Emmanuel Sanders has no ill will towards the Denver Broncos, the team he won a Super Bowl with during his five-plus year run with the organization. The veteran receiver made that clear on Tuesday, just moments after the Broncos traded him and a 2020 fifth round pick to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for third and fourth round picks in this year's draft.
Sanders, speaking to the media from the 49ers' facility on Wednesday, again spoke about his time in Denver as well as his new opportunity in San Francisco. The 49ers, undefeated through six games for the first time since 1990, are currently leading a loaded NFC West division that also includes the 5-2 Seattle Seahawks and the reigning NFC champion Los Angeles Rams.
"It feels good [to be here]," Sanders said, via ESPN's Nick Wagoner. "Obviously, I've got a lot of love for the Broncos. I spent six years there, won a Super Bowl there and I love that organization. But to be a 49er, it's like a new energy and new environment. It reminds me of when I left the Steelers and went to the Broncos.
"I needed a change of scenery, and it feels good to have a change of scenery. And what a great locker room the 49ers have here. I'm just trying to come in and bring even more positive energy and bring another spark to this offense."
Kyle Shanahan, who is in the midst of his third season as the 49ers' head coach, spoke glowingly about his new receiver on Wednesday. Shanahan, who coached against Sanders on several occasions during his time in the NFL, is optimistic that Sanders can provide a quick spark to a passing game that is currently ranked 25th in the league entering Sunday's game against the visiting Carolina Panthers.
"Emmanuel's been a guy I know I've personally wanted since probably the last eight years, since he became a free agent at Pittsburgh," Shanahan said, via Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio. "Huge fan of him coming out of the draft and everything he's done since. We were looking into all possibilities, we didn't know if any of them would go through. ... I have felt less urgency than we have in year's past. I feel good about our group, but we do have a better team right now and we were able to make it better [Tuesday] and pumped he's here."
Is there a specific quality that Sanders has that Shanahan specifically likes?
"I think he's always been very good at separating," Shanahan said. "He's wired in a certain way where he can get downfield, he also can break you off inside. Not the biggest guy, but he plays big. He's hard to get your hands on. He can push through things and he plays very aggressive. The game is not too big for him. He can go over the middle and not flinch. He catches the ball and gets up the field hard. He's a very good football player plus still a very good talent also."
Sanders, who is slated to be a free agent this offseason, said that during a conversation with Broncos GM John Elway prior to being traded, he expressed his desire to be on a team that has the ability to win a championship while adding that he is likely approaching the final "two or three years" of his career. It's safe to say that he is happy with the situation Elway helped place him in.
He's also a pretty big fan of his new head coach, too.
"Getting here and just seeing how he is, seeing he's very laid back. Funny guy, light on his toes," Sanders said of his new environment in San Francisco. "I noticed in the team meeting. I was like, 'I can't wait to get home and tell my wife that the head coach is wearing Yeezys.' I was like, that's cool. That's one cool coach.
"The environment here is just so light, but at the end of the day, we have a concentration and we have a focus on the task at hand. I can tell that his team is a reflection of him, and it's cool to see."
