If This is the Second Generation of “Neon Deion” Sanders, Imagine the Third

Well off? Sure. But that’s about it.

NFL Hall of Fame superstar Deion “Prime Time” Sanders is, without question, one of the greatest athletes of all time. Most people would agree with that assertion, but there may be no one on earth who’d agree with it more vehemently than the man himself.

And why not? Neon Deion has got a lot to hang his hat on in terms of accomplishments.

At his Florida high school, Sanders was All-State in football, baseball, and basketball. At Florida State he was a standout star in football and baseball, not to mention track and field, which won a conference championship with him.

It costs a lot of money to look that stupid.
I’d imagine.

Sanders was drafted by the Falcons in the first round of the 1989 NFL Draft and went on to play 15 epic years in the league, winning two Super Bowls, one with the Cowboys and one with the 49ers, along the way.

He was also named to the NFL’s 1990s All-Decade Team. Pretty impressive stuff.

And it’s not like he spent his off seasons relaxing at the beach or frequently getting arrested, which is the hobby of many NFL players these days. Sanders kept busy with a little hobby of his: A part-time career in MLB that lasted just under a decade.

But for all that success, it wasn’t always easy to like Sanders throughout his career. Everything he posessed in physical ability, he lacked in humility. At any given time his “me first” attitude ranged from mildly irritating to downright loathsome.

The thing about Sanders though, was that he earned all of it. He was the best at everything, a hard worker, and a good teammate. So if he wanted walk around with 30 pounds worth of gold chains hanging from his neck and diamond dollar sign earrings—whatever.

Love him or hate him, he earned it all.

What’s unfortunate is that he raised his kids, Deion Jr. and Deiondra, naturally, to believe they’ve earned the same things. But it’s been becoming increasingly clear the only thing their dad passed down to them is his sense of entitlement and desire for the limelight.

The two of them have made headlines in the past for engaging in very unpleasant, very public, and very unnecessary exchanges regarding the exceptionally messy divorce of their father and stepmother, Pilar. Not usually the kind of family dirty laundry one would air on Twitter.

But it probably seems like the obvious place for that sort of thing for two teenagers who co-starred in Deion Sr.’s now defunct reality show, Deion & Pilar: Prime Time Love—which should have been shelved for a few years and documented their divorce instead. Maybe someone would’ve watched that.

Deion Jr. has actually been attempting to follow in his father’s football footsteps, although he wasn’t nearly good enough to get into a top program. At least he’s living large at SMU, recently boasting about his Versace bedsheets via Twitter.

In a 2012 interview Deion Sr. refused to answer questions about his son’s “dream schools,” explaining that his son was going to earn his way in the world, being rewarded based on his own merit and hard work. Surely that’s how he earned those $1,000 bed sheets—hard work and merit.

As for Deiondra? Well besides saying hateful things on Twitter, she’s also got her own thing going on. In 2011 a graphic topless photo of her was “leaked” online—you’ll have to Google it though, because it’s so NSFW that we can’t, in good conscience, link to it here. A line has to be drawn somewhere, right?

And in 2013 she decided to become a professional athlete too! By joining an upstart Bikini Basketball League. Maybe someday she’ll be inducted into the bikini sports hall of fame that doesn’t exist.

Their futures are so bright, these kids gotta borrow their dad’s diamond studded shades.

What’s really unfortunate here is that this is only going to get worse with each passing generation. If you’ve ever seen the 90s classic Multiplicity, you know exactly what I’m talking about. We’re already three Michael Keatons in to this situation—including grandpa Sanders. Which means the situation is already dire.

A disconcerting situation, indeed.

You know what happens with the fourth. And if you don’t, you should really go watch that movie right now because it was awesome.