Scott Mitchell Implies Barry Sanders Hurt Lions' Offense
Former Detroit Lions quarterback Scott Mitchell is continuing his efforts to set the record straight recording his tenure in Motown.
In an extensive feature interview with The Athletic, Detroit's former signal-caller dove into familiar topics, including his frustration with Lomas Brown, challenges he faced due to the decisions of the organization and the reason the team did not win being a collective effort, rather than just his fault.
When Barry Sanders' documentary aired, Mitchell went on social media to express his frustrations and indicated there were far more reasons the team did not have playoff success.
Among them was moving away from a passing attack that was prolific throughout the 1995 season.
Mitchell expressed that Sylvester Croom's offense focused heavily on the running game.
Sanders, a Pro Football Hall of Fame running back, was oftentimes tackled in the backfield, forcing the team to play behind the chains.
His explosive runs made him a household name, but his style irked Mitchell.
“It was challenging to play with him,” Mitchell said. “A lot of those other running backs of the day weren’t going to get you behind the chains very often, and we were behind the chains a lot with Barry. If you didn’t run Barry the right way, it was hard, and it put everyone else in a bind.”
Mitchell expressed that Tom Moore utilized the passing attack in a way that could have led to further success, had he remained with the organization.
“When we used (Sanders) the way we did in Tom Moore’s offense, I’d take him over anyone,” Mitchell explained. “But, what made it great was our willingness to throw the football.”
Having felt the brunt of blame from fans, not having close relationships with teammates and hearing his former head coach (Wayne Fontes) wish the organization had a different leader at the time, Mitchell regrets signing a free-agent contract in Motown.
Mitchell expressed, “If I knew what I know now, I would have stayed in Miami.”
