The Faith and Talent of a 'Prime Time' Athlete by ZACK NGUYEN Monday, January 29, 2001 FT. WORTH, TX Deion Sanders makes me laugh. Not in derision or amusement, but with a combination of amazement and pure joy. If I may indulge in sentiment, I think watching Deion makes me feel like I'm 10 years old again and watching Tony Dorsett break a long one. Football meant a lot back then. I laugh because there is no one else on earth today that can make eleven highly tuned professional athletes, genetic supermens in their own right, look like complete fools on the field of battle. But Deion did this on a regular basis, and still occasionally does today. And he might again. Recently, Fox SportsNet ran an hour-long special on the life of Deion Sanders. It didn't have enough highlights for my taste. For those, I suppose I'll have to wait for his retirement and a long-awaited NFL Films production. But the FoxSportsNet program did go into some detail regarding Deion's Christian faith, which has been the subject of a great deal of public conjecture.

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The next day I was somewhat disappointed to hear Mickey Spagnola, a respected journalist who works for a Dallas all-sports radio station, say that he believes Deion's Christian persona is born out of a desire for a new marketing strategy. Specifically, he said that since the "Prime Time" thing was beginning to lose steam, Deion simply reinvented himself religiously. I disagree with this. Although I don't know Deion personally, I've seen nothing in his public persona that would gainsay a true spiritual regeneration. While I might disagree with him and his spiritual mentor, T.D. Jakes, on some very serious theological matters, I believe Deion's faith to be real. This is not to say that Deion has not earned a healthy amount of cynicism from sports journalists. His out of control arrogance and exploding ego have brought him more than a few enemies. Deion is the culmination of the 90's player: He has taken full advantage of free agency and has hired himself out to whichever team will pay the most for his services. He will be identified with no one team after his career -- a serious mark against him for the tried-and-true football fan. Nor does he seem to care, rather personal wealth and ambition seem to have been his motivating factor. Many reporters openly despise him and glory in his defeats and setbacks, which have been few and far between. But it's interesting to note how few of his former teammates speak against him. Deion is by all accounts an extremely hard worker and a loyal and encouraging teammate. While the press criticized him unmercifully for playing in a Falcons game and taking a private jet to the World Series in the same day, the Braves players quietly applauded his devotion to the team, even when he was not under contract. There are probably many Cowboys who are angry at Deion for leaving the way that he did -- Deion's public statements about the ineptitude of the Cowboys made it next to impossible for Jerry Jones to re-sign him. Deion's comments, while indelicate, were right -- the Cowboys were an awful team with or without him, as this season proved. But just as his faith in Christ is real and now defines his life, Deion's athleticism is what will define his career. He is, quite simply, one of the most gifted athletes on earth today. His speed off the cut is unnatural, and he leaves defenders twisted in knots. Deion uses that ability to play quarterbacks, fooling them into throwing to a receiver that appears open (and who would be with any other cornerback), only to swoop in at the last second and intercept the pass. After that it's anyone's guess as to what will happen. His top speed is unparalleled. Deion in his prime was probably the fastest human being to ever play in the NFL. When Deion has the ball, what often follows is absolute, glorious chaos. Even his own teammates stumble over him, unsure of where he will spin, cut, dash or leap next. One must wonder how special teams coaches diagram punt returns for him. No one can be sure where he will run. I saw a graphic illustration of this athletic brilliance during the final game of the Cowboys' 1999-2000 season: I was on the second row. A Giants wide receiver caught a pass just shy of midfield and began to streak down the sideline. Deion was at least five or six yards behind him and halfway turned the wrong direction. Perhaps I imagined it, but an almost visible jolt seemed to rifle through Deion's body, as if his mind was sending the message to his limbs: Yes, I will catch him. I watched Deion take off, and stupidly thought to myself: There is no way he can be caught. Touchdown Giants. But as the stadium stood and cheered, Deion made up at least five yards on an NFL wide receiver and dragged him down from behind. As I recall, the Giants scored on the next play, so you probably won't see the play on many highlight films. Yet it was, quite simply, a spectacular display of speed and one of the most incredible moments I've witnessed in sports. The best years of Deion's career were played for the Cowboys. Possibly his best season came in 1998, when in ten games he intercepted five passes (despite being all but ignored by opposing quarterbacks), and returned three punts for touchdowns. After that season -- as if he hadn't already -- Deion could lay legitimate claim to being the greatest cover corner and punt returner that has ever lived. Quarterbacks treated him like a case of the Ebola, avoiding contact at all cost. I would sometimes watch in amazement as quarterbacks would stand in the pocket and take a sack without even glancing in Deion's direction. Opposing punters would punt the ball into the endzone, sidelines, or the fifth row rather than allow Deion to touch the ball. Forget field position or letting the ball roll to the three yard line, just keeping Deion from ever being in possession of the football was all opponents cared about -- period. The emotion most associated with Deion and opposing teams was stark terror. It has been said by baseball coaches that Deion could have been the best contact hitter in the game had he devoted himself soley to baseball. It was said by football coaches that Deion could have been the best wide receiver in the game had he devoted himself only to that discipline. To be near the pinnacle of sports in so many areas seems almost unfair. Because of this, a mythology was built up around him to an extent rarely seen in the NFL. Deion was invincible, a high-stepping, fast-talking juggernaut capable of winning games all by himself. This was an exaggeration, of course; Deion can't win games by himself (the Atlanta Falcons were only occasionally a winner while he was there.) But he can break a game by himself. Few things are more disheartening to an opposing team than watching some lunatic fake your special teams unit out of their shorts, reversing field, doing things no human being should be able to do, and then dancing into the endzone. That's why opposing teams looked upon him with such horror, and a mythology, however unrealistic, began to grow. And so, justifiably, it was big news when Deion was beaten deep twice in 1999. The press jumped on it immediately. What they ignored was that Deion suffered an endless string of injuries and physical afflictions that year: a pulled groin, a pulled hamstring, a toe injury requiring surgery, a bout with the flu, a concussion, an ankle injury that required pain-killing injections just to play, and a knee that required surgery after the year was over. Deion was not himself in 2000. Having been handed a ridiculously large contract for a 32-year-old athlete (7 years, $56 million), he was faced with expectations almost impossible to meet. Knee surgery takes a great deal of time to completely recover from, and anyone could see that Deion was not himself. As if to punctuate the point, Dallas ran two straight long bombs directly against Deion, resulting in a 45-yard completion and an interference penalty. It was the sort of play that in years past a coach would never in his wildest dreams have dared run. But run it the Cowboys did, and James McKnight -- a speedy, yet otherwise average NFL receiver -- beat Deion badly. The Redskins were a miserable disappointment this year, with an annoying owner and a locker room full of talent that performed well below expectations. And Deion fared no better. The question becomes: Was Deion bothered by injuries and shackled by a poor team? Or was his very average 2000 all we can expect of him from now on? The press, particularly in spurned Dallas, have already made their decision. I'll wait one more year before drawing a final conclusion, though. An off-season of recuperation for Prime Time and we will see how his 2001 season progresses. However the end comes, I get the distinct impression that Deion will be just fine. He has indicated that he is perfectly willing to give up football if it is God's will (which is more than most of us can say about things in our lives dear to us). I for one hope that he is back in fine form and retires while still bringing gleems of wonder to the eyes of ten year old boys, and grown men like me who sometimes wish they still were.

Send your comments to Coffee Shop Times columnist Zack Nguyen.