NFL Fans.
The Significant Seven
There are currently 7 guys that have achieved the 2K yard mark.
Here's my list in order based off performances.
OJ Simpson.
He's the 1st guy on the list for two reason.
He did it 1st and he was the best to do it.
Now let's forget his off field issues and focus on what he did on the field and what he did during his era.
Simpson liked up 2003 rushing yds in a 14 game season…
Let me repeat that:
OJ SIMPSON GAINED 2003YDS IN A 14 GAME SEASON.
The other 6 guys I'm going to mention ALL played in 16 game seasons.
What's even more significant about this is, he averaged 143 ypg. The next game closest person on this list averaged just under 132 ypg.
Based off his average, he would have come up shy of 2300, but looking at his last 5 games, he may have exceeded that.
OJ Simpson.
He's the 1st guy on the list for two reason.
He did it 1st and he was the best to do it.
Now let's forget his off field issues and focus on what he did on the field and what he did during his era.
Simpson liked up 2003 rushing yds in a 14 game season…
Let me repeat that:
OJ SIMPSON GAINED 2003YDS IN A 14 GAME SEASON.
The other 6 guys I'm going to mention ALL played in 16 game seasons.
What's even more significant about this is, he averaged 143 ypg. The next game closest person on this list averaged just under 132 ypg.
Chris Johnson
Though he is the lowest on list amongst 16 game players, 2nd lowest overall, his performance that in the 09 season has not been duplicated by any 2k rusher.
He is # 7 all time on all-purpose yards, and #1 in yards from scrimmage.
The next runner on the Most yards from Scrimmage is #6 on the all-time list.
CJ2K put up 2,500 total yards that season.
He finished with 2003 rushing yds
Barry Sanders
My favorite running back and arguably the best of all times:
However, I had to bump him to # 3. Again as stated above, CJ2K performance out shadows Sanders - Slightly
But as with anything in life, a win is a win.
One important feat is Sanders like OJ gained exactly 2K yds in a 14 games.
Now, he didn't play a 14 game season or appeared in only 14 games, he'd gotten off to a rocky start. He literally only had 54 yards in two games!!!!
As always, Sanders is persistent and made a strong case of showing why he was possibly the best RB ever.
He finished with 2054 rushing yds
Adrian Peterson
What an amazing oldskool back right here.
This guy is special on this list because unlike the other backs on this list, he came off a bad knee injury.
To nearly break the all-time record coming off a major injury was impressive. Ironically, the record during his run had been standing matching the current and still record leaders' jersey number.
He finished with 2,097 rushing yds
Jamal Lewis
What a defense's nightmare. Lewis destroyed tacklers in his career and he did it the best in 2003 when he too fell 40yd shy of breaking the record.
He finished with 2066 rushing yds
Terrell Davis
TD is the underdog. He is not the fastest based on 40 time, however that did not stop him from accomplishing the 2K mark.
He is a prime example that hard work pays off.
He finished with 2,008 yds
Eric Dickerson
I'm going to catch a lot of noise on this, but I have to point out why he is definitely not number one.
While he is the record holder for the most yds, he didn't come close to what OJ did.
Take ED's ypg (131.6) and you would see that he'd only be at 1842 yds. That come up to a 161 yds short of what Simpson accomplished.
Also, on the Yards from Scrimmage list, he is #16, but only by 1 yd from the #17 leader OJ!
So, Dickerson had the advantage of 2 more games.
To his credit, he did have 11 games of 100+ yds, an was key to the teams winning record finishing 10-6 in 1984.
He is one of the tallest RBs to play the game and is known for his upright running style.
Now, based on a 16 game season, I think it's safe to say that the record will probably stand for a long time especially with the league focusing more on the passing game.
Dickerson for some reason didn't win MVP or OPOY; the only one on this list not to accomplish at least one of those feats.
He finished with a record 2,105 yds
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2,000-yard_club
https://www.pro-football-reference.com/
