Top 100 NFL Running Backs - #81: Chet Mutryn

Chet Mutryn

Teams

Buffalo Bisons/Bills (1946-1949)

Baltimore Colts (1950)

Playoffs

Appearances - 2 (1948,1949)

Conf Champ Games - 2 (1948,1949)

Champ Games - 1 (1948)

Championships - 0

Awards and Honors

All-Pro First Team - 1 (1949)

All-Pro Second Team - 1 (1948)

All-Time Ranks

League Leads

Rushing Yards (#2-1949, #3-1948, #4-1947)

Rushing Touchdowns (#1-1948, #2-1947, #3-1949)

Yards per Rush (#2-1947, #3-1949, #5-1948)

Rushing Yards per Game (#2-1949, #4-1947,1948)

Receptions (#7-1948, #9-1949)

Receiving Yards (#4-1948)

Receiving Touchdowns (#10-1946,1948)

Yards per Reception (#1-1948)

Receiving Yards per Game (#5-1948)

Total Touchdowns (#1-1948, #2-1947)

Scrimmage Yards (#1-1948,1949, #5-1947)

Yards per Touch (#2-1948, #5-1947,1949)

After 3 years at Xavier where he was the team's leading scorer, Chet Mutryn was drafted in the 20th round of the NFL Draft by the Philadelphia/Pittsburgh Steagles, which had combined teams temporarily due to World War II causing player shortages. Mutryn decided instead to join the Navy and fight in World War II.

After the war, he signed with the Buffalo Bisons of the AAFC, where he played sparingly as a rookie in 1946. In 1947, he really started to show signs of stardom. He rushed for 868 yards and 9 touchdowns that year, finishing in the top 5 of every rushing category.

The recognition finally came in 1948, when he led the league with 10 rushing touchdowns, 1617 scrimmage yards, and 20.4 yards per reception, and he was named to the All-Pro Second Team as a result. He and the Bills also advanced to the AAFC Championship Game that season, but Mutryn gained only 13 total yards in that game as the Browns demolished them 49-7.

He led the league in scrimmage yards again the next season, though his other stats dipped a bit, but he was still named to the All-Pro First Team. They had a rematch with Cleveland with a trip to the championship on the line, and he performed better this time, with 105 total yards and 2 touchdowns, but they still fell 31-21.

The Bills folded after that season, and Mutryn was transferred to the Baltimore Colts. His performance there was far below his previous standard, with only 3.3 yards per carry one year after averaging 5.3. The Colts folded after that season, and Mutryn was drafted in the first round by Philadelphia in the offseason, but decided to retire instead.

Mutryn only played 5 seasons of pro football, but in 3 of those seasons, he was in the top 5 in every rushing category. He twice led the league in scrimmage yards, and scored 15 total touchdowns in 14 games in 1948. His is just another example of a short but sweet career for an all-time great.