In retirement, former NFL cornerback Deion Sanders has become far more complicated and enigmatic than he ever was during his playing career.
And Seth Wickersham of ESPN The Magazine has authored a compelling portrait of Deion, who seems to be as addicted now to helping and/or influencing others as he was to the limelight when better known as “Prime Time.”
Wickersham gives Sanders a full and fair opportunity to answer his critics, and the finished product provides no clear answers regarding Deion’s motives or his methods.
We urge all of you to give it a read.
We also ask you to check out the picture of Deion with some of his youth players, including what appears to be on the left side of the frame the disembodied head of a boy with white skin that by all appearances was added to the image via PhotoShop or some other similar application.
Interpreting the actual content of the photo is nearly as difficult as discerning the real Deion.
That has to be the funniest picture I have seen awhile. WTF is the disembodied head doing in the corner? It’s hilarious.
That photoshopped image is even more funny when you see that Deion is wearing a hoodie that says “Truth”.
WTF, that is the worst photoshop job I have ever seen.
Taco Bill must have had a part in this…
Kinda Ironic though, that the Football team is named Truth, when this Photo is a Lie !!!!
Excellent article. Thank you, though, for pointing out the heady picture. Totally missed that.
this is Racist!!!
LOL good find Florio. I did a quick glance at the photo earlier and didn’t see the little white kid’s head floating in mid air. Reminds me of this: http://www.11points.com/images/blackphotoshop/wisconsin.jpg
“I give unconditionally. I’m not looking for nothing back.” … just attention
making his alma proud.
maybe he should spend a little less time mentoring and get some english tutoring.
Read the article last night. Very well written. HAd to go pull out the mag though to see that picture. That might be one of the most bizzare things I have ever seen. Please do an update if you find out anything about it.
Throw in a token white kid. What, is this the Cosby Show?
lol deion doesnt want some little white kid on the under armor team….he knows that hell never be able to do the primetime dance
HAHAH, that little white kids head floating there, is pretty hilarious. He should have used Screech from Saved by the Bell instead of some generic white kid.
Hahaha random white boy’s head. I guess affirmitive action is working both ways now.
Great article, read it earlier, but had totally missed the photo weirdness. The mag has the same pic, so I printed the odd head-floater to a pdf. Strange.
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b192/ThisThingGoesFaster/deeeeon.jpg
that’s a good catch with the white kid in the picture. I got the magazine and went to look at the picture again, and it certainly looks strange. Either the kid is standing behind some wooden post painted black (staring at the other kids in the strangest way), or it is definately photo shopped.
and Deion has always been a shady snake, and continues to be. it is a good article, but i would not trust this guy with anything. And i love how the article tried to leave you thinking that he is a mentor, when he is humiliating and bullying 10-year old kids. What a power trip
The floating head kinda reminds me of the “ghost boy” in “Three Men and a Baby.”
Why does it seem like deion is turning into michael jackson with all of these kids around?
hell of a player, but he’s freaking creepy now… kids or no kids.
looks like something you can do with Ghost Capture on the iPhone
Dean is a well known racist in Texas
Good read.
Have any of you considered that this might be, in fact, an actual ghost? Check this out. I adjusted the solarization and applied a texture, that head was not photoshopped in, it has a 3D quality when you look at it after the adjustments. Check it out.
http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/06bW7oNa7B6Rn/439x.jpg
Deion is an idiot. He needs to keep his mouth shut, help the kids and stop being a goof.
Really weird. Don’t drink the Gatorade boys.
I love his bitching about Colt McCoy and the Mannings. He might have a point if McCoy picked the same agent. But the Mannings are represented by Tom Condon, McCoy is represented by David Dunn. The NCAA never investigated anyone for taking part in Prime U. Only when Bryant all the sudden started asking about agents did problems arise.
I don’t know whats funnier – the fact that Florio thought that was a photoshop (it’s clearly a part of the barn-like-building) or that no one else could realize that it was clearly a part of the barn-like-building.
This seems like a story where you have chosen to only see or emphasize the negative in it, Florio. If you squint at the pic, it looks like the kid is just at an odd angle and his jersey/shading makes his head look unattached. I’m going to choose to ignore this specific riff of yours because its so petty.
At the end of the day, Deion is right…if its White then its All Right (a la Chris Rock). 400 kids from a poor part of Dallas get A’s and B’s and don’t get in trouble because of Sanders? Enough said right there. He’s already contributing a shit load more to society than you or I based on that alone. I don’t buy that Dez was influenced by Sanders to Parker either. Wasn’t Parker’s son playing with Dez?? It would seem natural that Parker’s son would tell Dez how the agency and draft game works from what he learned being around his Dad. He probably even said “you should sign with my Dad, he represents such and such and they make money.”
Don’t be such a dick, Florio. Let this one die.
I dont know how anyone can hate on Deion Im an Eagles fan and hes still 1 of my favorite tv personalties. The only person I like more then him is Berman. Deion tells the truth and doesnt worry about offending anyone.
If he doesnt like something the Cowboys are doing or he thinks their playing bad he says it. I respect him for that because everyone else thats ever been assoiated with that team are afraid to say something that Jerry Jones might not like.
With all of the good work that deion is doing (for free) all you guys can talk about is a picture? We always talk about the lack of resources, opportunities, and guidance “inner city” children have then when someone steps up to help you talk shit! Just shut up- give the man credit because regardless of his motives, HE’S HELPING! So stop hating!
By the way you guys are all idiots its just a shoulder pad infront of the white kid that makes it look cut off. Look at the shade, color, and material on any of the other kids pads then look under the white kids neck its exactly the same. Its just another kid whose head got cut out of the pictures shoulder pad.
Why arent you guys saying Deion photo shopped half of a black kids fore head into the picture behind number 28? I know why because it doesnt fit into your conspiracy of Deion adding white kids to his pictures . You guys believe its just the camera cutting off the rest of his body when it comes to the black kid but when it comes to the white kid it has to be photo shopped.
Get a life with this conspiracy theory crap.
TOKEN WHITEY!
Vox says…”Have any of you considered that this might be, in fact, an actual ghost?”
vooooooooox, you’re full of shiiiiiiiiiiiit!
(the above was ghost voice)
totally legit argument though. after all, all the ghosts i know have 3d qualities to them.
I wonder what the stink would be if Peyton Manning was shown sitting with a bunch of white kids and had a black kid’s head floating in the background.
The outrage!!!
OMG they stuck a white kids head in there LOLOLOL Its just floating in the pic.
Hey Vox I also worked on that pic of yours to make it look more factual and accurate:
http://myteamrivals.typepad.com/.a/6a00e5513d181b8834010536a18c81970c-400wi
Just throwing this out there, but if the situation were reversed would we get a rant from Jessie or Al?
I hate to defend Deion….
But has anyone considered that, just possibly, the kid is a member of the team who couldn’t be there that day (perhaps he is off at fat camp) so they shopped him in?
I didn’t even notice it at first.
Vox actually meant this one
I love the farce he’s trying to pass on us. He gives no crap about any white kid, and tosses a token in there thinking we’re all dumb enough to say oh yeah Prime Time is an equal humanitarian. It just shows you what really is underneath the suit.
A black guy who is a racist? Naaa doesn’t happen in this society. Nope.
He doesn’t need to care about white kids, that’s fine. But just don’t lie. That’s the insulting part, the idiocy of the man. Be who you are, and admit it, instead of being a phony. Lord knows you won’t lose your job or anything because all powers that be in this country are scared of racial mafias, so just admit it and be honest, if he had any courage. I won’t hold my breath waiting for real honesty however.
I thought starting in 2008 we were allowed to have these conversations now. Probably not, huh.
Stop hating on Deion! Regardless of his motives the man is providing a very valuable service to the community the likes of which is rarely seen, demonstrated by very few and and far between, and the only thing you can criticise him about is picture that he isn’t responsible for!? Come on Mike Florio ask yourself- what are you doing for these children? NOTHING! So stop hating!
great article.. I guess no one will ever know his true intentions
What a bunch of stupid sycophants why don’t some of you just pull your nose out of Deions smelly tart ass.
The guy obviously has no post football career so he will do anything to get press. Funny how the most “me oriented and selfish player” in his era, is now all of the sudden this golden philanthropist.
DUH he needs the press he has no job other than to act like a mentor to people like Pac Man oops that didn’t work out lets try it with some kids.
Hands down the worst talking head in sports I can not watch NFLN when he is on it with his whining and high pitched voice sounds like a crying school girl.
Get this guy off of my Television!
That white kid must be a hell of a player. He doesn’t have all the advantages the other kids have. No arms, legs, body.. He doesn’t even have a full chin. Deion’s got to be a great coach if he’s got head-boy playing football.
And to answer Rickah99… Yes (both).
It’s just too bad Deion only picks black kids to help.
The reason why people don’t understand, is most people don’t have the balls to be themselves and be passionate about helping others. If I have the opportunity to have a NFL player mentor my offspring, I wouldn’t mind as long as he clean off the field. I would trust my kid with Prime instead of Rothlisberger.
Now I don’t know the kind of person he is, but I have no reason to put him in league with the devil.
The white kid in the corner has to some type of racially motivated ploy by a Prime-hater.
I’ve never been a fan of the flamboyant type, but he was easily top 5 DB to play the game.
Deion is a born-again piece of shit.
He’s nothing more than a perfect example of a racist black man hating on everything white.
He also has an unhealthy hate for the Manning’s.
Maybe its because Peyton/Marvin torched Deion, and then again Hunter Smith did embarrass his overrated ass.
Give me Mel Blount over that chicken shit any day of the week.
Why are you guys complaining that deion is only helping black kids. The more black kids he helps the less of them are out their trying to sell drugs, kill, and steal from people that actually work for what they got. White kids dont need his help with football because they have other things they can fall back on if sports dont work out.
It’s also in the magazine article too
http://digg.com/odd_stuff/Look_Deon_Sanders_and_OMG_Where_s_that_poor_kid_s_body/who
Deion and Dungy the same, but yet different. A piece of shit and a good man, yet both are still racist in my opinion.