|
|
 |
 |   |
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Video Plus Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities 
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE
|  |
Wiggle room Sanders' NFL career not necessarily done for good
Updated: Saturday July 28, 2001 1:48 AM
The mysterious athletic career of Deion Sanders took one of its strangest turns Friday evening with his agent, Eugene Parker, confirming that Sanders has retired from the National Football League. But Parker didn't exactly slam the door when asked if Sanders would ever wear an NFL uniform again. "Will he play football again?" Parker said Friday night from his Ft. Wayne, Ind., office. "I won't even discuss that. Deion is officially retired. This is not a game he is playing." Sanders, who left the Toronto Blue Jays' Class AAA affiliate Thursday night, was said to be strongly considering a return to football if he could work out a deal with the Redskins to settle a dispute over his $8 million signing bonus from his Washington contract in 2000. Although it is uncertain now if he will return to the NFL in 2001, that settlement was worked out, according to Parker. "He has reached an agreement with the Redskins over all financial consideration," Parker said.
Although neither Parker nor the Redskins would comment about the settlement, it is believed that Sanders will be allowed to keep the $5.5 million he has been paid in bonus money by the Redskins. But it is also believed that a portion of the $2.5 million still owed Sanders as part of the original signing bonus will be withheld. Two coaches who formerly worked for the Redskins told CNNSI.com this week that Sanders was loath to return to the Redskins under any circumstance, which led to his decision to retire. As one of the former Redskin coaches said, "If he goes in to Redskins camp on time, I will make this prediction: Deion will hurt his back on the first day of practice. That would be his way of getting back at the Redskins for not releasing him. He'd play possum, then force Washington to pay him for not playing. Sanders was miffed at the Redskins this year for two reasons. He was angry Ray Rhodes, the team's defensive coordinator last season, was not retained by new head coach Marty Schottenheimer. And he also was angry that Schottenheimer displayed a my-way-or-the-highway attitude when dealing with the imperious Sanders, who most often gets things his own way. His retirement, apparently, was the best way for him to keep as much money from his 2000 signing bonus while not ever having to play for Schottenheimer. So where does this leave the 33-year-old Sanders' athletic career? Cincinnati Reds assistant general manager Tim Naehring says that the only way Sanders can tell for sure if he has a long-term future in baseball is if he gives his minor-league career a two- or three-year shot; in other words, Sanders must invest a long time in developing his baseball skills in order to find out if he can really be a legitimate, full-time baseball player. But he appears unwilling to do this. More likely, if Sanders wants to continue as an athlete and if there are no clauses in his Redskins settlement prohibiting him from being a football player in the future, he probably would have to ply his trade as a cornerback for some NFL playoff contender later this season. It's not the way Sanders hopes his athletic career would end. And because Sanders has always viewed himself as the master of his own athletic domain, the only thing certain about his retirement announcement Friday is that it probably isn't a permanent one. Sports Illustrated senior writer Peter King covers the NFL beat for the magazine and appears each Sunday on CNN's NFL Preview.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
