For one electric season in Fayetteville, Drew Sanders looked like the kind of player Arkansas fans wait years to see.
On Tuesday, the Denver Broncos officially closed the book on his time in the NFL’s Mile High City, waiving the former Razorback linebacker from injured reserve, via the NFL transaction log.
Sanders, a third-round pick (67th overall) in 2023, had already been waived with an injury designation when Denver trimmed to 53 players last week.
After clearing waivers and reverting to IR, the Broncos cut him loose with an injury settlement, ending a tenure defined more by what he couldn’t stay healthy to become than by the flashes he showed as a rookie.
That 2022 season in Fayetteville still stands as the high-water mark. After two years buried on Alabama’s depth chart, Sanders transferred to Arkansas and immediately became the defense’s heartbeat.
He started all 12 games at middle linebacker, led the Hogs with 103 tackles and 9.5 sacks, forced three fumbles, and earned unanimous All-America honors.
Sanders was the first Arkansas linebacker named first-team All-America by the Associated Press since Ronnie Caveness in 1964. In a single year he went from afterthought to one of the most productive defenders of the Sam Pittman era.
Denver saw that production and drafted him accordingly. Sanders played all 17 games as a rookie, starting four and finishing with 24 tackles and a fumble recovery. Then the injuries piled up. A torn Achilles in April 2024 limited him to four games that fall — though he did record his first career sack on Justin Herbert.
A foot tendon injury in 2025 training camp wiped out the entire season. This summer he was again sidelined for most of camp. Coach Sean Payton later said the decision came down to health, not effort.
In 21 games with Denver, Sanders finished with 32 tackles and one sack. He turns 26 in December. At 6-foot-5 and 233 pounds, the tools that lit up Reynolds Razorback Stadium have not disappeared. Other teams may still see a versatile linebacker who can play inside or on the edge if he can stay on the field.
For Razorback fans, the story is familiar and unfinished. Sanders gave Arkansas a memorable, All-American year. The Broncos gave him a chance that injuries never allowed him to fully take.
Whether another franchise bets on the player who once owned the SEC for 12 games remains the next chapter.
