I’ve gotten this question twice now.

Normally, I’d just make my answer a joke, but in this case, I feel compelled to give you an honest assessment. The answer is “No.”  But he’s up there.

“Successfully” playing two sports is a bit misleading.  Lots of people do that.  Playing professionally narrows the gap a little, but what about Olympians?  Must we consider Dan, Dave and Bruce Jenner (the only decathletes I know)? 

The elephant in the room is named Bo Jackson.  I feel comfortable saying, at his peak, Bo was more successful than Deion in both sports.  The candle that burns twice as bright will destroy it’s hip though, and Bo didn’t get the seasons Deion got (correction from reader Ken Gentry).  Does that enter into the equation?  I think it does.  So, I’d say Neon leans at the tape in the head to head matchup, but Bo knows he climbed a higher mountain, and that hurts Deion’s legacy as “greatest athlete of all time.”

I would also add transcendence into the mix, and while Deion certainly was larger than life, I think he’s probably remembered as an egocentric guy rather than, say a humanitarian like Muhammad Ali.  Was he not the precursor to Terrell Owen and Chad Ochocinco on the Cincinnati VH1’s?  Whatever he does lose in transcendence, he makes up in how damn entertaining he was, but in the final tally, there’s nothing gained and nothing lost.

An irrefutable tag for Deion Sanders is the best cover corner in NFL history.  His peak had to be his time with the 49ers.  He shut off half a football field from offenses.

Thanks for the question, and make sure you’re following my sports tumblr over at gotemcoach.com.  Feel free to tell me I’m wrong over there.