Bettis vs. Harris: Comparing the Greats - FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog

There were plenty of selections on my all-time Steelers ballot that caused disagreement, but one of the biggest bones of contention was my comment that Franco Harris ranks ahead of Jerome Bettis if you're ranking all-time Steelers running backs.

That got me thinking, and led me to fire up the DVD player and re-watch some of Harris' games from the 1970s to compare him to the Bus. Hey, it's the dead period of the offseason, so this is the most interesting Steeler stuff to talk about.

Here's my admittedly unscientific take on how the two compare:

The Stats: Harris had seven 1,000 yard seasons while Bettis had eight. Bettis' best season (1,665 yards in 1997) was better than Harris' best (1,246 yards in 1975), but Harris spent half of his career playing 14-game schedules, and backs in the 1970s had to share their carries, something Bettis never had to deal with. Their final stats offer arguments for both backs--Bettis' 13,662 yards tops Harris' 12,120, but Harris' 4.1 yards per carry tops Bettis' 3.9. Amazingly they both finished with 91 career rushing touchdowns. Edge: Push.


Inside the Tackles: Franco Harris was quite comfortable running inside, as the Steelers relied on quick hitting traps during the Chuck Noll era. And at 227 pounds, he was as big as many linebackers and not much smaller than some defensive ends, which gave him the size to break tackles. But he often would sidestep contact, so it's hard to give him too much credit as bruiser. Bettis is one of the all-time greats in moving the pile, and he has to rank among the top 10 backs that linebackers hated to see breaking through the line with a full head of steam. Bettis relished contact, which explains why he became a goal line back in his final two seasons. Edge: Bettis.

Outside Running: In his prime, Bettis' quick feet allowed him to do better on outside runs than one would expect, but he was vulnerable to getting strung out. If Bettis was running from side to side, defenses counted it as a victory. While he had quick feet, he wasn't a cutback runner and he couldn't slide through a tiny hole. Some of Franco's best runs came when he would take a handoff on a sweep, string out the defense, find a small hole and then cutback for a big gain. Harris was a bigger big-play threat than Bettis throughout his career. Edge: Harris.

Ball Security: With the Steelers' ball control offense (both in the 1970s and 1990s), having a feature back who can hold onto the ball was key. Harris was prone to putting the ball on the ground, while Bettis would go weeks without a fumble. Harris fumbled 90 times in a 13-year career while Bettis fumbled only 41 times in the same number of seasons. Edge: Bettis.

Receiving: Running backs in the 1970s weren't used to running many routes more than 15 yards downfield, but Harris was a key part of the Steelers' passing attack, as evidenced by his average of 23 catches and 175 receiving yards a season for his career. Pass catching might have been the biggest weakness in Bettis' game. He simply didn't have soft enough hands to be a threat in the passing game. Wisely the Steelers never asked him to stay in on third down. He never had more than 125 yards receiving in a season as a Steeler. Edge: Harris.

Lasting Memory: Harris has the Immaculate Reception, simply the greatest play in the history of the NFL. Bettis has the Steelers improbable run to Super Bowl XL, allowing Bussy to return home for a Super Bowl title in his final season. As amazing as that was, the Immaculate Reception will still be shown in highlights in the year 3007. Edge: Harris.

Fan Favorites: Jerome Bettis was "The Bus," one of the best nicknames in NFL history. Franco had "Franco's Italian Army," one of the great fan clubs of all time that even included the Chairman of the Board Frank Sinatra as a member. Edge: Push.

Awards: Harris was named to nine Pro Bowls and was a first or second-team All-Pro six times. He also was named the Super Bowl IX MVP. Bettis earned six trips to Hawaii, was the NFL Comeback Player of the Year in 1996 and was named the NFL Man of the Year in 2002. Edge: Harris.

Leadership: Harris was known as an all around great guy, but he was more of a quiet leader than the emotional center of the 1970s Steeler (that role fell more to Joe Greene). Bettis was the focus of the Steelers run to Super Bowl XL because everyone on that team respected him so much. Edge: Bettis.

The Scorecard: On this scorecard Harris has won four categories while Bettis has won three. As I said when I voted for the all-time team, I'd give Harris the slightest edge because he was a more all-around running back with better big-play ability, but I'd be thrilled with either guy in the Steelers backfield.