Comparing Trent Richardson to NFL's Greatest Running Backs

Trent Richardson hasn't taken the NFL by storm like many thought he would in his rookie season with the Cleveland Browns. But with a massive amount of inherent talent and upside, it's not too early to compare him to the NFL's best running backs. 

No, this isn't a look at where he currently stacks up against the greatest runners in league history, because, obviously, he has lightyears to go before he reaches even elite status in the current NFL. It's just an examination of Richardson's physical attributes, the way he plays the game and how it relates to some of the most prolific backs of all time.

Size 

At 5'9'' and 230 pounds, Richardson is undeniably a physical specimen, and he is built about as compactly as possible. 

He bears the closest resemblance to the punishing Earl Campbell—a guy who epitomized rushing power at 5'11'' and 232 pounds during his prime with the Houston Oilers in the early 1980s. 

Frankly, there hasn't been a guy constructed as thickly and bowling ball-like as Richardson in NFL history—well, among the all-time greats, this is. 

Maurice Jones-Drew, a player who could easily finish in the top 30 on the career rushing yards list, is small but loaded with power. However, he's listed at 5'7'' and 210 pounds on ESPN.com.

Running Style 

We have a rather small, eight-game sample size of Richardson's professional career to look at, but at first glance, his running style instantly reminds me of a slightly more fluid Marshawn Lynch. 

The Seattle Seahawks runner is current No. 102 on the all-time rushing yards list, but the similarities are striking. 

Lynch runs a bit more choppy through the whole, but he has deceptive agility, lateral quickness and can make defenders miss in the open field—though, more often than not, he decides to take on contact instead of eluding it. The same goes for Richardson. 

To peek back further in NFL history, I see a lot of Garrison Hearst in Richardson. 

Due to being 5'11'', Hearst ran "higher" than Cleveland's runner, but like Richardson, he possessed an ideal blend of strength, game speed, elusiveness and toughness. 

Richardson has a little Thurman Thomas in him as well, and that's speaking to his natural pass-catching ability. 

Thomas wasn't an amazingly speedy runner, but his vision and tendency to bounce past defenders on screen plays is very comparable to the way Richardson has operated as Brandon Weeden's check-down option this season. 

Early Production 

Trying to project how productive Richardson will be throughout his NFL career would be a bit foolish halfway into his rookie campaign. But we can look at how his start compares to others in history. 

As it currently stands, the Browns running back has 127 carries for 470 yards and five rushing touchdowns. He also has 25 receptions for 209 yards and one receiving touchdown in his first eight games. 

At his current rate, Richardson is on pace for a 254-carry, 940-yard, 10-touchdown season. He's also on pace for 50 grabs for 418 yards and an additional two touchdowns as a receiver. 

No, the 3.7 yards-per-carry average isn't impressive, but it'd clearly be premature to label Richardson as a bust.

Here's why. 

Emmitt Smith, another low-center-of-gravity runner—oh, and the NFL's all-time leading rusher—got 241 carries and averaged only 3.9 yards-per-rush in his first season with the Cowboys. He did score 11 rushing touchdowns, which is a number that certainly doesn't seem out of Richardson's reach this year. 

Eerily enough, though, through Smith's first eight games at the pro ranks, he totaled 102 rushes for 373 yards—a 3.65 yards-per-carry average. 

So, for the Richardson doubters out there, remember how Smith began what ultimately became the best running back career in league history. 

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