Top 10 campaigns in NFL history

[dlockz]

Great post.

That 84 season of Marino's was by far and away the greatest single season performance by any player at any position in football. People rarely are smart enough to rank it 1st where it belongs.

I dont know Marino is my favorite player but rushing for over 2000 yards in 14 games I believe is on at least equal footing. Simpson averaged 143 yards a game for a season running and no one else has come within 10 yards of that on average. Both achievements are all time greats.

[dlockz]

Megatron and AP are both the best ever at there respective positions. We may also see the next great QB in Luck.

Sit back and enjoy fellas, were seeing football gods on the field today.

AP is awesome but he is not the best ever and same goes for Mega.

[Phinatic8u]

AP is awesome but he is not the best ever and same goes for Mega.

They will be when there down with the NFL.

[dlockz]

They will be when there down with the NFL.

Personally think Jerry Rice was the best wr.
best running back is a horserace but I go with Jim Brown

[Awsi Dooger]

Megatron and AP are both the best ever at there respective positions. We may also see the next great QB in Luck.

Sit back and enjoy fellas, were seeing football gods on the field today.

It's an awful era in pro football. In fact, it's an insulting era, considering the way defenses are restricted. The college game is not what it was, with BCS idiocy and the ruination of New Year's Day, but at least the college game is still mostly recognizable in terms of hitting. Alabama last season had the best pass defense in decades, allowing 4.6 yards per attempt in the regular season and lowering that in the bowl game.

Calvin Johnson wasn't even bothered last week by the Lions' terrible season. He was all grins and giggles while being interviewed after yet another loss. A home loss in prime time, no less. That interview defined this era as well as any other. Many of the past greats wouldn't even have done that interview, considering the circumstances. I absolutely guarantee an early '70s Dolphin wouldn't have dared to step in front of a microphone.

As dlockz posted, Jerry Rice is above Johnson and Jim Brown is unquestionably superior to Adrian Petersen.

Also, regarding Dan Marino, the pass defense rules and application of them had already been softened considerably by 1984. Anybody who doesn't believe that is out of his mind, or snuggling up to a Marino pillow. The game was pure and brutal until 1974, when the first wave of changes coddling the offense and particularly the passing game was adopted. The Dolphins were largely responsible, after Curtis Johnson and Tim Foley made a habit of eliminating wide receivers at the line of scrimmage. As a kid I absolutely loved it. I remember screaming in mischievous glee as the opposing quarterback dropped back with nobody to throw to. There were 2-3 man patterns in those days and the Dolphins reduced it to 1. It prompted the so-called Isaac Curtis Rule.

This is a brief description of the changes in 1974. Notice that every one favored the offense and specifically the passing game , including reduction of penalty yardage. Previously a 15 yard holding penalty could all but end a possession before it started:

"roll-blocking and cutting of wide receivers was eliminated; the extent of downfield contact a defender could have with an eligible receiver was restricted; the penalties for offensive holding, illegal use of the hands, and tripping were reduced from 15 to 10 yards..."

There were further changes aiding the passing game in 1977 and notably in 1978:

"The NFL continued a trend toward opening up the game. Rules changes permitted a defender to maintain contact with a receiver within five yards of the line of scrimmage, but restricted contact beyond that point. The pass-blocking rule was interpreted to permit the extending of arms and open hands."

Sorry, but Dan Marino was already playing in a dumbed up league, compared to what I witnessed earlier. Not even debatable. I think they had the correct balance in the '80s and '90s but it was hardly the brutal sport of the '60s and early '70s. The posters who rip Joe Namath, now that's comedic. Candidates for the corn field. They look at those stats and think it was today's rules and style of play, with worthless dump off passes and crossing patterns. Namath was a true downfield gunslinger. His lifetime 14.7 yards per completion is seven tenths higher than the best season Marino ever had (1984), and more than 2 yards beyond Marino's lifetime average. By Marino's era it was already an underneath league with heavy benefit of a doubt to the passer, compared to only 10 or 15 years earlier.

[tay0365]

Sorry, but Dan Marino was already playing in a dumbed up league, compared to what I witnessed earlier. Not even debatable. I think they had the correct balance in the '80s and '90s but it was hardly the brutal sport of the '60s and early '70s. The posters who rip Joe Namath, now that's comedic. Candidates for the corn field. They look at those stats and think it was today's rules and style of play, with worthless dump off passes and crossing patterns. Namath was a true downfield gunslinger. His lifetime 14.7 yards per completion is seven tenths higher than the best season Marino ever had (1984), and more than 2 yards beyond Marino's lifetime average. By Marino's era it was already an underneath league with heavy benefit of a doubt to the passer, compared to only 10 or 15 years earlier.

I remember Namath, I watched Namath.....please don't even attempt to put Namath in the same sentence as Marino, let alone try to force feed us anything that would indicate Namath in any way did anything better then Marino.

Namath was a very gifted player, but he was inconsistent, and no where as dominant as Marino. Every defense that played Miami knew one thing about their offense, stop Marino, you stop the Offense, yet VERY VERY rarely did any defense stop or even slow down Marino. Namath relied on the running game, no running game, very rarely was there much offense.

[EvilDylan]

According to doogie, your great athletic accomplishment isn't valid unless you are also a candidate for the nobel prize.

Awsi, recognize great athletes when they are present. Don't ignore facts, which you are so clearly doing.

Athletes now are bigger, stronger, faster, and plain ol' better than they used to be. This is evident in almost every single sport on the planet. Specific evidence can be seen if you only look at track and field athletes. It's pretty simple, actually. It's downright ignorant to think otherwise.

[dlockz]

According to doogie, your great athletic accomplishment isn't valid unless you are also a candidate for the nobel prize.

Awsi, recognize great athletes when they are present. Don't ignore facts, which you are so clearly doing.

Athletes now are bigger, stronger, faster, and plain ol' better than they used to be. This is evident in almost every single sport on the planet. Specific evidence can be seen if you only look at track and field athletes. It's pretty simple, actually. It's downright ignorant to think otherwise.

In any era Jim Brown would have been among the biggest, fastest and the strongest and no runningback that has ever played the game is better than him.
As for rice he wasnt the biggest , the strongest or fastest but again he was the best. Johnson has him beat in all three of those categories

[EvilDylan]

In any era Jim Brown would have been among the biggest, fastest and the strongest and no runningback that has ever played the game is better than him.
As for rice he wasnt the biggest , the strongest or fastest but again he was the best. Johnson has him beat in all three of those categories

Everything in your post is opinion and there are no facts to back it up. Jim Brown was about 230 lbs, average size for a rb now days. he reportedly ran a 45 40, pretty average still. strongest is also debatable but we have no real figures to back that up again.

the real fact is that all athletes are as I said, bigger, faster, and stronger than previous athletes.

as for Jerry rice, he was great and his receiving record has just been broken. that qualifies for more than most here are giving credit for. who cares if Johnson was smiling, he just accomplished something huge.

I'm beginning to think that a majority of posters on here don't really know much about what makes up the psyche of a high level athlete.

[dlockz]

Everything in your post is opinion and there are no facts to back it up. Jim Brown was about 230 lbs, average size for a rb now days. he reportedly ran a 45 40, pretty average still. strongest is also debatable but we have no real figures to back that up again.

the real fact is that all athletes are as I said, bigger, faster, and stronger than previous athletes.

as for Jerry rice, he was great and his receiving record has just been broken. that qualifies for more than most here are giving credit for. who cares if Johnson was smiling, he just accomplished something huge.

I'm beginning to think that a majority of posters on here don't really know much about what makes up the psyche of a high level athlete.

Greatness is not judged on one season and Johnson has broke but one record, records are made to be broken and this is a pass happy league now. As for Brown its the opinion of most so called experts that he was the best ever and 230 pounds is not average for a runningback even now. Thats still a big runningback. He ran track and was a good enough athlete to even excel at Lacrosse and basketball. He is the only runningback in NFL history to average 100 yards a game. By strongest Im saying the way he broke tackles, he was a great all around runningback. What the hell are u talking about smiling ?
Greatness is measured over time not a few seasons and both of these guys were the greatest over an extended time. Rice has almost 200 receiving tds he averaged like 9.5 a yearf for almost 19 years lol.