Jerome Harrison ended the 2009 season with a bang: in week 15, he rushed for 286 yards. The next week he gained 148 yards on the ground. In the season finale, he rushed for 127 yards. Harrison rushed for 862 yards in 2009, but 65% of those yards came in the last three games of the season. Not surprisingly, no RB has ever rushed for such a high percentage of his season total* in games 14, 15 and 16 of a season. The table below shows the biggest late season surprises during the history of the 16-game schedule, but before the '09 season. The "N+1rk" and "N+1gms" column shows the player's fantasy rank and the number of games in which he played in the following season.
Player |
Team |
Year |
Early |
Late |
% |
N+1rk |
N+1gms |
Onterrio Smith |
MIN |
2003 |
257 |
322 |
56 |
31 |
11 |
Johnny Johnson |
PHO |
1992 |
341 |
393 |
54 |
6 |
15 |
Natrone Means |
JAX |
1996 |
238 |
269 |
53 |
23 |
14 |
Lee Suggs |
CLE |
2004 |
365 |
379 |
51 |
130 |
8 |
Barry Word |
KAN |
1991 |
351 |
333 |
49 |
38 |
12 |
Cedric Benson |
CIN |
2008 |
392 |
355 |
48 |
19 |
13 |
Larry Johnson |
KAN |
2004 |
305 |
276 |
48 |
2 |
16 |
Ricky Williams |
MIA |
2005 |
393 |
350 |
47 |
-- |
-- |
Richard Huntley |
CAR |
2001 |
361 |
304 |
46 |
150 |
3 |
Mario Bates |
NOR |
1996 |
318 |
266 |
46 |
50 |
12 |
Terry Allen |
BAL |
2001 |
360 |
298 |
45 |
-- |
-- |
Greg Pruitt |
CLE |
1978 |
527 |
433 |
45 |
89 |
6 |
Billy Taylor |
NYG |
1980 |
320 |
260 |
45 |
105 |
8 |
Tiki Barber |
NYG |
1997 |
283 |
228 |
45 |
41 |
16 |
Thomas Jones |
TAM |
2003 |
352 |
275 |
44 |
16 |
14 |
Terrell Fletcher |
SDG |
1998 |
309 |
234 |
43 |
50 |
15 |
Maurice Morris |
SEA |
2008 |
327 |
247 |
43 |
49 |
14 |
Joe Morris |
NYG |
1984 |
291 |
219 |
43 |
4 |
16 |
Adrian Peterson |
CHI |
2007 |
291 |
219 |
43 |
100 |
15 |
Pete Johnson |
CIN |
1978 |
442 |
320 |
42 |
18 |
16 |
Frank Gore |
SFO |
2005 |
353 |
255 |
42 |
4 |
16 |
Fred Lane |
CAR |
1997 |
474 |
335 |
41 |
29 |
14 |
George Rogers |
WAS |
1985 |
642 |
451 |
41 |
7 |
15 |
Mosi Tatupu |
NWE |
1983 |
341 |
237 |
41 |
40 |
16 |
Edgar Bennett |
GNB |
1994 |
371 |
252 |
40 |
8 |
16 |
Ron Dayne |
HOU |
2006 |
365 |
247 |
40 |
31 |
13 |
Mike Rozier |
2TM |
1990 |
429 |
288 |
40 |
85 |
11 |
Here's what Harrison's line would look like:
Player |
Team |
Year |
Early |
Late |
% |
N+1rk |
N+1gms |
Jerome Harrison |
CLE |
2009 |
301 |
561 |
65 |
?? |
?? |
There are a few success stories on the list -- Johnny Johnson, Larry Johnson, Joe Morris, Frank Gore, George Rogers and Edgar Bennett turned great finishes into strong seasons the next year. But none of the players really resemble Harrison, as his 65% of late-season numbers tops the list and his 561 yards in the last three games is significantly more than what any other player did.
In fact, very few players have ever had the sort of stretch that Harrison did. O.J. Simpson rushed for 647 yards in the last three games of the 1976 season. Walter Payton rushed for 604 yards over three games in the next year. Ricky Williams rushed for 587 yards over three games in '02, Earl Campbell rushed for 583 yards in three games in the middle of the '80 season, and Mike Anderson rushed for 577 yards in a three-game stretch during the 2000 season for the Broncos. And that's it -- those are the only other guys to rush for 560 or more yards over a three game stretch since 1960.
Cleveland already had running back James Davis on the roster; Davis tore his labrum in 2009 and was a nonfactor, but could be a threat to steal touches this season. But then the Browns traded for Broncos running back Peyton Hillis and drafted Tennessee star Montario Hardesty. Most doubt Harrison's ability to hold up as an every-down player for a long stretch, and it looks like the Browns are among the doubters. But I'll always remember Harrison's stretch last December for as dominant as it was surprising.
*Minimum 500 rushing yards
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