They won 3 more games without him the next year and made the playoffs. Sanders is a bit overrated in value due to the iconic nature of his runs. His boom or bust style produced more losses on runs than any other back in the league every single year. Put the team in a very difficult situation to sustain drives. In fact despite having sanders at RB they were need the middle of the league in rushing 1st downs. Sanders was a big reason the team won but also a the biggest reason they were never going to win the title while he was there. He was a drive killer especially for the passing era at the time.
They won 3 more games without him the next year and made the playoffs. Sanders is a bit overrated in value due to the iconic nature of his runs. His boom or bust style produced more losses on runs than any other back in the league every single year. Put the team in a very difficult situation to sustain drives. In fact despite having sanders at RB they were need the middle of the league in rushing 1st downs. Sanders was a big reason the team won but also a the biggest reason they were never going to win the title while he was there. He was a drive killer especially for the passing era at the time.