Deion Sanders, the first player drafted by the Atlanta Falcons to earn induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame (announced last night, to be inducted in August) performed the coin flip honors at Super Bowl XLV. All the members of the 2011 class got to stand at midfield, but only the man with the pinkest shirt can be entrusted with the coin.
Sanders made 49 percent of his NFL name as a member of the Dallas Cowboys, so for him to get to do the honors in already-collapsing, not-big-enough Cowboys Stadium has got to be a pretty exciting honor.
He was given the nod over Marshall Faulk, one of the best players ever, and Ed Sabol, the man responsible for NFL Films and thus much of the NFL’s branding dominance. Also Shannon Sharpe and some others, but this was likely a three-man race.
Sanders will never turn down a chance to handle money, and his experience with the substance showed. Allegations of an NFC conspiracy are unfounded, though the Packers did win the toss.