30 best NFL running backs of the 21st century

The running back position has gone from overvalued to undervalued since the year 2000. Players used to be smart top-five draft picks. Teams would spend serious capital on the running back position. The 90s had so many great running backs that it makes sense teams still valued the position until it was clear running backs are voodoo, and it’s easier to find them than once thought.

In the 2000 NFL Draft, three running backs went in the top 12 (including the great Jamal Lewis). In 2001, there was just one, but it was LaDainian Tomlinson (who will undoubtedly come up later). There was nothing like what Mike Ditka did in 1999 when he traded an entire draft’s worth of picks plus two more the next season to select Ricky Williams. 

In the middle of the 2000s, running backs started to be less valued. Yet, the stars were still just below the biggest quarterbacks in the league. While Peyton Manning and Tom Brady were building their legacy, Shaun Alexander and Priest Holmes were driving offenses. Up and down the league, there were star running backs. Ahman Green and Thomas Jones were just solid running backs while the stars of lore like Emmitt Smith and Marshall Faulk were sunsetting their careers. 

So, who was the best of the best over the past 25 years? Let’s pick 30 of our favorites. 

30. Todd Gurley, 2015-2020
Los Angeles Rams, Atlanta Falcons

We wanted to start off with a bang, and Todd Gurley is that bang. His career is so strange because it was so short, but it was so impactful in its brief time. It’s been three seasons since Gurley has taken an NFL snap, and he’s still younger than more than a dozen running backs still active in the NFL today, including Jerick McKinnon and Raheem Mostert. Gurley lost it overnight, but when he had it, he was the best running back in football.

Gurley made an immediate impact, winning the Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2015. He rushed for 1,100 yards and 10 touchdowns with a Rams team looking for a spark. They moved to Los Angeles the next season, and he suffered along with the Rams, who went 4-12 in their return to LA. However, the next two seasons were all-timers.

Gurley broke 2,000 scrimmage yards in 2017 and won Offensive Player of the Year for his efforts. He led the league with 13 touchdowns, and he added six receiving touchdowns just for fun. The next season, he was a touchdown merchant. He scored 17 times and finished third for OPOY. Then, he lost it. His yards per attempt dropped from 4.9 to 3.8 in 2019. The Rams moved on, as brutal as that might seem, but returning to Georgia didn’t help. He was bad in Atlanta, and his career moved from star-studded to scrap heap in a moment’s notice.