Humble In Success Davis Cares Not About Records, But He’ll Get His Share

In what has already been a record-breaking season, Terrell Davis of the Denver Broncos is poised to make more history.

With only only 12 attempts and 39 yards against Green Bay in the Super Bowl on Jan. 25, he would establish NFL records for yards and carries in a single season.

In 18 games - including three in the postseason - he has run for 2,174 yards, which ranks second in NFL history to the 2,212 yards of the Los Angeles Rams’ Eric Dickerson during 17 games in 1984.

Davis and Dallas’ Emmitt Smith have the second-most carries in a season, 451. Only Washington’s John Riggins, who had 462 attempts in 19 games in 1983, has more.

“Man, I’ve seen a lot of great running backs, and to come up with those kinds of numbers, that’s kind of wild,” Davis said. “It doesn’t seem like I have that many.”

When Davis drags his tired body into the training room, however, it does seem like that many.

Besides the usual bumps and bruises that are a running back’s lot, Davis has in the last month endured a slightly separated right shoulder and bruised ribs.

“I’m beat up,” he said. “But I think these types of injuries could have happened the first couple of weeks of the season. I feel good, actually. I’m not really dragging like I thought I would be at this point.”

Having two weeks between the Broncos’ 24-21 victory over Pittsburgh in the AFC championship game and the Super Bowl is a godsend, Davis said.

“I definitely need this - for everything, my legs, my shoulder, my ribs,” he said. “I’ll have a full body recovery by the time we play the Packers.”

Davis, in his third NFL season, rushed for a club-record 1,750 yards despite missing one game. He led the AFC and finished second in the NFL to Barry Sanders.

He broke his own single-game rushing record for the franchise with 215 yards against Cincinnati in September. In October, he raised the bar with 236 yards against Buffalo.

Despite his injuries, he hasn’t lost any productivity in the playoffs. He ran for 184 yards and two TDs against Jacksonville, for 101 yards and two TDs against Kansas City and 139 yards and a score against Pittsburgh.

Typically, he seems unaffected by his achievements.

“I’m not the type of person who just sits there and marvels over records or what I’ve done number-wise,” he said. “That’s just not me. That really doesn’t light my fire. But maybe when it’s all said and done, I can sit back and boast how I once had the most yards of any NFL running back in one season.”

In accordance with his unassuming nature, Davis seemed almost as excited about attending a ceremony Tuesday at his San Diego high school to have his jersey retired as he was about playing in the Super Bowl.

Broncos quarterback John Elway is a huge fan of Davis the player and Davis the person.

“He has just gotten better and better,” Elway said. “He’s continuing to learn. He’s stronger, he’s tough and he can take the pounding. We’ve just seen the very early stages of how good he’s really going to be.”