined the bandwagon, commenting, “THAT’S MY SONNNNN!!! .”
That’s what he needed. The Bucs signed him as an undrafted free agent. And he is giving his all to prove that he is here to stay. Now, with Pilar also pushing her weight behind her, the games have just begun. Last year, after a college game, Shilo Sanders shook hands with his fans and asked them if they switched up on him. Almost everyone replied no. Yet Pilar supported her son and shared the reel with a caption, “Yep, keep that same energy! .”
So, she also understands the legacy her children carry. And lately, that pride has been squarely aimed at Shilo. The 25-year-old acknowledged that he didn’t have any cheat code while signing the 3-year $2.95 million deal. But with confidence and proving his need, he might enter the 53-man roster.
Pilar’s support has come at a crucial moment. The Buccaneers are closing on their main players.
Can Shilo Sanders make the 53-man roster?
They have to decide the roster by August 26th, 4:00 p.m. ET. By then, the franchise will have played all 3 preseason games. Head coach Todd Bowles isn’t sugarcoating anything, least of all the rookie battles. And Shilo Sanders? Hanging somewhere in that gray area coaches love to avoid but can’t.
The coach admitted, “He’s doing a lot of good things. He’s flying around, he’s learning the system. But this is a deep group. We’ve got guys who’ve been in this scheme for years.” So, the UDFA rookie is making noise, just not enough to drown out the veterans yet.
That hasn’t stopped Sanders from keeping the vibe high. He is giving his all in every training session. Bowles was asked directly whether Sanders was on the bubble. His response? Carefully measured, “Like the rest of the safeties, he’s very intelligent, he’s very loud.” That’s just another way of saying, prove you’re un-cuttable.
And boy, oh boy, he’s using good old-fashioned tricks to win everyone over. Guess the new name he has earned in the Bucs franchise. The Snacks Guy! Pewter Report revealed a few days back that Shilo Sanders is trying to memorize the favorite snacks of the veterans so that he can get some (little extra) quality time. Yes, you can call it a small step or even absurd, but that takes him closer to finding that edge that NFL players carry.
And here’s the thing, Shilo chose to do that through less visible stuff, not through viral highlights or showy moments; it was the sprints between drills, the details in meetings. Now, he has 3 preseason games to prove he is game-ready. If he excels in even one of those, the scales will tilt to his side almost instantly.
Still, the margin is razor-thin. And Pilar? She’ll be there either way, win or cut, roster or practice squad, reminding anyone who’ll listen. That’s her son.
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