We are 12 weeks from the start of the new NFL season so we are filling the gap with a top 10 series based upon who I think are the best players at each position in my lifetime. Last week we did Quarterbacks and I must say besides the 10th spot it was a fairly easy list to come up with. Running backs was a must more difficult list. There is so much to consider but I focused on stats, accolades, winning, versatility, what other players of the time have to say, how they stacked up to their peers at the time and the always important eye test. Let’s dive in.

On the right track but not in the conversation yet: Saquon Barkley and Christian McCaffrey

Honorable Mention: Tony Dorsett, Marcus Allen, Terrell Davis, Jerome Bettis, Curtis Martin, Edgerrin James, Frank Gore and John Riggins

10. Thurman Thomas

The Thurmanator played ball with Barry Sanders at Oklahoma State and got drafted by the Bills where he helped them lose 4 super bowls in a row. Thurman was an excellent runner with power and speed and was exceptional catching the ball out of the back field. He led the league in total scrimmage yards from 89-92. These are mostly the same years that Barry and Emmitt are playing. He rushed for over a thousand yards 8 years in a row and had over 500 yards receiving 5 years in a row. And he was the MVP in 1991. Some will likely argue he doesn’t deserve to be on this list but if you watched him play, you know he was great. He was just overshadowed by two even greater running backs during the same time period.

9. Earl Campbell

Earl almost didn’t make the list, not because he wasn’t great, but because I don’t remember him all that well. What I do remember is the video of him running and people trying to tackle him and them literally ripping his jersey off and him still going. The dude was a beast and darn near unstoppable at times. The way he ran shortened his career but if he was on the field, he was great. He won MVP the year I was born when he ran for 1,697 yards and 19 touchdowns. The next year he just missed running for two thousand yards when he finished with 1,934 yards in just 15 games. His time in the league was short but when he played he was great. He rushed for over a thousand yards 5 years in his first 6 and was offensive rookie of the year and finished no lower than second in the MVP voting his first 3 years. As a bonus, we have the same last name.

8. Derrick Henry

After a little bit of a slow start his first couple of seasons, Henry has been the most dominant running back of his era and it isn’t particularly close. In the last 7 seasons, he has ran for over a thousand yards 6 times and the one year he didn’t he only played 8 games because of injury and he still ran for 937 yards! He ran for over 2,000 yards in 2020. And last year everyone said he was washed and all he did was run for nearly 2,000 yards again and 16 touchdowns. Much like Mahomes in the last list, he still has time to move up or down this list. But for now he is at 8.

7. Adrian Peterson

AP bounced around a lot the second half of his lengthy career but during the majority of his time in Minnesota he was dominant. He rushed for over a thousand yards 7 of his first 9 seasons and 970 yards in 12 games in one of the other years. During that same stretch he never had less than 10 rushing touchdowns. The one year he didn’t rush for a lot of yards was because he was hurt and only played 1 game. He led the league in rushing 3 times including rushing for over 2,000 yards in 2012 and winning the league MVP. Injuries plagued him the second half of his career but he still managed to rush for over a thousand yards at the age of 33. He was also above average catching the ball out of the backfield. He is 5th all time in rushing yards.

6. LaDanian Tomlinson

LT was special. He rushed for over a thousand yards his first 8 seasons. In 2006 he ran for over 1,800 yards and a ridiculous 28 touchdowns. In a 4 year stretch he rushed for 17, 18, 28, and 15 touchdowns. He never had less that 10 rushing touchdowns in his first 9 seasons. He was the MVP in 2006 when he had 31 total TDs. He was a solid receiver who racked up yards that way as well. And he could even throw. For his career, he was a ridiculous 8 of 12 for 143 yards and 7 touchdowns! There is definitely an argument to put him higher, but I just couldn’t quite do it based upon the my top 5 guys.

5.Marshall Faulk

Perhaps the greatest dual threat running back of all time, Faulk could do it all. He was good in Indy, so good in fact that they couldn’t afford him anymore. His last year with the Colts he ran for 1,319 yards and had 908 yards in the air. Then the next year in St. Louis (back when they had a team), he ran for over 1,300 yards again and had over a thousand yards receiving. During his first 3 years in St. Louis, he was offensive player of the year 3 times, MVP once and finished second in MVP voting the other two years. He also won a super bowl. The two years he finished second, it was only to his own quarterback. In 2000 he had 26 total tds and in 2001 he had 21. He rushed for over a thousand yards 7 times and was still a big time contributor until his last year in 2005.

4. Emmitt Smith

Emmitt is challenging to judge. Statistically he is arguably the best ever. He is the all time rushing leader. He led the league in rushing 4 times. He ran for over a thousand yards 11 years in a row. He won 3 super bowls in 4 years. He was the MVP in 1993. He rushed for 21 and 25 tds in back to back seasons. He is the all time leader in attempts, yards, rushing tds and total touches. So why is he only 4th? He ran behind arguably the greatest offensive lines of all time on one of the greatest dynasties of all time with a hall of fame receiver and quarterback, a great tight end and one of the greatest fullbacks of all time. He wasn’t fancy. He was just ridiculously good. But when you have all that talent around you plus the eye test of the 3 guys a head of him, I just couldn’t rank him any higher than 4.

3. Eric Dickerson

Many of you will probably think I have Dickerson too high. But he and Dan Marino were who got me interested in football. He was such a force and seemed like a unicorn that no one compared to. There were other greats before him and after him but to me his first four years in the league can match up to any player ever. During that stretch, he ran for over 1,800 yards 3 times and ran for over 2,000 yards once. He led the league in scrimmage yards 3 out of four times and never had fewer than 11 rushing touchdowns. He was quick, powerful and he wore those awesome goggles. What more could you ask for? During that same stretch he was second in MVP voting 3 times, All pro 3 times (5 times total) and offensive rookie of the year. Even when he left the Rams to head to the Colts he broke a thousand yards 3 times including rushing for 1,659 yards in his first full season there. Injuries began to take a toll after that as he only played one more full season. But from 1983 to 1989 his lowest rushing total was 1,234 and he had 11 or more rushing TDs 5 times. The guy was a machine. And again…the goggles!

2. Walter Payton

Sweetness was a force to be reckoned with. Many of us remember him playing for one of the greatest teams ever, the 85 Bears. But that is not the team he joined way back in 1975. The Bears were a perennial loser and only made the playoffs twice in Walter’s first 9 seasons. Payton literally dragged his team to the playoffs in 1977 when he ran for 1,852 yards, 14 TDs and had 2,121 yards from scrimmage and 16 total TDs. He won the MVP that year and was pretty much their only offensive weapon for the better part of a decade. Walter could do it all, run, catch and throw. He threw 6 touchdowns during his career. He would run by you, around you and through you. Even when his team was good, they still had average quarterback play and relied heavily on him. He was a 9 time pro bowler, 5 time first team all pro, Offensive player of the year and MVP. From 1976 to 1986 there was only one year that he didn’t rush for over a thousand yards and that was the strike year. He also played in every game possible during that stretch, proving to be one of the most durable players at his position despite being a physical runner. And he is a super bowl champion. All of that puts him at number 2 on the list and it turns out he was a pretty good guy too. So good that an annual award is named after him.

1. Barry Sanders

I firmly believe the only people who don’t think he is number one have never watched him play. Barry only played 10 years in the league and is still 4th in all time rushing yards. He ran for 1,300 yards or more in every season but one. In that season he only played 11 games and he still ran for 1,115 yards. He is one touchdown away from 100 which puts him at averaging 9.9 tds a year. He was an all pro first team 6 times and the other 4 years he was second team all pro. He was a pro bowler every year. He led the league in rushing 4 times. He had over 2,000 yards in 1997. He was offensive rookie of the year, offensive player of the year twice and MVP once. He averaged a ridiculous 5 yards a carry. In his last season he played all 16 games, ran for 1,491 yards, had 289 yards receiving and showed no signs of slowing down. Then I bought tickets to see him play in Minnesota and he retired. He played for the Lions so I don’t blame him. But if he had played half as well for another 2 or 3 years he would hold every rushing record possible. He was only 30 when he retired. He averaged 1,527 yards a season! That’s ridiculous. It’s arguably the greatest statistical 10 year period for any athlete in any team sport. On top of that he was the most amazing runner I have ever seen play. He would make 4 guys miss before he got back to the line of scrimmage. That’s how good he was and how bad the lions were. You may have issues with other parts of my list, but Barry is the Goat…no question.

Let me know what I got right, wrong or who would be on your list. And tune in next week when I cover the top 10 Receivers of my life time.