Do you think Tom Rathman is a Top Ten FB of all-time???

to quote Archer 'duh and/or hello'

I guess there are different kinds of fullbacks. I don't consider most on the list as true fullbacks. Jim Brown a fullback; gimmie a break. I wouldn't hesitate to put Woody in at least the top 3 or even best true fullback. You have to count his rings too.

ehh if he is he'd probably be around the 9 or 10 area... its hard to judge FB simply because their role maybe different depending on the era or team they played for. I wouldnt be upset if somebody said he wasnt though

Originally posted by modninerfan:
ehh if he is he'd probably be around the 9 or 10 area... its hard to judge FB simply because their role maybe different depending on the era or team they played for. I wouldnt be upset if somebody said he wasnt though

you can say that about all positions... Not all QBs are gun slingers.. Joe Montana wasn't a gun slinger but John Elway was... is it hard to judge them??? NO... When it's a Top Ten List, we are talking about there all around game...

He was undoubtedly one of my favorite players, I believe he literally always fell forward when running the ball and always stretched for that extra yard. He was a badass whether he was blocking, running, or catching (I remember a crazy catch he made against the Pats in the 90's). Definitely top 10, probably top 5 but it's hard to judge because a lot of the 'old school' fullbacks seemed to get more rushing opportunities and put up bigger numbers.

Originally posted by soao:
I guess there are different kinds of fullbacks. I don't consider most on the list as true fullbacks. Jim Brown a fullback; gimmie a break. I wouldn't hesitate to put Woody in at least the top 3 or even best true fullback. You have to count his rings too.

6'2" and 232 was huge during his day and he was a good reciever as well. He is listed as both a fullback and a halfback in various publications. I consider Brown the ultimate fullback while a "true fullback" is more of a blocker. Can't find a source that says fullbacks can't be the primary run threat. But you are in good company as many concider him to be a running back (whick includes both?). The site below lists him as a fullback.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/B/BrowJi00.html

Originally posted by JRILL:

Originally posted by modninerfan:
ehh if he is he'd probably be around the 9 or 10 area... its hard to judge FB simply because their role maybe different depending on the era or team they played for. I wouldnt be upset if somebody said he wasnt though

you can say that about all positions... Not all QBs are gun slingers.. Joe Montana wasn't a gun slinger but John Elway was... is it hard to judge them??? NO... When it's a Top Ten List, we are talking about there all around game...

Actually it is almost impossible to compare qb's through time. Who was greater, Unitas or Elway? Marino or Staubach?

As the game evolves the
comparisons lose their value. And
the fullback position has changed so much it has almost disappeared from some teams.

I agree with the guy who said yes, but only in the modern game.

Originally posted by redrathman:
All time? Absolutely not.

Modern era football? Possibly.

As only us "old guys" remember the fullback once used to be a major part of an offense not just a lead blocker, getting a few token touches a game. If you call modern era football 1980-present Rathman belongs on a top ten list. A lot of rule changes in the late 70's made passing much easier, that could be a reason the fullback got diminished touches. Now a days some teams have fullbacks that can only block, see Moran Norris. Into the 70's sometimes the fullback would get more touches than the tailback. 72 Dolphins fullback Larry Csonka had 20 more carries than Mercury Morris and both had over 1,000 yards rushing.

Originally posted by BobS:

As only us "old guys" remember the fullback once used to be a major part of an offense not just a lead blocker, getting a few token touches a game. If you call modern era football 1980-present Rathman belongs on a top ten list. A lot of rule changes in the late 70's made passing much easier, that could be a reason the fullback got diminished touches. Now a days some teams have fullbacks that can only block, see Moran Norris. Into the 70's sometimes the fullback would get more touches than the tailback. 72 Dolphins fullback Larry Csonka had 20 more carries than Mercury Morris and both had over 1,000 yards rushing.

I have to agree - Mike Hempel (The Bleacher Report), Lost all Credibility when he omitted these players from his list. They are NOT (except) Jim Brown, listed in my preferred order of Greatness/Top 10:

1. Jim Brown. Jim Brown is one of the best runners of all time and is easily one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time. Over his nine-year career at Cleveland, Brown ran for 12,312 yards and 106 touchdowns. He remained the rushing leader until Walter Payton broke his record.

2. Larry Csonka. Much like Jim Brown, Larry Csonka was the go-to running back for his team but is a natural fullback and one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time. Csonka finished his career as the Miami all-time leading rusher and won three Super Bowl rings.

3. John Riggins. During the heyday of the Washington Redskins famed “Hogs,” John Riggins lined up on the offensive side of the ball and became one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time. He retired as the Redskins leading rusher with over 7,000 yards and 79 touchdowns.

4. Jim Taylor. Jim Taylor played for the Green Bay Packers and remains one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time. Taylor recorded the first rushing touchdown in Super Bowl history in 1967 and was one four championship teams in his time at Green Bay. Taylor was only the second Packers player to run for 1,000 yards and did is five times.

I am a big fan of Rathman, but I think Larry Gsonka of the Fins was a bit better.

Originally posted by wysiwyg:

Originally posted by Jakemall:
Perry, Rathman, Floyd and Beasley were all great FBs.

Craig started out as FB

And I still have fondness for #49, Earl Cooper who made the cover of SI twice as FB before being switched to TE


Man, Cooper was a bit of a mystery to me. His rookie season(81) he was a beast as runner and receiver. After that he just went down hill. They moved him to T.E. and that didn't work either. I've always wondered what happened to him after his first year.

Originally posted by JRILL:
The Niners have had some pretty good FBs after Rathman, but he is by far thee best to dawn a 49er uniform.

Floyd was good but he's the only once worth mentioning since (Beasley was horribly over-rated).

So our running back coach, past suberbowl winning FB is not Niner talk?


I'm confused.

Originally posted by dtg_9er:
It would be a very competitive top ten! From the Bleacher Report's Mike Hempel:

7. Mike Alstott, Tampa Bay Bucs

6. Paul Younger, Los Angeles Rams

5. William Henderson, Green Bay Packers

4. Lorenzo Neal, Cincinnati Bengals / San Diego Chargers

3. Marion Motley, Cleveland Browns

2. Darryl Johnston, Dallas Cowboys

1. Bronco Nagurski, Chicago Bears tie for 1st with larry zonk csonka

And from Leakos (Break Studios) Top ten Fullbacks: I like this list!

1.Jim Brown. Jim Brown is one of the best runners of all time and is easily one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time. Over his nine-year career at Cleveland, Brown ran for 12,312 yards and 106 touchdowns. He remained the rushing leader until Walter Payton broke his record.

2.Daryl Johnston. Daryl Johnston is one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time, Emmitt Smith’s blocker for three Super Bowl winning Dallas Cowboys teams. Nicknamed “Moose,” Johnston was a prototypical fullback, one of the best blockers in the league while also averaging 42 catches a season from 1993-1996.

3.Larry Csonka. Much like Jim Brown, Larry Csonka was the go-to running back for his team but is a natural fullback and one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time. Csonka finished his career as the Miami all-time leading rusher and won three Super Bowl rings.

4.John Riggins. During the heyday of the Washington Redskins famed “Hogs,” John Riggins lined up on the offensive side of the ball and became one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time. He retired as the Redskins leading rusher with over 7,000 yards and 79 touchdowns.

5.Tom Rathman. While San Francisco was peaking in the 1980's, Tom Rathman developed into one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time, winning two Super Bowls while there. He blocked for tailback Roger Craig while also contributing out of the team’s West Coast offense, leading the league in receiving for running backs in 1989.

6.Franco Harris. Hall of Fame fullback Franco Harris played for the Pittsburgh Steelers for twelve years, becoming one of the greatest fullbacks of all time. While he served mostly as a blocker in college, he went to nine Pro Bowls and won four Super Bowl rings in his NFL career.

7.Jim Taylor. Jim Taylor played for the Green Bay Packers and remains one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time. Taylor recorded the first rushing touchdown in Super Bowl history in 1967 and was one four championship teams in his time at Green Bay. Taylor was only the second Packers player to run for 1,000 yards and did is five times.

8.Mike Alstott. Mike Alstott became the new-look NFL fullback and retired in 2006 as one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time. Over his career, Alstott was a short yardage runner as well as a pass receiver. He finished his career at Tampa Bay with 58 rushing touchdowns and over 300 receptions over eleven seasons.

9.Robert Newhouse. Robert Newhouse spent twelve seasons with the Dallas
Cowboys and became one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time. When he wasn’t blocking for Hall of Famer's, Tony Dorsett and Roger Staubach, he ran for a lot of yards himself. He retired with 4,784 yards rushing and 31 touchdowns in his career/

10.Lorenzo Neal. Lorenzo Neal played for seven years in his prolific NFL career and retired in 2008 as one of the best NFL fullbacks of all time. He wasn’t a rushing fullback but served as the perfect blocking back, playing at San Diego while LaDanian Tomlinson became one of the best runners in the league.

FB is one positon that is impossible to compare era's. Jim Brown, Larry Czonka, John Riggins, Franco Harris, and Jim Taylor may have been classified as FB's but were really running backs that were simply big. IN every case (perhaps other than Taylor) they were the #1 option to run the ball. Tom Rathman and today's FB's are pretty much blocking backs that catch the ball on occasion but are never the #1 option to carry the ball.

Rathman doesnt compare to the guys listed above as RB's. However, as a pure blocking FB he is one of the best to play in my opinion.

hellzyea!