First of all, Peterson is NOT the best RB in the game.
Yes he is, and it's hands down.
Sure, he led in yardage, but look at the stats. There's very little difference in yardage between Peterson and the 2nd highest RB.
Doesn't change that 1st >>> 2nd. There are no "Almost Lead the League in Rushing" awards.
But look at the other stats. There are 7 RBs that were within .1 yard/carry or better than his 4.8 ypc average, and 3 that absolutely destroyed his 4.8 ypc average.
Out of those 7, only 4 were .1 or more
better. Derrick Ward's NFL leading 5.6 YPC still only ties AD's YPC from his rookie year (in 2007), so that proves nothing except when AD averaged 5.6 YPC he had 316 more yards and 11 more TD's.
The only 4 with higher YPC:
Derrick Ward: 5.6 YPC, 735 yards less than AD in 2008
DeAngelo Williams: 5.5 YPC, 245 yards less than AD in 2008
Brandon Jacobs: 5.0 YPC, 671 yards less than AD in 2008
Chris Johnson: 4.9 YPC, 532 yards less than AD in 2008
And since when does .2 = "absolutely destroyed"? lol, I'm going to have to remember that one.
Shall I go on?
Might as well, you struck out on all your other points.
There are 7 RBs that scored more touchdowns--and that's just rushing touchdowns. How many receiving TDs did Peterson score? A big fat goose egg ...
Taylor is our 3rd down and receiving back. When you have 2 quality backs, you have to get both involved in the offence.
...and I don't even have to mention his 9 fumbles.
Of which he only *lost* 4, which puts him at 6th in the league.
Put this in perspective. The 1300 yard improvement in passing is, by itself, 70% of the yardage Peterson accounted for. So how much of a drop-off would there be with Taylor at starter? Taylor scored 4 TDs in limited action and his 4.0 ypc isn't bad. I'm sure his numbers would greatly improve as a starter and with a better passing QB in the line-up.
That's all based on the assumption that he would have 616 pass attempts, which would break the Vikings all time season record of 606. The most pass attempts Culpepper (3 time Pro-Bowler) had with the Vike's was 548 and 549, and that's when they were extremely pass-happy and had Moss to throw to. What makes you think that, if they had Cutler, they would be attempting 616 passes and get all the extra yards?
If you average out Cutler's stats to the amount of times the Vikes passed, his stats look even worse:
Player Att Comp Yds Comp % Yds/Att TD TD % INT INT % Rating
Jackson + Frerotte Combined 450 266 3213 59.1 7.1 21 4.6 17 3.7 80.9
Jay Cutler (Same Attempts) 450 280 3306 62.3 7.3 18 4.1 13 2.9 85.8
Then the best RB in the game becomes worth only: 93 yards, 3
less TDs (.5 worse TD %), and a 4.9 point upgrade in QB rating.
Or even if he had the same amount of pass attempts as Daunte's career best with the Vikes:
Player Att Comp Yds Comp % Yds/Att TD TD % INT INT % Rating
Jackson + Frerotte Combined 450 266 3213 59.1 7.1 21 4.6 17 3.7 80.9
Jay Cutler (most attempts Daunte had) 549 342 4034 62.3 7.3 22 4.1 16 2.9 85.8
Then the best RB in the game becomes worth only: 821 yards, 1 more TD (.5 worse TD %), and a 4.9 point upgrade in QB rating.
There are 7 RBs that were within .1 yard/carry or better than his 4.8 ypc average, and 3 that absolutely destroyed his 4.8 ypc average.
...
Taylor scored 4 TDs in limited action and his 4.0 ypc isn't bad.
Inconsistency surrenders! So, AD can lead the league in yards, yards a game, 20+ yard runs, and finnish 2nd in 40+ yard runs, 1st downs, attempts, attempts a game, but because he has a very respectable average of 4.8 (5th best in the league), he's not the best, yet his backup's 4.0 YPC "isn't bad".
BTW, in your pointing out of players that lead the league in separate stats (as none of *them* beat *AD* in every listed stat either) you "neglected" to name who you think is the best.
