SEATTLE — Way back in another life, I covered Deion Sanders for a half-season as a beat writer for the San Francisco Giants. The year was 1995, and the Giants had acquired Deion in a July trade with the Reds, trying to capitalize on his local popularity as a Super Bowl winner that year with the 49ers.
Sanders didn't make much of an impact on a last-place Giants team and never played again for the 49ers, opting instead to sign with their archrival, the Dallas Cowboys, with whom he won another Super Bowl the next year. But those of us who covered the team were genuinely surprised at how unlike his image he turned out to be. Dubbed "Prime Time" and "Neon Deion," Sanders was quiet, reserved and respectful, earning considerable affection from his teammates, a group that included pre-juicing Barry Bonds.
The mellow version of Sanders I witnessed up close is certainly not the one that is rocking the college football world — and shaking up the dynamics of the Pac-12 — as the new coach at Colorado.
