The blood circulation problem that has plagued Deion Sanders for years has not gone away, despite the Hall of Famer losing two toes on his left foot in 2021. Now one of the fastest men and greatest pure athletes professional sports has ever known faces the very real possibility of having his entire foot amputated.
The former Cowboys star and current head coach at the University of Colorado had the news delivered to him with cameras rolling for his YouTube series. Thee Pregame Show. A segment featuring Sanders meeting with his medical team premiered on Friday.
“You just have to understand what the risks are. Things can cascade,” said vascular surgeon Dr. Donald Jacobs, explaining that the 55-year-old Sanders “could lose the foot.”
“I know what the risks are,” Sanders replied. “I only have eight toes. So I am pretty sure I understand.”
One of Coach Prime’s surgeons stated that the blood pressure near Sanders’s ankle has worsened since 2022 and is now just two-thirds of that measured in his arm.
Sanders told doctors he has no feeling in the bottom of his left foot “at all.” He previously had two toes of that same foot amputated, missing three games of Jackson State’s 2021 football season while the head coach there.
He does not plan to miss any games during his inaugural season with the Buffaloes, although, telling doctors that if a complete amputation is the recommended course of action, he wants to do it as soon as possible.
“I want to do it this summer because when we get rolling, I’m not going to have time to do it,” Sanders said. “This is the best downtime I have.”
Sanders has tried to work through the growing discomfort, even wearing specially-built shoes that were supposed to allow him to spend extended time on his feet.
But the eight-time Pro Bowler and six-time first-team All-Pro had to cancel an appearance at an HBCU football camp in Atlanta this week because of foot pain.
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Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Ken Hunt has offered to try other treatments in order to get Sanders through the upcoming football season without resorting to amputation.
Sanders had a positive and motivational message for followers that he posted to his Twitter account on Friday, saying in part, “Everybody has a story but your ending hadn’t been written.”
Sanders played for the Cowboys from 1995 through 1999 and was, at the time of his signing, the highest-paid defensive player in the league. He was a star in both the NFL and Major League Baseball and remains the only man ever to play in both a Super Bowl and a World Series.
Colorado opens their 2023 season versus TCU on Sept. 2.
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Story originally appeared on Cowboys Wire