Bijan Robinson ranks his top 5 running backs of all-time

In the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft, the Atlanta Falcons selected Bijan Robinson. Coming out of Texas, Robinson was considered the best running back in college during the 2022 season and was widely seen as the top running back prospect too. There is hope in Atlanta that he could even develop into an all-time great.

For his own part, Robinson clearly knows the history of the NFL and put together his list of the top five running backs of all time on the It Needed to Be Said podcast.

Bijan Robinson’s top-five running backs of all time are as follows:

1. Barry Sanders
2. LaDainian Tomlinson
3. Marshall Faulk
4. Adrian Peterson
5. Walter Payton

Making a list like this is always going to be a difficult task because of how different one era is from another. After all, how the game was played in Walter Payton’s era is completely different from the league that Adrian Peterson played in. With that being said, this is a strong list from Bijan Robinson.

Famed Detroit Lion Barry Sanders chose to keep his career short. Even with that, there was never another player who could make highlight real plays like Sanders. Then, LaDainian Tomlinson had one of the all-time great seasons in 2006 when he rushed for 28 touchdowns in a season. Marshall Faulk was a key figure in the Greatest Show on Turf and Adrian Peterson proved that a Hall of Fame running back can still have a long career. Finally, the legendary running back Walter Payton is a legendary figure in the game who earned the nickname Sweetness.

There are a few key players missing from this list, including the legendary Jim Brown and Emmitt Smith. Smith, of course, is the NFL’s all-time rushing leader. Still, it’s a good list from Bijan Robinson.

Bijan Robinson is fitting in exactly as the Falcons expected

As practices begin for NFL teams, the Falcons are happy with what they’ve seen from Bijan Robinson, according to Michael Rothstein.

“Robinson has been exactly as Atlanta anticipated,” Rothstein wrote. “The Falcons have shown they’ll use him as a running back and a receiver, all over the formation. Were there questions from pundits about how the Falcons used this pick? Yes. When [Falcons head] coach Arthur Smith was asked whether the traits they saw in Robinson have translated to the NFL, he made his answer very clear: ‘We do not have buyer’s remorse, if that’s what you’re asking.’”