by Kenneth Schonmeier

Created on: June 10, 2009   Last Updated: June 17, 2009

Emmitt Smith was a great Running Back. There is no doubt about that. One does not break the all time rushing title by being mediocre. But people seem to forget that Emmitt also had one of the best offensive lines in the NFL to block for him. Go look back at the replays for Emmitt and you will see how often he ran through openings you could drive a train through and not be touched. Most of Emmitt's touchdowns were because of the great offensive line he had.

Barry Sanders never had a great offensive line. In fact, he consistently had one of the worst in the NFL. Barry Sanders was known for his one yard losses as well as his 85 yard touchdowns. That is because he was often being hit as soon as he took the hand-off. One season, for only a short time, did we see what Barry could have been with a decent line to block for him. In 1997 against Tampa Bay, Barry Sanders had two 85-yard TD runs in the same game. Both of those came from a rookie offensive lineman, Juan Roque blowing open a good hole to spring Sanders. Soon after however, Roque blew out his knee and was never the same. The Detroit Lions never did replace him with another truly gifted lineman. Barry Sanders ran for 215 yards in that game.

People can argue that Barry didn't have as much talent around him. Emmitt had a Superbowl team around him. Here, in my opinion, is the most telling fact. With all the talent Emmitt had around him, and the little talent Sanders had around him, the ONLY reason Emmitt holds the rushing record is because Barry grew tired of the Lions front office inadequacies and retired early. Coming into the NFL after Emmitt did, Barry had more yards at the time he retired. Emmitt still had to play a couple more season to pass Barry.

In your mind, switch Barry and Emmitt around. Put them on each others teams. Can anyone honestly say that Emmitt's numbers would even be close to what they were if he played for the Detroit Lions? Could anyone honestly say that Barry Sanders would not have been much better if he played for Dallas? If the two played for the other team, this debate would never exist. Barry would have destroyed Emmitt in every category. The ONLY reason this debate exists is because Emmitt had so much talent surrounding him and had one of the best offensive lines in the NFL and Barry Sanders actually had a team around him that held him back.

It is ridiculous to mention Emmitt having all the Superbowl Rings by the way.... Derrick Gainer was a RB on Dallas for the 1992 and 1993 seasons. He has two superbowl rings. Did that make him a great player? He was a back up and nothing more. It is not Emmitt Smith that took Dallas to the Superbowls. It was the Dallas Cowboys as a team who got there. A player is not a better player just because his team is better. The better team only serves to pad his stats.

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