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This may sound crazy, but I had no idea how popular Barry Sanders remains with football fans. At the Rail this week for MNF I casually let slip that I considered Sanders overrated. I was thrown into a maelstrom of outrage and rebuke! I was shocked. Let’s take a look at Mr Sanders and the myths that surround him.

Sanders excelled while playing at home in the “cozy, climate controlled Silverdome” (Sal Paolantonio, ESPN). His maximum enjoyment derived from running wild against inferior teams when little was at stake. He thrived while terrorizing the ice cream soft opposition of the NFC Central. Yeah, the highlight reel stuff was awesome. Ten straight seasons of at least 1,000 yards, third leading rusher of all time, etc.

But that’s not how I judge football players. Sure Mike Tyson could destroy a series of bums and cowering incompetents. When someone hit him back, a Douglas, a Holyfield or even a Kevin McBride, Tyson was exposed as a fighter not outfitted with the intestinal fortitude to be considered an all time great (but, yeah, his highlight reel is awesome).

Barry Sanders holds the NFL record for most carries for negative yardage.

Barry Sanders was a disaster in the postseason, when stakes are highest, and a liability to a team committed to winning. He guaranteed a quarterback a long afternoon of “second and long” and “third and longer”. The bulk of his yardage in a game was usually obtained via a couple of wild, swashbuckling runs. But Barry peeling off a glorious 16 yard scamper on a third and eighteen equals genius to some, but nothing but “fourth and two” to me. Against Green Bay in the 1994 playoffs Sanders carried thirteen times for negative yardage. This despite the field stretching abilities of the elite wideout Herman Moore, a player who the Sanders apologists are careful to never mention. In four post season outdoor games Sanders never won and averaged less than three yards a carry. In six post season games, when great players take charge and reputations are formed, Sanders had only one touchdown, a garbage run in the dying seconds of a lopsided loss.

A running back’s job is to present the quarterback with as many positive options as possible. A Terrell Davis consistently leaving a John Elway with a “second and five”, or a ”third and two”, allows numerous possibilities as the offence marches downfield. It is crucial that the QB have as many advantageous scenarios as possible. A QB relentlessly placed in negative situations, challenged constantly to solve long yardage quagmires, is one that will be unable to operate a functional, potent attack. The dynamics of Barry Sanders precluded long drives, the type that allow your defence to rest, because of his propensity to be caught behind the line of scrimmage. It’s just football basics. A propulsive, consistent running attack leads to Championships; a sputtering prima donna demonstrating moments of transendance doesn’t equate even remotely to the power of solid, clock crunching drives. At a most basic level, Sanders inability to create “churn” was a serious drawback to the Lions attack.

Barry Sanders was a bright shiny ornament, a sparkling toy that could entertain and dazzle. His legacy should be that of an enticing amusement, but something inconsequential and without substance.

He was not a great football player. He did not win and inspire when it counted. He was not a leader. Like Mike Tyson, he was fantastic running downhill with the wind at his back. In the games that were important, in conditions which were not optimal, Sanders was exposed as an impediment to the implementation of the football fundamentals necessary to forge champions and spin glory.

ICE..a strange situation is developing in Minnesota. Forward Pierre Marc Bouchard played the Wild’s opener against Columbus and was absolutely hopeless. The talented playmaker was told by Wild personnel that he was suffering from the flu and not to worry. It turns out Bouchard was still recovering from a concussion suffered at the end of last season and should have not been permitted to play. A cross check suffered in an earlier exhibition match may have exacerbated the situation. Bouchard is currently out indefinitely and the Wild medical staff looks culpable. The Wild have always struck me as a creepy organization, a feeling intensified by their mysterious handling of Marian Gaborik last season. An apparently healthy Gaborik skated at the rink everyday but was not permitted on the ice when his teammates arrived. The Wild never explained the situation and Gaborik bolted for the door when the season ended…the Washington Capitals have sent 37 year old Michael Nylander and his 5.5 million dollar a year contract to the AHL. The Caps roll two wicked lines and have no need for the docile Nylander. At that dollar amount it is virtually inconceivable that any other team would show interest in the veteran forward…the Philadelphia Flyers started the year with three straight wins. They looked burly, determined and dangerous. And good in goal. At some point it dawned on the team that their starting goalie was Ray Emery and poof, three straight losses…GRID IRON..the Sporting News provides a list of nine quarterbacks that have seriously hampered their teams ability to play competitive football this season; Jake Delhomme, Derek Anderson, Trent Edwards, Josh Johnson, JaMarcus Russell, Matthew Stafford, Kerry Collins, Jason Campbell and Mark Sanchez. Bit harsh with rookies Stafford and Sanchez, I think…the New Orleans Saints have scored on their first drive in all five of their games this season…over his last eight starts Houston Texan quarterback Matt Schaub is averaging 309 yards a game. A gander at the Texans schedule (includes Seattle, St Louis, Buffalo and Tennessee, among others) leads one to believe this team is playoff bound if Schaub can manage to stay healthy…defensive lineman Richard Seymour has proclaimed his Oakland Raiders will make the playoffs this year. Seymour may still be in shock after being abruptly traded from New England to Al Davis’s asylum…PUG LIFE..highly anticipated Dec 5^th Kelly Pavlik - Paul Williams fight is off, again. Look, I love watching the White Ghost fight, and I don’t want to disparage him. However, Pavlik needs to get his head together and stop the nonsense (glug, glug). It is understandable that Pavlik is gun shy after an embarrassing showing against Bernard Hopkins but if he trains hard and re-commits he can certainly defeat Williams and reassert his status as a top ten pound-for-pound competitor. The talent is there, the power is there; unfortunately right now the willpower is not…Manny Pacquiao is reportedly at 149 lbs, three weeks out from his epic showdown with Miguel Cotto. That is absolutely perfect. Pacquiao will probably get down to about 143,144 for the weigh-in and then fight at about 148. Though rumours of Pac Man’s troubled sparring sessions abound, the reported weight points to a fighter who is preparing in an expeditious fashion…