On the final Sunday of the 2023 NFL regular season, Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry became Alabama’s all-time NFL rushing leader.
On January 7, “King Henry” gained 153 yards on 19 carries in a 28-20 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars, bringing his career rushing total to 9,502 yards in eight NFL seasons.
That propelled Henry above Shaun Alexander to the #1 spot on Alabama’s NFL running list. Alexander rushed for 9,453 yards throughout nine NFL seasons.
In 2023, Henry rushed for 1,167 yards and 12 touchdowns on 280 runs, finishing second in the NFL in rushing. With 1,035 yards, Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najee Harris gave the Crimson Tide two 1,000-yard NFL rushers in 2023.
This season, seventeen former Alabama players made rushing attempts. They rushed for 6,714 yards and 62 touchdowns on 1,633 attempts. Former Alabama players contributed for 11% of the NFL’s rushing yards during the 2023 regular season.
Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles is the next quarterback in Alabama’s NFL top ten. Hurts has 2,503 running yards, which puts him 354 behind No. 10 Bobby Humphrey.
The top ten NFL ball carriers among Alabama grads (based on rushing yards):
Tennessee Titans 2016-23: The 2015 Heisman Trophy winner averaged 4.7 yards on 2,030 attempts and scored 90 rushing touchdowns in his NFL career. Henry topped the NFL in running yards with 1,540 in 2019 and 2,027 in 2020, marking the league’s eighth 2,000-yard season.
Henry appeared to be on his way to a third consecutive rushing crown when he injured his foot in the eighth game of the 2021 season and missed the next nine regular-season games. He finished tenth in rushing yards during the season. In the last two seasons, Henry has finished second in the NFL in rushing yards.
Alexander averaged 4.3 yards on 2,187 runs and scored 100 rushing touchdowns in his NFL career, with the Seattle Seahawks from 2000 to 2007 and the Washington Redskins in 2008. Alexander led the NFL with 1,880 running yards and 27 rushing touchdowns in 2005, earning the league MVP award. Alexander rushed for at least 1,175 yards per season from 2001 to 2005.
New Orleans Saints 2011-2018, 2021-22, Baltimore Ravens 2019-20 Houston Texans 2021: The 2009 Heisman Trophy winner has 1,817 carries for an average of 4.5 yards and 65 rushing touchdowns in the NFL. Ingram has 1000-yard seasons in 2016, 2017, and 2019.
In 2022, Ingram rushed for 233 yards and one touchdown on 62 attempts. Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders, 2019-23: Throughout his NFL career, Jacobs averaged 4.2 yards on 1,305 carries and scored 46 rushing touchdowns. Jacobs has surpassed 1,000 running yards in three of his five seasons, winning the NFL rushing title with 1,653 yards in 2022.
Miami Dolphins (2016-2019), Arizona Cardinals (2019-20), Las Vegas Raiders (2021), Baltimore Ravens (2022-23), and Green Bay Packers 2023: Drake has 869 carries for an average of 4.4 yards and 33 rushing touchdowns in his NFL career.
San Francisco 49ers (1974-79), Washington Redskins 1980-82: Jackson, a scholastic standout at Carroll High School in Ozark, averaged 4.0 yards on 971 attempts and scored 13 rushing touchdowns in the NFL. Jackson rushed for at least 700 yards in four seasons, with a high of 792 in 1976.
His final game was Washington’s 27-17 triumph over the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl XVII. Lacy averaged 4.2 yards on 857 attempts and scored 23 running touchdowns throughout his NFL career with the Green Bay Packers from 2013 to 2016, and the Seattle Seahawks in 2017.
Lacy rushed for 1,178 yards as a rookie and 1,139 the next season. Miami Dolphins 1979-87: The former Woodlawn High School standout averaged 4.8 yards per carry on 732 carries and scored 16 rushing touchdowns in the NFL. Nathan had more receiving yards than rushing yards in the NFL, with 383 receptions for 3,592 yards and 16 touchdowns, and he was an All-Pro kickoff returner in his rookie season. Nathan’s best rushing season came in 1981, when he accumulated 782 yards.
Pittsburgh Steelers 2021-23: The former All-American has 834 carries for an average of 3.9 yards and 22 touchdowns in his NFL career. In 2023, Harris became the 18th player in NFL history to carry for 1,000 yards or more in each of his first three seasons.
10. Bobby Humphrey has 2,857 rushing yards.
The former Glenn High School standout averaged 4.1 yards on 695 carries and scored 15 rushing touchdowns during his NFL career, with the Denver Broncos from 1989 to 1991 and the Miami Dolphins in 1992. Humphrey accumulated 2,353 rushing yards and 14 rushing touchdowns in his first two NFL seasons, surpassing 1,000 yards in both.
