Barry Sanders
Encyclopedia
Barry Sanders (born July 16, 1968) is a former American football
running back
who spent all of his professional career with the Detroit Lions
in the NFL
. Sanders left the game just short of the all-time rushing record. Sanders is a member of the college
and professional
football halls of fame.
native, Sanders attended Wichita North High School
. Sanders did not play running back until the fourth game of his senior year in 1985. He rushed for 1,322 yards in the final seven games of the season, which earned him all-state honors. He was, however, overlooked by most college recruiters because of his size.
from 1986 to 1988, and wore the number 21. During his first two years, he backed up All-American
Thurman Thomas. In 1987 he led the nation in kickoff return yards. Thomas moved on to the NFL, and Sanders became the starter for his junior year.
In 1988, in what has been called the greatest season in college football history, Sanders led the nation by averaging 7.6 yards per carry and over 200 yards per game, including rushing for over 300 yards in four games. Despite his massive workload of 344 carries, Sanders was still used as the team's punt and kickoff returner, adding another 516 yards on special teams. He set college football season records with 2,628 yards rushing, 3,248 total yards, 234 points, 39 touchdowns, of which 37 were rushing (also a record), 5 consecutive 200 yard games, scored at least 2 touchdowns in 11 consecutive games, and 9 times he scored at least 3 touchdowns. Sanders also ran for 222 yards and scored 5 touchdowns in his three quarters of action in the Holiday Bowl - a game that was not included with his season statistics. Sanders won the Heisman Trophy
as the season's most outstanding player. He then chose to leave Oklahoma State before his senior season to enter the NFL draft.
, thanks to the endorsement of then-coach Wayne Fontes
. The Lions' management considered drafting another Sanders, cornerback Deion Sanders
, but Fontes convinced them to draft Sanders instead. He was offered the number 20, which had been worn by former Lions' greats Lem Barney
and Billy Sims
; Sims was known as one of the league's best running backs in the early 1980s.
Though there were concerns about his size, it turned out these concerns were unfounded. Sanders was far too quick for defenders to hit solidly on a consistent basis, and too strong to bring down with arm tackles. Though short at 5'8", his playing weight was 203 lb (91 kg) and Sanders had a large portion of this weight in his exceptionally large and muscular legs, which provided him with a very low center of mass
; his weight was also the same as Walter Payton
and only slightly under the NFL average for a back. Further, Sanders was able to dazzle onlookers at an ESPN
slam dunk
contest by jamming comfortably from a flat footed position demonstrating his other defining characteristic: explosiveness. His agility and quick acceleration combined with his low center of mass made him very difficult to bring down.
In contrast to many of the star players of his era, Sanders was also noted for his on-field humility. Despite his flashy playing style, Sanders was rarely seen celebrating after the whistle was blown. Instead, he preferred to hand the ball to a referee or congratulate his teammates. But perhaps no other player in NFL history has ever electrified a crowd every time he touched the ball like Sanders, who played all 10 of his NFL seasons in Detroit. Lions fans remember fondly the thunderous "Barry! Barry!" chants that roared in the Pontiac Silverdome
in the 1990s.
In his rookie year in 1989, Sanders missed training camp due to a contract dispute. Despite that, he ran for 18 yards on his first carry, and scored a touchdown on his fourth. He finished the season second in the NFL in rushing yards and touchdowns after declining to go back into the regular season finale just 10 yards shy of the rushing title (later won by Christian Okoye
), and won the Rookie of the Year Award.
Barry was the featured running back on the Lion teams that made the playoffs five times during the 1990s (1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, and 1997). He was a member of the 1991 and 1993 squads that won the NFC Central division title; the 1991 team won 12 regular season games (a franchise record).
In 1994, Sanders rushed for 1,883 yards, on a 5.7 yards per carry average. He also totaled 283 receiving yards, which gave him a combined 2,166 yards from scrimmage for the season. He was named the NFL's Offensive Player of the Year. In 1995, Sanders posted 1,500 yards rushing with 398 receiving yards, beating his rushing total alone of the '94 season. In 1996, Sanders rushed for 1,553 yards with a career-low 147 receiving yards. Sanders' greatest season came in 1997 (see below), when he rushed for a career-high 2,053 yards.
In Sanders' last season in the NFL, 1998, he rushed for 1,491 yards, ending his four-year streak of rushing for over 1,500 yards in a season.
Despite his individual success, the Lions never reached the Super Bowl
while Sanders was with the team. The closest they came was in the 1991 season
. Aided by Sanders' 1,855 combined rushing/receiving yards and 17 touchdowns during the season, they recorded a 12–4 record and went on to defeat the Dallas Cowboys
38–6 in the divisional playoffs, which still stands as Detroit's only playoff victory since defeating the Cleveland Browns
to win the 1957 NFL Championship
. The Lions lost to the Washington Redskins
41–10 in the NFC Championship Game
, and Sanders was held to 59 total yards in the game.
In Sanders' career, he achieved Pro Bowl status in all of his 10 seasons as a pro. Sanders was named first team All-Pro eight times from 1989–1991 and 1993–1997 and was named second team All-Pro twice in 1992 and 1998. Sanders was also named All-NFC
from 1989-1992 to 1994-1997. Sanders was named NFL Rookie of the Year in '89, Offensive Player of the Year in '94 and '97, NFL MVP in '97, and was named to the 1990s NFL All-Decade team.
Sports Illustrated
writer Paul Zimmerman
wrote:
when he became a member of the 2000 rushing yards club
. After a start in which he gained 53 yards on 25 carries in the first two games of the season, Sanders ran off an NFL record 14 consecutive 100 yard games, including two 200 yard performances, en route to rushing for 2,053 yards. In reaching the 2,000 yard plateau, he became only the third player to do so in a single season and the first since O. J. Simpson
to rush for 2,000 yards in a span of 14 consecutive games. He was the first running back to rush for 1,500 yards in five seasons and the only one to do it four consecutive years. At the end of the season, Sanders shared the Associated Press's NFL Most Valuable Player Award with Green Bay QB Brett Favre
.
He left football healthy, having gained 15,269 rushing yards, 2,921 receiving yards, and 109 touchdowns (99 rushing and 10 receiving). He retired within a one-season striking distance of Walter Payton's career rushing mark of 16,726 yards. Only Walter Payton and Emmitt Smith
have rushed for more yards than Sanders.
Sanders' retirement came somewhat unexpectedly and was a matter of controversy. Two years beforehand, Sanders had renewed his contract with the Lions for $35.4 million over six years with an $
11 million signing bonus. When he retired with several years left on his contract, the Lions demanded that he return $7.3 million of the bonus. Sanders refused, and the Lions sued and eventually won a judgment against him. On February 15, 2000, arbitrator Sam Kagel ruled that Sanders was in default of his bonus agreement and owed $5.5 million plus interest over the next three years.
Several years after retirement, and repeated refusals to discuss the abruptness of it, Sanders finally admitted that the culture of losing in the Lions' organization was too much to deal with even though he said that he could still play. He explained that it robbed him of his competitive spirit, and he saw no reason to believe things were going to improve. Although Detroit had made the playoffs the season prior to his retirement (losing to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
20-10 on the road in a 1998 NFC Wild Card
game), Detroit drafted quarterback Charlie Batch
in the second round of the 1998 NFL Draft
. It became apparent that Batch would become Detroit's full time starter the next season, and Sanders seemed unwilling to embrace yet another change in the Lions' seemingly endless carousel of quarterbacks and offensive philosophies. He had also gone on record to criticize Detroit's front office (most notably Chuck Schmidt) for releasing Pro Bowl
center Kevin Glover
for salary cap reasons. Glover was an underrated player and close friend of Sanders in Detroit. He stated there were tears in his eyes as the Lions lost in the playoffs to Tampa in 1998, because he knew in his heart he was never going to play another playoff game for Detroit. "I sobbed for 3 months," Sanders said.
There was widespread speculation that Sanders' retirement was a calculated move on his behalf to orchestrate a trade to a more legitimate contender. The Green Bay Packers
and Miami Dolphins
were both considered among the front runners in the negotiations. Sanders and Dolphin quarterback Dan Marino
reportedly both expressed a private interest in finishing their careers together (Marino never had the benefit of a premier running back behind him) and try to win a Super Bowl. However, Detroit was either unable to find an attractive enough offer, or unwilling to negotiate altogether with other teams. It had been a long standing practice for the Detroit Lions
to not accommodate players' requests for trades.
It was thought by some that Bobby Ross
himself may have actually been the reason for his early retirement but Barry Sanders, however, debunked this theory in his autobiography; Barry Sanders: Now You See Him, saying that Coach Ross had nothing to do with his quitting and actually praised him as a great head coach.
, and the couple have three children together. From a previous relationship with Aletha House, Sanders also has a son, Barry James Sanders, who is currently a notable high school football prospect. As a freshman in 2008, Sanders' son ran for 742 yards and twelve touchdowns while helping Heritage Hall School
to the 2008 Oklahoma 2A state title, and he was the only sophomore on the 2009 Tulsa World
all-state team.
, ESPN
announced in October 2011 that Sanders will replace Williams, Jr. in introducing ESPN's Monday Night Football
of the Chicago Bears
vs. the Detroit Lions
.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
who spent all of his professional career with the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
in the NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. Sanders left the game just short of the all-time rushing record. Sanders is a member of the college
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...
and professional
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
football halls of fame.
Early years
A Wichita, KansasWichita, Kansas
Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...
native, Sanders attended Wichita North High School
Wichita North High School
Wichita North High School, known locally as North, is a fully accredited high school located in Wichita, Kansas, USA, serving students in grades 9-12. Wichita North was founded in 1929 on the site where the United States government sent Company 'A' of the 10th Division to the forks of the Arkansas...
. Sanders did not play running back until the fourth game of his senior year in 1985. He rushed for 1,322 yards in the final seven games of the season, which earned him all-state honors. He was, however, overlooked by most college recruiters because of his size.
College career
Sanders started his college career at Oklahoma State and played for the Oklahoma State CowboysOklahoma State Cowboys
Oklahoma State Cowboys are the athletic teams that represent Oklahoma State University. Their mascot is a cowboy named Pistol Pete. Oklahoma State participates in the NCAA's Division I-A and in the Big 12 Conference's South Division. The university's current athletic director is Mike Holder...
from 1986 to 1988, and wore the number 21. During his first two years, he backed up All-American
College Football All-America Team
The College Football All-America Team is an honor given annually to the best American college football players at their respective positions. The original usage of the term All-America seems to have been to the 1889 College Football All-America Team selected by Casper Whitney and published in This...
Thurman Thomas. In 1987 he led the nation in kickoff return yards. Thomas moved on to the NFL, and Sanders became the starter for his junior year.
In 1988, in what has been called the greatest season in college football history, Sanders led the nation by averaging 7.6 yards per carry and over 200 yards per game, including rushing for over 300 yards in four games. Despite his massive workload of 344 carries, Sanders was still used as the team's punt and kickoff returner, adding another 516 yards on special teams. He set college football season records with 2,628 yards rushing, 3,248 total yards, 234 points, 39 touchdowns, of which 37 were rushing (also a record), 5 consecutive 200 yard games, scored at least 2 touchdowns in 11 consecutive games, and 9 times he scored at least 3 touchdowns. Sanders also ran for 222 yards and scored 5 touchdowns in his three quarters of action in the Holiday Bowl - a game that was not included with his season statistics. Sanders won the Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
as the season's most outstanding player. He then chose to leave Oklahoma State before his senior season to enter the NFL draft.
College statistics
Source: http://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/players/barry-sanders-1.html- Note that table includes Sanders' performances in bowl games, which prior to 2002 were not included in official NCAA career statistics.
Rushing Receiving Season Team GP Att Yds Avg Yds/G TD Rec Yds Long TD 1986 OSU 74 325 4.4 2 0 0 0 0 1987 OSU 111 622 5.6 8 4 59 1 1988 OSU 12 373 2,850 7.6 237.5 42 19 106 2 Total 552 3,778 6.8 52 23 165 3
Professional career
The Detroit Lions selected Sanders with their 1st-round (3rd overall) pick in the 1989 draft1989 NFL Draft
The 1989 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 23–24 , 1989...
, thanks to the endorsement of then-coach Wayne Fontes
Wayne Fontes
Wayne Fontes is a former American football coach and college and professional football player who was the head coach of the NFL's Detroit Lions from 1988 to 1996. His 67 wins and 71 losses are each the most for a head coach in team history.-Background and early career:Fontes was born in the...
. The Lions' management considered drafting another Sanders, cornerback Deion Sanders
Deion Sanders
Deion Luwynn Sanders , nicknamed "Prime Time" and "Neon Deion", is a former National Football League cornerback and Major League Baseball outfielder who currently works as an NFL Network analyst...
, but Fontes convinced them to draft Sanders instead. He was offered the number 20, which had been worn by former Lions' greats Lem Barney
Lem Barney
Lemuel Joseph "Lem" Barney is a former American Football cornerback who played for the Detroit Lions. He was selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1992.-College years:...
and Billy Sims
Billy Sims
Billy Sims is a former college football and NFL running back. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1978.-Early years:...
; Sims was known as one of the league's best running backs in the early 1980s.
Though there were concerns about his size, it turned out these concerns were unfounded. Sanders was far too quick for defenders to hit solidly on a consistent basis, and too strong to bring down with arm tackles. Though short at 5'8", his playing weight was 203 lb (91 kg) and Sanders had a large portion of this weight in his exceptionally large and muscular legs, which provided him with a very low center of mass
Center of mass
In physics, the center of mass or barycenter of a system is the average location of all of its mass. In the case of a rigid body, the position of the center of mass is fixed in relation to the body...
; his weight was also the same as Walter Payton
Walter Payton
Walter Jerry Payton was an American football running back who played for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League for thirteen seasons. Walter Payton was known around the NFL as "Sweetness". He is remembered as one of the most prolific running backs in the history of American football...
and only slightly under the NFL average for a back. Further, Sanders was able to dazzle onlookers at an ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
slam dunk
Slam dunk
A slam dunk is a type of basketball shot that is performed when a player jumps in the air and manually powers the ball downward through the basket with one or both hands over the rim. This is considered a normal field goal attempt; if successful it is worth two points. The term "slam dunk" was...
contest by jamming comfortably from a flat footed position demonstrating his other defining characteristic: explosiveness. His agility and quick acceleration combined with his low center of mass made him very difficult to bring down.
In contrast to many of the star players of his era, Sanders was also noted for his on-field humility. Despite his flashy playing style, Sanders was rarely seen celebrating after the whistle was blown. Instead, he preferred to hand the ball to a referee or congratulate his teammates. But perhaps no other player in NFL history has ever electrified a crowd every time he touched the ball like Sanders, who played all 10 of his NFL seasons in Detroit. Lions fans remember fondly the thunderous "Barry! Barry!" chants that roared in the Pontiac Silverdome
Pontiac Silverdome
The Silverdome is a domed stadium located in the city of Pontiac, Michigan, USA, which sits on . It was the largest stadium in the National Football League until FedEx Field in suburban Washington, D.C...
in the 1990s.
In his rookie year in 1989, Sanders missed training camp due to a contract dispute. Despite that, he ran for 18 yards on his first carry, and scored a touchdown on his fourth. He finished the season second in the NFL in rushing yards and touchdowns after declining to go back into the regular season finale just 10 yards shy of the rushing title (later won by Christian Okoye
Christian Okoye
Christian Emeka Okoye , is a Nigerian-American former American football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs from 1987 to 1992. Nicknamed "The Nigerian Nightmare," Okoye was known for his powerful running style and ability to break tackles. Okoye's six seasons in the NFL saw a league rushing...
), and won the Rookie of the Year Award.
Barry was the featured running back on the Lion teams that made the playoffs five times during the 1990s (1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, and 1997). He was a member of the 1991 and 1993 squads that won the NFC Central division title; the 1991 team won 12 regular season games (a franchise record).
In 1994, Sanders rushed for 1,883 yards, on a 5.7 yards per carry average. He also totaled 283 receiving yards, which gave him a combined 2,166 yards from scrimmage for the season. He was named the NFL's Offensive Player of the Year. In 1995, Sanders posted 1,500 yards rushing with 398 receiving yards, beating his rushing total alone of the '94 season. In 1996, Sanders rushed for 1,553 yards with a career-low 147 receiving yards. Sanders' greatest season came in 1997 (see below), when he rushed for a career-high 2,053 yards.
In Sanders' last season in the NFL, 1998, he rushed for 1,491 yards, ending his four-year streak of rushing for over 1,500 yards in a season.
Despite his individual success, the Lions never reached the Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
while Sanders was with the team. The closest they came was in the 1991 season
1991 NFL season
The 1991 NFL season was the 72nd regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl XXVI when the Washington Redskins defeated the Buffalo Bills....
. Aided by Sanders' 1,855 combined rushing/receiving yards and 17 touchdowns during the season, they recorded a 12–4 record and went on to defeat the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
38–6 in the divisional playoffs, which still stands as Detroit's only playoff victory since defeating the Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
to win the 1957 NFL Championship
NFL Championship Game, 1957
The 1957 National Football League championship game was the 25th annual championship game. The NFL title game was held on December 29, 1957 at Briggs Stadium, Detroit, Michigan. The game was the fourth pairing of the Detroit Lions and Cleveland Browns in the championship game...
. The Lions lost to the Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
41–10 in the NFC Championship Game
NFC Championship Game
The National Football Conference Championship Game is one of the two semi-final playoff matches of the National Football League, the largest professional American football league in the United States. The game is played on the penultimate Sunday in January and determines the champion of the...
, and Sanders was held to 59 total yards in the game.
In Sanders' career, he achieved Pro Bowl status in all of his 10 seasons as a pro. Sanders was named first team All-Pro eight times from 1989–1991 and 1993–1997 and was named second team All-Pro twice in 1992 and 1998. Sanders was also named All-NFC
National Football Conference
The National Football Conference is one of the two conferences of the National Football League . This conference and its counterpart, the American Football Conference , currently contain 16 teams each, making up the 32 teams of the NFL.-Current teams:Since 2002, the NFC has comprised 16 teams,...
from 1989-1992 to 1994-1997. Sanders was named NFL Rookie of the Year in '89, Offensive Player of the Year in '94 and '97, NFL MVP in '97, and was named to the 1990s NFL All-Decade team.
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
writer Paul Zimmerman
Paul Zimmerman
Paul Lionel Zimmerman is the son of Charles S. Zimmerman and Rose Zimmerman. Zimmerman, also known to readers as "Dr. Z", is an American football sportswriter who wrote for the weekly magazine Sports Illustrated, as well as the magazine's website, SI.com. He is sometimes confused with Paul D...
wrote:
"It doesn't matter where the play is blocked; he'll find his own soft spot...The scheme doesn't matter with Sanders. He can run from any alignment. While other people are stuck with joints, he seems to have ball bearings in his legs that give him a mechanical advantage...Sanders' finest runs often occur when he takes the handoff and, with a couple of moves, turns the line of scrimmage into a broken field...Nobody has ever created such turmoil at the point of attack as Sanders has...Knock on wood, he seems indestructible..."
1997 season
Sanders' greatest season came in 19971997 NFL season
The 1997 NFL season was the 78th regular season of the National Football League. The Oilers relocated from Houston, Texas to Nashville, Tennessee...
when he became a member of the 2000 rushing yards club
2000 rushing yards club
In the National Football League, there have been six running backs in the history of the league that have run for at least 2,000 yards in a single season. O. J. Simpson of the Buffalo Bills was the first player to accomplish the feat, rushing for 2,003 yards in 1973...
. After a start in which he gained 53 yards on 25 carries in the first two games of the season, Sanders ran off an NFL record 14 consecutive 100 yard games, including two 200 yard performances, en route to rushing for 2,053 yards. In reaching the 2,000 yard plateau, he became only the third player to do so in a single season and the first since O. J. Simpson
O. J. Simpson
Orenthal James "O. J." Simpson , nicknamed "The Juice", is a retired American collegiate and professional football player, football broadcaster, and actor...
to rush for 2,000 yards in a span of 14 consecutive games. He was the first running back to rush for 1,500 yards in five seasons and the only one to do it four consecutive years. At the end of the season, Sanders shared the Associated Press's NFL Most Valuable Player Award with Green Bay QB Brett Favre
Brett Favre
Brett Lorenzo Favre is a former American football quarterback who spent the majority of his career with the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League . He was a 20-year veteran of the NFL, having played quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons , Green Bay Packers , New York Jets and Minnesota...
.
| Week | Team | Carries | Yards | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ATL | 15 | 33 | 2.2 |
| 2 | TB | 10 | 20 | 2.0 |
| 3 | at CHI | 19 | 161 | 8.5 |
| 4 | at NO | 18 | 113 | 6.3 |
| 5 | GB | 28 | 139 | 5.0 |
| 6 | at BUF | 25 | 107 | 4.3 |
| 7 | at TB | 24 | 215 | 9.0 |
| 8 | NYG | 24 | 105 | 4.4 |
| 9 | at GB | 23 | 105 | 4.6 |
| 10 | at WAS | 15 | 105 | 7.0 |
| 11 | MIN | 19 | 108 | 5.7 |
| 12 | IND | 24 | 216 | 9.0 |
| 13 | CHI | 19 | 167 | 8.8 |
| 14 | at MIA | 30 | 137 | 4.6 |
| 15 | at MIN | 19 | 138 | 7.3 |
| 16 | NYJ | 23 | 184 | 8.0 |
| 1997 | TOTAL | 335 | 2,053 | 6.1 |
Retirement
Sanders stunned many when he announced he was quitting pro football. His retirement was made public by faxing a letter to the Wichita Eagle, his hometown newspaper in July 1999.He left football healthy, having gained 15,269 rushing yards, 2,921 receiving yards, and 109 touchdowns (99 rushing and 10 receiving). He retired within a one-season striking distance of Walter Payton's career rushing mark of 16,726 yards. Only Walter Payton and Emmitt Smith
Emmitt Smith
Emmitt James Smith, III is a retired American football player who was a running back in the National Football League for fifteen seasons during the 1990s and 2000s. Smith played college football for the University of Florida, where he was an All-American; thereafter, he played professionally for...
have rushed for more yards than Sanders.
Sanders' retirement came somewhat unexpectedly and was a matter of controversy. Two years beforehand, Sanders had renewed his contract with the Lions for $35.4 million over six years with an $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
11 million signing bonus. When he retired with several years left on his contract, the Lions demanded that he return $7.3 million of the bonus. Sanders refused, and the Lions sued and eventually won a judgment against him. On February 15, 2000, arbitrator Sam Kagel ruled that Sanders was in default of his bonus agreement and owed $5.5 million plus interest over the next three years.
Several years after retirement, and repeated refusals to discuss the abruptness of it, Sanders finally admitted that the culture of losing in the Lions' organization was too much to deal with even though he said that he could still play. He explained that it robbed him of his competitive spirit, and he saw no reason to believe things were going to improve. Although Detroit had made the playoffs the season prior to his retirement (losing to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West...
20-10 on the road in a 1998 NFC Wild Card
NFL playoffs, 1997-98
The NFL playoffs following the 1997 NFL season led up to Super Bowl XXXII.-Bracket:-NFC: Minnesota Vikings 23, New York Giants 22:The Vikings scored 10 points in the final 90 seconds of the game to stun the Giants.-AFC: Denver Broncos 42, Jacksonville Jaguars 17:Denver ran over the Jaguars with...
game), Detroit drafted quarterback Charlie Batch
Charlie Batch
Charles "Charlie" Batch is an American football quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the second round of the 1998 NFL Draft...
in the second round of the 1998 NFL Draft
1998 NFL Draft
The 1998 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 18-19, 1998...
. It became apparent that Batch would become Detroit's full time starter the next season, and Sanders seemed unwilling to embrace yet another change in the Lions' seemingly endless carousel of quarterbacks and offensive philosophies. He had also gone on record to criticize Detroit's front office (most notably Chuck Schmidt) for releasing Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
center Kevin Glover
Kevin Glover
Kevin Glover is a former American football Center for the Detroit Lions , and Seattle Seahawks . He attended the University of Maryland.-College career:...
for salary cap reasons. Glover was an underrated player and close friend of Sanders in Detroit. He stated there were tears in his eyes as the Lions lost in the playoffs to Tampa in 1998, because he knew in his heart he was never going to play another playoff game for Detroit. "I sobbed for 3 months," Sanders said.
There was widespread speculation that Sanders' retirement was a calculated move on his behalf to orchestrate a trade to a more legitimate contender. The Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
and Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
were both considered among the front runners in the negotiations. Sanders and Dolphin quarterback Dan Marino
Dan Marino
Daniel Constantine "Dan" Marino, Jr. is a retired American football quarterback who played for the Miami Dolphins in the National Football League...
reportedly both expressed a private interest in finishing their careers together (Marino never had the benefit of a premier running back behind him) and try to win a Super Bowl. However, Detroit was either unable to find an attractive enough offer, or unwilling to negotiate altogether with other teams. It had been a long standing practice for the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
to not accommodate players' requests for trades.
It was thought by some that Bobby Ross
Bobby Ross
Robert Joseph Ross is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at The Citadel , the University of Maryland, College Park , the Georgia Institute of Technology , and the United States Military Academy , compiling a career college football record of 103–101–2...
himself may have actually been the reason for his early retirement but Barry Sanders, however, debunked this theory in his autobiography; Barry Sanders: Now You See Him, saying that Coach Ross had nothing to do with his quitting and actually praised him as a great head coach.
Personal life
Barry currently resides in West Bloomfield, Michigan, just outside of Detroit, and is married to Lauren Campbell, currently a news anchor on a local news stationWDIV-TV
WDIV-TV, virtual channel 4, is an NBC-affiliated television station based in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is owned by Post-Newsweek Stations and is the flagship station and home base of the group with the offices of the group located alongside WDIV's studios; the "Local" branding now...
, and the couple have three children together. From a previous relationship with Aletha House, Sanders also has a son, Barry James Sanders, who is currently a notable high school football prospect. As a freshman in 2008, Sanders' son ran for 742 yards and twelve touchdowns while helping Heritage Hall School
Heritage Hall School
Heritage Hall School is a coeducational, college-prep school located in North Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. An independent private school not affiliated with any religious organization, the school is open to students of any race, religion, nationality, or ethnic origin.Heritage Hall was founded in...
to the 2008 Oklahoma 2A state title, and he was the only sophomore on the 2009 Tulsa World
Tulsa World
Tulsa World is the daily newspaper for the city of Tulsa, Oklahoma, is the primary newspaper for the northeastern and eastern portions of Oklahoma, and is the second-most widely circulated newspaper in the state, after The Oklahoman. It was founded in 1905 and remains an independent newspaper,...
all-state team.
After football
Following the firing of Hank Williams, Jr.Hank Williams, Jr.
Randall Hank Williams , better known as Hank Williams, Jr. and Bocephus, is an American country singer-songwriter and musician. His musical style is often considered a blend of Southern rock, blues, and traditional country...
, ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
announced in October 2011 that Sanders will replace Williams, Jr. in introducing ESPN's Monday Night Football
Monday Night Football
Monday Night Football is a live broadcast of the National Football League on ESPN. From to it aired on ABC. Monday Night Football was, along with Hallmark Hall of Fame, and the Walt Disney anthology television series, one of the longest running prime time commercial network television series...
of the Chicago Bears
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
vs. the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
.
Collegiate
- He set 34 NCAA records
- He holds the national college single-season rushing record with 2,628 rushing yards in 1988.
- In 1988, Sanders won the Heisman Trophy while attending Oklahoma State University.
- In 2008, Sanders was ranked #3 in ESPN's list of the Top 25 Greatest College Football Players Ever.
Professional
- In the 1989 NFL draft, he was selected in the 1st round (3rd overall) by the Detroit Lions.
- As a receiver, Sanders had 352 receptions for 2,921 yards and 10 touchdowns for the Detroit Lions.
- Sanders led the NFL in rushing yards four times. 1990, 1994, 1996, and 1997.
- Most Seasons, 1,100 or More Yards Rushing (10) tied with Walter Payton
- Most Consecutive Seasons, 1,100 or More Yards Rushing (10)
- Most Seasons, 1,300 or More Yards Rushing (9) tied with Walter Payton
- Most Seasons, 1,400 or More Yards Rushing (7)
- Most Consecutive Seasons, 1,400 or More Yards Rushing (5) tied with Emmitt Smith, 1991–1995
- Most Seasons, 1,500 or More Yards Rushing (5)
- Most Consecutive Seasons, 1,500 or More Yards Rushing (4)
- In 1997, he set an NFL record by rushing for at least 100 yards in 14 consecutive games and became only the third player to reach 2,000 yards in a single season. He shared the NFL MVP award with Brett Favre.
- During the final 14 games of the 1997 season Sanders rushed for exactly 2000 yards on 310 carries (6.5 yd./carry), a figure which bears comparison with O.J. Simpson's 14-game mark of 2003 yards on 332 carries (6.0 yd./carry).
- Each of his 10 years from 1989 through 1998 he was first- or second-team All-Pro and selected to the Pro BowlPro BowlIn professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
. - Over his professional football career, he rushed for at least 100 yards in 76 games, just short of Walter Payton's 77 games and Emmitt Smith's 78 games.
- NFL record 25 games in which Sanders rushed for 150 yards or more. Brown is second with 22 games.
- NFL record 46 games in which Sanders had 150 yards from scrimmage or more. Walter Payton is second with 45.
- 15 career touchdown runs of 50 yards or more, most in NFL history. Brown is second with 12.
- At the time of his retirement, Sanders' 15,269 career rushing yards placed him second behind Walter Payton's 16,726 yards. At Sanders' then-current yearly yardage pace, he would have eclipsed Payton within one or two years. Payton died from liver cancerHepatocellular carcinomaHepatocellular carcinoma is the most common type of liver cancer. Most cases of HCC are secondary to either a viral hepatitide infection or cirrhosis .Compared to other cancers, HCC is quite a rare tumor in the United States...
at age 45 just months after Sanders' sudden retirement. - His 18,190 career yards from scrimmage place him fourth on the all-time list.
- In 1999, he was ranked number 12 on The Sporting NewsThe Sporting NewsSporting News is an American-based sports magazine. It was established in 1886, and it became the dominant American publication covering baseball — so much so that it acquired the nickname "The Bible of Baseball"...
list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, making him the highest-ranking Lions player and the third highest ranked running back, behind Jim Brown and Walter Payton. - On January 31, 2004, he was elected into the Pro Football Hall of FamePro Football Hall of FameThe Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
. - On August 8, 2004, he was inducted to the Hall of Fame along with Bob Brown, Carl EllerCarl EllerCarl Eller is a former professional American football player in the National Football League who played from 1964 through 1979. He was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and attended the University of Minnesota...
, and John ElwayJohn ElwayJohn Albert Elway, Jr. is a former American football quarterback and currently is the executive vice president of football operations for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League . He played college football at Stanford and his entire professional career with the Denver Broncos...
. - Sanders also holds the NFL record for the most carries for negative yardage. According to the SI Book of Football, these numbers totaled 336 carries for -952 Yards.
Regular season
| Year-Age | | Rushing | | Receiving | | Total | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Yds | TD | |||
| 1989 - 21 | 280 | 1,470² | 5.3 | 142† | 24 | 282 | 11.8 | 0 | 1,752³ | 14 | ||
| 1990 - 22 | 255 | 1,304¹ | 5.1 | 13³ | 36 | 480 | 13.3 | 3 | 1,784² | 16¹ | ||
| 1991 - 23 | 342² | 1,548² | 4.5 | 16¹ | 41 | 307 | 7.5 | 1 | 1,855² | 17¹ | ||
| 1992 - 24 | 3123† | 1,352 | 4.3 | 9 | 29 | 225 | 7.8 | 1 | 1,577 | 10 | ||
| 1993 - 25 | 243 | 1,115 | 4.6 | 3 | 36 | 205 | 5.7 | 0 | 1,320 | 3 | ||
| 1994 - 26 | 331 | 1,883¹ | 5.7 | 7 | 44 | 283 | 6.4 | 1 | 2,166¹ | 8 | ||
| 1995 - 27 | 314 | 1,500² | 4.8 | 11 | 48 | 398 | 8.3 | 1 | 1,898² | 12 | ||
| 1996 - 28 | 307 | 1,553¹ | 5.1 | 11 | 24 | 147 | 6.1 | 0 | 1,700³ | 11 | ||
| 1997 - 29 | 335 | 2,053¹ | 6.1 | 113† | 33 | 305 | 9.2 | 3 | 2,358¹ | 14³ | ||
| 1998 - 30 | 343 | 1,491 | 4.3 | 4 | 37 | 289 | 7.8 | 0 | 1,780 | 4 | ||
| Total (all-time) |
3,062 (4th) |
15,269 (3rd) |
5.0 | 99 (8th) |
352 | 2,921 | 8.3 | 10 | 18,190 (4th) |
109 (10th) |
||
External links
| Navigation Boxes |
|---|