Reaction to Deion Sanders Tweet about players opting out
By Kelvin Hunt
FSU football legend and NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders gave his thoughts on players deciding to opt-out of playing due to COVID-19 concerns.
Deion Sanders has never been one to bite his tongue if he believes something, and that continued to be the case Friday.
Several players in the NFL, college football, MLB, and the NBA have decided to opt-out of the season due to concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic.
The concerns are valid despite the amount of money the athletes are getting paid since no one knows the long-term effects of the virus.
Deion Sanders caught a lot of heat for this tweet below:
All Players OPTING out in all sports PLEASE BELIEVE the game will go on without u. This is a business & don’t u EVER forget that. There’s NO ONE that’s bigger than the game itself. Only the ref,umps & officials are that important that u can’t play without them. NOT YOU! #Truth
— COACH PRIME (@DeionSanders) August 7, 2020
A lot of people thought the tweet was unnecessary or insensitive to the situation and voiced their displeasure on social media. I think both sentiments can be true here. He probably could have phrased it better, but then we’re talking about Deion Sanders, who never bites his tongue.
However, he’s right in the sense a player could decide to sit out this season and lose their spot to someone else. This could be the case with college players who may not be sure-fire starters or underclassmen not eligible for the NFL Draft next year. We’ve seen it time and time again. It’s not the same circumstance, but the Tom Brady era in New England began when Drew Bledsoe got injured.
Will the players that opt-out continue to adhere by the strict protocols implemented by the their respective leagues? If not, they are still going to be at risk of catching the virus. Frankly, everyone is going to be at risk no matter how careful they are at this point.
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It’s a gamble either way, but ultimately the player has the decision to make for themselves, and they have to do what they believe is best for them. No one should be criticized for doing that.