The stories behind NFL legends you've never heard. Told in their own words. Not affiliated with the NFL
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TelronX | NFL retweeted
Barry Sanders’ high school coach didn’t think he was tough enough to play running back.
So he put him at cornerback.
In the video below, Barry reveals what his dad made him do instead of training.
By the end of his junior year, not one college had sent him a letter.
He asked his dad for one summer to train for a scholarship. William Sanders said no. Barry spent that summer working with him instead.
Then a new coach moved him back to running back. He averaged over 10 yards a carry.
Three years later, he ran for 2,628 yards at Oklahoma State and won the Heisman.
Every great runner gets told no at some point. Barry heard it from his coach and his own father in the same year.
Twelve years after no college wanted him, Detroit made him the highest-paid player in the NFL. What he really made, and what he’d make today, is in the article below.
Barry Sanders’ high school coach didn’t think he was tough enough to play running back.
So he put him at cornerback.
In the video below, Barry reveals what his dad made him do instead of training.
By the end of his junior year, not one college had sent him a letter.
He asked his dad for one summer to train for a scholarship. William Sanders said no. Barry spent that summer working with him instead.
Then a new coach moved him back to running back. He averaged over 10 yards a carry.
Three years later, he ran for 2,628 yards at Oklahoma State and won the Heisman.
Every great runner gets told no at some point. Barry heard it from his coach and his own father in the same year.
Twelve years after no college wanted him, Detroit made him the highest-paid player in the NFL. What he really made, and what he’d make today, is in the article below.
TelronX | NFL retweeted
Barry Sanders just admitted he had two or three more years left.
In the video below, he says who's to blame.
He was 31 and still felt good.
The season before, he ran for 1,491 yards. One more like it would have made him the NFL's all-time leading rusher.
The Lions were rebuilding. Barry says if Detroit had brought in a lineman like Hall of Famer Willie Roaf, things might have been different.
Instead, he burned out.
He never played another down.
Barry didn't quit on Detroit. Detroit quit on him first. One playoff win in ten years with the best runner alive is on the front office.
Detroit paid him more than any player in the NFL. It just never paid for the team around him.
What Barry and other legends really made, and what they'd make today, is in the article below.
Barry Sanders just admitted he had two or three more years left.
In the video below, he says who's to blame.
He was 31 and still felt good.
The season before, he ran for 1,491 yards. One more like it would have made him the NFL's all-time leading rusher.
The Lions were rebuilding. Barry says if Detroit had brought in a lineman like Hall of Famer Willie Roaf, things might have been different.
Instead, he burned out.
He never played another down.
Barry didn't quit on Detroit. Detroit quit on him first. One playoff win in ten years with the best runner alive is on the front office.
Detroit paid him more than any player in the NFL. It just never paid for the team around him.
What Barry and other legends really made, and what they'd make today, is in the article below.
TelronX | NFL retweeted
Barry Sanders turned down the NFL rushing title as a rookie.
He was 10 yards away from leading the entire league. His coach asked if he wanted to go back in and get them.
He had 158 yards that day. One more run would have done it.
In the video below, he explains why he stayed on the bench.
December 1989. The last game of the season, against Atlanta. Detroit had the game won, with about a minute left.
"Let the other guys play, man."
The title went to Christian Okoye of Kansas City: 1,480 yards to 1,470. Barry had 90 fewer carries.
He gave up the title without a second thought. Eight years later, Detroit made him the highest-paid player in the NFL.
What he and other NFL legends were really paid, and what they would make today, is in the article below.🔽
Barry Sanders turned down the NFL rushing title as a rookie.
He was 10 yards away from leading the entire league. His coach asked if he wanted to go back in and get them.
He had 158 yards that day. One more run would have done it.
In the video below, he explains why he stayed on the bench.
December 1989. The last game of the season, against Atlanta. Detroit had the game won, with about a minute left.
"Let the other guys play, man."
The title went to Christian Okoye of Kansas City: 1,480 yards to 1,470. Barry had 90 fewer carries.
He gave up the title without a second thought. Eight years later, Detroit made him the highest-paid player in the NFL.
What he and other NFL legends were really paid, and what they would make today, is in the article below.🔽
Barry Sanders had to apologize for his own father’s Hall of Fame speech.
He ran for 15,269 yards in the NFL. And he picked his dad to present him.
His dad had written 15 pages about him. He didn’t use them.
In the video below, he was supposed to get 30 seconds at the podium. Watch Barry’s face at 0:23.
August 8, 2004. Canton. Barry was 36.
He told the crowd to buy Barry’s book.
He said hello to Jim Brown first. "The greatest running back that ever lived."
He said his family brought tears to his eyes. "Not Barry."
John Elway went in the same day. He called Barry the best he ever played with. "Even though his dad wouldn’t agree."
Keep this part.
This is the same man who told Barry he’d lost his mind for wanting to stay in college. And kept him out of camp until Detroit paid $9.5 million.
His career was shaped by that father and by contracts. So were Jordan’s, Beckham’s and Tyson’s. They’re all below.
His dad called him the third-best. But in 1997, nobody in the NFL was paid more than Barry Sanders. Here's what he and other legends really made. teapawt.net/Telronx/status/2116968…
Five years before this ceremony, Barry quit the NFL by fax at 31. His dad was furious. So were the Lions. teapawt.net/Telronx/status/2115506…
Barry Sanders retired with one fax, 1,457 yards short of the all-time rushing record.
Two years earlier, the Detroit Lions had made him the highest-paid player in the NFL. About $35 million over six years, with an $11 million signing bonus.
Then the Lions came after $7.37 million of that bonus.
In the video below, Sanders explains why he walked away. And why the record didn't matter.
July 1999. He was 31. The year before, he ran for over 2,000 yards.
No press conference. A statement to his hometown paper in Wichita, a call to the team the day before training camp, and a flight to London.
Detroit was furious.
Miami reportedly wanted to trade for him. The Lions' answer, as former teammate Lomas Brown tells it: either you play for us, or you don't play for anybody.
So he didn't.
The Lions filed a grievance for $7.37 million. An arbitrator gave them $5.5 million - paid in pieces, and only for as long as he stayed retired.
He stayed retired.
Keep this part.
A contract you can't walk out of isn't security. It's a cage with a salary.
The Lions owned six years of his career on paper. They couldn't own his will to play them.
Sanders gave back millions to leave on his own terms. Three years later, Emmitt Smith broke the record.
Sanders never played another snap.
Would you give back $5.5 million to walk away on your terms - or play out the contract?
TelronX | NFL retweeted
Barry Sanders wanted to stay in college. His dad told him he’d lost his mind. The NFL had to change its rules to let him in.
A few months earlier, he had run for 2,628 yards and 37 touchdowns in one season at Oklahoma State. Still the record.
Then the NCAA banned his school from bowl games and live TV.
In the video below, Sanders explains what his father told him. And why he listened.
December 1988. He was 20.
He won the Heisman and found out in Tokyo, where his team was playing that day.
He planned to go back for his senior year.
His dad said no.
There was one problem. The NFL didn’t take juniors.
So the commissioner made an exception. A year later, the rule was gone for everyone.
Detroit took him third.
His dad wasn’t done. Sanders skipped his entire first training camp until the Lions paid. Five years, $9.5 million, a $2.1 million signing bonus.
He gave 10% of it to his church back home in Wichita.
Then he won Rookie of the Year. In the last game he was 10 yards short of the rushing title, and his coach offered to put him back in.
He said no.
Keep this part.
A rule only stops you until you have enough leverage to break it. Sanders had the leverage. His dad made him use it.
His whole career was decided by contracts. So were Jordan’s, Beckham’s and Tyson’s. They’re all below.
Barry Sanders wanted to stay in college. His dad told him he’d lost his mind. The NFL had to change its rules to let him in.
A few months earlier, he had run for 2,628 yards and 37 touchdowns in one season at Oklahoma State. Still the record.
Then the NCAA banned his school from bowl games and live TV.
In the video below, Sanders explains what his father told him. And why he listened.
December 1988. He was 20.
He won the Heisman and found out in Tokyo, where his team was playing that day.
He planned to go back for his senior year.
His dad said no.
There was one problem. The NFL didn’t take juniors.
So the commissioner made an exception. A year later, the rule was gone for everyone.
Detroit took him third.
His dad wasn’t done. Sanders skipped his entire first training camp until the Lions paid. Five years, $9.5 million, a $2.1 million signing bonus.
He gave 10% of it to his church back home in Wichita.
Then he won Rookie of the Year. In the last game he was 10 yards short of the rushing title, and his coach offered to put him back in.
He said no.
Keep this part.
A rule only stops you until you have enough leverage to break it. Sanders had the leverage. His dad made him use it.
His whole career was decided by contracts. So were Jordan’s, Beckham’s and Tyson’s. They’re all below.
TelronX | NFL retweeted
Kobe Bryant put $6 million into a sports drink almost nobody had heard of. His family walked away with $400 million.
It was 2014. He was 35, coming off a torn Achilles, and people were asking if he was finished.
Gatorade had about three quarters of the market. BodyArmor was three years old.
In the video below, Kobe explains how he planned to take Gatorade down.
He took about 10% of the company. Not an endorsement check. Equity.
Then he worked it like a job. He wrote copy for the commercials, voiced them himself and called other athletes to come in. Richard Sherman later said Kobe was the only reason he got involved.
2018. Coca-Cola bought a minority stake. Kobe’s share was valued at around $200 million.
January 2020. The helicopter crash in Calabasas.
November 2021. Coca-Cola bought the rest of BodyArmor for $5.6 billion.
His family got about $400 million.
Keep this part.
An endorsement pays you once. Ownership pays you when the company sells.
Most athletes take the check. Kobe took a piece.
He wasn’t the only one whose real money came after the game. Jordan, Beckham, Tyson and the rest are below.
Kobe Bryant put $6 million into a sports drink almost nobody had heard of. His family walked away with $400 million.
It was 2014. He was 35, coming off a torn Achilles, and people were asking if he was finished.
Gatorade had about three quarters of the market. BodyArmor was three years old.
In the video below, Kobe explains how he planned to take Gatorade down.
He took about 10% of the company. Not an endorsement check. Equity.
Then he worked it like a job. He wrote copy for the commercials, voiced them himself and called other athletes to come in. Richard Sherman later said Kobe was the only reason he got involved.
2018. Coca-Cola bought a minority stake. Kobe’s share was valued at around $200 million.
January 2020. The helicopter crash in Calabasas.
November 2021. Coca-Cola bought the rest of BodyArmor for $5.6 billion.
His family got about $400 million.
Keep this part.
An endorsement pays you once. Ownership pays you when the company sells.
Most athletes take the check. Kobe took a piece.
He wasn’t the only one whose real money came after the game. Jordan, Beckham, Tyson and the rest are below.
Barry Sanders retired with one fax, 1,457 yards short of the all-time rushing record.
Two years earlier, the Detroit Lions had made him the highest-paid player in the NFL. About $35 million over six years, with an $11 million signing bonus.
Then the Lions came after $7.37 million of that bonus.
In the video below, Sanders explains why he walked away. And why the record didn't matter.
July 1999. He was 31. The year before, he ran for over 2,000 yards.
No press conference. A statement to his hometown paper in Wichita, a call to the team the day before training camp, and a flight to London.
Detroit was furious.
Miami reportedly wanted to trade for him. The Lions' answer, as former teammate Lomas Brown tells it: either you play for us, or you don't play for anybody.
So he didn't.
The Lions filed a grievance for $7.37 million. An arbitrator gave them $5.5 million - paid in pieces, and only for as long as he stayed retired.
He stayed retired.
Keep this part.
A contract you can't walk out of isn't security. It's a cage with a salary.
The Lions owned six years of his career on paper. They couldn't own his will to play them.
Sanders gave back millions to leave on his own terms. Three years later, Emmitt Smith broke the record.
Sanders never played another snap.
Would you give back $5.5 million to walk away on your terms - or play out the contract?
The Lions got their $5.5 million back. Then they won one playoff game in the next 32 years.
Sanders wasn’t the only one the fine print decided. Curt Flood, Beckham and a few others: teapawt.net/Telronx/status/2115832…
TelronX | NFL retweeted
Barry Sanders retired with one fax, 1,457 yards short of the all-time rushing record.
Two years earlier, the Detroit Lions had made him the highest-paid player in the NFL. About $35 million over six years, with an $11 million signing bonus.
Then the Lions came after $7.37 million of that bonus.
In the video below, Sanders explains why he walked away. And why the record didn't matter.
July 1999. He was 31. The year before, he ran for over 2,000 yards.
No press conference. A statement to his hometown paper in Wichita, a call to the team the day before training camp, and a flight to London.
Detroit was furious.
Miami reportedly wanted to trade for him. The Lions' answer, as former teammate Lomas Brown tells it: either you play for us, or you don't play for anybody.
So he didn't.
The Lions filed a grievance for $7.37 million. An arbitrator gave them $5.5 million - paid in pieces, and only for as long as he stayed retired.
He stayed retired.
Keep this part.
A contract you can't walk out of isn't security. It's a cage with a salary.
The Lions owned six years of his career on paper. They couldn't own his will to play them.
Sanders gave back millions to leave on his own terms. Three years later, Emmitt Smith broke the record.
Sanders never played another snap.
Would you give back $5.5 million to walk away on your terms - or play out the contract?