Terrell Davis and John Elway put up some milestone numbers on Sunday, but they weren’t the only ones.
Dallas’ Emmitt Smith scored his record 124th rushing touchdown Sunday night against Washington, putting him at the top of the NFL’s career list in that category, one ahead of Marcus Allen. Smith later added another TD, his 125th in nine seasons.
Buffalo’s Bruce Smith recorded his 10th sack, giving him seven straight seasons with 10 or more. It’s the 12th 10-plus sack season of his career, tying him with Reggie White for the NFL record.
Thanks to Davis, Atlanta’s Jamal Anderson didn’t get the rushing title, but he did carry 18 times to set an NFL record for most rushing attempts in a season, finishing with 410–three more than the mark set in 1984 by Tampa Bay’s James Wilder.
“That’s one of those records you don’t want to approach every year,” said Anderson, who rushed for 1,846 bruising yards this season. “But I feel good.”
GETTING A RING
Brian Billick will interview with the expansion Cleveland Browns this week, his first official chance to take over his own team after six seasons as the Minnesota Vikings’ offensive coordinator.
His resume includes this season’s NFL-record 556 points and a team-record 6,264 yards.
The Browns, who begin play next season, are the only team allowed to talk to NFL coaches whose teams are in the playoffs.
But Billick acknowledged his chances in Cleveland–or anywhere else–probably must wait to see what happens with Packers coach Mike Holmgren.
“Mike can’t take them all,” Billick said, referring to the several jobs expected to be open this off-season.
NOT BAD FOR STARTERS
He didn’t get the Heisman Trophy last year because of Charles Woodson. And he likely won’t win the top rookie honors in the NFL this season because of Randy Moss. But Peyton Manning is certainly the AFC’s best after completing the best season by a rookie quarterback in NFL history.
Manning, the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft, finished with NFL rookie records of 3,739 yards, 326 completions, 575 attempts and 26 touchdowns. He also has thrown at least one TD pass in a rookie-record 13 straight games and became the eighth quarterback since 1970 to take all of his team’s snaps for the season.
Ryan Leaf, the No. 2 pick, struggled on and off the field this year. He finished his season watching from the sidelines as San Diego lost at Arizona.
THE NFL 500
The Vikings, as mentioned above, finished the season with a record 556 points, an average of 34.8 per game. Denver finished with 501, becoming only the sixth team to reach the 500 mark. But high scoring doesn’t always mean winning it all.
Of the previous four, the 1961 Houston Oilers (36.6 a game) played in the AFL before the Super Bowl existed, and won that league’s championship. Of the other three, two did not win the Super Bowl–the 1983 Redskins and the 1984 Dolphins. The 1994 49ers scored 505 on the way to winning Super Bowl XXIX.
But the all-time single-season scoring champion, if you go by points per game, was the 1950 Los Angeles Rams. They put up 466 points in just 12 games, an amazing 38.8 average. And the Rams didn’t win the NFL title either–they lost to Cleveland 30-28 in the championship game.
RIDING OFF INTO THE SUNSET
Sunday was Irving Fryar’s final NFL game. The Eagles receiver, drafted by New England as the first overall pick in 1984, is retiring. He had three catches for 36 yards, falling 17 yards short of becoming the eighth player in NFL history with 12,000 receiving yards.
He also climbed onto his gift–a red Harley-Davidson motorcycle– and went for a brief spin on the field before the game.
“I felt pretty calm,” Fryar said. “It was pretty scary, though. It felt like a funeral. It was nice to have all my family and friends from home here to support me.”
Also retiring is referee Jerry Markbreit. The Skokie resident worked his final regular-season game (Patriots-Jets) of a 43-year career, 23 in the NFL.
