Earl Campbell
Teams
Houston Oilers (1978-1984)
New Orleans Saints (1984-1985)
Playoffs
Appearances - 3 (1978,1979,1980)
Conf Champ Games - 2 (1978,1979)
Super Bowls - 0
Championships - 0
Awards and Honors
Offensive Rookie of the Year - 1978
Offensive Player of the Year - 3 (1978,1979,1980)
MVP - 1 (1979)
All-Pro First Team - 3 (1978,1979,1980)
Pro Bowl - 5 (1978,1979,1980,1981,1983)
Hall of Fame - 1991
All-Time Ranks
Rushing Yards per Game - #13
Rushing Touchdowns - #28
Rushing Yards - #38
Yards per Rush - #86
Total Touchdowns - #95
League Leads
Rushing Yards (#1-1978,1979,1980, #5-1981, #7-1983)
Rushing Touchdowns (#1-1979,1980, #2-1978, #5-1983, #7-1981)
Yards per Rush (#1-1980, #6-1978)
Rushing Yards per Game (#1-1978,1979,1980, #3-1983, #5-1981)
Total Touchdowns (#1-1979, #2-1978,1980, #8-1983)
Scrimmage Yards (#1-1980, #4-1978,1979, #10-1983)
After piling up 1744 yards and 18 touchdowns as a senior at Texas, and walking away with the Heisman Trophy, Earl Campbell was selected #1 overall in the 1978 NFL Draft by the Houston Oilers.
Campbell was immediately great in the NFL, leading the league with 1450 rushing yards as a rookie, which earned him the Offensive Rookie of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year awards. Houston made the playoffs as a wild card and made it to the AFC title game before being blasted by Pittsburgh 34-5.
The next year, Campbell was just as good, leading the league again with 1697 rushing yards, and also scoring 19 touchdowns, which was also best in the league. He was named both Offensive Player of the Year and MVP while leading the Oilers to an 11-5 record, but their season ended in the AFC title game for the second straight year, though it was closer this time.
1980 was his best overall season. He led the league in rushing yards for a third straight year, finished with 1934, currently the 9th-highest total in history, and also led the league in rushing touchdowns (13) and yards per carry (5.2). He won his 3rd straight Offensive Player of the Year award, but he would never again play at that level, and he would never again see the playoffs after losing in the Wild Card round that year.
He was named to the Pro Bowl 2 more times, in 1981 and 1983, each time with over 1300 rushing yards, but he was far less efficient, gaining those totals on the same number of carries that had won him rushing titles in the past.
Campbell was traded to the New Orleans Saints midway through the 1984 season, but the Saints already had a star running back, and Campbell languished for a year and a half with the Saints before retiring at age 30.
There is no doubt that Earl Campbell was the best running back in the league early on in his career, but aside from his first 3 seasons, he was below average when carrying the ball. He averaged only 3.8 yards per carry over his final 5 seasons, after averaging 4.9 in his first 3 years. Even though he only had the 3 great seasons, he is still undoubtedly one of the best to ever play the game.
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