Warrick Dunn has been eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame for more than a decade, but he's still waiting for his gold jacket.
The 49-year-old spent 11 NFL seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Atlanta Falcons.
Dunn's 10,967 rushing yards are 23rd most in NFL history, and that seems to be the limit.
Only two players who started their careers after 1970 and had fewer rushing yards than Dunn failed in Canton: Earl Campbell and Terrell Davis.
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Atlanta Falcons running back Warrick Dunn runs with the ball out of his own end zone during the third quarter against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at the Georgia Dome. (Dale Zanin/USA Today Sports)
Dunn said the odds were against him early on, but he proved he was the right fit.
“When I was playing, when I was first drafted, they thought I was just going to be a third-down back,” Dunn told FOX News Digital in a recent interview. “In Tampa, I always shared carries with Mike Alstott, so I didn't have the amount of carries that a lot of other players had. When I came to Atlanta, it was TJ Duckett. .
“I had to prove myself as a 5-foot-8, 185-pound running back. I'd say a lot of people could do what I did. I was going to chip in and prove that I was who I was.'' I believed that if you gave me that opportunity, I could be one of the best.'' I believed that the things I had done and those things would make me one of the best. I look at the highlights and think, “Ah!'' God, I didn't know that was possible. ”
Atlanta Falcons running back Warrick Dunn chases Falcons guard P.J. Alexander's lead block on a run play during the first quarter against the Cleveland Browns at the Georgia Dome. (Dale Zanin/USA Today Sports)
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“Do I think I deserve it? I think I belong among the best players. … Would I want to be in the Hall and say I was one of the best players to ever play? ?Yeah, of course. We all play for that. We all play to do our best.? ”
Dunn said the Hall of Fame induction sends a message to smaller players trying to make a name for themselves.
“I want to be an example to kids who aren't as big as me that there's something you can do even when the odds are against you. I was always going against the grain, and my mentality still is,” he said. .
Atlanta Falcons running back Warrick Dunn (28) runs with the ball during the third quarter at LP Field. (Dale Zanin/USA Today Sports)
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Dunn had over 15,000 all-purpose yards, more than several Hall of Famers including Jerome Bettis, Franco Harris, and O.J. Simpson. He had just 105 fewer than Eric Dickerson.
Among eligible players, that's the third-most all-purpose yards by a full-time running back who isn't in the Hall, behind only Herschel Walker and Tiki Barber.
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