Is Deion Sanders the best cornerback of alltime? (1 Viewer)

[spider321]

Champ Bailey may not be the best corner in history, but I believe he may be the most underrated corner in history.

He dominated the game(in pass coverage AND run support) for the better part of a decade.

I'd take him over Woodson.(& yes I do remember Woodson in his prime)

 

[Jayrod]

Wasn't there some thread by a FBG staffer where he argued that Deion wasn't just the greatest cornerback of all time, but the greatest football player of all time?

 

[Jayrod]

Wasn't there some thread by a FBG staffer where he argued that Deion wasn't just the greatest cornerback of all time, but the greatest football player of all time?

OK, not a staffer but Raidernation. Still, it has been stipulated 'round here before.Despite the fact that that it looks like I'm defending him, LHUCKS is a doofus.

 

[Jake22]

I never seen Woodson hit a HR or steal a base.

Umm, I never seen Sanders qualify for 100M hurdles for the 84' Olympic trials either like Woodson did, yes he was that good, he was one of the best hurdlers in the country when he got drafted by the Steelers, he even used it as leverage to get more money when he turned down several offers before signing...

 

[Hooper31]

Best of his generation? Sure. Best ever? IMO best CB was Mel Blount. Don't you usually keep your fishing trips restricted to the FFA? You throw out some totally subjective opinion and belittle anyone that disagrees. Rinse/repeat.

48% of those that have voted agree with me...acehardly a fishing trip

Ace? Par for the course I guess.

 

[Hoss_Cartwright]

Best of his generation? Sure. Best ever? IMO best CB was Mel Blount. Don't you usually keep your fishing trips restricted to the FFA? You throw out some totally subjective opinion and belittle anyone that disagrees. Rinse/repeat.

48% of those that have voted agree with me...acehardly a fishing trip

Ace? Par for the course I guess.

the ol ace card, lol.

 

[Jules Winnfield]

**** "Night Train" Lane

#1 of all time

 

[daveR]

Loved him & voted "yes" in the poll, but Revis might just be a better "cover" corner.

 

[spider321]

...but Revis might just be a better "cover" corner.

Um, no.

 

[cobalt_27]

Best ever without a doubt. Certainly best cover corner there was. Folks who dismiss him because of his lack of run-stopping abilities is like complaining the Manning and Brady aren't Michael Vick or Steve Young on their feet. But, in terms of swallowing up a third of the field, there was nobody who ever did it better than Sanders.

And then factor in what he did in the kick return game...he was a devastating weapon, particularly during his Dallas years.

 

[jon_mx]

Things that Woodson did significantly better.....tackling, sacks, forcing fumbles. Woodson for instance forced 27 fumbles vs. 10 for Dion.

Dion was a far superior kick returning, but also had a tendency to fumble. Dion lost 10 fumbles over his career vs. 2 for Woodson. But then he scored 9 TDs off his returns. A bit surprisingly though Woodson had more TDs after interceptions, 10 vs. 9.

Overall, I think Woodson did more for the team in creating turnovers and tackling and not putting the ball on the carpet. I don't see his better cover skills and return skills quite make up for that.

 

[Premier]

I love the shtick of throwing out a subjective question "who would OC's prefer to face", then acting like you have the definite answer, then acting arrogant about it.

 

[Drunken Cowboy]

I agree with gandalas, probably the best pure cover corner ever. That said, I would rather have had Rod Woodson if I was a Def Coordinator...much more versatile and I don't think the drop-off as a cover corner was enough to be a deal breaker.

Who did offensive coordinators fear more, Sanders or Woodson?the answer is obvious

The answer is not obvious.If you would have asked OC's in the 90's, you probably would have got a nearly 50-50 split. If you had asked QB's, all would rather face Deon.I am not old enough to remember Blount in his prime, but people in Pittsburgh who are and have watched him and Woodson both a lot will tell you he was better than Woodson.

 

[Phantom Knight]

Rod Woodson. He could cover, got INTs, played the run, blitzed, and was a great return man early on as well.

would offensive coordinators prefer to play against Woodson or Sanders??/thread

I'm not an offensive coordinator. But Deon you can negate by either not throwing in his direction or you can just run at him. Woodson didn't have a weakness and did everything at an all-pro level. You can't throw at him (71 INTs --12 for TDs which is the NFL record). You can't run at him. And you have to pay attention to him at the line because he might come take your QBs head off.

Eggsactly. Not to belittle Deion by any means. Certainly he is one of the all-time greats. But any good OC is looking for weak links in the defense. Don't think Belichek would develop a game plan to take advantage of Deion's short comings? You can beat a team in the air or on the ground. If not, how did Deion's teams ever lose? While Deion's electrifying plays are memorable and even game changing, they are not something you can count on week in and week out. For my money, I'd look to someone who had no weakness and played all aspects of his position to a high level.On a slightly different topic... yes, Deion may very well be the all-time best KR among those who also played corner. HOWEVER, that has absolutely nothing, zero, nada to do with his rating as a corner. If you want to talk about who is the greatest all-time KR, fine. But do not use his prowess in that capacity to bolster arguments about his play as a corner.

 

[Truman]

Rod Woodson. He could cover, got INTs, played the run, blitzed, and was a great return man early on as well.

would offensive coordinators prefer to play against Woodson or Sanders??/thread

I'm not an offensive coordinator. But Deon you can negate by either not throwing in his direction or you can just run at him. Woodson didn't have a weakness and did everything at an all-pro level. You can't throw at him (71 INTs --12 for TDs which is the NFL record). You can't run at him. And you have to pay attention to him at the line because he might come take your QBs head off.

Eggsactly. Not to belittle Deion by any means. Certainly he is one of the all-time greats. But any good OC is looking for weak links in the defense. Don't think Belichek would develop a game plan to take advantage of Deion's short comings? You can beat a team in the air or on the ground. If not, how did Deion's teams ever lose? While Deion's electrifying plays are memorable and even game changing, they are not something you can count on week in and week out. For my money, I'd look to someone who had no weakness and played all aspects of his position to a high level.On a slightly different topic... yes, Deion may very well be the all-time best KR among those who also played corner. HOWEVER, that has absolutely nothing, zero, nada to do with his rating as a corner. If you want to talk about who is the greatest all-time KR, fine. But do not use his prowess in that capacity to bolster arguments about his play as a corner.

Jesus christ. No OC who ever lived ever gameplanned against a corners run coverage deficiencies. That is so irrelevant to the position to the point of being laughable.

 

[jon_mx]

Jesus christ. No OC who ever lived ever gameplanned against a corners run coverage deficiencies. That is so irrelevant to the position to the point of being laughable.

An extra 2 or 3 tackles a game is significant, add in a couple extra forced fumbles a season, plus a sack here and there and it is hardly irrelevant. Woodson had to be accounted for on all plays.

 

[Arizona Ron]

F the stats. Prime Time changed the dynamic of the game when he was on the field.

 

[Jayrod]

F the stats. Prime Time changed the dynamic of the game when he was on the field.

Stats are the most irrelevant to CB's because what happens when you are great at it? You get zero stats because your man is never considered open.

Deion's greatest skill was trying to make it look like the WR was open and then making the pick. He started the whole technique of baiting the QB.

tGOATCB

 

[pantherclub]

Wasnt there a notorious play of Sanders when he was in the playoffs with Dallas (I think it was Dallas) when a running back turned the corner and Sanders appeared to get set to hit him and then he literally jumped out of bounds away from the full throttled running back. I remember seeing that clip over and over.

I will check youtube

 

[cobalt_27]

F the stats. Prime Time changed the dynamic of the game when he was on the field.

The guy above who pointed out that Woodson had to be accounted for on every play? The fact that Deion saw so few targets speaks to how not only accounted for him, but altered entire gameplans when he was on the field.

 

[jon_mx]

F the stats. Prime Time changed the dynamic of the game when he was on the field.

Stats are the most irrelevant to CB's because what happens when you are great at it? You get zero stats because your man is never considered open.

Deion's greatest skill was trying to make it look like the WR was open and then making the pick. He started the whole technique of baiting the QB.

tGOATCB

Lem Barney was doing that decades before Deion arrived on the scene.

 

[pantherclub]

Sanders was the best pure cover corner I have ever seen.

 

[Master of Past and Present]

For those talking about Woodson and his stats, it seems you are including his years at FS. Is that really relevant in a conversation about conerback? That would take out 24 INTs and 5 INT Return TDs. Seems his cornerback stats are at 47 INTS and 7 INT Return TDs and not 71/12.

 

[Space_Case]

noone has ever had his closing speed on the ball

Darrell Green?

I second the Darrell Green vote. The guy played 20 years and could probably still give wide receivers trouble.Linking to a litle more information on Green: http://www.theredskinreport.com/2008/02/01/darrell-green-the-obvious-choice/

 

[ConnSKINS26]

Third for Green. Dude just ran a 4.4 40 at 50 years old, and played for 20 years.

 

[jurb26]

For those talking about Woodson and his stats, it seems you are including his years at FS. Is that really relevant in a conversation about conerback? That would take out 24 INTs and 5 INT Return TDs. Seems his cornerback stats are at 47 INTS and 7 INT Return TDs and not 71/12.

I would say the FS stats should be held separate. Those stats are a strong argument for Woodson the football player, but this discussion is only about playing CB.

 

[cobalt_27]

Third for Green. Dude just ran a 4.4 40 at 50 years old, and played for 20 years.

Yeah, I think it's pretty clear that 47% vote Sanders as best CB ever, and 53% say it's one of a bunch of other guys (e.g., Woodson, Green, Lane, etc.).

 

[Tau837]

Different defenses require different skill sets from their players in order to work well.

Some defenses require cornerbacks to play strong run defense, like the Tampa Two defense. Ronde Barber will make the HOF because his skill set was a great fit for that defense, and he played cornerback in that defense very well for a long time. But other defenses don't require strong run defense from the corners. Similarly, some defenses call for corner blitzes more often than others.

A good defensive coordinator will plan his defense to take advantage of the strengths of his players, particularly his best players. There have been a lot of cornerbacks who have been good blitzers, good tacklers, and good in run defense. There have been plenty who have been good in coverage. Woodson is a great example of a player who was great at everything required of a cornerback.

But Deion's skill set was the most unique of any cornerback I have seen. Where he may not have been a good blitzer or tackler (though I personally think his lack of tackling ability is overstated), he was the best cover corner I have ever seen, and IMO probably the best of all time when all factors are taken into account. For example, while Blount and Night Train Lane were great cover corners for their era, the rules were much more favorable for defensive backs in their eras than in Deion's era. Passing games were also less sophisticated in their eras compared to Deion's.

Most importantly is the fact that in Deion's prime, his teams could game plan for him to take a WR on one side of the field with no help for the entire game. I am literally not aware of any other player being given that type of responsibility, at least not in a passing era such as the one Deion played in. That was an incredible luxury for Deion's defensive coordinators. And, while LHUCKS' schtick about offensive coordinators is annoying, I think there is truth to the fact that it caused offensive coordinators to game plan differently than they did against other great corners.

Some people have posted in this and other threads that Rice had big games against Deion, but that is misleading. He had big games against Deion's teams. But it has been quoted in past Deion threads that the 49ers rarely deployed Rice on Deion's side of the field; they moved him to the other side. That may not have stopped a great like Rice, but it gave the defense a better chance of stopping him, since they could guarantee that he was either matched up against Deion or against double coverage on the other side most of the time.

Woodson was a great cover corner. Darrell Green was a great cover corner. Revis is a great cover corner. Champ was a great cover corner. Asomugha is a really good cover corner, although IMO a bit overrated. But Deion was in another tier above them, and IMO there is no one else in that tier.

And here's the thing. As a defensive coordinator, you can design your defense so that cover skills are all that matter to successfully play a corner position... so that tackling and blitzing are virtually irrelevant. That's what Deion's DCs did. And that's why his play at corner was the best ever.

 

[daveR]

...but Revis might just be a better "cover" corner.

Um, no.

It's really, REALLY tough to say for sure, given the limited amount of coverage we see on TV, but I'm sticking to my guns on this one. Revis is phenomenal!

 

[Tau837]

...but Revis might just be a better "cover" corner.

Um, no.

It's really, REALLY tough to say for sure, given the limited amount of coverage we see on TV, but I'm sticking to my guns on this one. Revis is phenomenal!

It's really not tough to say for sure. Revis is great, but not on Deion's level in coverage.

 

[Tau837]

One thing I didn't see mentioned is Sanders' string of dominance in All Pro selections:

1991 - 2nd team All Pro

1992 - 1st team All Pro

1993 - 1st team All Pro

1994 - 1st team All Pro

1996 - 1st team All Pro

1997 - 1st team All Pro

1998 - 1st team All Pro

1999 - 2nd team All Pro

The only year he didn't make it in that 9 year stretch is 1995, when he missed the first 7 games of the season due to arthroscopic surgery.

For people bringing up other names, did those players show that level of dominance? I doubt it. Woodson was close, but "only" made 1st team All Pro 4 times as a corner. Willie Brown made 1st team 5 times as a corner. I'm not aware of anyone other than Deion who made it 6 times. Some guys cited in this thread, like Darrell Green and Mel Blount, weren't close.

 

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

I agree with gandalas, probably the best pure cover corner ever. That said, I would rather have had Rod Woodson if I was a Def Coordinator...much more versatile and I don't think the drop-off as a cover corner was enough to be a deal breaker.

Who did offensive coordinators fear more, Sanders or Woodson?the answer is obvious

Didn't bother them in the least to run at Sanders and they also weren't worrying about the blitz coming from him, I am sure they were more worried about an interception...which is why I said I don't think the drop-off (hence saying there is one) as a cover corner was enough to be a deal breaker.I don't think the answer is quite as obvious as you.

Really wish somebody would post the video of Sanders destroying Stephen Davis in the backfield. Deion could tackle. He was pretty big for a corner. He just didn't want to make tackle when he could just run the guy down or hold him for somebody else.

 

[beerbarron]

Just Win Baby

Most importantly is the fact that in Deion's prime, his teams could game plan for him to take a WR on one side of the field with no help for the entire game. I am literally not aware of any other player being given that type of responsibility, at least not in a passing era such as the one Deion played in. That was an incredible luxury for Deion's defensive coordinators. And, while LHUCKS' schtick about offensive coordinators is annoying, I think there is truth to the fact that it caused offensive coordinators to game plan differently than they did against other great corners.

Was Deion so dominant that he changed the NFL rulebook? No..

Was Deion a threat coming off the edge to sack the QB.. which at times is a bigger play than a pass defended..

Only one corner was so dominant the National Football League had to change its rulebook.

I think many people think a CB is all about pass coverage, which Deion probably was the best, but every so often a CB will need to tackle someone, blitz the QB etc.. so Deion.. not the greatest CornerBack ever... Being vastly superior in one phase of a position does not eliminate inferior tackling and blitzig skills....

It seems most people loved Deion as an entertainer and icon and forget about his "business decision's" to turn into the tackling matador.. Ole'

... and just because Troy Aikman says so is no basis for a best ever arguement..

 

[LHUCKS]

Third for Green. Dude just ran a 4.4 40 at 50 years old, and played for 20 years.

Link?

 

[Drunken Cowboy]

One thing I didn't see mentioned is Sanders' string of dominance in All Pro selections:1991 - 2nd team All Pro1992 - 1st team All Pro1993 - 1st team All Pro1994 - 1st team All Pro1996 - 1st team All Pro1997 - 1st team All Pro1998 - 1st team All Pro1999 - 2nd team All ProThe only year he didn't make it in that 9 year stretch is 1995, when he missed the first 7 games of the season due to arthroscopic surgery.For people bringing up other names, did those players show that level of dominance? I doubt it. Woodson was close, but "only" made 1st team All Pro 4 times as a corner. Willie Brown made 1st team 5 times as a corner. I'm not aware of anyone other than Deion who made it 6 times. Some guys cited in this thread, like Darrell Green and Mel Blount, weren't close.

Woodson and Deon have the same number of All Pro selections 6 1st team and 2 second team.

 

[jon_mx]

Really wish somebody would post the video of Sanders destroying Stephen Davis in the backfield. Deion could tackle. He was pretty big for a corner. He just didn't want to make tackle when he could just run the guy down or hold him for somebody else.

The only one I could find is Hunter Smith destroying Deion.

 

[ConnSKINS26]

Third for Green. Dude just ran a 4.4 40 at 50 years old, and played for 20 years.

Link?

Here you go. Bleacher report, but a quick google search will show you that it's backed up by real sources all over the place. Played CB until he was 43, for 20 years. Then ran a 4.43 on his 50th birthday.http://m.bleacherreport.com/articles/346647-darrell-green-50-yrs-old-443-40#

 

[massraider]

As an overall CB, Woodson was better. The fact that he moved to safety, and played great there, says a lot about his overall game.

If I was the GM, and I was choosing between the two, I take Deion. I would then instruct him that if he sees the QB hand the ball off, he should immediately run off the field, so as not to get hurt.

JMO, but Woodson being a better tackler doesn't make him more valuable to me. Hines Ward wasn't a better WR than Randy Moss because he was a better blocker.

I want the impact plays that Deion made. In the passing game, I want the field cut by a third, just because Deion is out there. He wasn't the best shutdown corner of all-time, he is the ONLY shutdown corner of all-time, in the strict sense of the term. THe only one. I never saw Night Train play (heck, neither has any of you), or Mel Blount, but sorry, I am not trying to hear about CBs that played when there were WRs that ran 4.7, and RBs that ran 4.8, or 4.9.

How many of Sanders' teammates would get an INT, and frantically look around the field, looking to lateral the ball to Prime Time? It happened all the time, and I can only remember that happening since with Ed Reed, who wasn't even close to as electric as Deion. Rod Woodson can stop a RB on the corner better than Deion. Deion can make a play that completely changes the fabric of a game better than Woodson. When I was a kid, watching these amazing athletes in the NFL with awe, that's the way they looked at Deion. I want those guys.

And I don't know who decided that we can't include special teams play in evaluation of these guys, but I am going to. Have a feeling if Woodson was the best ST gunner of all-time, it might be brought up. Forget the silly returns of Deion, like his VERY FIRST one ever

, and remember the times punters shanked it out of bounds, getting 25-30 net yards, and being congratulated by the coaches for doing it. Check those highlights from his Atlanta days. My favorite is when accelerates away from the pursuit, while high-stepping. Memories fade, and people forget how great certain players were. I don't care if Darrell Green hops out of his coffin in 60 years, and runs a 4.2, Deion was the fastest guy on the field, every time he played. Darrell Revis is going to have to do it better and longer for me to consider him Deion's equal as a cover man.

 

[Tau837]

One thing I didn't see mentioned is Sanders' string of dominance in All Pro selections:

1991 - 2nd team All Pro

1992 - 1st team All Pro

1993 - 1st team All Pro

1994 - 1st team All Pro

1996 - 1st team All Pro

1997 - 1st team All Pro

1998 - 1st team All Pro

1999 - 2nd team All Pro

The only year he didn't make it in that 9 year stretch is 1995, when he missed the first 7 games of the season due to arthroscopic surgery.

For people bringing up other names, did those players show that level of dominance? I doubt it. Woodson was close, but "only" made 1st team All Pro 4 times as a corner. Willie Brown made 1st team 5 times as a corner. I'm not aware of anyone other than Deion who made it 6 times. Some guys cited in this thread, like Darrell Green and Mel Blount, weren't close.

Woodson and Deon have the same number of All Pro selections 6 1st team and 2 second team.

One of Woodson's 1st team All Pro selections was as a kick returner, and another of his 1st team selections was as a free safety. Woodson only made 2nd team All Pro once (using AP selections), and it was as a free safety. As I stated in the post you quoted, Woodson "only" made it 4 times as a cornerback.Like I said, I am not aware of any player other than Deion making 1st team All Pro 6 times as a cornerback. Nor am I aware of any player other than Deion making 1st or 2nd team All Pro 8 times as a cornerback.

 

[PizzaDeliveryGuy]

Unless you are a punter or kicker, you can't be the best ever at any position in football if you are scared of contact.

 

[matuski]

I agree with gandalas, probably the best pure cover corner ever. That said, I would rather have had Rod Woodson if I was a Def Coordinator...much more versatile and I don't think the drop-off as a cover corner was enough to be a deal breaker.

Or Charles Woodson although Deion did have a good return game too.He doesn't have any of these recordsInterceptionsMost seasons leading league: 3, Everson Walls, 1981–82, 1985; Ed Reed, 2004, 2008, 2010Most interceptions in a career: 81, Paul Krause, Washington, 1964–67; Minnesota, 1968–1979Most interceptions in a season: 14, **** "Night Train" Lane, Los Angeles Rams, 1952Most interceptions in a season by a rookie: 14, **** "Night Train" Lane, Los Angeles Rams, 1952Most interceptions in a game: 4, 20 Players (most recent, DeAngelo Hall, Washington Redskins, October 24, 2010Most interceptions in a half: 4, DeAngelo Hall, Washington Redskins, October 24, 2010Most consecutive games with an interception: 8, Tom Morrow, 1962–63Most consecutive seasons with an interception: 19, Darrell Green, Washington Redskins, 1983–2001[edit]Interception return yardsMost seasons leading league 3, Darren Sharper, 2002, 2005, 2009Most career yards returned after an interception: 1,483, Rod Woodson, 1987–2003Most interception yards returned in a season: 376, Darren Sharper, New Orleans Saints, 2009[13]Most interception yards returned in a season by a rookie: 301, Don Doll, Detroit Lions, 1949Most interceptions yards gained in a game: 177, Charlie McNeil, San Diego Chargers vs. Houston Oilers, Sept 24, 1961Longest interception return: 108 yards , Ed Reed, Baltimore Ravens vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Nov. 23, 2008[edit]Interception return touchdownsMost career interceptions returned for touchdowns: 12, Rod Woodson, 1987–2003Most interceptions returned for touchdowns in a season: 4, Ken Houston, Houston Oilers, 1971; Jim Kearney, Kansas City Chiefs, 1972; Eric Allen, Philadelphia Eagles, 1993Most interceptions returned for touchdowns in a rookie season 3 Lem Barney 1967, Ronnie Lott 1981Most interceptions returned for touchdowns in a game: 2, 26 Players (most recent, David Bowens, Cleveland Browns vs New Orleans Saints, October 24, 2010)

Stats tend not to tell the story where corners are concerned. A lack of stats often says more in the case of the elite.

 

[johnadams]

I'm starting to think that Deion might be the most overrated player of all time giving how many people are giving way too much to him. I saw a lot of Deion and never thought of him as a shutdown corner. The best playmaker at the position of all time? Yes. The best cover guy? Not a chance. The niners made a habit of going right at Deion in almost game they played against them. Look at Jerry Rice's utter ownage of Deion. Here are a few of the games that Rice lit up Deion.

3 catches, 81 yds, 2 TDs

8, 171, 1

13, 225, 5 (Not a typo. Five TDs. Versus Deion.)

7, 138, 1

6, 105, 0

Doesn't look like anyone was avoiding Deion in SF or that he shut anyone down. And there's more from other games. Irvin torched him a few times as well.

You can say that Rice wasn't Deion's responsibility, but that's a cop out. If you're the GOAT, you better act it by taking on the best and shutting them down.

 

[Manster]

Im not sure you can compare a guy like Mel Blount and Primetime.

Blount was a physical beast and changed the game and the rules.

Deion was so dam quick, and his closing speed was unreal. In his prime(time) nobody would throw to his side, and when they did he picked it off or defended it.

I like tough guys. It used to drive me crazy when Neon Deion would let up when he had a tackling op. I was always taught in sports that you dont give up on a play, and you played tough, period. Of course nobody i played with was half the athlete Deion was. In hindsight i understand why he let up. his value was in his speed. He gets banged up, he's not "primetime".

 

[Manster]

I'm starting to think that Deion might be the most overrated player of all time giving how many people are giving way too much to him. I saw a lot of Deion and never thought of him as a shutdown corner. The best playmaker at the position of all time? Yes. The best cover guy? Not a chance. The niners made a habit of going right at Deion in almost game they played against them. Look at Jerry Rice's utter ownage of Deion. Here are a few of the games that Rice lit up Deion.

3 catches, 81 yds, 2 TDs

8, 171, 1

13, 225, 5 (Not a typo. Five TDs. Versus Deion.)

7, 138, 1

6, 105, 0

Doesn't look like anyone was avoiding Deion in SF or that he shut anyone down. And there's more from other games. Irvin torched him a few times as well.You can say that Rice wasn't Deion's responsibility, but that's a cop out. If you're the GOAT, you better act it by taking on the best and shutting them down.

ok, but you're talking about two HOF WR's, on great teams. one of them the best WR of all time. IMO, these are outliers for Deions career.FWIW, I'm not a big Deion fan, never was. BUT, I watched him pretty closely when he was with Dallas. He was the epitome of a shutdown corner.

 

[spider321]

I'm starting to think that Deion might be the most overrated player of all time giving how many people are giving way too much to him. I saw a lot of Deion and never thought of him as a shutdown corner. The best playmaker at the position of all time? Yes. The best cover guy? Not a chance. The niners made a habit of going right at Deion in almost game they played against them. Look at Jerry Rice's utter ownage of Deion. Here are a few of the games that Rice lit up Deion. 3 catches, 81 yds, 2 TDs8, 171, 113, 225, 5 (Not a typo. Five TDs. Versus Deion.)7, 138, 16, 105, 0Doesn't look like anyone was avoiding Deion in SF or that he shut anyone down. And there's more from other games. Irvin torched him a few times as well.You can say that Rice wasn't Deion's responsibility, but that's a cop out. If you're the GOAT, you better act it by taking on the best and shutting them down.

Deion had a bad habit of calling out Rice before they played one another.I recall one time before their matchup where Deion was calling himself the best cornerback of all-time and he talked about how he was gonna shut down Rice.A day or two later, Rice was being interviewed and was told about Deion's comments. Rice, in the only time I EVER heard him trash talk said, "Yes, Deion is the best corner ever, he just can't cover me."When game day finally came the first 3 or 4 plays were ALL completed passes to Jerry. Deion was actually moved to the other side of the field for the next play to get away from Rice. On the play after that, the 49er receivers went in motion and swapped sides to put Deion on Jerry again. You guessed it, another reception for Jerry.I never heard Deion say that he could shut down Jerry Rice after that game.

 

[sn0mm1s]

Just Win BabyMost importantly is the fact that in Deion's prime, his teams could game plan for him to take a WR on one side of the field with no help for the entire game. I am literally not aware of any other player being given that type of responsibility, at least not in a passing era such as the one Deion played in. That was an incredible luxury for Deion's defensive coordinators. And, while LHUCKS' schtick about offensive coordinators is annoying, I think there is truth to the fact that it caused offensive coordinators to game plan differently than they did against other great corners. Was Deion so dominant that he changed the NFL rulebook? No.. Was Deion a threat coming off the edge to sack the QB.. which at times is a bigger play than a pass defended.. Only one corner was so dominant the National Football League had to change its rulebook.I think many people think a CB is all about pass coverage, which Deion probably was the best, but every so often a CB will need to tackle someone, blitz the QB etc.. so Deion.. not the greatest CornerBack ever... Being vastly superior in one phase of a position does not eliminate inferior tackling and blitzig skills....It seems most people loved Deion as an entertainer and icon and forget about his "business decision's" to turn into the tackling matador.. Ole'... and just because Troy Aikman says so is no basis for a best ever arguement..

Mugging a receiver downfield isn't difficult to do. I am sure I could find some horse collar tackles the year before it was deemed illegal - that wouldn't mean those players that used it were great. Similarly, the head slap by Deacon Jones wasn't anything special - any modern player could do it. If anything being dominant once those techniques were banned should be more impressive than getting a rule created for using something considered illegal now.

 

[BigSteelThrill]

ALL time?

ALL time?

You mean like 50's 60's and 70s?

To be the best of ALL time, you would have to be able to survive playing in the other areas.

Have a hard time for any modern day specialists who are "soft" that would literally get broken on the field.

As unfair as it may be... Deion cant make the claim as the best cornerback of ALL time.

 

[kinglochness]

Aikman once said deion was "the only shutdown corner I have ever seen". That's coming from a guy that played with him and against him throughout his career. Deion's philosophy was he wouldn't ever have to tackle anyone if he just never let anyone catch the ball. He was a liability in the run game. But at the point when teams just don't throw the ball to your side of the field, I think you have made up for any weaknesses in your game. I won't say greatest of all time, but greatest I've ever seen. And I'm 30.

 

[ShaqAttaq]

 

[AmosMoses]

This sounds something like the Barry vs Emmitt talk. One guy is great at one thing, not so much at others. The other guy (or other guys) do everything quite well. I'd rather have Woodson or Blount than Sanders on my team.