RANKING THE TOP 5 RB CLASSES IN NFL DRAFT HISTORY

It's no secret that the 1983 NFL Draft was best known for producing some of the greatest quarterbacks in history. John Elway, Jim Kelly, and Dan Marino were all selected in the first round that year and wound up in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Three other solid QBs — Todd Blackledge, Tony Eason, and Ken O'Brien — were also picked in the first round and had solid NFL runs.

That same '83 draft also had its share of big-time running backs who went on to have stellar careers. We went back in time to take a look at every single NFL draft in history to find the best overall running back classes of all time. Did the 1983 group make the cut?

1952

Three future Hall of Fame RBs were selected in the first round

You've got to go back more than 70 years to come up with the best NFL draft class for running backs. That happened in 1952 when three future running backs heard their names called.

With the third overall pick, the Chicago Cardinals selected San Francisco's Ollie Matson, who began his NFL career with five straight All-Pro seasons. While the numbers were far different back then, Matson rushed for a career-high 924 yards in 12 games during the 1956 season, also scoring six touchdowns. Matson played 14 seasons with four different teams and finished with six Pro Bowl appearances and seven All-Pro selections. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1972.

At No. 9 of the 13 first-round picks, the San Francisco 49ers grabbed Hugh McElhenny, who went on to play 13 seasons in the league. He began his pro career with two All-Pro seasons and ultimately ended up with five. As a rookie, McElhenny rushed 98 times for 684 yards and six touchdowns. He finished with six Pro Bowl seasons and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1970.

Two picks after McElhenny, the New York Giants took Frank Gifford, who had seven straight Pro Bowl seasons from 1953 to 1959. During that same stretch, he was also named an All-Pro six times. Gifford was named NFL MVP in 1956 by several organizations (the AP choice wasn't considered the "real" MVP until 1957) when he led the NFL with 1,422 yards from scrimmage. He was enshrined into the Hall of Fame in 1977.

1957 NFL Draft

Jim Brown highlighted a draft with two HOF running backs picked in the top six

Five years after the 1952 draft produced three Hall of Famers in the first round, the 1957 NFL Draft nearly did the same. Three of the top six picks were running backs. Two wound up in the Hall of Fame, and the third had one heck of a football career.

The Green Bay Packers selected Notre Dame's Paul Hornung with the first pick in 1957. In 1960, the Heisman Trophy winner led the NFL in touchdowns with 13. The following season, he was named the league's MVP. Hornung ultimately earned three All-Pro selections and helped the Packers to four NFL championships and one Super Bowl title. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1986.

Right after Hornung, the Los Angeles Rams took USC's Jon Arnett, who began his career with five straight Pro Bowl seasons, also earning a pair of All-Pro selections. He finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting in 1957. Arnett played seven years with the Rams and then three more with the Chicago Bears.

At No. 6, the Cleveland Browns selected Jim Brown, who became arguably the best running back of all time. Brown played nine seasons in the league — all with Cleveland — and led the NFL in rushing eight times, ending his career with a then-record 12,312 yards.

Brown was a three-time NFL MVP, an NFL champion, and earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections every year of his career. He was inducted into the Hall in 1971.

1983 NFL Draft

The 1983 NFL Draft was known for more than just quarterbacks

We know quarterbacks were the talk of the 1983 NFL Draft, but there were some pretty good running backs in that class as well.

After Elway was taken with the No. 1 overall pick, the Los Angeles Rams took another future Hall of Famer, Eric Dickerson, and he went on to become one of the greatest No. 2 picks of all time.

In his first NFL season, the SMU product led the NFL with 1,808 rushing yards. He also finished with 18 touchdowns on the ground. He led the NFL in rushing in his second season, eclipsing the 2,000-yard rushing mark with a league-record 2,105 yards and an NFL-best 14 touchdowns.

Dickerson had eight 1,000-yard seasons in his career and led the NFL in rushing four times. He had five All-Pro seasons, earned six trips to the Pro Bowl, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1999.

With the third pick in the draft, the Seattle Seahawks took Curt Warner, a three-time Pro Bowler and Second-Team All-Pro who rushed for 1,449 yards and 13 touchdowns as a rookie. Warner had four 1,000-yard seasons in his eight years in the NFL.

The biggest running back steal in the draft came in the second round when the San Francisco 49ers took Roger Craig with the 49th overall pick. Craig was a dual threat out of the backfield and had 1,000 yards rushing (1,050) and receiving (1,016) in 1985, the first of his four Pro Bowl seasons.

In 1988, Craig, who helped the Niners to three Super Bowl victories, was the AP's Offensive Player of the Year after leading the NFL in yards from scrimmage with 2,036. He finished with a career-high 1,502 rushing yards and added nine touchdowns that season.

1990 NFL Draft

Emmitt Smith led the way for the 1990 class

Although the New York Jets whiffed with Blair Thomas on the second pick of the 1990 NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys came through with Emmitt Smith at No. 17.

Smith was one of six running backs selected in the first round in 1990 and one of two who made a significant impact in the league. The NFL's all-time leading rusher was named Rookie of the Year and then led the NFL in rushing yards four of the next five years.

Smith earned NFL MVP honors in 1993 after leading the NFL with 1,486 rushing yards and then went on to win Super Bowl MVP as well. The three-time champion was an eight-time Pro Bowler, a five-time All-Pro, and ended his Hall of Fame career with 18,355 yards.

Rodney Hampton, drafted by the New York Giants with the 24th overall pick in 1990, also made a significant impact with his team. Hampton had five consecutive 1,000-yard seasons and was named to the Pro Bowl in the 1992 and 1993 seasons. He was also a Super Bowl champion.

The 1990 draft also had some later finds, including Harold Green (Round 2), Leroy Hoard (Round 2), Chris Warren (Round 4), Barry Foster (Round 5), Brian Mitchell (Round 5), and Johnny Johnson (Round 7).

2008 NFL Draft

The 2008 NFL Draft may be the deepest of the running back bunch

There were no knock-'em-dead Hall of Fame running backs drafted in 2008, but there was plenty of talent in this class.

The 2008 NFL Draft had five running backs taken in the first round, and all had solid NFL careers. Darren McFadden was the first one taken at No. 4 by the Oakland Raiders. McFadden enjoyed a 10-year career and had a pair of 1,000-yard seasons. At No. 13, the Carolina Panthers selected Jonathan Stewart, who played 11 years and had a Pro Bowl season in 2015.

Three straight running backs were chosen from picks 22 to 24, starting with Felix Jones of the Dallas Cowboys. Jones was followed by Rashard Mendenhall of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Chris Johnson of the Tennessee Titans.

Johnson was arguably the best of the bunch, rushing for a league-high 2,006 yards in 2009, a year he was named Offensive Player of the Year. The speedy Johnson began his career with six straight years of rushing for better than 1,000 yards, the first three of which earned him trips to the Pro Bowl.

The Chicago Bears snagged Matt Forte in the second round, while the Baltimore Ravens took Ray Rice. Both had outstanding NFL careers. In Round 3, the Kansas City Chiefs selected Jamaal Charles, who made four Pro Bowls and rushed for better than 1,000 yards five times.

While not one of the backs stands out, all played significant roles throughout their careers.

All stats courtesy of Pro Football Reference unless stated otherwise.

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