[GoodLover]

But....they weren't greater....


Thurman Thomas?!?

You would take Thurman Thomas over Barry Sanders?

You sure that "mensa" isn't computer for "expert"?!?

First we can all agree that this is all opinion and greater is just a point of view.

Was Barry a better rusher than Thurman? Yes
Receiver? No
Blocker? thats up for debate

Being a winner helps. I know Barry played on some bad teams but so did Dickerson and he managed to get them to the NFC championship game with a CFl reject at QB.

SM

[viagradiscounttt]

No sh*t...That's friggin terrible....

Breathe Lions fans. I didn't forget him. I just chose to put players who wanted to play on my list.

[yespkorg]

1) Walter Payton (greatest player in NFL history)
2) Barry Sanders
3) Jim Brown
4) Emmit Smith
5) OJ Simpson
6) Gale Sayers
7) Jim Taylor
8) Eric Dickerson
9) Larry Brown
10) John Brockington

[Evoncalabbalo]

I just wanted to quote this post so other people can have the same laughs I did reading this when I woke up

You know I don't really care where you put Barry on your personal list, but for someone to NOT put him on the top 10 is either clearly a hater or a moron.

[ScosyGissiok]

Many great arguements here... Just look at the YPC tho and you see Barry didnt mind losing 8 cause he knew +30 was right around the corner...

[tpJKhY8Z]

I don't care what anyone else says. Sweetness was the best, is the best, and always will be the best IMO. And this is coming from one of the most Die-hard Packer fans you may ever talk to. Growing up I hated the Bears with an absolute passion, but I loved Payton. I still get a lump in my throat when I think about him. May he rest in peace always.

After that I have to put

2. Barry Sanders
3. Jim Brown
4. Gayle Sayers/Hershel Walker
5. Earl Campbell
6. Emmitt Smith
7. Johnny "Blood" McNally
8. Marshal Faulk/Eric Dickerson
9. Bo Jackson/Tony Dorsett
10. O.J. Simpson/Jim Thorpe/Larry Zconka

There are too many others that I think probably deserve to be on there, but those are ones I think were the best overall.

[rionetrozasa]

Mensa,


My opinion is that you have no basis for your opinion other than dislike....which is apparant in your statement to Lions fans to "breathe."

I would ONLY say something like that to a cheesehead...I guarantee this.

So thats the best theory you could come up with.

The first problem with that is your statement "I would only say........"

thus incinuating that you and I think and talk in the same way. Entirely illogical.

As for your opinion and your apparent dislike of mine.

1.Get over it. Does it matter how anybody else thinks? NO

2. There is no reality. Reality is only a group of people agreeing on something but it doesn't make it factual.

3. You can never win a debate through arguement.



SM

[tutkarussia]

whats a mensa convention? and i hate the lions completely but I still idiolized sanders in school as the best rb, his footwork and awareness are unmatched period. he did things with a subpar team that noone else could. And there were times the lions line was terrible and he still was a 1000 + back, so yeh your right everyone is entitled to their own opinion but you cant deny greatness.

Its where uber-nerds play games like this:

http://www.borrett.id.au/computing/petals-bg.htm

and talk about how superior they are to "common folk".

Want to see my membership card?

[Z3s9vQZj]

3. You can never win a debate through arguement.



SM

You've never met my wife...

[Zvmwissq]

1. Walter (Sweetness who delivered hits himself)

2. Jim Brown (a man among boys)

3. Eric Dickerson (Did everything without ever having a QB)

4. Emmitt Smith (Very Smooth)

5. O.J. (Just keep him away from gloves)

6. Gale Sayers(Wonder what would've happened had knee been available then)

7. Marshall Faulk (before the Knee injury, Possibly the most complete offensive weapon ever)

8. Thurman Thomas (Bills don't make 1 SB without him. Mr. 2000 total yards!)

9. Marcus Allen (Damn you Al Davis!!)

10. Curtis Martin (So consistent its frightening)


SM

[johnuioyer]

1. Payton -- As a Pack fan, watching this guy 2 times a year was a treat, even if he did run us to shambles. He did it all, and he did it at full bore, from the opening kickoff to the final second.

2. Jim Brown -- Didn't ever get to watch him live, but from what I've seen (video) and heard (dad, older brothers) the guy was an absolute beast.

3. Emmit Smith -- I know he wasn't as gifted as Sanders, but he was a more well rounded player, and he was a very *CLUTCH* runner, always coming up with the tough yards when they absolutely needed them.

4. Barry Sanders -- I gave the reason why I rated Emmit higher, so I won't repeat. The one knock I had against Barry was that he was sometimes unwilling to realize a play was dead, and he'd backtrack 8 yards rather than just take the -1 yard loss. Of course, now and then he'd bust those open for 60+ yard gainers, but more often than not, he'd get pulled down behind the line after scrambling around for 15 seconds.

5. O.J. -- Yeah, he did it. But he also ran for 2,000 yards in a 14 game schedule.

6. Marshall Faulk -- Complete player, but everywhere he played, he was surrounded by offensive weapons, making his job easier, or I'd rate him higher.

7. Curtis Martin -- Like the Energizer bunny, he just keeps going.

8. Marcus Allen -- All around back. Like Emmit, he was clutch.

9. Thurman Thomas -- Probably be higher on this list if the Bills had won 1 or 2 of those superbowls.

10. Golden Boy -- I'm a homer, fuck it.

[Rndouglas]

Any question about Barry being able to reach 1000 if he returned need look no further than Bettis or Curtis Martin last year.

I think it would simply be a matter of a durability issue, but since you can't hit Sanders anyway when he is running...

[nasxbrtyol]

JDiddy

1. Your word is not final

2. Everybody is entitled to their own opinion

3. Taking hostility to something that CAN NOT be proven through tangible testing is a waste of time.

4. If you think blocking is not required or an asset that a RB must have. Ask the countless fromer college RBs who are now busy saying "Would you like fries with that?" if their inability to block and pick up the blitz correctly made a difference in their getting cut.

5. Until you are registered and I see you at one of the National Mensa conventions, you have nothing on me.




SM

[oxixernibioge]

Barry did not quit he walked away cuz Barry did not DID NOT want to break Sweetness Rec Barry hated to be in the lime light also did not like Bobby Ross and what the lions did to some of his pals.

I think it's a shame none-the-less. He's another guy that I loved to watch (when he wasn't playing the Packers that is...even then too. Who am I kidding?). You were certain he was down, and he'd pop back up and scamper for another 5-10 yds. The guy was truely amazing. I still stand behind my statement that Payton will always be the best (IMO) though. Sanders had the speed and agility of a cheetah, and the eyes of a hawk. His reactions were made on a dime and could juke even the most skilled tacklers out of their jocks.

The thing that puts these two guys in the same boat is their unselfishness. They didn't care about the records or the glory and money (although they didn't mind it either, I would imagine) and played for the greater good of the team and the sport. They played because they loved the sport. You know the BEST always play if purely for the love of the game.

[blohannaserri]

I'm digging up an old discussion but: Does anyone else think Barry Sanders could still be a 1000 yard rusher in today's NFL?

Gettting a 1000 yards really isn't a big deal. 62.5 yards per game. Yes he's much older, but in Barry's prime he was near 1500 yards a season. Could he still get 1000? Absolutely.

[leoto5Fm]

Many great arguements here... Just look at the YPC tho and you see Barry didnt mind losing 8 cause he knew +30 was right around the corner...

I don't think YPC is the best measurement of a runn9ing backs success though.

Why, you ask?

If a RB goes 19 carries for 14 yards, then busts his 20th carry for 75, it looks like he's had a good day (4.5 YPC) when in fact all day he's been bottled up, and he had ONE good run.

The Cowboys (who I hate) developed a stat called "succesful runs". In which any run that either

1.) gained 4 yards or more
2.) gained a first down
3.) scored a TD

was considered a succesful run.

They determined that if 55% or more of your runs fell under that category, your running game was a success.

OBviously the example I gave above (19 carries for 14 yards, then a bust out run) is extreme, but I would guess that a lot of mediocre RB's had a higher percentage of "succesful runs" than Sanders, because he was a guy who you COULD get for a big loss now and then because of his trying for a big run. Granted, the line Emmit ran behind was better than the line Barry ran behind, but that's not gonna change my argument.

[JesikaFclq]

You realize Barry accomplished the same as well...

You're statement of:

I just chose to put players who wanted to play on my list.

is probably the worst statement I've seen on this board.

So...Michael Jordan would not be the greatest basketball player of all time?

Brett Favre considering retirement (ie. not wanting to play) makes him not one of the greatest quarterbacks?

You're just pulling up propaganda garbage....Don't hide behind some cockamamie blocking excuse...much less not even know that Barry helped Detroit to the NFC Championship game...

Sportsmensa...You ain't so mensa.

This seems a little on the harsh side. There are a lot of people that have strong feelings about athletes, but they're just opinions. Jim Brown, for instance, rubbed a lot of people the wrong way. He refused to block if he wasn't carrying the ball. How many points should/does he lose for that? One of the main reasons I think so highly of Walter Payton is that he gave 100% on every play, including laying out some of the best pancake blocks you'd ever see. Wilt Chamberlin is one of the greatest athletes ever, but had trouble making free throws. If someone wants to dock him points for that, that's their opinion.

[beriarele]

These are my top 10 comparisons according to games-attempts and yrdg gained.

1)Jim Brown(Because he played in less games and less yrs than the others)-118 2359 12312 106

2)Barry Sanders (If he would have played a few more yrs,he would have passed Walter Paytons record in less games and attempts)153 3062 15269 99

3)Walter Payton-190 3838 16726 110

4)Eric Dickerson-146 2996 13259 90

5)Curtis Martin- 156 3298 13366 85

6)Emmitt Smith-226 4409 18355 164(Holds NFL Rushing Title but took alot more games and attempts to pass both Brown and Payton).

7) Jerome Bettis-180 3369 13294 82

8)Marcus Allen-221 3022 12243 123

9)Earl Campbell-115 2187 9407 74

10)O.J. Simpson-135 2404 11236 61

Other Notables:
Ricky Watters-144 2622 10643 78

Eddie George-142 2865 10441 68

Marshall Faulk-160 2771 11987 100

Tony Dorsett-173 2936 12739 77

Thurman Thomas-182 2877 12074 65

Franco Harris-173 2949 12120 91

John Riggins-175 2916 11352 104

[arindiruppyr]

1. Barry Sanders
2. Walter Payton
3. Jim Brown
4. Eric Dickerson
5. Emmitt Smith
6. Marshall Faulk
7. Thurman Thomas
8. O.J. Simpson
9. Curtis Martin
10. Earl Campbell

Let me make 2 things straight here. First of all, I'm not too keen on guys like Van Buren, so I can't vouch for their talent. Secondly, I'd take Walter Payton over Barry on my team, because he's so complete. I think Barry was a much more dynamic runner. So much so that he takes the crown of best RB ever because of his sheer talent, speed, and skill. I don't think any other player will ever come close to being as dynamic as Barry, and that includes Michael Vick, Dante Hall, etc.

[loolitoertego]

Just like the WR and RB lists, here we can discuss and list our top 10 Running Backs of All-Time. I changed it to 10 since I feel like the top 5 would have most of the same people. 10 will open it up for a little variety.

I'm definitely going to have to think about this one a little.