Writers of Pro Football Prospectus 2008

printable version

Innovative Statistics

Football Outsiders exclusive statistics



RUNNING BACKS 2007

Regular season totals, playoffs not included

Revised as of 7/10/2008

Running backs are ranked according to DYAR, or Defense-adjusted Yards Above Replacement. This gives the value of the performance on plays where this RB carried/caught the ball compared to replacement level, adjusted for situation and opponent and then translated into yardage. DYAR (and its cousin, YAR, which isn't adjusted based on opponent) is further explained here.

The next statistic given is DVOA, or Defense-adjusted Value Over Average. This number represents value, per play, over an average running back in the same game situations. The more positive the DVOA rating, the better the player's performance. Negative DVOA represents below-average offense. DVOA (and its cousin, VOA, which isn't adjusted based on opponent) is further explained here.

Equivalent Yards (EqYds), listed in red, translate DVOA into a yards per attempt figure. This provides an easy comparison: in general, players with more Equivalent Yards (EqYds) than standard yards played better than standard stats would otherwise indicate, while players with fewer Equivalent Yards (EqYds) than standard yards played worse than standard stats would otherwise indicate. Equivalent Yards (EqYds) are not the best way to measure total value because they are more dependent on usage than DYAR.

The final statistic is Success Rate. This number represents the player's consistency, measured by successful running plays (the definition of success being different based on down and distance) divided by total running plays. A player with higher DVOA and a low success rate mixes long runs with downs getting stuffed at the line of scrimmage. A player with lower DVOA and a high success rate generally gets the yards needed, but doesn't often get more. Success Rate is further explained here. It is not adjusted for opponent.

The simple version: DYAR means a running back with more total value. DVOA means a running back with more value per play.

  • These numbers do not separate the performance of a running back from the performance of his offensive line. (You'll find numbers that try to do that on this page.) Be aware that one will affect the other.
  • All fumbles are considered equal, whether recovered by the offense or defense.

RUSHING: Minimum 100 rushes, 49 players ranked

Player Team DYAR Rk YAR Rk DVOA Rk VOA Runs Yards True
Yards		 TD FUM Suc
Rate		 Rk
36-B.Westbrook PHI 334 1 318 1 19.9% 3 18.5% 278 1,333 1,552 7 0 53% 7
21-L.Tomlinson SD 287 2 288 2 13.6% 11 13.7% 315 1,474 1,575 15 0 45% 28
24-M.Barber DAL 233 3 203 7 18.0% 5 14.6% 203 984 1,133 10 1 49% 13
28-A.Peterson MIN 228 4 232 5 16.4% 7 16.9% 238 1,344 1,152 12 5 45% 29
29-J.Addai IND 222 5 257 3 11.1% 17 14.1% 261 1,072 1,333 12 0 54% 6
27-B.Jacobs NYG 220 6 249 4 18.3% 4 21.8% 201 1,017 1,062 4 4 57% 4
39-L.Maroney NE 199 7 207 6 16.7% 6 17.7% 185 835 1,000 6 0 58% 2
28-F.Taylor JAC 171 8 165 11 11.1% 16 10.4% 223 1,225 1,026 5 2 45% 32
34-E.Graham TB 162 9 175 10 8.4% 18 9.8% 222 898 1,085 10 0 50% 12
33-K.Watson CIN 162 10 178 9 13.0% 12 15.2% 178 763 908 7 2 56% 5
25-R.Grant GB 161 11 152 12 12.3% 14 11.2% 188 956 923 8 0 47% 17
23-R.Brown MIA 156 12 194 8 21.2% 2 28.6% 119 602 703 4 0 51% 9
32-J.Norwood ATL 133 13 126 14 24.5% 1 22.8% 103 613 562 1 0 48% 16
Player Team DYAR Rk YAR Rk DVOA Rk VOA Runs Yards True
Yards		 TD FUM Suc
Rate		 Rk
21-F.Gore SF 130 14 79 24 4.3% 21 -0.8% 260 1,102 1,079 5 3 42% 39
31-J.Lewis CLE 125 15 88 22 1.5% 25 -1.5% 298 1,304 1,270 9 4 45% 31
36-K.Keith IND 125 16 134 13 14.0% 9 15.6% 121 533 680 3 1 58% 1
44-N.Davenport PIT 118 17 114 15 15.1% 8 14.2% 107 500 621 5 1 52% 8
34-D.Ward NYG 112 18 108 18 13.0% 13 12.2% 125 598 629 3 2 46% 20
34-D.Williams CAR 104 19 109 17 11.9% 15 12.7% 144 717 608 4 0 41% 41
29-C.Taylor MIN 101 20 98 20 8.0% 20 7.6% 157 848 688 7 5 46% 27
32-E.James ARI 101 21 74 25 -1.0% 27 -3.0% 323 1,230 1,304 7 4 46% 23
29-C.Brown TEN 100 22 113 16 13.8% 10 16.6% 102 463 549 5 1 57% 3
35-S.Young DEN 92 23 82 23 8.4% 19 6.6% 140 759 616 1 1 43% 35
25-J.Fargas OAK 92 24 99 19 1.6% 24 2.4% 222 1,009 927 4 3 46% 21
32-M.Jones-Drew JAC 81 25 96 21 2.1% 23 4.0% 167 770 785 9 1 46% 25
26-C.Portis WAS 75 26 47 33 -3.0% 30 -5.1% 325 1,252 1,284 11 6 46% 22
Player Team DYAR Rk YAR Rk DVOA Rk VOA Runs Yards True
Yards		 TD FUM Suc
Rate		 Rk
27-A.Stecker NO 64 27 64 28 4.1% 22 4.0% 114 444 541 5 1 50% 11
20-M.Morris SEA 57 28 45 34 0.7% 26 -1.2% 141 629 616 4 2 51% 10
23-M.Lynch BUF 42 29 50 32 -5.0% 33 -4.3% 280 1,115 1,073 7 1 45% 30
20-T.Henry DEN 40 30 68 27 -2.9% 29 1.0% 167 691 670 4 3 46% 24
34-K.Jones DET 40 31 20 35 -2.7% 28 -5.6% 153 581 640 8 2 47% 18
36-R.Dayne HOU 34 32 69 26 -4.6% 32 -0.7% 195 771 803 6 2 48% 15
25-L.White TEN 26 33 61 29 -6.5% 34 -3.7% 303 1,115 1,111 7 5 46% 26
21-K.Smith KC 25 34 53 31 -3.4% 31 2.5% 112 407 446 2 0 49% 14
21-J.Jones DAL 12 35 9 36 -6.7% 35 -7.2% 164 603 556 2 0 37% 48
39-S.Jackson STL 11 36 -5 38 -7.4% 36 -9.1% 238 1,000 854 5 4 43% 33
28-J.Chatman MIA 6 37 8 37 -7.5% 37 -7.2% 128 515 479 1 0 41% 40
23-W.McGahee BAL 5 38 57 30 -8.2% 38 -3.8% 294 1,207 1,036 7 4 42% 38
39-W.Parker PIT -27 39 -13 40 -10.8% 39 -9.7% 321 1,317 1,030 2 4 42% 37
Player Team DYAR Rk YAR Rk DVOA Rk VOA Runs Yards True
Yards		 TD FUM Suc
Rate		 Rk
29-A.Peterson CHI -30 40 -53 43 -13.5% 41 -17.2% 151 511 483 3 2 38% 45
34-L.Jordan OAK -32 41 -8 39 -14.0% 42 -10.0% 145 549 460 3 1 37% 47
27-L.Johnson KC -35 42 -41 41 -14.0% 43 -15.0% 158 559 492 3 1 41% 42
20-T.Jones NYJ -36 43 -43 42 -11.3% 40 -11.8% 310 1,126 1,074 1 2 43% 34
32-C.Benson CHI -67 44 -57 44 -17.0% 45 -15.8% 197 673 575 4 4 40% 43
32-R.Johnson CIN -71 45 -121 48 -18.5% 47 -25.5% 170 497 499 3 3 39% 44
26-D.Foster CAR -72 46 -60 45 -15.8% 44 -14.7% 247 893 733 3 5 43% 36
25-R.Bush NO -72 47 -69 46 -19.4% 48 -19.0% 157 569 455 4 7 46% 19
37-S.Alexander SEA -74 48 -91 47 -17.3% 46 -19.3% 207 716 610 4 2 38% 46
28-W.Dunn ATL -108 49 -124 49 -20.0% 49 -21.8% 227 721 634 4 2 37% 49

RUSHING, OTHERS: 20-99 rushes

Player Team DYAR YAR DVOA VOA Runs Yards True
Yards		 TD FUM
34-S.Morris NE 92 97 15.3% 16.5% 85 384 482 3 0
23-P.Thomas NO 87 78 33.5% 29.3% 50 251 318 1 0
28-C.Buckhalter PHI 81 78 21.9% 20.8% 62 313 362 4 0
27-D.Dorsey CIN 70 75 68.9% 74.7% 21 183 190 0 0
22-F.Jackson BUF 64 68 19.7% 21.2% 58 300 299 0 0
33-K.Faulk NE 63 62 15.2% 14.9% 62 265 329 0 0
44-A.Bradshaw NYG 59 45 50.5% 36.8% 23 190 182 1 0
45-T.Duckett DET 56 59 12.2% 13.2% 65 335 322 3 1
44-H.Evans NE 48 46 16.9% 15.7% 34 121 242 3 0
37-D.Walker HOU 46 48 10.7% 11.5% 58 264 279 1 0
35-J.Harrison CLE 45 52 40.4% 48.0% 23 142 153 0 0
42-D.Wynn GB 45 29 13.4% 5.5% 50 203 251 4 0
24-C.Williams TB 44 32 10.6% 5.4% 54 208 271 3 1
43-L.Weaver SEA 40 39 16.0% 15.5% 33 146 206 1 0
29-J.Wright CLE 37 50 5.6% 10.5% 60 277 286 1 1
20-L.Booker MIA 34 29 16.3% 12.7% 28 125 171 0 0
Player Team DYAR YAR DVOA VOA Runs Yards True
Yards		 TD FUM
30-A.Green HOU 33 37 3.2% 4.5% 70 260 296 2 0
29-L.Washington NYJ 30 37 2.3% 5.0% 71 353 283 3 1
30-M.Moore MIN 25 27 31.5% 33.8% 20 114 94 0 1
33-D.Rhodes OAK 21 38 -2.0% 3.6% 75 302 304 1 1
43-D.Sproles SD 13 18 0.9% 4.1% 37 164 140 2 0
23-B.Leonard STL 12 -3 -5.1% -9.5% 86 303 304 0 0
32-M.Pittman TB 10 8 -4.6% -5.5% 68 286 231 0 0
29-M.Bennett KC 9 2 -5.1% -7.7% 61 241 223 1 0
45-M.Sellers WAS 7 5 -4.1% -5.3% 26 78 147 2 0
23-A.Hall DEN 7 -10 -4.9% -14.4% 44 213 163 2 1
28-T.Bell DET 6 5 -5.5% -6.1% 44 182 168 1 1
31-D.Wright BUF 5 11 -5.0% 0.4% 29 94 116 0 0
33-G.Jones JAC 4 10 -6.3% -3.4% 42 119 166 2 0
27-S.Gado HOU 2 -11 -7.7% -13.1% 53 150 206 4 0
34-V.Morency GB 1 -2 -7.5% -10.5% 29 108 90 0 0
43-M.Hicks SF 0 0 -8.7% -8.9% 21 117 63 1 1
Player Team DYAR YAR DVOA VOA Runs Yards True
Yards		 TD FUM
30-A.Pittman STL 0 -6 -8.7% -12.8% 38 139 126 0 0
32-B.Jackson GB -3 -12 -9.4% -12.5% 75 267 260 1 0
42-C.Henry TEN -6 3 -13.5% -6.1% 31 119 92 2 0
22-R.Droughns NYG -9 -17 -10.6% -12.4% 85 274 381 6 1
26-D.McAllister NO -12 -14 -21.1% -23.8% 24 92 62 0 1
33-A.Echemandu HOU -14 -13 -25.5% -24.5% 20 85 50 0 1
38-K.Eckel NE -16 -19 -19.3% -21.2% 33 90 104 2 0
24-M.Robinson SF -20 -13 -27.4% -20.8% 26 121 59 0 1
46-L.Betts WAS -21 -21 -13.9% -14.0% 93 335 298 1 1
30-C.Dawson IND -26 -32 -31.0% -36.5% 30 64 56 1 0
31-P.Holmes KC -30 -22 -25.6% -21.4% 46 137 102 0 0
32-M.Smith BAL -31 -41 -19.2% -22.8% 75 264 198 2 1
28-A.Thomas BUF -32 -23 -28.6% -23.4% 36 89 84 0 0
25-G.Wolfe CHI -34 -35 -40.8% -41.4% 31 85 36 0 0
28-J.Arrington ARI -37 -37 -43.4% -43.8% 26 78 31 0 0
33-M.Turner SD -52 -41 -27.4% -23.3% 71 316 153 1 1

RECEIVING: Minimum 25 passes, 49 players ranked

  • Passes includes all passes to this receiver, complete and incomplete.
  • Catch Rate is the percentage of passes completed to this receiver.
Player Team DYAR Rk YAR Rk DVOA Rk VOA Passes Yards True
Yards		 TD Catch
Rate
36-B.Westbrook PHI 189 1 208 1 12.5% 21 15.1% 120 771 904 6 75%
23-R.Brown MIA 160 2 161 2 52.0% 1 52.7% 46 389 499 1 85%
29-J.Addai IND 150 3 144 4 43.7% 2 41.4% 49 364 497 3 84%
33-K.Faulk NE 146 4 148 3 31.0% 8 31.7% 59 383 535 1 80%
32-M.Jones-Drew JAC 142 5 133 5 32.0% 7 29.1% 55 407 514 0 73%
21-L.Tomlinson SD 113 6 97 9 10.7% 22 7.2% 86 475 562 3 70%
21-F.Gore SF 110 7 106 7 14.3% 19 13.2% 69 436 509 1 77%
31-J.Lewis CLE 99 8 96 10 33.3% 6 31.8% 39 248 356 2 77%
28-A.Peterson MIN 97 9 109 6 43.5% 3 50.5% 29 267 322 1 69%
26-C.Portis WAS 96 10 106 8 15.4% 18 18.2% 58 389 435 0 81%
43-L.Weaver SEA 87 11 83 12 17.3% 14 15.8% 52 313 379 0 75%
20-L.Booker MIA 85 12 87 11 26.7% 9 27.7% 36 237 325 0 78%
20-T.Jones NYJ 80 13 74 16 34.4% 5 30.8% 34 217 283 1 82%
Player Team DYAR Rk YAR Rk DVOA Rk VOA Passes Yards True
Yards		 TD Catch
Rate
21-J.Jones DAL 75 14 81 13 38.2% 4 42.6% 26 203 256 0 88%
32-J.Norwood ATL 73 15 71 17 21.6% 12 21.0% 39 277 297 0 72%
29-A.Peterson CHI 70 16 74 15 7.2% 24 8.4% 65 420 383 0 78%
34-L.Jordan OAK 65 17 79 14 19.6% 13 27.0% 34 247 272 0 82%
29-C.Taylor MIN 64 18 66 19 15.7% 17 16.7% 43 281 287 0 67%
29-J.Wright CLE 63 19 67 18 16.5% 16 18.7% 37 233 276 0 65%
25-J.Fargas OAK 58 20 52 21 22.0% 11 18.3% 32 188 234 0 72%
20-M.Morris SEA 55 21 51 22 17.0% 15 14.7% 32 213 242 1 72%
44-N.Davenport PIT 51 22 54 20 25.5% 10 28.4% 27 184 197 2 67%
27-A.Stecker NO 49 23 44 23 5.0% 26 3.0% 43 215 288 0 86%
23-M.Lynch BUF 41 24 41 25 14.1% 20 14.2% 26 184 190 0 69%
28-J.Arrington ARI 40 25 43 24 5.5% 25 7.1% 39 241 229 1 74%
36-J.Griffith OAK 34 26 28 29 1.8% 28 -1.1% 36 165 226 1 72%
Player Team DYAR Rk YAR Rk DVOA Rk VOA Passes Yards True
Yards		 TD Catch
Rate
22-F.Jackson BUF 34 27 35 26 9.1% 23 9.8% 29 183 174 0 72%
33-K.Watson CIN 32 28 25 31 -4.7% 31 -6.7% 67 374 320 0 78%
32-M.Smith BAL 30 29 30 27 1.8% 29 1.8% 34 192 201 0 79%
23-W.McGahee BAL 29 30 26 30 -2.8% 30 -4.1% 49 231 250 1 88%
39-W.Parker PIT 29 31 28 28 3.2% 27 3.0% 31 164 180 0 74%
25-R.Bush NO 25 32 8 37 -9.6% 36 -12.4% 98 417 469 2 74%
35-S.Young DEN 14 33 17 33 -7.7% 34 -6.5% 43 231 196 1 81%
46-L.Betts WAS 14 34 14 35 -6.3% 32 -6.7% 32 174 165 1 66%
23-B.Leonard STL 13 35 12 36 -7.7% 33 -8.3% 39 183 182 0 77%
29-L.Washington NYJ 10 36 14 34 -10.4% 37 -9.1% 51 213 231 0 71%
21-K.Smith KC 7 37 7 39 -8.7% 35 -9.2% 29 148 115 0 76%
32-E.James ARI 6 38 5 41 -11.2% 38 -11.3% 39 196 162 0 64%
24-M.Barber DAL 4 39 22 32 -12.6% 40 -6.8% 55 273 235 2 82%
Player Team DYAR Rk YAR Rk DVOA Rk VOA Passes Yards True
Yards		 TD Catch
Rate
34-K.Jones DET 4 40 8 38 -12.3% 39 -10.7% 44 197 183 1 73%
36-R.Dayne HOU -4 41 -10 47 -16.8% 43 -21.0% 26 112 94 0 65%
39-S.Jackson STL -4 42 -9 45 -15.4% 41 -17.0% 52 271 191 1 73%
25-L.White TEN -6 43 -4 43 -17.4% 44 -16.0% 31 114 107 0 65%
34-V.Morency GB -8 44 -5 44 -17.6% 45 -16.3% 39 199 135 0 77%
32-C.Benson CHI -10 45 3 42 -20.7% 48 -11.9% 27 123 85 0 63%
34-E.Graham TB -10 46 6 40 -16.5% 42 -12.3% 69 324 260 0 71%
27-L.Johnson KC -12 47 -9 46 -19.2% 46 -18.0% 42 186 138 1 71%
34-D.Ward NYG -15 48 -14 49 -20.4% 47 -20.0% 40 179 129 1 65%
27-B.Jacobs NYG -17 49 -12 48 -21.6% 49 -19.4% 38 174 118 2 61%
26-D.Foster CAR -22 50 -23 51 -24.4% 50 -25.0% 36 180 104 1 69%
32-M.Pittman TB -24 51 -25 52 -24.4% 51 -25.0% 39 191 112 0 67%
34-D.Williams CAR -25 52 -32 54 -25.9% 52 -29.2% 38 175 96 1 63%
Player Team DYAR Rk YAR Rk DVOA Rk VOA Passes Yards True
Yards		 TD Catch
Rate
28-J.Chatman MIA -28 53 -22 50 -26.6% 53 -24.0% 37 161 99 0 73%
37-S.Alexander SEA -30 54 -37 55 -36.4% 58 -41.3% 25 76 33 1 56%
44-V.Leach HOU -37 55 -47 56 -30.9% 55 -35.2% 33 108 80 2 76%
25-R.Grant GB -38 56 -31 53 -31.8% 56 -28.7% 37 145 72 0 81%
28-W.Dunn ATL -48 57 -59 57 -29.6% 54 -32.9% 59 238 120 0 63%
84-K.Wilson KC -59 58 -61 58 -35.0% 57 -35.6% 50 222 78 1 48%

RECEIVING, OTHERS: 10-24 passes

Player Team DYAR YAR DVOA VOA Passes Yards True
Yards		 TD Catch
Rate
35-B.Askew TB 86 87 64.0% 65.1% 20 175 256 0 90%
23-P.Thomas NO 53 59 25.5% 29.5% 23 152 206 1 83%
32-R.Johnson CIN 39 39 32.0% 31.6% 16 110 141 1 81%
37-D.Walker HOU 37 35 25.0% 22.6% 15 81 145 0 87%
33-G.Jones JAC 34 28 11.5% 7.2% 19 99 165 2 58%
29-C.Brown TEN 33 29 14.7% 11.2% 21 128 151 0 90%
38-M.Strong SEA 33 32 32.4% 31.9% 12 72 118 0 75%
24-M.Robinson SF 26 24 28.1% 24.9% 13 73 99 0 85%
47-L.Vickers CLE 25 20 2.3% -1.1% 24 91 162 2 54%
36-A.Cason DET 22 26 16.4% 21.6% 16 129 97 0 88%
28-A.Thomas BUF 18 16 5.1% 3.1% 20 95 103 1 75%
42-D.Wynn GB 18 21 11.4% 16.1% 14 73 86 0 64%
22-T.Minor STL 17 20 5.9% 8.4% 17 86 99 0 71%
45-T.Smith ARI 15 15 9.4% 9.7% 11 59 77 0 64%
43-M.Hicks SF 14 12 2.6% 0.6% 16 86 89 0 88%
Player Team DYAR YAR DVOA VOA Passes Yards True
Yards		 TD Catch
Rate
36-K.Keith IND 13 10 -1.9% -4.6% 23 77 105 1 57%
25-G.Wolfe CHI 12 11 4.8% 2.1% 13 117 59 0 69%
27-S.Gado HOU 12 10 3.7% 0.7% 13 106 75 0 92%
32-B.Jackson GB 12 16 -3.8% -0.7% 22 130 110 0 73%
49-T.Richardson MIN 9 9 -3.2% -2.4% 16 89 76 0 69%
35-K.Hall GB 6 11 -4.0% 3.2% 11 49 59 0 73%
28-C.Buckhalter PHI 6 12 -8.6% -3.6% 21 87 97 0 57%
45-A.Hall TEN 6 6 -3.7% -4.4% 12 60 56 0 75%
44-M.Karney NO 6 3 -8.9% -11.6% 19 78 94 0 68%
45-B.Hoover CAR 6 6 -7.3% -6.8% 14 58 71 1 71%
30-A.Green HOU 4 -3 -9.7% -17.5% 18 123 73 0 78%
28-F.Taylor JAC -3 -5 -17.9% -21.4% 14 58 44 0 64%
45-M.Sellers WAS -4 1 -16.7% -13.0% 24 117 91 1 71%
38-T.Tapeh PHI -4 -1 -20.6% -15.2% 11 50 36 0 73%
20-T.Henry DEN -7 -3 -23.2% -17.5% 14 65 37 0 50%
Player Team DYAR YAR DVOA VOA Passes Yards True
Yards		 TD Catch
Rate
39-M.Hedgecock NYG -7 -4 -24.8% -20.2% 11 45 32 0 55%
38-C.Davis PIT -7 -9 -23.8% -25.9% 14 49 38 0 86%
44-M.Norris SF -12 -12 -32.3% -32.7% 11 38 21 0 55%
31-P.Holmes KC -13 -14 -40.3% -42.5% 10 17 8 1 50%
34-O.Mughelli ATL -14 -16 -38.2% -40.9% 10 36 12 0 60%
37-L.McClain BAL -15 -16 -33.1% -34.0% 13 55 25 1 69%
29-M.Bennett KC -18 -17 -30.7% -30.1% 22 103 39 1 68%
43-D.Sproles SD -21 -24 -46.2% -51.1% 12 31 3 0 83%
33-D.Rhodes OAK -21 -18 -36.9% -33.6% 18 70 22 0 61%
41-L.Neal SD -25 -25 -53.0% -52.2% 11 23 -6 1 73%
22-R.Droughns NYG -28 -25 -52.4% -47.7% 15 49 -6 0 47%
31-M.Shipp ARI -33 -33 -60.6% -60.0% 14 25 -18 0 29%
28-T.Bell DET -35 -35 -46.5% -47.0% 21 63 4 0 67%
37-C.Sapp DEN -35 -36 -40.7% -41.7% 20 51 21 1 70%
37-J.McKie CHI -37 -36 -50.6% -49.3% 15 33 -4 0 60%