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NFL: Ranking every MVP winner in league history based on pro career

By Hans Themistode

NASHVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 11: Running back Adrian Peterson #28 of the Minnesota Vikings carries the ball during a NFL game against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium on September 11, 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Ronald C. Modra/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 11: Running back Adrian Peterson #28 of the Minnesota Vikings carries the ball during a NFL game against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium on September 11, 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Ronald C. Modra/Getty Images) /
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Larry Brown
Larry Brown (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images) /

Ranking every MVP winner in NFL history: 41. Larry Brown

Stats: 

  • 5,875 rushing yards
  • 35 rushing touchdowns

His time in the NFL may have been transient but running back Larry Brown left one of the more indelible impacts in the league.

The game plan for just about every NFL team in the 1970s was the same. Take the ball from under center, fake a pass and hand it directly to the running back. Smash-mouth football it’s very finest. And almost no one was more equipped to handle that sort of pressure more than Brown.

The Washington Redskins placed the burden of the entire rushing attack on his shoulders the moment he came in the league. Brown carried the ball 202 times in his rookie season, good for fourth in the league for 888 yards, also good for fourth.

In four consecutive seasons, Brown was a Pro Bowler and led the league in yards from scrimmage in 1972 with 1,689. His numbers don’t exactly jump off the page for the entirety of his career. Brown ranks 98th all-time with 5,875 rushing yards. Still, during his era, he was one of the best backs around, even if that doesn’t make him an all-timer.

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