Is Emmit Smith TRUELY the greatest back in NFL history?

[rook]

I understand theirs a Emmit appreciation thread but after reading this article, I just want to know ya' take on it. I honestly can't say since I was very young while he was in his best years in Dallas & really only watched him while he played for the Cardinals.

[h3][/h3]

[h3]Emmitt Smith: great, but not the greatest[/h3]
At a position where most players burn out after about 1,500 career carries, Smith nearly tripled that number of attempts. It's truly amazing.

But beyond his survival factor, Smith's numbers were largely pedestrian, especially by the standards of the game's elite ball carriers. Certainly, his game lacked that certain thrilling explosiveness we've seen from many of the best.

An average running back on an average team, for example, will average 4.0 yards per attempt (YPA) on the ground -- pretty much the universal mean throughout football history. Smith, for his part, averaged a slightly above-the-norm 4.16 YPA. But that's well below the standards of the players we'd list as the greatest ever -- namely, Jim Brown (5.22 YPA) and Barry Sanders (4.99 YPA).

You can argue that Smith's lengthy career brought down his average. And it certainly had a minor impact. But even in his most explosive season, Smith averaged 5.25 YPA (1993) -- barely edging out Brown's average over his entire career. It was the only time in 15 seasons that Smith topped 4.7 YPA.

Brown, given Smiths' number of attempts, was on pace to produce 23,015 yards -- a mark that would have dwarfed Smith's rushing record.

Of course, those numbers are conjecture. More concretely, we see that Brown and Sanders were far more productive and more exciting than Smith in their peak seasons. Here's how each player stacked up in their signature campaigns:

[table][tr][td]
[/td] [/tr][tr][td] [table][tr][td]Player[/td][td]Year[/td][td]Attempts[/td][td]Yards[/td][td]TD[/td][td]YPA[/td][td]YPG[/td][/tr][tr][td]Smith[/td][td]1995[/td][td]377[/td][td]1,773[/td][td]25[/td][td]4.70[/td][td]110.8[/td][/tr][tr][td]Sanders[/td][td]1997[/td][td]335[/td][td]2,053[/td][td]11[/td][td]6.13[/td][td]128.3[/td][/tr][tr][td]Brown[/td][td]1963[/td][td]291[/td][td]1,863[/td][td]12[/td][td]6.40[/td][td]133.1[/td][/tr][/table][/td][/tr][/table]

It's not even close: Smith, at his peak, was merely ordinary compared with Brown and Sanders at their respective bests.

Brown, in 1963, was on pace for a record 2,129 yards projected over a 16-game season. Smith's career-best 1,773 yards in 1995, meanwhile, doesn't even crack the all-time Top 20.

Finally, there's the "explosion" factor -- the raw breakaway ability that makes the best running backs, for our money, a threat to score from anywhere on the field. We touched on this topic in great detail a couple weeks ago, with our look at Tennessee's amazing Chris Johnson.

Honoring Rice And SmithSource: SI[h6]Sports Illustrated's Mark Mravic and Dom Bonvissuto remember what made Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith so great.[/h6]

Brown scored an incredible 17 touchdowns of 50 yards or more, on a mere 2,621 touches in his career. Sanders turned his 3,414 touches into 16 long-strike scores. Johnson scored seven 50-plus TDs last year alone, on a mere 408 touches. Smith exploded for just six touchdowns of 50 yards or more, despite his record workload of 4,924 touches.

But, as we said, Smith's greatness was not his production at any one time, but that he produced so consistently over such a long haul. The incredible figure of those 4,924 touches -- easily the most ever -- is Smith's signature statistic, the one that they should put right below his brand-new bronze bust. It's a figure we may never see again, at least not while mere humans play football.

Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/20...halloffame/index.html?eref=sihp#ixzz0vxak7kfQ

 

[rook]

I understand theirs a Emmit appreciation thread but after reading this article, I just want to know ya' take on it. I honestly can't say since I was very young while he was in his best years in Dallas & really only watched him while he played for the Cardinals.

[h3][/h3]

[h3]Emmitt Smith: great, but not the greatest[/h3]
At a position where most players burn out after about 1,500 career carries, Smith nearly tripled that number of attempts. It's truly amazing.

But beyond his survival factor, Smith's numbers were largely pedestrian, especially by the standards of the game's elite ball carriers. Certainly, his game lacked that certain thrilling explosiveness we've seen from many of the best.

An average running back on an average team, for example, will average 4.0 yards per attempt (YPA) on the ground -- pretty much the universal mean throughout football history. Smith, for his part, averaged a slightly above-the-norm 4.16 YPA. But that's well below the standards of the players we'd list as the greatest ever -- namely, Jim Brown (5.22 YPA) and Barry Sanders (4.99 YPA).

You can argue that Smith's lengthy career brought down his average. And it certainly had a minor impact. But even in his most explosive season, Smith averaged 5.25 YPA (1993) -- barely edging out Brown's average over his entire career. It was the only time in 15 seasons that Smith topped 4.7 YPA.

Brown, given Smiths' number of attempts, was on pace to produce 23,015 yards -- a mark that would have dwarfed Smith's rushing record.

Of course, those numbers are conjecture. More concretely, we see that Brown and Sanders were far more productive and more exciting than Smith in their peak seasons. Here's how each player stacked up in their signature campaigns:

[table][tr][td]
[/td] [/tr][tr][td] [table][tr][td]Player[/td][td]Year[/td][td]Attempts[/td][td]Yards[/td][td]TD[/td][td]YPA[/td][td]YPG[/td][/tr][tr][td]Smith[/td][td]1995[/td][td]377[/td][td]1,773[/td][td]25[/td][td]4.70[/td][td]110.8[/td][/tr][tr][td]Sanders[/td][td]1997[/td][td]335[/td][td]2,053[/td][td]11[/td][td]6.13[/td][td]128.3[/td][/tr][tr][td]Brown[/td][td]1963[/td][td]291[/td][td]1,863[/td][td]12[/td][td]6.40[/td][td]133.1[/td][/tr][/table][/td][/tr][/table]

It's not even close: Smith, at his peak, was merely ordinary compared with Brown and Sanders at their respective bests.

Brown, in 1963, was on pace for a record 2,129 yards projected over a 16-game season. Smith's career-best 1,773 yards in 1995, meanwhile, doesn't even crack the all-time Top 20.

Finally, there's the "explosion" factor -- the raw breakaway ability that makes the best running backs, for our money, a threat to score from anywhere on the field. We touched on this topic in great detail a couple weeks ago, with our look at Tennessee's amazing Chris Johnson.

Honoring Rice And SmithSource: SI[h6]Sports Illustrated's Mark Mravic and Dom Bonvissuto remember what made Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith so great.[/h6]

Brown scored an incredible 17 touchdowns of 50 yards or more, on a mere 2,621 touches in his career. Sanders turned his 3,414 touches into 16 long-strike scores. Johnson scored seven 50-plus TDs last year alone, on a mere 408 touches. Smith exploded for just six touchdowns of 50 yards or more, despite his record workload of 4,924 touches.

But, as we said, Smith's greatness was not his production at any one time, but that he produced so consistently over such a long haul. The incredible figure of those 4,924 touches -- easily the most ever -- is Smith's signature statistic, the one that they should put right below his brand-new bronze bust. It's a figure we may never see again, at least not while mere humans play football.

Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/20...halloffame/index.html?eref=sihp#ixzz0vxak7kfQ

 

[N41D]

No. He's a great running back that played at a high level for a ton of years, but he's not the best..

 

[N41D]

No. He's a great running back that played at a high level for a ton of years, but he's not the best..

 

[ThaxbyChamblis]

Chris Johnson.

 

[ThaxbyChamblis]

Chris Johnson.

 

[DCAllAfrican]

I mean who REALLY argues that he is the best? I don't hear too many people make that claim to be honest.

 

[DCAllAfrican]

I mean who REALLY argues that he is the best? I don't hear too many people make that claim to be honest.

 

[rook]

^ True

IMO like in every sport, you have to look at era's. Jim Brown dominated his era but would he have dominated in the 1990's? Ehh..

 

[rook]

^ True

IMO like in every sport, you have to look at era's. Jim Brown dominated his era but would he have dominated in the 1990's? Ehh..

 

[adameugene]

No...not the best...

 

[adameugene]

No...not the best...

 

[fecta23]

Did Barry Sanders change his name to Emmit ?

 

[fecta23]

Did Barry Sanders change his name to Emmit ?

 

[essential1]

He's top 5.... I have him 3rd or 4th..
 

 

[essential1]

He's top 5.... I have him 3rd or 4th..
 

 

[the sauna]

Barry Sanders....

Emmit Smith was a great running back on a great team... but not the best...

 

[the sauna]

Barry Sanders....

Emmit Smith was a great running back on a great team... but not the best...

 

[jd214]

Originally Posted by Essential1

He's top 5.... I have him 3rd or 4th..
 

I'd believe 1st or 2nd, but 3rd or 4th? Not sure if serious.

It's either Emmitt or Barry.

 

[jd214]

Originally Posted by Essential1

He's top 5.... I have him 3rd or 4th..
 

I'd believe 1st or 2nd, but 3rd or 4th? Not sure if serious.

It's either Emmitt or Barry.

 

[antoekneeo]

There are many who have Payton, Sanders and Brown ahead of him. I think he was a very good back who had many great years and was tough as nails, but played behind a great OL for the bulk of his career.

 

[antoekneeo]

There are many who have Payton, Sanders and Brown ahead of him. I think he was a very good back who had many great years and was tough as nails, but played behind a great OL for the bulk of his career.

 

[anthony stark]

Dude has his own language, of course he is.

 

[anthony stark]

Dude has his own language, of course he is.

 

[aepps20]

Originally Posted by dreClark

Chris Johnson.

QFT

Dude has had the greatest first two years of all-time.