...

dlphg9 · 03-12-2020, 10:34 PM

So as I was in the middle of doing some research for a post I went down a rabbit hole and eventually found myself looking at Gale Sayers stats. I may be completely off base here, because admittedly I have never watched any Gale Sayers highlights and am basing this on stats, but how in the hell is he in the HOF? Hell USA Today had him ranked as number 21 all time, 247sports has him ranked as 48 all time.

He played for 7 seasons, but only played a total of 4 games in years 6 and 7 combined. He only had 2 1000 yard seasons and those were the only times he led the league in rushing. He only had 2 seasons in which he had double digit receiving + rushing TDs. He was amazing at punt and kick off returns, but that was only for his first 3 years.

His career accomplishments aren't really that great, besides being AP 4 times. He never even got to play in a playoff game, so he obviously doesn't have any SB championships. He isn't even in the top 100 for career rushing yards, hell he's barely even in the top 150 coming in at 145th. He had a massive amount of rushing TDs though... 39...

He was good at 1 thing when it came to carrying the ball and that was fumbling. He almost has as many fumbles (34) as he does rushing TDs (39). Hell in a couple of seasons he had significantly more fumbles than rushing TDs.

Yr/Rush TDs/Fumbles

1/14/9
2/8/2
3/7/8
4/2/7
5/8/7
6/0/1
7/0/0

Out of 7 years he fumbled more than he rushed for a TD in 3 of those years.

He does have a few things on his resume that are pretty decent. He averaged 5.0 ypc over his entire career, was a fantastic returner during his first 3 years, and his rookie season he had 14 rush TDs, 6 receiving TDs, 1 kickoff return TD, and 1 punt return TD. I think his rookie season may be the reason he is so highly regarded. He is just incredibly over rated and seems to get a boost from being injury prone.

Someone prove me wrong.

Ubeja Vontell · 03-13-2020, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TomBarndtsTwin

Davis had one fantastic season and two really good ones.

But he was a product of their running scheme. It’s why you saw Denver’s rushing attack plug right along without missing a beat when they inserted the likes of Mike Anderson and Olandis Gary.

First four seasons

1117
1538
1730
2008

Scored 56 rushing TD's. that is great!!!!!!!!

His average season....1370 yards 14TD'S

Nickhead · 03-13-2020, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TomBarndtsTwin

Imagine if he had gone to the Chiefs instead with that dominant defense they had in the 60’s. He could have won multiple championships and might be remembered as the greatest of all time (or close to).

Now, you really wanna talk about overrated RB’s in the HOF? Terrell Davis (only 3 good years, product of zone blocking scheme in which backs like Olandis Gary and Mike Anderson had similar success running). Jerome Bettis (I’m big, hard to tackle and played forever so I should be in the HOF) There’s a couple RB’s who have no business being in the HOF.

OJ says he is innocent

TomBarndtsTwin · 03-13-2020, 05:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ubeja Vontell

First four seasons

1117
1538
1730
2008

Scored 56 rushing TD's. that is great!!!!!!!!

His average season....1370 yards 14TD'S

His first season he was 10th in the league in yards with single digit TD’s. That’s not particularly impressive, especially when you consider guys like Rondey Hampton and Harvey Williams (yes, THAT Harvey Williams) we’re doing the same thing.

So like I said, one fantastic season (the 2,000 yard season) and two really good ones.

But again, product of a system . . . . .

Ubeja Vontell · 03-13-2020, 05:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TomBarndtsTwin

His first season he was 10th in the league in yards with single digit TD’s. That’s not particularly impressive, especially when you consider guys like Rondey Hampton and Harvey Williams (yes, THAT Harvey Williams) we’re doing the same thing.

So like I said, one fantastic season (the 2,000 yard season) and two really good ones.

But again, product of a system . . . . .

This is "product of a system" really?

TomBarndtsTwin · 03-13-2020, 06:08 PM

That’s great.

Give me an hour (no, I’m not going to BTW) and I can put together a highlight reel for Harvey Williams for the best runs from his career. That’s what a highlight reel is. It shows all the highlights w/o focusing on any of the other stuff.

Davis was a great NFL RB and had an amazing 3 season run, but that’s it. 3 seasons. And again, if he was so dynamic, how was it that the Broncos rushing attack didn’t hardly miss a beat when they plugged in Gary and Anderson after he was gone?

Is it more than likely that they were HOF caliber players too or could it be that the Donkos with their zone blocking scheme and they’re cheap (borderline dirty) cut blocks made those RB’s look better than they really were?

Made a great RB look like a HOF Rb for 3 seasons and a couple JAG’s look like great NFL backs.

Let’s be real and call it what it is.

Ubeja Vontell · 03-13-2020, 06:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TomBarndtsTwin

That’s great.

Give me an hour (no, I’m not going to BTW) and I can put together a highlight reel for Harvey Williams for the best runs from his career. That’s what a highlight reel is. It shows all the highlights w/o focusing on any of the other stuff.

Davis was a great NFL RB and had an amazing 3 season run, but that’s it. 3 seasons. And again, if he was so dynamic, how was it that the Broncos rushing attack didn’t hardly miss a beat when they plugged in Gary and Anderson after he was gone?

Is it more than likely that they were HOF caliber players too or could it be that the Donkos with their zone blocking scheme and they’re cheap (borderline dirty) cut blocks made those RB’s look better than they really were?

Made a great RB look like a HOF Rb for 3 seasons and a couple JAG’s look like great NFL backs.

Let’s be real and call it what it is.

You can take the careers of Harvey Williams, Mike Anderson and Olandis Gary and combine what they did and it won't match Davis, he was on a totally different level and it was very obvious.

Davis a three time All Pro.

TomBarndtsTwin · 03-13-2020, 06:42 PM

Right, again, 3 seasons.

It should take more than that to make an All Time NFL great.

Ubeja Vontell · 03-13-2020, 06:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TomBarndtsTwin

Right, again, 3 seasons.

It should take more than that to make an All Time NFL great.

Check out Hall of Famer Lynn Swann

https://www.pro-football-reference.c...S/SwanLy00.htm

Check out Hall of Famer Floyd Little

https://www.pro-football-reference.c...L/LittFl00.htm

Willie Lanier · 03-13-2020, 07:22 PM

Gale Sayers is 100% a hall of famer

He was damn near unstoppable when he was healthy

Ubeja Vontell · 03-13-2020, 07:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Willie Lanier

Gale Sayers is 100% a hall of famer

He was damn near unstoppable when he was healthy

He was totally amazing.

TomBarndtsTwin · 03-13-2020, 08:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ubeja Vontell

Check out Hall of Famer Lynn Swann

https://www.pro-football-reference.c...S/SwanLy00.htm

Check out Hall of Famer Floyd Little

https://www.pro-football-reference.c...L/LittFl00.htm

Never said either of those two belong in the Hall. They don’t.

Neither does Davis. Nor does Bettis, for that matter.

Ubeja Vontell · 03-13-2020, 08:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TomBarndtsTwin

Never said either of those two belong in the Hall. They don’t.

Neither does Davis. Nor does Bettis, for that matter.

WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bettis had 8 1000 plus seasons, scored 94...94!!!...TD;s.

Made six pro bowls, and was All Pro twice.

That is a HOF career,

scho63 · 03-13-2020, 09:02 PM

I never saw Gale Sayers play but so many people felt he was an incredible talent at that moment in time.

I certainly don't think he sucked and my first understanding of Gale Sayers was the movie Brian's Song. That was some powerful shit right there. Transcending race, religion and politics for friendship. One of the Top Ten sport movies ever.

Ubeja Vontell · 03-13-2020, 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scho63

I never saw Gale Sayers play but so many people felt he was an incredible talent at that moment in time.

I certainly don't think he sucked and my first understanding of Gale Sayers was the movie Brian's Song. That was some powerful shit right there. Transcending race, religion and politics for friendship. One of the Top Ten sport movies ever.

Would you watch a video of Sayers and the magic?

In my opinion....

Jim Brown
Barry Sanders
Walter Payton
Gale Sayers...by far the fastest

Willie Lanier · 03-13-2020, 09:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TomBarndtsTwin

Never said either of those two belong in the Hall. They don’t.

Neither does Davis. Nor does Bettis, for that matter.

You have a fairly stringent definition, but I can see your point

03-12-2020, 10:34 PM
dlphg9 MVP dlphg9's Avatar Join Date: Oct 2010	Gale Sayers - Extremely over rated? So as I was in the middle of doing some research for a post I went down a rabbit hole and eventually found myself looking at Gale Sayers stats. I may be completely off base here, because admittedly I have never watched any Gale Sayers highlights and am basing this on stats, but how in the hell is he in the HOF? Hell USA Today had him ranked as number 21 all time, 247sports has him ranked as 48 all time. He played for 7 seasons, but only played a total of 4 games in years 6 and 7 combined. He only had 2 1000 yard seasons and those were the only times he led the league in rushing. He only had 2 seasons in which he had double digit receiving + rushing TDs. He was amazing at punt and kick off returns, but that was only for his first 3 years. His career accomplishments aren't really that great, besides being AP 4 times. He never even got to play in a playoff game, so he obviously doesn't have any SB championships. He isn't even in the top 100 for career rushing yards, hell he's barely even in the top 150 coming in at 145th. He had a massive amount of rushing TDs though... 39... He was good at 1 thing when it came to carrying the ball and that was fumbling. He almost has as many fumbles (34) as he does rushing TDs (39). Hell in a couple of seasons he had significantly more fumbles than rushing TDs. Yr/Rush TDs/Fumbles 1/14/9 2/8/2 3/7/8 4/2/7 5/8/7 6/0/1 7/0/0 Out of 7 years he fumbled more than he rushed for a TD in 3 of those years. He does have a few things on his resume that are pretty decent. He averaged 5.0 ypc over his entire career, was a fantastic returner during his first 3 years, and his rookie season he had 14 rush TDs, 6 receiving TDs, 1 kickoff return TD, and 1 punt return TD. I think his rookie season may be the reason he is so highly regarded. He is just incredibly over rated and seems to get a boost from being injury prone. Someone prove me wrong.
Posts: 16,924

03-13-2020, 06:08 PM	#65
TomBarndtsTwin MVP TomBarndtsTwin's Avatar Join Date: Mar 2013	That’s great. Give me an hour (no, I’m not going to BTW) and I can put together a highlight reel for Harvey Williams for the best runs from his career. That’s what a highlight reel is. It shows all the highlights w/o focusing on any of the other stuff. Davis was a great NFL RB and had an amazing 3 season run, but that’s it. 3 seasons. And again, if he was so dynamic, how was it that the Broncos rushing attack didn’t hardly miss a beat when they plugged in Gary and Anderson after he was gone? Is it more than likely that they were HOF caliber players too or could it be that the Donkos with their zone blocking scheme and they’re cheap (borderline dirty) cut blocks made those RB’s look better than they really were? Made a great RB look like a HOF Rb for 3 seasons and a couple JAG’s look like great NFL backs. Let’s be real and call it what it is.
Posts: 8,826

03-13-2020, 06:42 PM	#67
TomBarndtsTwin MVP TomBarndtsTwin's Avatar Join Date: Mar 2013	Right, again, 3 seasons. It should take more than that to make an All Time NFL great.
Posts: 8,826

03-13-2020, 07:22 PM	#69
Willie Lanier Veteran Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Canton	Gale Sayers is 100% a hall of famer He was damn near unstoppable when he was healthy
Posts: 1,981

03-13-2020, 09:02 PM	#73
scho63 Politically Incorrect scho63's Avatar Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Scottsdale, AZ	I never saw Gale Sayers play but so many people felt he was an incredible talent at that moment in time. I certainly don't think he sucked and my first understanding of Gale Sayers was the movie Brian's Song. That was some powerful shit right there. Transcending race, religion and politics for friendship. One of the Top Ten sport movies ever.
Posts: 50,600