Shut up, Barry

Now you are talking, Barry? Why? Because you wrote a book? You hardly ever talked to reporters and the media before, but now you want to make some money for you and the publishers of your book, "Barry Sanders: Now You See Him...," which was released this week.

I think you should just keep your mouth shut like you used to. You did all of your talking on the field before, so why not now? You didn't even have the guts to tell your team and fans that you were retiring until your hometown newspaper, The Wichita Eagle, announced it through a written statement by you. That is a great way to end your career.

Bobby Ross, your former coach with the Detroit Lions, tried several times to contact you before the 1999 season, and you never returned his calls. What was your problem? Did you want to leave your team with no starting running back and no time to draft one in April? I'm sure the Lions' front office and the fans appreciated you not telling them until the last possible moment.

Your statement, "I just didn't have it in me anymore to continue" is fine, but how could you decide this on the eve of training camp? You didn't know this after the previous season? I think you did. You were seen crying on the sidelines at the end of that year, which you said was because you thought that might be your last game. Don't you think you owed the Lions the courtesy of telling them then? You say that you had a right to be selfish. I disagree. You have an obligation to your teammates, your fans, and your employers when you are under contract.

You must need money right now. You are even talking about re-emerging in the organization somehow. I just can't figure you out. You were the franchise in Detroit. You could have made a lot of money, either with the Lions or some other team, but you left. Now, you come out of five years of hibernation and talk to everyone in the media and have a press conference at Ford Field.

If you just look at Barry Sander's statistics, one could wonder how I could put him down so much. After all, he ran for 15,269 yards in 10 years and possibly could have taken Walter Payton's rushing record from him. Sanders energized the Pontiac Silverdome with his runs. Even his two-yard losses were very exciting. However, the way Barry left the team and his fans put a sour taste in many fan's mouths.

Sure, the Lions are a pretty sad organization. It would be difficult to play for them year after year knowing you probably would not make it to the Super Bowl. But, I'm not sure you even cared about the Super Bowl anyway. You never went to the front office asking for help. You never asked for a trade. Nor, when you retired at 31, did you try to make some kind of deal to go to another team.

The problem with the Detroit Lions during your time there was that they looked for you as a leader. That was a big mistake. You are too quiet to be a leader. Football is an emotional game, and you are a man with limited emotion. When you scored a touchdown, you handed the ball to the official. Most people looked at this as a sign of class. I looked at is as a sign of a football player who was going through the motions, doing his job, then going back to the sidelines until the offense was on the field again. You are allowed to smile, spike the ball, and show you are happy to score for the team.

Barry, you should have just stayed silent. Now, you admitted you may have been selfish in your retirement decision, and you think you had a right to be selfish. Just once, in the interviews you are having now, you could say "Thank you" to the fans and the people in the Lion organization that supported you throughout your 10 years in Detroit. The Lion fans loved you, bought your jerseys, sang your praises, and felt sorry for you when you could not go to a Super Bowl. However, you never mention the fans, at least not in any interview I heard.

Unless you are going to do some more talking on the field, just go back to your cave and continue staying away from the public and media. You may have been the best running back ever, but not the leader the Lions needed. Emmitt Smith would not quit on Dallas and still played during the dismantling of the Cowboys. Payton played for some bad Chicago Bears teams, but he kept playing and eventually won a Super Bowl.

The only reason you give for retirement is that you did not have it in you anymore. That is just ridiculous. At 31, with no injuries and many years ahead of you, how could you be ready to quit? Tell us the real reason, or just shut up.