Dallas Cowboys coaching search: Adam Schefter explains why Deion Sanders would be good fit with Jerry Jones

As a player, Deion Sanders brought flash and personality to the 1990s Dallas Cowboys, helping to establish “America’s Team.”

But how might Prime Time — now known as “Coach Prime” — work as the Cowboys next head coach?

That’s a question NFL pundits have been debating since Monday’s news that Dallas owner Jerry Jones has had preliminary discussions with Sanders, who just wrapped his second season leading Colorado, about the recently-opened Cowboys head coaching job.

Some, like ESPN’s Louis Riddick, don’t believe the two alpha personalities would work well together.

Others, such as ESPN insider Adam Schefter, view it as a potential match-made-in-Heaven given Sanders’ wealth of experience as arguably the biggest star during his playing days in Dallas.

“He’s a culture setter, he’s a big personality, he fits all into Jerry’s ideas about that, and … I think Deion is smart enough, experienced enough, savvy enough to be able to be willing to do that job on Jerry’s terms, which is always key to that job,” Schefter said Tuesday on The Pat McAfee Show. “Things in Dallas are done on Jerry’s terms, and that’s not great for everybody. But Deion Sanders has been in Jerry’s World. He knows how it works. He knows what Jerry’s looking for.

“I think if the Cowboys decided that Deion was the guy, and if Deion decided that interested him, Deion would know exactly what he’s signing up for, and he could navigate that job on Jerry’s terms.”

Follow all Colorado Buffaloes news on Facebook here

Stephen A. Smith fires back at Louis Riddick comments on Deion Sanders, Jerry Jones

On Monday, FOX Sports’ Jordan Schultz reported that Colorado head coach Deion Sanders and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones have talked about the Cowboys’ head coaching vacancy, and there was “mutual interest” between the two parties.

Schultz’s report immediately set the internet ablaze, with some fans excited about the prospect while others claimed it would never work. ESPN’s Louis Riddick belonged in the latter camp.

“There’s the business and then there’s the profession. Look, from the business standpoint, this has a lot of people excited and I get it. I understand why,” Riddick said during a Tuesday appearance on Get Up. “These are two of the biggest personalities in American sports, in the history of American sports for obviously different reasons. … This is just not a match to me that seems like it makes a whole lot of sense from a professional standpoint. Deion is the ultimate alpha – the ultimate alpha. He has his hands on every single part of the Colorado football team and of the Colorado football organization.”

Stephen A. Smith isn’t buying it. During Tuesday’s episode of First Take, Smith fired back at Riddick when asked if Sanders and the Cowboys seem like a good fit.

“It does to me, and I understand completely why it doesn’t to anybody else, because of Jerry, and who Jerry is. I get that part,” Smith said. “But what I’m trying to make people understand is that as much as you know about Prime Time Deion Sanders personality, and much as a guy like Louis Riddick speaks about his professionalism, his culture, you know, his discipline, etcetera — understand that he’s such a vibrant personality that Jerry won’t affect him.

“Jerry being Jerry doesn’t affect Deion Sanders being Deion Sanders. And it’s not going to dilute the impact he’s going to have on the players he coaches and how he chooses to coach. I’m telling you this. And unlike a Bill Parcells or unlike somebody else, Deion Sanders has the ability to wrap his arms around Jerry and say,’ Jerry, come here. Man, listen to me. Let me talk to you.’”

Grant Grubbs contributed to this report.