Deion Sanders: ‘I couldn’t coach pro ball’

Now that the Dallas Cowboys have hired a head coach, Deion Sanders is making something clear again about how he feels about coaching in the NFL.

Sanders, the head coach of Colorado, said this in a discussion with former Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman, who appeared on the show that streamed Tuesday. Sanders was discussing with Aikman the intensity of football practices when both were teammates on the Cowboys in the 1990s, as compared with what he perceives as a lesser work ethic in pro football today.

“That’s why I say, I couldn’t coach … I know it was cute, but I couldn’t coach pro ball, because the way they practice, the way they go about it, I couldn’t take it, as a man, and as a football enthusiast, and I care about the game,” Sanders said. “The game is still providing for Troy and I, so there is no way I could allow that to happen on my watch. That would be tough.”

Cowboys coaching candidacy discussed

Sanders never got a formal interview to become head coach of the Cowboys before they hired Brian Schottenheimer. But he did get a call from Cowboys owner Jerry Jones to discuss the position before that. Aikman referenced that early in his appearance on the show and noted that fellow Cowboys legend Michael Irvin wasn’t happy that Sanders didn’t get the job.

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“I can’t believe I didn’t hear from you when all that’s going that was going on,” Sanders said to Aikman, apparently referencing his possible candidacy for the Cowboys job. “I was waiting for that call.  I was waiting to see Troy Aikman in my phone.”

“You didn’t need a call from me,” Aikman said. “I was, hey, I was watching, wondering how this whole thing was gonna unfold. I will say this, as you know Playmaker Michael Irvin is a Cowboy apologist and you not getting an official interview, not being hired, even he, I’m not sure he’s on the train right now.”

“He’s not happy,” Sanders said. “Trust me.”

After Sanders said he couldn’t coach pro ball, the show’s co-host, Rocsi Diaz, made sure his statement came through clearly.

“You just said you couldn’t coach pro ball,” she said. “You just said that right here.”

“Yeah, I’m telling you,” Sanders said.

Aikman: Sanders would have been ‘really good fit’

This is in line with what Sanders has said before when he told “60 Minutes” in 2022 he was “not one bit” interested in coaching in the NFL. He generally has said he prefers to mentor younger players and coach those who truly love the game of football. He also previously said he would only consider an NFL job if he could coach his two youngest sons.

Diaz then asked Aikman if the Cowboys still would have been a good fit for Sanders.

“Since Jerry did make that phone call to him and we did get the Playmaker’s thoughts on that call, it kind of would make sense though, right?”

“It would make a lot of sense,” Aikman said.

Aikman, Irvin and Sanders played on the last Cowboys team to win the Super Bowl, in January 1996.  Irvin said on his own YouTube show in January that he was pushing for Sanders to be the Cowboys coach and was shocked Jones didn’t take advantage of the opportunity. Aikman said he saw Sanders’ potential, too.

“For Dallas, Deion would have been a really good fit because he would have commanded the room, and his personality is such that people would have known that he was in charge,” Aikman said on the show. “And I think that’s important for (an) organization to know that the head coach is the one who’s calling the shots and that he’s in charge.”

Sanders just finished his second season at Colorado, having improved the Buffaloes to 9-4 in 2024 after finishing 4-8 in 2023.

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. E-mail: bschrotenb@usatoday.com