One of the most entertaining football players in American sports history has to be Deion Sanders. Few have had the success he did on the gridiron, but he also excelled on the baseball field. To nobody's surprise, he's succeeded since his retirement as well.
For an eight-time Pro Bowl football player who played two professional sports, is a successful sports analyst, coaches football and much more, Prime Time has built quite the reputation and bank account with a crazy net worth.
Early Life
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Born in Fort Myers, Florida, Deion Luwynn Sanders Sr. attended North Fort Myers High School and was an All-State selection in football, basketball, and baseball. He was later selected to the Florida High School Association All-Century Team, which includes the 33 greatest players in Florida high school football history.
Sanders was such a talented baseball player that the Kansas City Royals selected him in the sixth round of the 1985 Major League Baseball Draft.
Rather than jump to professional baseball, Sanders enrolled at Florida State University, where he became arguably the greatest FSU athlete ever. Playing three sports — football, baseball and track — Sanders did things that made your head spin — way beyond just grabbing interceptions. (One story says Sanders played a baseball game, ran one leg of the 4x100 relay for FSU's track team while wearing his baseball pants, then played the second game of FSU baseball's doubleheader.)
On the football field, Sanders was a two-time Unanimous All-American and won the Jim Thorpe Award in 1988 under head coach Bobby Bowden.
NFL Career
Sanders was selected by the Atlanta Falcons with the fifth overall pick in the 1989 NFL Draft. He spent five seasons in Atlanta before playing for the San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins. He retired, but returned three years later to play for the Baltimore Ravens at the age of 37.
As a lockdown cornerback against wide receivers and one of the league's most dangerous touchdown punt returners and kick returners, the superstar NFL player won two Super Bowls. One came in his lone season with San Francisco and the next came a season later in his first year with Dallas. During the 1994 season with the 49ers, Sanders was named the AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year.
During 14 NFL seasons, Sanders made a total of $33.6 million in his football career. His salary accounts for $17.5 million while $12.7 million was made for signing bonuses and $3.325 million were roster bonuses.
Sanders made a seven-figure salary in five of his 14 professional football seasons, with the highest salary of his first five seasons being $825,000. In his first nine seasons, he had a salary over one million dollars just once. That came in his one year for the 49ers at $1.13 million.
For comparison, about 90 cornerbacks on NFL rosters in 2021 averaged more per season than Deion's best year.
MLB Career
In the 1988 MLB June Amateur Draft, Sanders was taken by the New York Yankees in the 30th round. He played two seasons with the Yankees, playing in 71 games and hitting .178 with just five home runs. The outfielder also played for the Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds and San Francisco Giants in nine seasons from 1989-2001.
In nine seasons, Sanders made a total of about $12.8 million in his baseball career, according to Baseball Almanac. He played in one World Series in 1992 and his top salary season was in 1995 with the Reds when he made $3.66 million.
Personal Life
In 1989, Sanders married Carolyn Chambers and had two children with her before divorcing in 1998. His children from that marriage were his son Deion Sanders Jr. and Deiondra Sanders.
He was married again in 1999 to Pilar Biggers, who became Pilar Sanders when they tied the knot, having three children with her before a divorce in 2011. The children he had with her are sons Shilo Sanders and Shedeur Sanders, along with a daughter Shelomi Sanders. He currently lives in Texas with his girlfriend, Tracey Edmonds, who he has been with since 2012.
Sanders coached Trinity Christian High School's football team and served as the team's offensive coordinator since 2017 before officially becoming head coach of the Jackson State football team in 2020. According to Sports Illustrated, he signed a four-year, $1.2 million deal to coach the SWAC school.
Television Career
Deion Sanders has been an entertainer, even when he was on the field. So transitioning to television was natural for the superstar.
Sanders has worked a sports analyst for networks like ESPN, CBS Sports and NFL Network since his retirement. According to an ESPN report, Sanders left CBS' "NFL Today" in 2004 because he wanted his $1 million salary doubled. It's unclear exactly how much Sanders makes on television today, though one report lists his annual salary at $65,000.
Few might also remember that Sanders even once released a rap album in 1994, "Prime Time."
Speaking Engagements
Sanders has taken his ability to speak and turned it into a really solid career as a public speaker.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame member is available to hire as a speaker for events like product announcements, keynote speeches, and autograph signings. According to Athlete Speakers, hiring Sanders for an event costs anywhere from $50,000 to $100,000.
Deion Sanders Net Worth 2021
As one of the top defensive players in the National Football League and a solid Major League Baseball player, Sanders was making a lot of money during his playing days. Additionally, Sanders had endorsement deals with companies like Nike, Pizza Hut, GMC, Van Heusen and American Express.
That's not to say Sanders didn't have financial failures. Remember Prime Prep Academy, the Texas charter school he cofounded that collapsed?
Still, Prime Time's estimated net worth is around $40 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth, and that really shouldn't surprise too many since not many have ever accomplished what Neon Deion has in his illustrious life.
This post was originally published on October 16, 2019.
