Deion Sanders

The Las Vegas Raiders have "zero interest" in hiring Deion Sanders away from Colorado, according to The Athletic's Vic Tafur and Tashan Reed.

On Saturday, the Las Vegas Review-Journal's Vincent Bonsignore cited a source who said Sanders "has a very strong interest in the job."

"The person indicated that NFL-connected associates of Sanders reached out to the Raiders to express Sanders' interest in the opening," Bonsignore wrote.

Even before that report—and predating the firing of Antonio Pierce—fans were questioning whether the Hall of Fame cornerback might emerge as a candidate for Las Vegas.

The Raiders are badly in need of a new quarterback and they'll likely address that concern in the 2025 NFL draft. Maybe they'd hire Coach Prime and pair him with his son, Colorado star Shedeur Sanders.

Bonsignore's report provided another wrinkle because Sanders had been giving the public impression he wants to stay with the Buffaloes for the long haul.

That Tafur and Reed already threw cold water on the idea of him landing in Sin City would seemingly eliminate the possibility. If the team doesn't have any interest right now, it's hard to picture what would lead the front office and ownership to do a 180 and consider him.

Per The Athletic, six candidates are confirmed for the Raiders: Ben Johnson, Aaron Glenn, Steve Spagnuolo, Todd Monken, Robert Saleh and Pete Carroll.

More names could be added to that list because Las Vegas' search for a new head coach is less than a week old. The organization is only a few days removed from ousting general manager Tom Telesco as well.

In the event the Raiders' circle does widen, don't expect it to include Sanders.

Despite denying on multiple occasions that he was looking to leave Colorado, the allure of working with Tom Brady might be enough to get Deion Sanders into the NFL.

Per Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Sanders has a "very strong interest" in becoming head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.

Sanders said earlier this week on Good Morning America the only way he would consider going to the NFL is to coach both of his sons, Shedeur and Shilo (starts at 1:35 mark).

That came before Sanders went on Friday's episode of The Tamron Hall Show (h/t USA Today's Brent Schrotenboer) and said there are "a couple of teams that I won't allow" Shedeur to play for in the NFL.

Sanders didn't specify who those teams were, but it seems unlikely the Raiders fall into that group. ESPN's Jordan Raanan reported in December there's a belief that Shedeur's preference is to end up in Vegas.

There are several complicating factors at play for both members of the Sanders family if they want to be Raiders. Deion's biggest hurdle could be the presence of Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson in the mix.

Fox Sports' Peter Schrager reported on Saturday that Johnson landing with the Raiders has gained a lot of steam in the past 48 hours, but Connor Hughes of SNY.tv noted there's a strong belief he will end up going to the New England Patriots.

Hughes listed the Patriots, Jacksonville Jaguars and Chicago Bears as Johnson's preferred landing spots because they all have quarterbacks in place he can work with.

Another complicating factor is whether or not Shedeur could end up in Vegas. The Raiders own the sixth pick in the 2025 draft, selecting after other quarterback-needy teams like the Tennessee Titans (No. 1), Cleveland Browns (No. 2) and New York Giants (No. 3).

B/R's NFL scouting department has Sanders ranked as the No. 2 quarterback and 15th-best prospect overall in the 2025 class. Miami's Cam Ward (No. 6 overall) is the only quarterback ahead of him.

While the overall rankings suggest Sanders could be available when the Raiders pick, the value of quarterbacks over other positions will likely push him up the board on draft night.

If the Raiders want Deion that much and understand that drafting his son is the key to making it happen, they could trade a huge haul of picks to move up and ensure they get Shedeur.

Shilo, a safety, isn't really considered much of an NFL prospect. He's not among the top 18 players at the position on B/R's draft board.

Coach Prime has a 13-12 record in two seasons at Colorado. The Buffaloes won nine games this season for the first time since 2016.

The Raiders fired head coach Antonio Pierce and general manager Tom Telesco this week after wrapping up a 4-13 season. The franchise has just two winning seasons since 2003.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders said on the Tamron Hall Show during a Friday appearance that there are a couple NFL teams he will not allow his son, ex-Buffaloes star quarterback Shedeur Sanders, to play for (h/t Brent Schrotenboer of USA Today).

To set up the remark, Hall asked Sanders this question: "Have you told him privately who you would like for him to play for?"

Sanders then replied: "It's not like that. It's not like who I would like for him to play for. It's a couple of teams that I won't allow him to play for. So it's not like that. But this is my profession. I know what's behind the curtain. We ain't got to get back there for me to understand what's behind the curtain and what's not prominent for my son. I'm not doing it."

Hall then responded: "And if he doesn't listen to you?"

"Who?" Sanders replied as the studio audience laughed. "Who? No, you must mean (NFL team) owners, not my son."

Sanders did not mention which specific teams he doesn't want his son to play for.

Three-plus months still remain before the NFL draft begins on April 24 in Green Bay, but at this juncture, Sanders could very well be the No. 1 overall pick or close to it.

In fact, the latest B/R NFL Scouting Department mock draft has Sanders going No. 1 overall to the Tennessee Titans.

Fathers have warded their superstar son draft prospects away from undesirable teams before.

In 1983, Jack Elway told the Baltimore Colts that his son, John Elway, would not play for them. The Colts drafted Elway anyway and eventually traded him to the Denver Broncos.

Twenty-one years later, Archie Manning told the San Diego Chargers that his son, Eli Manning, wouldn't play for them. Manning was eventually traded to the New York Giants on draft day.

Maybe we'll see the same thing another 21 years later in 2025.

Sanders said on his show appearance he'll "intervene" if necessary.

Would Sanders intervene if that team was the Cleveland Browns with the No. 2 overall pick? This is what he thought of the team in March 2018, a month before they selected Baker Mayfield at No. 1 overall.

The Titans, Browns and New York Giants all need short- and long-term solutions at quarterback and pick first, second and third overall. It's hard seeing Sanders (and Miami signal-caller Cam Ward) slip out the top three, whether it's to one of these teams or to another team that trades up.

The Browns might be the team to watch here, though. Simply put, Sanders wouldn't be putting this out there if he didn't have concerns about a team that has the chance to draft his son.

We're still in the beginning stages of the pre-draft process, though, and the college football season isn't even over yet for another 10 days. Ultimately, there's a long way to go before Green Bay.

Only one thing would convince Colorado head coach Deion Sanders to leave his job with the Buffaloes for an NFL head coaching gig.

Sanders said he would need to get a role that would allow him to coach both of his sons, Shedeur and Shilo.

"The only way I would consider is to coach my sons. Not son. Sons," Sanders said on Good Morning America. "I love Colorado, I love my Buffaloes, I love everything that we're building, I love everything that we're doing and I love Boulder, Colorado."

The odds that both Shedeur and Shilo will land on the same team are pretty slim, so fans shouldn't get their hopes up about Sanders joining the NFL ranks anytime soon.

Shedeur had a tremendous collegiate career and could be one of the first players off the board in the draft this year. The quarterback threw for 4,134 yards, 37 touchdowns and 10 interceptions during his final year with the Buffaloes, leading them to a 9-4 record.

Bleacher Report's Scouting Department lists the 22-year-old as the No. 16 overall player and No. 2 quarterback in this year's draft class, behind only Cam Ward of Miami.

Shilo, 24, didn't have quite as impressive of a career, but there's still a chance the safety could hear his name called this year. In his final season with Colorado, he had 45 tackles, one forced fumble and two passes defended.

Sanders, who is entering his third season as Colorado head coach, will support his sons from Boulder and perhaps eventually join the NFL ranks as a head coach.

Until then, he'll look to continue building up the Buffaloes program. After inheriting a team that went 1-11 in 2022, Colorado went 4-8 a year ago before going 9-4 this season.

The Buffs fell short of reaching the College Football Playoff in 2024, but they seem to be on their way to competing for a championship soon.

It wasn't long ago Deion Sanders was a prominent former NFL star coaching a Historically Black college and university at Jackson State, and he is supporting DeSean Jackson as the former NFL wide receiver begins his own head coaching career at an HBCU in Delaware State.

"We've got to wrap our arms around this game changer and give him all the support he needs to become a successful college football coach," Sanders said on social media. "He knows the game, knows what it takes to make it to the next level and he knows right from wrong."

Jackson was formally introduced as the head coach of the Hornets on Wednesday.

"We're not rebuilding," he said, per Xavier Handy-Hamilton of CBS Sports. "This isn't rebuilding. We don't have time to waste. We're doing this right now."

The 38-year-old also said the immediate goal is to reach the Celebration Bowl, which pits the champions of the SWAC against the champions of the MEAC each year.

"We ain't waiting," Jackson said. "We want to be there this year. We want to win the MEAC this year."

That would be quite the turnaround, as Delaware State was 1-11 overall and 0-5 in MEAC play during the 2024 campaign. What's more, it won just one game during the 2023 season and hasn't finished with a winning record since 2012.

However, Jackson brings instant name recognition to the program as a three-time Pro Bowler and Super Bowl champion who played for the Philadelphia Eagles, Washington, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Los Angeles Rams, Las Vegas Raiders and Baltimore Ravens during his NFL career from 2008-22.

That should help on the recruiting trail and in the transfer portal, which may set the path for a quick turnaround at Delaware State.

Sanders could be something of a blueprint, as he used his star power, coaching ability and influence to help turn things around at Jackson State. The Tigers went 4-8 in 2019 the season before he arrived but reached the Celebration Bowl in back-to-back seasons in 2021 and 2022 before he left to take over at Colorado.

The Buffaloes have also found quick success under the Hall of Famer and improved from 4-8 in his first season at the helm in 2023 to 9-4 in 2024.

Colorado head football coach Deion Sanders has been under a spotlight since taking over the Buffaloes program prior to the 2023 season, but sometimes that led to unwanted attention as well.

As Brent Schrotenboer of USA Today relayed, Sanders' bodyguard, Michael Rhodes, appeared on the Coach Prime documentary series on Amazon Prime Video and discussed some of threats the head coach faced throughout the 2024 season.

That included "multiple threats concerning people trying to do harm to Coach" before Colorado's rivalry game against Colorado State on Sept. 14.

Rhodes said he sends death threats Sanders receives to the police and the FBI and added that multiple law enforcement agencies were involved ahead of the Colorado State game.

"I have to keep my head on a swivel," Rhodes said. "I have to keep my eyes open. I really have to watch the crowd, pay attention to everybody's body language, facial expressions, hands, because everybody doesn't love Coach. … With all of the death threats, I don't know who is who. I've got one job, and that's to make sure that Coach is good, to make sure he's safe, so he can go out and coach the team to a victory."

The 2024 game against the Rams was expected to be a heated one considering the 2023 one went into double overtime and featured no shortage of trash talk. That 2023 game also included Colorado State head coach Jay Norvell criticizing Sanders for keeping his hat and sunglasses on during interviews.

That may have motivated the Buffaloes, as Shilo Sanders put on sunglasses while celebrating a pick-six.

Yet the 2024 rematch didn't feature nearly as many fireworks with Colorado cruising to a 28-9 victory in the early stages of a much-improved season. There was the expected trash talk in a rivalry game, but it didn't draw nearly as many national headlines.

One reason for that is it was clear the Buffaloes were a league above the Rams this time around. While Sanders' team went 4-8 in 2023 and struggled throughout the campaign, it took significant strides in 2024 on the way to a 9-4 record.

While the team was celebrating more wins on the field, Rhodes was doing what he needed to behind the scenes to keep the head coach and everyone involved with the program safe.

Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham received support from another notable Big 12 coach after the Sun Devils suffered a hard-fought 39-31 overtime loss to Texas in the College Football Playoff on Wednesday.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders complimented Dillingham in a post on X.

"We are proud of u and your team," Sanders wrote.

The Sun Devils faced a 24-8 deficit near the start of the fourth quarter in Wednesday's contest, but they were able to storm back and tie the game at the end of regulation.

Arizona State briefly took a seven-point lead in overtime, but Texas tied the contest once more on a fourth-down conversion with 13 yards to gain.

The Longhorns scored again, while an interception by Sun Devils quarterback Sam Leavitt sealed the final result.

Despite the tough finish, it's hard to call Dillingham's second year with the school anything but a success. Arizona State reached 11 wins for the first time since 1996, securing a Big 12 title with a 45-19 victory over Iowa State on Dec. 7.

Sun Devils running back Cam Skattebo thrived in Dillingham's offense, picking up 2,074 all-purpose yards and 22 total touchdowns before Wednesday's action. Skattebo also finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting.

While Sanders' Colorado team also challenged for a spot in the conference title game after switching from the Pac-12, he's repeatedly shown admiration for his opponent.

The Buffaloes' coach mentioned Dillingham when expressing his support for Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule, as all three started at their respective schools during the same hiring cycle.

"I have a ton of respect for Matt Rhule," Sanders previously said, via ESPN's Kyle Bonagura. "He's in -- I call it our class of coaches. We all took on a tremendous test last year along with [Arizona State] Coach [Kenny] Dillingham and several others. So, I feel like we're a fraternity. So, I root for that class of head coaches that came in that year."

ESPN's Pete Thamel reported on Tuesday that Arizona State handed Dillingham a new five-year contract that will "put him in the top tier of Big 12 coaching salaries."

Following the Sun Devils' narrow CFP loss, Sanders applauded the effort from his conference foe.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders offered words of encouragement for Ashton Jeanty after the Boise State running back saw his season end Tuesday night.

"Proud of you young man. Your future is as bright as it gets," Sanders wrote on X. "Keep God 1st which I know u will. Dismiss the fools that are negative on every day that ends with a 'Y'. You are HIM my man. Got has u covered. Ashton Jeanty."

Jeanty went for 104 yards on 30 carries as the Broncos lost the Fiesta Bowl, 31-14, to Penn State. In addition to Boise State's dreams of reaching the national championship game disappearing, its best player was unable to break Barry Sanders' single-season rushing record and was just 28 yards short.

Like his fellow Hall of Famer, Barry Sanders praised Jeanty for what was still an incredible season:

Jeanty wound up with 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns on the ground in 14 games this year.

In any general retrospectives on 2024 in college football, he'll undoubtedly occupy a spot because fans were glued to his attempt to chase down the Oklahoma State and Detroit Lions legend. The junior also made Boise State games almost appointment viewing, such was his dominance on the field. He went for 200-plus yards in six of the Broncos' games.

Jeanty's exploits weren't enough to put him over the top in the Heisman Trophy race. He finished runner-up to Colorado's Travis Hunter. While complimentary of the ball-carrier, Coach Prime didn't hide the fact he thought Hunter was a far superior Heisman candidate.

Deion Sanders shut down any rumors that he's trying to influence where his sons, Shedeur and Shilo Sanders, get selected in the 2025 NFL draft.

On social media, Sanders called out "multiple idiots" who "will say things that totally aren't true" about the Colorado head coach.

"It will be multiple IDIOTS that will say things that totally aren't true regarding where I would like (Shedeur) & (Shilo) to play in the (NFL)," Sanders wrote. "If I say it I will say it directly to whom it may concern not a attention seeker. I do know (Roger Goodell) personally!"

Though Sanders claims he won't influence where his sons go in the draft, the Buffaloes head coach previously said he'd step in if Shedeur, Shilo or Travis Hunter were drafted to teams he didn't want them to play for.

"All this is subjective because I know where I kind of want them to go," Sanders said in March. "And let's not forget Shilo (Sanders). But I know where I want them to go. There's certain cities where it ain't going to happen. ...It's going to be an Eli (Manning)."

It's unclear if Sanders still has that thought process, but it could shake things up this draft season if Sanders has a say in where his players will get drafted.

Shedeur is coming off a tremendous final collegiate season at Colorado. He had 4,134 passing yards, 37 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, adding another four scores on the ground.

His outstanding play alongside Hunter led the Buffs to a 9-4 finish.

Bleacher Report's NFL Scouting Department lists Shedeur as the No. 9 overall player in this year's draft class and the second-best quarterback, only behind Miami's Cam Ward.

While Shedeur will certainly be one of the first players of the board, Shilo might fall a bit further. The safety didn't have the same caliber of season, recording 45 tackles, one sack, two passes defended and a forced fumble.