Worst RBs/WRs with a 1000 yard season?

[rhickok1109]

The worst receiver was probably Peter Warrick, who never reached his press clippings. He blamed Bengal coaching and being forced into the slot but he never made plays ...

Warrick came to mind for me, too. Although looking at his career he never had a 1000-yard season. I think the worst WR with 1000 yards was Bill Schroeder of the Packers, but he almost had 3 1000-yard seasons in a row because the Packer WRs kept getting hurt. So not sure of that.

The worst WR I've ever seen was a guy named R Jay Soward. He was kind of like the Peter Warrick of USC, and the Jags picked him in the 1st round. He last one year in the NFL, and I looked at his stats....34 targets, 14 catches, 154 yards, 3 fumbles. Hard to imagine.

As a Packer fan, I think you're probably right about Schroeder. He had speed but that was about all. No brains at all. TV cameras often caught Holmgren on the sidelines berating him, probably for running the wrong route. He was responsible for at least 3 Favre INTs that I know of because Favre threw the ball to where he was supposed to go and he didn't go there.

[Gary Najman]

The worst RB who gained 1,000 yards I've seen was John Settle. I believe he was the first free agent RB to gain 1,000 yards in 1988 with the Falcons. He ran for less than 700 yards in his other 3 seasons, with less than 4 yards per carry on average.

[JWL]

Ron Moore gained 1,018 rushing yards for Phoenix in 1993 after being drafted in the 4th round. He was a, relatively-speaking, slow plodder of a running back. He had two career games with 30 or more carries with less than 100 yards. After two years with the Cardinals he was traded for Rob Moore. After doing close to nothing for the Kotite Jets he bounced around before playing his final game in 1998.

[Gary Najman]

Another RB who I'm thinking of is Charles White. Drafted by the Browns after a stellar career at USC, he ran for less than 1,000 yards in 4 seasons in Cleveland, with a 3.4 yards average. Went to the Rams, where he was a backup to Eric Dickerson, and then the Rams traded Dickerson to the Colts, White became the starter and led the entire NFL in carries, rushing yards and rushing TDs because he had played in the three scab-replacement games. He only played one more year before retiring.

[Ronfitch]

Don Woods was a sixth round draft choice by the Packers in ‘74. Cut by the Packers in camp, the Chargers picked him up and he went on to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and be named to the PFWA All-Rookie team after rushing for 1162 yards in 12 games ,averaging 5.1 ypc. He added another 349 yards receiving, scored 10 touchdowns and even threw for a score.

He played another six seasons, but never recaptured that magic again.

[JohnTurney]

I didn't see Edgar Bennett's name mentioned--1995, 1,000 rushing, low YPC, but a very good receiver ...

Anthony Johnson, 1996, Carolina, a decent caddy for Eric Dickerson in Indy but not a 1A-type ...
could get you 1,000 if got enough carriers

[Jay Z]

Don Woods was a sixth round draft choice by the Packers in ‘74. Cut by the Packers in camp, the Chargers picked him up and he went on to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and be named to the PFWA All-Rookie team after rushing for 1162 yards in 12 games ,averaging 5.1 ypc. He added another 349 yards receiving, scored 10 touchdowns and even threw for a score.

He played another six seasons, but never recaptured that magic again.

The offensive line of the 1972-74 Chargers teams was easily the best part of the team. A lot of the highlights for Woods, he's going off tackle and isn't touched at the line of scrimmage and that's always going to be a big win for any RB.

Woods did hurt a knee the next year, but his YPC was already way down.

[Brian wolf]

Actually John, I am a fan of Bennett, who did a lot of tough things including blocking in the Mike Holmgren offense. He could wear down but also keep drives alive with running and catching passes while being a teammate that every championship team needs.

Though his role reduced once the more talented Levins came aboard, Bennett was always a leader that helped a young Packers team reach the top. Like Roger Craig, Bennett had a crucial injury that affected his career where he retired a Bear ...

[JohnTurney]

Actually John, I am a fan of Bennett, who did a lot of tough things including blocking in the Mike Holmgren offense. He could wear down but also keep drives alive with running and catching passes while being a teammate that every championship team needs.

Though his role reduced once the more talented Levins came aboard, Bennett was always a leader that helped a young Packers team reach the top. Like Roger Craig, Bennett had a crucial injury that affected his career where he retired a Bear ...

Several really good backs/receivers on this list at least I see some. The baseline is 1,000 yards ... the game was the list the least among them ...but all of them are pretty good, IMO ... just to get there. But it's also possible some guys got helped by scheme as well, i.e. average back boosted by system.

[JameisBrownston]

Yeah, there've been some solid players in this thread. Especially as you go farther back in history, it becomes really hard to find the kind of "Cotton-Eyed Joe" players (where did they come from, where did they go?!) you see these days like Robinson, Stacy, and Lindsay. 1000 yards was just a higher bar before the 21st century, so most who hit it either came from at least some pedigree, or their demonstrated success held teams' attention a bit longer, so they hung around and had at least decent careers.

Interestingly, you can go back really far and find some - Beattie Feathers and Tex Hamer are both strong examples, as well as Charley Rogers for 1000 YFS. Beattie probably would've been a HOFer if he stayed healthy, but the Frankford guys are textbook Cotton-Eyed Joes. Both came from little collegiate fanfare as far as I could tell, both had their 1000 yards as rookies, and both flamed out almost as quickly.