Shilo Sanders Reportedly Hit With Massive Lawsuit – Unemployed NFL Star Exposed For Unpaid Bills

Aug 1, 2025; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Shilo Sanders (28) runs with fans after training camp at AdventHealth Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Shilo Sanders hasn’t experienced much good fortune since leaving Colorado, at least from the outside looking in. And he’s now facing some additional legal trouble.

The former Buffaloes safety went undrafted this year and lost out on an opportunity after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed him ahead of training camp. He was released shortly after punching an opponent in a preseason game, and although he was able to work out with another team, he has yet to make a roster.

According to USA Today, Sanders is now being taken to task by the law firm Barnes & Thornburg LLP, which filed a lawsuit against him earlier this week.

The firm is reportedly seeking more than $164,000 in unpaid bills and interest, as they claim he owes them for services provided to address prior legal issues.

“Mr. Sanders, however, failed to pay the amounts reflected the Invoices presented to him, and has not tendered payment in response to Plaintiff’s efforts to obtain payment on the outstanding Invoices,” an employee for the firm stated. “The total of the Invoices that Mr. Sanders currently owes Plaintiff is $164,285.55, including $10,967.91 in interest for the services provided and costs incurred.”

Shilo Sanders Accused Of Switching Sides But Not Clearing His Debt

Shilo Sanders (Photo via Imagn Images)
The 25-year-old filed for bankruptcy in October 2023 after being ordered to pay over $11 million to a former security guard at his school in Dallas.

Barnes & Thornburg provided legal services in connection with the personal matter and bankruptcy proceedings.

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The law firm is claiming that Sanders was informed in August 2024 that the lawyer responsible for his case was moving to a new company and that he would remain accountable for any outstanding balances.

He is said to have terminated the firm’s representation and transferred his matter to Haynes Boone, the firm to which the attorney moved, after being made aware of the change.

Shilo Sanders filed for bankruptcy so he could avoid paying the sum as mentioned above to former security guard John Darjean, who sued him for causing him severe and permanent injuries when he tried confiscating his phone at a Dallas school back in 2015.

Sanders was 15 years old at the time and claimed he acted in self-defense. He failed to appear in court when the matter went to trial in 2022, prompting a default judgment of over $11 million. He filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in an attempt to have it discharged; Darjean is still fighting to have the judgment stand.

The former CU star has been on a downward trajectory since the NFL Draft in April, which included his removal from ‘Madden 26’ after he was released.

Legal matters have only served to compound what has been a trying period for his family.