Deion Sanders finished his career in Washington, and inside that locker room he was a proven pro. Champ Bailey now recalls what it was like sharing space with the NFL icon, revealing a side of Deion Sanders fans rarely saw. From film sessions to pregame routines, Deion Sanders carried himself like a veteran who had already seen it all.
According to Bailey, even when Deion looked asleep, he was locked in, listening, and ready. The legend’s pretence to be asleep when the coach was addressing him made everyone in the locker room laugh.
Deion Sanders Locker Room Stories
Champ Bailey says Deion wasn’t just a legend on the field, but a pure entertainment behind the scenes.
“You know what’s funny, our coach. Our coach was Ron Meeks. Every time Deion would fall asleep in the meeting and boy, Meeks would be all over,” said Champ, noting how Deion Sanders used to make them laugh in the locker room back in the day.
According to Champ, Deion had a rare talent. He could fall asleep anywhere, anytime even mid-conversation.
“He was the type, you could be talking to him for a second, and the next thing you know his eyes closed. And Deion would act like he was awake the whole time,” added Champ.
And Deion didn’t just pretend. He committed to the act: “Yeah, yeah, yeah. He just ran the over. I just saw it it just ran.”
Champ says that routine had the whole room cracking up. “It just used to have us dying because we all knew they was bullshit each other,” Champ recalled.
Film sessions were no different. If the coach rewound a play where Deion got beat, Sanders had one response. “When Deion got beat on a route, he just be like, ‘why you keep rewinding?’”
Champ remembered one moment involving a young player who caught Deion on a post route: “He got Deion on a post and Deion just kind of let it go.”
And Deion Sanders made it clear he wasn’t about to give the rookie his big moment. “I can’t do nothing about that. I ain’t about to be on this joker highlight tape.”
But the coach wasn’t letting it slide: “The Coach kept rewinding that tape to get back at Deion.”
Champ summed it up simply: “Cuz they both got big egos.”
And somehow, through all of it, the jokes, the film sessions, the back-and-forth, Deion still found a way to do what he did best. Funny enough, Deion Sanders slept.
In a locker room full of intensity, pressure, and pride, Deion Sanders stayed exactly who he was, a Hall of Famer with superstar confidence, a sharp football mind, and a sense of humor that kept everyone loose. Even when his eyes were closed, Prime Time was always part of the moment.
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