Deion Sanders’ Alleged $50,000 Hush Money Offer to Silence Critics Dismissed as 'Joke’

Colorado Buffaloes head football coach Deion Sanders was put in an odd position. During his weekly press conference, Coach Prime addressed comments made by one of his longtime associates, who has ties to the program.

Christopher Neely, who is a content creator and goes by "Uncle Neely," recently suggested that Sanders was willing to pay up to $50,000 to silence his vocal critics. While many would chalk this up to being a laughable moment, some would question the motivation behind it all.

Neely is one of the closest people to Sanders, who is in the midst of a federal lawsuit over the Prime 21 branding since last year.

"That was a joke," Sanders told reporters Tuesday.

Neely made the comment in a recent video. "The people that attack him wouldn't be making the money they were making if he wasn't here to attack," Neely said. "Which is why he told some of them, 'Hey man, let's just do this. I give you $50,000 to not mention my name for a year.' And ain't nobody took the deal yet."

The back and forth comes as Colorado is struggling through a two-win season with five games remaining. Sanders was asked about the hush money comments Neely made, which immediately had him backtracking.

"Oh no, no, no! I think you misinterpreted that," Sanders added. "I said, like some of y'all in here sitting right now, 'I would love to give you money and not mention my name, and I want to see how far that goes.' ... That's what we were saying. Some people live on your name."

Sanders is trying to distance himself from the latest round of controversy, but it all begs the question: why would Neely say anything at all? The self-proclaimed videographer has been tied to CU Football since Coach Prime was hired in 2022. He's often referred to as point of contact for Sanders' inner circle.

Neely followed Coach Prime from Jackson State. According to a Sports Illustrated article from 2020, the Jackson, Mississippi native was a booster for the HBCU when Sanders was hired. He's now splitting time between Colorado and Mississippi to help support Sanders.

"I would never offer a man money. I don't give a darn what you say about me," Sanders said. "That was really a joke about someone prospering off of your name and your brand. It's not in my heart to not like anybody in this room. I may not like some things you may do or say, but I don't know you enough to form that opinion.

"This is normal because I'm just different. I'm unapologetic about things I say and how I live my life."

Sanders is in his fourth season at Colorado. The Pro Football Hall of Famer brought an initial surge to the Buffs while his sons, Shedeur and Shilo Sanders, were on the team, along with Travis Hunter. Since then, CU has gone 5-15 in the last 20 games dating back to the end of the 2024 season.

The team got off to a 2-0 start, but are riding a five-game losing streak. The Buffaloes face Kansas State on Saturday (2 p.m. ET, TNT).