The Detroit Lions' Barry Sanders retired in 1999, and has since become a fixture in the Metro Detroit community, appearing in countless television and radio ads and at Ford Field for Lions games.

Sanders retired as the NFL's all-time leading rusher and was later surpassed by Emmitt Smith of the Dallas Cowboys, his biggest rival at the running back position during his playing career. On Saturday, Detroit Lions QB and NFL MVP candidate Jared Goff had perhaps his worst half of football against the rival Chicago Bears, while Justin Fields racked up both rushing and passing yards.

Goff pulled himself together in time for the stretch run, throwing a two-point conversion to tight end Sam LaPorta after engineering a game winning touchdown drive punctuated by a David Montgomery touchdown late in the game.

The Lions are scheduled to clash with Jordan Love and the rival Packers during a Turkey Day game on Thursday that should have NFL fans glued to their televisions. Goff got 100 percent honest on his challenging outing against the Bears and why he wasn't able to play his best football.

The Bears beat the Lions by a score of 31-26 on Sunday in a game that had Lions fans sweating for much of the day.

Sanders shared his thoughts on the “dangerous” Lions team ahead of Thursday's quest for NFC North supremacy against the Packers.

One fan said in response that the Lions barely squeaked by the Bears, appearing to question Sanders' optimism for the team.

The Lions still managed to outgain Fields and the Bears by a final tally of 338 yards to 334, during a game in which the Bears seemingly had the Lions' number for most of the contest.