History of the Detroit Lions that feat was Buddy Parker, in 1952–53 during his second and third seasons at the helm. In 1997, Barry Sanders ran for 2,053 rushing yards. At the time, his career total rushing 15,269 yards was second only to Walter Payton's 16,726 yards and he joined Jim Brown as the only players among the NFL's 50 all-time rushing leaders to average 5 yards a carry, but he retired abruptly after the 1998 season. Emmitt Smith has since broken Payton's record, accumulating 18,355 career rushing yards, which bumped down Sanders to the #3 spot on the list of total career rushing yards.
Mack Brown (running back) 2011 season, he appeared in four games and had 12 carries for 42 rushing yards. In the 2012 season, he appeared in nine games and had 25 carries for 102 rushing yards. His role in the offense expanded in the 2013 season. In the season opener against Toledo, he had 25 carries for 112 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns. In the 2013 season, he had 148 carries for 548 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns in 12 games. In his final collegiate season in 2014, he had 22 carries for 95 rushing yards in seven games. Over his college