Key Takeaways Sanders attempted to play in both an NFL and MLB game in one day, which required extensive planning.
He managed to make it to both games with the help of Nike, but ultimately didn’t play in the MLB game.
Sanders’ effort to play two sports in one day fell short, resulting in disappointment despite support from his teams.
When it comes to two-sport stars of the 1980s and 1990s — heck, maybe even of all time — just two names come to mind. Those names are Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders.
While both men excelled at both baseball and football, Sanders did something Kansas City Royals hall of famer Bo Jackson never did — he attempted to play in both an MLB and NFL game on the same day.
This is the sort of thing kids dream about. In the morning, they’re Michael Jordan on the basketball court, and in the afternoon, they’re Deion Sanders on the football field. I’m a kid, still.
Let’s go back to when Primetime almost made this a reality by attempting to play a game for the Atlanta Falcons , then suiting up for the Atlanta Braves.
Related Why Deion Sanders Will be Coaching the Dallas Cowboys in 2025 Would Prime Time return to Dallas to coach his former team? Don’t count out that possibility.
Deion Sanders’ Plan to Make History
Sanders’ attempt to play in two games required a lot of planning.
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The baseball and football seasons overlap, of course, with the NFL’s regular season typically starting in early September and MLB’s regular season typically ending in late September or early October, with the playoffs starting immediately after.
Sanders played for the Atlanta Braves during their run of regular-season dominance — though they won just one World Series title, the Braves qualified for the postseason every year between 1991 and 2004. The only year in which the Braves weren’t in the postseason was 1994, when a players’ strike scuttled the season.
Sanders had played a part in the Braves’ playoff run in 1991, but he had to leave the team late in the season to play football for the Atlanta Falcons. His contract stipulated that he couldn’t play for the Braves once the NFL preseason began.
That changed in 1992 after Sanders had his Braves’ contract reworked in such a way that it would end up allowing him to play for the Braves should they make the playoffs again.
GIVEMESPORT Key Stat: Sanders recorded three interceptions in the 1992 season and was a First-Team All-Pro, while batting .304 for the Braves.
Which, of course, they did. And that’s when the confusion began.
Sanders and the Braves GM worked out a deal that would allow Sanders to play home games with the Braves, but he would practice with the Falcons in the morning and play in the Falcons’ NFL games. It was initially unclear what would happen if the Braves made the playoffs.
With that clarity lacking and the Braves playing the Pittsburgh Pirates in the National League Championship Series (NLCS), Sanders faced a choice.
He couldn’t be in two places at once. Initially, he chose the Braves, even though it meant missing practice with the Falcons in the lead-up to their game against the Miami Dolphins on October 11.
Further complicating matters — both Atlanta teams would be on the road. The Braves would be in Pittsburgh for Game 5, while the Falcons’ game would kick off at 1 p.m. eastern time in Miami.
In theory, Sanders could play in the Falcons’ game on Sunday afternoon and then fly to Pittsburgh in time for the Braves’ game that night. But it would not be easy.
Well, it might not be easy for a normal person. But for a popular, world-class athlete with corporate connections, it was a bit easier.
Nike stepped up and covered Sanders’ travel costs.
How History Almost Happened
Being present doesn’t guarantee playing time.
Here’s how it all went down on the day of. The previous night’s Braves game ended with Atlanta winning 6-4 over Pittsburgh and Sanders boarding a plane to Miami after midnight.
He was accompanied by his girlfriend, his daughter, a rep from Nike, two agents, and a CBS camera crew recording the event for posterity.
The flight touched down in Miami around 4 a.m. and Sanders caught some sleep before boarding a bus with his Falcons teammates to Joe Robbie Stadium.
Then-Falcons head coach Jerry Glanville said the team was cool with Sanders doing the double.
The bottom line, I think everybody on the football team wanted him to go there and be successful. So, I don’t think anybody was upset or mad. I know the owners were not. He wanted to do it, and we supported him all the way.
That said, Sanders didn’t start the game at corner, though he did return the opening kick. Glanville was supportive but only to a point.
I said, ‘Deion, you’re not starting. You come in here without practicing all week and fly in on a helicopter, I’m not starting you. Everybody was shocked. In the locker room, you could hear a pin drop.
That only lasted a play, though, as Glanville ended the punishment almost immediately. Sanders returned two kicks and a punt and caught a nine-yard pass completion on offense, though the Falcons still lost 21-17.
Sanders Had Limited Time to Make it to Pittsburgh
Primetime arrived too late in Pittsburgh to make the lineup.
Sanders needed an IV after the Falcons game, and that treatment delayed the proceedings. He was supposed to take a helicopter to the airport to then board a plane to Pittsburgh. The whole thing was almost scuttled when the helicopter pilot said they’d be overweight with that many passengers — but Sanders convinced the pilot to make two runs.
The flight to Pittsburgh landed an hour before the game’s scheduled first pitch, but the airport was far enough from Three Rivers Stadium that Sanders would need another helicopter ride and then would need to be delivered via limo. The helicopter pilot needed special permission to fly that close to downtown Pittsburgh.
Sanders showed up with about 16 minutes before the game’s start and he was not in the lineup. Ultimately, despite support from teammates and his manager, he didn’t play in the game, which the Braves lost 7-1.
Yes, all that travel ended up being for nothing.
Those 24 hours should have been joyous, phenomenal, exhilarating, exciting, tremendous, captivating, but it wasn’t. And the one thing that bothers me: People say, ‘Prime played two sports in one day.’ I didn’t. I suited up for two sports in one day.
Still, the Braves kept Primetime on the World Series roster, though they lost to the Toronto Blue Jays.
Deion Sanders didn’t play in an NFL game and MLB game on the same day — but he came closer than anyone before or since.
Sources: MLB.com
All statistics courtesy of Pro Football reference unless stated otherwise.