What player in the NFL, past or present, would you have wanted to see succeed so badly but due to injuries, off the field issues, or whatever happened just derailed their career? For me it was unfortunate to see players like Josh Gordon or Justin Blackmon have their careers end or never getting back on track because of off-field issues.
I was always a huge Bob Sanders fan. He did succeed with a SB, two first team all-pros, and a DPOY award, but his prime/career was cut horribly short from injuries. He only played above 6 games twice in his career, and racked up all those accolades listed above in those two seasons alone.
He was a walking hit stick. Such a shame because he was so much fun to watch but yeah that play definitely took a toll on his body
I think a similar, but not as talented or succesful, example is Mike Brown. He played all 16 games his first 4 years and earned a 1st team all-pro, but played less than 8 games in 3 of his final 6 seasons. He was a thumping safety who had a nose for the ball and made big plays, but it felt like we never really got to see him in his prime.
The same reason he was so great is why his career ended quickly. He played so recklessly with his body and it couldn’t hold up. If he had played a little less recklessly, could he have played longer? Maybe, impossible to know. But if he hadn’t gotten hurt so much and played for just a few more years at that level, he’d be a HOF lock. It would be among the best stretches of defensive play in league history.
It goes both ways. If he played differently he might not have been as good as he was.
It’s super weird because a lot of what made him great was his reckless abandon, so if he toned it down, would he still be as great as he was? I am sure he would have been, but it does make me wonder…
The same could’ve been said about Earl Campbell having a rather short career. Difference is that Campbell racked up damn near every trophy possible, which I suppose is easier to do for an offensive player.
Most don’t know this but when they had Colts camp in Terre Haute Sanders wasn’t allowed to play with the team much. He’d be on his own field practicing separately with a coach and maybe a couple other players. He said he couldn’t mentally not blast someone to next year if playing full speed. Like he couldn’t overcome all out game day tackles to practice day tackles so Dungy kept him like a caged tiger lol
Same for him in college at Iowa. As a true freshman he was injuring too many teammates, so they stopped allowing him to practice in any contact drills. He did individual work for most of his career.
Lone wolf
I watched his whole career starting in high school. Unbelievably talented player.
That’s crazy. You could legit make the case he was the reason the Colts finally got over the hump in 06. A safety having that level of impact is Dawkins/Reed level. But dude was made of glass.
I wouldn’t disrespect the man and say he was made of glass. NFL level collisions are at the level of severe car crashes, and safeties who play like Sanders may have a dozen or more in a single game.
Very few humans are able to take that kind of punishment.
Injury prone, yes….weak body made of glass…nah
I feel like it’s an obviously unspoken “in the context of the NFL”. Like no offense, but no shit. A normal human would explode with one tackle. Comparable to NFL safeties, he was 100% injury prone and made of glass.
Him and Robert Gallery
At least Dallas Clark had a nice career
It was amazing how bad The Colts defense was without him, and how good it was with him. It’s hard to believe that one guy can make that much of a difference, but Bob Sanders did.
Some of his highlights are unbelievable.
https://youtu.be/CJuGtjRm-XQ?si=s7uEEw5BQCyR68rA
There was a time that Bob Sanders was the hardest hitting safety in football, that’s probably what caused his short career unfortunately.