Frank Gore moved into third place on the all-time NFL rushing list with 15,289 yards after gaining 62 on 13 carries in Buffalo’s 20-3 victory over Denver on Sunday. A look at the top 11 running backs by rushing yardage in NFL history.
11. Jim Brown
The legendary Jim Brown played nine seasons and finished with 12,382 yards. Imagine how many more he would have had if he did not decide to retire at the age of 29.
10. Tony Dorsett
Another great running back, this one who played for two teams in the NFL, the Cowboys and Broncos, Tony Dorsett rushed for 12,739 yards. The bulk of them came for Dallas — 12,036 — the team that drafted him after a Heisman-winning career at Pitt.
9. Eric Dickerson
Eric Dickerson played for four NFL teams after a stellar college career at SMU. Most of his 13,259 yards came with two teams. He rushed for 7,245 yards as a Ram and added another 5,194 as a Colt.
8. Jerome Bettis
“The Bus” Jerome Bettis ran for 13,662 yards and scored 91 touchdowns on the ground while playing for the Rams and Steelers.
7. LaDainian Tomlinson
The great LaDainian Tomlinson also played for a pair of teams as he made his way up the list. Of course, most of his yardage came with the San Diego Chargers, 12,490 yards. He finished his career as a New York Jet.
6. Adrian Peterson
Adrian Peterson continues to add yardage to his career total. The current Redskin RB added 27 yards to his total Sunday in a win over Detroit and is now at 13,861.
5. Curtis Martin
Another RB who is in the Hall of Fame is Curtis Martin, who starred for the Patriots and Jets. Martin, like Dorsett, played college ball at Pitt and rushed for 14,101 yards, more than 10,000 coming with Gang Green.
4. Barry Sanders
Like Jim Brown, Barry Sanders left the NFL on his own terms. While he was with the Detroit Lions, Sanders ran for 15,269 yards in 10 seasons. That’s an astounding average of better than 1,500 yards per season!
3. Frank Gore
Frank Gore keeps on going. He’s with his fourth team now, the Buffalo Bills, and ran into third place on the all-time list Sunday against Denver. Gore added 65 yards and now is at 15,289.
2. Walter Payton
The legendary “Sweetness,” Walter Payton, played his entire career as a Bear and rushed for 16,726 yards in 13 seasons. Payton also scored 110 TDs on the ground for Chicago.
Emmitt Smith
Emmitt Smith is in the top spot and likely will be there for a long, long time with his career total of 18,355, 17,162 of the yards came as a Dallas Cowboy.
