Tyreek’s top-5 RBs in NFL history

[Martel13]

Brown would have been the best RB, no matter when he played. The fact is that the competition he played against was the best competition at the time.

There were great player in the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s and 80’s who would still be be great players in the game today. The difference is that players today make enough money to train year round and they have medical care year round and individuals who monitor their diets all the time.

Players who played 40 years ago or more had to work in the off season because they didn’t make enough during the season to support themselves or their families for the entire year.

They played hurt and they played the game when QB’s got hit and didn’t whine about it to the ref. WR’s and RB’s knew when they ran across the middle, they were going to take a vicious hit, whether they caught the ball or not.

The question shouldn’t be if the players back then could compete against the players today. The reality is I doubt if many of the soft players today could have even played back then. Because back then, they played football the way it was suppose to be played and not with all the rules they have today that makes the game a very sanitized version of what it once was.

That’s a very old school view the athletes today would run circles around players from the 60s and 70s. Just like in the NBA. I don’t doubt Brown would have been good today or in the 90s-2000s but there’s no way he would have dominated like he did.

I should also add that a lot of guys today have help with

 

[Martel13]

Brown
Payton
Sanders
Smith
Tomlinson

LT was great too forgot about him somehow

 

[jimthefin]

Jim Brown is one his own list.

After him you have Payton, Dickerson, Sanders and The Juice.

 

[1972forever]

That’s a very old school view the athletes today would run circles around players from the 60s and 70s. Just like in the NBA. I don’t doubt Brown would have been good today or in the 90s-2000s but there’s no way he would have dominated like he did.

I should also add that a lot of guys today have help with

He was better than any running back in the game today and therefore he would dominate today, just like he dominated when he played.

There is nothing old school about recognizing great talent, no matter when they played. Marino was drafted 40 years ago, yet I read constantly that he would be even greater today because of how the passing game is so dominant today.

If Brown played today, he would have the same advantage as the players do today. He would be able to train year round and his natural ability would just make him a better RB than any other RB in the league.

I don’t really have to defend Brown. The fact is he was simply the best RB ever but because so many fans today never saw him play, they always want to demean his career by stating he played in an era when players weren’t as big or as fast as they are today.

The reality is the game of football was much better in the past than it is today and the players in the past were more hard nosed and not the whiners that many of the players in the game are today.

 

[Martel13]

He was better than any running back in the game today and therefore he would dominate today, just like he dominated when he played.

There is nothing old school about recognizing great talent, no matter when they played. Marino was drafted 40 years ago, yet I read constantly that he would be even greater today because of how the passing game is so dominant today.

If Brown played today, he would have the same advantage as the players do today. He would be able to train year round and his natural ability would just make him a better RB than any other RB in the league.

I don’t really have to defend Brown. The fact is he was simply the best RB ever but because so many fans today never saw him play, they always want to demean his career by stating he played in an era when players weren’t as big or as fast as they are today.

The reality is the game of football was much better in the past than it is today and the players in the past were more hard nosed and not the whiners that many of the players in the game are today.

Sounds more to me like you don’t want to give credit to the players of today who have elevated the game. There are plenty of hard nosed players today. You make a very “back in my day” argument with not much to support it. No doubt Brown would have been good in any era but it’s not like Derek Henry would have been a stiff in the 60s playing against part time plumbers and such. Agree to disagree

 

[Andyman]

Tyreek’s list is interesting and includes at least one active RB.

Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill gives his top-5 RBs in NFL history

His list is a little unconventional.

sports.yahoo.com

Who’s your top 5?

For me, any list without Walter Payton is a shet list. Sanders should be on that list too. The rest, individual preference.

Slow news period so I thought I’d post this. Henry would be interesting based on Tyreek’s take.

So hard to compare the eras but I’d have to agree on Payton. Top five is also hard because there are many great ones. Then you have to weigh core years versus longevity. For example Sayers is fine on the list even though he has a short career but then Earl Campbell deserves love because he also a short but incredible impact.

 

[Andyman]

Sounds more to me like you don’t want to give credit to the players of today who have elevated the game. There are plenty of hard nosed players today. You make a very “back in my day” argument with not much to support it. No doubt Brown would have been good in any era but it’s not like Derek Henry would have been a stiff in the 60s playing against part time plumbers and such. Agree to disagree

I agree 100%. The “reality” is Brown was bigger than most of the defenders he plowed against.

 

[NY8123]

Jim Brown, Walter Payton and Barry Sanders belong in the top 3.

To me arguing the top 2 is between Brown and Payton, period. Barry is 3rd. 4th and 5th is wide open for debate and there are several RBs that can go there.

 

[1972forever]

Sounds more to me like you don’t want to give credit to the players of today who have elevated the game. There are plenty of hard nosed players today. You make a very “back in my day” argument with not much to support it. No doubt Brown would have been good in any era but it’s not like Derek Henry would have been a stiff in the 60s playing against part time plumbers and such. Agree to disagree

Henry would have been an excellent RB back then. In fact he would have likely been the second best RB in the league, behind only Brown.

I give the credit to players today. I just understand that they have the advantage of big contracts which allow them to train all year long without having to worry about getting a job in the off season.

Players 50 plus years ago didn’t use steroids or work out year round. They actually worked 2nd jobs so they could pay their bills in the off season.

Back then, there were 14 teams in the league. So the talent level overall was much higher then than it is today with a 32 team league. Because the more teams a league has means the talent level in the league is diluted.

Obviously the players are bigger today because of steroid use and the ability to workout out constantly but bigger doesn’t necessarily mean better. Today players miss a game with what were considered minor injuries in the past.

Bob Kuchenberg played the majority of the 1977 season with a broken back. Today you have players miss games with a broken figure or constant hamstring issues. I still enjoy watching the Dolphins because I have been a Dolphin fan since 1966. I just don’t have much interest in watching the other games in the NFL because the game has changed so much over the last 20 years because of rule changes.

I admit I preferred the way the game was played in the past over the game today. Yet I also understand that protecting the players is why the rule changes have been made. I just think the game is very vanilla today compared to the game I grew up watching but it is what it is.

 

[1972forever]

I agree 100%. The “reality” is Brown was bigger than most of the defenders he plowed against.

Perhap you need to actually watch some of his runs. While he was a powerful running back, he also ran with speed and was elusive.

Many people including myself listed Earl Campbell as one of the top 5 running back. Yet he was a big back who was able to run over smaller defensive backs, just like Brown did.

By the way, both Campbell and Brown both ran the 40 in 4.5 seconds.

 

[kcbrown]

Love seeing the respect for Earl, Emmitt, Gale, Csonka…sad seeing that the RB position is no longer a "big money" position anymore.

So many other great backs not mentioned:

Edge
Lydell Mitchell
Chuck Muncie
Faulk
Riggins
Someone did mention Curtis Martin
Shaun Alexander
Curt Warner
Gore
Corey Dillon

 

[fin007]

So hard to compare the eras but I’d have to agree on Payton. Top five is also hard because there are many great ones. Then you have to weigh core years versus longevity. For example Sayers is fine on the list even though he has a short career but then Earl Campbell deserves love because he also a short but incredible impact.

Salient points. Good arguments.

 

[fin007]

Jim Brown, Walter Payton and Barry Sanders belong in the top 3.

To me arguing the top 2 is between Brown and Payton, period. Barry is 3rd. 4th and 5th is wide open for debate and there are several RBs that can go there.

Self serving bias here on my part but gotta say hard not to like or to argue against your top three.

 

[BlueFin]

Out of his 10 years, only 3 times did Earl Campbell go over 4 yards per carry

Can’t make the list imo with those numbers, for sure a visually stunning player with great plays at times

Didn’t catch a lot either averages about 13 catches a season

You couldn’t be more wrong…stat people give no consideration to the era…much bigger stronger linebackers geared to stop the run versus modern era……

 

[rafael]

IMO too many people are leaving Gale Sayers off their list. I have him and Barry Sanders on the same level. They were just incredible to watch in their prime. Sayers was so good that he made it into the HOF despite being below the usual longevity standards.