The National Football League lost one of its true giants last week, as the great Jim Brown passed away at the age of 87. His playing career started in 1957 and ended in 1965, one year before the first Super Bowl. He won numerous accolades during his nine seasons in the league, including Rookie of the Year, four league MVPs, eight unanimous first-team NFL picks and nine Pro Bowl appearances.
These days, a player’s overall success is also largely based on his fantasy football production and value. Of course, fantasy sports hadn’t even begun until the 1960s on a small level and its explosion into the mainstream wouldn’t occur until the ‘90s. But if it had been as popular back then as it is now, Brown would have been the benchmark among fantasy running backs. He was Marshall Faulk and LaDainian Tomlinson before there was, well, Marshall Faulk and LaDainian Tomlinson.
Neil Leifer/Sports Illustrated
To put his success into perspective, let’s go back in time to Brown’s rookie year. He finished with 942 rushing yards, scored nine touchdowns, and ranked fourth in PPR points at his position. Only Lenny Moore, Frank Gifford and Ollie Matson had more (like Brown, all three of those players are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame).
The following year, Brown rushed for 1,527 yards with 17 touchdowns and was the best fantasy running back in the league with 285.5 points (23.8 PPG). Over the next six years of his career, Brown would finish no worse than third in fantasy points in any single season. In all, he was the No. 1 fantasy back five times in nine years.
Think about that … he never finished worse than the RB3 in PPR scoring systems.
Brown got better with age, too. In fact, his best single season came in what was his final pro campaign in 1965, when he rushed for 1,544 yards, caught 34 passes for an additional 328 yards, scored a career-high 21 touchdowns and 346.8 points.
Brown, who wanted to pursue an acting career, went to Europe to shoot the film The Dirty Dozen after that season. Production on the movie was delayed and he was in danger of missing training camp ahead of the 1966 season. Browns owner Art Modell decided that he would fine Brown for every day he missed camp. And while Brown never intended to miss time, he decided to retire rather than let Modell fine him.
So, Brown left football in the prime of his career.
SEE ALSO:
• Jim Brown’s Remarkable Life
• Never Be Another Career Like Brown’s
• Remembering Jim Brown
When he walked away, Brown had rushed for 12,312 yards. That was the all-time NFL rushing mark at the time – 3,151 yards more than the number two back, Joe Perry (9,161 yards). The record would stand until Walter Payton broke it in 1984. Brown’s 106 rushing touchdowns were also a record when he retired, 29 more than the second-best back, Jim Taylor (77). Brown also retired with 2,458.8 PPR points, which was 717.3 more than the second back, Perry, who had 1,741.5.
Believe it or not, Brown’s PPR point total was more than every other player in NFL history when he retired, even the quarterbacks! And it wasn’t close. He bested the second highest scorer, Y.A. Title, by 360 points! What’s even more amazing about that stat is that Brown played in 86 fewer career games than Tittle!
Brown’s statistics were nothing short of amazing. Heck, he would have likely been the consensus No. 1 overall pick in fantasy drafts every year after his rookie season. That would have spanned eight years! Name me anyone who has even come close to that in the last four decades? So, while fantasy football wasn’t even around for part of his career, Brown might have been the best fantasy running back of all time.
R.I.P., Jim.
