His career was short but I think he was the best running back of his time and I don't think there will ever be another running back like him. Discuss.
Does LJ run anything like him? He's the only great rb right now that I can think of that runs with power. LJ is fun to watch.
Earl in college. Never seen anyone do that in even the NFL <object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/tdvVaTbwMrE"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/tdvVaTbwMrE" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>
I saw him play in person for a few games, and I never missed a game on TV. He was that rare combination of speed and power. Just a joy to watch. He has thighs as big as most men's torso. On more than one occasion I saw a LB or DB try to go low on Earl, only to be knocked unconscious by those thighs. Never did you see one man bring him down. That 4 TD performance on Monday night against Miami ranks as one of the greatest individual performances of any player in history...and I watched every minute of it.
The one play where he has his jersey ripped off and still steamrolls a couple of players has to be one of the most iconic NFL images of all time.
Earl Campbell was purely awesome and it is a shame that he played during an Oilers era without enough other offensive weapons that we could go all the way or that his career could have been longer.
Earl was a damn tank - I've never seen anybody put the body on defenders like he did with the exception of maybe John Riggins. I remember Steve Largent saying in his career there were 2 times an RB has impressed him... one was a Bo Jackson run, the other was Earl Campbell. I haven't watched too much football since the Oilers left Houston, but there're only three RB's I can recall where I just sat back and said "damn, he's not human" and those were Earl, Barry Sanders, and Bo Jackson.
I can't believe that none of that is on YouTube. That 80+ yarder where he hit off tackle and bounced to the sideline and outraced everyone was a sight to behold. I don't think even Jim Brown had his power.
I was dating a Derick Doll (Patting myself on the back) and they had free seats on the field, she was just ok looking with a great body, but I dated her for a year & 1/2 because she had free seats at the dome on the field....got 2 football seasons out of her. 83 & 84 seasons...he had a good year in 83 and traded in 84... Still, HE WAS INCREDIBLE !!!! Best I have ever seen....I loved that team. DD
How good was Earl? Well, the best football player I have ever seen. Ever. Regardless of level or position, regardless of stats. He was one of those guys that you had to watch every play because you never knew when he would do something that had never been seen before. The excitement with each carry was electrifying. On the Miami run... what made that so special is not that he made it around end and outran everyone... but that he did it late in the 4th quarter after he had pounded the Dolphins the entire game and you could see he was dog-tired. And then... the run. Magical. He could have been an All-Pro linebacker, but for some reason he liked putting those guys on their backs. That Rams run is awesome... Isiah Robertson's still feeling that hit. Damn Steelers. Damn refs... Renfro caught it!
I agree. He was the best. And I cleaned his fish tank for him many years ago, saw his house in Westlake, and enjoyed talking to him. Just a great guy and THE GREATEST!
It would hurt so much to be hit by him. At my size, I'd probably get knockout. Earl was the definition of speed, power, and heart. Most dominant RB I've ever seen. When asked to compare Billy Sims of Oklahoma, who won the Heisman Trophy the year after Campbell, Sooners’ coach Barry Switzer said, "Earl Campbell is the greatest player that ever suited up. He’s the greatest football player I’ve ever seen. Billy Sims is human. Campbell isn’t." Look at his 1980 season: Pro Football Hall of Fame
had season tickets during his career. we sat in the end zone where he collided with Jack Tatum and bounced off and scored. You could here the collision where we were sitting, the pop sounded like a gun went off. Earl was INCREDIBLE!
