Larry Johnson is NFL's best pure runner

Filed in archive NFL on June 3, 2007

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End Zone Buzz continues its series on the NFL's Best with the best pure runner.

Unlike most Heisman Trophy candidates and college superstars, Larry Johnson did not burst onto the NFL scene.

Johnson, who was a yard-eating machine at Penn State, languished on the bench in his first two seasons in Kansas City, carrying the ball only 140 times. Of course, the Chiefs had Priest Holmes, who was widely considered the best running back in the NFL at the time.

That was then, and now with Holmes gone, Johnson has quickly become the best pure runner in the NFL.

Larry Johnson is an amazing blend of size and speed. He's 6-1, 230 and runs in the 4.4 range in the 40. He is a niftier version of a young Jamal Lewis.

In 2005, Johnson rushed for 1,750 yards on 336 carries. He averaged over five yards per carry and scored 20 touchdowns on the ground.

It was more of the same in 2006, as Johnson improved to 1,789 yards, but his average per carry declined behind a depleted offensive line. Still, Johnson averaged 4.3 yards per rush.

Larry Johnson is a pure runner, the likes of which the NFL hasn't seen since Eric Dickerson. Johnson is big, strong and fast. He can pound a defense four yards at a time, and the moment a linebacker takes a breath, Johnson will blow by him for the 40-yard TD jaunt (he took one 78 yards last year).

If you wanted to build a team around a monstrous pure runner, Larry Johnson is the guy you'd choose.