Cowboys Ex Deion Sanders: 'They're Letting Every Tom, Dick and Harry into the Hall of Fame'
Deion Sanders is the greatest cover cornerback in the history of the NFL, so the former Dallas Cowboys star was an easy call when it came to his induction in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. But for other guys? Arguably lesser guys? Deion thinks the road to Canton has been made too easy.
“It’s so skewed now,'' Sanders said on the Dan Patrick Show. "Once upon a time, a Hall-of-Famer was a player who changed the darn game, who made you want to reach in your pocket and pay your admission to see that guy play. That’s not a Hall-of-Famer anymore. Every Tom, Dick and Harry, you’re a Hall-of-Famer, you’re a Hall-of-Famer, you’re a Hall-of-Famer. They let everybody in this thing.''
This is frankly a weird take for anybody with a Cowboys consciousness who is aware that Jimmy Johnson just made it in (and only due to the special Centennial Class set-up), that Cliff Harris just got in (and had to wait 35 years for induction), and that Drew Pearson still isn't in.
In fact, Deion's remarks mean he is inadvertently campaigning against the induction of any great player who hasn't yet crossed the Canton threshold, a list that would include his own Dallas secondary mate Darren Woodson. (Read my weekend visit with Woodson here.)
How can we argue that it's about figurative "Tom, Dick and Harry'' when it's really about literal Jimmy, Cliff, Drew and Woody?
Nevertheless, Deion thinks the honor, which he received in 2011, is being watered down.
“What is a Hall-of-Famer now? Is it a guy who played a long time?” Sanders said. "It’s not exclusive anymore. And I don’t like it.”
