hutchins929
Footballguy
IMO, He would definitely be considered the best ever! He would have crushed the all time rushing record!
Do you agree?
Do you agree?
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Reservoir Dog
Footballguy
Of course, I think everyone probably believes that.
Sabertooth
Footballguy
Not according to Barry's dad.
Grigs Allmoon
Footballguy
Year after year he would have had 2000 yard seasons. There should be no doubt in anyone's mind.
And, yeah, this is an old subject.
And, yeah, this is an old subject.
Raider Nation
Devil's Advocate
What if your aunt had junk. You'd want to discuss it, wouldn't you???
fsufan
Footballguy
it is a joke Smith gets no respect. He is one of the toughest players to play the game. It is not his fault he ran behind one of the best O lines in the history of the NFL and played with HOFs like Aikman and Irwin. I beat players like Marino and Sanders wish they had more help when they played.
ConstruxBoy
Kate's Daddy
I disagree to a degree. What made Barry great was his vision, cut back ability and elusiveness. He really wasn't a very disciplined runner because he couldn't be. But I think he got a lot of yards by "setting up" moves. He would cut back and use his blockers, who were usually out of position, as shields to elude defenders. The Cowboy offense almost demanded a straight ahead, no frills running style. That fit Smith to a T. The Dallas blockers were very disciplined and Smith was expected to run through the hole and then keep going downhill. My opinion is that if Sanders had that kind of blocking he wouldn't be quite as effective a running back. He would get in all that open space and be looking around for cut back lanes. But he wouldn't have any good cutback lanes or as many defenders to set up. Now, don't get me wrong. Having those great lanes would have eliminated a lot of his negative yardage runs, so he would have done better. But I disagree that he would have run for 8 billion yards every season with the Dallas O-Line. And Smith would have done much worse with Detroit's line obviously. OK. Now flame away.
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BigTex
Don't mess with Texas
Yes, but people wouldn't give him the credit, they would say it was the O Line.
Joe Montana
Footballguy
I disagree to a degree. What made Barry great was his vision, cut back ability and elusiveness. He really wasn't a very disciplined runner because he couldn't be. But I think he got a lot of yards by "setting up" moves. He would cut back and use his blockers, who were usually out of position, as shields to elude defenders. The Cowboy offense almost demanded a straight ahead, no frills running style. That fit Smith to a T. The Dallas blockers were very disciplined and Smith was expected to run through the hole and then keep going downhill. My opinion is that if Sanders had that kind of blocking he wouldn't be quite as effective a running back. He would get in all that open space and be looking around for cut back lanes. But he wouldn't have any good cutback lanes or as many defenders to set up. Now, don't get me wrong. Having those great lanes would have eliminated a lot of his negative yardage runs, so he would have done better. But I disagree that he would have run for 8 billion yards every season with the Dallas O-Line. And Smith would have done much worse with Detroit's line obviously. OK. Now flame away.
Barry was great, but Im not sure he would have put up the kind of numbers people talk about. The Cowboys O was smash mouth. Not sure Barry could have taken the beating Emmitt did. Emmitt also played against tougher defenses in a slightly tougher division as a whole. The Cowboys needed 3-4 yards on 2nd and 3rd downs from Emmitt and he delivered. Witht he methodical O they ran, Barry's tendency to create would have hindered the Cowboy's O almost as much as it hurt his Lions.Barry was a monster, but hardly the greatest back to ever play. Barry would be my number one most amazing back to watch, but he would be hard pressed to crack my top 5 of backs I would want to choose a roster to win.
Da Guru
Fair & Balanced
Emmitt had the best partner by far on Danicing with the Stars.Yes, but people wouldn't give him the credit, they would say it was the O Line.
BigTex
Don't mess with Texas
Emmitt had the best partner by far on Danicing with the Stars.Yes, but people wouldn't give him the credit, they would say it was the O Line.
TheLastDispatch
Footballguy
... what if he played for the galaxy?
ChrisCooleyFan
Footballguy
I say this about Corey Dillion all the time.
Hairy Snowman
Footballguy
And what if dookie was cotton candy and raindrops were 7-up...................... 
The reason why the cowboys ran so much was because no one could stop emmitt. Period. And sooner or later he would wear people down.
It wasn't like the Cowboys line was the Raiders line from the 70s. There is 1 Hall of famer on the line and that is Larry Allen. Everyone else was good, but not great by a longshot and none went on to have much success elsewhere.
If the line had some much to do with Emmitts success, why couldn't the cowboys find another back that could run behind it. The cowboys tried to find a replacement for emmitt from the year after they won the first trophy on. But no one could run behind that line.
Same thing happened when emmitt first came to UF. No one could run behind our O line. Emmitts first game he didn't even start. It was at Miami and we were down 31-0 going into the fourth quarter. We may have had 20 yards rushing all game. Then Emmitt came in for garbage time and it was magic.
He almost ran for 100 yards in the 4th quarter alone against that National Championship Miami team at Miami. He didn't have another game the rest of the year with less than 150 yards rushing. I can remember a few over 200 yards. It was him. No on else on our roster did what he could do. Not the O-line.
Barry was too much flash, not enough dependability. He would give you a long run each game, but most of the time he would get stuffed, and often for losses. Barry was a drive killer.
Maybe Troy and post knee surgery Michael were so good because people HAD to put 8 in the box to stop Emmitt, yet for barry they could just play a zone rush scheme and hope he put himself (and his tteam) into difficult situations. Sure, when he would dance out of them it was spectacular, but usually he would get stopped.
The reason why the cowboys ran so much was because no one could stop emmitt. Period. And sooner or later he would wear people down.
It wasn't like the Cowboys line was the Raiders line from the 70s. There is 1 Hall of famer on the line and that is Larry Allen. Everyone else was good, but not great by a longshot and none went on to have much success elsewhere.
If the line had some much to do with Emmitts success, why couldn't the cowboys find another back that could run behind it. The cowboys tried to find a replacement for emmitt from the year after they won the first trophy on. But no one could run behind that line.
Same thing happened when emmitt first came to UF. No one could run behind our O line. Emmitts first game he didn't even start. It was at Miami and we were down 31-0 going into the fourth quarter. We may have had 20 yards rushing all game. Then Emmitt came in for garbage time and it was magic.
He almost ran for 100 yards in the 4th quarter alone against that National Championship Miami team at Miami. He didn't have another game the rest of the year with less than 150 yards rushing. I can remember a few over 200 yards. It was him. No on else on our roster did what he could do. Not the O-line.
Barry was too much flash, not enough dependability. He would give you a long run each game, but most of the time he would get stuffed, and often for losses. Barry was a drive killer.
Maybe Troy and post knee surgery Michael were so good because people HAD to put 8 in the box to stop Emmitt, yet for barry they could just play a zone rush scheme and hope he put himself (and his tteam) into difficult situations. Sure, when he would dance out of them it was spectacular, but usually he would get stopped.
phthalatemagic
Footballguy
And what if dookie was cotton candy and raindrops were 7-up......................The reason why the cowboys ran so much was because no one could stop emmitt. Period. And sooner or later he would wear people down. It wasn't like the Cowboys line was the Raiders line from the 70s. There is 1 Hall of famer on the line and that is Larry Allen. Everyone else was good, but not great by a longshot and none went on to have much success elsewhere.If the line had some much to do with Emmitts success, why couldn't the cowboys find another back that could run behind it. The cowboys tried to find a replacement for emmitt from the year after they won the first trophy on. But no one could run behind that line.Same thing happened when emmitt first came to UF. No one could run behind our O line. Emmitts first game he didn't even start. It was at Miami and we were down 31-0 going into the fourth quarter. We may have had 20 yards rushing all game. Then Emmitt came in for garbage time and it was magic.He almost ran for 100 yards in the 4th quarter alone against that National Championship Miami team at Miami. He didn't have another game the rest of the year with less than 150 yards rushing. I can remember a few over 200 yards. It was him. No on else on our roster did what he could do. Not the O-line.Barry was too much flash, not enough dependability. He would give you a long run each game, but most of the time he would get stuffed, and often for losses. Barry was a drive killer.Maybe Troy and post knee surgery Michael were so good because people HAD to put 8 in the box to stop Emmitt, yet for barry they could just play a zone rush scheme and hope he put himself (and his tteam) into difficult situations. Sure, when he would dance out of them it was spectacular, but usually he would get stopped.
Raider Nation
Devil's Advocate
Let's not get nuts here, guy. Judging that O-line strictly by the "Will he be a Hall-of-Famer?" measuring stick merely so that it fits your argument is unfair at best, and ridiculous at worst.The fact is that in the 90's, the following Cowboy offensive linemen made the Pro Bowl:- (6 times) Nate Newton- (5 times) Larry Allen- (4 times) Erik Williams -- who was DOMINANT before the injuries- (3 times) Mark Stepnoski- (2 times) Ray Donaldson- (2 times) Mark TuineiNot to mention Novacek, as well.
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Chest Rockwell
Footballguy
Actually, Williams was a four time Pro Bowler ('93, '96, '97, '99) and regarded as a legitimate MVP candidate (and the best player on the Cowboys) for a number of years.
The Man With No Name
Footballguy
And none of them were 1st round draft picks. Remember 1993? Emmitt missed the first 2 games holding out for a bigger contract. The Cowboys lost both games, to Washington 35-16 and they ended up 4-12, and to Buffalo 13-10 who was 12-4 and who Dallas beat in the Super Bowl 30-13 with Emmitt. In those 2 games the Cowboys couldn't even average 4 yards a carry. Emmitt averaged 5.3 that season.edit: leading rusher averaged 3.6 ypc those 2 games
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Raider Nation
Devil's Advocate
Edited my post. I missed a whole column on the site I was referencing.Actually, Williams was a four time Pro Bowler ('93, '96, '97, '99) and regarded as a legitimate MVP candidate (and the best player on the Cowboys) for a number of years.
phthalatemagic
Footballguy
I think everyone agrees the Cowboys line > Lions line, however I think there are assumptions made that the Lions' line was completely dismal. That's just not true. Barry Sanders had the luxury of playing behind Lomas Brown (7 time pro-bowler) for all but the end of his career, Kevin Glover (3 time pro-bowler) his entire career, and Jeff Hartings (pro-bowls after he moved on to Pittsburgh) for a few years at the end.The synergy of several pretty good OLmen and the skilled players on the Cowboys made them look better than they actually were so guys on the Cowboys probably credit for more pro-bowls than they deserved. That's not even mentioning that the Cowboys have a huge fanbase (when they are winning) and that puts more players in the pro-bowl than they deserve as well.
Joe Montana
Footballguy
You mean Barry didn't play with one-armed midgets? Another myth busted.
Phurfur
Footballguy
What if he played for the 1935 Bears?
Jason Wood
Zoo York
And what if Jerry Rice went to the Browns?
And what if Steve Young never left the Bucs?
And what if John Elway stayed with baseball?
Barry lovers need to recognize that a) it didn't go down that way, b) Emmitt is the all-time record holder, and c) he earned every bit of his career yardage.
I hate Emmitt as much as the next guy, being an Eagles fan, but the ridiculous disrespect he gets on these boards year in, year out is absurd. There was no tougher, more consistent, harder runner in the league; Barry included.
And what if Steve Young never left the Bucs?
And what if John Elway stayed with baseball?
Barry lovers need to recognize that a) it didn't go down that way, b) Emmitt is the all-time record holder, and c) he earned every bit of his career yardage.
I hate Emmitt as much as the next guy, being an Eagles fan, but the ridiculous disrespect he gets on these boards year in, year out is absurd. There was no tougher, more consistent, harder runner in the league; Barry included.
fsufan
Footballguy
as a Cowboys and Smith fan
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jurb26
Footballguy
Message boards like this are meant to cultivate speculation and interesting discussion about things like this. Under this same line of thinking we could also say that d) projections are never going to be right so except it and stop trying. Boy wouldn't this place be fun if people never speculated about the unknown....Jason Wood said:
Delusions Of Adequacy
Footballguy
I wonder what would have happened if Barry Sanders had had Spartan warriors with shields and spears blocking for him. He would have run for maybe 50,000 yards!
Joe Montana
Footballguy
:Reeeeeeach:
Reservoir Dog
Footballguy
:X at this thread!
That's total bull####. How many games of Barry's did you watch, and how old were you?Everyone makes it sound like Barry would run 20 times for 100 yards and one of them were for 80. He did have SOME games like that, but his average longest run in a game was between 20-30 yards. And he'd still put up 150+ yds on a team that was nowhere near the caliber of the Cowboys. Every defense that Barry ever faced in the pro's knew that they had to stop him, and it just happened so rarely. Now imagine if the defense also had to worry about a Hall of Fame QB and a Hall of Fame Wr? Not to mention an offensive line with 30 ####### pro-bowls on it's resume.Emmitt was great, and we all seen that, but saying Barry was a drive killer and not dependable is just bull####. You want dependable, how's 5.0 ypc career average sound? Or averages 100 yards per game for ten years?Hairy Snowman said:
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Jason Wood
Zoo York
Jurb, how many years have we been on this board together? How many times has this discussion come up? C'mon...I never said it's a conversation that shouldn't be had. But I think it's equally important to recognize that the NFL is a team game more than any other. You could argue that any NFL great would have been far less put in a different situation. These discussions ALWAYS devolve into a way of saying someone was overrated and/or someone was overrated because of situation. It's silly because, that was their situation.Can we say Joe Montana would've been "Joe Montana" if he were a Bill?Would Jim Kelly be a Hall of Famer if he didn't have Thurman Thomas?Would Warren Sapp be a Hall of Famer if he weren't a Buc in the Cover-2?And so on, and so on, and so on...
Mr. Bill O'Reilly
Footballguy
Emmitt Smith would still be the league's all-time leading rusher.
jurb26
Footballguy
That's not the point. There are many new faces here from the previous threads. Personally, I haven't entered one of these useless debates in over 2 years. Nobody involved will ever change their opinion. Irregardless, I say let them have their fun. That's all.
Saints-Man
Footballguy
I disagree to a degree. What made Barry great was his vision, cut back ability and elusiveness. He really wasn't a very disciplined runner because he couldn't be. But I think he got a lot of yards by "setting up" moves. He would cut back and use his blockers, who were usually out of position, as shields to elude defenders. The Cowboy offense almost demanded a straight ahead, no frills running style. That fit Smith to a T. The Dallas blockers were very disciplined and Smith was expected to run through the hole and then keep going downhill. My opinion is that if Sanders had that kind of blocking he wouldn't be quite as effective a running back. He would get in all that open space and be looking around for cut back lanes. But he wouldn't have any good cutback lanes or as many defenders to set up. Now, don't get me wrong. Having those great lanes would have eliminated a lot of his negative yardage runs, so he would have done better. But I disagree that he would have run for 8 billion yards every season with the Dallas O-Line. And Smith would have done much worse with Detroit's line obviously. OK. Now flame away.
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