List of NFL 1,000-yard rushing duos

Atlanta Falcons halfback Warrick Dunn recorded 1,140 rushing yards in 2006, the most yards of any member of a 1,000-yard rushing duo.

In American football, running (also referred to as rushing) is, along with passing, one of the two main methods of advancing the ball down the field.^[1] A running play generally occurs when the quarterback hands or tosses the ball backwards to the running back,^[2] but other players, such as the quarterback, can run with the ball.^[1] In the National Football League (NFL), there have been six pairs of teammates that have each recorded 1,000 rushing yards in the same season. Five of these duos consisted of running backs, and a sixth consisted of a running back and a quarterback.

The first 1,000-yard duo consisted of fullback Larry Csonka and halfback Mercury Morris. Csonka and Morris accomplished the feat as members of the Miami Dolphins during their 1972 season, when the team finished undefeated and won the Super Bowl. Morris finished with an even 1,000 yards; he had initially been credited with only 991 yards after the end of the regular season, due to a statistician's error that incorrectly removed nine yards from his total.^[3] The second 1,000-yard tandem occurred four years later in 1976, when fullback Franco Harris and halfback Rocky Bleier both surpassed 1,000 yards playing for the Pittsburgh Steelers.^[4] Fullback Kevin Mack and halfback Earnest Byner became the third 1,000-yard duo, accomplishing the feat during the 1985 Cleveland Browns season.^[5]

In 2006, halfback Warrick Dunn and quarterback Michael Vick became the fourth duo with 1,000 rushing yards in the same season. Vick also became the first quarterback to rush for over 1,000 yards in a single season,^[6] while Dunn's 1,140 yards are the most by any player in a 1,000-yard duo.^[7] Brandon Jacobs and Derrick Ward of the New York Giants were the fifth duo to accomplish the feat, doing so in 2008.^[8] DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart of the Carolina Panthers are the most recent players to have accomplished the feat, having done so in 2009. In addition to being the sixth 1,000-yard backfield tandem, the two are also the only 1,100-yard rushing duo.^[9]

1,000-yard rushing duos

Key

Symbol	Meaning
No.	nth duo to have 1,000 rushing yards each
Position	The player's position
GP	Games played
Yds.	Rushing yards
Y/A	Yards per rushing attempt
TDs	Rushing touchdowns
^	Super Bowl champions
	Pro Bowl player
	Pro Football Hall of Fame member
*	Active NFL player

List of teammates with at least 1,000 rushing yards each

No.	Season	Team	Leading rusher	Position	Games	Yds.	Y/A	TDs	Second-leading rusher	Position	Games	Yds.	Y/A	TDs	Ref(s).
1	1972	Miami Dolphins^	Larry Csonka	Fullback	14	1,117	5.2	6	Mercury Morris	Halfback	14	1,000	5.3	12	[10][11]
2	1976	Pittsburgh Steelers	Franco Harris	Fullback	14	1,128	3.9	14	Rocky Bleier	Halfback	14	1,036	4.7	5	[12][13]
3	1985	Cleveland Browns	Kevin Mack	Fullback	16	1,104	5.0	8	Earnest Byner	Halfback	16	1,002	4.1	8	[14]
4	2006	Atlanta Falcons	Warrick Dunn	Halfback	16	1,140	4.0	4	Michael Vick*	Quarterback	16	1,039	8.4	2	[15]
5	2008	New York Giants	Brandon Jacobs	Halfback	13	1,089	5.0	15	Derrick Ward	Halfback	16	1,025	5.6	2	[16]
6	2009	Carolina Panthers	Jonathan Stewart*	Halfback	16	1,133	5.1	10	DeAngelo Williams*	Halfback	13	1,117	5.2	7	[17]

List of teammates with at least 900 rushing yards each

Season	Team	Leading Rusher	Yds.	Second-leading Rusher	Yds.	Reference
1973	Miami Dolphins[a]^	Larry Csonka	1003	Mercury Morris	954	[18]
1973	Cincinnati Bengals[a]	Essex Johnson	997	Boobie Clark	988	[18]
1978	Chicago Bears	Walter Payton	1395	Roland Harper	992	[19]
1980	Atlanta Falcons	William Andrews	1308	Lynn Cain	914	[20]
1988	Cincinnati Bengals[a]	Ickey Woods	1036	James Brooks	931	[21]
2004	Atlanta Falcons[a]	Warrick Dunn	1106	Michael Vick*	902	[22]
2005	Denver Broncos	Mike Anderson	1014	Tatum Bell	921	[23]
2006	Jacksonville Jaguars	Fred Taylor	1146	Maurice Jones-Drew	941	[24]
2011	Houston Texans	Arian Foster*	1224	Ben Tate	942	[25]

Notes

• ^a The 1973 Miami Dolphins, 1973 Cincinnati Bengals, 1988 Cincinnati Bengals and 2004 Atlanta Falcons all had two 900-yard rushers in the regular season, but did not have two 1,000-yard rushers in the regular season. However, including postseason games, all four teams had two 1000 yard rushers.

Footnotes