Who Is The Best NFL Running Back Of All Time?

The answer to this age-old question has been hotly debated for years. Some say it’s Jim Brown, others say it’s Emmitt Smith. Who do you think is the best NFL running back of all time?

Emmitt Smith

Emmitt Smith is the NFL’s all-time leading rusher with 18,355 yards. He played for the Dallas Cowboys for 13 seasons and won three Super Bowls. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2010.

Smith’s NFL career

Emmitt Smith played for the Dallas Cowboys from 1990 to 2002. He is the NFL’s all-time rushing leader, with 18,355 yards. He is also the only running back to have won a Super Bowl MVP award, which he earned after his performance in Super Bowl XXVIII.

Smith’s NFL records

Emmitt Smith holds the NFL record for most rushing yards in a season (1,773), most rushing yards in a career (18,355), most 100-yard rushing games in a career (78), and most rushing touchdowns in a career (164). Smith is the only running back to have won four Super Bowls with the Dallas Cowboys. He is also one of only two non-kickers in NFL history to score more than 1,000 points (the other being Jerry Rice).

Walter Payton

In my opinion, Walter Payton is the best NFL running back of all time. He was a great player for the Chicago Bears and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993.

Payton’s NFL career

Walter Payton began his NFL career with the Chicago Bears in 1975. He was the team’s first-round draft pick, and he quickly established himself as one of the league’s top running backs. Payton played for the Bears for 13 seasons, amassing more than 16,000 yards rushing and 110 touchdowns. He was named NFL MVP in 1977 and 1985, and he was selected to nine Pro Bowls. Payton retired after the 1987 season as the NFL’s all-time leading rusher.

Payton’s NFL records

During his 15-year NFL career, Payton set numerous records, including career rushing yards (16,726), career rushing attempts (3,838), touchdowns in a season (22 in 1977), and most 100-yard rushing games in a career (77). He was elected to nine Pro Bowls during his career and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993. He died in 1999 at the age of 45.

Barry Sanders

When it comes to NFL running backs, there are a few names that come to mind. Some might say Emmitt Smith is the best of all time, while others might lean towards Walter Payton. However, when it comes to the best running back of all time, there is only one name that should be mentioned, and that is Barry Sanders.

Sanders’ NFL career

Barry Sanders (born July 16, 1968) is a former American football running back. He played college football at Oklahoma State, where he earned consensus All-American honors and won the Heisman Trophy. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL) with the third overall pick in the 1989 NFL draft, and he played professionally for ten seasons, all with the Lions.

Sanders began his professional career with Detroit in 1989, and he ran for 1,470 yards that year. In 1991, he rushed for an NFL record 2,053 yards; it stood for fourteen years until it was broken by Jamal Lewis in 2003. During his ten-year NFL career, Sanders accumulated fifteen 100-yard rushing games and had five games where he rushed for over 200 yards; this included a career high 237 yards against the Minnesota Vikings on November 10, 1997. He retired from professional football after the 1998 season, forsaking a possible large contract that may have ranged up to $8 million per year. In 1999, he was ranked number one on The Sporting News’ list of the 100 Greatest Football Players of All Time; in May 2012 he was similarly ranked first on its list of greatest running backs ever

Sanders’ NFL records

Barry Sanders (born July 16, 1968) is a former professional American football player who was a running back for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons. A Pro Bowl invitee in each of his ten NFL seasons and twice named First-Team All-Pro, Sanders led the league in rushing yards four times and established himself as one of the most elusive runners in pro football, gaining more yards from scrimmage than any other player in NFL history at the time of his retirement.

In 2007, he was ranked by NFL Network’s Total Access as the greatest running back of all time and was ranked second on The Top 100: NFL’s Greatest Players. Sanders was inducted into both the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2004 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2003. He is considered one of the greatest players in both college football and NFL history.

During his NFL career, Sanders became known for his signature spin move and conjured comparisons to another Detroit Lions legend, Hall of Famer Bobby Layne. Considered perhaps the most exciting open-field runner in football history,[1][2] he was also an accomplished receiver out of the backfield, recording 305 receptions for 2,921 yards over his career. In 1999 he was voted Greatest Running Back Of All-Time by NFL.com users, edging out Jim Brown.[3]

Jim Brown

Jim Brown is considered by many to be the best running back of all time. He was a physical specimen, able to run over and through defenders with ease. His size, speed, and strength were unmatched, and he had the rare ability to make defenders miss in the open field. Brown was also an excellent receiver out of the backfield, and was a threat to score anytime he touched the ball.

Brown’s NFL career

Jim Brown is a retired American professional football player who was a running back for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL) from 1957 through 1965. He is considered to be one of the greatest professional football players of all time.

Brown’s NFL records

At the time of his retirement, Brown held or shared 17 NFL records. He held the league’s rushing yards record for nearly 11 years, from 1963 to 1974. He remains the Browns’ all-time rushing leader and is fourth on the NFL’s all-time list with 12,312 yards. His 5.2 career yards per carry average is second only to Jim Thorpe’s 5.6 among players with at least 1,000 carries. Brown’s 106 career rushing touchdowns are second only to Emmitt Smith’s 164. Brown’s 57 career 100-yard rushing games are an NFL record that remained untouched until Emmitt Smith broke it in 2002; he has since been surpassed by LaDainian Tomlinson (60) and Steven Jackson (58). With 104 touchdowns overall (106 rushing, eight receiving), he became the first player in NFL history to score more than 100 touchdowns. In 2002, The Sporting News selected Brown as the greatest professional football player of all time.

Eric Dickerson

Eric Dickerson is considered one of the best running backs of all time. He holds the NFL record for most rushing yards in a season, and he was named the NFL Offensive Player of the Year in 1986. Dickerson was a 6-time Pro Bowl selection and he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1999.

Dickerson’s NFL career

In Eric Dickerson’s rookie season, he set new rookie records for most rushing attempts (390), most rushing yards (1,808) and most rushing touchdowns (18). He was also named NFL Rookie of the Year and NFC Rookie of the year. In his second season, Dickerson continued to impress with 1,646 yards and 14 touchdowns on368 carries. The following year, he set a then-NFL record with 2,105 yards. Dickerson’s fortunes changed in 1987 when he was traded to the Indianapolis Colts in a multi-player deal that sent six players from the Colts to the Rams.

Dickerson’s NFL records

At the time of his retirement, Dickerson held NFL records for most rushing yards in a season (2,105), most rushing yards in a game (248), and most rushing yards in a single season. He also held the single-game rookie rushing record until it was broken by Adrian Peterson in 2007. Dickerson’s accomplishments include being voted All-Pro three times and winning the NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award in 1986. During his NFL career, he ran for over 13,000 yards.