Chiefs: Their Three Best Running Backs Ever+

Laddie Morse

Since the Kansas City Chiefs came into the National Football League in the 1960s, they’ve had incredibly good fortune with Running Backs. Not so much with Quarterbacks, but with RBs, for sure. One of the first in a long line of excellent RBs I think of when discussing the 1960s, is Mike Garrett, who was drafted by the Chiefs in 1965.

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mosportshalloffame.com – credit

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Mike Garrett isn’t smiling in this picture because he’s watching as his Chiefs as they are losing to the Green Bay Packers in SB I. Four years later he’d get his revenge as he was the RB who carried the ball into the end zone on “65 Toss Power Trap” against the Minnesota Vikings in an SB IV victory.

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Garrett won the Heisman Trophy in his last year at USC and he was the first in a long line of super RBs at that institution including: OJ Simpson, Marcus Allen, Charles White, Reggie Bush, Anthony Davis, Ricky Bell, LenDale White, Jon Arnett, and Frank Gifford (who many younger football fans may never even have heard of). Although Gifford precedes Mike Garrett the excellence in USC RB lineage didn’t start with him because he was good, but not great.

Four of those RBs who went to USC, won the Heisman Trophy.

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The third best running back in Chiefs history is…

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Christian Okoye

Christian Okoye was born in Africa and didn’t actually move to American until he was 21 years old. He went to Azusa Pacific Junior College where he starred in track as a discus, shot put and hammer thrower. He didn’t like the game of football when he first saw it, but upon the suggestion of friends he stuck it out. Okoye was a behemoth at 6-foot-1 and 260 lbs. while it was his speed that caught the Chiefs eyes for a big man like him. He ran a 4.45 40 yard dash and so he was drafted in the second round with the 35th pick overall in 1987.

Here are Okoye’s career stats:

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pro-football-referecne.com has Okoye’s 1989 stats in bold because he led the league that year. You can see that Okoye didn’t start in the NFL until he was 26 years old. It’s hard to imagine what he could have accomplished if he had started at a younger age. Okoye was called the Nigerian Nightmare because it was a pure nightmare seeing him running your way. Let’s take a look at some of Christian Okoye’s highlights (4:26):

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It may have a 1970s vibe… but I like it!

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Jamaal Charles

Charles leads the NFL among all RBs with a 5.4 Yards Per Carry (YPC) average. Take a look:

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True that Marion Motley was a RB, but he’s from a totally different era. Nick Chubb is one-tenth of a point behind Charles, but I doubt he’s going to climb higher as the year role on. The point is, Jamaal Charles belongs in the Hall of Fame and I see no reason why he’s not in when a RB like Terrell Davis is in. Davis had 44 total more yards than Charles AND Charles still leads all RBs in NFL history in Yards Per Carry. Charles is the Chiefs all-time leading running back with 7,260 yards rushing to his name. Charles flowing locks (at right) out the back of his helmet as he ran down the field were quite a memory for me.

Let’s take a look at some Charles highlights (1:00):

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You can never get enough of Jamaal Charles highlights, especially when it come to going against the Steelers (0:46) Pardon the blurriness:

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I don’t know if I can ever forgive Charles for saying he always wanted to play for the Broncos after going there, other wise, he could end up #1 on my list.:

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Mike Garrett – Mentioned above.

Marcus Allen – he played for K.C. from 1993 to 1997 when he retired as a Raider. He was one of those USC RBs who on the Heisman Trophy. He always ran like he was gliding on skates.

Abner Haynes – was known for helping to integrate college football in Texas in 1957 at what is now North Texas State University in Denton, Texas. BTW, that’s the same school that Mean Joe Green eventually played for and helped lead Pittsburgh to 4 Super Bowl championships.

Larry Johnson – even though it does me no pleasure to include Larry Johnson on this list, I must. Dick Vermeil is famous for his comment to Larry Johnson the week prior to his filling in for injured Priest Holmes when he said: “Take the diapers off.” LJ was about to smash the Chiefs all time rushing mark, but a series of regretful events involving Johnson and what he said to fans online and coaches in the press… led to his eventual release. Here’s a look at his career stats:

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Johnson is third on the Chiefs list of all-time leading rushers with 6,015 yards.

Ed Podolak – Podolak was the 2nd round pick of the Chiefs in the 1969 Draft, 48th overall. Podolak played his whole career with the Chiefs and from 1970 to 1977 he averaged over 550 yards per season. Then he wwent into the broadcasting booth for the NFL and also called games for Iowa.

Joe Delaney – it wouldn’t be right to make a list of the Chiefs greatest RBs without including Joe Delaney. Delaney died saving a child’s life but then drowned doing it. Delaney was a NFL rookie of the year in 1981 and for that alone, he should never be forgotten. Here are some highlights of our dear Joe (6:29):

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Priest Holmes

The very first thing you need to know about Priest Holmes is that he was an Undrafted Free Agent (UDFA) for the Baltimore Ravens in 1997. He was from the University of Texas where he was the backup RB for Ricky Williams the whole time, then when he got to Baltimore, he was the backup for running backs Jamal Lewis and Bam Morris and Earnest Byner… among others. However, he worked his way up to being the #2 RB in the Ravens system and they won a Super Bowl title while he was there. Priest Holmes had flair and I loved the way he’d cross the goal line with his arms outstretched (see at right) when he wasn’t flying over the goal line like an airplane. Holmes finished as the Chiefs second all-time leading rusher with 6,070 yards rushing.

The Chiefs eight year vet as a blocking TE, Jason Dunn, had this to say about Priest Holmes (1:20):

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Jason Dunn says he thinks Holmes had a “Hall of Fame” career. I, of course, couldn’t agree more. Here are some of Priest Holmes highlights (3:18):

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While it might not be right to mention Isiah Pacheco on this list, he might enter into the conversation if he lasts longer than 5 years. That seems to be the length of time a RB can last in this league, so, we’ll see.

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What do you think? Who’s on your list?

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Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne

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