Twelve years ago this month, Barry Sanders retired from the National Football League. Today, July 16, 2011, he celebrates his 43rd birthday.
The craziest part is that most football players at this age would have retired just a few short years ago. Sanders shocked the world and hung up his cleats early. And way too early in the opinion of most fans of the game.
That’s simply because Barry Sanders was just way too damn fun to watch – a lethal mixture of speed, elusiveness, vision and talent. A quiet force that left opposing coaches scratching their heads and opposing players looking foolish on the football field.
But just how good was Barry Sanders?
Barry the Legend
It’s hard to believe that it’s been over a decade since Barry Sanders played football for the Detroit Lions
Not only did he set 34 NCAA records and win the Heisman Trophy while playing college football at Oklahoma State, Sanders also currently sits third among the NFL’s all-time career rushing leaders (with 15,269 yards). That feat was accomplished even when retiring in his early 30’s. Imagine what he could have accomplished had he stuck around for a few more seasons.
The biggest highlight of Barry’s NFL career was likely his 1997 season. He posted one of the few 2,000 rushing seasons in the history of the game. That includes 100-yard games during the final 14 games of the 1997 regular season.
Recently, a debate arose at ProFootballTalk.com where Barry Sanders and Emmitt Smith – the NFL’s all-time leading rusher – were compared. The discussion sparked from two recent radio interviews with Sanders, where the former Detroit Lions RB was asked if he was better than Smith during his time in the 1990’s.
Sanders vs Smith
No surprise, Sanders remained humble with the question. That doesn’t mean I have to. While Emmitt Smith was an incredible back that had an amazing career, Sanders far surpassed him. He would have also passed Smith in the record books, too – had he stuck around for a few more seasons.
The biggest point to drive that opinion home is clearly the fact that Smith had a juggernaut Dallas Cowboys offensive line. Dallas also had so many other offensive weapons to help push him to the kind of stat lines that he filled. On the other end, there were times where Sanders appeared to be running for his life in the Detroit backfield, finding a hole that most backs couldn’t. He took a sure loss and turned it into a positive gain, or in most cases, a first down – or even a touchdown.
That leaves the same question in your court, who do you think was the best running back over the last two decades: Emmitt Smith, Barry Sanders, or someone else?
Who is the BEST NFL Running Back Over the Last Two Decades?
- Barry Sanders (71%, 12 Votes)
- Emmitt Smith (24%, 4 Votes)
- Other (6%, 1 Votes)
Total Voters: 17
Loading ...Either way your vote goes, it’s clear that the 5’ 8” Sanders was a unique talent packed into a smaller package. Barry Sanders is a player that we’ll likely never see again in our lifetime.
Fans of the game may miss football now, but they’ve missed Barry Sanders for a dozen years.
Happy Birthday, Barry – hope retirement is treating you well.
Sincerely, KP and The Wife Hates Sports
TOP–
I thought they would be one of the more improved teams last year, and they were to some degree. I think they will be better this year, too… if they actually play football. Stafford I agree is very injury prone… but I think they are going to give teams headaches…
REV–
Let me know if you get a hold of him. Maybe we can have him on that podcast thing.
TOP–
Yes, that whole contract situation was a shame, considering he retired, took the bonus and moved on while still having a few years left on his deal. But still… too talented and Detroit should have found a way to let that slide considering what he did for the franchise on the field. That’s life though, especially in the rich world of sports.
Okay, so… if the NFL misses Barry Sanders and I miss the NFL, by the associative property, does that mean that Barry Sanders misses me?
I should really give that guy a call.
KP
He’s deservedly in the Hall of Fame but unfortunately he played on a crappy team and for mediocre organization whose ambition to win ranks up there with the Neo-cons’ wish to
to be seen as the voice of reason amongst the political diaspora !
The fact that he was humiliated by the Lions with their complete lack of ambition through the last years of his career speaks highly of the guy as he publicly never spoke out against the organization .
tophatal ………..