Emmitt Smith on all-time ranking: My stats speak for themselves
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Dude's vision was second to none. Just amazing to watch.
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Forbes #1
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Yeah, for me it's your 7 best seasons.
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Forbes #1
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Emmitt gets hit with the hardest criticism of having an all-star cast around him. When you're talking about an individual's performance in multiple Super Bowls, yeah, no shit the team around you is gonna have some talent.
Jeff Garcia would've won Super Bowl XIX (1989 season) with that 55-10 49ers team, but Montana gets the credit for delivering.
Well, bottom line is that Emmitt delivered. You can't deny that he didn't...and Emmitt delivered over and over and over. Not a one-year, one-game wonder. Over and over and over.
LaDainian Tomlinson, Walter Payton and Barry Sanders delivered three (3) playoff 100 yard rushing games...combined. Fucking combined! Speculate that they would've blown up with Dallas OL all you want, but it's still speculation. How is a GOAT so awesome, yet struggle so hard to hit 100 yards in the playoffs? Not 200 yards, not 150 yards but your standard 100 yard measuring stick.
Jeff Garcia would've won Super Bowl XIX (1989 season) with that 55-10 49ers team, but Montana gets the credit for delivering.
Well, bottom line is that Emmitt delivered. You can't deny that he didn't...and Emmitt delivered over and over and over. Not a one-year, one-game wonder. Over and over and over.
LaDainian Tomlinson, Walter Payton and Barry Sanders delivered three (3) playoff 100 yard rushing games...combined. Fucking combined! Speculate that they would've blown up with Dallas OL all you want, but it's still speculation. How is a GOAT so awesome, yet struggle so hard to hit 100 yards in the playoffs? Not 200 yards, not 150 yards but your standard 100 yard measuring stick.
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Back when the Monday Night games were worth watching.
L.T. Fan
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Is there something more conclusive that determines someone else was better?
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Well considering you can't get all of those yards by yourself so really just saying he is the best because he has the most yards is not really correct.
I don't think he was the best but I do think he was better than Barry.
It's just a debate that will never end. No right answers. Just opinions.
L.T. Fan
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To make any kind of analysis as to ancillary benefit being weighted toward Smith I believe you would have to glean the running backs you felt was as good or better than Smith then evaluate each offensive line as a comparative to Smith's OLs. I am not willing to take on that task. I will just accept that in the long run it all evened out and Smith cranked out a superior number for his career benchmark. That's the one in the record book so it is official enough for me. The rest of the story for others is woulda, coulda, shoulda as a legacy.
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If that's the case, then Paul Krause is the best DB of all time. Followed closely by Emlen Tunnell. Because, you know, they are the all time leaders in INTs.
Genghis Khan
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It gives him a ticket into the conversation.
I personally think Jim Brown is the best, but I think it's legitimately debatable, and Emmitt is legitimately in the debate.
Anyone calling him 10th or 16th is patently absurd.
ravidubey
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Exactly.
And what those stats don't show is the courage it took to take that punishment and carry the team on his back.
In that gut-check moment when the defense is beating on you and the season is on the line I take Emmitt every time.
Every time.
You can boil it all down to that Giants game. It answers every question.
Emmitt was dominating them, close to humiliating them, and then they separated his shoulder.
He not only still keep playing, he kept moving the chains on that fricking astroturf. Even when 92 and 56 and those physical Giants safeties were hitting him where he was hurt.
Never saw Barry do that.
Never saw anyone do that.
Where's that in the stats?
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Since you asked...yeah, there's a better stat than career rushing yardage. Otherwise, Bettis is #6 of all time? This stat over-credits quantity with the Bettis-types that put up several seasons of above-average, but not All-Pro, quality. It's a convenient stat, for sure, but very flawed. On the flipside, my work here will provide you, [MENTION=11]L.T. Fan[/MENTION], a better guide (still not perfect by any means).
For starters, here's your Top 10 for career rushing yardage:
1. Emmitt
2. Walter
3. Barry
4. Curtis Martin
5. LT
6. Bettis
7. Dickerson
8. Frank Gore
9. Dorsett
10. Jim Brown
11. Marshall Faulk
12. Edgerrin James
13. Marcus Allen
14. Franco Harris
15. Thurman
16. Adrian Peterson
17. Fred Taylor
18. Steven Jackson
19. John Riggins
20. Corey Dillon
21. OJ Simpson
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In my list below, I calculated the stats of a player's top 7 seasons and top 5 seasons. Below is a list of the total rushing yards for a player's top 7 seasons. When you're discussing GOAT, you want to discuss a player's prime and dominance. Who cares about Emmitt's Cardinals years or Dorsett as a Bronco? As a result, I also provide an average-total-per-season (of their top 5 or 7 seasons) to understand context easier.
NOTE: This stat does a disservice to the receiving backs like Faulk, Thurman, Marcus Allen and LT.
NOTE: This stat does a disservice to older RBs when 14 games/season.
NOTE: This stat favors RBs with high carries. Haven't figured out how to balance it out with YPC.
TOP 7 SEASONS
| Player | Total Yards | YPC | Avg Yards/Season |
| Barry | 11,498 | 5.11 | 1,643 |
| Dickerson | 11,226 | 4.58 | 1,604 |
| Payton | 10,968 | 4.66 | 1,567 |
| LT | 10,650 | 4.50 | 1,521 |
| Emmitt | 10,467 | 4.47 | 1,495 |
| Jim Brown | 10,374 | 5.38 | 1,482 |
| AP | 10,217 | 4.99 | 1,460 |
| Edgerrin | 9,956 | 4.11 | 1,422 |
| C Martin | 9,916 | 4.12 | 1,417 |
| Bettis | 9,214 | 4.22 | 1,316 |
| Portis | 9,202 | 4.48 | 1,315 |
| Dillon | 9,155 | 4.42 | 1,308 |
| OJ | 9,138 | 4.87 | 1,305 |
| F Taylor | 9,080 | 4.77 | 1,297 |
| Dorsett | 9,080 | 4.42 | 1,297 |
| Campbell | 9,080 | 4.38 | 1,277 |
| Thurman | 8,876 | 4.24 | 1,268 |
| Faulk | 8,855 | 4.52 | 1,265 |
| E George | 8,844 | 3.70 | 1,263 |
Dudes with remarkably higher YPC are Barry, Jim Brown, AP, OJ and Fred Taylor, indicating they should go up the GOAT list when I weight this scale with YPC.
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TOP 5 SEASONS
| Player | Total Yards | YPC | Avg Yards/Season |
| Dickerson | 8,704 | 4.64 | 1,741 |
| Barry | 8,537 | 5.24 | 1,707 |
| Payton | 8,157 | 4.72 | 1,631 |
| LT | 8,079 | 4.79 | 1,616 |
| AP | 7,981 | 5.12 | 1,596 |
| Emmitt | 7,932 | 4.59 | 1,586 |
| Brown | 7,788 | 5.48 | 1,558 |
| Campbell | 7,758 | 4.49 | 1,552 |
| OJ | 7,699 | 5.09 | 1,540 |
| Edgerrin | 7,575 | 4.30 | 1,515 |
| C Martin | 7,469 | 4.24 | 1,494 |
| Portis | 7,417 | 4.64 | 1,483 |
| Bettis | 7,051 | 4.25 | 1,410 |
| T Barber | 6,987 | 4.74 | 1,397 |
| Chris Jnson | 6,918 | 4.67 | 1,384 |
| C Dillon | 6,896 | 4.37 | 1,379 |
| E George | 6,874 | 3.90 | 1,375 |
| Jamal Lws | 6,872 | 4.45 | 1,374 |
| Ahman Grn | 6,848 | 4.67 | 1,370 |
| Dorsett | 6,788 | 4.44 | 1,358 |
NOTE: Terrell would've been above Bettis with 7,114 yards (4.71 YPC, 1422 avg yards/season). FYI, Jamaal Charles isn't Top 20 with 6,416 total rushing yards.
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Considering the 5/7 Season stats from above and factoring in YPC, 14 games/season, the Top 10 should be something like:
Top Tier: Barry, Payton, Dickerson, Jim Brown
Next Tier: LT, AP, OJ, Emmitt
3rd Tier: Edgerrin, Curtis Martin
Personally, I still believe Barry > Emmitt, but Emmitt inarguably is Top 10 RB all time. The 5/7 Season Stats support this. However, factor in Emmitt's incredible delivery in the playoffs (which I laud previously), which is second-to-none, and Emmitt's in the Top 5.
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I agree and he isn't my all time favorite player. He was a lot more than just ypc or total rushing yards.
Smitty
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This is an interesting approach and I think produces results more in line with what my feelings are about the top backs all time. I also note that it doesn't take into account YPC yet and that might hurt Emmitt more because his was generally low or average compared to other top backs. It also doesn't take into account his boost from playing with the league's best OL but I'm not sure that's measurable. Of course, neither are the other intangibles, like blocking, playing hurt, and WINNING that Emmitt has.
This is probably a good spot for him.
L.T. Fan
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I appreciate the effort in producing this approach to compiling and massaging stats but in the end it is a subjective exercise of what each presenter thinks is an important factor. The one who went the farthest/furthest ,carring the football was Smith.
I know all the nuances for making a presentation for other considerations and I don't have a problem with it but to me the one who survived the game with the most yardage is a valid approach and carries the most weight for me.
Again thanks for the other considerations.
I know all the nuances for making a presentation for other considerations and I don't have a problem with it but to me the one who survived the game with the most yardage is a valid approach and carries the most weight for me.
Again thanks for the other considerations.
Genghis Khan
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YPC is a nearly useless stat for running backs, especially without context.
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Looking at the Top 7, I'm shocked how high Bettis, Fred Taylor and Clinton Portis place...also shocked by how low Dorsett is in the Top 5.
Interesting to see Ahman Green and Jamal Lewis make it in the Top 5, but not Top 7.
I'm gonna do another for total yards from scrimmage (rushing & receiving) that'll better reflect Thurman, Faulk, et al.
Interesting to see Ahman Green and Jamal Lewis make it in the Top 5, but not Top 7.
I'm gonna do another for total yards from scrimmage (rushing & receiving) that'll better reflect Thurman, Faulk, et al.
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Which RB do you think is misrepresented by the YPC stat? Which YPC stat do you think is misleading?
Definitely YPC can be skewed by runs on 3rd & 20, team always losing/winning or big plays (80yd run vs 30yd run rarely differ in skill but show up stat-wise), but I wouldn't call it useless. These aren't yardage stats from RBs with 100 touches. They range from seasons with 250-375 rushes.
Take Emmitt Smith, who we know scored a lot of <3yd-run TDs. Say he scored 10 TDs-per-year of <3yds more than other RBs. Let's eliminate these total yards while eliminating 50 rushes. His Top 5 stat of 4.59 YPC increases to 4.64 YPC. His Top 7 stat of 4.47YPC increases to 4.52YPC.
I'd agree with you about +/-5% in the middle spectrum that you can't call a 4.7 YPC player automatically better than a 4.5 YPC player, but this stat does confirm perceptions that AP, Barry, Chris Johnson were more electrifying big play threats over Eddie George, Jerome Bettis.