You pick the next crop of HOF RB . . . (1 Viewer)

[David Yudkin]

Bettis was very good at what he did (bruising back and later as a short yardage back), but he was pretty one dimentional. Based on career numbers IN TOTAL, Bettis has more rushing yards but as others have mentioned fewer yards from scrimmage. IMO, on a per game basis, Thomas trumped Bettis (unless people are going to discount receiving yards compared to rushing yards for some strange reason).

Total yards per regular season game:

Thomas 90.8 yards per game

Bettis 78.7 yards per game

Total TD

Thomas 0.48 TD per game

Bettis 0.49 TD per game

But when you add in their playoff totals, Thomas gets a big boost. Career total INCLUDING post season:

Thomas 18646 total yards (91.9/game), 109 total TD (0.54/game)

Bettis 15819 total yards (77.2/game), 103 total TD (0.50/game)

With Thomas playing so many more playoff games, it brings their games played totals to almost even.

People don't remember that Thomas had over 2,000 extra total yards in the playoffs including 7 games with 150+ total yards.

 

[jetpack]

Bettis was very good at what he did (bruising back and later as a short yardage back), but he was pretty one dimentional. Based on career numbers IN TOTAL, Bettis has more rushing yards but as others have mentioned fewer yards from scrimmage. IMO, on a per game basis, Thomas trumped Bettis (unless people are going to discount receiving yards compared to rushing yards for some strange reason).Total yards per regular season game:Thomas 90.8 yards per gameBettis 78.7 yards per gameTotal TDThomas 0.48 TD per gameBettis 0.49 TD per gameBut when you add in their playoff totals, Thomas gets a big boost. Career total INCLUDING post season:Thomas 18646 total yards (91.9/game), 109 total TD (0.54/game)Bettis 15819 total yards (77.2/game), 103 total TD (0.50/game)With Thomas playing so many more playoff games, it brings their games played totals to almost even.People don't remember that Thomas had over 2,000 extra total yards in the playoffs including 7 games with 150+ total yards.

Goofy Batman vs. Spiderman type stats aside, Thurman Thomas was one of the greatest Buffalo Bills ever. He is a lock to be in the Hall of Fame. Likewise, Jerome Bettis was one of the greatest Pittsburgh Steelers ever. He is likewise a lock to be in the Hall of Fame.

 

[Koya]

Jerome Bettis over Thurman Thomas?

I'd say both are equally deserving, but Bettis is top-5 all time in rushing yards and top 10 all time in TDs, plus has a SB ring, so he's likely to be a slight favorite.

Thurman Thomas is the only RB since Jim Brown to lead the league in yards from scrimmage for 4 consecutive seasons. He was named league MVP in 1991. He led the AFC in rushing in 1990, 1991, and 1993. He was a 2-time All Pro and went to 5 straight Pro Bowls. He is one of only 5 RBs to have over 400 receptions and 10,000 yards rushing (Walter Payton, Marshall Faulk, Marcus Allen, and Tiki Barber are the others). He is one of 4 RBs to rush for 1000 yards in 8 consecutive seasons (Curtis Martin, Barry Sanders, Emmitt Smith are the others). Thomas also set NFL playoff records with the most career points (126), touchdowns (21), and consecutive playoff games with a touchdown (9). Thurman helped paved the way for modern RBs like Marshall Faulk who can run effectively between the tackles but also line up as a WR and create mismatches in the passing game. Rushing yards aren't any more valuable than receving yards, so ignoring Thurman's huge edge in receiving stats when comparing the contributions of these two players seems ridiculous to me.apart from a SB ring in his last season (in his only appearance), an extra Pro Bowl, and a slight edge in rushing yards and TDs (despite having less yards from scrimmage, a worse y/c), please explain how you would give Bettis an edge? Was Jerome Bettis ever named All Pro? Thurman Thomas was a LEAGUE MVP, 2-time All Pro, and led the league in yards from scrimmage for 4 straight seasons. He has similar career numbers to Bettis but his best 6 seasons were much more impressive. Thomas was a great player...Bettis was a very good player who happened to play for a long time.

Thurman Thomas

Regular Season: 182 games, 2877 carries for 12074 yards (4.2), 472 rec for 4458 yards, 88 TDs

Playoffs: 21 games, 339 carries for 1442 yards, 76 rec for 672 yards, 21 TDs

COMBINED: 203 games, 18646 yards from scrimmage (92 yards/game), 109 TDs

Jerome Bettis

Regular Season: 192 games, 3479 carries for 13662 yards (3.9), 200 rec for 1449 yards, 94 TDs

Playoffs: 13 games, 199 carries for 674 yards, 6 rec for 34 yards, 9 TDs

COMBINED: 205 games, 15819 yards from scrimmage (77 yards/game), 103 TDs

in almost the same exact number of total games played, Thurman has almost 3000 more yards from scrimmage, 15 more yards per game, and 6 more TDs despite being outweighed by Bettis by at least 40 or 50 pounds.

here's some more data (excludes playoffs)

Thurman Thomas

Best 6 seasons: 94 games, 11037 yards/scrimmage, 64 TDs

Best 7 seasons: 109 games, 12324 yards/scrimmage, 72 TDs

Best 8 seasons: 123 games, 13549 yards/scrimmage, 80 TDs

Jerome Bettis

Best 6 seasons: 94 games, 9032 yards/scrimmage, 42 TDs

Best 7 seasons: 110 games, 10233 yards/scrimmage, 49 TDs

Best 8 seasons: 121 games, 11353 yards/scrimmage, 53 TDs

if you take their best 8 seasons, which is bulk of their careers, Thurman has 2200 more yards from scrimmage and 27 more TDs. If you just look at rushing yards in those best 8 seasons, Bettis has 10239 and Thurman has 9881. So, Bettis has 350 more yards rushing, but still comes up way short everywhere else.

Thurman Thomas was twice the player Bettis was. Bettis was pretty darn good with a couple really good seasons. Thomas was a player before his time that was one of the top couple backs in the league for a good while while redefining the position.

 

[Tau837]

And Bettis winning a ring was great for him, but how important was he really to that team? He was kind of a role player, no?

Yes, it's true he was a role player, but he was also a strong leader, so I think he does deserve some credit.

 

[Evilgrin 72]

I think it's a pretty big stretch to say that Bettis is more deserving...which Jason Wood and Evilgrin have said. I was just interested in hearing their reasoning.

I didn't realize Bettis had been All Pro twice as well. That's impressive. I still don't think it's close though when you take everything into consideration. And Bettis winning a ring was great for him, but how important was he really to that team? He was kind of a role player, no?

That's not what I said. I said they were equally deserving, and I also said I think Thurman belongs. I just said I think Bettis was a slight favorite (meaning with the voters) and my reasoning for that would be that in the baseline categories (rushing yards, TDs) he ranks in the all-time top-10 and I would think that would carry weight with the voters. I could be wrong though, as Art Monk can attest to. Plus, he's a 2-time All-Pro, a 6 time Pro Bowler, and is generally considered one of the (if not the) best big back of all-time. He and Thurman are very different types of players, and need to be evaluated as such.Yes, Bettis was something of a role player for the SB team, but his was a big role when you consider the Steelers' offensive philosophy. They thrive on getting ahead early and grinding out the clock with first down after first down on the ground. They get ahead and then the beat you up and demoralize you. Bettis had an enormous role in that regard, in virtually all of their wins. That's something that's not going to show up in the box score because it may look like 13-38, but if that 38 yards brings 5 critical first downs that keep the opponent's offense off the field, it's a big 38 yards. It's in that respect, as well as the fact that Bettis was the unquestioned heart and soul and leader of that team that made him far more instrumental in their drive for the ring than the stats would indicate.

Hell, if you watch the Super Bowl video, you'll see tape of him talking to Willie Parker on the sideline telling FWP that he should take the ball inside, then look to cut it outside rather than trying to gain the edge right away. A few plays later, Willie breaks one doing exactly that and the Steelers go up 11. That whole team was desperate to win one for Bettis, and I have no doubt that his absence in the locker room was one of the reasons they went from 11-5 last year to 8-8 this year. Bettis' role is much bigger than it appears when you distill it down to numbers.

 

[Evilgrin 72]

Bettis was very good at what he did (bruising back and later as a short yardage back), but he was pretty one dimentional. Based on career numbers IN TOTAL, Bettis has more rushing yards but as others have mentioned fewer yards from scrimmage. IMO, on a per game basis, Thomas trumped Bettis (unless people are going to discount receiving yards compared to rushing yards for some strange reason).Total yards per regular season game:Thomas 90.8 yards per gameBettis 78.7 yards per gameTotal TDThomas 0.48 TD per gameBettis 0.49 TD per gameBut when you add in their playoff totals, Thomas gets a big boost. Career total INCLUDING post season:Thomas 18646 total yards (91.9/game), 109 total TD (0.54/game)Bettis 15819 total yards (77.2/game), 103 total TD (0.50/game)With Thomas playing so many more playoff games, it brings their games played totals to almost even.People don't remember that Thomas had over 2,000 extra total yards in the playoffs including 7 games with 150+ total yards.

Goofy Batman vs. Spiderman type stats aside, Thurman Thomas was one of the greatest Buffalo Bills ever. He is a lock to be in the Hall of Fame. Likewise, Jerome Bettis was one of the greatest Pittsburgh Steelers ever. He is likewise a lock to be in the Hall of Fame.

Yep. That's exactly my contention.

 

[MarshallRob]

I don't see any need to compare T. Thomas and Bettis. Both are well-qualified and they aren't in competition with each other as Thomas will almost surely go in this year and Bettis isn't even eligible for another four. At his best Thomas was clearly the better player better due to his versatility, but don't discount the importance of Bettis' durability. Bettis was used to tire out defenses and was the key player of a ball-control offense. It's not easy to successfully play that role for so many years.

Three guys really helped their chances in 2006. Tomlinson's awesome season made him a lock. Dillon put himself in a position to be able to finish his career in the all-time Top 10 in rushing with over 100 career TD's. If he does that he has a strong case. On top of that, if his team can win another Super Bowl then I'd say he's a likely Hall of Famer. Tiki Barber finished his career nicely but it's not going to be enough. He's just not going to be high enough on any of the leaderboards in 5 years and he doesn't have the superstar MVP-type seasons or postseason heroics to make up for it. He didn't get enough done in his first 5 years.

Three guys really hurt themselves. Shaun Alexander doesn't earn the Tomlinson-type of awestruck admiration for his skills. His HOF chances rest simply on his just showing up year after year and piling up so many yards and TD's that in the end he can't be ignored. Due to injury he couldn't follow up on his MVP season and he didn't advance very far on the all-time rushing yards list. He's only 25th right now, he's almost 30, and he suffered a serious injury. His TD total is impressive but rushing yards are still the most important stat. Plus, many will discount his TD's somewhat as being mainly of the short-yardage variety.

Edgerrin James presents the same type of Hall of Fame case as Alexander: nothing flashy (excepting his first 2 seasons) but production too great to be ignored. Edge was healthy in 2006 but had such a bad season that he's now got the same problem SA does. He's running out of time. Plus by leaving Indy he blew any chance of earning postseason cred.

Priest Holmes' inability to play probably killed whatever slim chances he had. One more big season could have gotten him to the Top 10 all-time in TD's scored. Worse, Alexander and Tomlinson each breaking his single season record in back-to-back years discounts the magnitude of Priest's one-time record.

Anyway, Emmitt, Martin, Bettis, Faulk, and Thomas are all easy Hall of Famers. I think Terrell Davis will make it also.

 

[David Yudkin]

I don't see any need to compare T. Thomas and Bettis. Both are well-qualified and they aren't in competition with each other as Thomas will almost surely go in this year and Bettis isn't even eligible for another four. At his best Thomas was clearly the better player better due to his versatility, but don't discount the importance of Bettis' durability. Bettis was used to tire out defenses and was the key player of a ball-control offense. It's not easy to successfully play that role for so many years.Three guys really helped their chances in 2006. Tomlinson's awesome season made him a lock. Dillon put himself in a position to be able to finish his career in the all-time Top 10 in rushing with over 100 career TD's. If he does that he has a strong case. On top of that, if his team can win another Super Bowl then I'd say he's a likely Hall of Famer. Tiki Barber finished his career nicely but it's not going to be enough. He's just not going to be high enough on any of the leaderboards in 5 years and he doesn't have the superstar MVP-type seasons or postseason heroics to make up for it. He didn't get enough done in his first 5 years. Three guys really hurt themselves. Shaun Alexander doesn't earn the Tomlinson-type of awestruck admiration for his skills. His HOF chances rest simply on his just showing up year after year and piling up so many yards and TD's that in the end he can't be ignored. Due to injury he couldn't follow up on his MVP season and he didn't advance very far on the all-time rushing yards list. He's only 25th right now, he's almost 30, and he suffered a serious injury. His TD total is impressive but rushing yards are still the most important stat. Plus, many will discount his TD's somewhat as being mainly of the short-yardage variety. Edgerrin James presents the same type of Hall of Fame case as Alexander: nothing flashy (excepting his first 2 seasons) but production too great to be ignored. Edge was healthy in 2006 but had such a bad season that he's now got the same problem SA does. He's running out of time. Plus by leaving Indy he blew any chance of earning postseason cred. Priest Holmes' inability to play probably killed whatever slim chances he had. One more big season could have gotten him to the Top 10 all-time in TD's scored. Worse, Alexander and Tomlinson each breaking his single season record in back-to-back years discounts the magnitude of Priest's one-time record. Anyway, Emmitt, Martin, Bettis, Faulk, and Thomas are all easy Hall of Famers. I think Terrell Davis will make it also.

You are certainly entitled to your own opinion, but I have a hard time understanding how some players are deemed OUT for not ranking high enough on career lists, yet Terrell Davis gets in. IMO, if players like David gets in, guys like Holmes and Barber should be in as well.

 

[MarshallRob]

I don't see any need to compare T. Thomas and Bettis. Both are well-qualified and they aren't in competition with each other as Thomas will almost surely go in this year and Bettis isn't even eligible for another four. At his best Thomas was clearly the better player better due to his versatility, but don't discount the importance of Bettis' durability. Bettis was used to tire out defenses and was the key player of a ball-control offense. It's not easy to successfully play that role for so many years.Three guys really helped their chances in 2006. Tomlinson's awesome season made him a lock. Dillon put himself in a position to be able to finish his career in the all-time Top 10 in rushing with over 100 career TD's. If he does that he has a strong case. On top of that, if his team can win another Super Bowl then I'd say he's a likely Hall of Famer. Tiki Barber finished his career nicely but it's not going to be enough. He's just not going to be high enough on any of the leaderboards in 5 years and he doesn't have the superstar MVP-type seasons or postseason heroics to make up for it. He didn't get enough done in his first 5 years. Three guys really hurt themselves. Shaun Alexander doesn't earn the Tomlinson-type of awestruck admiration for his skills. His HOF chances rest simply on his just showing up year after year and piling up so many yards and TD's that in the end he can't be ignored. Due to injury he couldn't follow up on his MVP season and he didn't advance very far on the all-time rushing yards list. He's only 25th right now, he's almost 30, and he suffered a serious injury. His TD total is impressive but rushing yards are still the most important stat. Plus, many will discount his TD's somewhat as being mainly of the short-yardage variety. Edgerrin James presents the same type of Hall of Fame case as Alexander: nothing flashy (excepting his first 2 seasons) but production too great to be ignored. Edge was healthy in 2006 but had such a bad season that he's now got the same problem SA does. He's running out of time. Plus by leaving Indy he blew any chance of earning postseason cred. Priest Holmes' inability to play probably killed whatever slim chances he had. One more big season could have gotten him to the Top 10 all-time in TD's scored. Worse, Alexander and Tomlinson each breaking his single season record in back-to-back years discounts the magnitude of Priest's one-time record. Anyway, Emmitt, Martin, Bettis, Faulk, and Thomas are all easy Hall of Famers. I think Terrell Davis will make it also.

You are certainly entitled to your own opinion, but I have a hard time understanding how some players are deemed OUT for not ranking high enough on career lists, yet Terrell Davis gets in. IMO, if players like David gets in, guys like Holmes and Barber should be in as well.

I'm not in favor of TD getting in. Some of the things I've read and heard by sportswriters who have votes just make me think he will eventually get the nod from them. Obviously his case rests on the value of a few superstar-type seasons along with tremendous postseason production leading to two championships. There's no magic formula for the Hall.

 

[Chris Smith]

I believe this era of running backs will approach the high of 15 inducted set from 1951 to 1960. This has been a special era of running backs over the past fifteen years and ultimately I believe the Hall of Fame will reward these backs with a HoF spot. That said, I'll play by the rules set forth..

Here are my HoF picks...

Here are the candidates from the 1990s (pick up to 7):

Eric Dickerson* (already inducted)

Barry Sanders* (already inducted)

Marcus Allen* (already inducted)

Emmitt Smith

Curtis Martin

Jerome Bettis

Marshall Faulk

Thurman Thomas

Ricky Watters

Eddie George

Corey Dillon

Ottis Anderson

Edgerrin James

Tiki Barber

Terry Allen

Fred Taylor

Warrick Dunn

Herschel Walker

Roger Craig

Priest Holmes

Shaun Alexander

Terrell Davis

Ahman Green

Ricky Williams

Jamal Lewis

Here are the candidates (so far) from the 2000s (pick up to 10):

Emmitt Smith

Curtis Martin - he'll make it but not one of my ten

Jerome Bettis - very good chance he'll make it but also not one of my ten

Marshall Faulk

Ricky Watters

Eddie George

Corey Dillon

Edgerrin James - needs a big season with the Cardinals IMO

Tiki Barber

Fred Taylor

Warrick Dunn

Priest Holmes

Shaun Alexander

Terrell Davis

Ahman Green

LaDainian Tomlinson

Ricky Williams

Jamal Lewis

Larry Johnson

Deuce McAllister

Clinton Portis- too early to tell but has a good shot

Reggie Bush - way too early to tell

Steven Jackson - ditto

Willis McGahee - ditto

Tomlinson and Alexander have already done enough to make the hall.

I think Barber's brilliance over the past few seasons makes him a Hall of Famer. To me almost more importantly than longevity when naming players to the hall is having a player dominate his era for at least a few years (AKA - Gale Sayers)...

Terrell Davis didn't have a long career but he was THEE back in the NFL and dominated defenses. He deserves to make it for that reason as does Priest Holmes who was a machine until injuries did him in. If Gale Sayers belongs in the Hall (and he does), then Davis and Holmes deserve their place in history as well. Tiki Barber was a yardage machine over the past several years. Barber, Martin and Bettis are probably interchangeable when it comes to the Hall but Barber is my guy.

 

[Charley]

Edgerrin James presents the same type of Hall of Fame case as Alexander: nothing flashy (excepting his first 2 seasons) but production too great to be ignored. Edge was healthy in 2006 but had such a bad season that he's now got the same problem SA does. He's running out of time. Plus by leaving Indy he blew any chance of earning postseason cred.

Edge doesn't get much love in this thread, so I was wondering how his total FF pts compared to those currently in the HOF and other contenders:Edge = 1,830 pts (6 * TDs + .1 * yards from scrimmage)Already in:Marcus Allen - 2,629Sanders - 2,473Dickerson - 2,116Retired:Emmit Smith - 3,208Faulk - 2,730T. Thomas - 2,518C. Martin - 2,343Bettis - 2,199Watters - 2,035Barber - 1,964George - 1,734Holmes - 1,662Terrell Davis - 1,278Still active:Tomlinson - 1,874Dillon - 1,849James - 1,830W. Dunn - 1,671Alexander - 1,656F. Taylor - 1,556A. Green - 1,528J. Lewis - 1,198Portis - 1,111On this basis, it looks like Smith, Faulk, Thomas, Martin, and Bettis are locks -- and Watters and Barber are borderline. I doubt George, Holmes or TD will make it.Of the active players, I think they need to post at least 2,100 career pts to be locks. Given current status, LT has the best chance, followed by Edge (but he probably needs at least one more good season). LT will be 28 next season and Edge will be 29. Unless he gets injured, LT is a lock. Given his age, Edge could play 2-3 more seasons which would make him a lock if he avoids injury (but Edge already has 2,525 carries so his longevity is questionable).I think Alexander (age 30 next season) and Portis (age 26) have decent chances if they finish their careers strongly. But Dillon (age 33 next season) probably is borderline at best, but might get decent consideration if NE wins another championship. Dunn (age 32), Taylor (age 31), Green (age 30), and Lewis (age 28) are very doubtful.

 

[Jason Wood]

Jerome Bettis over Thurman Thomas?

I'd say both are equally deserving, but Bettis is top-5 all time in rushing yards and top 10 all time in TDs, plus has a SB ring, so he's likely to be a slight favorite.

Thurman Thomas is the only RB since Jim Brown to lead the league in yards from scrimmage for 4 consecutive seasons. He was named league MVP in 1991. He led the AFC in rushing in 1990, 1991, and 1993. He was a 2-time All Pro and went to 5 straight Pro Bowls. He is one of only 5 RBs to have over 400 receptions and 10,000 yards rushing (Walter Payton, Marshall Faulk, Marcus Allen, and Tiki Barber are the others). He is one of 4 RBs to rush for 1000 yards in 8 consecutive seasons (Curtis Martin, Barry Sanders, Emmitt Smith are the others). Thomas also set NFL playoff records with the most career points (126), touchdowns (21), and consecutive playoff games with a touchdown (9). Thurman helped paved the way for modern RBs like Marshall Faulk who can run effectively between the tackles but also line up as a WR and create mismatches in the passing game. Rushing yards aren't any more valuable than receving yards, so ignoring Thurman's huge edge in receiving stats when comparing the contributions of these two players seems ridiculous to me.apart from a SB ring in his last season (in his only appearance), an extra Pro Bowl, and a slight edge in rushing yards and TDs (despite having less yards from scrimmage, a worse y/c), please explain how you would give Bettis an edge? Was Jerome Bettis ever named All Pro? Thurman Thomas was a LEAGUE MVP, 2-time All Pro, and led the league in yards from scrimmage for 4 straight seasons. He has similar career numbers to Bettis but his best 6 seasons were much more impressive. Thomas was a great player...Bettis was a very good player who happened to play for a long time.

Thurman Thomas

Regular Season: 182 games, 2877 carries for 12074 yards (4.2), 472 rec for 4458 yards, 88 TDs

Playoffs: 21 games, 339 carries for 1442 yards, 76 rec for 672 yards, 21 TDs

COMBINED: 203 games, 18646 yards from scrimmage (92 yards/game), 109 TDs

Jerome Bettis

Regular Season: 192 games, 3479 carries for 13662 yards (3.9), 200 rec for 1449 yards, 94 TDs

Playoffs: 13 games, 199 carries for 674 yards, 6 rec for 34 yards, 9 TDs

COMBINED: 205 games, 15819 yards from scrimmage (77 yards/game), 103 TDs

in almost the same exact number of total games played, Thurman has almost 3000 more yards from scrimmage, 15 more yards per game, and 6 more TDs despite being outweighed by Bettis by at least 40 or 50 pounds.

here's some more data (excludes playoffs)

Thurman Thomas

Best 6 seasons: 94 games, 11037 yards/scrimmage, 64 TDs

Best 7 seasons: 109 games, 12324 yards/scrimmage, 72 TDs

Best 8 seasons: 123 games, 13549 yards/scrimmage, 80 TDs

Jerome Bettis

Best 6 seasons: 94 games, 9032 yards/scrimmage, 42 TDs

Best 7 seasons: 110 games, 10233 yards/scrimmage, 49 TDs

Best 8 seasons: 121 games, 11353 yards/scrimmage, 53 TDs

if you take their best 8 seasons, which is bulk of their careers, Thurman has 2200 more yards from scrimmage and 27 more TDs. If you just look at rushing yards in those best 8 seasons, Bettis has 10239 and Thurman has 9881. So, Bettis has 350 more yards rushing, but still comes up way short everywhere else.

Aaron, Let me be clear...this question, when asked a year ago was who I thought WOULD get into the HOF, with a limit of seven imposed. If you asked me who SHOULD get in, I would put Thurman in ahead of both Curtis Martin and Jerome Bettis, FYI.

Ultimately I think Bettis and Thomas get in (as does Martin most likely).

I believe this era of running backs will approach the high of 15 inducted set from 1951 to 1960. This has been a special era of running backs over the past fifteen years and ultimately I believe the Hall of Fame will reward these backs with a HoF spot. That said, I'll play by the rules set forth..

Here are my HoF picks...

Here are the candidates from the 1990s (pick up to 7):

Eric Dickerson* (already inducted)

Barry Sanders* (already inducted)

Marcus Allen* (already inducted)

Emmitt Smith

Curtis Martin

Jerome Bettis

Marshall Faulk

Thurman Thomas

Ricky Watters

Eddie George

Corey Dillon

Ottis Anderson

Edgerrin James

Tiki Barber

Terry Allen

Fred Taylor

Warrick Dunn

Herschel Walker

Roger Craig

Priest Holmes

Shaun Alexander

Terrell Davis

Ahman Green

Ricky Williams

Jamal Lewis

Here are the candidates (so far) from the 2000s (pick up to 10):

Emmitt Smith

Curtis Martin - he'll make it but not one of my ten

Jerome Bettis - very good chance he'll make it but also not one of my ten

Marshall Faulk

Ricky Watters

Eddie George

Corey Dillon

Edgerrin James - needs a big season with the Cardinals IMO

Tiki Barber

Fred Taylor

Warrick Dunn

Priest Holmes

Shaun Alexander

Terrell Davis

Ahman Green

LaDainian Tomlinson

Ricky Williams

Jamal Lewis

Larry Johnson

Deuce McAllister

Clinton Portis- too early to tell but has a good shot

Reggie Bush - way too early to tell

Steven Jackson - ditto

Willis McGahee - ditto

Tomlinson and Alexander have already done enough to make the hall.

I think Barber's brilliance over the past few seasons makes him a Hall of Famer. To me almost more importantly than longevity when naming players to the hall is having a player dominate his era for at least a few years (AKA - Gale Sayers)...

Terrell Davis didn't have a long career but he was THEE back in the NFL and dominated defenses. He deserves to make it for that reason as does Priest Holmes who was a machine until injuries did him in. If Gale Sayers belongs in the Hall (and he does), then Davis and Holmes deserve their place in history as well. Tiki Barber was a yardage machine over the past several years. Barber, Martin and Bettis are probably interchangeable when it comes to the Hall but Barber is my guy.

Chris,God love ya, but Terrell Davis and Priest Holmes really don't belong in the conversation particularly when you failed to bold Curtis Martin and Jerome Bettis' names.

 

[ffchamp1]

Here are the candidates (so far) from the 2000s (pick up to 10):

Emmitt Smith IN I agree

Curtis Martin out he will be in

Jerome Bettis out should go in

Marshall Faulk IN lock

Ricky Watters out if T Thomas makes it, Ricky should too

Eddie George no way in hell

Corey Dillon out

Edgerrin James out

Tiki Barber IN see Ricky

Fred Taylor out

Warrick Dunn IN if he gets one vote, we know who he got it from

Priest Holmes IN nope

Terrell Davis IN nope, see Holmes

Ahman Green out stronger case for Green than previous two

LaDainian Tomlinson out [b]LOL

Ricky Williams out

Jamal Lewis out

Larry Johnson IN He won't last through next year, HOF is with a tour only

Deuce McAllister no

Clinton Portis no

Reggie Bush yes Maybe, and I say maybe will he make SC's HOF but not the NFL

Steven Jackson no

Willis McGahee  loFl

 

[MarcO]

The HOF isn't just about the numbers and thanks fully so - if it was it would be without the likes of this guy

Career stats: 4956 yards rushing 39 TDs, 1307 recieving yards and 9TDs

 

[David Yudkin]

The HOF isn't just about the numbers and thanks fully so - if it was it would be without the likes of this guy

Career stats: 4956 yards rushing 39 TDs, 1307 recieving yards and 9TDs

As I have mentioned countless times over the past 5+ years in all these threads, short careers were more the norm back 40 years ago, so not having all-time great numbers then was not a death knell for the HOF. However, in THIS era, there are far too many RB that put up huge numbers. I am pretty confident that a RB from today with under 5000 rushing yards would not warrant much HOF consideration at all, if any.

 

[Koya]

The HOF isn't just about the numbers and thanks fully so - if it was it would be without the likes of this guy

Career stats: 4956 yards rushing 39 TDs, 1307 recieving yards and 9TDs

As I have mentioned countless times over the past 5+ years in all these threads, short careers were more the norm back 40 years ago, so not having all-time great numbers then was not a death knell for the HOF. However, in THIS era, there are far too many RB that put up huge numbers. I am pretty confident that a RB from today with under 5000 rushing yards would not warrant much HOF consideration at all, if any.

Although short careers were far more the norm because of training and medical advances since past eras, you could have a comparable type of career, just a couple years longer.That said, to have the impact of Sayers, you would need 5-6 years that would put T. Davis' to shame. Sayers was that much more of a talent in many ways than anyone the game had ever seen, when he burst onto the scene.

BTW, the moment I realized that Sayers was probably the second best RB to ever play the game can be seen at the 2:00 mark of that video.

When he jukes a guy who is BEHIND him... wow. Just, freaking, wow. Awareness of 200 on a scale of 100.

 

[Steel Dillo]

Does Larry Centers even sniff the HOF by being #12 all time in receptions by any position & #1 in receptions by a RB?

He also made the Pro Bowl 3 times & has a token SB ring with the Patriots.

 

[Koya]

Does Larry Centers even sniff the HOF by being #12 all time in receptions by any position & #1 in receptions by a RB?He also made the Pro Bowl 3 times & has a token SB ring with the Patriots.

No.A very nice career as a very valuable role player.Just not an influential enough role.