Weekly Top 20 - Rushers

Home Weekly Top 20 - Rushers

Through Week 17 of the 2011 season

New York Jets running back LaDainian Tomlinson is the only active running back on the Top 20 rushers list. He rushed for 56 yards on 11 carries against the Miami Dolphins. In doing so, Tomlinson passed Jerome Bettis to become fifth all-time in rushing yards.

RUSHING YARDS
1	Emmitt Smith	18,355	2011 Weekly Top 20: Passing Receiving Scoring
2	Walter Payton	16,726
3	Barry Sanders	15,269
4	Curtis Martin	14,101
5	LaDainian Tomlinson	13,684
6	Jerome Bettis	13,662
7	Eric Dickerson	13,259
8	Tony Dorsett	12,739
9	Jim Brown	12,312
10	Marshall Faulk	12,279
11	Edgerrin James	12,246
12	Marcus Allen	12,243
13	Franco Harris	12,120
14	Thurman Thomas	12,074
15	Fred Taylor	11,695
16	John Riggins	11,352
17	Corey Dillon	11,241
18	O.J. Simpson	11,236
19	Warrick Dunn	10,967
20	Ricky Watters	10,643
Italics denotes Hall of Famers
Bold denotes players active during the 2011 season

Statistics courtesy of Elias Sports Bureau

AAFC Stats: The Pro Football Hall of Fame began tracking the Top 20 career leaders at the conclusion of the 1968 season. These lists were maintained in a museum display and later on our website. One difference from the Hall of Fame’s lists from other similar statistical lists was that they included the stats from the defunct All-America Football Conference (AAFC) that operated from 1946-49.

When the Hall’s Top 20 debuted in 1968, there were nine players on the lists that had connections to the AAFC. Today, there are only two players who would rank among the Top 20 if their stats from the AAFC were included. Otto Graham’s passer rating combining AAFC and NFL stats would equal 86.63. Lou “The Toe” Groza’s career point total would be 1,608 points if the 259 he scored in the AAFC were recognized by the NFL. That would place him among the Top 20 scorers of all-time.