Greg McElroy gives reality check to Deion Sanders

ESPN analyst and former Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy pushed back against Deion Sanders after the Colorado head coach called out the new era of Name, Image and Likeness following the House settlement's approval.

There are plenty of differing opinions on the revenue share model and third-party approval process instituted in the aftermath of the House settlement. Sanders, who led the Buffaloes to a 9-4 season in his second year at the helm, believes there should be a cap for what players can make to level the playing field.

"I wish there was a cap," Sanders said Wednesday at Big 12 Media Days. "You know, like, the top-of-the-line player makes this, and if you're not that type of guy, you know you're not going to make that. That's what the NFL does. So, the problem is you got a guy that's not that darn good, but he could go to another school and give him a half a million dollars. And you can't compete with that."

Participating schools can allocate up to $20.5 million directly to players this year while also working with third-party entities to provide even more NIL opportunities.

Parameters have been set, including the NIL Go clearinghouse that must approve third-party deals totaling over $600, but big spenders with significant booster and collective backing aren't expected to stop shelling out multi-million dollar deals anytime soon.

McElroy, in response to Sanders' comments, doesn't view the current landscape as sustainable and is pushing for more rules to be established. However, he maintains that colleged football has "never been fair."

"It's just unrealistic at this point," McElroy said on ESPN's "Get Up." "I do think at some point there'll be donor fatigue. I do think at some point there will be more parameters in place and I'm cautiously optimistic that there will be competitive balance across the college ball landscape. But the reality is college football's never been fair."

"It's like Major League Baseball... Those with resources that can spend win," McElroy continued. "The good news is, just like in baseball, the Yankees don't win the World Series every year. The Tampa Bay Rays, who have one of the smallest payrolls, compete in the playoffs regularly and are, at times, much better than those of their big spending counterparts in the Red Sox and the Yankees."

The expanded College Football Playoff painted a promising picture last season, as unheralded programs like Indiana, SMU and Arizona State were able to use the transfer portal and NIL landscape to make the postseason.

"So, I think college football, yes, it's nice to have resources, but it can also work against you," McElroy said.