The Greatest NFL Running Backs of the Last 50 Years: 1959 to 2009 (Campbell #9)

sorry, man - i'm gonna need that explained to me.

(is this sabo btw?)

 

this is a great post. terrell davis was freaking unstoppable for a short period of time...and it meant rings for his franchise.

i loved Bo Jackson as a kid...and still respect him big time. but if you're going to put Bo on that list, you better have Terrell somewhere ahead of him.

 

If Bo is on the list, Gale Sayers should be on the list.

 

and if Gale Sayers is on the list, then he needs to share his spot with the greatest running back of all time, Reggie Bush.

 

Quoted for Truth

Yup. Back in Texas, btw. Close to your old stomping grounds...Frisco.

 

i just figured that out as i was logging in.....

tell the creditors, police officers and court-appointed attorneys i said, "hi."

cool; texas is glad to have you back... likely not as happy as maryland (specifically dan snyder) was to get rid of your angry arse...... frisco's nice, if overcrowded and, you know - in dallas.

five things i miss about dallas:
1. the ticket
2. fireside pies
3. tin star
4. the day after a cowboy/maverick/ranger collapse (more cowboys)
5. super targets (although they're slowly making their way here - but in dallas, they've been on every street corner since '05)

 

Franco Harris above Earl Campbell?

What?

At least they had the Top 3 right. Jim Brown > * that guy was just a force that couldn't be stopped. Barry is the most elusive back ever, and Walter could dance around you or bowl you over.

Emmitt will always be overrated, but you almost have to put him in the top 5 just because he stayed healthy enough to break the all-time yardage mark. There is something that has to be said for durability and consistency, especially when you look at today's NFL and wonder how many good years guys like Adrian Peterson will end up having in the tank.

IMO, Thurman Thomas, Marcus Allen, Gale Sayers, Tony Dorsett, Terrell Davis > Franco Harris.

Maybe I just hate Franco Harris.

The Immaculate Reception was an illegal play. A lot of people don't know that but back in those days if the ball made contact with another offensive player and caromed up into the air it was illegal for another offensive player to catch it and advance the ball. I realize this happened 12 years before I was born, but I can still be bitter about it.

Anyhoo. Nice to see Bo on the list (and incorrectly listed as playing for the Oakland Raiders- It was LA back then), but I really don't think he belongs up there that high. The potential was there, but there are plenty of backs out there that could have been the greatest if they hadn't gotten injured.

 

If it wasn't for injuries Terrell could have had a monster career. Dude was something special on the field. If you remember that season he had with over 2000 rushing yards and 20 TDs a few of them games he left at halftime or at the end of the third. I remember watching XXXII where he ran 157, and he had a migraine that game at the same time talk about playing with heart.

Bo was nice no doubt about it I just think because he didn't really play a full NFL season he shouldn't be that high on the list.

 

The sad thing about Terrell Davis is that those 3 years of 350+ carries pretty much ended his career with the beating he took.

You see why teams are so hesitant these days to let a young guy run the ball so often so early.

I think Jacksonville is a good example, Jones-Drew has been in the league long enough now and hasn't had to take the 30 carry beating every Sunday. He could have a nice long career as a starting tailback, same as Fred Taylor did before he started getting hurt. Fred Taylor's injuries were mostly bad luck, but they did limit his touches by having goalline big backs to pair with him like Stacey Mack and James Stewart.

 

I loved Bo when I was a kid (including his Nike shoes), but he only played in 38 games over 4 seasons and probably shouldn't be on this list. But man, he was something special. His longest runs in 3 of his 4 years-91, 92, 88. So fast and so strong and averaged almost 7 yards per carry his rookie season.

However, he does get #1 for most dominating video game player of all time in Tecmo Bowl

 

Most dominating offensive player for sure.

Lawrence Taylor was ungodly. Nobody else in the game to my knowledge could miss sacking the QB, get back up and then intercept the pass 40 yards downfield.

 

Yeah, LT was amazing as well. Damn, I haven't thought about that game in years...

 

I don't know what criteria defines greatest really in this conversation and I see Bo taking a lot of shots here but if you were to have a draft of these running backs at their peak levels of performance I couldn't see Bo going any lower than 3rd behind Jim Brown and Earl Campbell.

Even though I don't think Bo had the football toughness and instincts of a Payton or Campbell, he was the most talented back I've ever seen. He could run over linebackers and out run the fastest of cornerbacks. If he ever got the angle on the corner of a defense he was just gone.

As for Terrrell Davis, the guy played with arguably the greatest QB and tight end of all time. If only Earl or Walter Payton had that luxury in their careers.

 

If we r talking about sports games; Mike Tyson dominated punchout. Bo could run out a quarter in one play, but Tyson was pretty much unbeatable

 

Barry is the best I have ever seen. His o-line and qb were never that great, but he put up yardage.

 

Hey, they got Jim Brown, Barry Sanders & Walter Payton ahead of Emmitt Smith. Im good with it. Id of still had Emmitt lower, but thats just me.

 

Man, I miss watching Barry play.

It's like Olajuwon. I knew I was watching greatness but didn't appreciate it. I wish I had recorded every game I could back then.

 

qft. absolute beauty.

 

Eh. It's a Bleacher Report article. It's not even done by a sportswriter, it's just some guy and his opinion.

That said, I pretty much agree with most of his picks.

 

Emmitt is under appreciated for his consistency. Read his Wiki page, its ridiculous, second leading rusher all time when he left High School, owned Florida's record books, and we know about the NFL records. If your argument is that he played on great teams, look up the numbers he racked up in the late nineties.

1999, he had almost 1400 yards after all the mileage at age 30 on an 8-8 team.

Believe me, I was just as big a Cowboy hater and Barry fan in the early nineties but its hard to argue with the numbers. yeah, he isn't earl, or oj, or jim, or barry, or even bo in terms of raw athleticism but he will get you three to four yards consistently and that equal first downs and that's the game. and he will stay healthy and dependable.