Touchdown Brown is back bitches! I am writing now, and this is definitely not being ghostwritten by an intern at the Players Tribune. I am here to talk about the current runningback landscape in this NSFL season and give my take on who the best runningbacks in the league currently are based on their performance thus far. Typically, I tend to value stat leaders over efficiency leaders for a couple of reasons. When it comes down to award voting and actually looking at how players did in an actual season, I think it is unfair to value efficiency as much as actual production on the field. When you have lower rushing attempts for example, of course you are going to have higher YPC. The sim tires out runningbacks after around 25 attempts (correct me if I am wrong on this but this used to be the case) and after that 25-28 attempt mark runningbacks are essentially useless in the running game. This can hurt their efficiency numbers simply by virtue of being a bellcow. That is not to say that efficiency in terms of YPC should not be looked at, but in my opinion, it is a flawed stat. Other than that, let’s get into the top 5.
HM. Mako Mendonca - 64 Att, 264 Rushing Yards, 4.1 YPC / 18 Rec, 177 Receiving Yards, 9.8 YPR, 1 TD @Mooty99
It has been one hell of a final ride for Mako Mendonca so far, and he is running like he is fresh out of the DSFL. He has not been getting the touchdown looks he deserves (seems like those are going to his backfield partner Kichwa Jones who currently has 2 rushing touchdowns), but Austin is a very pass-heavy team and most of their points are being scored by their receivers. Mendonca fits right in with the M.O in Austin however, leading the top 5 runningbacks in receiving yards and currently second in receiving yards by pure runningbacks overall (Baby Yoda leads him with 183). Austin seems like it does not have any plans of stopping the air-raid attack led by Easton Cole, so it will be hard for Mendonca to earn those goal-line looks. But once he gets them, he will climb the rankings with ease.
5. Nicholas Ayers - 54 Att, 229 Rushing Yards, 4.2 YPC, 4 TD / 12 Rec, 128 Receiving Yards, 10.7 YPR, 2 TD @Faded
Rookie Nicholas Ayers has been an immediate impact for Honolulu. He leads the entire league in touchdowns and has 357 yards from scrimmage to boot. Saying that Honolulu has struggled on the offensive side of the ball is an understatement, but it seems like they will be using Ayers a whole lot more in leu of rookie Luke Skywalker’s struggle to get the offense going in the passing game. Overall, Honolulu’s offense is in good hands in the future with Ayers dominating in the endzone.
4. Darrel Williams - 79 Att, 291 Rushing Yards, 3.7 YPC, 3 TD / 8 Rec, 114 Receiving Yards, 14.2 YPR @Ry_
Darrel Williams has been a bright spot in a somewhat lackluster Baltimore offense. While currently in somewhat of a committee with rookie runningback Mai Fukushu, Williams is still putting in work on the ground game and putting up points on the board. Not only that, but the yards from scrimmage are there too, with 405 total. It is clear that Baltimore is relying on their ground game this season and Williams will only be getting better.
3. Marcella Toriki - 60 Att, 356 Rushing Yards, 5.9 YPC, 1 TD / 4 Rec, 7 Receiving Yards, 3.9 YPR @bex
One half of a star-studded backfield featuring Forrest Gump, Toriki has been tearing it up and a huge reason why NOLA is doing so well. Her efficiency numbers are outstanding, not only that, but she is racking up fantastic amounts of yardage, ranking second in the league in rushing yards. The fact that she is doing so well when she has to compete with Gump for yards and touchdowns is pretty remarkable.
2. Jamar Lackson - 76 Att, 326 Rushing Yards, 4.3 YPC, 5 TD / 3 Rec, 15 Receiving Yards, 5 YPR, 1 TD @BenDover
Lackson has been an offensive beast for San Jose and they have been leaning on him heavy to put points on the board for the team. He has 6 touchdowns in 4 games and will only be getting more as the season goes on. It is clear that San Jose sees Lackson as a bellcow and will continue to have him dominate the backfield and lead this offense. One thing to note is that San Jose’s defense is pretty awful this year, so they have and will continue to be playing from behind. Despite this though, Lackson is still lighting it up on the ground game. Perhaps they will involve him more in the passing game as well.
1. Mathias Hanyadi - 93 Att, 416 Rushing Yards, 4.5 YPC, 3 TD / 10 Rec, 124 Receiving Yards, 12.4 YPR @CLG Rampage
Mathias Hanyadi is not only the best runningback in the league right now by a large margin, he is also the best offensive player in the league. He is literally Yellowknife’s entire offense, and with a largely uncontested backfield, Hanyadi will only continue to be great. There is a reason why Yellowknife is second in the league in rushing attempts, and it is because of Hanyadi’s impact on the offensive side. Not only that, but he is a major threat out of the backfield in the passing game. There is literally no question that Hanyadi is the best offensive player in the league right now.
HM. Mako Mendonca - 64 Att, 264 Rushing Yards, 4.1 YPC / 18 Rec, 177 Receiving Yards, 9.8 YPR, 1 TD @Mooty99
It has been one hell of a final ride for Mako Mendonca so far, and he is running like he is fresh out of the DSFL. He has not been getting the touchdown looks he deserves (seems like those are going to his backfield partner Kichwa Jones who currently has 2 rushing touchdowns), but Austin is a very pass-heavy team and most of their points are being scored by their receivers. Mendonca fits right in with the M.O in Austin however, leading the top 5 runningbacks in receiving yards and currently second in receiving yards by pure runningbacks overall (Baby Yoda leads him with 183). Austin seems like it does not have any plans of stopping the air-raid attack led by Easton Cole, so it will be hard for Mendonca to earn those goal-line looks. But once he gets them, he will climb the rankings with ease.
5. Nicholas Ayers - 54 Att, 229 Rushing Yards, 4.2 YPC, 4 TD / 12 Rec, 128 Receiving Yards, 10.7 YPR, 2 TD @Faded
Rookie Nicholas Ayers has been an immediate impact for Honolulu. He leads the entire league in touchdowns and has 357 yards from scrimmage to boot. Saying that Honolulu has struggled on the offensive side of the ball is an understatement, but it seems like they will be using Ayers a whole lot more in leu of rookie Luke Skywalker’s struggle to get the offense going in the passing game. Overall, Honolulu’s offense is in good hands in the future with Ayers dominating in the endzone.
4. Darrel Williams - 79 Att, 291 Rushing Yards, 3.7 YPC, 3 TD / 8 Rec, 114 Receiving Yards, 14.2 YPR @Ry_
Darrel Williams has been a bright spot in a somewhat lackluster Baltimore offense. While currently in somewhat of a committee with rookie runningback Mai Fukushu, Williams is still putting in work on the ground game and putting up points on the board. Not only that, but the yards from scrimmage are there too, with 405 total. It is clear that Baltimore is relying on their ground game this season and Williams will only be getting better.
3. Marcella Toriki - 60 Att, 356 Rushing Yards, 5.9 YPC, 1 TD / 4 Rec, 7 Receiving Yards, 3.9 YPR @bex
One half of a star-studded backfield featuring Forrest Gump, Toriki has been tearing it up and a huge reason why NOLA is doing so well. Her efficiency numbers are outstanding, not only that, but she is racking up fantastic amounts of yardage, ranking second in the league in rushing yards. The fact that she is doing so well when she has to compete with Gump for yards and touchdowns is pretty remarkable.
2. Jamar Lackson - 76 Att, 326 Rushing Yards, 4.3 YPC, 5 TD / 3 Rec, 15 Receiving Yards, 5 YPR, 1 TD @BenDover
Lackson has been an offensive beast for San Jose and they have been leaning on him heavy to put points on the board for the team. He has 6 touchdowns in 4 games and will only be getting more as the season goes on. It is clear that San Jose sees Lackson as a bellcow and will continue to have him dominate the backfield and lead this offense. One thing to note is that San Jose’s defense is pretty awful this year, so they have and will continue to be playing from behind. Despite this though, Lackson is still lighting it up on the ground game. Perhaps they will involve him more in the passing game as well.
1. Mathias Hanyadi - 93 Att, 416 Rushing Yards, 4.5 YPC, 3 TD / 10 Rec, 124 Receiving Yards, 12.4 YPR @CLG Rampage
Mathias Hanyadi is not only the best runningback in the league right now by a large margin, he is also the best offensive player in the league. He is literally Yellowknife’s entire offense, and with a largely uncontested backfield, Hanyadi will only continue to be great. There is a reason why Yellowknife is second in the league in rushing attempts, and it is because of Hanyadi’s impact on the offensive side. Not only that, but he is a major threat out of the backfield in the passing game. There is literally no question that Hanyadi is the best offensive player in the league right now.
[OPTION]Height: 5'10
[OPTION]Weight: 230
[OPTION]Birthplace: Pahokee, FL
[OPTION]Number: 28
[OPTION]===========================================
[OPTION]Regular Season Stats
[OPTION]~
[OPTION]DSFL
[OPTION]SA S8: 1222 Yards | 264 Att | 15 TDs || 81 Yards | 14 Rec | 0 TDs
[OPTION]SA S9: 1665 Yards | 331 Att | 13 TDs || 92 Yards | 13 Rec | 0 TDs
[OPTION]NSFL
[OPTION]PHI S10: 1902 Yards | 452 Att | 7 TDs || 33 Yards | 6 Rec | 0 TDs
[OPTION]PHI S11: 1571 Yards | 365 Att | 15 TDs || 290 Yards | 52 Rec | 2 TDs
[OPTION]PHI S12: 1555 Yards | 375 Att | 15 TDs || 237 Yards | 30 Rec | 4 TDs
[OPTION]PHI S13: 1510 Yards | 318 Att | 14 TDs || 366 Yards | 39 Rec | 4 TDs
[OPTION]BAL S14: 1578 Yards | 368 Att | 16 TDs || 479 Yards | 62 Rec | 2 TDs
[OPTION]BAL S15: 1577 Yards | 350 Att | 14 TDs || 450 Yards | 59 Rec | 4 TDs
[OPTION]BAL S16: 1172 Yards | 260 Att | 13 TDs || 237 Yards | 31 Rec | 2 TDs
[OPTION]PHI S17: 897 Yards | 215 Att | 5 TDs || 212 Yards | 35 Rec | 2 TDs
[OPTION]CHI S18: 825 Yards | 196 Att | 4 TDs || 752 Yards | 61 Rec | 1 TDs
[OPTION]===========================================
[OPTION]Playoff Stats
[OPTION]~
[OPTION]DSFL
[OPTION]SA S8: 145 Yards | 25 Att | 0 TDs || 4 Yards | 2 Catches | 0 TDs
[OPTION]SA S9: 71 Yards | 18 Att | 1 TDs || 15 Yards | 3 Catches | 0 TDs
[OPTION]NSFL
[OPTION]PHI S12: 136 Yards | 30 Att | 0 TDs || 27 Yards | 3 Catches | 0 TDs
[OPTION]PHI S13: 93 Yards | 17 Att | 1 TDs || 4 Yards | 1 Catches | 0 TDs
[OPTION]BAL S14: 127 Yards | 25 Att | 2 TDs || 21 Yards | 3 Catches | 0 TDs
[OPTION]BAL S15: 212 Yards | 47 Att | 2 TDS || 64 Yards | 5 Catches | 1 TDs
[OPTION]===========================================
[OPTION]Trophy Case/Achievements
[OPTION]~
[OPTION]Records:
[OPTION]NSFL Most Rushing Yards In A Single Season (1902) (S10)
[OPTION]NSFL Most Rushing Attempts In A Single Season (452) (S10)
[OPTION]NSFL Most Rushing Yards Of All Time (12587)
[OPTION]NSFL Most Yards From Scrimmage Of All Time (15643)
[OPTION]Awards:
[OPTION]DSFL Offensive Player Of The Year (S8)
[OPTION]DSFL Offensive Player Of The Year (S9)
[OPTION]NSFL Offensive Player Of The Year (S10)
[OPTION]NSFL Offensive Player Of The Year (S13)
[OPTION]NSFL Runningback Of The Year (S12)
[OPTION]NSFL Runningback Of The Year (S13)
[OPTION]NSFL Runningback Of The Year (S14)
[OPTION]NSFL Runningback Of The Year (S15)
[OPTION]NSFL Most Valuable Player (S13)
[OPTION]NSFL Pro Bowl RB (S10)
[OPTION]NSFL Pro Bowl RB (S11)
[OPTION]NSFL Pro Bowl RB (S12)
[OPTION]NSFL Pro Bowl RB (S13)
[OPTION]NSFL Pro Bowl RB (S14)
[OPTION]NSFL Pro Bowl RB (S15)
[OPTION]NSFL Pro Bowl RB (S16)
[OPTION]NSFL Hall of Fame Inductee (S22)
[OPTION]Other:
[OPTION]Drafted 9th Overall In The S8 DSFL Draft To The San Antonio Marshals
[OPTION]Drafted 3rd Overall In The S9 NSFL Draft To The Philadelphia
Liberty