Who Holds The NFL Rushing Record?
Who holds the NFL rushing record? That would be Emmitt Smith, who racked up an impressive 18,355 yards over the course of his Hall of Fame career.
Emmitt Smith
Emmitt Smith holds the NFL rushing record with 18,355 yards. He played for the Dallas Cowboys for thirteen seasons and is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Smith was born in Pensacola, Florida, and played college football at the University of Florida.
His NFL career
Emmitt James Smith III (born May 15, 1969) is a former American football running back who is the NFL’s all-time leader in rushing yards, rushing touchdowns, and total touchdowns. He played college football for the University of Florida, where he was a member of the Florida Gators football team that won three consecutive SEC championships from 1991 to 1993 and was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American in 1992 and 1993. He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the first round of the 1990 NFL Draft, and spent his entire professional career with the team during which he became the NFL’s all-time rushing leader. Smith helped lead the Cowboys to four Super Bowl victories, including Super Bowl XXVIII in which he was named the Super Bowl MVP after setting a Super Bowl record with 132 rushing yards.
Smith is considered one of the greatest running backs in history due to his consistent ability to produce results in spite of playing behind some very average offensive lines throughout his career. He holds all-time records for: most consecutive seasons leading a league (8), most games played at running back (226),total carries (4,409), most rushing yards gained (18,355), combined net yards from scrimmage (21,579), and most total touchdowns scored (164). He also had 11 seasons with over 1,000 total rushing/receiving yards (also an NFL record), and 5 seasons with over 2,000 combined net yards from scrimmage. In 1999 he co-authored Emmitt Smith: Running For Life, an autobiography focusing on not only his football career but his life as well.
His NFL Rushing Record
Emmitt Smith currently holds the NFL’s all-time rushing record with 18,355 yards. He played for the Dallas Cowboys for thirteen seasons, from 1990 to 2002, and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2010. Smith is the only running back to have won a Super Bowl MVP and an NFL MVP award in the same season (1993).
Barry Sanders
When it comes to Barry Sanders, the Hall of Fame running back for the Detroit Lions, there is no denying his talent on the field. He was a force to be reckoned with, and his performance throughout his career was exemplary. In 1997, he set the NFL single-season rushing record with 2,056 yards, and his 15,269 career rushing yards is good for third all-time.
His NFL career
Barry Sanders (born July 16, 1968) is a former American football running back. He played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the Detroit Lions from 1989 to 1998. A pro Bowl invitee in each of his ten NFL seasons, Sanders was named the NFL Most Valuable Player after the 1997 season and is considered one of the greatest running backs of all time.
During his time with the Lions, Sanders became one of the most elusive runners in NFL history, as he was able to avoid being tackled by opposing players; he was also known for his quickness and agility. In addition to his rushing ability, Sanders was also an effective receiver out of the backfield, as he caught 217 passes for 1,670 yards and nine touchdowns during his career. He retired from professional football after the 1998 season, but not before winning several individual awards and setting numerous NFL records.
His place on the NFL Rushing Record list
Barry Sanders is often considered one of the best running backs in NFL history. In his 10 seasons with the Detroit Lions, Sanders racked up an impressive 15,269 yards and 99 touchdowns on the ground, averaging over 1,500 yards per season. His career yards per carry average of 5.0 is also one of the best in NFL history.
Sanders’ accomplishments on the gridiron have led many to believe that he should be considered the greatest running back of all time. However, when it comes to the official NFL record books, Sanders doesn’t even come close to the top spot. That distinction belongs to another Lions great, Hall of Famer Calvin Johnson, who holds the NFL’s all-time rushing record with 16,676 yards.
So why isn’t Sanders considered the NFL’s rushing leader? The answer is simple: Sanders retired from the NFL after just 10 seasons, while Johnson played for 12 years. Had Sanders played just two more seasons and stayed healthy, there’s a good chance he would’ve eclipsed Johnson’s mark and cemented his place as the greatest running back in NFL history.
Adrian Peterson
Adrian Peterson is an American football running back for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He is the NFL’s all-time leader in rushing yards, rushing touchdowns, and total touchdowns. He also holds the single-game rushing record for most yards gained in a game.
His NFL career
Adrian Lewis Peterson (born March 21, 1985) is an American football running back for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Oklahoma and was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings seventh overall in the 2007 NFL Draft. Through his first 10 NFL seasons, Peterson had rushed for more yards than any other active NFL running back while earning eight Pro Bowl selections.
In 2012, he became the only running back to finish a season with 2,000 or more rushing yards, joining O.J. Simpson, Eric Dickerson, Jamal Lewis and Barry Sanders as the only players to accomplish the feat in NFL history. In 2015, Peterson became the third-fastest player to reach 10,000 career rushing yards in NFL history ( behind only Jim Brown and Walter Payton ), and he was named an All-Pro for a fourth time.
His place on the NFL Rushing Record list
As of the end of the 2019 NFL season, Adrian Peterson holds the sixth spot on the NFL’s all-time rushing yards list. He is also sixth on the league’s all-time rushing touchdowns list, with 106.
Walter Payton
In 1984, Payton broke O.J. Simpson’s single-season rushing record of 2,003 yards, which had been set in 1973. He also holds the NFL’s career rushing yardage record (16,726 yards) and was the first player to ever eclipse the 2,000-yard rushing mark in a season.
His NFL career
Walter Payton was born on July 25, 1954, in Columbia, Mississippi. He was the youngest of three children. His father, Peter, was a factory worker and his mother, Alyne, was a homemaker. When he was a child, his family moved to Jackson, Tennessee.
In 1971, Payton began his college career at Jackson State University. He played running back and helped lead the team to an undefeated season in 1972. He also set a school record for most rushing yards in a game with 276 against Prairie View A&M University.
After college, Payton was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the first round of the 1975 NFL Draft. He played for the Bears for 13 seasons and is considered one of the greatest running backs in NFL history. He was selected for nine Pro Bowls and won the NFL MVP award in 1977. In 1985, he set the NFL single-season rushing record with 2,105 yards. He retired from football in 1987 and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993. Payton died from liver disease on November 1, 1999, at the age of 45.
His place on the NFL Rushing Record list
With 16,726 career rushing yards, Payton currently ranks 4th all time in NFL history. He is behind only Emmitt Smith (18,355 yards), Barry Sanders (15,269), and Frank Gore (15,347). In order to rank higher on the all time list, Payton would need at least 1,630 more yards.
In order to do this, he would need to average out over 103 yards per game for the next 16 games. This would be a very difficult task for any running back, let alone a 43 year old Payton.
Eric Dickerson
On November 28, 1983, Dickerson ran for 248 yards against the New Orleans Saints, which set the single-game rushing record. Dickerson’s record would stand for almost 12 years before being broken by Barry Sanders.
His NFL career
Dickerson played college football for the SMU Mustangs of Southern Methodist University and was recognized as a consensus All-American. He was selected in the first round of the 1983 NFL Draft and played professionally for the Los Angeles Rams, Indianapolis Colts, Los Angeles Raiders, Atlanta Falcons, and Green Bay Packers of the NFL. During his NFL career, he rushed for over 13,000 yards. He held the NFL’s single-season rushing record until it was broken by Adrian Peterson in 2008. Dickerson was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1999.
His place on the NFL Rushing Record list
Eric Dickerson is a retired NFL player who holds the record for the most rushing yards in a season. He ran for 2,105 yards in 1984, which was the first time anyone had ever run for more than 2,000 yards in a season. He also holds the NFL record for most rushing yards in a game, with 248 yards against the New Orleans Saints in 1983. Dickerson was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1999.
