In the history of the NFL, only 31 running backs have reached the 10,000-yard rushing milestone. But joining this exclusive club hasn't guaranteed any player induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. At this moment, nearly half of the members aren't honored with a Canton bust, and the outside-looking-in group includes Ottis Anderson, who's never even been a Hall of Fame semifinalist.
Anderson, who was drafted No. 8 overall by the then-St. Louis Cardinals back in 1979, produced one of the greatest rookie campaigns. He rushed for 1,605 yards on 331 attempts with 10 all-purpose touchdowns that year, and crossed the 1,000-yard threshold four more times across eight seasons with the team. In 1989, as a member of the New York Giants, he won Comeback Player of the Year. And with 102 rushing yards and two scores in the team's Super Bowl 25 victory over the Buffalo Bills, Anderson received game MVP honors.
"If you're looking at statistics, that's where it all lies, [with the Cardinals]. But if you look at what comes after that -- the accolades of success and excitement of it -- then you have to go to the Giants," Anderson explained to The DA Show on Wednesday. "Winning two Super Bowls, being part of great teams, having great teammates. The second half of my career, I love as much as the first.
"But the first gave me the introduction -- coming from the University of Miami, a school that wasn't really on the map at the time. I kind of helped put them on the map... I think I've earned the right to be in [the HOF], 86 touchdowns. And I don't know the criteria for how they vote you in. But going by statistics alone, I lined up against the best."
The entire football conversation between Anderson and DA can be accessed in the audio player above.
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