Top 10 running backs of all time

In one of the most physically demanding offensive positions, running backs are put to the test week in and week out. Here are 10 guys who rose to the challenge and rushed into the record books.

10. Tony Dorsett

Teams: Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos
Accolades: Hall of Fame, 4x Pro Bow, 1x All-Pro, 1x Super Bowl champion, Offensive Rookie of the Year
Years active: 1977-1988

Dorsett came to the league a Heisman winner and four-time All-American. His greatness continued in the NFL, where he averaged more than 1,000 yards per season in all of his 12 season in the league.

Though Dorsett didn’t seal the deal with a Super Bowl win and the requisite trip to Disney World, but he’s rightfully still considered one of the best at his position.

9. Bo Jackson

Team: Los Angeles Raiders
Accolades: 1x All-Pro
Years active: 1987-1990

Vincent Edward Jackson knows a thing or two about athleticism. In fact "Bo" knew baseball, football, and winning awards.

He was a Heisman Trophy winner, Walter Camp Award winner, Pro Bowler, and he made history when he negotiated a five-year $7.4 million contract in which he could play for the Los Angeles Raiders and complete an entire baseball season with the Kansas City Royals.

Though his career was cut short due to a hip injury, Jackson made history on two fields and makes this list on his sheer athleticism.

8. Barry Sanders

Team: Detroit Lions
Accolades: Hall of Fame, 10x Pro Bowl, 6x All-Pro, 1x MVP, 2x Offensive Player of the Year, Offensive Rookie of the Year
Years active: 1989-1998

During a decade in the league, all with the same team, Barry Sanders set double-digit records and earned a spot in football lore. He averaged more than 1,500 rushing yards per season, made the Pro Bowl in all 10 seasons, was league MVP in 1997 (2,053-yard season) and still holds 10 NFL records, including most consecutive 1,000 yard seasons.

7. Gale Sayers

Team: Chicago Bears
Accolades: Hall of Fame, 4x Pro Bowl, 5x All-Pro, Rookie of the Year
Years active: 1965-1971

His nickname was the Kansas Comet, but most people probably know Gale Sayers as Brian Piccolo’s best friend. Before becoming a best-selling author and movie subject, Sayers was slicing through open fields with precision and speed.

Sayers became the youngest player to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame at 34 years old. He’s also one of a handful of players in the Hall to never play a down of playoff football. Sayer’s teammate and Bears legend Mike Ditka said of Sayers, "People will say there were better players, but I don’t know who they are. I don’t know anybody that ran the football any better than Gale Sayers."

6. Eric Dickerson

Teams: Los Angeles Rams, Indianapolis Colts, Los Angeles Raiders, Atlanta Falcons
Accolades: Hall of Fame, 6x Pro Bowl, 5x All-Pro, 1x Offensive Player of the Year, Offensive Rookie of the Year
Years active: 1983-1993

Current fans might recognize Eric Dickerson from his comments on the new Rams logo, or his reaction videos on the Rams’ official twitter account. But before he providing hot takes on L.A.’s new looks, he was slicing and dicing secondaries.

Dickerson’s speed and agility (despite his 6’3” frame) led him to become the second-overall pick in the 1983 NFL Draft, and then on to 57 touchdowns and nearly 7,000 yards in his first four seasons in the league. He’s considered one of the best to never win a Super Bowl despite competing in the postseason from 1983-87.

5. LaDainian Tomlinson

Teams: San Diego Chargers, New York Jets
Accolades: Hall of Fame, 5x Pro Bowl, 3x All-Pro, 1x MVP, 1x Offensive Player of the Year
Years active: 2001-2011

You don’t get to usurp Lawrence Taylor’s nickname without some serious chops. "L.T." 2.0 is one of only three runners in NFL history with a 100-reception season. He was NFL MVP, first-team All-Pro three times, and named to five Pro Bowls.

4. Adrian Peterson

Teams: Minnesota Vikings, Arizona Cardinals, New Orleans Saints, Washington Football Team, Detroit Lions
Accolades: 7x Pro Bowl, 4x All-Pro, 1x MVP, 1x Offensive Player of the Year, Offensive Rookie of the Year
Years active: 2007-2020

If you ever need a gauge of Peterson’s impact, just ask anyone on the street in Minneapolis. During his 10 years with the Vikings, Peterson racked up 11,747 rushing yards. That mark includes his 2,097-yard effort in 2012. He also had 97 touchdowns in his Minnesota career, just shy of 10 per season.

3. Emmitt Smith

Teams: Dallas Cowboys, Arizona Cardinals
Accolades: Hall of Fame, 8x Pro Bowl, 4x All-Pro, 1x MVP, 3x Super Bowl champion, Offensive Rookie of the Year
Years active: 1990-2004

Long before Smith danced his way into the hearts of suburban moms everywhere on Dancing with the Stars, he waltzed his way to the top of the NFL record books, and some of those records still stand. He tops the NFL in rushing yards (18,355) and rushing touchdowns (164).

At the time he played, he was the NFL’s leader for single-season rushing touchdowns, with 25 in 1995. Priest Holmes broke the record in 2003 (27 TDs), Shaun Alexander tied it at 27 in 2005, and Tomlinson currently holds the record for his 28 scores in 2006.

2. Jim Brown

Team: Cleveland Browns
Accolades: Hall of Fame, 9x Pro Bowl, 8x All-Pro, 3x MVP, 1x NFL champion, Rookie of the Year
Years active: 1957-1965

Brown led the NFL in rushing eight times and was first-team All-Pro each of those eight years. He was NFL MVP three times and was named to the NFL's 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. He led the league in rushing all but one year during his career. He’s the only running back in NFL history to average more than 100 yards rushing per game.

1. Walter Payton

Teams: Chicago Bears
Accolades: Hall of Fame, 9x Pro Bowl, 5x All-Pro, 1x MVP, 1x Offensive Player of the Year, 1x Super Bowl champion
Years active: 1975-1987

"Sweetness" was named MVP in 1977, after he logged 1,852 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns, but that season wasn’t an anomaly. He rushed for more than 1,200 yards 10 times in his career, and ended his career with 16,726 yards total, a record at the time.

Payton is now ranked fifth all-time in rushing yards, and is the benchmark for any aspiring running back great.