NFL top five obscure running backs

Have you ever been scrolling through TikTok and come across those slideshows of obscure NFL players? Well, I certainly have, and some of them are absolutely fantastic. Names like Dorial Green-Beckham, Eli Rogers and Ladarius Green, just to name a few.

None of those guys are running backs, though, and that’s what I’m going to focus on today. Trying to find, in my opinion, of course, the five most interesting obscure running backs to play in the NFL.

A first disclaimer, I grew up in the glorious 2010s, so this list might be mostly made up of that timeframe of backs. Another disclaimer, making up reasons for why these guys will be here is going to go beyond on-field performance; these guys weren’t stars.

Let’s get started:

1. Peyton Hillis

When you’re reciting Madden NFL Football cover athletes, do you stop at Madden 12 and think, who the heck is this Browns player on the cover? Well, it’s none other than running back Peyton Hillis.

Hillis won the cover fan vote over Eagles quarterback Michael Vick with 66% of the vote, after a 2010 campaign that saw him rush for 1,177 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Included in that season was a 184-yard, two-touchdown performance in a 34-14 upset of the New England Patriots on November 7th, 2010.

Although the rest of his seven-year career wasn’t much, his 2010 season will forever be etched into NFL lore. Oh yeah, and in 2023, he also saved his son and niece from drowning at a Florida beach, so he’s an easy guy to root for.

2. Jerome Harrison

On December 20th, 2009, the 2-11 Cleveland Browns went on the road to face the 3-10 Kansas City Chiefs in a meaningless game between two 3-11 teams. It ended up being a 41-34 shootout in favor of the Browns.

The star of this game? Not Jamaal Charles. It was Browns running back Jerome Harrison.

Harrison put up an all-time stat line of 34 carries for 286 yards and three touchdowns. That’s right, 286 yards! This tally slots him in at third in NFL history for rushing yards in a single game.

He followed this game up with a 148-yard performance against the Raiders and a 127-yard performance against Jacksonville.

Harrison tallied 862 yards in 2009, which makes up an incredible 51% of his career total of 1,681 yards. Just an incredible stretch of games from a guy who only stuck around the league for two more seasons.

3. Natrone Means

Natrone Means made most of his living with the then San Diego Chargers, as he only played for six seasons, but he was a key piece in the 1994 Chargers team that made the Super Bowl.

Means had 1,350 yards and 12 touchdowns that season, which earned him his only Pro Bowl nod in his career.

Means was 5’10 and 245 pounds with a bruising style that earned him the sick nickname of Natrone Bomb, one of the best nicknames I’ve ever heard.

4. Dri Archer

Although he only had 10 carries for 40 yards in his NFL career, most will remember Pittsburgh Steelers running back Dri Archer for what he did on the virtual football field.

In Madden’s mobile game, aptly named Madden Mobile 16, he had one of the most legendary cards in the game’s history.

Archer ran a 4.26 in the 40-yard dash in 2014, which earned him an 83 overall gold Game Changers card that gave everyone on your team +2 speed, but with the tradeoff of taking one strength attribute away.

The speed boost gave Archer 99 speed to go along with his 95 agility and 97 acceleration, making his card ridiculously fast. That card cost a fortune on the auction house, especially for a gold card.

5. Jahvid Best

Jahvid Best is a former first-round draft pick of the Detroit Lions out of the University of California. Best unfortunately only got to play two seasons because of concussion problems, but his legacy lasts past the football field.

You know how rappers will usually reference athletes, like Barry Bonds, Michael Jordan, Tom Brady and other legendary players?

Well Jahvid Best didn’t only get a reference, he got his own song, two in fact.

Rappers Lil Pint and Lil JJ both have songs called Jahvid Best.

While concussions ended his time on the gridiron, Best rebounded and ended up running the 100-meter while representing St. Lucia in the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Evan Pochas is a third-year student studying broadcast journalism. To contact him, email ejp5753@psu.edu.