What Dallas Cowboys' Jerry Jones, Emmitt Smith Said About Deion Sanders In Netflix Doc

The eight-part series dives into America's football team, the 1990s Dallas Cowboys, a team as famous for its championships as its larger-than-life characters. Yet even in a star-studded locker room, Sanders commanded the screen. An entire episode is dedicated to him, simply titled Prime Time.

For Buffs fans, it’s another reminder that the man leading their program isn’t just a college football coach. He’s a Hall of Famer who once redefined what it meant to play the cornerback position.

The Cowboys’ Dynasty and Sanders’ Arrival

The Gamble and His Cowboys traces the rise of Jerry Jones’ bold ownership and the championship run fueled by legends like quarterback Troy Aikman, running back Emmitt Smith, and wide receiver Michael Irvin. But when Sanders arrived in Dallas in 1995, the Cowboys reached another level. His speed, swagger, and versatility made him the ultimate weapon on both sides of the ball.

Jones, the Cowboys’ iconic owner, recalled just how disruptive Sanders could be.

“Deion was an impact player. He could score from punt return, and kick-off returns. He could score as a receiver," Jones said. "Frankly, he created such an imbalance on defense because teams would go away from him.”

That imbalance helped deliver the Cowboys' third Super Bowl title in four years. For Jones, it was proof that Sanders was worth every bit of the blockbuster contract the Cowboys had gambled on.

A Student of the Game

Sanders’ athletic gifts have always been undeniable, but one of his teammates insists his preparation was what truly separated him.

Emmitt Smith, the NFL’s all- time leading rusher, offered rare insight into Sanders’ mind.

“What made him so good? His athletic ability? No,” Smith said matter-of-factly. “He was a student of the game. He knew splits. He knew formations. He knew concepts, and he knew them well.”

That obsessive attention to detail, paired with world-class athleticism, made Sanders nearly untouchable. Quarterbacks avoided him, receivers dreaded him, but fans couldn’t take their eyes off him.

Sanders himself might have put it best.

“The way I changed the game is, you were concerned about me, I wasn't concerned about you. Because I run like a Lamborghini," Sanders said, oozing with charisma and confidence. "I put pressure on people, pressure ain't on me, pressure is on them because you prepared and you studied.”

From Cowboys to Colorado

For Buffaloes fans, the series offers more than nostalgia. It underscores the pedigree of the man guiding Colorado football through its own high-profile experiment.

In Boulder, Sanders is using the same traits that defined his playing career in the NFL — using preparation, charisma, and star power to rebuild a program under the national microscope.

Just as he once forced NFL teams to game-plan around him, Sanders has forced the college football world to shift and adjust to keep up.

Still Prime Time

Now, decades after dazzling the NFL and lifting the Cowboys to Super Bowl glory, Sanders finds himself leading a different kind of gamble in Boulder.

Much like Jerry Jones reshaped the NFL with bold moves and a larger-than-life vision, Sanders is attempting to do the same in college football.

With his own Netflix series set for release in 2026, Sanders continues to follow in the footsteps Jones while expanding the “Prime Time” brand, showing that his impact on and off the field is far from finished.