Terrell Davis...hall of fame?

[samikeyp]

This was mentioned in another thread but I think its worthy of its own.


Do you think Terrell Davis should be in the Hall of Fame and why?

I know its hard here but try and be objective.

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

No. He had four very good years under a coaching staff that has become known for taking just about any running back and making them look good. He was a real feel good story for those Broncos championship teams, and if his knees hadn't gone then who knows how long he'd have gone and how good he could have been. He's got a good resume, but it's just not long enough for me to say he deserves a spot in the HOF.

[johnsmith]

Year TM | G | Att Yards Y/A TD | Rec Yards Y/R TD |
+----------+-------------------------------+-------------------------+
| 1995 den | 14 | 237 1117 4.7 7 | 49 367 7.5 1 |
| 1996 den | 16 | 345 1538 4.5 13 | 36 310 8.6 2 |
| 1997 den | 15 | 369 1750 4.7 15 | 42 287 6.8 0 |
| 1998 den | 16 | 392 2008 5.1 21 | 25 217 8.7 2 |
| 1999 den | 4 | 67 211 3.1 2 | 3 26 8.7 0 |
| 2000 den | 5 | 78 282 3.6 2 | 2 4 2.0 0 |
| 2001 den | 11 | 167 701 4.2 0 | 12 69 5.8 0 |
+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+
| TOTAL | 81 | 1655 7607 4.6 60 | 169 1280 7.6 5 |
+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+

[johnsmith]

| Rushing | Receiving |
+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+
| Year TM | G | Att Yards Y/A TD | Rec Yards Y/R TD |
+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+
| 1965 chi | 14 | 166 867 5.2 14 | 29 507 17.5 6 |
| 1966 chi | 14 | 229 1231 5.4 8 | 34 447 13.1 2 |
| 1967 chi | 13 | 186 880 4.7 7 | 16 126 7.9 1 |
| 1968 chi | 9 | 138 856 6.2 2 | 15 117 7.8 0 |
| 1969 chi | 14 | 236 1032 4.4 8 | 17 116 6.8 0 |
| 1970 chi | 2 | 23 52 2.3 0 | 1 -6 -6.0 0 |
| 1971 chi | 2 | 13 38 2.9 0 | 0 0 0.0 0 |
+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+
| TOTAL | 68 | 991 4956 5.0 39 | 112 1307 11.7 9 |
+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+

[johnsmith]

The second one is Gale Sayers, who is in the hall of fame.

[samikeyp]

Good comparison...although I think Sayers was a little better all around. Returning kicks and all.

Did TD return kicks also?

[johnsmith]

I think he should be in, that's just me though. He has as good of numbers if not better then some runningbacks that are currently in.

I don't know though, you could go either way. Frankly, just looking at numbers, I don't think Sayers should be in either...........go ahead and begin mocking me for that one.

[johnsmith]

Good comparison...although I think Sayers was a little better all around. Returning kicks and all.

Did TD return kicks also?


Nope.

[samikeyp]

No mocking here because if you are going to use longevity as a requirement...its legit for Sayers too.

[johnsmith]

Sayers: "His totals show 9,435 combined net yards, 4,956 yards rushing, and 336 points scored."

Terrell, 8887 total yards.

[leemajors]

did terrell have a piccolo?

[TheTruth]

Hard for me to give a none homeristic answer. Probably not, for the reasons SFE gave above.

[Obstructed_View]

Hey, he prevented John Elway from being a punch line. He deserves consideration just for that.

[johnsmith]

Hey, he prevented John Elway from being a punch line. He deserves consideration just for that.


Ummmm, Jim Kelly and Dan Marino aren't punchlines, why would Elway have been one?

Your attempt at running smack is weak and tiresome.

[FromWayDowntown]

Terrell Davis had 3 monsterous seasons. So did Priest Holmes.

Is Priest Holmes a Hall-of-Famer?

[Obstructed_View]

Ummmm, Jim Kelly and Dan Marino aren't punchlines, why would Elway have been one?

Your attempt at running smack is weak and tiresome.
Yet you keep responding to it. You gonna cry now? I love that you throw it around but can't deal with it. Typical Broncos fan.

[johnsmith]

Yet you keep responding to it. You gonna cry now? I love that you throw it around but can't deal with it. Typical Broncos fan.


You know a lot of Broncos fans huh? I always love when people say that the other is responding while doing the same thing.

Dude, face it, your team sucks. Don't worry about it, they'll rebuild soon.

[DisgruntledLionFan#54,927]

Terrell Davis had 3 monsterous seasons. So did Priest Holmes.

Is Priest Holmes a Hall-of-Famer?

Priest, IMO, has a better shot than TD. But I don't think either gets in.

[FromWayDowntown]

I don't think Priest gets in, either, FWIW. I think Davis, as a vital cog in a Super Bowl winner and one of the 4 guys who've gotten to 2,000 yards rushing in a season, has a slightly better chance, if only because he was such a high-profile player.

As an aside, in his 3 great seasons, Priest rolled up 3 of the top 30 seasons in NFL history in terms of total yards from scrimmage. There are only 4 other players with more than 1 of the top 30 total yards seasons (M. Faulk has 4; Tomlinson, Dickerson, and Sanders each have 2). Random stat that means absolutely nothing, but a chance to brag on my friend.

[ShoogarBear]

Longevity isn't the only argument.

I see four reasons why Sayers could be in and Davis not:
1. Sayers had almost no help on either side of the ball.
2. Sayers also was the greatest kick returner in NFL history.
3. The Bears' system didn't produced another great runner after Sayers left.
4. You shouldn't compare stats across different eras.

That's not to say that Davis doesn't belong. Just that Sayers has arguments in his favor that Davis doesn't.

I think the Priest Holmes comparison is infinitely more valid:
9 seasons, 109 games, 1734 att, 8035 yards, 4.6 avg, 86 rushing TDs, 334 recpts, 2945 yards, 8 receivng TDs

Depending on when you asked me, I would probably give Davis the edge over Holmes for having more dominant years. But again, the fact that the Denver system kept producing very productive RBs after Davis left hurts him.

[ShoogarBear]

Terrell Davis had 3 monsterous seasons. So did Priest Holmes.

Is Priest Holmes a Hall-of-Famer?For the record, I first mentioned Priest Holmes in the other thread at 3:41 pm EST. :blah

[johnsmith]

Longevity isn't the only argument.

I see four reasons why Sayers could be in and Davis not:
1. Sayers had almost no help on either side of the ball.
2. Sayers also was the greatest kick returner in NFL history.
3. The Bears' system didn't produced another great runner after Sayers left.
4. You shouldn't compare stats across different eras.

That's not to say that Davis doesn't belong. Just that Sayers has arguments in his favor that Davis doesn't.

I think the Priest Holmes comparison is infinitely more valid:
9 seasons, 109 games, 1734 att, 8035 yards, 4.6 avg, 86 rushing TDs, 334 recpts, 2945 yards, 8 receivng TDs

Depending on when you asked me, I would probably give Davis the edge over Holmes for having more dominant years. But again, the fact that the Denver system kept producing very productive RBs after Davis left hurts him.


Again, you're probably right, but the Sayers thing is my only argument and I'm sticking to it (even if I'm probably wrong).

[FromWayDowntown]

Depending on when you asked me, I would probably give Davis the edge over Holmes for having more dominant years. But again, the fact that the Denver system kept producing very productive RBs after Davis left hurts him.

I'll let my homerism show a bit -- I'm admitted a Priest Holmes homer -- but I'm not sure that it's true that Davis had more dominant years than Priest.

If you look at it just from a statistical standpoint, each had a similar 3 year run:

Terrell Davis
1996: 1538 rush yd (4.5 ypc), 13 TD; 36-310, 2 TD
1997: 1750 rush yd (4.7 ypc), 15 TD; 42-287, 0 TD
1998: 2008 rush yd (5.1 ypc), 21 TD; 25-217, 2 TD

Priest Holmes
2001: 1555 rush yd (4.8 ypc), 8 TD; 62-614, 2 TD
2002: 1615 rush yd (5.2 ypc), 21 TD; 70-672, 3 TD
2003: 1420 rush yd (4.4 ypc), 27 TD; 74-690, 0 TD

Terrell had more rushing yards, for the most part, but Priest caught significantly more passes for more yards. As noted, Priest's total yardage figures during that span were all in the Top 30 all-time in that category; Davis reached that peak only with his 1998 season.

Each had one other 1000 yard rushing season -- Davis ran for 1117 in 1996 on 4.7 ypc and 7 TD; Holmes ran for 1008 in 1998 on 4.3 ypc and 7 TD. Priest also had his 2004 season short-circuited by injury -- he played in 8 games that season and was well on his way to another monster season when he got hurt (he had rushed for 892 yards (111.5 ypg) before his injury). Terrell Davis never had a great season waylayed by injury, but his career suffered that fate.

Beyond pure numbers is the fact that the Broncos won 2 Super Bowls during TD's three great years, while the Chiefs lost the only playoff game in which they participated. But even in that loss, Priest had great numbers: 24-176 and 2 TD.

[DisgruntledLionFan#54,927]

Priest led the league in yards from scrimmage for 5 consecutive years.

[FromWayDowntown]

Priest led the league in yards from scrimmage for 5 consecutive years.

Not for 5, but for 2 years he did.

2004 T Barber 2096
2003 L Tomlinson 2370
2002 P Holmes 2287
2001 P Holmes 2169
2000 E James 2303
1999 M Faulk 2429

[ShoogarBear]

Interesting trivia sidetrack: who are the former Denver Broncos in the Pro Football Hall of Fame?

[DisgruntledLionFan#54,927]

Not for 5, but for 2 years he did.

2004 T Barber 2096
2003 L Tomlinson 2370
2002 P Holmes 2287
2001 P Holmes 2169
2000 E James 2303
1999 M Faulk 2429


My bad, he averaged more yards from scrimmage than anyone else. I read it wrong.

[FromWayDowntown]

Interesting trivia sidetrack: who are the former Denver Broncos in the Pro Football Hall of Fame?

I think the only Bronco to be in the Hall of Fame because of things he did with the Broncos is Elway.

I know Dorsett is in the Hall and was a Bronco at one point. Didn't Willie Brown play in Denver, too?

[ShoogarBear]

I can't believe you got Willie Brown.

Yep, that's the entire list. No wonder people in Denver are hankering for some HoFers.

Steve Atwater is getting screwed, and probably Tom Jackson, too.

Romo maybe had an outside shot before the steroid stuff broke.

[FromWayDowntown]

I'm not sure that Tom Jackson has a great HOF argument; to go back to the other thread, he made 3 Pro Bowls in the late 70's, but played most of his career as a non-Pro Bowl player. That's not to hate on him, but his argument is fueled, I think, more by the love that he gets at ESPN than for how he performed -- he was a fine player in his era, but probably not a hall-of-famer.

I'm not sold on Atwater, either.

I am sold on the notion that Shannon Sharpe and Gary Zimmerman are both going to the Hall, mostly for what they did as Broncos. I think Rod Smith is with them. And, perhaps, Davis.

[leemajors]

mecklenburg made 6 pro bowls as a bronco.

[leemajors]

i guess i killed the thread!

[TheTruth]

Interesting trivia sidetrack: who are the former Denver Broncos in the Pro Football Hall of Fame?
John Elway and John Elway

[TheTruth]

Well, he's the only one in as a Bronco...

[samikeyp]

Technically the Broncos have three..

Willie Brown (a Bronco from 1963-66)
Tony Dorsett (1988)
John Elway (1983-98)

[FromWayDowntown]

I thought someone with a screen name quite similar to mine had already posted those answers.

:depressed

[samikeyp]

My bad....I missed it.

[ShoogarBear]

Yeah, but mikey's was posted with authority, not as some wild-ass guess.

[johngateswhiteley]

i don't know if you can put TD in the HOF...but i would.

[slayermin]

Yes.

He is right there with Bo Jackson, Walter Payton, and Marshall Faulk among the best running backs I have ever seen play the position.

The Tyler Rose and the Juice were a little before my time, but from the film I have seen of those two, they would have easily made my list.

Ladainan Tomlinson is still playing so I won't include him on the list just yet.

And no, I did not forget about Barry Sanders or Emmitt Smith.