Deion Sanders is all about himself, but he could help others

Deion Sanders has always been about himself. That by no means is slander or any news to anyone following him for more than 30 years. He revolutionized the game by making regular fans of football care about a cornerback, a position in football that is not so glamorous.

Deion was a force of nature, a louder, more flamboyant Bo Jackson. He was able to play both baseball and football, all while telling us what it’s all about: It must be the money, named after his song with the same name dancing with an M.C. Hammer in the mid-nineties. (For the record, his rap album “Prime Time” was just as horrible then as it is now. I was a child megafan of Deion as a player, and I still knew where to draw a line).

This has been what we’ve always known about Sanders, so when he opted to become a head coach at Jackson State in Mississippi, I knew what to expect. He would use his charisma to bring unprecedented attention to HBCU teams and then pivot that attention to something else.

That’s why when Sanders decided to become the coach for a single-win Colorado team for an estimated $30-million contract, I was puzzled by the backlash from people in the Black community. After all, during an earlier 60 Minutes interview, Deion was asked if he would entertain the idea of leaving the HBCU for a Power Five school. His blunt response: “I’m going to have to entertain it. Straight up. I’d be a fool not to.” A month later, he did precisely that.

I didn’t object to Sanders leaving the HBCU. However, his exit felt clumsy, lacking an expression of gratitude to Jackson State. Instead, he addressed the Colorado team with tone-deaf comments telling his new players to hit the transfer portal because “I’m bringing my luggage with me, and it’s Louis.”

I began to think about someone who made an exit similar to Sanders’: Jackie Robinson. When Jackie integrated MLB baseball in 1947, it changed white organized baseball but was the beginning of the end for the Negro Leagues, where Robinson got his start.

One by one, the great names from the Negro League were poached by a league that integrated while kicking and screaming, leaving the Black industry in shambles. It wasn’t just the talent leaving; the Negro Leagues was part of an economy that included Black-owned hotels, vendors and ticket holders. Robinson is my favorite player in baseball, not for his talent, but for what he endured. I will always love his contributions (I wear a Robinson hoodie as I write this).

But integration into a more desirable, bigger league poses the same question for Deion: Why not us? Why is an HBCU that you gave an undefeated season less desirable than a Colorado school with only one win last season?

That’s a ton of pressure to put on one man - even though Sanders asked for it by saying a higher calling inspired him to coach Jackson State post-George Floyd’s murder.

I believe this: Kendrick Lamar’s song “Savior” basically warns that you can love an entertainer, but they are not your savior. Sanders is far from a savior, and I wouldn’t want him to be. What Sanders did is provide a blueprint to show what’s possible. For ex-NFL players who would like to be leaders of young Black men, there are plenty of these schools that would be open to having your help. Just like Jackie getting into MLB - it’s great Deion is the first, but I hope he won’t be the last.