The 6 different ways to be a successful NFL running back

A successful drive ends in yards gained, and points scored. That’s oversimplified and as fundamental to football as breathing or walking.

But the deep rabbit hole of fascination with the game’s intricacies begins when we observe how many different ways those yards are gained and those points scored, and the varying skillsets among the core offensive positions.

Just as I did with quarterbacks last week, I tumbled down that hole with running backs, attempting to fit them into six boxes.

The bulldozing brute

These running backs are not men. No, they’re walls of humanity that happen to run forward, defying all laws of weight and motion.

This is a running back breed that’s fading somewhat now with the featured backs at the position often asked to play a more dynamic role in west coast or read-option offenses, a role which heavily features pass catching. Jerome Bettis is historically the best example of a running back who made his living lumberjacking anyone who dared to risk limbs by standing in his path, and he had all of 200 receptions over 13 seasons.

But that was fine for The Bus and the Steelers offense he played in, because they had other running backs to perform the catching function. The Bulldozing Brute is usually the proverbial thunder to another RB’s lightening, a tandem created in Pittsburgh during Bettis’ later years when he was teamed with Willie Parker. Throughout Pittsburgh’s championship season in 2005, Bettis had more rushing touchdowns than Parker (nine to Parker’s four), despite getting 145 fewer carries.

That’s how Bettis was successful in the twilight of his career, and overall creating tiny earthquakes with his 252-pound frame is what he did best. What separates Bettis from other pure bulldozers like Tampa’s Mike Alstott is that in his prime he could still accumulate significant yardage.

Alstott had a fine career too as the hammer (6’1” and 248 pounds) alongside Warrick Dunn. But his highest single-season yards per carry average was 4.1, and he didn’t once get past the 1,000 rushing yard plateau. Bettis chugged past that mark eight times, topping out at 1,665 yards in 1997. He did that while averaging 4.5 or more yards per carry in four seasons, and scoring 91 touchdowns with that menacing goal-line presence (currently tied for 10th on the all-time career rushing touchdowns list).

The pinball

Whereas the brute powers through tackles with sheer force, the pinball uses a combination of power and speed to leave defenders flailing.

Consider the difference in body type between Bettis, and two of today’s premier tackle breakers: Marshawn Lynch and Adrian Peterson. Lynch weighs 217 pounds while Peterson tips the scales at 215, so they both carry far less body luggage than Bettis. Yet in 2013 Peterson and Lynch led the league in yards after contact, and the numbers associated with that accomplishment make jaws hit floors.

Peterson was first with 829 rushing yards after he was first contacted by a would-be tackler, and he then either broke it or had the strength to stay upright and bounce. That post-contact production represented 65.5 percent of his overall rushing yardage this past season. In 2012 during his near record-setting season Peterson averaged almost four years after contact (3.92, according to Pro Football Focus).

We saw similar numbers from Lynch during the Seahawks’ Super Bowl season with his 752 yards after contact. That ended in 12 touchdowns, and it was 59.4 percent of his overall yardage.

A few years back Lynch’s pinball wizard ways also gave us this demonstration of what it looks like when a running back morphs into rubber.

The open field shaker and/or baker

Peterson fits here too, because he’s the running back union leader and does pretty much everything at a high level (71 missed tackles forced in 2012). But some running backs are particularly skilled at forcing missed tackles through their manipulation of angles, and a keen field sense.

Consider the case of Ben Tate. Ignore his health problems for a second, because that frustration could make you blind to this number: 41. That’s how many missed tackles Tate forced this past season, tying him with Jamaal Charles for seventh overall.

Two other rather important numbers here: Charles touched a football 329 times in 2013, while Tate was far behind with 215 touches.

The open-field shaker is still plenty fast, of course, but what sets him apart his an ability to cut swiftly and change direction, all while maintain a low center of gravity to absorb hits and still stay upright. That also describes a healthy Reggie Bush, C.J. Spiller, and Giovanni Bernard, who was second among running backs with 20 missed tackles forced on receptions.

The home run swingers

The thought process here is usually simple: GET BALL, SEE HOLE, RUN FAST.

This is the jetting speedster, and the running back who relies on his unmatched speed to not only find a hole first, but beat linebackers to it with ease and then escape far beyond.

Chris Johnson is the league’s foremost home run slugger, or at least he was. Johnson is at his best when he has the vision to identify a running lane or cutback opportunity, then hit it immediately for a many, many yards. During his second season in 2009 that tendency led to 2,006 rushing yards, earning him the now defunct CJ2K moniker (he’s still one of only seven running backs in league history to top 2,000 rushing yards in a season). Toss in his receiving yardage that year, and Johnson set a new record for total yards from scrimmage.

The problem with Johnson is that if he doesn’t connect on the home run, he’s left with a bloop infield fly-out. Often in recent years he’s spent far too much time juking and bouncing in the backfield, waiting for an open alley that never comes. That nothingness has shown in his steadily declining yards per carry, which hit a career low 3.9 in 2013, a dramatic departure from 2009 when it sat at 5.6.

The pass-catching waterbug

This is a unique creature who often operates as a running back in name only. Immediately coming to mind are Darren Sproles and Danny Woodhead, though Sproles is on the much further extreme with with his lack of carries, and far more frequent usage as a receiver in space.

Throughout his last two seasons in New Orleans, Sproles had less than 55 carries in each, and he averaged only 232 rushing yards. That’s because a short swing pass to the flats or a screen was his handoff, and at an average of 635.5 yearly Sproles’ receiving yardage easily trumped his production on the ground. In total he has three seasons with at least 70 catches.

Diminutive backs like Sproles and Woodhead are most effective if the scheme consistently plucks them into space, often as a slot receiver. During his final season with the Saints, Sproles was lined up either split out wide or in the slot on 39.1 percent of his snaps.

The Hybrid

Every position seems to have a hybrid, and for running backs it’s the supreme model, the Masseratti who isn’t a specialist in any single area and can instead do everything (or most things) at a high level. I’ve already mentioned Peterson in this regard, but we can also include LeSean McCoy, Jamaal Charles, and Matt Forte. The latter three each had at least 1,200 rushing yards this past season, and 50 receptions.

Like the pass-catching waterbug, this running back also excels when motioned to the slot or split out wide, with their speed and elusiveness to quickly find green grass. Charles particularly reinforced his versatility as both a runner and pass catcher this past season during his first year in a new offense. His previous single-season receiving highs of 45 catches and 468 yards were shattered by his 70 receptions for 693 yards in 2013, playing in a new system under Andy Reid that kept the passing focus safe and short.

He added 1,287 rushing yards at a pace of five yards per attempt, all while leading his team in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns.

***

Teams aren’t investing much in running backs anymore, either financially or during the draft. A few weeks ago Bishop Sankey was the first RB off the board way down at 54th overall, and during free agency Chris Johnson was rewarded all of $4 million annually.

That reflects a lack of trust in those who play a position with frequent breaking and a short career. But with the wide variety of ways they’re used, the running back won’t become extinct. Instead it’s a species going through a period of slow, passing-era evolution.