OUT and ABOUT with STEVE CAMERON: On Shedeur, Cal and the new TV deal for Pac-12

There’s no avoiding it.

We’re doing an “Out and About” column today, and boom!

Guess who we found?

Why, Shadeur Sanders, of course.

Shadeur, master of the free fall.

Every fan is still yakking about Sanders, although most will dive back into their OWN teams within a week.

The Cleveland quarterback drama will disappear into the fog on ESPN’s late, late version of SportsCenter soon enough.

Guaranteed.

But right now, when this soap opera is still occupying the talking heads on TV, let’s sort out what actually happened last weekend. 

Right up front, I can tell you for a fact that some of proposed plots to punish Sanders for his attitude (or his father’s opinions) do not make sense.

NFL teams are too competitive to share anything, let alone on Draft Day.

Stephen A. Smith’s accusation of collusion within the league was just plain stupid.

If one of those teams drafting near the top of the board believed Shadeur was a generational quarterback, his name would have been called out loud and clear.

For whatever reason (actual football talent, self-centered attitude during interviews, fear of Deion butting in every two hours), no team felt that grabbing Shadeur Sanders in the first four rounds was a worthwhile bet.

ITEM: There was another tale unfolding alongside the startling NFL draft last weekend.

Yes, Sanders was involved in this one, but the REAL story involved how the media somehow turned the whole show on itself.

No matter how long these so-called experts have covered the draft, they still never seem to understand that the various teams’ scouts and personnel execs — who make these player assessments for a living — may not agree with THEIR network big boards, mock drafts and so forth.

This year, the whole thing exploded.

We’ve already mentioned Stephen A, who tossed the absurd idea of collusion into the conversation, but the real drama occurred when draft veteran Mel Kiper Jr. took the dismissal of Sanders personally.

Mel had ranked Shadeur right at the top of his overall board, and as each team’s selection was announced (to the sound of that hideous music), Mel began steaming.

When the Browns took Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel in the third round, Kiper spat out: “Digusting!”

Mel’s colleagues sensed that was going a little too far, and the panel began an analysis of its own analysis.

So to speak.

It was good TV, if you liked the Jerry Springer Show.

Felt like you’d turned to the History Channel, and an argument among scholars in 600 BC about whether the world was flat.

If Mel founded the Flat Earth Society, I promise he would have turned up for the panel show with a Big Board — and plenty of maps.

ITEM: Now that Cal Raleigh has signed on as a member of the Mariners organization for most of his prime years, the Big Dumper is going at it full time.

Cal is generally a quiet sort of guy — he sounds almost shy on post-game interviews — so the announcement that he’d be doing “The Cal Raleigh Show” on Seattle Sports 710 was really a surprise.

It’s going to take some time for Cal to reach the chit-chat stage, but he’s obviously taking this new role seriously.

For instance, Cal was a long-time fan of the Red Sox, and specifically, catcher Jason Varitek.

So, for one of his first shows while the Mariners were in Boston, Cal took Seattle reporter Shannon Drayer on a tour of Fenway Park that felt both personal and emotional.

Raleigh also talked about the leadership required of a catcher, mentioned the fact Kansas City’s Salvador Perez is the Royals’ official captain — and tip-toed right up to saying he’d like to wear that “C” on his jersey for the Mariners.

Anyone who guessed that Cal’s show might be dull and full of cliches was way off base.

The Big Dumper would pick you off with a zinger throw.

ITEM: The New World Pac-12 has landed a one-year media deal, with negotiations ongoing for more serious business down the road.

Wazzu and Oregon State needed TV partners for this coming season, with the full conference (including at least one more football school, plus Gonzaga) looking for something like a five-year deal beginning in 2026.

There was a surprise included in the Pac-12 announcement about TV for its two legacy schools.

The Cougs and OSU will have home games telecast this fall by the CW (a holdover from last season), CBS and … ESPN.

Yes, that last one is a surprise.

Jon Wilner, the West Coast regional columnist who covered the Pac-12 for years, explained that the first deal for the two schools is simply one year and one sport.

The conference, meanwhile, is looking at a contract for at least nine schools and multiple sports, including basketball.

The Pac-12 is expected to announce the media agreement for 2026 (and beyond) sometime this spring. 

It can’t come soon enough.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press three times each week, normally Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”