Deion Sanders Says NFL Teams Manipulate Players' Draft Slots: 'Know That to Be True'

Few people understand the NFL draft process better than Deion Sanders, who was a first-round pick as a player, covered it as an analyst and now sends players to the next level as a college coach.

The Colorado head coach opened up about the draft during his appearance on the Front Office Sports Today podcast and notably said NFL teams manipulate the slots of certain prospects.

"You have guys that are slated to go and slot it to go at this number pick," Sanders said. "Randomly, something comes out that they flunked their drug tests, or they have this type of injury, or they were seen with this and wildly, their draft grade drops later in the round, or even the next round. How does that happen? How does that mysteriously come out right before the draft?

"That's even more harsh [than players refusing to sign with teams], because now you're affecting someone's livelihood, and you're putting a tremendous rumor on somebody that may not even be true. So that's done every year. The reason I know is that I worked the draft for about 10 to 12 years straight. I know that to be true."

Sanders himself was the No. 5 overall pick of the 1989 NFL draft after he was a two-time All-American and Jim Thorpe Award winner during his collegiate career at Florida State.

He went on to a Hall of Fame career that included two Super Bowl titles, one Defensive Player of the Year, six All-Pro First Team selections and eight Pro Bowl nods.

Sanders doesn't have to worry too much about this year's NFL draft, as B/R's NFL Scouting Department did not rank a single Colorado player in its top 250 overall prospects on its latest big board.

However, that might not be the case next year when his sons, quarterback Shedeur Sanders and defensive back Shilo Sanders, may enter the draft.

Perhaps having a father who is familiar with the process will help them avoid some of the apparent draft-slot manipulation that Sanders believes happens, but for now, the Buffaloes are surely focused on improving on their 4-8 record from the head coach's first season at the helm.