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NFL All-Time Rushing Yards Leaders, 1952 to 2025

Emmitt Smith holds the NFL career rushing record with 18,355 yards, passing Walter Payton (16,726) in 2002. Frank Gore is third with 16,000.

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What the data shows

  • In 2025, Emmitt Smith ranks #1 with 18,355, ahead of Walter Payton (16,726) and Frank Gore (16,000).
  • Back in 1952, Steve Van Buren was #1 with 5,860.
  • The top spot changed hands 4 times, first to Joe Perry in 1958, most recently to Emmitt Smith in 2002.
  • Biggest climber: Frank Gore, from #11 in 2005 to #3 in 2025.

About this chart

Emmitt Smith ran for 18,355 yards between 1990 and 2004, passing Walter Payton for the career lead in 2002. Payton (16,726) had taken the record from Jim Brown in 1984 and held it until Smith. Frank Gore is third with 16,000, ahead of Barry Sanders (15,269) and Adrian Peterson (14,918). Sanders reached his total in only 10 seasons.

Brown retired with 12,312 yards after nine seasons, 1957 to 1965, and led the list from 1963 until Payton passed him. Joe Perry passed Steve Van Buren (5,860) in 1958 before Brown passed Perry in 1963. Derrick Henry has 13,018 through the 2025 season, tenth, just behind Eric Dickerson (13,259). Regular season only, and Perry's total is NFL-only.

The data

Source: Wikipedia player career-statistics tables (regular season; parsed from raw wikitext), summed per season into cumulative career totals at each season's end; career totals cross-checked against Wikipedia's career-leaders list for the same stat. Retrieved November 4, 2026. Column = NFL season (e.g. 2025 = 2025 season, played Sep 2025-Jan 2026). Regular season only. Seasons after 2025 are excluded (2026 season in progress on 2026-11-04). Players keep their final total after retiring. The series starts in 1952, when Steve Van Buren (retired 1951, 5,860 yards) was the career leader; earlier leaders are not shown. Joe Perry's total is NFL-only (AAFC seasons excluded). Jerome Bettis shows 13,663 here versus 13,662 on some official lists.

NFL All-Time Rushing Yards Leaders, Career regular-season rushing yards, cumulative, 1952-2025, 1952–2025
Date🇺🇸 Emmitt Smith🇺🇸 Walter Payton🇺🇸 Frank Gore🇺🇸 Barry Sanders🇺🇸 Adrian Peterson🇺🇸 Curtis Martin🇺🇸 LaDainian Tomlinson🇺🇸 Jerome Bettis🇺🇸 Eric Dickerson🇺🇸 Derrick Henry🇺🇸 Jim Brown🇺🇸 Joe Perry🇺🇸 Steve Van Buren
1952000000000002,0495,860
1953000000000003,0675,860
1954000000000004,1165,860
1955000000000004,8175,860
1956000000000005,3375,860
195700000000009425,7915,860
195800000000002,4696,5495,860
195900000000003,7987,1515,860
196000000000005,0557,2465,860
196100000000006,4637,9215,860
196200000000007,4598,2805,860
196300000000009,3228,3785,860
1964000000000010,7688,3785,860
1965000000000012,3128,3785,860
1966000000000012,3128,3785,860
1967000000000012,3128,3785,860
1968000000000012,3128,3785,860
1969000000000012,3128,3785,860
1970000000000012,3128,3785,860
1971000000000012,3128,3785,860
1972000000000012,3128,3785,860
1973000000000012,3128,3785,860
1974000000000012,3128,3785,860
197506790000000012,3128,3785,860
197602,0690000000012,3128,3785,860
197703,9210000000012,3128,3785,860
197805,3160000000012,3128,3785,860
197906,9260000000012,3128,3785,860
198008,3860000000012,3128,3785,860
198109,6080000000012,3128,3785,860
1982010,2040000000012,3128,3785,860
1983011,6250000001,808012,3128,3785,860
1984013,3090000003,913012,3128,3785,860
1985014,8600000005,147012,3128,3785,860
1986016,1930000006,968012,3128,3785,860
1987016,7260000008,256012,3128,3785,860
1988016,7260000009,915012,3128,3785,860
1989016,72601,470000011,226012,3128,3785,860
199093716,72602,774000011,903012,3128,3785,860
19912,50016,72604,322000012,439012,3128,3785,860
19924,21316,72605,674000013,168012,3128,3785,860
19935,69916,72606,7890001,42913,259012,3128,3785,860
19947,18316,72608,6720002,45413,259012,3128,3785,860
19958,95616,726010,17201,48703,09113,259012,3128,3785,860
199610,16016,726011,72502,63904,52213,259012,3128,3785,860
199711,23416,726013,77803,79906,18713,259012,3128,3785,860
199812,56616,726015,26905,08607,37213,259012,3128,3785,860
199913,96316,726015,26906,55008,46313,259012,3128,3785,860
200015,16616,726015,26907,75409,80413,259012,3128,3785,860
200116,18716,726015,26909,2671,23610,87613,259012,3128,3785,860
200217,16216,726015,269010,3612,91911,54313,259012,3128,3785,860
200317,41816,726015,269011,6694,56412,35413,259012,3128,3785,860
200418,35516,726015,269013,3665,89913,29513,259012,3128,3785,860
200518,35516,72660815,269014,1017,36113,66313,259012,3128,3785,860
200618,35516,7262,30315,269014,1019,17613,66313,259012,3128,3785,860
200718,35516,7263,40515,2691,34114,10110,65013,66313,259012,3128,3785,860
200818,35516,7264,44115,2693,10114,10111,76013,66313,259012,3128,3785,860
200918,35516,7265,56115,2694,48414,10112,49013,66313,259012,3128,3785,860
201018,35516,7266,41415,2695,78214,10113,40413,66313,259012,3128,3785,860
201118,35516,7267,62515,2696,75214,10113,68413,66313,259012,3128,3785,860
201218,35516,7268,83915,2698,84914,10113,68413,66313,259012,3128,3785,860
201318,35516,7269,96715,26910,11514,10113,68413,66313,259012,3128,3785,860
201418,35516,72611,07315,26910,19014,10113,68413,66313,259012,3128,3785,860
201518,35516,72612,04015,26911,67514,10113,68413,66313,259012,3128,3785,860
201618,35516,72613,06515,26911,74714,10113,68413,66313,25949012,3128,3785,860
201718,35516,72614,02615,26912,27614,10113,68413,66313,2591,23412,3128,3785,860
201818,35516,72614,74815,26913,31814,10113,68413,66313,2592,29312,3128,3785,860
201918,35516,72615,34715,26914,21614,10113,68413,66313,2593,83312,3128,3785,860
202018,35516,72616,00015,26914,82014,10113,68413,66313,2595,86012,3128,3785,860
202118,35516,72616,00015,26914,91814,10113,68413,66313,2596,79712,3128,3785,860
202218,35516,72616,00015,26914,91814,10113,68413,66313,2598,33512,3128,3785,860
202318,35516,72616,00015,26914,91814,10113,68413,66313,2599,50212,3128,3785,860
202418,35516,72616,00015,26914,91814,10113,68413,66313,25911,42312,3128,3785,860
202518,35516,72616,00015,26914,91814,10113,68413,66313,25913,01812,3128,3785,860

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Suggested caption: “Emmitt Smith: 18,355 rushing yards. Gore still trails by 2,355.” Credit the source in your caption; it heads off the 'source?' comments.

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Frequently asked questions

Who has the most rushing yards in NFL history?

Emmitt Smith has the most, with 18,355 career rushing yards from 1990 to 2004. Walter Payton is second with 16,726 and Frank Gore third with 16,000.

When did Emmitt Smith break Walter Payton's rushing record?

Smith passed Payton in 2002. Payton had held the record since passing Jim Brown in 1984.

Where does Derrick Henry rank in career rushing yards?

Derrick Henry ranks tenth, with 13,018 rushing yards through the 2025 season. He is just behind Eric Dickerson, who finished with 13,259.

Where does this data come from?

Wikipedia player career-statistics tables (regular season; parsed from raw wikitext), summed per season into cumulative career totals at each season's end; career totals cross-checked against Wikipedia's career-leaders list for the same stat. Retrieved November 4, 2026. Column = NFL season (e.g. 2025 = 2025 season, played Sep 2025-Jan 2026). Regular season only. Seasons after 2025 are excluded (2026 season in progress on 2026-11-04). Players keep their final total after retiring. The series starts in 1952, when Steve Van Buren (retired 1951, 5,860 yards) was the career leader; earlier leaders are not shown. Joe Perry's total is NFL-only (AAFC seasons excluded). Jerome Bettis shows 13,663 here versus 13,662 on some official lists. You can download the full table as a CSV from this page.

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