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Deion Sanders Says He Couldn't Coach in NFL Because of Practices

Sanders explained his unique reason for not wanting to return to the professional level.

Liam McKeone

Despite many rumors Deion Sanders will stay at the collegiate level this year
Despite many rumors Deion Sanders will stay at the collegiate level this year / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
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Despite many rumors and countless hours of television segments spent on said rumors, Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders is not going to be an NFL coach for the 2025 season. A brief dalliance with the Dallas Cowboys after they parted ways with Mike McCarthy appeared to be the closest Sanders got, and even that wasn't that close. On the latest episode of his Tubi show, We Got Time Today, Sanders gave a glimpse into why he's sticking around at the college level.

Chatting with host Rocsi Diaz and former teammate and current ESPN color commentator Troy Aikman, Sanders bemoaned the difference in practice intensity nowadays, saying back in his era he competed just as hard in practice as he would a game. He highlighted the contrast as the reason he couldn't stand to coach at the highest level.

"That’s the way we practiced,” Sanders said, per Pro Football Talk. "I know it’s cute but I couldn’t coach pro ball. The way they practice, the way they go about it, I couldn’t take it as a man and as a football enthusiast. I care about the game. The game is still providing for Troy and I. There’s no way I could allow that to happen on my watch. That would be tough."

While it's difficult to gauge the potential difference in effort from outside the building NFL practices have undeniably gotten less intense in this era because of changes to the CBA. The NFL Players Association worked tirelessly over the years to enforce non-contact practices during OTAs, for example, and pushed back the start of training camp to ensure players get the maximum amount of recovery time in the offseason.

All this doesn't sit well with Sanders, it would seem. And it may even be enough to dissuade him from future NFL flirtations.

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Liam McKeone
LIAM MCKEONE

Liam McKeone is a senior writer for the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has been in the industry as a content creator since 2017, and prior to joining SI in May 2024, McKeone worked for NBC Sports Boston and The Big Lead. In addition to his work as a writer, he has hosted the Press Pass Podcast covering sports media and The Big Stream covering pop culture. A graduate of Fordham University, he is always up for a good debate and enjoys loudly arguing about sports, rap music, books and video games. McKeone has been a member of the National Sports Media Association since 2020.

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