The Ghost of Barry Sanders

How bad has the Detroit Lions run game been since Barry retired in 1999?

Contrary to popular belief, the most legendary sports curse wasn’t created in Boston or Chicago. At most, the curses that hung over the Red Sox (Curse of the Bambino) and Cubs’ (Curse of the Billygoat) record-setting championship droughts, were nothing more than exaggerated explanations for why each franchise sucked. Consider: the Red Sox blamed Babe Ruth’s departure for their 86-year championship drought, even though the team made the world series in ’47, ’67, ’75, and ’86, not to mention a competitive stretch during the ’90s. Still, whether or not I agree with the curse’ legitimacy, I understand its significance, for in Babe Ruth, they lost the GOAT.

Speaking of goats, things get murky with the Cubs curse of choice. As the story goes, the Curse of the Billygoat was placed on the team by Billy Goat Tavern owner William Sianis. What’s wrong with that? Everything, starting with a back-story that reads like a generational game of telephone. Essentially, because the odor of his pet goat, (Why was a goat allowed in a baseball game? Was this normal in the ‘40s?) named Murphy (Why wasn’t it called ‘The Curse of Murphy?’), was bothering other fans, Sianis was asked to leave Wrigley Field during game 4 of the 1945 World Series. Outraged, Sianis allegedly declared, “Them Cubs, they ain’t gonna win no more,” which had been interpreted to mean that either the Cubs would never win another National League pennant, or that they would never again win a World Series.

There’s so many things wrong with this story. Most importantly, though, it’s the fact that the second-greatest sports curse is traced back to a random Chicagoan stating that the Cubs wouldn’t win anymore. Without diving too deep into the credibility of said statement, let’s assume it is true. How, then, is it unanimously interpreted to mean that they wouldn’t win a World Series? I’m scratching my head with you; who knows. I digress.

In any event, I say all that to say this: the greatest, most-tragic sports curse of all-time is the lesser-known ‘Curse of Bobby Lane.’

There was a time, as hard as it is to imagine, when the Detroit Lions were a dynasty, winning three NFL championships (’52, ’53, ’57) across a six-year stretch. They were led by Quarterback Bobby Layne, a 6x Pro-bowler, 3x First Team All-Pro, and 2x NFL passing yards leader. Two games into the 1958 season, the defending-champion Lions inexplicably traded Layne for a prospect and some draft picks. As he left the Lions locker room for the last time, Layne delivered a parting shot at his foolish former employers. This team will not win for another 50 years, he said. The Lions went on to fulfill Layne’s prophecy, winning three Division titles and one playoff game since 1957. One, in Fifty years.

Still, there was a brief period in time when the Lions weren’t only formidable, but also must-see television. Most importantly, though, it was the only time the most-entertaining football player alive, if not the best, wore honolulu blue.

Barry Sanders was his name. From 1989–98, he helped erase forty years of losing, as Detroit made the playoffs five times (’91, ’93, ’94, ’95, ’97) across a six-year stretch, won two NFC Central division titles (’91 & ‘93), and earned their first (and only) trip to the NFC Championship since 1957. During the ’90s, Barry amassed enough accolades to stake his claim as the best running-back alive; being named the Offensive Rookie of the Year in ‘89, the NFL Offensive Player of the Year in ’94 and ’97, and the NFL MVP in ’97; was selected First-Team All-Pro (6x) and Second-Team All-Pro (4x); and led the league in rushing yards four times (’90, ’94, ’96, ‘97). Through ten seasons in Detroit, he averaged over 1,500 rushing yards per season and just under 100 rushing yards per game.

Then Barry vanished. On July 28, 1999 he announced at age 31 that he was retiring from football. At the time, he was at the peak of his powers, only 1,457 yards short of breaking the NFL’s all-time rushing record. Eighteen years on, the Lions have never come close to finding a franchise running-back, let alone another Barry Sanders. After becoming accustomed to the magic Barry inspired on a weekly basis, Lions fans have spent the post-Barry era experiencing a football team without any type of rushing attack.

Look at where the Lions’ running game has ranked in the league, post-Barry: 1999 (28th), 2000 (20th), 2001 (28th), 2002 (29th), 2003 (32nd), 2004 (19th), 2005 (26th), 2006 (32nd), 2007 (31st), 2008 (30th), 2009 (24th), 2010 (23rd), 2011 (29th), 2012 (23rd), 2013 (17th), 2014 (28th), 2015 (32nd), 2016 (30th), 2017 (29th).

Their ineptitude isn’t surprising, considering the Lions have cycled through ten ‘franchise-backs’ since 1999 — James Stewart, Shawn Bryson, Kevin Jones, Kevin Smith, Jahvid Best, Mikel Leshoure, Reggie Bush, Joique Bell, Theo Riddick, and Ameer Abdullah. Worse yet, only three — Stewart (2000–02), Jones (2004–07), and Smith (2008–09) — have held the starting-role for more than one season. Ironically, Barry’s immediate successors (Stewart & Jones) have been the team’s most successful rushers, with both guys running for over-1,000 yards three times from 2000–04.

This decade, things have gotten far bleaker. In the last eight years, ten different running backs have started for the Lions: Best/Morris (2010), Best/Morris/Smith (2011), Leshoure/Bell (2012), Bush/Bell (2013), Bush/Bell/Riddick (2014), Bell/Riddick/Abdullah/Zenner (2015), Riddick/Abdullah/Washington/Zenner (2016), and Abdullah (2017). It’s worth noting that only Leshoure and Bush have started more than ten games in a season.

Have a look at the Lions Single-season rushing leaders this decade, along with their league-ranking.

• 2010 — Jahvid Best (555 yards, 38th)
• 2011 — Jahvid Best (390 yards, 56th)
• 2012 — Mikel Leshoure (798 yards, 23rd)
• 2013 — Reggie Bush (1,006 yards, 13th)
• 2014 — Joique Bell (860 yards, 15th)
• 2015 — Ameer Abdullah (597 yards, 34th)
• 2016 — Theo Riddick (357 yards, 55th)
• 2017 — Ameer Abdullah (417 yards, 18th)

Reggie Bush (2013) is the only Lion to rush for 1,000 yards since 2004, and only the third, after Stewart and Jones, to have done so since Barry retired. To put things into perspective, Barry rushed for more than 1,000 yards in all ten years of his career. I digress.

For a point of comparison, here is how many times the NFL’s other 31 teams have had a running-back rush for over-1,000 yards, since 2010. Thirteen teams have had a 1,000-plus yard RB, four times this decade (Ravens, Bengals, Titans, Texans, Chiefs, Eagles, Vikings, Bears, Falcons, Rams, Seahawks, and 49ers); Five teams have possessed said RB in three seasons (Patriots, Dolphins, Steelers, Redskins, Bucs); and twelve teams have produced said back twice this decade (Bills, Jets, Jags, Colts, Raiders, Broncos, Chargers, Cowboys, Giants, Packers, Saints, Panthers, and Cardinals). Predictably, the Browns are the only team besides the Lions who’ve had a running back rush for over-1,000 yards, once this decade.

It gets worse. The last time a Lions’ running back has rushed for 100 yards in a single game was when Reggie Bush did it on November 28, 2013. The drought has ballooned to 60 games; with Ameer Abdullah coming closest with 94 yards in a Week 4 win at Minnesota. Perhaps the most-telling aspect of how bleak its gotten in Detroit’s backfield is that third-year RB Abdullah was compared to Barry Sanders heading into his rookie year. In his first preseason game in August 2015, Abdullah scampered for 67 yards on seven carries, including a high-light reel 45-yard dash. Following the performance, Jets coach Todd Bowels said, “I’m not saying he’s Barry Sanders, but he’s got that kind of quickness.”

Nevermind Bowels’ lack of credibility, Lions fans were sold. We should’ve known better. Though he showed glimpses of, well, something, Abdullah failed to live up to such lofty expectations in his rookie campaign; starting in 9 games, before finishing the season with 597 yards and two touchdowns. After suffering a season-ending injury in Week 2 last year, he’s gotten off to a solid start through the first eight games of this season, totaling 417 yards with two touchdowns. He’s currently the NFL’s 18th leading-rusher, which, while pretty good for Detroit’s standards, is diminished when you look deeper into his game log. Over eight games, he’s amassed this total while rushing for the 30, 86, 47, 94, 31, 54, 27, and 48 yards, respectively; which doesn’t exactly scream consistency.

Still, this puts him on pace for 800-plus yards, which, unfathomably, would be the third-highest total for a Lions RB this decade, and the team’s seventh-best rushing season in the last 19 years. We shouldn’t be surprised, considering he was only a second-round pick; with the draft being the biggest reason why the franchise hasn’t found a franchise back.

After Kevin Jones produced solid numbers from 2004–07, he was out of the league by 2008. Since then, the Lions have whiffed on potential star running-backs. In 2008, the Lions took offensive-tackle Gosder Cherilus in the ten picks before the following three Pro-Bowl RBs were selected (Chris Johnson, Felix Jones, Rashard Mendenhall); In 2011, they took Nick Fairley fifteen slots ahead of Mark Ingram; The following year Doug Martin was taken eight picks after the Lions selected Riley Rieff; In 2015, they picked Laken Tomlinson a few spots before T.J. Yeldon; And last April, Jarrad Davis over Dalvin Cook.

So it’s not like the Lions haven’t had opportunities, they’ve just strapped their fate to injury-prone backs (Best & Leshoure) and over-hyped potential (Abdullah). Detroit’s void in their backfield is more glaring than it’s ever been, simply because the Stafford-era is the Lions’ most-successful since Barry’s reign twenty years ago. Ten years ago, and even more so, at the beginning of the 21st century, the Lions had too many weaknesses to focus on one. Finally, though, they possess a QB who’s good enough to win a Super Bowl; a secondary among the league’s best; talented receivers that give Stafford endless options; as well as an above-average defensive and offensive-line. What they lack is a running-back; and not one that is one of the NFL’s best, for that would be wishful-thinking, no; simply, a reliable, durable, and consistent rusher.

Sure, inserting one of the league’s top-tier RBs, a la Le’Veon, Zeke, McCoy, or Gurley, would transform the Lions into a legitimate Super Bowl contender. But imagine if they could just have a top-15 talent, a runner on the level of Murray, Freeman, or Blount; even that would be the difference between making the playoffs and actually winning a playoff game. Instead, they’re stuck in the same place they’ve been since 1999 — longing for Barry’s ghost, even though every Lions fan knows we’ll never find another like him.