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[Ned Flanders]

No, not MJ.

Barry Sanders was and remains the fucking man.


The man did things his way. In fact had he not carried himself with such an unassuming, professional, and selfless manner, things might be different right now. You might be calling him "The NFL's All-Time Leading Rusher", or "The Greatest Runningback That Ever Lived". You might even get in a few heated arguements as to whether or not he is the greatest athlete of our era.

But Barry wasn't like that. When Barry retired, he was done. Didn't announce it to anyone, didn't attempt a comeback to pursue the all-time rushing mark or a ring, just retired. All while still dominating the league consistently.

He had everything. Speed, stamina, quicks, power, agility, finese. He could see the field and hit the holes before they formed, and he could turn absolutely unequivocally positively NOTHING into 15 yards every time. He would flambe All-Pro linebackers with consistency and with Sportcenter flair, score a breakaway touchdown, and then hand the ball to the ref as though he were a lady who dropped her purse on the sidewalk.

Barry is a prime example of how to conduct yourself as a man, excel at what you do, and not fall victim to the vanity and hype of stardom. We can only speculate as to what great heights Barry may have acheived had he not retired when he did, particularly if he were to have gone to a better franchise. But I'm sure that Barry would rather leave us speculating, our memories of his greatness awash with the lingering desire to see just one more spectacular play.

In the wake of great stars like Karl Malone and Emmit Smith selling their souls in pursuit of career achievements, I have an even greater appreciation for the way in which Barry conducted himself. For those of us that lived through and watched his career, as with those who witnessed Gale Sayers' (injury) shortened career, I think we owe it to future football fans to make sure his name remains spoken among the greatest that ever played, a mans man.

 

[ZootedGranny]

My all-time favorite Barry Sanders move wasn't when he emerged out of a dog pile of several Bears and broke it, it wasn't him making a Patriots DB do a complete 360 while trying to tackle him, it wasn't the numerous sideline to sideline escape runs.

It was in 95, Lions vs Steelers in Pittsburgh. Barry takes it to the left, and is one on one versus Rod Woodson, who at that time was easily one of the best corners in the game. Barry put a move on Woodson that faked him so hard, he tore his ACL and fell to the turf.

Plus he had the most ridiculous Heisman winning season at RB that there will ever be, and I doubt anyone will ever eclipse the 2600+ yards and 37 TDs he put up in that season.

Every year there is a play where a guy will shake the shit out of a few guys, and instantly the announcers will say "THAT WAS LIKE BARRY SANDERS!" Unfortunately, very few moves pale in comparison to Barry's efforts.

Barry is the man, and hopefully my man Derrick Thomas will join him in the Hall of Fame this year.

 

[Shinobi]

You might be calling..."The Greatest Runningback That Ever Lived".

Might? Screw that. He's the best pure rusher in history, and he became that on a team that was, has been, and continues to be a joke. All hail Barry.

 

[crumbs]

My all-time favorite Barry Sanders move wasn't when he emerged out of a dog pile of several Bears and broke it, it wasn't him making a Patriots DB do a complete 360 while trying to tackle him, it wasn't the numerous sideline to sideline escape runs.

It was in 95, Lions vs Steelers in Pittsburgh. Barry takes it to the left, and is one on one versus Rod Woodson, who at that time was easily one of the best corners in the game. Barry put a move on Woodson that faked him so hard, he tore his ACL and fell to the turf.

Plus he had the most ridiculous Heisman winning season at RB that there will ever be, and I doubt anyone will ever eclipse the 2600+ yards and 37 TDs he put up in that season.

Every year there is a play where a guy will shake the shit out of a few guys, and instantly the announcers will say "THAT WAS LIKE BARRY SANDERS!" Unfortunately, very few moves pale in comparison to Barry's efforts.

Barry is the man, and hopefully my man Derrick Thomas will join him in the Hall of Fame this year.

Well said. As a long suffering Lions fan, Barry was the only thing worth watching for many years. I know some fans felt betrayed by him leaving, but since he lost the desire to play, I can respect that decision, especially when other athletes would play half assed and collect their pay check.

 

[Musashi Wins!]

I heart you.

It was devastating when he left because he was a gem in a pile of shit team, but I've always respected how he carried himself and he is without a doubt the greatest player I've actually seen play. There was always the potential to see something amazing when he touched the ball.

 

[yacobod]

being a bears fan, i had to watch sanders tear through our defense twice a year, what made him so exciting was that he had the potential to take it the distance every time he touched the ball, barry also made -2 yard runs and no gains look spectacular.

he is definately the best pure rusher of the 90s, but its hard to compare era's

in the 80s eric dickerson on the L.A. Rams was the man, you cannot dispute this fact, his career took a turn for the worse when he started switching teams every couple years, but you cannot discount what he did when he was on the Rams

i've never seen the likes of Jim Brown or Gayle Sayers play, but their achievements speak for themselves

and i'm a bit of a homer, but Walter Payton is the greatest Running Back to ever play the game (imo), maybe not the best pure rusher, but he was the total package

 

[Shinobi]

Yeah, that's why I said pure rusher...Payton overall was an absolute demon. I just have a hard time imaginging someone being a better rusher then Sanders. I remember one play he had against the Cowboys where he was covered literally by six defenders, and he broke out of the pack to scamper 40 yards for the major. I simply couldn't believe it. The only players I've seen with his ability to make something out of absolutely nothing is Michael Vick and Dante Hall, and I say those two because they've done it repeatedly, not once or twice a year. But even then, I'm not sure they do so as often as Barry did.

Anyway, Payton rocked...absolutely loved the '85 Bears team, and it's a damn shame he never scored a TD in that Superbowl. Might be the single coolest team I've ever seen. Dickerson I didn't see much of since I was in England at the time, and Rams interest wasn't that high. I did have a signed card from him though, so for that reason alone he rules.

 

[Slo]

Barry ran for < 50 yards a game almost as often as he went for over 100.

Thumbs down Barry. I choose you, bitch.

 

[Blackace]

Yeah, that's why I said pure rusher...Payton overall was an absolute demon. I just have a hard time imaginging someone being a better rusher then Sanders. I remember one play he had against the Cowboys where he was covered literally by six defenders, and he broke out of the pack to scamper 40 yards for the major. I simply couldn't believe it. The only players I've seen with his ability to make something out of absolutely nothing is Michael Vick and Dante Hall, and I say those two because they've done it repeatedly, not once or twice a year. But even then, I'm not sure they do so as often as Barry did.

Anyway, Payton rocked...absolutely loved the '85 Bears team, and it's a damn shame he never scored a TD in that Superbowl. Might be the single coolest team I've ever seen. Dickerson I didn't see much of since I was in England at the time, and Rams interest wasn't that high. I did have a signed card from him though, so for that reason alone he rules.

Yeah Sanders owned fools on plays like these... While Dickerson is my fav from his days as a Ram. Sanders was hands down the most exciting HB to watch play after play... However there is one thing I wanted to say... Vick is a stud... but before him there was another... another stud who went to UNLV and could also Punt!!!! (how many QBs can say that) that is my football hero number 12, Randall Cunningham!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Archaix]

Barry Sanders is one of the best football players ever, and the best running back. Walter Payton was great, but Barry Sanders was sublime. It's hard to pick between the two, and I may be biased because I didn't really see Payton in his prime, I have to go with Sanders.

If he'd continued playing until he was worn down, he'd have shattered the rushing record and not limped by it like Smith did.

And he ran for below fifty yards occasionally, not nearly as much as he ran for above a hundred. He was on one of the worst franchises in sports, and he was their only offensive weapon.

 

[Brian Fellows]

I appreciate the fact that the Vikings pretty much shut him down most of the time. Tony Dungey was the man.

 

[SickBoy]

Man, Barry rocked. What could have been if he was somewhere else....

-SB

 

[Iceman]

No lead blocker.

That's like parachuting without a secondary chute, rock climbing without ropes, running into a car.. without a car, having a duel with only one eye open, fighting a bear without a gun, etc...

Peerless.

 

[Biff Hardbody]

Barry Sanders is the greatest pure rusher in football history. He wa so good it's scary. When I think of running back, I have to say Walter Payton was the best. Simply because he could put it all together better then any other RB I've ever seen. However, as far as rushing goes Walter doesn't touch Barry. I'll also say as powerful and balanced as Jim Brown was, Barry was the better rusher.

There have been very good posts here as to why Barry was so great. He really had a confidence and a class few players ever have. Another thing allot of people forget is that he was human. The man was only 5/8 for Gods sake. That height in the era he played football? Hell, 5/8 was considered miniscule in the NFL in the 60's and before.

Then there's the fact that he dominated nearly every defense in the league, despite being on a terrible team with poor blocking. What would he have done if he was on Dallas?

The man is an immortal, plain and simple.

 

[Slo]

Vikings D-Line > Barry Sanders.

Name another back you can say that about.

 

[crumbs]

^^Can't let this tread die with such uninformed negativity. Barry's career numbers can be found here:

http://www.detroitlions.com/document_display.cfm?document_id=4584


18,308 yards is nothing to sneeze at.

 

[WasabiKing]

Barry Sanders is the greatest running back ever. He took a team of talentless hacks into the playoffs 5 times. Pro Bowl running back for the NFC, 10 years straight! Averaged 5 yards per carry, with no o-line and lead blocker!

Barry is also the humblest person out there. He's appeared twice on Jim Rome, and he is truly a guy who didn't care for his stats, and did whatever it took to win. He could have destroyed some season rushing record and he didn't even go out there to do it, because he didn't care for it. When you look up the word humble, Barry Sanders' face should be in every dictionary.

And now, he's going to be a well deserving Hall of Famer this year...

EDIT: Better question for you, Biff, where would Emmitt Smith be if he played in Detroit?

EDIT: and also, since this is a stat that EVERYONE in the world uses to judge as a quality person: We share the same birth date, July 16th, something I did not know...

 

[Archaix]

Is it just me, or do those pictures show that Barry Sanders just may be the only athlete in history capable of showing how much better than everybody else he is just through stills?

He looks like he should be falling down, but you know he's not. Every player on the opposing team has an "Oh, fuck, not again" look in their eyes.

God damn, I miss watching Barry run with the ball.

edit: This year's hall of fame class is a serious contender for best ever because of Elway and Sanders. When you've got two men who were arguably the best at the two most important offensive positions going in the same year, it's got to be among the best.

 

[Slo]

^^Can't let this tread die with such uninformed negativity. Barry's career numbers can be found here:

http://www.detroitlions.com/document_display.cfm?document_id=4584


18,308 yards is nothing to sneeze at.

There is no uniformed negativity in Minnesota.

 

[Sir Willoughby]

The greatest in the history of Football. So quick,so agile, so...Barry. The only reason I'd watch Detroit was Barry. Mr.Smith may have the numbers (over a longer career span),but Mr.Smith had the fortune of running behind the BEST blocking FB in the game, with one of the best O-Lines to play together.
Oh-what might have been. Barry (in my book) will remain the greatest of all time. And believe me, I argue this point alot.Darn baseball fans.

 

[Biff Hardbody]

Better question for you, Biff, where would Emmitt Smith be if he played in Detroit?

I'm not sure, but he wouldn't be the top rusher of all time. Emmit is sort of misunderstood in my opinion. Some people rank him as the #1 all time running back simply because of his record, but I'd rank Barry, Brown, Payton, and maybe some others ahead of him. I haven't thought much about it, but he might barely make my top 5 of all time. I'm not sure who else aside the three I mentioned are better then Emmit, but a bunch of names come to mind like Simpson, Campbell, Jackson....maybe some others.

At the same time, there are others who totally credit Emmit's team with his success. I admit, his blocking was crucial to his success. Still, I can't totally discredit Smith because he was a bad motherfucker who played with great heart and toughness. pr0n star Ashlyn Gere once said to me that Emmit didn't get enough credit, he worked his ass off for each yard. In a way, I think she was right.

But Barry VS Emmit? Emmit's not in his league. To answer yourquestion, Emmit would have done "well"...but he wouldn't have anywhere near the numbers he does today. I don't see him lifting his mediocre team to heights of greatness like Barry did. He just didn't have that skill.

 

[Biff Hardbody]

Is it just me, or do those pictures show that Barry Sanders just may be the only athlete in history capable of showing how much better than everybody else he is just through stills?

Heh, yeah. I love watching Barry make a defender trip all over himself.

 

[WasabiKing]

Uh, you met Ashlyn Gere? Lucky guy...

I totally agree with you BTW, there's no way Emmitt would have gotten all those yards without that great offensive line. I wouldn't necessarily say the same about Terrell Davis, he was a bad ass back who also had a great front line. He just didn't have the longevity.

 

[Shinobi]

Yeah Sanders owned fools on plays like these... While Dickerson is my fav from his days as a Ram. Sanders was hands down the most exciting HB to watch play after play... However there is one thing I wanted to say... Vick is a stud... but before him there was another... another stud who went to UNLV and could also Punt!!!! (how many QBs can say that) that is my football hero number 12, Randall Cunningham!!!!!!!!!!!

Hell yeah...I loved Randall Cunningham. I remember one TD he threw in Buffalo when he was in his own endzone and I think getting pulled down, and he winged it about 60 yards. Eagle WR is on the other end, and runs it in for the score.

Vikings D-Line > Barry Sanders.

Name another back you can say that about.

Barry Sanders scored four touchdowns in the Lions’ 34-14 win at Minnesota November 24, 1991. His four touchdowns established a new Lions’ record for most rushing touchdowns in a single game. His four TDs and 24-point performance also tied Lions' single-game marks.

MWHAHAHAHA...ahem. Seriously though, you have a point...he only scored five more touchdowns against the Vikings the rest of his career. But so what...every player and team has a demon they can't slay. The 72-10 Bulls lost to the second year Raptors...that doesn't keep them from being one of the greatest NBA teams of the modern era.

 

[Biff Hardbody]

Uh, you met Ashlyn Gere? Lucky guy...

I totally agree with you BTW, there's no way Emmitt would have gotten all those yards without that great offensive line. I wouldn't necessarily say the same about Terrell Davis, he was a bad ass back who also had a great front line. He just didn't have the longevity.

I emailed Ashlyn Gere like 5 years ago when I was up really late, to my surprise she responded pretty quickly.

Just to talk about longevity. I think that TD was an amazing running back, with better running ability then Emmit. However, he did not have the longevity of Smith. Longevity is so very underrated IMO...look at Bo Jackson. In his prime, he was possibly the greatest RB to step on the field. Jim Brown for the new era. He would have broken Brown's 5.2 YPC record if he had more games (Jackson averaged 5.4).

It's just he didn't have the longevity. The RB position is such a trying one, and the guys who play it are arguably the toughest guys on the field. With all that talent there, longevity is the one attribute that seems the most elusive. Longevity is really why I call Emmit Smith a great player.

 

[Blackace]

Hell yeah...I loved Randall Cunningham. I remember one TD he threw in Buffalo when he was in his own endzone and I think getting pulled down, and he winged it about 60 yards. Eagle WR is on the other end, and runs it in for the score.

That play changed my life!!!! I saw it live on a fine sunday afternoon.....

 

[KingGondo]

Barry's such a great player, and I've actually been around him quite a few times (without meeting him, though). I go to Oklahoma State, and it seems like he's been at every big football or basketball game of the last couple years, and it just so happens that I have too

After we beat St. Joe's in the Elite 8 this season, Barry rode the band bus back to our hotel and gave a few autographs, even though he's notoriously shy. I'm glad he's starting to come out of his shell and make his presence felt at OSU...

As if it needs to be said again--his 1988 season is the greatest individual season in the history of college football (and possibly in any NCAA sport).

 

[effzee]

any vids?

i mean i know how amazing he was but i wanna see some vids.

 

[Ripclawe]

John Lynch will never live this down

http://members.aol.com/narbosa/barry.gif

 

[Biff Hardbody]

John Lynch will never live this down

http://members.aol.com/narbosa/barry.gif

He made great tacklers lose their form and become arm tacklers. Awesome.

 

[WasabiKing]

Bo getting hurt was one of the saddest days of my Raider life. It was a playoff game against the Cincinnati Bengals and he was running hard for the score, and some DB grabbed his leg while he was running, effectively pulling his hip out of his socket. The Raiders went on to get smacked down by the Bills in the AFC championship game.

Anyway, another thread, another time, it's all about Barry Sanders!

"Lynch and Sapp ain't got shit on me!"

Bye!

 

[Archaix]

Hah, how many people are going to post different images of John Lynch on the turf after missing a tackle on Barry?

Plus the gif that Ripclawe posted. We can't be more than two pictures away from this being the "Official Barry Sanders owns John Lynch's ass" thread.

edit: Looking at that second image....I can't figure out where the hell Barry is supposed to be running. Everybody on the field is blocking in a totally different direction from one another. Ladies and gentlemen, the offensive line that Barry ran behind for his entire career.

 

[WasabiKing]

He probably got a weak-side toss. I read somewhere that he loved the toss play cause the ball got to him immediately, and he was ready to move. Ironically, he also said that John Lynch probably hit him the hardest, along with Ronnie Lott, in his career, but it sure don't look it!