Power ranking: The 13 biggest running back busts of all-time
By Robert Judin
11. Joe Washington
We’re taking it back with Joe Washington, the former fourth-overall pick in the 1976 NFL Draft.
Washington rushed for 3,995 yards and 30 touchdowns while with the Oklahoma Sooners. He finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1974 and fifth in 1975.
So the San Diego Chargers fully expected they would be getting more than 4,839 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns out of Washington when they spent their first-round pick on him.
Well, technically they only got 217 of those yards and none of those touchdowns because he only played in 13 games for the Chargers.
Washington spent the next three years with the Baltimore Colts before four seasons with the Washington Redskins and one season with the Atlanta Falcons.
Washington did gain 3,413 receiving yards and caught 18 touchdowns, but that still doesn’t qualify as what a fourth-overall pick should be churning out.
The two most productive seasons for Washington came in 1979 when he ran for 884 yards and four touchdowns and in 1981 – 916 rushing yards and four touchdowns. To be fair, he made the Pro Bowl in 1979, but the Chargers would have gone in a different direction if they knew what they were getting.
He averaged one fumble for every 28 carries he’s had. So, basically, he was almost guaranteed to fumble once every game. The longest run of his career was a 41-yard dash he had for the Redskins in 1983 – when he was 30 years old. Go figure.
He’s not a name you her often, but he’s definitely worthy of the “bust” label.
Next: Terry Miller