Candidate #13: Thurman Thomas
Running Back >>> 5-10, 198
(Oklahoma State)
1988-1999 Buffalo Bills, 2000 Miami Dolphins
Bills’ second round in 1988 NFL Draft. . .Led NFL in total yards from scrimmage a record four consecutive seasons. . .NFL’s Most Valuable Player, 1991. . .Rushed for 1,000 yards in eight consecutive seasons. . .Career numbers include 12,074 yards rushing and 16,532 all-purpose yards. . .Selected to five consecutive Pro Bowls. . .First- or second-team All-Pro five straight years. . .All-AFC 1989-1993, All-AFC Second Team 1994. . . Born on May 16, 1966 in Houston, Texas.
Thurman Thomas slipped to the second round of the 1988 National Football League Draft due to concern about a knee injury he had suffered during his senior year at Oklahoma State. The Buffalo Bills, who had no first round pick that year, selected Thomas, an All-America running back, in the second round with the 40th overall pick.
In 1989, after an impressive rookie season that included a division title for the Bills, the multi-dimensional Thomas rushed for 1,000 yards, caught 60 passes, and scored 12 touchdowns in his second season.
His ability to catch the ball as well as run with it was a key ingredient to the Bills' "No Huddle" offensive attack. The team improved to 13-3 in 1990 as Thomas led the NFL in all-purpose yards. He rushed for 1,297 yards and scored 11 touchdowns while catching 49 passes for 532 yards and two touchdowns. With the versatile back leading the way, the Bills marched through the playoffs to the first of their unprecedented four straight Super Bowl berths.
Thomas rushed for 100 yards in each of the playoff games that post-season including Super Bowl XXV when he gained 135 yards on just 15 carries and scored on a 31-yard run early in the fourth quarter. He also had 5 receptions for 55 yards.
In 1991, Thomas amassed more than 2,000 all-purpose yards, just the 11th player ever to do so. His league-leading yardage output included 1,407 yards on the ground and an additional 631 yards on a career-high 62 receptions. He scored 12 touchdowns. He reached the 2,000-yard total again the following season which marked a record fourth straight season of leading the NFL in yards from scrimmage.
Named to the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 1990s, Thomas was selected first- or second-team All-Pro and All-AFC five times, and was voted to the Pro Bowl five straight years. Thomas retired as the NFL's ninth ranked rusher with 12,074 yards and added another 4,458 yards on 472 catches. He scored 65 rushing and 23 receiving touchdowns in his 13-season career.
Code:
+--------------------------+-------------------------+
| Rushing | Receiving |
+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+
| Year TM | G | Att Yards Y/A TD | Rec Yards Y/R TD |
+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+
| 1988 buf | 15 | 207 881 4.3 2 | 18 208 11.6 0 |
| 1989 buf | 16 | 298 1244 4.2 6 | 60 669 11.2 6 |
| 1990 buf | 16 | 271 1297 4.8 11 | 49 532 10.9 2 |
| 1991 buf | 15 | 288 1407 4.9 7 | 62 631 10.2 5 |
| 1992 buf | 16 | 312 1487 4.8 9 | 58 626 10.8 3 |
| 1993 buf | 16 | 355 1315 3.7 6 | 48 387 8.1 0 |
| 1994 buf | 15 | 287 1093 3.8 7 | 50 349 7.0 2 |
| 1995 buf | 14 | 267 1005 3.8 6 | 26 220 8.5 2 |
| 1996 buf | 15 | 281 1033 3.7 8 | 26 254 9.8 0 |
| 1997 buf | 16 | 154 643 4.2 1 | 30 208 6.9 0 |
| 1998 buf | 14 | 93 381 4.1 2 | 26 220 8.5 1 |
| 1999 buf | 5 | 36 152 4.2 0 | 3 37 12.3 1 |
| 2000 mia | 9 | 28 136 4.9 0 | 16 117 7.3 1 |
+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+
| TOTAL | 182 | 2877 12074 4.2 65 | 472 4458 9.4 23 |
+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+
Seasons among the league's top 10
Rushes: 1989-5, 1990-3, 1991-3, 1992-3t, 1993-1, 1994-8
Rushing yards: 1989-6, 1990-2, 1991-3, 1992-3, 1993-3, 1994-6
Rushing TDs: 1990-5t, 1992-5t, 1994-8t, 1996-10t
Yards from scrimmage: 1989-1, 1990-1, 1991-1, 1992-1, 1993-2, 1994-8
Rush/Receive TDs: 1989-7t, 1990-4t, 1991-4t, 1992-5
Among the league's all-time top 50
Rushes: 11
Rushing yards: 12
Rushing TDs: 29t
Yards from scrimmage: 8
Rush/Receive TDs: 29t
Postseason data
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Year Opp Result | RSH YD TD | REC YD TD
---------------------+-----------------+-----------------
1988 hou W,17-10 | 7 75 1 | 0 0 0
1988 cin L,10-21 | 4 6 0 | 0 0 0
1989 cle L,30-34 | 10 27 0 | 13 150 2
1990 mia W,44-34 | 32 117 2 | 3 38 0
1990 rai W,51-3 | 25 138 1 | 5 61 0
*1990 nyg L,19-20 | 15 135 1 | 5 55 0
1991 kan W,37-14 | 22 100 0 | 4 21 0
1991 den W,10-7 | 26 72 0 | 3 15 0
*1991 was L,24-37 | 10 13 1 | 4 27 0
1992 hou W,41-38 | 11 26 0 | 2 -3 0
1992 pit W,24-3 | 19 54 0 | 3 25 0
1992 mia W,29-10 | 20 96 0 | 5 70 1
*1992 dal L,17-52 | 11 19 1 | 4 10 0
1993 rai W,29-23 | 14 44 1 | 6 48 0
1993 kan W,30-13 | 33 186 3 | 2 22 0
*1993 dal L,13-30 | 16 37 1 | 7 52 0
1995 mia W,37-22 | 25 158 1 | 3 42 0
1995 pit L,21-40 | 13 46 1 | 3 12 1
1996 jax L,27-30 | 14 50 1 | 3 24 1
1998 mia L,17-24 | 7 33 1 | 1 3 0
1999 ten L,16-22 | 5 10 0 | 0 0 0
---------------------+-----------------+-----------------
TOTAL | 339 1442 16 | 76 672 5
* - Super Bowl