via Imago
Image Credits: Imago
via Imago
Image Credits: Imago
Things looked poles apart in the NFL Drafting landscape than now in 1989. George Young, the then Giants’ General Manager, was notoriously fabled among the recruits for his obsession with extensively testing players. Partial thanks to that, the Giants could not land Deion Sanders that season. Young had designed a two-hour, ‘telephone directory’ sized test book, as Sanders recalled, for the players interviewing with the Giants that year.
Upon seeing the book, Deion Sanders had one question: what position in the draft were they selecting? 10, they answered. After giving them the classic Prime Time smirk, Sanders said, “I’ll be gone long before that. See you later.” The promise was kept. The Falcons selected him as a fifth overall, long before the Giants came into the picture in the 1989 draft. But why is the Deion Sanders of 1989 ringing some distant bells now? Especially when the 2024 draft is looming above their head? Is it because they are witnessing the making of another Hall of Famer or the breaking of one of the finest collegiate football QBs?
The striking similarities between 1989 Sanders and 2024 Williams
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Times change, tales don’t. And the one of Deion Sanders during his NFL draft days and Caleb Williams now is looking dangerously similar. Caleb Williams, being the top projection for being the first pick in the 2024 NFL draft, has become the talk of the town, but it has also invited criticism from across the Nation.
Williams chose not to undergo medical exams at Scouting and keep his medical records private, which only fueled this raging fire of criticism further. That, paired with the reports of his agents letting the NFL teams know that the QB would want stock in the team that drafted him. NFL’s Miguel Esses was prompted to ask how “problematic” would this be for Williams.
via Reuters
Source: Reuters
Well, history has some records to back Williams up. It’s another story of Deion Sanders from 1989. Sanders promised that he would only perform the 40-yard dash test along with the medical tests at the 1989 Scouting Combine. After completing his second 40-yard dash in 4.27, Sanders went running out of the tunnel, waving everyone goodbye, and leaving the Scouting Week thereafter. The tale is now heroic since Prime found a way to make his skills and records work. Had it backfired, the tale would be of the ‘problematic one’. To not let this turn out to be Williams’ future amidst the reports and criticisms, Deion Sanders has some pearls of wisdom for the QB.
Deion Sanders advises to Williams
Sanders has a son who will be on his way to the NFL draft in the following season. Since Shedeur Sanders is expected to be a top pick in the following season, Prime has all possible ‘problematic’ areas highlighted, ones that he advised Caleb Williams to take care of as well.
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The Chicago Bears have the first pick in the 2024 draft and they are widely projected to select Caleb Williams. Sanders believed the topographical challenges it would put in Williams’ way of playing since making the shift to the NFL would be already a major challenge for Williams.
Sanders said on the Mad Dog Sports Radio, via Pro Football Talk about Williams playing conditions since the beginning. “I think he’s the best one on the board this year for sure. A kid that’s coming from California for the last couple of years, right? And went to Oklahoma. That’s not terribly cold. Chicago’s cold, man. Like, see, when you take a guy from Ohio State and you bring him to Chicago, OK, I could understand that. But from California to Chicago? You gotta factor in that stuff. That stuff matters,” Deion Sanders explained.
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Well, Williams better place his bets on his teams wisely, since he has a lot at wager right now, especially after being compared to the ‘Prime Time’ of CFB. Do you think Williams would match the expectations?
