Jim Brown (Years In The NFL: 1957-1965)
This man made running a football an art form. His career numbers still sit among the all-time best despite the fact that he hasn’t played since 1965. It is hard to know where to start. Jim Brown had an average of 104.3 yards per game, which remains the league’s all-time mark and probably always will be. His 5.2 yards-per-carry average also outpaces almost all other rushers. When his career ended, he had made 12,312 rushing yards. His 106 touchdowns still remains sixth all-time. In case you had doubts about his popularity among the media and fans, Brown earned Pro Bowl selections in all nine seasons that he played and was chosen as first-team All-Pro in eight of them.
Jim Brown (Years In The NFL: 1957-1965)
Barry Sanders (Years In The NFL: 1989-1998)
Perhaps more than any other NFL player in history, the career of Barry Sanders continues to be a massive “What if … ” seeing as he walked away while there was still a lot left in the tank. Within only 10 NFL seasons, the numbers that the Lions icon put up was truly amazing, including 99 rushing touchdowns and 15,269 rushing yards. Like Jim Brown, Sanders earned Pro Bowl selection in every season that he played. This shouldn’t be a surprise, though, since he had an average of 5.0 yards per carry. His 99.8 rushing yards per game stands at second all-time. Simply put, Sanders was a freak and no defenses wanted to and could deal with him.
Barry Sanders (Years In The NFL: 1989-1998)