Jamaal Charles hasn’t officially retired from the NFL, but at age 32, and after playing just two games in 2018, it seems unlikely he’ll play again. If he’s done, he’ll be eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2024. He thinks he should get in.
“I mean, some of my numbers look way better than some people already in Canton,” Charles told TMZ.com.
One particular number is the reason Charles has a chance: He averaged 5.38 yards per carry over his career, the best for any running back in NFL history.
“That tells you what type of player I was,” Jamaal said. “I gave it my all. Every time I touched the ball, I averaged six yards a carry basically.”
Charles is, along with Jim Brown and Barry Sanders, one of just three players in NFL history to have five seasons with at least 1,000 rushing yards and 5.0 yards per carry. But Charles only had five good seasons in his career; in his other six seasons he never even reached 400 rushing yards. Five seasons will probably not be enough to get him in Canton, as spectacular as those five seasons were.