Deion Sanders says he won’t coach in the NFL — but if it’s a family deal, that turns a definitive “no” into an “I don’t know.”
Sanders provided two different — and potentially conflicting — answers when asked Tuesday by Dan Patrick about potentially coaching in the NFL some day.
Patrick first asked the first-year Coloardo head coach about coaching in the NFL.
“No, no, not whatsoever. I don’t think I’m built for the NFL,” Sanders said on “The Dan Patrick Show.”
“I appreciate the game so much, and I respect the game so much and what the game has consistently done for me for a multitude of years, that when I see a guy getting paid millions and millions of dollars and he has no respect for the game, does not want to excel and exceed expectations of the game, I’m gonna have a true problem. I’m the kind of coach that would go out there with 53 and come back at halftime with about 32. Because I can’t do it. I’m too brutally honest and I want to win that much, and I need everybody that respects the game, and oftentimes money clouds that judgment. It’s happening in college football, money clouds that love and passion for the game.”
Patrick then followed up by asking Sanders if the equation changes if there’s a potential package deal with son and Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Deion said “don’t forget” about fellow son, Colorado safety Shilo Sanders, and said they will declare for the 2025 NFL Draft.
That’s when his “no” became a hedged answer.
“I don’t know. I’m trying to win a game. I’m not thinking down the street that far. I haven’t thought like that,” Deion said. “That’s a great thought process, though.”
Whether Deion stays at Colorado or eventually tries the NFL is a natural topic since plenty of big-time college coaches have tried their hand in the NFL. While the NFL is usually the ultimate goal, college coaches have more control of their rosters and don’t have a GM above them.
The bigger question may be whether Deion stays at Colorado or is eventually lured away by a bigger school that has more financial resources.
While it’s certainly possible a team could try to land the Sanders trio in a package deal, the odds of that are likely very low since it would take lots of fortuitous circumstances.
With any NFL talk at least one-plus season away, Sanders can focus on trying to get Colorado back on track and potentially finish above .500.
The Buffaloes started fast but have cooled since their 3-0 start, dropping five of their last six games and three straight.
They aim to get back in the win column Saturday at home against No. 21 Arizona.