The 2019 Baltimore Ravens rushed for an impressive 3,296 yards during the regular season, setting what was then the NFL record for most rushing yards in a single season—until now.
This week, the NFL announced it would begin incorporating statistics from the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) into its official record books. The San Francisco 49ers, who played in the AAFC from 1946 to 1949 before joining the NFL in 1950, have overtaken the Ravens for the top spot in the league's rushing history.
At the NFL's annual meetings in Florida, league owners approved a proposal from the competition committee to officially include player, coach, and team stats from the AAFC era into the NFL's historical records.
As a result, the 49ers now hold the record for the most rushing yards in a single season—a staggering 3,663 yards, achieved during the 1948 campaign. Until this week, the NFL didn't recognize those numbers in its record books.
Johnny Strzykalski led that dominant ground attack with 915 rushing yards, followed by Joe "The Jet" Perry with 562 and Forrest Hall with 413. Quarterback Frankie Albert also chipped in, adding 349 rushing yards of his own.
But that wasn't the only mark the 49ers claimed. San Francisco also averaged 6.1 yards per rushing attempt in 1948, eclipsing the Ravens' previous record of 5.8 yards per carry, achieved this past season. Perry and Strzykalski averaged career-best rushing yards per attempt in 1948, with 7.3 and 6.5 yards, respectively.