No less of an authority than the Buffalo Bills’ legendary Hall of Fame coach Marv Levy best put Thurman’s career in perspective: "Thurman Thomas was one of the best all-purpose running backs in the history of the NFL. He was as complete of a football player as a football player gets." In recognition for such feats, it was announced on February 3, 2007, that  Thurman Thomas would join his legendary coach as a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2007.

Bio

Not only one of the first great, modern-era running backs, Thurman Thomas, unequivocally, is also one of the greatest complete running backs of all time. The "Thurmanator" – as Thomas was affectionately dubbed by ESPN's Chris Berman – did everything out of the backfield. Sure he did the glory work – but unlike most modern offensive stars – he also did the tough, dirty work that made his teams better. Thurman was durable and strong as an every-down back; he could handle 20-25 carries a game and possessed the ability to run either between the Tackles or to the outside. Thomas was also one of the greatest pass-catching running backs of all time and was a fantastic backfield blocker on passing downs.

Some of Thomas’ contemporaries might have rushed for slightly more yardage; few, however also possessed the ability to turn a catch out of the backfield into a key first down or to stay in on the third down and throw a key block. As a testament to his completeness as a running back, when Thurman Thomas retired only the great Walter Payton had posted more total yards from scrimmage in a career. Thomas also ranked ninth on the NFL career rushing list at the time of his retirement with 12,074 yards.

Thomas is also the all time leading rusher in Buffalo Bills team history and still owns many individual Bills team records. He was a key cog in the Buffalo Bills’ dominance of the AFC in the early 1990’s, as Thurman, quarterback Jim Kelly and wide receiver Andre Reed led them to an unprecedented four straight Super Bowl appearances. They are widely regarded as one of the greatest offensive trios ever to take the gridiron.  

Thurman Thomas was born on May 16, 1966 in Houston, Texas. He began playing football at an early age at Missouri City Junior High School and Willowridge High School football team. Thurman played college football at Oklahoma State where he was a two-time All-American.

Due to a knee injury Thomas sustained during his college career, the Bills got one of the all time bargain picks in the NFL Draft history when Thurman slipped to them in the second round of the 1988 Draft. In just his second year he was selected to the Pro Bowl. In 1991, Thurman Thomas had an even better year, becoming just the 11th player in league history to gain over 2,000 yards from scrimmage in a season. He was awarded the NFL’s Most Valuable Player Award and was selected to the Pro Bowl and All Pro teams. Thomas is the only player in NFL history to lead the league in total yards from scrimmage for four consecutive seasons.

Thurman and his wife Patti met at Oklahoma State in 1987. They are now the proud parents of Oliva, Angelica, Annika and Thurman Thomas III. The Thomas family currently resides in Orlando, Florida and enjoys playing golf, traveling and spending time with family in Houston and Buffalo. Thomas is currently involved in many different business ventures.