After 11 NFL seasons, LaDainian Tomlinson has decided to call it a career and will retire as a member of the San Diego Chargers–the team who selected him with the fifth overall pick in the 2001 NFL Draft–on Monday.
Even though his dreams of capturing a Super Bowl fell short, there’s no question Tomlinson is a future Hall of Famer as his numbers alone make him one of the greatest running backs in NFL history. Not only does Tomlinson rank fifth all time when it comes to rushing yards (13,684), but he also ranks second when it comes to touchdowns with 145.
In his prime, Tomlinson was arguably the most dominant running back in the NFL and it’s difficult to imagine any current player recording the type of numbers he displayed during his MVP year in 2006 (2,323 yards from the line of scrimmage and 31 total touchdowns). The Chargers were lucky to have such a talented running back for nine seasons and it’s a shame to see the career of one of the most beloved running backs in the NFL come to an end.