Emmitt Smith..

Emmitt Smith..

Pro Career

In 11 seasons, Emmitt Smith has made an impact on the NFL that few players can match at any position or in any era. As the third-ranked rusher in NFL history, Smith has also won four NFL rushing titles, three Super Bowl titles and a league (1993) and Super Bowl (XXVIII) MVP award. When looking at Smith's career numbers, it's easy to see why he will be remembered as one of the greatest NFL players of all-time. His career rushing total of 15,166 yards has him trailing only Walter Payton (16,726) and Barry Sanders (15,269). Smith is the NFL's career rushing touchdowns leader with 145 and stands second in league annals in total touchdowns with 156, trailing the all-time leader, Jerry Rice, by 31. Already the first player in NFL history with five straight seasons with over 1,400 yards rushing, Smith and Jim Brown are the only players with seven straight 10-touchdown seasons to start their career. With 1,203 yards rushing in 2000, Smith became just the second player in NFL history to rush for 1,000 yards in 10 consecutive seasons (Barry Sanders) and only the third player in NFL history to post 10 1,000 yard rushing seasons in his career (Payton, Sanders). He is also second on the NFL's all-time rushing attempts list with 3,537, trailing only Payton (3,838). With an NFL record 25 touchdowns in 1995, Smith scored 100 career touchdowns in just six seasons, the fastest anyone in league history has reached that mark (he tied Brown's NFL record by scoring 100 touchdowns in just 93 career games). His 145 career rushing touchdowns in 171 games gives him a 0.85 touchdown-per-game scoring average, second behind Brown's 0.90 for tops among the all-time rushing touchdown scorers (John Riggins 0.59 and Walter Payton 0.58 are next on the list). Smith is one of only three players in Dallas history with three career 100 point seasons, and he is the only non-kicker to accomplish the feat. His value to the Cowboys' success can be seen in the club's 92-23 mark (including playoffs) when he carries the ball 20-or-more times a game and 60-17 record (including playoffs) when he rushes for 100 yards. The century mark has become a big number in Smith's career, having rushed for 100 yards in 147-of-271 games dating back to high school (45-of-49 at Escambia High School, 25-of-34 at Florida and 77-of-188 at Dallas, including playoffs). Included in Smith's club-record 70 regular season 100-yard rushing games are 11 of the top 15 performances in team history and 18 days with over 150 yards (the fifth highest total of 150-yard games in NFL history). In NFL annals, Smith's 70 100-yard rushing games rank third all-time behind Payton (77) and Sanders (76). One reason Smith has become such a workhorse in the Dallas offense over the years has been his ability to answer the bell at gametime, starting 186 of a potential 188 games with Dallas ' including playoffs. The only two missed starts of his career due to injury came in the season finale at the N.Y. Giants on Dec. 24, 1994 and in a Nov. 14, 1999 game at Texas Stadium against Green Bay. That durability has enabled Smith to lead the Cowboys in rushing in 154 of his 171 career regular season games. It has also allowed Smith to rush for 3,392 yards since the start of the 1998 season ' the third highest yardage total in the NFL over that time span. Smith has accumulated a number of NFL postseason records, including rushing touchdowns (19), consecutive games with a rushing touchdown (nine) and 100-yard rushing games (seven). His 1,586 yards rushing is also tops on the NFL postseason chart, and he shares the total playoff touchdown mark of 21 with Thurman Thomas. Not limited to rushing and scoring, Smith is fourth on the Cowboys all-time reception list with 453 career catches. He trails No. 3 Tony Hill (479) on that list by 26 receptions. He is one of only three NFL players who have amassed over 10,000 career-rushing yards and 400 career receptions. He is also sixth on the NFL's all-time combined yardage list with a club record 17,973 yards. With 668 combined yards in 2001, he will move into third on the NFL's all-time list. Smith is also the Cowboys all-time leading scorer with 938 points.

2000

Smith continued his trek through league and club record books for the 11th straight season. For the 10th consecutive season, he rushed for over 1,000 yards (1,203), becoming only the second player in NFL history to accomplish that feat (Sanders) and only the third player in history to total 10 career 1,000 yard seasons (Sanders, Payton). His rushing effort ranked fourth in the NFC and 13th in the NFL for the season. Following the season, he was selected to his ninth Pro Bowl (missed due to a left ankle injury), the most of any Cowboy in franchise history other than Bob Lilly (11 appearances) and Mel Renfro (10). Among NFL running backs, only