No Lion In Pinning Barry Sanders Down

Detroit Lion’s great RB Barry Sanders was always elusive on the gridiron, and don’t think his still stunning retirement after 10-years & while still in his prime will necessarily be easier to grasp in a documentary on his life …

Was Barry’s hanging up his cleats in 1999 a quintessential “quit while you’re ahead” or a more classic “know when to move on to new challenges” mindset? Don’t hold your breath if you can’t decipher a clear-cut answer will be revealed in “Bye Bye Barry” now airing on Prime Video. As Fox Sports reports, the Hall of Famer “suggested” in a recent Outkick interview that “he didn’t feel like he had it anymore.” Said Sanders: “… your perspective does change [as you age]. Maybe I was too old at 31 to keep playing the game. Maybe I had lost a step. Who knows”? Well, if Barry still doesn’t know, nor will we after the docu has aired. Earlier, he had once more revealingly told a reporter, “For me, that thing that drove me to continue to play, just wasn’t there. There was nothing really left to play for. I didn’t see us as any sort of serious Super Bowl contender. I felt-able bodied, sound mind, certainly not according to my dad.”

Another tongue in cheek explanation? Or, still pulling our legs as he yanked them away from so many frustrated would-be tacklers as a Lion? No wonder just as elusive is estimating Sanders’ “net worth” today. Kid you not, the financial experts disagree on the figure in legendary fashion, ranging from $8 million to $55 million. Most recently, we’re told, Barry “quietly” worked as a ratings performance adjuster for EA Sports and does some analysis work for the various tv networks. He remains anything but a Travis Kelce publicity machine. There is one thing that seems for certain, despite Bye Bye Barry’s “tell all” billing: Barry Sanders’ the man will likely, maybe, possibly remain as hard to pin down as he was as a Lion.

Davd Soul