Deion Sanders Opens Up About ‘Rock Bottom’ That Led To A 1997 Suicide Attempt

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Deion Sanders is one of the most badass athletes in modern times. The man affectionately known as Prime Time is the only person to walk the earth who has appeared in a World Series and a Super Bowl, is an NFL Hall of Famer, made multiple millions of dollars, became a father, and made famous the bandana and the high-stepping celebration.

He also tried to commit suicide.

In 1997, as his marriage to his first wife Carolyn Chambers was ending, Sanders drove his car off the side of a highway, falling 40 feet off a cliff. He miraculously sustained no serious injuries, and more importantly, decided life was worth living.

In a new episode of Journeys of Faith with Paula Faris” podcast, Sanders recalls those dark days when he “had what the world calls success” but admitted there was “nothing there.”

When asked what rock bottom meant for him, the two-time Super Bowl champion claimed that the character the world fell in love with was nothing more than a dangerous facade.

“Rock bottom for me was just being in the midst of a game when everybody’s screaming when they don’t know your middle name. Rock bottom for me was having hundreds of suits and not covering the pain. Rock bottom for me was having hundreds of pairs of shoes but couldn’t take a step in the right direction. Rock bottom for me was having 10 cars and wasn’t going nowhere. Rock bottom for me was having a 14,000-square-foot house but never feeling at home. Rock bottom for me was laying between two and three women at a time, but you get up unsatisfied. Rock bottom for me … yes, I was bleeding. Laying right beside the person who said they love you, but she didn’t even know you was in pain. That was rock bottom for me.”

“I was crying out to people. But they couldn’t hear you because they saw Prime. They saw my character. The character I created, not the character of a man. They saw the character I created — that was Prime. They never once saw Deion. Never at all. They never wanted to see it. Because the character was so profound. As an actor, you start to think that Jim Carrey is The Mask or whatever it was. You start thinking Schwarzenegger is the Terminator. You start thinking Eddie Murphy really is Raw. No, he’s acting, man. And I was a victim to my … I’m not going to say my accredited acting. I was a victim to that.”

He began reading his Bible and seeking guidance from mentors to find meaning in his life.

Sanders is currently on the cusp of marrying his girlfriend, Tracey Edmonds. Congrats to the happy couple.

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Matt’s love of writing was born during a sixth grade assembly when it was announced that his essay titled “Why Drugs Are Bad” had taken first prize in D.A.R.E.’s grade-wide contest. The anti-drug people gave him a $50 savings bond for his brave contribution to crime-fighting, and upon the bond’s maturity 10 years later, he used it to buy his very first bag of marijuana.