Deion Sanders: Why Pro Football Hall of Famer Is 'Ashamed' of the NFL

By Brian Jones

Deion Sanders has an issue with nearly all of the NFL teams. The Pro Football Hall of Fame cornerback and current head coach of the Colorado Buffaloes went to Twitter over the weekend to congratulate Isaiah Bolden for being the only HBCU player to be drafted this year. But as happy Sanders was for the Jackson State star, he was angry about the other teams not selecting HBCU players. 

"So proud is you [Isaiah Bolden] You deserved to be drafted much higher but I'm truly proud of u," he wrote. "I know how much u want this. I'm ashamed of the 31 other [NFL] teams that couldn't find draft value in ALL of the talented HBCU players & we had 3 more draft worthy players at JSU."  

Sanders previously coached at Jackson State, and Bolden is the second Jackson State player who played under Sanders to be drafted. The other was linebacker James Houston, who was selected by the Detroit Lions in the sixth round last year and finished the season with eight sacks in seven games. Houston was one of four HBCU players to be drafted last year. 

Bolden played cornerback and kick returner for Jackson State and led the nation in kickoff return average at 36.9 yards per attempt in 2021. He was selected by the New England Patriots in the seventh round of the draft. When speaking to reporters Bolden talked about being the only HBCU player to be drafted. 

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"It means a lot to me. Just having that chip on my shoulder, carrying the weight of HBCUs," Bolden said, per the Patriots' official website. "I've got something to prove. There's a lot of talented guys that are out there. I just understand that chip on my shoulder is for all the HBCUs."

There have been more than a handful of HBCU players to not only have success in the NFL, but have made their way to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, including Shannon Sharpe, Richard Dent, Walton Payton, Willie Lanier and Jerry Rice. In 2020, the NFL launched a combined for HBCU players, but the first year of the event was in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to ESPN, 47 HBCU players took part in this year's combine which was attended by all 32 teams. 

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