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<p>Big fan of Washington football? Then check out this list of Washington Commanders&nbsp;running backs.&nbsp;It includes every starting running back from throughout Washington Commanders history, including current running backs and past ones. Featuring&nbsp;some of the greatest NFL&nbsp;running backs&nbsp;of all time, the best Washington Commanders RBs include Clinton Portis, Stephen Davis, Terry Allen, Antonio Gibson, Alfred Morris,&nbsp;Adrian Peterson, and Earnest Byner, among other greats.</p>

<p>Who are the best running backs in Washington Commanders&nbsp;history? Vote below and help decide the greatest Washington Commanders RB of all time!</p>


The 25+ Best Washington Commanders Running Backs, Ranked

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John Riggins

Robert John Riggins (born August 4, 1949), nicknamed "The Diesel" and "Riggo", is an American former football running back who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the New York Jets and Washington Redskins. He was known for his powerful running style and productivity well into the latter years of his career; in 1983 at age 34, he rushed for an NFL single-season record 24 touchdowns, and again led the league in rushing touchdowns the following season at age 35. Although he had only one Pro Bowl appearance in his career, Riggins had his greatest success in the postseason, and was named the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl XVII where he scored one touchdown and rushed for 166 yards in a 27-17 win for the Washington Redskins over the Miami Dolphins. Riggins was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1992.

Larry Brown

Lawrence Brown Jr. (born September 19, 1947) is a former professional American football player in the National Football League (NFL) who played running back for the Washington Redskins from 1969 to 1976.
Raised in nearby Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he graduated from Schenley High School, his original interest being in baseball.  He later developed an overriding interest in football and played college football in Kansas at Dodge City Community College and Kansas State University in Manhattan.

Clinton Portis

Clinton Earl Portis (born September 1, 1981) is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons. He played college football for the University of Miami.  He was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the second round of the 2002 NFL Draft.  Portis was best known for being the starting running back for the Washington Redskins for seven seasons, in which he gained an average of 81.2 yards rushing per game, for which a select panel of celebrities included him as one of the 80 Greatest Redskins.

Alfred Morris

Alfred Bruce Morris (born December 12, 1988) is a American football running back for the New York Giants of the NFL. He played college football at Florida Atlantic and was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the sixth round of the 2012 NFL Draft. He has also played for the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys. Morris attended Pine Forest High School in Pensacola, Florida, where he was a letterman in football, basketball, and track. In football, he saw action on both sides of the ball. As a senior, he rushed for 1,049 yards with 17 touchdowns and added 147 tackles and five interceptions on defense. He was named North West Florida MVP, first-team All-State and was a game MVP.

Earnest Byner

Earnest Alexander Byner (born September 15, 1962) is a former American football running back in the National Football League. He is now the running back coach of IMG Academy, a comprehensive football camp that is featured in NFL Undiscovered, a documentary for international prospects.

Stephen Davis

Stephen Lamont Davis (born March 1, 1974) is a former American football running back who played 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL).



Terry Allen

Terry Thomas Allen, Jr. (born February 21, 1968) is a former American football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for eleven seasons. Allen played college football for Clemson University.  In the 1990 NFL Draft, he was selected in the ninth round by the Minnesota Vikings.
Between 1992 and 1996, Allen had 4 consecutive seasons of rushing for 1,000 or more yards, minus the 1993 season which he missed completely due to an injury.

Joe Washington

Joe Dan Washington, Jr (born September 24, 1953) is a former American football running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Diego Chargers, Baltimore Colts, Washington Redskins, and Atlanta Falcons.

Adrian Peterson

Adrian Lewis Peterson (born March 21, 1985) is an American football running back for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Oklahoma and was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings seventh overall in the 2007 NFL Draft. Peterson set the NCAA freshman rushing record with 1,925 yards as a true freshman during the 2004 season. As a unanimous first-team All-American, he became the first freshman to finish as the runner-up in the Heisman Trophy balloting. Peterson finished his college football career as the Sooners' third all-time leading rusher.
Following his first professional season, in which he set an NFL record for most rushing yards in a single game (296), Peterson was named the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. He was then awarded the MVP award for his performance in the Pro Bowl and became only the fifth player in NFL history to have more than 3,000 yards through his first two seasons. In 2010, he became the fifth fastest player to run for 5,000 yards, doing so in his 51st game.
In 2012, Peterson became the sixth fastest player to reach 8,000 rushing yards, ending the season with 2,097 rushing yards, just nine yards shy of breaking Eric Dickerson's single season all-time record. Peterson amassed 2,314 all-purpose yards from scrimmage in 2012, tying Marcus Allen for the eighth-highest total ever. For his efforts, he received the NFL MVP Award and the AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award for the 2012 NFL season. During the 2013 season, Peterson became the third fastest player to reach 10,000 rushing yards in NFL history. In 2015, Peterson became the oldest running back to make first-team All-Pro, doing so at 30 years of age.
In September 2014, Peterson was indicted by a Montgomery County grand jury on charges of reckless or negligent injury to a child that occurred earlier that year, and was suspended for the rest of the 2014 season. A free agent coming into the 2017 season, Peterson signed a two-year contract with the New Orleans Saints, but was traded to the Arizona Cardinals just five weeks into the season before being released following the season's end. Peterson then signed with the Washington Redskins in 2018, where he recorded the eighth 1,000-yard season of his career, tied for sixth-most all-time.

Antonio Gibson

Antonio Gibson (born June 23, 1998) is an American football running back for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). Born and raised in Georgia, he played college football at East Central Community College in Mississippi for two years prior to transferring to the University of Memphis in 2018. As a return specialist and wide receiver with the Memphis Tigers, he was named American Athletic Conference (AAC) special teams player of the year and received all-AAC honors for both positions in 2019. He entered the 2020 NFL Draft as a running back, where he was selected by Washington in the third round.

Charley Taylor

Charles Robert Taylor (September 28, 1941 – February 19, 2022) was an American professional football player who was a wide receiver for 13 seasons with the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football for the Arizona State Sun Devils, he was selected by Washington in the first round of the 1964 NFL Draft. With Taylor, the Redskins made the playoffs five times (1971–1974, 1976) and reached the Super Bowl once (VII), after the 1972 season. A six-time All-Pro and eight-time Pro Bowl selection, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1984.

George Rogers

George Washington Rogers (born December 8, 1958) is a former American college and professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons during the 1980s.  Rogers played college football for the University of South Carolina, earned All-America honors, and won the 1980 Heisman Trophy.  He was the first overall pick in the 1981 NFL Draft, and he played professionally for the New Orleans Saints and Washington Redskins of the NFL.  As a professional, Rogers rushed for over 7,000 yards.

Brian Mitchell

Brian Keith Mitchell (born August 18, 1968) is a former American football running back and return specialist in the National Football League. He was originally drafted by the Washington Redskins in the fifth round (130th overall) of the 1990 NFL Draft. He played college football at University of Southwestern Louisiana where he was a quarterback. Mitchell is considered one of the greatest return specialists in NFL history.Mitchell also played for the Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Giants. He is currently second on the NFL's all-time list in all-purpose yardage  with 23,330 yards, behind Jerry Rice. He is also first all-time for combined yardage for a non-wide receiver. His 13 special teams touchdowns are second in NFL history, behind Devin Hester, and his nine punt return touchdowns are third behind Eric Metcalf with 10, and Hester with 14. Mitchell was ranked the second greatest specialist in NFL history by NFL Network's NFL Top 10 Return Aces.

J.D. McKissic

Joshua Dobbie "J. D." McKissic (born August 15, 1993) is an American football running back for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Arkansas State, where he had 289 career receptions, which ranked first all-time in the Sun Belt Conference at the time of his graduation. He signed with the Atlanta Falcons as an undrafted free agent in 2016, and has also played for the Seattle Seahawks and Detroit Lions.

Mike Thomas

Malcolm "Mike" Thomas (July 17, 1953 – August 25, 2019)) was an American football player, a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons with the Washington Redskins and San Diego Chargers.



Ladell Betts

Matthew Ladell Betts (born August 27, 1979) is a former American football running back in the National Football League. He was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the second round of the 2002 NFL Draft. He played college football at Iowa.

Ricky Ervins

Richard Ervins (born December 7, 1968) is a former American football running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Washington Redskins and San Francisco 49ers.  He played college football at the University of Southern California.

Rob Goode

Robert Leslie Goode (June 5, 1927 – June 9, 2007) was an American football running back for the Washington Redskins and the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League.  He played college football at Texas A&M University and was drafted in the first round of the 1949 NFL Draft by the Redskins. He was also drafted by the Chicago Bears in the 15th round of the 1948 NFL Draft and the Buffalo Bills (AAFC) in the 16th round of the 1949 AAFC Draft.

Clarence Harmon

Clarence Harmon, Jr. (born November 30, 1955 in Kosciusko, Mississippi) is a former American football running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Washington Redskins.  He played college football at Mississippi State University.

Tim Hightower

Timothy Michael Hightower (born May 23, 1986) is a former American football running back. He played college football at University of Richmond and was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He has also played for the Washington Redskins and New Orleans Saints.

Gerald Riggs

Gerald Antonio Riggs (born November 6, 1960) is a former American football running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Atlanta Falcons from 1982 to 1988 and the Washington Redskins from 1989 to 1991.
Before his NFL career, he attended Bonanza High School in Las Vegas, Nevada and after graduation attended Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona.  He played sparingly in 1978, running for 410 yards and four touchdowns along with 10 catches for 126 yards.  In 1979, he ran for 363 yards with three touchdowns and 14 catches for 120 yards and one touchdown.  In 1980, he continued in a backup role and ran for 422 yards with four touchdowns with 15 catches for 165 yards.  In 1981 as the starter, he ran for 891 yards with six touchdowns and 11 catches for 139 yards in 11 games.
He would close out his collegiate career with 2,086 yards and 17 touchdowns on the ground and 50 catches for 550 yards.
A superb rusher and pass receiver out of the backfield, Riggs made the Pro Bowl three times in his career from 1985 to 1987.  His best season was in 1985, when he rushed for 1,719 yards and ten touchdowns, while also catching 33 passes for 267 yards, all without a fumble.  He was the only running back in the 1980s to record a 1,000 yard rushing season without a fumble.  In the three seasons from 1984 to 1986, Riggs amassed a whopping 5,212 combined rushing and receiving yards, and scored 32 touchdowns.  In his seven years with the Falcons, he rushed for 6,631 yards, making him the franchise all-time leading rusher.  Prior to the 1989 season, Riggs was traded to the Washington Redskins.
In his final year of 1991, Riggs rushed for 248 yards and 11 touchdowns, assisting his team to a 14–2 record.  He is the only player to rush for 11 touchdowns in fewer than 80 attempts in a single season.  He went on to rush for four touchdowns in Washington's two playoff games, and two touchdowns in Washington's 37–24 win over the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVI.  His six touchdowns in the postseason tied an NFL record.
Riggs finished his 10 NFL seasons with 8,188 rushing yards and 69 touchdowns, along with 201 receptions for 1,516 yards.
He is the father of Gerald Riggs, Jr., former running back at the University of Tennessee, who played for the Miami Dolphins, and Cody Riggs, a cornerback for the Tennessee Titans.

Chris Thompson

Chris Thompson (born October 20, 1990) is an American football running back for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida State University, and was drafted by the Redskins in the fifth round of the 2013 NFL Draft. Thompson grew up in Greenville, Florida and attended and played high school football at Madison High School. He received offers from Florida State, Clemson, Memphis, and Miami. He chose to attend Florida State.

Cliff Battles

Clifford Franklin Battles (May 1, 1910 – April 28, 1981) was an American football halfback in the National Football League (NFL). Battles was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1968.

Kelvin Bryant

Kelvin LeRoy Bryant (born September 26, 1960) is a former American football running back in the National Football League and the United States Football League.

Dick Todd

Richard S. Todd (October 2, 1914 – November 9, 1999) was an American football player and coach for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL).
During his eight-year playing career between 1939 and 1948, Todd played both offense and defense as a fullback and defensive back.  In his career, Todd had 1,573 yards and 11 touchdowns rushing; and 1,826 yards and 20 touchdowns receiving.  He also scored two touchdowns on punt returns.
Todd was named interim coach of the Redskins for nine games in the 1951 season, amassing a 5–4 record. Four years later, Todd was named head coach for the final two Midwestern State Mustangs football team seasons in 1955 and 1956 before the program was placed on a five-year moratorium which would last 32 seasons.He played college football at Texas A&M University.

Big fan of Washington football? Then check out this list of Washington Commanders&nbsp;running backs.&nbsp;It includes every starting running back from ...