Lionel James is a career quality starter β a running back whose body of work places James in the top half of all players at the position historically. The Knox model values sustained contribution over flash, and James's career arc reflects exactly that kind of reliable professional-grade performance.
Lionel James
Top 31% all-time RBsHigh-End Starter
Height5'6"
Weight171 lb
BornMay 25, 1962
Age64
CollegeAuburnSee College Stats
Rookie yr1984
Draft1984 Β· Rd 5, Pick 118 Β· SDG
A quality running back with a above-average career β a legitimate starter who contributed meaningfully across their career.
Career Value Β· VORP
VORP 24 Β· #2934 Β· Role PlayerWorth 24 points of value above a freely-available replacement running back β top 64% of all 4,642 ranked at the position. 4 of 5 seasons cleared the replacement bar, by +6 on average.See board β
Seasons above replacement
4 cleared
Beat replacement (adds to VORP) Below it β adds 0, never a debit
50
Replacement
the KC-H bar
β
4
Seasons over
cleared the bar
Γ
+6
Avg surplus
peak +15
4 seasons Γ ~6 surplus β VORP 24
Combined Season Grid
The full season-by-season grids, joined on one timeline. Every selected stat family stays visible at onceβno tab hopping.
2 grids split in one view
| 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 | |||||
| 1984 | β | SDG | 16 | β | 25 | 115 | 0 | 4.6 | 0.0 | β | β | β | β | 23 | 206 | 0 | β | 9.0 | β | β | β |
| 1985 | β | SDG | 16 | β | 105 | 516 | 2 | 4.9 | 1.9 | β | β | β | β | 86 | 1,027 | 6 | β | 11.9 | β | β | β |
| 1986 | β | SDG | 7 | β | 51 | 224 | 0 | 4.4 | 0.0 | β | β | β | β | 23 | 173 | 0 | β | 7.5 | β | β | β |
| 1987 | β | SDG | 12 | β | 27 | 102 | 2 | 3.8 | 7.4 | β | β | β | β | 41 | 593 | 3 | β | 14.5 | β | β | β |
| 1988 | β | SDG | 16 | β | 23 | 105 | 0 | 4.6 | 0.0 | β | β | β | β | 36 | 279 | 1 | β | 7.8 | β | β | β |
| Career | β | 67 | β | 462 | 2,124 | 8 | 4.6 | 1.7 | β | β | β | β | 418 | 4,556 | 20 | β | 10.9 | β | β | β | |
Passing
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Cmp | Att | Cmp% | Yds | TD | Int | TD% | Int% | Y/A | AdjY/A | TD:INT | Rate | Sk | VAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Career | 0 | 2 | 0.0% | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 50.0 | 0.0 | β | β | 0.0 | β | 49.7 |
Rushing
Receiving
KV-H Anatomy
KV-H 56 Β· Strong StarterA strong starter career by KV-H: a well-rounded profile that scores 56 of 100, era-normalized against rush yds/g peers across 5 scored seasons.
55
Sustained
career value
Γ.6
58
Peak
best 3 seasons
Γ.4
Γ1
Longevity
career length
Blend 56.2 Γ longevity 1 = KV-H 56Β· confidence 98%
What builds the career mark of 55
On-field 37.1
Availability 17.9
On-field production Staying available
Season-by-season quality (era-relative rush yds/g)
1984bestavg 541988
All-Time Standing
how this career measures against the all-time greats at the position28
Depth
of 100
Reached 27% of the all-time Receptions leader β a rotational/depth all-time profile at the position.
27% of the all-time Receptions leader27
1 category β₯25% of the all-time leader33
A 0β100 scale where 100 = matched the all-time leaderat this position. Built only from visible encyclopedia data β career production vs. the all-time leader, plus efficiency (EPA) and comparable-player confidence β so it's a transparent context score, not a subjective rating. Tiers: Elite β₯ 85 Β· Strong β₯ 65 Β· Solid β₯ 45 Β· Depth < 45. Comparable-player confidence: 89%.
Career Aging Trajectory
vs. position group average Β· KV-H basisAmber = this player (normalized to own peak). Indigo = average RBs aging curve. Group peak age: 21. Source: StatVault KV-H era (1999+).
From Scrimmage Β· Career
Scrimmage Yds
6,680
2,124 rush Β· 4,556 recv
Total TDs
28
8 rush Β· 20 recv
Total Touches
880
462 carries Β· 418 rec
Yds / Touch
7.6
rushing + receiving
College stats are not imported for this profile yet.
StatVault has the verified college attribution (Auburn), but no parsed college box-score table is present in this profile artifact. The section stays here so every profile has a consistent college-stats landing point without fabricating unavailable rows.
Reference Graph
Career teammates and draft class, derived from year-by-year rosters β every name is linked.
Top Teammates
1984 Draft ClassΒ· this player went #118
Franchise Succession
the room, before and afterLionel inherited the Los Angeles Chargers RB room from Buford McGee (1984β1986), and handed it to Tim Spencer (1985β1989).
Similar Players
Statistical + physical similarity across every player in the database, position-relevant (0β100%).
Movementderived from season history
- 1988final season
Last recorded season with SDG
- 1984draft
Drafted by SDG β Round 5, Pick 118
Athletic & Unique Profile
verified measurements and curated source-tagged facts5'6" / 171 lb
Frame
Knox
StatVault's proprietary player intelligence, informed by full career data. How Knox works β
Historical Knox Β· KV-H
Era-normalized career quality β z-scored against 5-season peers. See all β
56
peak 58
Season Report CardsΒ· KV-H era-normalized per season
C+1984
B1985
C1986
C+1987
C+1988
Availability
Career durability β games played vs. scheduled, across 5 seasons.
85%
Era Translator
Rush Yds translated to the 2025NFL β each season's standing among its own-era peers, projected onto 2025's scoring environment. Modern-era (1999+) coverage.
| Season | Actual Rush Yds | Rush Yds/G | β 2025 Rush Yds | β 2025 /G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | 115 | 7.2 | 274+159 | 16.1 |
| 1985 | 516 | 32.3 | 740+224 | 43.5 |
| 1986 | 224 | 32 | 760+536 | 44.7 |
| 1987 | 102 | 8.5 | 302+200 | 17.8 |
| 1988 | 105 | 6.6 | 263+158 | 15.5 |
Data: nflverse:draft_picks, nflverse:players, wikipedia:season-stats (CC-BY-SA, facts-only), nfl.com:official-stats (games-played, facts-only reference) Β· multi-source verified via the StatVault Oracle Β· updated 6/18/2026
Career Value Β· VORP
24 career value over replacement β #2934 all-time of 4,642. 4.8/season above a replacement-level RB.
Draft OutcomeSteal β
Pick #118 (Rd 5) Β· SDG Β· 1984 Β· +21.6 vs expected KV-H
56actual
34.4 expected Β· Ξ+21.6
Fan Rating
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