Rueben Mayes ranks in the all-time elite tier for running backs β a career that places Mayes in the top 5% of all players at the position. The Knox value model assigns Mayes a career score of 77, reflecting sustained impact that most players at the position never approach.
Rueben Mayes
All-Time Rank & Honors
career ranks, postseason ranks, awards, title context2x
Pro Bowls
An all-time caliber running back (top 5% all-time) who combined elite production with reliable availability. Iron Legends define eras β they show up, every game, for years on end.
Career Value Β· VORP
VORP 119 Β· #883 Β· High-ValueWorth 119 points of value above a freely-available replacement running back β top 20% of all 4,642 ranked at the position. 5 of 5 seasons cleared the replacement bar, by +23.8 on average.See board β
Seasons above replacement
5 cleared
Beat replacement (adds to VORP) Below it β adds 0, never a debit
50
Replacement
the KC-H bar
β
5
Seasons over
cleared the bar
Γ
+23.8
Avg surplus
peak +40
5 seasons Γ ~23.8 surplus β VORP 119
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 | |||||
| 1986 | β | NO | 16 | β | 286 | 1,353 | 8 | 4.7 | 2.8 | β | β | β | β | 17 | 96 | 0 | β | 5.6 | β | β | β |
| 1987 | β | NO | 12 | β | 243 | 917 | 5 | 3.8 | 2.1 | β | β | β | β | 15 | 68 | 0 | β | 4.5 | β | β | β |
| 1988 | β | NO | 16 | β | 170 | 628 | 3 | 3.7 | 1.8 | β | β | β | β | 11 | 103 | 0 | β | 9.4 | β | β | β |
| 1990 | β | NO | 15 | β | 138 | 510 | 7 | 3.7 | 5.1 | β | β | β | β | 12 | 121 | 0 | β | 10.1 | β | β | β |
| 1992 | β | SEA | 16 | β | 28 | 74 | 0 | 2.6 | 0.0 | β | β | β | β | 2 | 13 | 0 | β | 6.5 | β | β | β |
| 1993 | β | SEA | 1 | β | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2.0 | 0.0 | β | β | β | β | 0 | 0 | 0 | β | 0.0 | β | β | β |
| Career | β | 76 | β | 866 | 3,484 | 23 | 4.0 | 2.7 | β | β | β | β | 57 | 401 | 0 | β | 7.0 | β | β | β | |
Rushing
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Att | Yds | TD | Y/A | TD% | 1D | 1D% | Fmb | VAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | 23 | NO | 16 | β | 286 | 1,353 | 8 | 4.7 | 2.8 | β | β | β | 16.7 |
| 1987 | 24 | NO | 12 | β | 243 | 917 | 5 | 3.8 | 2.1 | β | β | β | 11.6 |
| 1988 | 25 | NO | 16 | β | 170 | 628 | 3 | 3.7 | 1.8 | β | β | β | 10.5 |
| 1990 | 27 | NO | 15 | β | 138 | 510 | 7 | 3.7 | 5.1 | β | β | β | 13.5 |
| 1992 | 29 | SEA | 16 | β | 28 | 74 | 0 | 2.6 | 0.0 | β | β | β | 6.9 |
| 1993 | 30 | SEA | 1 | β | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2.0 | 0.0 | β | β | β | β |
| Career | 76 | 866 | 3,484 | 23 | 4.0 | β | β | β | β | 59.2 |
Receiving
KV-H Anatomy
KV-H 77 Β· GreatA great career by KV-H: a peak-driven profile that scores 77 of 100, era-normalized against rush yds/g peers across 5 scored seasons.
73
Sustained
career value
Γ.6
82
Peak
best 3 seasons
Γ.4
Γ1
Longevity
career length
Blend 76.6 Γ longevity 1 = KV-H 77Β· confidence 100%
What builds the career mark of 73
On-field 53.9
Availability 19.1
On-field production Staying available
Season-by-season quality (era-relative rush yds/g)
1986bestavg 74elite 701992
All-Time Standing
how this career measures against the all-time greats at the position17
Depth
of 100
Reached 19% of the all-time Rushing Yards leader β a rotational/depth all-time profile at the position.
19% of the all-time Rushing Yards leader19
0 categories β₯25% of the all-time leader0
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: 90%.
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+).
College stats are not imported for this profile yet.
StatVault has the verified college attribution (Washington State), 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
Rickey JacksonLB4yHoby BrennerTE4ySam MillsLB4yEric MartinWR4yJohn TiceTE4yDalton HilliardRB4yBrian HansenP3yDave WaymerDB3yToi CookDB3yLonzell HillWR3yJohn KasayK2yEugene RobinsonFS2yTommy BarnhardtP2yCortez KennedyDT2yChris WarrenRB2yBrett PerrimanWR2yBrian BladesWR2yCraig HeywardRB2yDwayne HarperDB2yMichael SinclairDE2yRobb ThomasWR2yTracy JohnsonRB2yRobert ClarkWR2yPaul GreenTE2y
1986 Draft ClassΒ· this player went #57
Franchise Succession
the room, before and afterRueben inherited the New Orleans Saints RB room from Hokie Gajan (1982β1985), and handed it to Dalton Hilliard (1986β1993).
Similar Players
Statistical + physical similarity across every player in the database, position-relevant (0β100%).
Movementderived from season history
- 1993final season
Last recorded season with SEA
- 1992team change
Joined SEA (from NO)
- 1986draft
Drafted by NOR β Round 3, Pick 57
- 1986team change
Joined NO (from NOR)
Athletic & Unique Profile
verified measurements and curated source-tagged facts5'11" / 201 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
77
peak 82
Season Report CardsΒ· KV-H era-normalized per season
A+1986
A1987
B+1988
B1990
C+1992
Availability
Career durability β games played vs. scheduled, across 6 seasons.
80%
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | 1,353 | 84.6 | 1,849+496 | 108.8 |
| 1987 | 917 | 76.4 | 1,804+887 | 106.1 |
| 1988 | 628 | 39.3 | 1,020+392 | 60 |
| 1990 | 510 | 34 | 938+428 | 55.2 |
| 1992 | 74 | 4.6 | 285+211 | 16.8 |
Data: nflverse:draft_picks, nflverse:players, wikipedia:season-stats (CC-BY-SA, facts-only), espn.com:stats-api (games-played, facts-only reference) Β· multi-source verified via the StatVault Oracle Β· updated 6/18/2026
Career Value Β· VORP
119 career value over replacement β #883 all-time of 4,642. 23.8/season above a replacement-level RB.
Draft OutcomeSteal β
Pick #57 (Rd 3) Β· NOR Β· 1986 Β· +30.1 vs expected KV-H
77actual
46.9 expected Β· Ξ+30.1
Fan Rating
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