49ers vs. Cowboys: 10 biggest moments in most storied NFL rivalry
By Peter Panacy
No. 8: Deion Sanders defects from 49ers to join Cowboys
One can’t fault Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders for wanting to join the Niners in free agency ahead of the 1994 season. He wanted to join a Super Bowl contender, and going to San Francisco was going to be a surefire way to have that chance.
Truth be told, that 1994 team was stacked. And we’ll get to that in a moment.
Yet Sanders’ notable clashes with Jerry Rice meant that season would be the lone one the perennial All-Pro defensive back would spend with the 49ers, ultimately deciding to switch sides the following year to go to Dallas.
Rice and Sanders, surely friends now, would nevertheless continue their rivalry, albeit on opposite sides of the field now.
And to make Sanders’ defection all the more painful, he’d go on to win another Super Bowl in back-to-back years.
This time, with the Cowboys.