I watched his entire career and all these years later, I'm still in awe. Catching Barry Sanders was like trying to catch a cricket. He retired way too soon. we miss you Barry...
All these years later and nobody has ever been close to the moves Barry had. I swear the dudes ligaments were made of rubber. Astounding he ran on that shitty astro turf and never blew out a major ligaments with the change of direction he ran with
Watching Barry Sanders, Emmitt Smith and Thurman Thomas as a kid was a dream. I wish the running back position could still produce talents like Sanders. Obviously Adrian Peterson and Ladanian Tomlinson were great talents and Le'Veon Bell was the last to show major potential (maybe Christian McCafferey). No one comes even close to Barry
He did all this while on a horrible team, balance second to none, leg strength and elusiveness and refusal to give up on a play.. best running back I have ever seen.. to me he is the G O A T
@Lendul yes he had a great lune but the fact remains one playoff win says a lot about the team. I blame ownership during that period more then the players but he did end his career early because he could see ownership was not willing to make the steps to make the team a winner. The new ownership is the opposite maybe same bloodline but totally different drive.
Barry Sanders could make a 2-yard loss exciting. He was so hard to tackle that opponents accused him of spraying silicon lube on his jersey. His low center of gravity made him near-impossible to take down one-on-one. Truly a one of a kind player.
Yeah, and some of the 2 yard losses should have been 10 yard losses and he would have run a total of 35 yards or more! Never saw this man give up on a play, he was never going to quit you had to go get him 😲😃
I remember that game....vs. Minnesota his rookie year they stopped the game in the 3rd quarter because Minnesota's defense said their hands were slipping off him! Omg how good are you when you get accused of spraying lubricant on your Jersey!!!BEST RUNNING BACK TO EVER TOUCH THE BALL 💯💯
one of my favorite plays that he made was actually about a 2 yd loss against the Cincinnati Bengals. he was about 8 yds deep single back. the defense had the play snuffed out with a perfect run blitz. Barry made a spin move on the handoff to avoid the tackle and managed to lunge forward almost back to the line of scrimmage. the quickness and balance to execute that was impeccable.
As a native Detroiter who got to see Barry live… I really appreciate you gents highlighting his play still. What a gem he was to watch… and still is. They’re erecting a bronze statue of him this fall for good reason. FORWARD DOWN THE FIELD!!! Go Lions!!!
That is awesome to hear!😀 I am 43 year old Tennessee native but the Detroit Lions have been my team ever since I saw Barry run the ball when I was a kid. The fact that he stayed with the Lions throughout his career during all the hard times is testament to his undying loyalty.. Something that is a lost concept for most of today's players unfortunately.
Trust me when I say there are many more in other videos. Some of which could have been in the top 50. Barry has more runs for 2-3 yard loses than anyone ever, but he made them look amazing. #HighlightMachine
Barry Sanders didn't have the highest top speed in NFL history, but he certainly has a case for being the most agile and quickest acceleration. His vision was incredible as well, as you said, he just seemed to dice through groups of people because he saw holes in the defense that most couldn't or wouldn't dare to run through. And his most underrated attribute is his strength. He had some very powerful legs that kept him upright in times where he had no business continuing to stand.
Experts have suggested Barry could reach full speed from a standing start in 2-3 steps. For context Usain Bolt requires 8 to 10 strides to reach his top speed.
The best part of Barry’s game for me was the fact that after he scored a touchdown he would just hand the ball to the nearest official and trot back to the sideline. No huge “look at me!” celebration with teammates. No silly dance moves or gestures directed at opposing fans.
The crazy part is that he didn't just make some average players look like they didn't belong on the field. In the #8 clip the player #47 that totally missed him is a hall of fame player John Lynch who was one of the hardest hitters in the league and was always making great plays.
Yeah it’s not necessarily his straight line speed (while that is fast), it’s his stop-start, quick feet, balance, and vision that separated him. Greatest running back in NFL history no question.
Yeah, there have been faster guys over 40-100 yards. But I don't think there's ever been a player who could cover 10-20 yards as fast, or change directions as fast. Baryshnikov in cleats.
I was at the game shown in highlight 46, sitting on the goal line Barry was running to about 30 rows up. I remember him breaking toward the sideline and in the blink of an eye he was in the end zone. TV doesn't do justice to how fast and elusive he is. I also met Barry after a practice back in 1991. He's about 5'8", his legs are like tree trunks, with each thigh being about as big as my torso. He's very quiet, incredibly humble, and signed an autograph for me, which I still have to this day. It was an absolute privilege getting to watch him play.
Barry Sanders ability to go from zero to full speed and stop and go was unmatched. There's never been anyone like him, and I doubt there ever will be.. In my opinion he is the G.O.A.T.
Barry was a great back in a time of great backs. Barry, Bo, Thurman Thomas, Christian Okoye (a personal favorite), Emmitt Smith, and you should check out Walter Payton. Great job guys. Loved this.
The offensive linemen are important for the running game too. They are given specific blocking schemes on any given play to create a specific gap that the RB is supposed to run through. If the defense out plays them then the RB is left to improvise on his own . Barry Sanders was very good at improvising ! A great video to display this is Football 101 Counter by weekly spiral channel.
The Lions had a terrible Offensive Line back when Barry Sanders was on the team. It was well known. There was some good blocking here or there, but so many hand off's to Barry he was getting hit within 1-2 steps after receiving the ball in his career due to how poor the O-line play was.
Hey guys how you doing I'm from Detroit and I had the Good Fortune of watching Barry his entire carrier and he quite frankly was the best running back in the world. EVER! Bo Jackson different ones like that but nobody is even close to Barry Sanders he truly is fantastic. What makes him so good and why he's so strong is the fact that his legs are like tree trunks specially his size and you know he just doesn't go down he just he just stands there in a pile and then eventually takes off. Good job men that was an excellent. I enjoyed your show, I really appreciated it.
I heard a story that one team bought live chickens to practice and had the defense chase them around and try to catch them, which is basically what trying to tackle Barry was like.
If you want to see the complete opposite style of running back, look up Earl Campbell. Where Sanders was quick and elusive, Campbell was a power back who would simply run through or over players who tried to tackle him. He actively sought out contact and hit the defender instead of getting hit. 5'11", 245 pounds, still very fast in the open field, he was incredibly powerful. Hell, the man had 34" thighs, and that's not an exaggeration. He's well worth a look.
@@mastick5106 Earl was essentially a RB with a LB mentality. He wanted to deliver the blow. When he came around the corner and some poor CB was faced with him... It was fun to watch, but not for the CB.
Great Reaction. I think that what made Sanders so special is that Sanders played in a time where teams heavily prioritized the running game, and opposing defenses were often geared towards stopping it. Now days, teams often pass more than they run, using different players with different skill sets. Over twenty years later, I am not sure we will witness this type of RB again. A fun video to watch would be Best "Big Guy" Moments in NFL History
A linemen that blocked for Barry in Detroit was best man in my brother in law’s wedding back in the 90’s. Jeff Hartings was his name. I asked him how in the world he was supposed to block for Barry and he said that you don’t. You just make your assigned blocks and Barry will do what he does. He had some cool stories about those days.
Couple things about Barry. It is his acceleration that excelled. On his long runs, most of the time they catch up with him. He led the league in runs for a loss. He would run 50 yards for a 3 yd. gain. I was very fortunate growing up as a Lions fan. Man, it hurt when he retired young like he did.
Really love seeing my British cousins appreciating what Barry Sanders could do. He was absolutely remarkable, the way he could change direction so fast then hit the turbo button and accelerate past EVERYone. Thanks for the video fellas.
Great job blokes. Love your amazing reactions to American football. You really seem to appreciate the skill and strength the players have. Barry at 5ft 9in was really playing with giants. His short distance burst of speed and super quick feet, allowed him to see a hole develop in front of him an dart through faster than any other player ever. His top speed was good but many players, both offensive and defensive have been much faster than Barry. At eye level, I'm sure his small stature helped him get lost among all of those much taller players. His strength and speed at his size was truly incredible too. And don't forget that the defensive players that he is outpacing with ease are themselves world class sprinters and athletes. You gotta check out a true athletic freak. Randy Moss. You will not be disappointed!!♠
This was the golden modern age of football imo. So glad I was a fan back then. Not too much now but recently started watching my Bills again. It was always fun watching guys like Barry.
I agree, where Barry Sanders is in my opinion, the greatest running back of all time, I'd also put in my 2 cents opinion that Randy Moss is probably the greatest wide receiver of all time, although there are many greats.
I am a Cowboys fan and have been for over 30 years. Every time we played the Lions back in the 90's...I was like "Oh god we have to play against Barry Sanders."
Great reaction to the GOAT. Best running back ever. No debate. His terrible teammates were no help. That's why every time Barry got the ball, if defenders weren't already in the backfield, they were waiting in the hole he was supposed to run through. I saw him live here in Detroit. Several of my favorite runs weren't even on here. Your exclamation counter: 16 - Wow! 17 - How? 8 - Nice! 26 - Ohhh!/ Oh God!/ Oh Mate! 4 - Ridiculous! 2- Insane! 1 - Brilliant!
One contributing factor that makes Barry the Great Of All Time was his humbleness, after each of those 50 great plays there is no arrogant celebration, simple hand off of the ball to the official. Barry rarely complained to the officials, other players or management (some think to his detriment), he was and still is a class act. He played for 1 team his whole career, stayed true to his fans and did not go chasing money. He retired in his prime while he could have kept playing and cemented his career with unbreakable records he just felt it was time. Has many have mentioned he did all of this while playing on horrible teams that went nowhere, he was amazing.
His ability to change direction abruptly and then seemingly be back up to top speed in two steps is amazing. He reminds me of a surfer on a big wave with the wave virtually covering him and suddenly he shoots out of it unscathed leaving the defenders grasping at air.
Bob Hayes was the fastest NFL player ever. He was a gold medal winner in the Olympics as a sprinter, making him the fastest human alive at the time. He brought his speed to the NFL as a wide receiver.
Thanks for mentioning Bob Hayes, who played for the Dallas Cowboys. I'm from Dallas, and I hadn't thought of him in years, but as these guys were watching this video Bob Hayes came to my mind, and I was thinking that he was probably faster. Bob Hayes was a wide receiver as I recall, and Dallas drafted him because he was so fast and had won the gold medal. However, I don't think he had ever played college football before and had to learn the game. The Cowboys wanted him because he was so fast and could outrun his defenders. Thanks for bringing up that memory from childhood. 👍😀
Barry grew up playing tag, he kept playing it in the NFL. He was so chill, he could take a nap during games. Great guy, got to play some pickup basketball with him - him legs were like tree trunks.
Not the fastest Player but definitely fast. He was known more for his quickness and his vision. He ran like everyone was in slow motion. He was one player you never saw get hit hard because he always left defenders standing still. The best shot at getting him was catching him from behind. He could of been the All Time Leading Rusher if he hadn't retired so early. He is my all time favorite Athlete.
As someone who was raised about 4 hours north of Detroit Michigan during the Barry Sanders era. There are a few things he possessed. Top Notch balance, control of his center of gravity to stay standing when most would go down. Constantly moving feet, leg strength, explosiveness, and top notch vision to find the gaps in the defense to carve out large chunks of yards.
Good Stuff! Barry was the Messi of Running Backs. Not the fastest but accelerated so fast and the agility was off the charts. Fast running backs to check out Bo Jackson and Chris Johnson. Really Fast…Tyreek Hill, Wide Receiver.
Barry Sanders was absolutely amazing. He had great vision and with every step he could completely change direction and turn on the speed and be gone. He was a little guy, and you wouldn't call him a hard hitter. Not saying he couldn't hit you hard but that wasn't his game. Barry was all about making the defenders miss and running past them. And he was great catching passes too. His team was never very good, but everyone would watch just to see what kind of magic act Barry was putting on that day. He played for the Detroit Lions for 10 years and then just walked away from the game and was basically still in his prime. I think he just got tired of playing on a bad team. Even though we was so amazing, and made big mean men look silly trying to tackle him, he played with respect and humility and always carried himself with class.
Barry had this unique ability to see the field and everyone on it. He could pick his lane and in a split second find an opening and get pass everyone. If he got by your side you were feeling nothing but air as he ran pass you.
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Quickest player is probably Chris Johnson RB 4.24. He was small but could fly. Deion Sanders 'Prime Time' CB/WR claims to have a crazy 40 or Darrell Green CB was very fast to his late 30s 40s. Recently Seahawks CB Tariq Woolen ran 4.26 40yard. However Straight line speed and football speed can be vastly different.
On top of all that, he was a really humble guy and stayed loyal to a fan base and a franchise that won only one playoff game in his career. He was and still is one of the most respected players for how he carries himself. He would have broken every record in the books if he had not retired at the age of 30. The team wasn't winning and he decided to leave the sport while his body was still in good shape and not broken down. He ran for 2,053 yards in a season -- the highest season of his career -- in his second to last season. He was still in his prime when he retired and was selected to the Pro Bowl (all-star game) every single year of his 10-season career.
Bo Jackson is the fastest player to ever touch a football. Unlike all of the other players who are at the highest level of speed in the history of the NFL, Bo Jackson was 235 lbs. Quite a large man who recorded the fastest 40-yard - time in the history of the NFL, 4.12 seconds. This was not at the NFL combine but it was timed by an NFL coach. There's no one else as large as Bo Jackson who can run like Bo Jackson. He was the fastest with what is called, "football speed". When you put pads on and you run around the field, it's a different thing than running indoors on a track at the NFL combine. Because Bo Jackson played baseball at a high level in MLB he never actually got to play a full 16-game NFL season. So any of his statistics are from abbreviated seasons of no more than 11 games. In a 16-game season in which Bo Jackson trained specifically for football like everybody else before the beginning of the regular season, there's no telling how many yards he would have run and how many touchdowns he would have scored. When he was finished with baseball, he would immediately put the pads on and start playing in the NFL. Unlike every other player in the NFL, Bo Jackson never attended minicamp, preseason, lifting weights preparing for the season to come. Everyone else was in football shape but Bo was a different level of speed and physical prowess. And he was like that his entire life. If Bo Jackson did not get injured the way he did there is no telling what type of Records he was established and what type of career he would have had in the NFL. I would not doubt if he would have ran for 300 yards in a game for instance. Purely speculation on my part I understand but he was unlike anybody else before and I've never seen anyone since with his physical capacity. That injury was a freak accident and it's a shame we didn't get to see what he could have done. There are definitely other players very close to the speed of Bo Jackson but all of them are a lot smaller than Bo was. One other player that comes to mind that might be the fastest player of all time is Darrell Green. Faster than everyone his entire career pretty much screwed chase-down everybody who is considered the fastest. Willie Gault included.. Eric Dickerson. You name it.. Darrell Green was fast at 50 years old. He was clocked running a 4.4 second forty-yard dash. There is a video of him doing so here on TH-cam.
@@marktho Top speed maybe... But I don't think he was the fastest accelerator. That 40 time is up for debate... as many of the times from that era were. My guess if he'd run in the 4.30 area with today's testing and have a top speed in the 22-23mph area
I grew up near Detroit as a kid and we LOVED Barry. Arguably one of the best RB’s of all time. Humble, quiet, great teammate and lots of class. He still has a house around here and I’ve gotten to see and chat with him a few times at the local golf driving range by my folks house. Easily one of the most favorite Detroit stars the last 30 years along with Steve Yzerman and Miguel Cabrera/Justin Verlander (whom all 3 are worthy of a highlights reaction video too). Those are all HOF players.
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Barry was a tremendous back... the guy was so incredibley talented with each and move...I can't count how many times this guy would break a tackle in a game...
Barry Sanders didn't have amazing top-end speed, but his acceleration from a stop was second to none. He also had a low center of gravity, powerful drive, and incredible balance. Also important: he knew how to use his blockers, he could visualize how a play would develop, and he was confident and patient enough to wait for it to develop.
@@darchon5 You're right, he had good speed. I'm not saying he was slow, just that speed wasn't his defining characteristic. He was faster than a lot of guys, but he also got caught from behind with some regularity.
@@bentighe4811 4.37 isn't just good speed for RBs, that's tied for the 8th fastest ever recorded 40 combine time among RBs. Dunno how much you watched him beyond this video (where he outran a lot more guys than getting caught), but having followed him for his entire career, he did NOT get "caught from behind with some regularity". (EDIT: and let's be clear, someone taking him down when they have the angle, which they're supposed to, isn't the same as getting caught from behind. And yet even in this video, he still outran some guys who had the angle on him even)
@@darchon5 I watched his entire career as an envious Vikings fan, and he is the best RB I ever saw. I understand a great deal about what made him the best since Jim Brown, and possibly the best ever. And it wasn't mere speed; it was a variety of factors. Can we agree on that?
@@bentighe4811 If that's the case then you should know that he certainly did NOT get run down from behind "with some regularity". Already said I agreed with everything else you said. I only took issue with your claim that he didn't have great speed, and then doubling down with the "some regularity". Last time I'll address this so we can move on from this minutiae - I did this for someone else, but might as well add it here since I already did the work: in this video alone, he outran guys (incl many who had the angle) to the house 19/27 times in plays where he got to fully stride while he was being chased but there weren't defenders directly impeding him in front at the 2nd level. 6 other times he got caught by guys with the angle, and only twice did he get truly caught from behind - play #38 where a teammate slowed him down first, and #36, where he got run down by a faster guy (Giants db Thomas Randolph w a 4.3 40). If you still consider that getting caught from behind with "some regularity", then you just simply have a different notion of 'regularity' and/or you didn't watch that many games of him live.
Barry was a beast. Pure dedication to his game and he put up his numbers while never having a great line or QBs, or recieving corps to take the pressure off of him....
Growing up in Michigan as a Lions fan, I was so fortunate to have had him play for my team. He had the chance to break the all time rushing record, but chose to retire in his prime, He was never one for attention or adulation.
Barry Sanders was the best in NFL history at one very important trait that NFL teams still look for in a RB - burst. Several of these highlights he explodes through the hole and it appears he’s covering 10 yards in the time all the other players are taking two steps.
Barry Sanders a Beast of a man,But a gentleman when speaking and a professional on the field no matter how he scored a touch at any pivotal point of the game winning or losing he might throw his hands up for the touchdown and that would be it, the next thing he would do was hand the ball to the referee no fist pumping,dancing, yelling to the opposing crowd or hometown fans he'd run right of to his side of the field to the bench and sit down,I am a Minnesota Vikings fan so I've had my share of Mr Sanders. Happy to say thank you to the Detroit Lions for making his playing days near the end of his career miserable making him walk away from the game taking a burden off of my Vikings. Sure did miss him when he retired though,especially on Thanksgiving Day. Salute Barry Sanders.
Lawrence Taylor, line backer Once heard the Barry Sanders attributed his moves to playing flag football as a kid. He never wanted to be tackled by having his flag taking off his hips so he would try to shift his hips away from the other people.
I was a Detroit fan for the entire Barry Sanders era. His secret was that he could go from still to top speed in about 3 steps. In many of his highlights you see that he can stop, spin, or bounce off a tackle then just be gone in an instant.
This is so fun seeing you both amazed with the “that’s a joke” astonishment adding commentary which sounds fit for World Cup football or Wimbledon. Thank you for your reactions. It seemed about half of the touchdowns for which Mr. Sanders ran were against my home-state Minnesota Vikings. Yes, Barry was a career Detroit Lion and retired in his still prime after, I believe, 10 ludicrous seasons. No one really knew way he walked away when he could have become the career most yards rusher in a few years. Sadly, like receiver Calvin Johnson-the next can’t-miss-watching-this game Lion who also walked away young-he played on some poor teams. When the Purple were fielding teams just good enough to continue breaking the hearts and souls of we diehard 0-4 Super Bowl record fanatic Minnesotans, Detroit was probably in the rebuilding mode and not the playoffs for a decade. However, they always found a way-as we played them twice each yea-to be a spoiler for the Vikings, and my dad and I watched both Barry sanders and then Calvin Johnson live in the pretty horrible Metrodome,, shred our lauded defenses with career games and wins that sometimes kept us out of the playoffs ourselves. But if a three win, 13 loss team comes to town the last game of the season and your squad needs to win it for a wildcard spot but you can see by about the middle of the first quarter that the opposition is absolutely going to smoke you that day, and the lowly Lions were about to end your season, at least you got to watch Ankle-breaker Barry rush for almost 200 yards and 2 TD’s or Mr. Johnson with 10 catches,183 receiving yards, 3 TD’s. It was kind of brutal, but absolutely brilliant-those gentlemen were a treat for all “Black and Blue” NFC North Division fans. I apologize for rambling, but that was really fun to watch. I will check out more of your content and am going to watch this video again, to see if I can pick out games when my late father and I are in the stands 🙏🏽✌🏽❤️-from Minnesota.
I was fortunate to watch Barry during his career. He will forever be the GOAT, he wasn't the fastest RB, but he had excellent acceleration. He see's a hole and BOOM!
What made Barry so incredible was his vision + his speed. He would see openings and holes forming in the defense and just hit the jets to get through it before anybody realized he had changed directions
Never once danced around and celebrated. After a great run after a touchdown, he would always simply hand the ball off to the ref. We loved him here in Detroit.
He was awesome to watch and had so many good games. If you get a chance take a look at his all time stats. In 2004 he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as one of the best to ever play the game!
Barry Sanders was about 5'7" but he weighed 200 lbs, he bench-pressed over 400 lbs, and ran a 4.4 second 40-yard dash. Nobody was better at stopping, changing direction and getting back to full speed, and even if you could catch him, he was so low to the ground and so strong, you weren't going to bring him down with arm tackles.
For my money, Barry was the best. He probably could have played a few more years, and been still at the top of his game. Barry had said that he developed his moves and jukes as a kid. They didn't have tackle football for kids where he grew up, so he played flag football. He learned to be shifty to avoid getting his flag pulled. Once heard a defensive player asked what was the hardest part of stopping Barry. He said "I've never really done it, but I am pretty sure he can cut and change direction even when he isn't touching the ground"!!! Barry always just handed the ball to an official or just put it down. Said he didn't want to act like he hadn't been in the end zone before or that he wasn't going to be back there.
Barry Sanders was amazing, with legs like tree trunks and superhuman speed. Probably my favorite running back ever. I’d recommend checking out Kurt Warner highlights…he was cut from the league, and then came back and threw bombs all day long in the late ‘90’s for the Rams and is a Super Bowl champ and MVP. His story is amazing.
That play against the Cowboys - I've seen it dozens of times and I still have no idea how he did it. Backs now are usually bigger and heavier, Barry was on the small side, deceptively strong, ran low, and could shift his weight in a heartbeat. Guys were left tackling his shadow by the time they reached him. We may never see another RB like him again.
Remember, the Lions played on National TV every year for Thanksgiving. This meant that every home in America was watching him play(at least in the background) once a year his entire career. This extended the lore of Barry. Everyone in the States was aware of who Barry Sanders was, even those who avoided sports. In college, a coach(Jimmy Johnson) told his players not to injure the starter(Thurman Thomas, who is enshrined in both the Pro & College Football Halls of Fame) because the back-up, Barry, would light their asses up.
It's about his 'cut's' and vision/anticipation for the opening. I have literally seen people 'swing for the air' thinking they will wrap him up and then he's gone.
My favorite Barry Sanders story was from one of his Quarterbacks. Barry lined up to his left, ball snapped to the QB, who hands it off to Sanders who ran towards him. Sanders turn left, heading towards the line of scrimmage. Suddenly Sanders does a 180 and comes straight back for the QB. Before the QB could panic, Sanders turned right on and headed back to his original position before busting out on the clear on the left side of the action. It literally took more time to write the first five words of this response than it took Sanders to do all that.
Barry had two qualities that made him nigh unstoppable, even when you knew he was coming; 1) His ability to change direction was (and arguably still is) unparalleled. So many defenders would be on the perfect tackling line up until the last blink, and by the next blink they were tackling air. 2) He didn't have the greatest top speed (as evidence by the number of times even in this list he got chased down), but his acceleration, going from zero to top speed, was something no other running back in the NFL had. It's why you see him cut through defenses so often and seemingly so easily. The line the defenders took went from what would normally be perfect containment into looking foolish because Barry would hit that extra gear at the perfect moment to ruin their line and containment. And these things simply weren't anything defenses could adequately prepare for, because no one really had any way to simulate what Barry could do in practice. The closest anyone ever got was Minnesota, who got into the habit of having their defenders try to corral CHICKENS, because it was the closest analogue the coaches could think of to Barry's change of direction and speed.
The magic that Barry Sanders brought to the game was his unreal ability to change directions very quickly. He was able to do this because of a very low center of gravity. Look how big his legs are…..
It's nuts how many times Sanders had to be horsecollar tackled from behind in order to be brought down. Imagine how many more yards or TDs he would have had if the horsecollar penalty was in place in the 90s. Also wild that some of these runs took place in the same game.
My favorite Sanders moment was towards the end of his career. He reversed direction, and a rookie defensive back was the only person left to defend against him. The camera actually caught the expression of the defensive player, and the guy's eyes were huge as he realized he was about to be a highlight on ESPN, and not in a good way.
Defensive players said trying to tackle Barry Sanders was like trying to tackle air. He was arguably the best pure running back in NFL history, and he retired at a relatively young age compared to the 2 or 3 other running backs ahead of him on the career yardage total list.
There are two kinds of running backs in the NFL: fast and agile ones that juke you out of your socks and then you have the power running backs that just run you over. In my opinion Earl Campbell was the best power back I ever saw. He had 36" inch thighs, the NFL had to make special pants for him and on top of that he was fast too. One game against the Rams he literally rammed (excuse the pun) into the Rams linebacker and kept going. Even with his jersey ripped halfway off and defenders hanging onto him he kept going. Simply incredible power.
That's interesting, I've never heard of him. Will have to check him out. I always assumed someone like OJ Simpson, or the Fridge, or Bo Jackson, or Jerome Bettis would be considered the best power runners.
@@Parallaxus He's definitely worth the look. I got to see a lot of him back when he played, and he could run past you or run over you. If he hadn't had the misfortune of playing in the same division as the Pittsburgh Steelers he might have been in more playoff games. Larry Csonka was another great power back. Csonka didn't have many highlight reel runs (unless you're a serious fan of defensive backs getting trampled), but I believe he's still the only running back to ever get penalized for unnecessary roughness against a tackler.
My mother once helped take care of the grounds for St Louis Rams one year, and one of the grounds keepers asked my mother if she knew who that was on the field working out? She said no. So he gives her a football and told her go ask him for an autograph, my mother said she didn't want to interfere with his work out, but then said he's a real nice guy and he would probably sign her football. So she goes, and he does. Years later, she was up for a visit, and we were talking about the Cowboys, She brought up the story about her football, and she asked me, "Who is Barry Sanders?" I was like total shock and explained who Mr. Barry "Pinball" Sanders was one of the best running backs. Nobody could touch him. That year Mr. Sanders made over 2,000 yards.I told her that she should never sale that football and if she ever wanted to I'd buy it from her.
Dude want the fastest (still very fast) … as you can see, he often got caught from behind. What was special was his burst and his brakes. He could go from 0 to top end speed in an instant … then from top end to dead stop in a heartbeat. That and his elusiveness and agility were superhuman. Dude was lightning in a bottle every play.
Barry was must see tv back in the day. I was in high school when he was in his prime. Unlike anything I’ve ever seen. If the lions were playing, everyone was watching
Barry Sanders is so good that (Nike?) made a commercial honoring a player(Brad Edwards?) for accomplishing something that was the pinnacle of achievements in football at the time. Making an open field tackle on Barry Sanders.
You've got some great videos here. You should definitely check out these two running backs - Gale Sayers, and Walter Payton. Both of them were almost always exciting to see playing the game. Like Barry Sanders, great players, and great people, too. They do not disappoint.
@@DNReacts Definitely Walter Payton aka “Sweetness”. One of the most revered athletes and men to play professional sports. Mr Class. Walter sadly died young.
What amazed me about Sanders was his ability to stop on a dime, then be at top speed again on his next step, only in another direction. Many defenders grabbed air as he just moved so fast. His top speed wasn't what some others were, but he got to his top speed faster than anyone....ever.
It wasn't just the top end speed (which was elite), it was the sudden stops, the fast change of direction, the otherworldly acceleration, and the balance...just the balance.
What was unique about Barry Sanders was his change of direction. He would hold his shoulder pads along with his momentum while his legs shifted him into a completely different direction. I'm losing my shit to his shifts behind the line of scrimmage, but it goes unrecognized to you. I hope you revisit it as your knowledge grows. I was a bit young to enjoy this phenom, but always enjoy watching him juke everyone.
He was special. What made him special was combination of vision, speed and acceleration. To top it off he could cut and change direction without losing any speed doing it.
Barry Sanders is the quickest running back ever! That first move is freezing and as his career progressed that first move became even more freezing because he was literally in defenders heads trying to get a gage on him as to what he was gonna do. A lot of times he didn't even have to give a move because the defender faked himself out over pursuing the direction he thought Sanders would go. Barry Sanders is the greatest PURE RUNNER of all time. He's definitely the most electrifying running back ever. Tony Dorsett was great too. He had a very graceful stride running low to the ground but running like a deer. Very fluid runner. No doubt that Sanders is that much more electrifying but I would suggest you take a look at who I call the original Barry Sanders for his Houdini heroics. The one attribute that Sanders didn't possess was that 5th gear to pull away from the secondary. Tony had quickness plus speed. Not only was he fast on the track running a 4.340 in the 40yard dash he was football fast and yes there's a difference. The difference has to do with reacting to what you see which in relates as well to quickness. Once Dorsett got beyond the first line of defense it was usually all over. Not until Darrell Green in 83 did anybody run down Tony Dorsett from behind
Sanders wasn't nearly the fastest man in the NFL ( notice how many times he gets caught from behind in this video } ,but he was VERY quick and elusive and had a great knack for spotting a hole he could run through . One of the very best ball carriers EVER
I literally laughed out loud when you guys said "howed he get through that" because I heard them very same words A LOT growing up watching Berry Sanders play football. He was a great for sure, he just didn't play long enough. Great video guys.
Well, at least you can now say you know who he is. Barry was a real treat to watch as a boy. Always at the edge of my seat. To answer your question....no one! No one was or is better. I'm bias because I'm a massive barry and Lions fan, but in his rather short career, no one can say they did what he could in that time. Every record would be untouchable if he'd stayed in the league.
The greatest back in NFL history, his ability to change direction and his start stop ability was masterful. He was never the fastest but he was the best back and he did it with some really bad blocking. Other greats, Marcus Allen, Thurman Thomas, Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith.
There are many remarkable things about Barry Sanders, including his powerful legs, his ability to read the game and find gaps, and his integrity and humility. However, what truly sets him apart is his unique ability to reach full speed in just two to three steps from a standing position. This feat is incredibly rare and difficult to achieve, even among elite athletes. For comparison, even the fastest sprinters in the world, like Usain Bolt, require around eight to ten strides to reach their top speed. The fact that Barry could accelerate and change direction so quickly and explosively is a testament to his exceptional athletic ability and his mastery of proper running technique. It's one of the many reasons why he is regarded as one of the greatest running backs in the history of football.
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I watched his entire career and all these years later, I'm still in awe. Catching Barry Sanders was like trying to catch a cricket. He retired way too soon. we miss you Barry...
All these years later and nobody has ever been close to the moves Barry had. I swear the dudes ligaments were made of rubber. Astounding he ran on that shitty astro turf and never blew out a major ligaments with the change of direction he ran with
@Josh Lewis Tomlinson came close. Not as shifty as sanders but Def had the change of direction.
Watching Barry Sanders, Emmitt Smith and Thurman Thomas as a kid was a dream. I wish the running back position could still produce talents like Sanders. Obviously Adrian Peterson and Ladanian Tomlinson were great talents and Le'Veon Bell was the last to show major potential (maybe Christian McCafferey). No one comes even close to Barry
@@TG-uj6yu The fact that Barry Sanders and Thurman Thomas were both at oklahoma state at the same time is nuts lmao. Best runningback duo of all time
The NFL has devalued the running back to the point that a lot of the potential greats now switch to linebacker or safety.
He did all this while on a horrible team, balance second to none, leg strength and elusiveness and refusal to give up on a play.. best running back I have ever seen.. to me he is the G O A T
Against some of the top defences.
Sanders being on a horrible teams is a myth. That team had a good, not great line and a Pro Bowl WR in Moore to help defenses somewhat honest.
@Lendul yes he had a great lune but the fact remains one playoff win says a lot about the team. I blame ownership during that period more then the players but he did end his career early because he could see ownership was not willing to make the steps to make the team a winner. The new ownership is the opposite maybe same bloodline but totally different drive.
@@Lendul Myth? The lions were garbage. Terrible coaching. Average at best offensive line.
him and walter payton
Barry Sanders could make a 2-yard loss exciting. He was so hard to tackle that opponents accused him of spraying silicon lube on his jersey. His low center of gravity made him near-impossible to take down one-on-one. Truly a one of a kind player.
He looks incredible!
Yeah, and some of the 2 yard losses should have been 10 yard losses and he would have run a total of 35 yards or more! Never saw this man give up on a play, he was never going to quit you had to go get him 😲😃
Keep in mind Detroit had no passing game so opposing teams knew they would run the ball and still
Couldn’t stop Barry.
I remember that game....vs. Minnesota his rookie year they stopped the game in the 3rd quarter because Minnesota's defense said their hands were slipping off him! Omg how good are you when you get accused of spraying lubricant on your Jersey!!!BEST RUNNING BACK TO EVER TOUCH THE BALL 💯💯
one of my favorite plays that he made was actually about a 2 yd loss against the Cincinnati Bengals. he was about 8 yds deep single back. the defense had the play snuffed out with a perfect run blitz. Barry made a spin move on the handoff to avoid the tackle and managed to lunge forward almost back to the line of scrimmage. the quickness and balance to execute that was impeccable.
As a native Detroiter who got to see Barry live… I really appreciate you gents highlighting his play still. What a gem he was to watch… and still is. They’re erecting a bronze statue of him this fall for good reason. FORWARD DOWN THE FIELD!!! Go Lions!!!
He was amazing! Lucky that you got to see him!
finally got his statue in stillwater too
That is awesome to hear!😀 I am 43 year old Tennessee native but the Detroit Lions have been my team ever since I saw Barry run the ball when I was a kid. The fact that he stayed with the Lions throughout his career during all the hard times is testament to his undying loyalty.. Something that is a lost concept for most of today's players unfortunately.
Lived in Detroit during this time. Between the sheer size of the Silverdome and team stinking, home games were always blacked out on tv.
The fact there are 50 highlights of him is something in itself.
Absolutely!
Trust me when I say there are many more in other videos. Some of which could have been in the top 50.
Barry has more runs for 2-3 yard loses than anyone ever, but he made them look amazing.
#HighlightMachine
Barry Sanders didn't have the highest top speed in NFL history, but he certainly has a case for being the most agile and quickest acceleration. His vision was incredible as well, as you said, he just seemed to dice through groups of people because he saw holes in the defense that most couldn't or wouldn't dare to run through. And his most underrated attribute is his strength. He had some very powerful legs that kept him upright in times where he had no business continuing to stand.
Experts have suggested Barry could reach full speed from a standing start in 2-3 steps. For context Usain Bolt requires 8 to 10 strides to reach his top speed.
@@mattmays9063 I wouldn't doubt it!
guess I should read comments before posting...just said the same thing.
The best part of Barry’s game for me was the fact that after he scored a touchdown he would just hand the ball to the nearest official and trot back to the sideline. No huge “look at me!” celebration with teammates. No silly dance moves or gestures directed at opposing fans.
Larry Fitzgerald was like this too. No showboating, just skill
So lmao the celebration makes the game a little more exciting
Nothing wrong with a tasteful celebration. It is a game after all
Jim Brown also.
All around great Runningback.
Detroit Lions
The crazy part is that he didn't just make some average players look like they didn't belong on the field. In the #8 clip the player #47 that totally missed him is a hall of fame player John Lynch who was one of the hardest hitters in the league and was always making great plays.
More, I spotted White, Atwater, Sapp, Dent, Singletary, Doleman and some more I missed. He left Hall of Famers laying on the turf like laundry.
Yeah it’s not necessarily his straight line speed (while that is fast), it’s his stop-start, quick feet, balance, and vision that separated him.
Greatest running back in NFL history no question.
He was so good!
The greatest ever running back,top ten greatest player ever
Yeah, there have been faster guys over 40-100 yards. But I don't think there's ever been a player who could cover 10-20 yards as fast, or change directions as fast. Baryshnikov in cleats.
Exactly. He was at full speed in like 3 steps
maybe walter payton also
Greatest running back in NFL history. Great strength, speed and an absolute water bug cutter.
He was incredible!
My favorite aspect of him was Barry, the man himself-subtle, class act
I was at the game shown in highlight 46, sitting on the goal line Barry was running to about 30 rows up. I remember him breaking toward the sideline and in the blink of an eye he was in the end zone. TV doesn't do justice to how fast and elusive he is.
I also met Barry after a practice back in 1991. He's about 5'8", his legs are like tree trunks, with each thigh being about as big as my torso. He's very quiet, incredibly humble, and signed an autograph for me, which I still have to this day. It was an absolute privilege getting to watch him play.
Barry Sanders ability to go from zero to full speed and stop and go was unmatched. There's never been anyone like him, and I doubt there ever will be.. In my opinion he is the G.O.A.T.
Barry was a great back in a time of great backs. Barry, Bo, Thurman Thomas, Christian Okoye (a personal favorite), Emmitt Smith, and you should check out Walter Payton. Great job guys. Loved this.
His ablilty to make unbelievably fast and effective cuts/reverse direction/see the opportunities... and the acceleration was incredible. What a beast!
The offensive linemen are important for the running game too. They are given specific blocking schemes on any given play to create a specific gap that the RB is supposed to run through.
If the defense out plays them then the RB is left to improvise on his own .
Barry Sanders was very good at improvising !
A great video to display this is Football 101 Counter by weekly spiral channel.
The Lions had a terrible Offensive Line back when Barry Sanders was on the team. It was well known. There was some good blocking here or there, but so many hand off's to Barry he was getting hit within 1-2 steps after receiving the ball in his career due to how poor the O-line play was.
Hey guys how you doing I'm from Detroit and I had the Good Fortune of watching Barry his entire carrier and he quite frankly was the best running back in the world. EVER! Bo Jackson different ones like that but nobody is even close to Barry Sanders he truly is fantastic. What makes him so good and why he's so strong is the fact that his legs are like tree trunks specially his size and you know he just doesn't go down he just he just stands there in a pile and then eventually takes off. Good job men that was an excellent. I enjoyed your show, I really appreciated it.
Bo Jackson was a great college and NFL running back and also a great Major League Baseball player.
FYI: The other teams in the NFL actually had to create a "Barry Sanders defense" in their playbooks. That's how tough it was to deal with him!!
I heard a story that one team bought live chickens to practice and had the defense chase them around and try to catch them, which is basically what trying to tackle Barry was like.
If you want to see the complete opposite style of running back, look up Earl Campbell. Where Sanders was quick and elusive, Campbell was a power back who would simply run through or over players who tried to tackle him. He actively sought out contact and hit the defender instead of getting hit.
5'11", 245 pounds, still very fast in the open field, he was incredibly powerful. Hell, the man had 34" thighs, and that's not an exaggeration. He's well worth a look.
Earl Campbell is SO under-rated it's a crime
Campbell's first four seasons in the NFL were incredible (1978-81).
Earl Campbell was the only player I ever heard Mean Joe Greene refer to as "scary".
@@mastick5106 Earl was essentially a RB with a LB mentality. He wanted to deliver the blow. When he came around the corner and some poor CB was faced with him... It was fun to watch, but not for the CB.
Great Reaction. I think that what made Sanders so special is that Sanders played in a time where teams heavily prioritized the running game, and opposing defenses were often geared towards stopping it. Now days, teams often pass more than they run, using different players with different skill sets. Over twenty years later, I am not sure we will witness this type of RB again. A fun video to watch would be Best "Big Guy" Moments in NFL History
Thank you so much! We really enjoyed this one!
A linemen that blocked for Barry in Detroit was best man in my brother in law’s wedding back in the 90’s. Jeff Hartings was his name. I asked him how in the world he was supposed to block for Barry and he said that you don’t. You just make your assigned blocks and Barry will do what he does. He had some cool stories about those days.
Couple things about Barry. It is his acceleration that excelled. On his long runs, most of the time they catch up with him. He led the league in runs for a loss. He would run 50 yards for a 3 yd. gain. I was very fortunate growing up as a Lions fan. Man, it hurt when he retired young like he did.
Yeah, he would get caught from behind, but only after he had gained 30-40 yards. 🙂
Really love seeing my British cousins appreciating what Barry Sanders could do. He was absolutely remarkable, the way he could change direction so fast then hit the turbo button and accelerate past EVERYone. Thanks for the video fellas.
Thank you David, I’ve even come back and watched this a few times myself. The change of direction and that acceleration from 0-20 metres is insane
His speed, quickness, and balance are excellent and can sometimes make you loose sight of how good his vision to find a seam (opening) was.
Great job blokes. Love your amazing reactions to American football. You really seem to appreciate the skill and strength the players have. Barry at 5ft 9in was really playing with giants. His short distance burst of speed and super quick feet, allowed him to see a hole develop in front of him an dart through faster than any other player ever. His top speed was good but many players, both offensive and defensive have been much faster than Barry. At eye level, I'm sure his small stature helped him get lost among all of those much taller players. His strength and speed at his size was truly incredible too. And don't forget that the defensive players that he is outpacing with ease are themselves world class sprinters and athletes.
You gotta check out a true athletic freak. Randy Moss. You will not be disappointed!!♠
Thank you! How can you not appreciate Barry, guy was a machine!
This was the golden modern age of football imo. So glad I was a fan back then. Not too much now but recently started watching my Bills again. It was always fun watching guys like Barry.
I agree, where Barry Sanders is in my opinion, the greatest running back of all time, I'd also put in my 2 cents opinion that Randy Moss is probably the greatest wide receiver of all time, although there are many greats.
@@Parallaxus Cannot disagree with that!! Barry and Randy dominate their eras.
I never thought of him as an elite burner but he had unmatched agility, elusiveness and ability to start and stop.
Acceleration was one of his greatest assets. 3 steps he was at full stride.
That's where he really excelled. I've never seen anyone who could stop and start with the speed that Barry could.
I am a Cowboys fan and have been for over 30 years. Every time we played the Lions back in the 90's...I was like "Oh god we have to play against Barry Sanders."
In his time he was the quickest but i think thomlenson was a little quicker overall.
Great reaction to the GOAT. Best running back ever. No debate. His terrible teammates were no help. That's why every time Barry got the ball, if defenders weren't already in the backfield, they were waiting in the hole he was supposed to run through. I saw him live here in Detroit. Several of my favorite runs weren't even on here.
Your exclamation counter:
16 - Wow!
17 - How?
8 - Nice!
26 - Ohhh!/ Oh God!/ Oh Mate!
4 - Ridiculous!
2- Insane!
1 - Brilliant!
I love that you counted our exclamations 😂 you can tell we enjoyed it!
One contributing factor that makes Barry the Great Of All Time was his humbleness, after each of those 50 great plays there is no arrogant celebration, simple hand off of the ball to the official.
Barry rarely complained to the officials, other players or management (some think to his detriment), he was and still is a class act. He played for 1 team his whole career, stayed true to his fans and did not go chasing money. He retired in his prime while he could have kept playing and cemented his career with unbreakable records he just felt it was time.
Has many have mentioned he did all of this while playing on horrible teams that went nowhere, he was amazing.
Barry’s ability to stop and go was unmatched.
His ability to change direction abruptly and then seemingly be back up to top speed in two steps is amazing. He reminds me of a surfer on a big wave with the wave virtually covering him and suddenly he shoots out of it unscathed leaving the defenders grasping at air.
Bob Hayes was the fastest NFL player ever. He was a gold medal winner in the Olympics as a sprinter, making him the fastest human alive at the time. He brought his speed to the NFL as a wide receiver.
Thanks for mentioning Bob Hayes, who played for the Dallas Cowboys. I'm from Dallas, and I hadn't thought of him in years, but as these guys were watching this video Bob Hayes came to my mind, and I was thinking that he was probably faster. Bob Hayes was a wide receiver as I recall, and Dallas drafted him because he was so fast and had won the gold medal. However, I don't think he had ever played college football before and had to learn the game. The Cowboys wanted him because he was so fast and could outrun his defenders. Thanks for bringing up that memory from childhood. 👍😀
I don't know much about bob hayes, how did his speed compare to tyreek hill?
Barry grew up playing tag, he kept playing it in the NFL. He was so chill, he could take a nap during games. Great guy, got to play some pickup basketball with him - him legs were like tree trunks.
As a Detroit fan, this guy was like a semi truck when he started running. He was very short but built solid, no one could touch him. Great video!
Not the fastest Player but definitely fast. He was known more for his quickness and his vision. He ran like everyone was in slow motion. He was one player you never saw get hit hard because he always left defenders standing still. The best shot at getting him was catching him from behind. He could of been the All Time Leading Rusher if he hadn't retired so early. He is my all time favorite Athlete.
As someone who was raised about 4 hours north of Detroit Michigan during the Barry Sanders era. There are a few things he possessed. Top Notch balance, control of his center of gravity to stay standing when most would go down. Constantly moving feet, leg strength, explosiveness, and top notch vision to find the gaps in the defense to carve out large chunks of yards.
I wish i could watch Barry Sanders highlights for the first time again. Just to relive that in aww moment.
Good Stuff! Barry was the Messi of Running Backs. Not the fastest but accelerated so fast and the agility was off the charts. Fast running backs to check out Bo Jackson and Chris Johnson. Really Fast…Tyreek Hill, Wide Receiver.
That guy was amazing to watch. Unbelievable talent.
Barry Sanders was absolutely amazing. He had great vision and with every step he could completely change direction and turn on the speed and be gone. He was a little guy, and you wouldn't call him a hard hitter. Not saying he couldn't hit you hard but that wasn't his game. Barry was all about making the defenders miss and running past them. And he was great catching passes too. His team was never very good, but everyone would watch just to see what kind of magic act Barry was putting on that day. He played for the Detroit Lions for 10 years and then just walked away from the game and was basically still in his prime. I think he just got tired of playing on a bad team. Even though we was so amazing, and made big mean men look silly trying to tackle him, he played with respect and humility and always carried himself with class.
Barry had this unique ability to see the field and everyone on it. He could pick his lane and in a split second find an opening and get pass everyone. If he got by your side you were feeling nothing but air as he ran pass you.
Thanks for watching. We’ve got a lot of American Football videos in a playlist you can view here -
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Imagine him as a Rugby winger or fullback... Those moves on the kick runback...
Quickest player is probably Chris Johnson RB 4.24. He was small but could fly. Deion Sanders 'Prime Time' CB/WR claims to have a crazy 40 or Darrell Green CB was very fast to his late 30s 40s. Recently Seahawks CB Tariq Woolen ran 4.26 40yard. However Straight line speed and football speed can be vastly different.
On top of all that, he was a really humble guy and stayed loyal to a fan base and a franchise that won only one playoff game in his career. He was and still is one of the most respected players for how he carries himself. He would have broken every record in the books if he had not retired at the age of 30. The team wasn't winning and he decided to leave the sport while his body was still in good shape and not broken down. He ran for 2,053 yards in a season -- the highest season of his career -- in his second to last season. He was still in his prime when he retired and was selected to the Pro Bowl (all-star game) every single year of his 10-season career.
Bo Jackson is the fastest player to ever touch a football. Unlike all of the other players who are at the highest level of speed in the history of the NFL, Bo Jackson was 235 lbs. Quite a large man who recorded the fastest 40-yard - time in the history of the NFL, 4.12 seconds. This was not at the NFL combine but it was timed by an NFL coach. There's no one else as large as Bo Jackson who can run like Bo Jackson. He was the fastest with what is called, "football speed". When you put pads on and you run around the field, it's a different thing than running indoors on a track at the NFL combine.
Because Bo Jackson played baseball at a high level in MLB he never actually got to play a full 16-game NFL season. So any of his statistics are from abbreviated seasons of no more than 11 games. In a 16-game season in which Bo Jackson trained specifically for football like everybody else before the beginning of the regular season, there's no telling how many yards he would have run and how many touchdowns he would have scored. When he was finished with baseball, he would immediately put the pads on and start playing in the NFL. Unlike every other player in the NFL, Bo Jackson never attended minicamp, preseason, lifting weights preparing for the season to come. Everyone else was in football shape but Bo was a different level of speed and physical prowess. And he was like that his entire life. If Bo Jackson did not get injured the way he did there is no telling what type of Records he was established and what type of career he would have had in the NFL. I would not doubt if he would have ran for 300 yards in a game for instance. Purely speculation on my part I understand but he was unlike anybody else before and I've never seen anyone since with his physical capacity. That injury was a freak accident and it's a shame we didn't get to see what he could have done.
There are definitely other players very close to the speed of Bo Jackson but all of them are a lot smaller than Bo was. One other player that comes to mind that might be the fastest player of all time is Darrell Green. Faster than everyone his entire career pretty much screwed chase-down everybody who is considered the fastest. Willie Gault included.. Eric Dickerson. You name it.. Darrell Green was fast at 50 years old. He was clocked running a 4.4 second forty-yard dash. There is a video of him doing so here on TH-cam.
@@marktho Top speed maybe... But I don't think he was the fastest accelerator. That 40 time is up for debate... as many of the times from that era were. My guess if he'd run in the 4.30 area with today's testing and have a top speed in the 22-23mph area
I grew up near Detroit as a kid and we LOVED Barry. Arguably one of the best RB’s of all time. Humble, quiet, great teammate and lots of class. He still has a house around here and I’ve gotten to see and chat with him a few times at the local golf driving range by my folks house. Easily one of the most favorite Detroit stars the last 30 years along with Steve Yzerman and Miguel Cabrera/Justin Verlander (whom all 3 are worthy of a highlights reaction video too). Those are all HOF players.
Thanks Devin. Have added these 3 to our list!
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Barry was a tremendous back... the guy was so incredibley talented with each and move...I can't count how many times this guy would break a tackle in a game...
Barry Sanders didn't have amazing top-end speed, but his acceleration from a stop was second to none. He also had a low center of gravity, powerful drive, and incredible balance. Also important: he knew how to use his blockers, he could visualize how a play would develop, and he was confident and patient enough to wait for it to develop.
Actually, he ran a 4.37 40, which is pretty amazing for a 5'8" guy (ie shorter strides). Otherwise, totally agree with everything else you said.
@@darchon5 You're right, he had good speed. I'm not saying he was slow, just that speed wasn't his defining characteristic. He was faster than a lot of guys, but he also got caught from behind with some regularity.
@@bentighe4811 4.37 isn't just good speed for RBs, that's tied for the 8th fastest ever recorded 40 combine time among RBs. Dunno how much you watched him beyond this video (where he outran a lot more guys than getting caught), but having followed him for his entire career, he did NOT get "caught from behind with some regularity". (EDIT: and let's be clear, someone taking him down when they have the angle, which they're supposed to, isn't the same as getting caught from behind. And yet even in this video, he still outran some guys who had the angle on him even)
@@darchon5 I watched his entire career as an envious Vikings fan, and he is the best RB I ever saw. I understand a great deal about what made him the best since Jim Brown, and possibly the best ever. And it wasn't mere speed; it was a variety of factors. Can we agree on that?
@@bentighe4811 If that's the case then you should know that he certainly did NOT get run down from behind "with some regularity". Already said I agreed with everything else you said. I only took issue with your claim that he didn't have great speed, and then doubling down with the "some regularity".
Last time I'll address this so we can move on from this minutiae - I did this for someone else, but might as well add it here since I already did the work: in this video alone, he outran guys (incl many who had the angle) to the house 19/27 times in plays where he got to fully stride while he was being chased but there weren't defenders directly impeding him in front at the 2nd level. 6 other times he got caught by guys with the angle, and only twice did he get truly caught from behind - play #38 where a teammate slowed him down first, and #36, where he got run down by a faster guy (Giants db Thomas Randolph w a 4.3 40). If you still consider that getting caught from behind with "some regularity", then you just simply have a different notion of 'regularity' and/or you didn't watch that many games of him live.
Barry was a beast. Pure dedication to his game and he put up his numbers while never having a great line or QBs, or recieving corps to take the pressure off of him....
Fun to rewatch great plays by all the greats in the history of the NFL.
Growing up in Michigan as a Lions fan, I was so fortunate to have had him play for my team. He had the chance to break the all time rushing record, but chose to retire in his prime, He was never one for attention or adulation.
I loved Barry as a kid because he was such a good human being and role model (especially for a small kid like me)
Barry Sanders was the best in NFL history at one very important trait that NFL teams still look for in a RB - burst. Several of these highlights he explodes through the hole and it appears he’s covering 10 yards in the time all the other players are taking two steps.
Barry Sanders a Beast of a man,But a gentleman when speaking and a professional on the field no matter how he scored a touch at any pivotal point of the game winning or losing he might throw his hands up for the touchdown and that would be it, the next thing he would do was hand the ball to the referee no fist pumping,dancing, yelling to the opposing crowd or hometown fans he'd run right of to his side of the field to the bench and sit down,I am a Minnesota Vikings fan so I've had my share of Mr Sanders. Happy to say thank you to the Detroit Lions for making his playing days near the end of his career miserable making him walk away from the game taking a burden off of my Vikings. Sure did miss him when he retired though,especially on Thanksgiving Day. Salute Barry Sanders.
Lawrence Taylor, line backer
Once heard the Barry Sanders attributed his moves to playing flag football as a kid. He never wanted to be tackled by having his flag taking off his hips so he would try to shift his hips away from the other people.
I was a Detroit fan for the entire Barry Sanders era. His secret was that he could go from still to top speed in about 3 steps. In many of his highlights you see that he can stop, spin, or bounce off a tackle then just be gone in an instant.
This is so fun seeing you both amazed with the “that’s a joke” astonishment adding commentary which sounds fit for World Cup football or Wimbledon. Thank you for your reactions. It seemed about half of the touchdowns for which Mr. Sanders ran were against my home-state Minnesota Vikings. Yes, Barry was a career Detroit Lion and retired in his still prime after, I believe, 10 ludicrous seasons. No one really knew way he walked away when he could have become the career most yards rusher in a few years. Sadly, like receiver Calvin Johnson-the next can’t-miss-watching-this game Lion who also walked away young-he played on some poor teams. When the Purple were fielding teams just good enough to continue breaking the hearts and souls of we diehard 0-4 Super Bowl record fanatic Minnesotans, Detroit was probably in the rebuilding mode and not the playoffs for a decade. However, they always found a way-as we played them twice each yea-to be a spoiler for the Vikings, and my dad and I watched both Barry sanders and then Calvin Johnson live in the pretty horrible Metrodome,, shred our lauded defenses with career games and wins that sometimes kept us out of the playoffs ourselves.
But if a three win, 13 loss team comes to town the last game of the season and your squad needs to win it for a wildcard spot but you can see by about the middle of the first quarter that the opposition is absolutely going to smoke you that day, and the lowly Lions were about to end your season, at least you got to watch Ankle-breaker Barry rush for almost 200 yards and 2 TD’s or Mr. Johnson with 10 catches,183 receiving yards, 3 TD’s. It was kind of brutal, but absolutely brilliant-those gentlemen were a treat for all “Black and Blue” NFC North Division fans.
I apologize for rambling, but that was really fun to watch. I will check out more of your content and am going to watch this video again, to see if I can pick out games when my late father and I are in the stands
🙏🏽✌🏽❤️-from Minnesota.
Great comment, thank you, really appreciate it!
I was fortunate to watch Barry during his career. He will forever be the GOAT, he wasn't the fastest RB, but he had excellent acceleration. He see's a hole and BOOM!
What made Barry so incredible was his vision + his speed. He would see openings and holes forming in the defense and just hit the jets to get through it before anybody realized he had changed directions
Never once danced around and celebrated. After a great run after a touchdown, he would always simply hand the ball off to the ref. We loved him here in Detroit.
He was awesome to watch and had so many good games. If you get a chance take a look at his all time stats. In 2004 he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as one of the best to ever play the game!
Barry was the complete package! 💯
Never missed a Detroit game when Barry played. I wasn’t a Lions fan but I loved watching Barry play. Greatest RB of all time.
Barry Sanders was about 5'7" but he weighed 200 lbs, he bench-pressed over 400 lbs, and ran a 4.4 second 40-yard dash. Nobody was better at stopping, changing direction and getting back to full speed, and even if you could catch him, he was so low to the ground and so strong, you weren't going to bring him down with arm tackles.
For my money, Barry was the best. He probably could have played a few more years, and been still at the top of his game. Barry had said that he developed his moves and jukes as a kid. They didn't have tackle football for kids where he grew up, so he played flag football. He learned to be shifty to avoid getting his flag pulled. Once heard a defensive player asked what was the hardest part of stopping Barry. He said "I've never really done it, but I am pretty sure he can cut and change direction even when he isn't touching the ground"!!! Barry always just handed the ball to an official or just put it down. Said he didn't want to act like he hadn't been in the end zone before or that he wasn't going to be back there.
Love this Jeff. Sounds like he was a great guy on and off the field!
Barry Sanders was amazing, with legs like tree trunks and superhuman speed. Probably my favorite running back ever. I’d recommend checking out Kurt Warner highlights…he was cut from the league, and then came back and threw bombs all day long in the late ‘90’s for the Rams and is a Super Bowl champ and MVP. His story is amazing.
That play against the Cowboys - I've seen it dozens of times and I still have no idea how he did it. Backs now are usually bigger and heavier, Barry was on the small side, deceptively strong, ran low, and could shift his weight in a heartbeat. Guys were left tackling his shadow by the time they reached him. We may never see another RB like him again.
Remember, the Lions played on National TV every year for Thanksgiving. This meant that every home in America was watching him play(at least in the background) once a year his entire career.
This extended the lore of Barry.
Everyone in the States was aware of who Barry Sanders was, even those who avoided sports.
In college, a coach(Jimmy Johnson) told his players not to injure the starter(Thurman Thomas, who is enshrined in both the Pro & College Football Halls of Fame) because the back-up, Barry, would light their asses up.
Barry Sanders was the absolute most exciting running back in the history of the nfl. Played for Detroit Lions. I was lucky to watch him play live.
It's about his 'cut's' and vision/anticipation for the opening. I have literally seen people 'swing for the air' thinking they will wrap him up and then he's gone.
My favorite Barry Sanders story was from one of his Quarterbacks. Barry lined up to his left, ball snapped to the QB, who hands it off to Sanders who ran towards him. Sanders turn left, heading towards the line of scrimmage. Suddenly Sanders does a 180 and comes straight back for the QB. Before the QB could panic, Sanders turned right on and headed back to his original position before busting out on the clear on the left side of the action. It literally took more time to write the first five words of this response than it took Sanders to do all that.
Great comment Robert, love this!
Barry had two qualities that made him nigh unstoppable, even when you knew he was coming;
1) His ability to change direction was (and arguably still is) unparalleled. So many defenders would be on the perfect tackling line up until the last blink, and by the next blink they were tackling air.
2) He didn't have the greatest top speed (as evidence by the number of times even in this list he got chased down), but his acceleration, going from zero to top speed, was something no other running back in the NFL had. It's why you see him cut through defenses so often and seemingly so easily. The line the defenders took went from what would normally be perfect containment into looking foolish because Barry would hit that extra gear at the perfect moment to ruin their line and containment.
And these things simply weren't anything defenses could adequately prepare for, because no one really had any way to simulate what Barry could do in practice. The closest anyone ever got was Minnesota, who got into the habit of having their defenders try to corral CHICKENS, because it was the closest analogue the coaches could think of to Barry's change of direction and speed.
The magic that Barry Sanders brought to the game was his unreal ability to change directions very quickly. He was able to do this because of a very low center of gravity. Look how big his legs are…..
First initial burst and ability to make cuts is what made him the best.
He used to train in NYC in the offseason, he liked to run through Manhattan trying to not touch anyone on the street, the crowd helped his feet
It's nuts how many times Sanders had to be horsecollar tackled from behind in order to be brought down. Imagine how many more yards or TDs he would have had if the horsecollar penalty was in place in the 90s. Also wild that some of these runs took place in the same game.
My favorite Sanders moment was towards the end of his career. He reversed direction, and a rookie defensive back was the only person left to defend against him. The camera actually caught the expression of the defensive player, and the guy's eyes were huge as he realized he was about to be a highlight on ESPN, and not in a good way.
Defensive players said trying to tackle Barry Sanders was like trying to tackle air. He was arguably the best pure running back in NFL history, and he retired at a relatively young age compared to the 2 or 3 other running backs ahead of him on the career yardage total list.
There are two kinds of running backs in the NFL: fast and agile ones that juke you out of your socks and then you have the power running backs that just run you over. In my opinion Earl Campbell was the best power back I ever saw. He had 36" inch thighs, the NFL had to make special pants for him and on top of that he was fast too. One game against the Rams he literally rammed (excuse the pun) into the Rams linebacker and kept going. Even with his jersey ripped halfway off and defenders hanging onto him he kept going. Simply incredible power.
That's interesting, I've never heard of him. Will have to check him out. I always assumed someone like OJ Simpson, or the Fridge, or Bo Jackson, or Jerome Bettis would be considered the best power runners.
@@Parallaxus He's definitely worth the look. I got to see a lot of him back when he played, and he could run past you or run over you. If he hadn't had the misfortune of playing in the same division as the Pittsburgh Steelers he might have been in more playoff games. Larry Csonka was another great power back. Csonka didn't have many highlight reel runs (unless you're a serious fan of defensive backs getting trampled), but I believe he's still the only running back to ever get penalized for unnecessary roughness against a tackler.
You young men have such intelligent observations!
My mother once helped take care of the grounds for St Louis Rams one year, and one of the grounds keepers asked my mother if she knew who that was on the field working out? She said no. So he gives her a football and told her go ask him for an autograph, my mother said she didn't want to interfere with his work out, but then said he's a real nice guy and he would probably sign her football. So she goes, and he does. Years later, she was up for a visit, and we were talking about the Cowboys, She brought up the story about her football, and she asked me, "Who is Barry Sanders?" I was like total shock and explained who Mr. Barry "Pinball" Sanders was one of the best running backs. Nobody could touch him. That year Mr. Sanders made over 2,000 yards.I told her that she should never sale that football and if she ever wanted to I'd buy it from her.
Also a lot of the guys chasing him where sprinters in school so that shows just exactly how fast he is!
And he is shaking some of the biggest, fastest, best NFL players in the league. A god among gods.
Dude want the fastest (still very fast) … as you can see, he often got caught from behind. What was special was his burst and his brakes. He could go from 0 to top end speed in an instant … then from top end to dead stop in a heartbeat. That and his elusiveness and agility were superhuman. Dude was lightning in a bottle every play.
Barry was must see tv back in the day. I was in high school when he was in his prime. Unlike anything I’ve ever seen. If the lions were playing, everyone was watching
Barry Sanders is so good that (Nike?) made a commercial honoring a player(Brad Edwards?) for accomplishing something that was the pinnacle of achievements in football at the time. Making an open field tackle on Barry Sanders.
You've got some great videos here. You should definitely check out these two running backs - Gale Sayers, and Walter Payton. Both of them were almost always exciting to see playing the game. Like Barry Sanders, great players, and great people, too. They do not disappoint.
Thank you for the suggestion!
@@DNReacts Definitely Walter Payton aka “Sweetness”. One of the most revered athletes and men to play professional sports. Mr Class. Walter sadly died young.
What amazed me about Sanders was his ability to stop on a dime, then be at top speed again on his next step, only in another direction. Many defenders grabbed air as he just moved so fast. His top speed wasn't what some others were, but he got to his top speed faster than anyone....ever.
He was incredible!
It wasn't just the top end speed (which was elite), it was the sudden stops, the fast change of direction, the otherworldly acceleration, and the balance...just the balance.
What was unique about Barry Sanders was his change of direction. He would hold his shoulder pads along with his momentum while his legs shifted him into a completely different direction. I'm losing my shit to his shifts behind the line of scrimmage, but it goes unrecognized to you. I hope you revisit it as your knowledge grows.
I was a bit young to enjoy this phenom, but always enjoy watching him juke everyone.
I watched him at the Meadowlands vs the Jets! You give Barry the 90's Cowboys offensive line. And the rushihg record would never be broken.
his top end is good but his acceleration was godly. and his jukes and spins. was my favorite player to watch during his career.
He was special. What made him special was combination of vision, speed and acceleration. To top it off he could cut and change direction without losing any speed doing it.
Barry Sanders is the quickest running back ever! That first move is freezing and as his career progressed that first move became even more freezing because he was literally in defenders heads trying to get a gage on him as to what he was gonna do. A lot of times he didn't even have to give a move because the defender faked himself out over pursuing the direction he thought Sanders would go.
Barry Sanders is the greatest PURE RUNNER of all time. He's definitely the most electrifying running back ever.
Tony Dorsett was great too. He had a very graceful stride running low to the ground but running like a deer. Very fluid runner.
No doubt that Sanders is that much more electrifying but I would suggest you take a look at who I call the original Barry Sanders for his Houdini heroics.
The one attribute that Sanders didn't possess was that 5th gear to pull away from the secondary.
Tony had quickness plus speed. Not only was he fast on the track running a 4.340 in the 40yard dash he was football fast and yes there's a difference. The difference has to do with reacting to what you see which in relates as well to quickness. Once Dorsett got beyond the first line of defense it was usually all over.
Not until Darrell Green in 83 did anybody run down Tony Dorsett from behind
Sanders wasn't nearly the fastest man in the NFL ( notice how many times he gets caught from behind in this video } ,but he was VERY quick and elusive and had a great knack for spotting a hole he could run through . One of the very best ball carriers EVER
He looks like he was a great player!
@DN Reacts Top 10 All time NFL player..No matter who you ask whose in their top 10 of all time NFL player just know Barry Sanders has a spot
I literally laughed out loud when you guys said "howed he get through that" because I heard them very same words A LOT growing up watching Berry Sanders play football. He was a great for sure, he just didn't play long enough. Great video guys.
He was incredible for sure! Shame he didn’t carry on. Thank you, we really appreciate that.
Well, at least you can now say you know who he is. Barry was a real treat to watch as a boy. Always at the edge of my seat. To answer your question....no one! No one was or is better. I'm bias because I'm a massive barry and Lions fan, but in his rather short career, no one can say they did what he could in that time. Every record would be untouchable if he'd stayed in the league.
He was incredible!
Sanders wobbles, but he doesn't fall down!!! Emmett Smith has a nice highlights package!!
The greatest back in NFL history, his ability to change direction and his start stop ability was masterful. He was never the fastest but he was the best back and he did it with some really bad blocking. Other greats, Marcus Allen, Thurman Thomas, Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith.
There are many remarkable things about Barry Sanders, including his powerful legs, his ability to read the game and find gaps, and his integrity and humility. However, what truly sets him apart is his unique ability to reach full speed in just two to three steps from a standing position. This feat is incredibly rare and difficult to achieve, even among elite athletes. For comparison, even the fastest sprinters in the world, like Usain Bolt, require around eight to ten strides to reach their top speed. The fact that Barry could accelerate and change direction so quickly and explosively is a testament to his exceptional athletic ability and his mastery of proper running technique. It's one of the many reasons why he is regarded as one of the greatest running backs in the history of football.