Barry Sanders

Barry Sanders at NFL.com Barry David Sanders (born July 16, 1968 in Wichita, Kansas) is a Hall of Fame American football running back from the NFL who spent his entire professional career with the Detroit Lions.

Biography

Barry Sanders was born to William and Shirley Ann Sanders in Wichita, Kansas. His first attempt at running back didn't come until the fourth game of his senior year (1985) at Wichita High School North. In the final seven games of the season, he rushed for 1,322 yards. Standing at just 5 feet 7 1/2 inches, most college coaches thought he was too small [1].

Recruited as a kick returner, Sanders spent his first two years at Oklahoma State University as a backup for All-American Running Back Thurman Thomas. He called it a "great experience". "I could study the great approach to the game that [Thomas] had." In his junior year, Sanders went on to lead the nation in rushing yards (2,628; 2,850 if you include the bowl game), total yards (3,250), touchdowns (39; 44 if you include the bowl game) and scoring (234 points, 264 if you include the bowl game) en route to winning the 1988 Heisman Trophy. His rushing yards and touchdowns in that year still stand (quite easily) as NCAA single season records. Rather than try to set more records as a senior, Sanders declared himself eligible for the NFL draft and left OSU as the team's all time leading scorer with 330 points (55 touchdowns). In 2004, Sanders was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame.

Professional career

The Detroit Lions selected Barry Sanders third overall with their 1st-round pick in the 1989 draft. Though again there were concerns about his size it turned out these concerns were mostly 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, Sanders was very stocky -- his playing weight of 200 pounds was in fact 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. This, combined with his low center of gravity allowed remarkably quick starts and stops -- he was renowned for sometimes running the full width of the field to gain only a yard on a play then, on the next, suddenly breaking through a hole for a long gain. Also of note was his on-field humility. Despite his flashy playing style, Sanders was rarely seen celebrating after the whistle was blown. Unlike many of his contemporaries, and similarily to the humility of Walter Payton, he would usually finish a touchdown run or catch by simply handing the ball to the nearest official. Very few skill position players of his era tended to exude the class in the endzone that Sanders did.

Sanders' most productive year came in 1997. Rushing for 2,053 yards, he became only the 3rd player to reach 2,000 yards in a single season. 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. He also set an NFL record by rushing for at least 100 yards in 14 consecutive games. He shared the league's Most Valuable Player award with Brett Favre.

Despite his individual success, the Lions never reached the Super Bowl while Sanders played for them (or any other time before or after that). The closest they ever 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, the Lions only playoff win since 1957. However, they were crushed by the Washington Redskins 41-10 in the NFC championship game, and Sanders was held to just 59 total yards. Detroit made the playoffs 4 more times during Sanders' career, but each time they were eliminated in the first round.

On July 28, 1999, at the age of 31, Sanders shocked many when he announced his retirement from pro football. He left football healthy and in his prime, having gained 15,269 rushing yards, 2,921 receiving yards, 118 kickoff return 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 Payton and Emmitt Smith, who broke the record in 2002, have rushed for more yards than Sanders. Perhaps his most impressive statistical achievement, though, is to join Jim Brown as the only players among the NFL's 50 all-time rushing leaders to average 5 yards a carry (only a handful manage above 4.5 yards per carry).

Sanders' precise place in football history is a matter of some debate. There is no question that he was a premier, Hall of Fame caliber running back. Many who saw his gravity-defying runs say he is the very greatest running back of all time. However, Sanders also had a propensity for gambling on taking a loss in order to break long runs, a lack of power in short yardage situations and shortcomings as a pass receiver and blocker, which lead some to believe that others, such as Brown or Payton, were better overall players.

Sanders's retirement was a matter of some controversy. Two years beforehand, Sanders had renewed his contract with the Lions for $35.4 million over 6 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.[2] 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.[3]

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. He explained that it robbed him of his competitive spirit, and saw no reason to believe things were going to improve. He also stated that there were tears in his eyes as the Lions lost the final game of his career the season before he left, because he knew in his heart he was never going to play another NFL game.

Personal life

As of 2005, Sanders lives in suburban Detroit with his wife, Lauren Campbell, a former weekend news anchor in Detroit, and three children. He is a majority stock holder of a bank in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and regularly attends car shows, charities, and plays the occasional game of golf.

Career highlights

He holds the college single-season rushing record with 2,628 rushing yards in 1988 at Oklahoma State University.
As a receiver, Sanders made 352 receptions for 2,921 yards and 10 touchdowns for the Detroit Lions.
Sanders led the NFL in rushing four times. 1990, 1994, 1996 and 1997.
He rushed for over 1,500 yards in a season for an NFL record five times.
In 1988, Sanders won the Heisman Trophy while attending Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
In the 1989 draft, he was selected in the 1st round (3rd overall) by the Detroit Lions.
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 Bowl.
Shares the record with Curtis Martin for consecutive seasons rushing for 1,000-plus yards (ten).
Over his professional 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.
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.
If Sanders had gained an additional 31 yards over the course of his 153 games, he would have been only the 2nd NFL runner to average 100 yards per game [see Jim Brown]
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 News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, making him the highest-ranking Lions player.
On January 31, 2004, he was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
On August 8, 2004, he was inducted to the Hall of Fame along with Bob Brown, Carl Eller, and John Elway.
On November 25, 2004, his jersey number #20 was retired before the Lions' annual Thanksgiving Day game. (It should be noted that the number was shared with former running back Billy Sims and Hall of Fame defensive back Lem Barney, who also attended the event).

Career statistics

Regular season

¹Led league ²Second place ³Third place ^†Tied
Year	Rushing				Receiving				Total
Year	Att	Yds	Avg	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	TD	Yds	TD
1989	280	1,470²	5.3	14^2†	24	282	11.8	0	1,752³	14
1990	255	1,304¹	5.1	13³	36	480	13.3	3	1,784²	16¹
1991	342²	1,548²	4.5	16¹	41	307	7.5	1	1,855²	17¹
1992	312^3†	1,352	4.3	9	29	225	7.8	1	1,577	10
1993	243	1,115	4.6	3	36	205	5.7	0	1,320	3
1994	331	1,883¹	5.7	7	44	283	6.4	1	2,166¹	8
1995	314	1,500²	4.8	11	48	398	8.3	1	1,898²	12
1996	307	1,553¹	5.1	11	24	147	6.1	0	1,700³	11
1997	335	2,053¹	6.1	11^3†	33	305	9.2	3	2,358¹	14³
1998	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 (6th)	352	2,921	8.3	10	18,190 (4th)	109 (10th)

Playoffs

Year	Rushing				Receiving
Year	Att	Yds	Avg	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	TD
1992	23	113	8.0	1	9	45	5.1	0
1994	13	-1	-0.1	0	5	4	0.8	0
1995	10	40	4.0	0	2	19	9.5	0
1997	18	65	3.9	0	5	43	8.6	0
Total	91	386	4.2	1	21	111	5.3	0

Trivia

Sanders is an unlockable boxer in the video game Knockout Kings 2001, and as a free agent running back in the Madden NFL games and ESPN NFL 2K5 videogame in season mode.
Sanders appears in the original NFL Street as an unlockable legend and he can be created in NFL Street 2 as a player in his likeness.
Sanders appeared in Madden NFL 1999 as a member of the Detroit Lions, but he retired before the season ever started.
Sanders reportedly was a member of the Detroit Lions because of former coach Wayne Fontes. The Lions' management wanted to draft another Sanders – cornerback Deion – but Fontes convinced them to draft Barry instead.
Sanders teamed up with ESPN's Kenny Mayne a few years after retirement and did a joke interview, stating his "retirement" was a result of miscommunication between Sanders and his coach Bobby Ross (Sanders saying he was "tired" and being misheard). The segment also made sure to point out that Sanders never spiked the ball during his career.
Sanders was held to a career low -1 yards rushing on 13 carries in a 16-12 Dec. 31, 1994 playoff loss to the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field.

References

Gil Brandt, "Hall recall: Barry Sanders", NFL.com, July 22, 2004.[4]
Craig Ellenport, "Sanders was born to run", NFL.com, August 8, 2004.[5]
Mark McCormick and Barry Sanders, Barry Sanders: Now you See Him: His Story in His Own Words (Emmis Books, 2003). ISBN 1-57860-139-8
Sam Mellinger, "A Hard Man to Catch", The Kansas City Star, August 8, 2004, pp. C1, C8.

Preceded by Tim Brown	Heisman Trophy Winner 1988	Succeeded by Andre Ware
Preceded by Brett Favre	NFL Most Valuable Player 1997 season (Co-MVP Brett Favre)	Succeeded by Terrell Davis
Preceded by First One	Madden NFL Cover Athlete Madden '00 (Also: Dorsey Levens)	Succeeded by Eddie George

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