Billy Sims ranks in the all-time elite tier for running backs — a career that places Sims in the top 3% of all players at the position. The Knox value model assigns Sims a career score of 81, reflecting sustained impact that most players at the position never approach.
Season totals or exact team stints. Career totals count each season once.
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Rushing | Receiving | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Att | Yds | TD | Y/A | TD% | 1D | 1D% | Fmb | Tgt | Rec | Yds | TD | Ctch% | Y/R | Y/Tgt | AirYd/T | 1D | |||||
| 1980 | 24–25 | DET | 16 | — | 313 | 1,303 | 13 | 4.2 | 4.2 | — | — | — | — | 51 | 621 | 3 | — | 12.2 | — | — | — |
| 1981 | 25–26 | DET | 14 | — | 296 | 1,437 | 13 | 4.9 | 4.4 | — | — | — | — | 28 | 451 | 2 | — | 16.1 | — | — | — |
| 1982 | 26–27 | DET | 9 | — | 172 | 639 | 4 | 3.7 | 2.3 | — | — | — | — | 34 | 342 | 0 | — | 10.1 | — | — | — |
| 1983 | 27–28 | DET | 13 | — | 220 | 1,040 | 7 | 4.7 | 3.2 | — | — | — | — | 42 | 419 | 0 | — | 10.0 | — | — | — |
| 1984 | 28–29 | DET | 8 | — | 130 | 687 | 5 | 5.3 | 3.8 | — | — | — | — | 31 | 239 | 0 | — | 7.7 | — | — | — |
| Career | — | 60 | — | 1,131 | 5,106 | 42 | 4.5 | 3.7 | — | — | — | — | 186 | 2,072 | 5 | — | 11.1 | — | — | — | |
Career Value · VORP
151 career value over replacement — #644 all-time of 4,695. 30.2/season above a replacement-level RB.
Pick #1 (Rd 1) · DET · 1980 · +17.7 vs expected KV-H
Fan Rating
Rate Billy Sims — All-Time
Explore More
Similar Players
5 seasons · peak 16.3 in 1981
VAL (Value Above League) measures each NFL season against that season's league; the dashed line is zero — a season that added nothing above the league's fringe. ● peak · ○ league-best season.
4.4 career wins over 5 seasons · 1 win = 13.08 VAL
Best season · 1981 · +1.3 wins
Latest season · 1984 · +0.6 wins
VAL 3.0 measures each part of a NFL player's game in his sport's own currency against what that season's fringe players produced, converted to team wins with rates fitted from every team-season in the encyclopedia.
#35 of 1,228 all-time RBs by KV-H
A great career by KV-H: a remarkably steady profile that scores 81 of 100, era-normalized against rush yds/g peers across 5 scored seasons.
Blend 80.4 × longevity 1 = KV-H 81· confidence 100%
Season-by-season quality (era-relative rush yds/g)
Jim Brown
FB
91% match
1980 Draft ClassmatesFull class →