Deion Sanders Puts Collectives On Blast, Wants Players To Focus On NIL, Getting 'That Lamar Jackson Bag'

Colorado head football coach Deion Sanders doesn't have a problem with NIL, but Collectives are becoming the issue according to Coach Prime.

Sanders has been vocal about the negatives of a collective handing off a bunch of money before a kid plays in a game. It's not that he's not for players being able to earn money off their Name, Image or Likeness. But Sanders would prefer athletes making their money from on-field production.

The conversation of how to regulate collectives and the NIL space led prominent head coaches to Washington last week. Collectives are just a bunch of boosters throwing cash into a bag for a player who has yet to prove his worth, according to Sanders.

“NIL is not a problem with me, collectives are," Sanders told Joel Klatt. "Let’s talk about NIL – Name, Image and Likeness. What kid out of high school, that is notable enough that a CEO of a major company is going to lay it on the line for a kid that ain’t nobody know. So it’s not NIL"

One of the problems for Deion Sanders is that these young kids are getting paid before setting foot on a college campus. The incentive to get better after already receiving the bag is a concern.

“Collectives, you could be Tom, Dick, Harry and Larry and you just put a bag together, boosters or whatever, whoever does it, and try to solicit these kids to come to your university," Sanders mentioned. "Who is that helping? I want the kid to get compensated, I want the kid to be straight, by all means. But you’ve gotta balance the fine line. Is he still going to want it like that when you’ve just given him that and he didn’t have to earn it?”

Deion Sanders and Colorado set single-day ticket sales record. (Credit: Getty Images)

Deion Sanders Has A Solid Argument About NIL, Collectives

It's a different world right now in college athletics. The basics of NIL was to earn money for the work you put into your craft. Having a performance based incentive program is something Deion would rather see, compared to getting a huge bag while you're still in high school.

Deion is certain some of these young athletes have the wrong people giving them advice. This is something that worries the Colorado coach.

“These kids have agents, man. Not only agents, they’ve got their homies who’s representing them, who’s just trying to use them and playing them," Sanders pointed out. "They don’t go to the school that they should go to. They don’t even ask questions about the defense or the offense or the scheme or the personnel or how are you going to use me,” Sanders said. “If is your prerogative, your first thing, I don’t want you. I want you to chase the NFL bag. That’s what’s going to sustain you.”

At the end of the day, Sanders wants players to be comfortable, but going after the NFL bag, not the temporary one in college. It's all about getting players to the next level, which will payoff more for most of the players in college football.

"I want you to get that NFL bag," Sanders proclaimed. "I want you to get that Jalen Hurts bag, that Lamar Jackson bag. I want you to get to that point, or even a quarter of that.”