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Hired gun Report: Star cornerback believes Cowboys career over
Posted: Tuesday February 08, 2000 01:53 AM
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- All-Pro cornerback Deion Sanders says his career with the Dallas Cowboys is likely over. Sanders told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in Monday's editions that he wants to play next season with a team that has a chance to win the Super Bowl. But the 11-year veteran says he has no regrets about his five-year stay in Dallas, which included a Super Bowl title in 1995. "I had a wonderful time," Sanders told the newspaper. "I wanted some more wins. I wanted more Super Bowls. But it was good. I understood I was a hired gun. I've still got some bullets. It's not my fault the gun doesn't shoot like it used to." The team was expected to cut Sanders, 32, on June 2 because of his $12.7 million price tag for 2000. Cowboys officials, the newspaper said, are also disappointed by Sanders' decision to play baseball again. Sanders will report to the Cincinnati Reds next week for spring training. Sanders, whose Dallas career also featured four Pro Bowl selections, was limping around his Plano home Sunday rather than playing in the latest bowl with his all-star peers. While Sanders says he's happy for new Cowboys coach Dave Campo and new defensive coach Mike Zimmer, he believes his days are numbered.
"It doesn't look good," Sanders said. The Cowboys did not return a telephone call today from The Associated Press. Last month, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones backed off a previous statement that he'd like to see the animated defender-punt returner in a Dallas uniform for the rest of his career. Jones said then that a solution might come this spring. Sanders returned from career-threatening toe surgery last year to play in the team's final 14 regular-season games. Surgeons last month also repaired a medial meniscus tear on Sanders' right knee. The player had a cast on his ankle after it was sprained in a Christmas Eve loss to New Orleans. The departure of Sanders to play baseball would leave Dallas thin at cornerback. The two top corners behind Sanders, Kevin Smith and Kevin Mathis, have missed a combined 21 games over the past two seasons. Sanders, who signed with the Cowboys as a free agent five years ago, agreed with the team on a five-year $51.5 million contract last offseason.
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