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Position Battles: Who is the greatest Rams RB?

Now that there is virtually nothing going on in the world of football, I thought it would be a good time to dedicate a few posts to the history of the team. It seems especially pertinent as we wait out a the start of a couple new chapters in the team's history thanks to the front office/coaching changes and the "for sale" sign hanging out front. With a couple of long-time Rams nearing a special place in the team record book, I thought it would be a good time to go back and take a look at players at key positions, and start a conversation about which player is the all-time best. It's an arbitrary title, and that's the point.

Today, let's start with running backs. If you haven't heard that head coach Steve Spagnuolo plans to make RB Steven Jackson the centerpiece of the Rams offense this season, you've obviously been living under a rock. That means Jackson should rack up oodles of yardage, and hopefully touchdowns, that will vault him up the franchise leader board. We looked at Jackson's proximity to the franchise rushing records last month, but as a quick reminder a mediocre season will put him at third place on the all-time list. After the 2010 season, he will most likely be the Rams franchise record holded in rushing yards.

However, it's tough to make the argument, at this point, that Jackson's the greatest Rams RB of all time. With memories of Marshall Faulk still so vivid. Making Faulk's claim to the title even more impressive is the fact that he is fourth on the franchise list for total receptions with 470. That's still eons away from the numbers Holt and Bruce gave the Rams, but it speaks directly to Marshall's talent. Eric Dickerson, in addition to his wisdom of the LA football market, ran for 7,245 yards and 56 TDs, the most and second most in those two categories, in just 65 games with the Rams between 1983-1987. That's fewer games than anyone else among the top five names on the franchise leaderboard. Faulk played in 99 games, and Jackson has played in 69 thus far.

Five-time Pro Bowl RB Lawrence McCutcheon has to be in the discussion too. A member of those impressive 1970s teams known mostly for their fearsome defense, McCutcheon did the bulk of the offense's heavy lifting with his legs. Finally, though most of us would be too young to remember, Dick Bass played 112 games from 1960-1969, rushing for a team that never reached .500 until he was on the downhill side of his career.

That's an impressive group of names. Who will be your pick for the greatest Rams RB of all time?

Poll
Who's the top Rams RB of all time?
Eric Dickerson
381 votes
Marshall Faulk
625 votes
Lawrence McCutcheon
18 votes
Steven Jackson
37 votes
Dick Bass
3 votes
other
5 votes

1069 votes | Poll has closed

0 recs  |  Comment 9 comments |

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Comments

Display:

Marshall! Marshall! Marshall!

Had Marshall not played on the two worst surfaces (Indy and St Louis at the time) in the NFL, how many records would he have broken?

by 81 Witness on Jun 25, 2009 10:31 AM CDT reply actions   0 recs

Dickerson vs. Marshall

Dickerson was the best pure running back. Marshall was the best overall. If you include Marshall’s receiving ability, it’s Marshall easily.

by Oski Bear on Jun 25, 2009 10:57 AM CDT reply actions   0 recs

agree

Marshall could play wide-out, had the best overall game

"Score some damn runs, or the baby pandas die"

by sergey606 on Jun 25, 2009 10:59 AM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

agreed

I voted for Dickerson, but I could have voted for Marshall and felt just as confident.

Your uncle molests collies.

by 3k on Jun 25, 2009 12:47 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Agreed

I can’t believe that this took me as long as it did to come up with an answer. In the end I went with Marshall due to his dynamic nature that made that offense so dangerous.
Here is the thing though, when I think RB and Rams the first name that comes to mind is Dickerson. Its a toss up in my opinion. It will come down to preference.

by CaliRamMan on Jun 25, 2009 2:17 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Marshall all day...

I’m not saying Marshall just because his accomplishments were more recent than Dickerson, but for about 3-5 years in the NFL, Marshall Faulk was considered the best all around player in the league. Not many people have been given that distinction….

On this team, we are all united in a common goal: to keep my job.
-- Lou Holtz

by RamsMan83 on Jun 25, 2009 11:57 AM CDT reply actions   0 recs

Dickerson had the best season

        Marshall the best career. I have a bit of a place for McCutcheon though. He was the starter when I became a fan.

by dbcouver on Jun 25, 2009 12:39 PM CDT reply actions   0 recs

Marshall revolutionized the RB position

this is a pretty tough one. Ironically enough, ED left for the Colts and Faulk left the Colts to become a great one here.

Turf Show Times

by VanRam on Jun 25, 2009 2:00 PM CDT reply actions   0 recs

Agree with Faulk supporters

As great as Dickerson was, I’ve got to go with Marshall. He proved that he could carry the ball, by rushing for over 1,300 yards in each of the ‘99-’01 seasons, averaging well over 5 yds/carry. But he was also a great receiver, becoming one of only two players ever to rush and receive 1,000 yards in the same season.

He could have rushed for more yards, but that’s not what Martz’s system asked him to do. Even though Warner was the league MVP in ’99 and ’01, you could argue that Faulk was more important to making that offense work and should have been a three-time MVP.

I think Steven Jackson is a very good back, but he’s going to have to put up more ’06-type seasons before he can crack the top 2.

by mikemcd41 on Jun 26, 2009 11:33 AM CDT reply actions   0 recs

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