Your top 10 pure runners since 2000

[Clayton]

As long as Lynch Gore and Jackson are on there.....

Jackson would be on my top 5 'careers that were ruined on bad teams'. I think he might have had an average oline for 1 year of his whole career and a bottom 3 oline for almost all of it.

 

[futballiscool]

If QBs count, Vick in his prime was the most exciting openfield runner since Barry Sanders.

 

[NorthernLights88]

You could try and make an argument that LDT was the better player (like Faulk) but this is purely about running and you can't really top Peterson.

This. Obviously I am somewhat biased and would be tempted to take AP over both LDT and Faulk in general, but in terms of pure running, there's not much of an argument.

And while AP was on some pretty bad teams, to this day, his best offensive weapons along him have been just over a year of Patterson, a year of Greg Jennings, Kyle Rudolph, and Harvin in the past. Only great QB he ever played with was Favre for 2 years, the 2nd of which Favre was too worn down to be himself. Give Faulk and LDT nothing but years of Tarvaris Jackson and Ponder at QB and I doubt everything goes exactly as well for them.

 

[Stomp]

7 complete seasons LT 10,650 rushing yards AD 10,115 rushing yards

 

[always]

7 complete seasons LT 10,650 rushing yards AD 10,115 rushing yards

That's a little arbitrary you think? Peterson's YPC is 5.0 and Tomlinson averaged 4.3 with the Chargers so keep that in mind.

Peterson accomplished this while having an inferior offense surrounding him. And his 2012 season was just a total monster of a season. He ran for 2097 yards on 6 yards a carry. That's not human.

There really is nothing you can say to favor LDT over AP in terms of pure rushing. Peterson is a noticeably more explosive player than LDT was.

 

[Win TWINS!!!]

That's a little arbitrary you think? Peterson's YPC is 5.0 and Tomlinson averaged 4.3 with the Chargers so keep that in mind.

Peterson accomplished this while having an inferior offense surrounding him. And his 2012 season was just a total monster of a season. He ran for 2097 yards on 6 yards a carry. That's not human.

There really is nothing you can say to favor LDT over AP in terms of pure rushing. Peterson is a noticeably more explosive player than LDT was.

Just imagine if they'd given him just a few more carries in each of the first 3 games that season after coming back from injury...

 

[always]

Just imagine if they'd given him just a few more carries in each of the first 3 games that season after coming back from injury...

I looked it up he "only" had 348 carries that season. Imagine if he had 370 or 380? He'd have over 2200 yards that season.

 

[Stomp]

LT had a 4.5 ypc at that point in his career actually and had 115 rushing TDs compared to AD's 86. AD has the slight edge as a pure runner in my opinion, but If you can't see how someone could rank LT ahead of AD you need to take the homer glasses off.

 

[Logicallylethal]

1) Adrian Peterson
2) Ladainian Tomlinson
3) Marshawn Lynch
4) Priest Holmes
5) Marshall Faulk
6) Clinton Portis
7) Ahman Green
8) Steven Jackson
9) Jamal Lewis
10) Lesean Mccoy

 

[Beengay fudgepackers]

1. Arian Foster
2. Peyton Hillis
3. Jaquizz Rodgers
4. Cedric Benson
5. Julius Jones
6. Cadillac Williams
7. Ryan Grant
8. Joseph Addai
9. Warrick Dunn
10. Chester Taylor

 

[dredinis21]

1) Adrian Peterson
2) Ladainian Tomlinson
3) Marshawn Lynch
4) Priest Holmes
5) Marshall Faulk
6) Clinton Portis
7) Ahman Green
8) Steven Jackson
9) Jamal Lewis
10) Lesean Mccoy

I can't agree with Green or even Lewis over Gore, if we are talking as a pure runner. Gore was on quite a few REALLY bad teams where he saw 8-9 guys in the box every play. Gore is a player you have to watch with regularity to appreciate. He ALWAYS falls forward it seems, much like Lynch, and turns negative to positive.

Green was ok, but not the pure runner that Gore has shown year in and year out to be. Lewis is more of a bull in a china shop and I wouldn't say he was a better pure runner then Gore, just harder to bring down.

 

[always]

LT had a 4.5 ypc at that point in his career actually and had 115 rushing TDs compared to AD's 86. AD has the slight edge as a pure runner in my opinion, but If you can't see how someone could rank LT ahead of AD you need to take the homer glasses off.

We will agree to disagree. Few people with a credible opinion will even consider Tomlinson to be a better runner than Peterson.

I've been watching football hardcore for about 10-12 years. I remember people were calling Peterson the best runner in the game about 5 games into his ROOKIE SEASON. I remember after the Bears game where Brian Baldinger flat out said he was a better runner than Tomlinson before he even had 5 games tenure in the NFL. I think an O-lineman would know a whole lot about running backs.

What you put on tape cannot be changed.

 

[Bunkamania]

A couple of forgotten RB's...

Ricky Williams
Fred Taylor
Also, Emmitt Smith averaged nearly 1000 yards per season for the 5 years that he played in the 2000's.