ESPN’s flagship personality, Stephen A. Smith, dispensed stern advice to NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders — and especially his two sons who play for him at the University of Colorado.
Sanders, aka “Prime Time” or “Coach Prime,” and his sons Shadeur and Shilo have incited multiple social media storms while defiantly defending Coach Prime. The sons took umbrage of a critical exposé of Prime’s coaching peculiarities.
The football trio has been labeled “arrogant” after Shadeur unwittingly ignited a firestorm by dismissing formеr Buffalo safety Xaviеr Smith by saying on X: “Ion [I don’t] еvеn rеmеmbеr him tbh. Bro had to bе vеry mid at bеst (“mid” is short for “mediocre”).
Smith, host of ESPN’s popular sports talk show First Take, admonished the two sons to be more mindful and careful in how they interact with fans, either in person or via social media.
“I certainly don’t think that Prime Time Deion Sanders is playing for clicks. I do think that somebody who does need to be checked just a little bit is Shedeur Sanders. Nobody else is saying it, so I am going to say it,” remarked Smith.
Some advice for Shilo and Shedeur Sanders pic.twitter.com/Y8jpLlYWwr
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) May 2, 2024
Smith implores Shadeur, in particular, to exemplify more humility and professionalism and allow his play to speak for him.
“He is a special talent… And I am not questioning his character by any stretch of the imagination. But it is not hard to see that some of this could be brought on himself. At the end of the day, you’re 4-8. At the end of the day, you were 1-8 in the conference,” Smith stated.
Pointing at his own Rolex, Smith remarked, “You see this watch right here? This little Rolex I got on? One of the things that I never do with my watch, and I never did that. And in my profession, quite frankly, I win a lot. Shedeuer Sanders did that each time they won a game… Shedeuer Sanders is a miniature in my estimation, but he is a stud.”
Smith added, “But you lost more than you won. What did you do when you lost?”
Even though Smith would prefer for Coach Prime to tone down his flamboyance and public bravado, Smith admits that Prime has earned the right to be boastful. He is, after all, one of the greatest NFL players of all time and a Hall of Famer.
“He [Deion] can say what he wants. These d–n players, including his children, is a different matter… These brothers can play. And coming to the defense of their father is admirable, and I am not trying to discourage that, but how you do it matters.”
