Career Yards From Scrimmage Over “Worst Starter” Baseline

by Chase Stuart on June 3, 2015

Last week, we looked at the career leaders in rushing yards over worst starter; today, we use the same methodology but with yards from scrimmage. Let’s use Walter Payton’s 1977 season as an example.

That season, the NFL had 28 teams, and the 28th-ranked player in yards from scrimmage gained 854 yards. But Payton, in his best season as a pro, rushed for 1,852 yards and picked up another 269 yards through the air, for a total of 2,121 yards from scrimmage. That gave him 1,267 yards above the baseline of “worst starter.” But remember, in ’77, the NFL had a 14-game schedule; pro-rate that to 16 games, and Peyton is credited with 1,448 yards over the baseline. That’s the 2nd best season ever by this formula.

While 1977 was by far Payton’s best year, he dominated in this metric for most of his career, posting the 48th, 82nd, 87th, 90th, 94th, 108th, and 157th best seasons. And while Emmitt Smith finally edged past Payton on the career yards from scrimmage last in the final games of his career, Payton has a big edge in this metric because we are removing “junk” seasons. In fact, Payton has a big edge over just about everyone. Nobody forgets about Walter Payton, of course, but I wonder if sometimes his dominance in this metric is overlooked: he led the NFL in YFS in ’77 and ’78, then finished 2nd in the category in ’79. He ranked 3rd in YFS in ’80 and in ’83, ’84, and ’85. Add in a 4th-place finish in ’76 and a 5th-place in ’86, and that gives Payton a whopping 9 finishes in the top 5 in yards from scrimmage.

If we use the methodology described above for every season of a player’s career, we get what I think is a better version of the career yards from scrimmage leaders (at least for running backs) because we are removing junk seasons. Below are the career grades for the top 200 players (note that by default, the table only displays the top 25). I have also listed for each back his career yards from scrimmage and his rank in that category.

Rk	Player	YFS	Rk	First Yr	Last Yr	HOF	VALUE
1	Walter Payton	21264	3	1975	1987	Yes	8914
2	Jim Brown	14811	23	1957	1965	Yes	7868
3	Barry Sanders	18190	6	1989	1998	Yes	7351
4	LaDainian Tomlinson	18456	5	2001	2011	Not El.	6312
5	Marshall Faulk	19154	4	1994	2005	Yes	5842
6	Emmitt Smith	21579	2	1990	2004	Yes	5829
7	Eric Dickerson	15396	15	1983	1993	Yes	5260
8	O.J. Simpson	13378	37	1969	1979	Yes	5139
9	Tiki Barber	15632	12	1997	2006	No	4999
10	Thurman Thomas	16532	9	1988	2000	Yes	4961
11	Tony Dorsett	16293	10	1977	1988	Yes	4947
12	Curtis Martin	17430	8	1995	2005	Yes	4768
13	Don Hutson	8275	175	1935	1945	Yes	4560
14	Jerry Rice	23540	1	1985	2004	Yes	4421
15	Edgerrin James	15610	13	1999	2009	No	4411
16	Ricky Watters	14891	22	1992	2001	No	4328
17	Lydell Mitchell	9737	102	1972	1980	No	4027
18	Adrian Peterson	11905	59	2007	2014	Not El.	3789
19	Marcus Allen	17654	7	1982	1997	Yes	3675
20	William Andrews	8633	154	1979	1986	No	3659
21	Ottis Anderson	13335	38	1979	1992	No	3617
22	Chuck Foreman	9106	121	1973	1980	No	3602
23	Franco Harris	14407	25	1972	1984	Yes	3516
24	Matt Forte	11431	66	2008	2014	Not El.	3441
25	Clinton Portis	11941	57	2002	2010	Not El.	3362
26	Steven Jackson	15051	21	2004	2014	Not El.	3357
27	Roger Craig	13100	41	1983	1993	No	3296
28	Herschel Walker	13084	42	1986	1997	No	3183
29	Ahman Green	12088	55	1998	2009	No	3172
30	Priest Holmes	11134	70	1997	2007	No	3140
31	Chris Johnson	10782	77	2008	2014	Not El.	3055
32	Lenny Moore	11213	69	1956	1967	Yes	3041
33	Terrell Davis	8887	140	1995	2001	No	3019
34	Lawrence McCutcheon	8377	165	1972	1981	No	2998
35	Earl Campbell	10213	93	1978	1985	Yes	2947
36	Shaun Alexander	10973	73	2000	2008	No	2934
37	Ray Rice	9214	116	2008	2013	Not El.	2915
38	Frank Gore	13956	29	2005	2014	Not El.	2846
39	Eddie George	12668	46	1996	2004	No	2774
40	Arian Foster	8350	168	2009	2014	Not El.	2764
41	Wilbert Montgomery	9291	111	1977	1985	No	2755
42	Fred Taylor	14079	28	1998	2010	Not El.	2726
43	Jamaal Charles	9122	120	2008	2014	Not El.	2707
44	Larry Brown	8360	167	1969	1976	No	2582
45	Steve Van Buren	6383	303	1944	1951	Yes	2568
46	Billy Sims	7178	240	1980	1984	No	2522
47	Jim Taylor	10353	89	1958	1967	Yes	2467
48	Jamal Lewis	12486	51	2000	2009	No	2452
49	Ricky Williams	12615	48	1999	2011	Not El.	2451
50	Leroy Kelly	9555	107	1964	1973	Yes	2448
51	LeSean McCoy	9074	124	2009	2014	Not El.	2421
52	Maurice Jones-Drew	11111	71	2006	2014	Not El.	2384
53	Corey Dillon	13154	40	1997	2006	No	2292
54	Jerome Bettis	15111	20	1993	2005	Yes	2285
55	Brian Westbrook	10275	90	2002	2010	Not El.	2248
56	Marshawn Lynch	10594	81	2007	2014	Not El.	2187
57	Greg Pruitt	8741	150	1973	1984	No	2104
58	Cliff Battles	4057	674	1932	1937	Yes	2103
59	Clem Daniels	8452	163	1960	1968	No	2094
60	Gerald Riggs	9704	103	1982	1991	No	2079
61	John Riggins	13442	35	1971	1985	No	2014
62	Charlie Garner	10808	76	1994	2004	No	1953
63	Larry Johnson	7596	208	2003	2011	Not El.	1937
64	Ron Johnson	6285	316	1969	1975	No	1918
65	Curt Warner	8311	170	1983	1990	No	1903
66	James Wilder	9508	109	1981	1990	No	1899
67	Calvin Johnson	10572	82	2007	2014	Not El.	1874
68	Frank Gifford	9043	128	1952	1964	Yes	1823
69	Michael Irvin	11910	58	1988	1999	Yes	1806
70	Randy Moss	15451	14	1998	2012	Not El.	1804
71	James Brooks	11583	63	1981	1992	No	1798
72	Neal Anderson	8929	137	1986	1993	No	1794
73	Otis Armstrong	5755	377	1973	1980	No	1785
74	Freeman McNeil	11035	72	1981	1992	No	1773
75	Joe Cribbs	7555	211	1980	1988	No	1763
76	Abner Haynes	8165	184	1960	1967	No	1757
77	Marvin Harrison	14608	24	1996	2008	No	1743
78	Jamal Anderson	6981	257	1994	2001	No	1717
79	Joe Perry	11744	61	1948	1963	Yes	1704
80	Floyd Little	8741	151	1967	1975	Yes	1667
81	Wendell Tyler	8194	181	1977	1986	No	1666
82	Lance Alworth	10395	86	1962	1972	Yes	1664
83	Mike Pruitt	9238	115	1976	1986	No	1661
84	Stephen Davis	9546	108	1996	2006	No	1655
85	Warrick Dunn	15306	17	1997	2008	No	1648
86	Andre Johnson	13651	33	2003	2014	Not El.	1643
87	Earnest Byner	12866	45	1984	1997	No	1636
88	Deuce McAllister	7816	201	2001	2008	No	1635
89	Bobby Mitchell	10689	78	1958	1968	Yes	1622
90	John Brockington	6482	294	1971	1977	No	1608
91	Mark van Eeghen	8234	178	1974	1983	No	1598
92	Gale Sayers	6263	322	1965	1971	Yes	1584
93	Calvin Hill	8944	136	1969	1981	No	1581
94	Garrison Hearst	10031	96	1993	2004	No	1549
95	Jim Benton	4820	519	1938	1947	No	1537
96	Timmy Brown	7261	235	1959	1968	No	1531
97	Terry Allen	10215	92	1991	2001	No	1529
98	Thomas Jones	12614	49	2000	2011	Not El.	1517
99	Torry Holt	13439	36	1999	2009	No	1515
100	Bill Brown	9021	130	1961	1974	No	1514
101	Delvin Williams	7013	253	1974	1981	No	1506
102	Ollie Matson	8458	162	1952	1966	Yes	1499
103	Chet Mutryn	4881	513	1946	1950	No	1490
104	Chris Warren	9631	105	1990	2000	No	1488
105	DeMarco Murray	5722	384	2011	2014	Not El.	1458
106	Chuck Muncie	9025	129	1976	1984	No	1432
107	Mike Thomas	6207	325	1975	1980	No	1336
108	Charley Hennigan	6823	265	1960	1966	No	1315
109	Michael Turner	7866	199	2004	2012	Not El.	1299
110	Robert Smith	8110	190	1993	2000	No	1276
111	Ted Brown	7396	222	1979	1986	No	1275
112	Charley Taylor	10598	80	1964	1977	Yes	1272
113	Joe Washington	8252	176	1977	1985	No	1261
114	Don Maynard	11904	60	1958	1973	Yes	1239
115	Hugh McElhenny	8528	157	1952	1964	Yes	1217
116	Sterling Sharpe	8206	179	1988	1994	No	1208
117	James Lofton	14250	27	1978	1993	Yes	1205
118	Sam Cunningham	7358	227	1973	1982	No	1202
119	Le'Veon Bell	3474	800	2013	2014	Not El.	1200
120	Henry Ellard	13827	31	1983	1998	No	1178
121	Joe Morris	6545	288	1982	1991	No	1175
122	Chad Johnson	11234	68	2001	2011	Not El.	1172
123	Steve Smith	13649	34	2001	2014	Not El.	1166
124	Rick Casares	7385	223	1955	1966	No	1161
125	Rodney Hampton	8206	180	1990	1997	No	1144
126	Dorsey Levens	7289	233	1994	2004	No	1144
127	Billy Howton	8488	160	1952	1963	No	1140
128	Jim Nance	6271	319	1965	1973	No	1138
129	Duce Staley	8372	166	1997	2006	No	1131
130	Harry Clarke	2733	1028	1940	1948	No	1124
131	Isaac Bruce	15347	16	1994	2009	No	1117
132	Larry Fitzgerald	12214	53	2004	2014	Not El.	1115
133	John Williams	9662	104	1986	1995	No	1112
134	Jimmy Smith	12286	52	1992	2005	No	1098
135	Elroy Hirsch	7716	206	1946	1957	Yes	1089
136	Willie Parker	6075	340	2004	2009	No	1089
137	Mike Garrett	7491	215	1966	1973	No	1087
138	Dave Hampton	5692	388	1969	1976	No	1087
139	Dutch Clark	3113	906	1931	1938	Yes	1086
140	MacArthur Lane	7442	220	1968	1978	No	1083
141	Tim Brown	15124	19	1988	2004	Yes	1071
142	Barry Foster	4747	538	1990	1994	No	1068
143	Demaryius Thomas	5323	441	2010	2014	Not El.	1055
144	John David Crow	8662	153	1958	1968	No	1048
145	Terry Metcalf	5955	355	1973	1981	No	1032
146	Beattie Feathers	2223	1239	1934	1940	No	1019
147	Reggie Wayne	14345	26	2001	2014	Not El.	1012
148	Domanick Williams	4471	588	2003	2005	No	1011
149	Spec Sanders	3172	886	1946	1950	No	1006
150	Johnny Strzykalski	4633	559	1946	1952	No	986
151	Mal Kutner	3119	901	1946	1950	No	979
152	Wes Welker	9973	98	2004	2014	Not El.	978
153	Donny Anderson	7244	237	1966	1974	No	965
154	Rudi Johnson	6655	281	2001	2008	No	958
155	Ken Willard	8289	172	1965	1974	No	954
156	Lorenzo White	5980	352	1988	1995	No	950
157	Marion Motley	5827	372	1946	1955	Yes	946
158	Antonio Brown	5341	439	2010	2014	Not El.	940
159	Tom Tracy	4380	610	1956	1964	No	937
160	Travis Henry	7037	251	2001	2007	No	937
161	Greg Bell	6266	321	1984	1990	No	929
162	Hoyle Granger	4992	498	1966	1972	No	927
163	Gene Roberts	3039	931	1947	1950	No	923
164	Tom Fears	5412	428	1948	1956	Yes	921
165	Harlon Hill	4820	520	1954	1962	No	913
166	Dan Towler	4158	659	1950	1955	No	903
167	Gary Clark	10910	74	1985	1995	No	898
168	Roddy White	10376	87	2005	2014	Not El.	894
169	Tuffy Leemans	3554	779	1936	1943	Yes	888
170	Herman Moore	9174	117	1991	2002	No	876
171	Mac Speedie	5602	403	1946	1952	No	860
172	Brandon Marshall	9889	99	2006	2014	Not El.	854
173	Andy Farkas	3189	881	1938	1945	No	849
174	Alfred Morris	4272	638	2012	2014	Not El.	844
175	Essex Johnson	4978	501	1968	1976	No	838
176	Don Woods	4445	592	1974	1980	No	831
177	Rod Smith	11737	62	1995	2006	No	824
178	Swede Hanson	2447	1129	1931	1938	No	822
179	Alan Ameche	4778	530	1955	1960	No	821
180	Bill Groman	3483	796	1960	1965	No	821
181	Del Shofner	6471	295	1957	1967	No	808
182	George Rogers	7544	212	1981	1987	No	801
183	Steve Largent	13172	39	1976	1989	Yes	800
184	Wes Chandler	9050	126	1978	1988	No	795
185	Larry Csonka	8901	139	1968	1979	Yes	786
186	Marv Hubbard	5172	466	1969	1977	No	778
187	Doug Martin	3006	941	2012	2014	Not El.	772
188	Ernie Caddel	2952	957	1933	1938	No	770
189	Rickey Young	6951	259	1975	1983	No	766
190	Alex Webster	7317	230	1955	1964	No	753
191	Sherman Smith	5913	358	1976	1983	No	753
192	Billy Hillenbrand	2876	988	1946	1948	No	751
193	Reggie Bush	8954	135	2006	2014	Not El.	748
194	Tom Sullivan	4428	596	1972	1978	No	742
195	Billy Cannon	6111	333	1960	1970	No	738
196	Tom Matte	7515	214	1961	1972	No	738
197	Reuben Droughns	4591	569	2001	2008	No	730
198	Eddie Lacy	3001	942	2013	2014	Not El.	727
199	Andre Reed	13698	32	1985	2000	Yes	723
200	DeAngelo Williams	8467	161	2006	2014	Not El.	723

Tiki Barber, Edgerrin James, Ricky Watters, Lydell Mitchell, and William Andrews check in as the only players in the top 20 not in the HOF. I am sure their rankings here don’t come as a shock to hardcore fans — all were dominant in their prime — but does this change your view on the HOF case for any of them?

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