You Are Here > Pro-Football-Reference.com > Players > S > O.J. Simpson

O.J. Simpson

Orenthal James Simpson

Position: RB
Height: 6-2    Weight: 212 lbs.
Born: July 9, 1947 in San Francisco, CA
College: USC

Career AV: 97 (159th overall since 1950)

Inducted into Hall of Fame in 1985

6-time Pro Bowler & 5-time First-Team All-Pro (fine print)

Drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the 1st round (1st overall) of the 1969 NFL Draft.

32 32

Rushing & Receiving

Rushing Receiving
Year Age Tm Pos No. G GS Att Yds TD Lng Y/A Y/G A/G Rec Yds Y/R TD Lng R/G Y/G YScm RRTD Fmb AV
1969* 22 BUF HB 32 13 0 181 697 2 32 3.9 53.6 13.9 30 343 11.4 3 55 2.3 26.4 1040 5 6 6
1970 23 BUF RB 32 8 0 120 488 5 56 4.1 61.0 15.0 10 139 13.9 0 36 1.3 17.4 627 5 6 5
1971 24 BUF RB 32 14 0 183 742 5 46 4.1 53.0 13.1 21 162 7.7 0 38 1.5 11.6 904 5 5 6
1972*+ 25 BUF RB 32 14 0 292 1251 6 94 4.3 89.4 20.9 27 198 7.3 0 25 1.9 14.1 1449 6 8 13
1973*+ 26 BUF RB 32 14 0 332 2003 12 80 6.0 143.1 23.7 6 70 11.7 0 24 0.4 5.0 2073 12 7 19
1974*+ 27 BUF RB 32 14 0 270 1125 3 41 4.2 80.4 19.3 15 189 12.6 1 29 1.1 13.5 1314 4 7 14
1975*+ 28 BUF RB 32 14 0 329 1817 16 88 5.5 129.8 23.5 28 426 15.2 7 64 2.0 30.4 2243 23 7 25
1976*+ 29 BUF RB 32 14 7 290 1503 8 75 5.2 107.4 20.7 22 259 11.8 1 43 1.6 18.5 1762 9 6 14
1977 30 BUF RB 32 7 0 126 557 0 39 4.4 79.6 18.0 16 138 8.6 0 18 2.3 19.7 695 0 2 3
1978 31 SFO RB 32 10 10 161 593 1 34 3.7 59.3 16.1 21 172 8.2 2 19 2.1 17.2 765 3 5 5
1979 32 SFO RB 32 13 8 120 460 3 22 3.8 35.4 9.2 7 46 6.6 0 14 0.5 3.5 506 3 3 4
Career 135 25 2404 11236 61 94 4.7 83.2 17.8 203 2142 10.6 14 64 1.5 15.9 13378 75 62 114
9 yrs BUF 112 7 2123 10183 57 94 4.8 90.9 19.0 175 1924 11.0 12 64 1.6 17.2 12107 69 54 105
2 yrs SFO 23 18 281 1053 4 34 3.7 45.8 12.2 28 218 7.8 2 19 1.2 9.5 1271 6 8 9

Kick & Punt Returns

Punt Returns Kick Returns
Year Age Tm Pos No. G GS Ret Yds TD Lng Y/R Rt Yds TD Lng Y/Rt APYd
1969* 22 BUF HB 32 13 0 21 529 0 73 25.2 1569
1970 23 BUF RB 32 8 0 7 333 1 95 47.6 960
1971 24 BUF RB 32 14 0 4 107 0 43 26.8 1011
1972*+ 25 BUF RB 32 14 0 1 21 0 21 21.0 1470
Career 135 25 33 990 1 95 30.0 14368

Passing

Year Age Tm Pos No. G GS QBrec Cmp Att Cmp% Yds TD TD% Int Int% Lng Y/A AY/A Y/C Y/G Rate Sk Yds NY/A ANY/A Sk%
1970 23 BUF RB 32 8 0 0 2 0.0 0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 39.6 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0
1971 24 BUF RB 32 14 0 0 2 0.0 0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 39.6 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0
1972*+ 25 BUF RB 32 14 0 5 8 62.5 113 1 12.5 0 0.0 34 14.1 16.6 22.6 8.1 145.8 1 11 11.3 13.6 11.1
1973*+ 26 BUF RB 32 14 0 1 2 50.0 -3 0 0.0 0 0.0 -3 -1.5 -1.5 -3.0 -0.2 56.2 0 0 -1.5 -1.5 0.0
1974*+ 27 BUF RB 32 14 0 0 1 0.0 0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 39.6 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0
1977 30 BUF RB 32 7 0 0 1 0.0 0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 39.6 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Career 135 25 6 16 37.5 110 1 6.3 0 0.0 34 6.9 8.1 18.3 0.8 82.8 1 11 5.8 7.0 5.9

Defense & Fumbles

Def Interceptions Fumbles Tackles
Year Age Tm Pos No. G GS Sk Int Yds TD Lng PD FF Fmb FR Yds TD Tkl Ast Sfty
1969* 22 BUF HB 32 13 0 6 0 0 0
1970 23 BUF RB 32 8 0 6 0 0 0
1971 24 BUF RB 32 14 0 5 2 0 0
1972*+ 25 BUF RB 32 14 0 8 1 0 0
1973*+ 26 BUF RB 32 14 0 7 0 0 0
1974*+ 27 BUF RB 32 14 0 7 1 0 0
1975*+ 28 BUF RB 32 14 0 7 1 0 0
1976*+ 29 BUF RB 32 14 7 6 2 0 0
1977 30 BUF RB 32 7 0 2 0 0 0
1978 31 SFO RB 32 10 10 5 1 0 0
1979 32 SFO RB 32 13 8 3 0 0 0
Career 135 25 62 8 0 0
9 yrs BUF 112 7 54 7 0 0
2 yrs SFO 23 18 8 1 0 0

Scoring Summary

Year Age Tm Pos No. G GS RshTD RecTD PR TD KR TD FblTD IntTD OthTD AllTD 2PM XPM FGM Sfty Pts
1969* 22 BUF HB 32 13 0 2 3 5 30
1970 23 BUF RB 32 8 0 5 1 6 36
1971 24 BUF RB 32 14 0 5 5 30
1972*+ 25 BUF RB 32 14 0 6 6 36
1973*+ 26 BUF RB 32 14 0 12 12 72
1974*+ 27 BUF RB 32 14 0 3 1 4 24
1975*+ 28 BUF RB 32 14 0 16 7 23 138
1976*+ 29 BUF RB 32 14 7 8 1 9 54
1978 31 SFO RB 32 10 10 1 2 3 18
1979 32 SFO RB 32 13 8 3 3 18
Career 135 25 61 14 1 76 456
9 yrs BUF 112 7 57 12 1 70 420
2 yrs SFO 23 18 4 2 6 36

Similar Players

NumYrs Players whose career was of similar quality and shape
3 Arthur Whittington, Fred Lane, Mike Hogan, Ronnie Bull, Clarence Davis, Jessie Clark, Clarence Peaks, Dick Hoak, Bobby Anderson, Dave Mann
4 Tony Reed, Don Woods, Natrone Means, Michael Bennett, Napoleon Kaufman, Tiki Barber, Howie Ferguson, Marion Butts, Johnny Johnson, Mel Farr
5 Steven Jackson, Don Perkins, Paul Hornung*, Freeman McNeil, Greg Pruitt, Gerald Riggs, Ricky Williams, Mark van Eeghen, James Wilder, Steve Owens
6 Paul Hornung*, James Wilder, Freeman McNeil, Pete Johnson, Calvin Hill, Chuck Muncie, James Brooks, Jerome Bettis, Jamal Lewis, Tiki Barber
7 Terrell Davis, Larry Brown, Marcus Allen*, Priest Holmes, Lydell Mitchell, Chuck Foreman, Eric Dickerson*, Ahman Green, Freeman McNeil, Walter Payton*
8 Marcus Allen*, Walter Payton*, Larry Brown, Chuck Foreman, Lydell Mitchell, Roger Craig, Eric Dickerson*, Ahman Green, Lawrence McCutcheon, Thurman Thomas*
9 Tiki Barber, Ahman Green, Marcus Allen*, Larry Brown, Eric Dickerson*, Chuck Foreman, Priest Holmes, Lydell Mitchell, Roger Craig, Lawrence McCutcheon
10 Tiki Barber, Marcus Allen*, Eric Dickerson*, Ahman Green, Roger Craig, James Brooks, Larry Brown, Chuck Foreman, Priest Holmes, Lydell Mitchell
11 Tiki Barber, Marcus Allen*, Eric Dickerson*, Roger Craig, Ahman Green, James Brooks, Freeman McNeil, Priest Holmes, Larry Brown, Thurman Thomas*
Career Tiki Barber, Eric Dickerson*, Ahman Green, Roger Craig, Priest Holmes, Larry Brown, Chuck Foreman, Lydell Mitchell, Lawrence McCutcheon, James Brooks

Appearances on Leader Boards, Awards, and Honors

Awards

1973 NFL AP MVP
1973 NFL Newspaper Ent. Assoc. MVP
1973 NFL Bert Bell Award (Player of the Year)
1973 NFL AP Offensive Player of the Year

Pro Bowls

1969
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976

First-Team All-Pro

1972
1973
1974
1975
1976

Rushing Att

1969 AFL 181 (5)
1972 NFL 292 (2)
1973 NFL 332 (1/94)

1974 NFL 270 (1)

1975 NFL 329 (1)

1976 NFL 290 (3)
Career 2404 (22)

Rushing Yds

1969 AFL 697 (6)
1972 NFL 1251 (1)

1973 NFL 2003 (1/5)

1974 NFL 1125 (3)
1975 NFL 1817 (1/16)

1976 NFL 1503 (1/75)

Career 11236 (18)

Rushing TD

1973 NFL 12 (1)

1975 NFL 16 (1/28)

1976 NFL 8 (7)
Career 61 (36)

Long Rush

1972 NFL 94 (1/11)

1973 NFL 80 (1/77)

1975 NFL 88 (1/25)

1976 NFL 75 (3)

Yds/Rushing Att

1973 NFL 6.0 (2/35)
1975 NFL 5.5 (1/69)

1976 NFL 5.2 (2)
Career 4.7 (46)

Rushing Yds/Game

1969 AFL 53.6 (4)
1970 NFL 61.0 (7)
1972 NFL 89.4 (2)
1973 NFL 143.1 (1/1)

1974 NFL 80.4 (5)
1975 NFL 129.8 (1/5)

1976 NFL 107.4 (1/34)

1977 NFL 79.6 (6)
Career 83.2 (12)

Receiving TD

1975 NFL 7 (9)

Touchdowns

1973 NFL 12 (5)
1975 NFL 23 (1/8)

Career 76 (56)

Points Scored

1975 NFL 138 (1/35)

Career 456 (178)

Rushing/Receiving TD

1973 NFL 12 (5)
1975 NFL 23 (1/8)

Career 75 (59)

Non-Offensive TDs

1970 NFL 1 (9)

Yds From Scrimmage

1969 AFL 1040 (5)
1972 NFL 1449 (3)
1973 NFL 2073 (1/40)

1974 NFL 1314 (5)
1975 NFL 2243 (1/13)

1976 NFL 1762 (1)

Career 13378 (30)

All-Purpose Yds

1969 AFL 1569 (3)
1972 NFL 1470 (6)
1973 NFL 2073 (1/79)

1975 NFL 2243 (2/34)
1976 NFL 1762 (1)

Career 14368 (33)

Touches

1969 AFL 232 (1)

1972 NFL 320 (2)
1973 NFL 338 (1)

1974 NFL 285 (5)
1975 NFL 357 (1)

1976 NFL 312 (5)
Career 2640 (25)

Yds/Touch

1969 AFL 6.8 (5)
1970 NFL 7.0 (10)

Kick Returns

1969 AFL 21 (7)

Kick Return Yds

1969 AFL 529 (8)

Kick Return TD

1970 NFL 1 (2/58)
Career 1 (108)

Long Kick Return

1969 AFL 73 (4)
1970 NFL 95 (8)

Yds/Kick Return

1969 AFL 25.2 (5)

Kick & Punt Return Yds

1969 AFL 529 (10)

Fumbles

1969 AFL 6 (4)
1970 NFL 6 (7)
1972 NFL 8 (7)
1974 NFL 7 (10)
Career 62 (73)

     
Stats are Year Lg Value (Rank Season/Rank in Top 100 All-Time Seasons)

All-Pro Teams

1972Associated Press: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Sporting News: 1st Team All-Conf.
 UPI: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Associated Press: 1st Team All-NFL
 Pro Football Writers: 1st Team All-NFL
 Newspaper Ent. Assoc.: 1st Team All-NFL
1973Associated Press: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Pro Football Weekly: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Sporting News: 1st Team All-Conf.
 UPI: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Associated Press: 1st Team All-NFL
 Pro Football Writers: 1st Team All-NFL
 Newspaper Ent. Assoc.: 1st Team All-NFL
 Pro Football Weekly: 1st Team All-NFL
1974Associated Press: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Pro Football Weekly: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Sporting News: 1st Team All-Conf.
 UPI: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Associated Press: 1st Team All-NFL
 Pro Football Writers: 1st Team All-NFL
 Newspaper Ent. Assoc.: 1st Team All-NFL
 Pro Football Weekly: 1st Team All-NFL
1975Associated Press: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Pro Football Weekly: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Sporting News: 1st Team All-Conf.
 UPI: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Associated Press: 1st Team All-NFL
 Pro Football Writers: 1st Team All-NFL
 Newspaper Ent. Assoc.: 1st Team All-NFL
 Pro Football Weekly: 1st Team All-NFL
1976Associated Press: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Pro Football Weekly: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Sporting News: 1st Team All-Conf.
 UPI: 1st Team All-Conf.
 Associated Press: 1st Team All-NFL
 Pro Football Writers: 1st Team All-NFL
 Newspaper Ent. Assoc.: 1st Team All-NFL
 Pro Football Weekly: 1st Team All-NFL

Fantasy

Year Age G FantPos FantPt VBD PosRank OvRank
1970 23 8 RB 93 31
1971 24 14 RB 120 24 75
1972 25 14 RB 191 73 6 14
1973 26 14 RB 279 177 1 1
1974 27 14 RB 155 59 10 21
1975 28 14 RB 362 282 1 1
1976 29 14 RB 230 123 3 5
1977 30 7 RB 70 53
1978 31 10 RB 95 52
1979 32 13 RB 69 64
1664 714