Los Angeles Chargers running back Austin Ekeler organized a Zoom meeting which included some of the top backs in the league to discuss the current financial crisis over the position in the NFL.

There have been a number of reports emerging from the meeting about potential ideas the running backs may have discussed. We could dive into the rumored ideas, but we’ll skip past that for now and leave it at this. Most of us enjoy the running back position and wish they felt they were getting compensated appropriately as a whole. 

To get away from this topic that just doesn’t have a clear-cut answer, let’s focus on the running back situation from a different angle. Today on ‘In The Zone’ on 96.9 The Game, Brandon argued the question; Are there less all-time great running backs in today’s NFL compared to the history of the league?

Let’s dive into some numbers, because the numbers simply don’t lie. I looked back at the top 30 single season leaders in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns and broke it into a list of which era the season took place in. So, the time ranges are: 20’s-60’s, 70’s, 80’s, 90’s, 2000’s, and 2010 to now. Yes, I even gave the present era an advantage in this research, which makes the results even more surprising…

Top 30 single season RUSHING YARDS leaders by decade:

20’s-60’s: 1

70’s: 3

80’s: 6

90’s: 6

2000’s: 10

2010-2023: 4 - Derrick Henry (5th) and Jonathon Taylor (22nd) only players active from this era.

Top 30 single season RUSHING TOUCHDOWN leaders by decade:

20’s-60’s: 4

70’s: 1

80’s: 5

90’s: 6

2000’s: 12

2010-2023: 6 - Jonathan Taylor (Tied 15th), Derrick Henry (Tied 25th), and Jamaal Williams (Tied 25th) only players active from this era.

*Adds up to 34 due to numerous runners scoring 17 rushing touchdowns in a single season*

In conclusion, running backs from the 2000's era double the running backs from 2010 to 2023 in the number of top 30 rushing yard seasons and rushing touchdowns seasons in the NFL.

Take what you will with this information, but Brandon may have been onto something when riddled off some of the top running backs from the early 2000’s era. Priest Holmes, LaDainian Tomlinson, Shaun Alexander, and Larry Johnson appear a combined seven times on the rushing touchdowns list alone - more than all of 2010 to 2023.

Is the game changing? Certainly. Are quarterbacks and wide receivers more valued than ever? Absolutely. Are running backs talented and a crucial aspect of the game? You betcha. Are we in an era of weak running backs? That’s up for debate.

Brandon and I dove into this topic on ‘In The Zone’ earlier today on 96.9 The Game. Check out the clip below and fast forward to the “Bad Running Back Era” discussion at the 6:40 mark, and listen to the full segment for our overall thoughts on the situation following the running back Zoom meeting.