NFL: Before quarterbacks commanded the field

NFL Before quarterbacks commanded the field, running back was regarded as the most important position in football.

The position was filled by the league's biggest and brightest stars, including Giants' Frank Gifford, Chicago's Gale

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Sayers Cleveland's Jim Brown, and Green Bay's Paul Hornung. Those athletes paved the way for subsequent

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generations of running backs, who would go on to achieve even higher heights in the position. From John

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Riggins' MVP season in 1983 to Derrick Henry's 2,000-yard season in 2020, there have been a slew of successful rushing

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seasons. However, neither of these seasons made it onto our list of the top 10 rushing seasons in league history. Neither

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did Jamal Lewis' colossal 2003 season, in which he amassed 2,066 rushing yards, the second-highest total in league

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history at the time. The number of impressive seasons put in by running backs over the years is a monument to the

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fact that these individual efforts were left on the cutting room floor. Only the best seasons were chosen, and

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each one is discussed in depth further below. The 1997 season was a tribute to Sanders' excellence, as he accomplished

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