Justin Forsett never ran for more than 619 yards in a season before 2014. That year, the journeyman running back galloped for more than 1,250 yards after emerging as the post-Ray Rice starter in the Baltimore Ravens' backfield. For his efforts, Forsett was awarded a new three-year deal worth $9 million.
The Ravens don’t want Justin Forsett to be another one-hit wonder running back
Could the Ravens’ Justin Forsett become the latest tailback to rush for 1,000 yards and never do so again?
Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports
But was it a wise investment for Baltimore? Forsett could simply be one of a long line of one-year wonder tailbacks that break the 1,000-yard barrier before sinking back into oblivion for the remainder of their careers.
Certainly, Forsett is one of the oldest players to break 1,000 yards rushing for the first time. He turned 29 early in the season, and will reach 30 after just a third of the 2015 schedule. Only Craig "Iron Head" Heyward, Anthony Johnson and Lamar Smith were 29 or older at the time of their respective one and only 1,000-yard campaigns. Most running backs that reach the big milestone do so at a young age, or never at all.
Many of the one-year wonders were projected stars that lost their spark to injury. Perhaps no better example of this exists than Robert Edwards. Edwards was selected with the 18th overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft and quickly established himself as one of the league’s premier runners.
He amassed 1,115 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground as a rookie, earning Pro Bowl honors. However, while participating in a flag football game he suffered a devastating leg injury that nearly forced doctors to amputate his leg. Edwards did return to football four years later, but he no longer possessed the burst and speed that made him special.
Other one-year wonders had considerably less talent but fell into situations with heavy workloads. Such was the case for LaMont Jordan of the Oakland Raiders, who gained 1,025 rushing yards in 2005. However, he also carried the ball a career-high 272 times at a clip of just 3.8 yards per carry. Another example of this is James Allen, an undrafted tailback with the Chicago Bears that nearly tripled his career rushing totals during the 2000 season.
Despite the great year, his team invested a second-round pick in Anthony Thomas, a player who immediately took over the starting job and pushed Allen out of Chicago a year later. Thomas himself nearly made the one-year wonder list, but finished just above the 1,000-yard barrier in 2003 for his second such season.
Then there's perhaps the strangest one-year wonder of them all: Peyton Hillis. Hillis began his career as a reserve fullback with the Denver Broncos, rushing for fewer than 400 yards during his two seasons with the team. Then in 2010, the Cleveland Browns acquired him as a throw-in for the Brady Quinn trade.
Though that season began with Jerome Harrison and Mike Bell atop the Browns depth chart, ineffective play opened the door for Hillis to start. He responded with 270 carries for 1,177 yards and 11 touchdowns. While that isn't so strange within the context of one-year wonders, Hillis became an unlikely icon. The following offseason, he won a reverse popularity contest to become the cover boy for Madden 12.
Fans of other teams voted against their favorite players in an attempt to avoid the “Madden curse.” Real or not, Hillis’ production fell of the cliff. He rushed for almost exactly half the yards and lost nearly a yard off his per carry average from the year prior.
So is Forsett a player like the above mentioned, or is he the latest member of this inglorious list? Only time will tell.
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