“The guy who looked out for the small guy”: Louis Riddick hails Coach Prime’s personas amid attacks on Shedeur Sanders’ character

Deion Sanders, also known as Coach Prime, has one of the most divisive personalities in the history of football. He was brash with the media off the field during his playing career, and he was equally unique on the field with his celebrations.

However, those who know Coach Prime personally have always said he was a great teammate. On Wednesday, Louis Riddick, who played briefly with Sanders on the Atlanta Falcons in 1992, appeared on "First Take" to discuss his former teammate's family.

He gave Coach Prime credit for what he did in the locker room amid reports that Shedeur Sanders has not done well in NFL interviews.

"I was around this guy 30 something years ago when he was still crafting his image," Riddick said (starts at 12:30). "He was one of the greatest teammates I've ever had. Two different personas. There's Prime Time, and he has already articulated why he crafted that image. Then there was the locker room Deion Sanders. The guy who looked out for the small guy, the little guy.

"Always laughing, always keeping it light. When we got on the field, the hardest worker, the most talented worker, the best teammate. Sustain that all the way to now that I go to Colorado football games, it's call him, picks up the phone, "what do you need? Can you talk to my team?" He's one of the most genuine people."

Louis Riddick compares Coach Prime to Shedeur Sanders after attacks on latter's character

Coach Prime's son, QB Shedeur Sanders, attended the NFL Combine but did not participate in drills. Instead, he only attended to do interviews with NFL teams. However, after those interviews, reports came out that many NFL teams were not left with a good impression of him.

Some reports indicated that Sanders came off as brash, arrogant, disinterested and unprofessional. Louis Riddick spoke about this on "First Take."

"His son is supremely confident," Riddick said (starts at 13:50). "He's the son of one of the greatest athletes to ever walk the face of the Earth, does not take a back seat to anyone. Does not lack confidence in any single way. All the things they applied to Deion, they're now going to try to apply to this young man. It's stupid."

The 2025 NFL draft will be held in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on April 24–26. Shedeur Sanders has been viewed as a top-five pick for several months, but it will be interesting to see if that changes after his recent interviews.