LaDainian Tomlinson

LaDainian Tramayne Tomlinson (born June 23, 1979) is an American football running back for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Texas Christian University (TCU). He was drafted by the San Diego Chargers fifth overall in the 2001 NFL Draft and spent nine seasons with that team before moving to the Jets as a free agent.

Tomlinson, often referred to by his initials, L. T., has been selected to five Pro Bowls and has been an All-Pro six times. Tomlinson won two rushing titles, in 2006 and 2007, and ranks fifth in career rushing yards. During the 2006 NFL season, he set several records and received numerous honors and awards including the NFL’s Most Valuable Player Award and Associated Press’ Offensive Player of the Year Award.

Early years
Tomlinson was born to Loreane Chappelle and Oliver Tomlinson in Rosebud, Texas. His father left the family when Tomlinson was seven years old. Tomlinson did not see his father very often afterwards. His mother worked as a preacher. At age nine, Tomlinson joined the Pop Warner Little Scholars football program and scored a touchdown the first time he touched the ball.

Tomlinson attended University High School in Waco, Texas, where he played basketball, baseball, and football. Tomlinson began his football career as a linebacker, but blossomed on the offensive side of the ball. Tomlinson amassed 2,554 yards and 39 touchdowns his senior year, earning honors as the District 25-4A Most Valuable Player, Super Centex Offensive Player of the Year.

Tomlinson was an avid Dallas Cowboys and Miami Hurricanes fan during his youth. He especially idolized Emmitt Smith, Jim Brown, Barry Sanders and Walter Payton.

College career
Tomlinson was recruited by many schools, but he was not considered one of the nation's top running backs coming out of high school. Many felt this was because Tomlinson did not play running back until his senior year and many top colleges had already made their recruiting choices by then. Thus, Tomlinson signed with Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas, a small school then in the Western Athletic Conference, and played for the TCU Horned Frogs football team from 1997 to 2000. Prior to Tomlinson's arrival, TCU had appeared in only one bowl game in the previous 12 seasons (and 2 in the previous 34), and had recently been "downgraded" to a minor conference (the Western Athletic Conference) after the breakup of the long-standing Southwest Conference.

During Tomlinson's freshman and sophomore years, he split time with Basil Mitchell. In the 1998 season he helped the Horned Frogs to their first bowl win in 41 years against the University of Southern California in the Sun Bowl. During his junior season in 1999, he set an NCAA record for yards in one game with 406 against UTEP. He ended the year with an NCAA-leading 1,850 yards rushing to go along with 18 touchdowns.

In his senior season in 2000, Tomlinson led the NCAA for the second time with 2,158 yards and 22 touchdowns. He won the Doak Walker Award as the nation's best running back, and was a finalist for the Heisman, but came in fourth. He completed his college career with 5,263 rushing yards, ranking sixth in NCAA Division I history.

The school retired his jersey number (5) during halftime of a November 2005 game against UNLV. In December of that year, Tomlinson fulfilled a promise to his mother by earning his degree in communications from TCU.

College awards and honors

 * Consensus first-team All-American (2000)
 * Mobile Alabama Bowl MVP (2000)
 * Doak Walker Award (2000)
 * Jim Brown Trophy (2000)
 * Senior Bowl Most Valuable Player (2001)

2001 NFL Draft
The San Diego Chargers selected Tomlinson in the first round of the 2001 NFL Draft, as the fifth overall pick. The Chargers possessed the draft's first selection, but traded the pick to the Atlanta Falcons, who drafted Michael Vick. In this way, many consider that Vick and Tomlinson were "traded" for each other, although the transaction was actually the result of traded draft picks.

In exchange for San Diego's first draft pick, with which Atlanta selected Vick, the Chargers received Atlanta's #5 pick (used to draft Tomlinson), Atlanta's third-round (67th overall) pick, which San Diego used to select Tay Cody, and Atlanta's second-round pick in 2002, which San Diego would use to select Reche Caldwell. San Diego also received Atlanta's wide receiver Tim Dwight. The Chargers' general manager, John Butler, made the deal contingent on San Diego receiving Dwight, to which Atlanta agreed.

San Diego Chargers
Tomlinson immediately became the starting running back with the Chargers. He achieved immediate success in the NFL, rushing for over 1,200 yards and making over 50 receptions in each of his seven seasons. He has also proven to be effective as a passer, having completed eight career passes, seven of them for touchdowns and a career passer rating of 154.4.

In 2003, he became the first player in NFL history to rush for 1,000 yards and record 100 receptions in the same season. He also reached his 50th career touchdown in his 4th season (60th game) and was elected to the Pro Bowl team in 2002, 2004, 2005, and 2006. Tomlinson also tied Lenny Moore's all-time record for consecutive games scoring a TD (18).

On October 16, 2005, in the Chargers' victory over the Oakland Raiders, LaDainian Tomlinson became the 7th player in NFL history to run, catch, and throw for a touchdown in the same game. Despite breaking his ribs towards the end of the 2005 season, LaDainian continued to play and finished the season with 1,462 rushing yards, 370 receiving yards, and a career high 20 touchdowns (18 rushing, 2 receiving). In 2005 he was nominated for the FedEx Ground Player of the Year Award. Tomlinson placed third behind Tiki Barber and Shaun Alexander.

In the 2006 season, he set NFL records by scoring 14 touchdowns in a span of 4 games, 16 touchdowns in span of 5 games, and 19 touchdowns in a span of 6 games, including a franchise record 4 touchdowns in games against the San Francisco 49ers, Cincinnati Bengals and the Denver Broncos. He is the first to score three TDs in three straight games and became the first to score at least 3 in four straight games set the following week. Also, he became the second to have three games of four or more TDs in one season (Marshall Faulk became the first back in 2000). He became the fastest player ever to score 100 touchdowns. On November 19, 2006, Tomlinson accomplished the milestone in 89 games with 102, beating the previous record of 93 games held by Jim Brown and Emmitt Smith. On Dec. 3, 2006, Tomlinson became the first running back to rush for at least 1,236 yards in his first six NFL seasons (he has now done so in his first seven years as well). On December 7, he was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Month.

He scored his 29th touchdown against the Denver Broncos in just 13 games (Alexander set the record in 16). His 2 touchdown passes do not count toward this record because the NFL treats them in a separate category. With the first touchdown against Kansas City on December 17, he surpassed the NFL record for most points in a season which had stood for 46 years. Tomlinson would finish his record breaking season with 2,323 yards from scrimmage and 31 touchdowns (28 rushing, 3 receiving).

Tomlinson went on to rush for 123 yards, catch 2 passes for 64 yards, and score 2 touchdowns in the Chargers divisional playoff loss to the New England Patriots on January 14, 2007. After the game, he was upset at the Patriots and their head coach Bill Belichick for performing a victory dance that mocked fellow Charger Shawne Merriman on the center-field logo at Qualcomm Stadium.

On January 5, 2007, Tomlinson was awarded with the NFL Most Valuable Player Award for his record-breaking season. He was the runaway winner, receiving 44 of the 50 votes from a panel of nationwide sportswriters and broadcasters who cover the NFL. Former teammate Drew Brees, now a New Orleans Saint, received four votes and Indianapolis QB Peyton Manning received two votes. Tomlinson was also one of nine Chargers players selected for the 2007 Pro Bowl and also a starting running back of the American Football Conference. He was also recognized by the Associated Press as they awarded him their Offensive Player of the Year Award and was later named NBC Player of the Year. He was later named co-holder of the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award alongside his aforementioned former teammate Drew Brees. On July 11, 2007, Tomlinson won the ESPY Awards for Male Athlete of the Year, Best Record-Breaking Performance and Best NFL Athlete, as well as the Hummer Like Nothing Else Award.

On December 2, 2007 Tomlinson passed Walter Payton on the all time rushing touchdown list, with his 111th career rushing touchdown, against the Kansas City Chiefs. A day later, Tomlinson honored Payton by wearing his jersey during a press conference. Tomlinson led the league in rushing with a total of 1,474 rushing yards in 2007, becoming the first player since Edgerrin James in 2000, to win back-to-back rushing titles. During the year, Tomlinson became the fourth fastest player to reach 10,000 rushing yards in NFL history.

Tomlinson ran for just 42 yards on 21 carries and caught 3 passes for 19 yards, but did score a touchdown in the Chargers wild-card playoff victory over the Tennessee Titans on January 6, 2008. He scored his touchdown on fourth and goal, leaping over the pile and reaching across the goal line to help secure the fourth quarter lead for the Chargers. Tomlinson bruised his left knee and missed the second half of the Chargers divisional playoff win over the Indianapolis Colts on January 13, 2008. Tomlinson just had two carries and 5 yards in the AFC title game, before sitting out the rest of the game, as the Chargers would lose to the New England Patriots on January 20, 2008.

Tomlinson did not participate in the Chargers' offseason program in 2008 because of the injury. Much like the previous year, Tomlinson got off to a slow start after jamming his big toe against the Carolina Panthers the second week into the season. Tomlinson did not record a 100-yard rushing performance until week four against the Oakland Raiders while having averaged just 3.3 yards per carry the first three weeks. Tomlinson averaged just 17 carries per game up to midseason and had only had four rushing touchdown and one receiving touchdown. Though Tomlinson managed only two 100-yard rushing performances on the season, he managed to top the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the 8th consecutive time in his career which placed him third all-time alongside Thurman Thomas for consecutive 1,000-yard rushing seasons behind Curtis Martin, Barry Sanders and Emmitt Smith. He ended the seasons with a career-low 1,110 rushing yards on a career-low 292 attempts and 11 touchdowns thanks to a three-touchdown performance in the final game of the 2008 season. He also moved up the all-time list of touchdowns, getting his 126th rushing touchdown, which passed Marcus Allen's 123 and his 141st touchdown moved him closer to Marcus Allen's 145 total touchdowns in a career which is tied for third all-time with wide receiver Terrell Owens, behind Emmitt Smith (175) and Jerry Rice (208). Tomlinson partially tore his groin in the finale against Denver. He played the first half in the wild-card round against the Colts before re-injuring the groin and missing the Charger's divisional loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

After a contentious off-season negotiation, Tomlinson and the Chargers came to an agreement on March 10, 2009 to restructure his three-year contract so that he may remain a Charger.

On December 6, 2009, Tomlinson moved into eighth place on the career rushing list, passing both Jim Brown and Marshall Faulk, while becoming the fastest player to 150 career touchdowns in the same game. Despite a milestone setting season for Tomlinson, the 2009 season itself was a disappointment. Tomlinson suffered an ankle injury opening day against Oakland that hampered him throughout the season. Along with the injury, Tomlinson's production declined, due to the fact that he was no longer the focus of the offense, and he set career lows in rushing attempts and yards. Though he did score 12 touchdowns, Tomlinson's Yards per rush rate was down to a dismal 3.3 YPR. Despite Tomlinson's struggles, the Chargers cruised to an impressive 13-3 season. Though this optimism would soon be dashed, after San Diego was upset in the second round by the wild-card New York Jets. With Tomlinson being a complete non-factor, the season ended yet again without Tomlinson attaining a championship in San Diego. After much speculation about Tomlinson's future with the team, the Chargers released Tomlinson on February 22, 2010 after nine seasons with the team, ending one of the most successful one-team tenures in professional sports history.

New York Jets
For the first time in his career, Tomlinson entered the free-agent market, with many teams expressing interest. Despite the fact that Tomlinson still believed that he was a number one caliber running back, he would be forced to split time with another running back and after various contract negotiations, Tomlinson signed a two-year, $5.2 million contract with the New York Jets on March 14, 2010. Tomlinson chose to sign with New York because he felt more comfortable with the team's philosophy, personnel and he felt the team offered him the best chance to win a championship.

Tomlinson recorded his first 100 yard rushing game in nearly two years on October 3, 2010 against the Buffalo Bills. In the game Tomlinson also passed Tony Dorsett for 7th on the all time rushing list.

On October 31, 2010, Tomlinson reached another career milestone joining Walter Payton as the only players in NFL history to gain 13,000 yards rushing and 4,000 yards receiving.

On December 6, 2010 against the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football, LaDainian Tomlinson passed Eric Dickerson for 6th on the all time rushing list.

On December 19, 2010 LaDainian Tomlinson reached another milestone by passing Marcus Allen for 6th on the all time yards from scrimmage list.

He finished the season leading the Jets in rushing with 914 yards, though it was widely thought he would be a complement to Shonn Greene, who he outrushed by 148 yards. It was also Tomlinson's first year in his entire career that he did not record double-digit TDs, as he recorded a career low of 6.

He rushed for 82 yards on 16 attempts and ran for both Jets touchdowns in a 17–16 victory over the Colts in the AFC wild card playoffs. Against the Patriots in the AFC Divisional playoffs, the Jets won 28–21 as Tomlinson rushed for 49 yards on 10 attempts and caught a touchdown. It was his 7th career postseason touchdown. In the AFC Championship Game against the Steelers, the Jets were down 24–10 in the fourth quarter when Tomlinson was unable to score a touchdown on a fourth-and-goal from the one yard line. The Jets went on to lose 24–19. Tomlinson had nine carries for 16 yards.

Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum said after the season that he expected Tomlinson back for 2011 but "things could change." With Greene designated as the starting running back for 2011, Tomlinson began the season as a third-down back and caught six passes for 73 yards in the season opener.

On September 25, 2011 against the Oakland Raiders Tomlinson caught an 18 yard touchdown pass for his 160th career touchdown, joining Emmitt Smith and Jerry Rice as the only players to score 160 career touchdowns.

On October 9, 2011 against the New England Patriots Tomlinson became the 6th player in NFL history to reach 18,000 yards from scrimmage.

On October 23, 2011 against the San Diego Chargers Tomlinson became the 4th running back in NFL history to have 600 career receptions, joining Larry Centers, Marshall Faulk, and Keith Byars.

On November 13, 2011 against the New England Patriots Tomlinson passed Barry Sanders for 5th on the all time yards from scrimmage list.

On December 18, 2011 against the Philadelphia Eagles Tomlinson passed Keith Byars for 3rd on the all time career receptions list for running backs.

On January 1, 2012 against the Miami Dolphins Tomlinson passed Jerome Bettis for 5th on the all time rushing yards list.

NFL records

 * Holds the all-time NFL record for single season touchdowns (31). (The previous record was 28, set in 2005 by Shaun Alexander.)
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for single season rushing touchdowns (28). (The previous record was 27, set in 2003 by Priest Holmes and in 2005 by Shaun Alexander.)
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most points scored in a single season (186). (The previous record was 176, set in 1960 by Paul Hornung.)
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most games with 2+ rushing touchdowns (38).
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most games with 3+ rushing touchdowns (12)
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most games with 200+ yards from scrimmage in a season (5) in 2003
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most games with 18 or more points in a season (6) in 2006
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most games with 14 or more points in a season (6) in 2006
 * Shares the all-time NFL record for the most games with 2 or more touchdowns in season (10) in 2006 - tied with Priest Holmes, 2003
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most games with 3 or more touchdowns in season (6) in 2006
 * Shares the all-time NFL record for the most games with 4 or more touchdowns in season (3) in 2006. - tied with Marshall Faulk, 2000
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive games with a rushing touchdown (18) 2004–2005
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive games with 2+ rushing touchdowns (8) in 2006
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive games with 3+ rushing touchdowns (3) in 2006
 * Shares the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive games with a touchdown (18) 2004–2005. - tied with Lenny Moore, 1963-1965* Holds the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive games 2+ touchdowns (8) in 2006
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive games 3+ touchdowns (4) in 2006
 * Shares the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive games 4+ touchdowns: (2) in 2006 - tied with Marshall Faulk, 2000
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive seasons with 1,200+ or more yards rushing (7) 2001–2007
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive seasons with 1,300+ or more yards rushing (6) 2002–2007
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most seasons with 10+ rushing touchdowns (9) 2001–2009
 * Shares the all-time NFL record for the most seasons with 11+ rushing touchdowns (8) 2002–2009 - tied with Emmitt Smith 1990–1996, 1998–1999.
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most seasons with 12+ rushing touchdowns (7) 2002–2007, 2009
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most seasons with 13+ rushing touchdowns (7) 2002–2007
 * Shares the all-time NFL record for the most seasons with 14+ rushing touchdowns (5) 2002, 2004-2007 - tied with Shaun Alexander, 2001-2005
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most seasons with 15+ rushing touchdowns (4) 2004–2007
 * Shares the all-time NFL record for the most seasons with 17+ rushing touchdowns (3) 2004–2006 - tied with Emmitt Smith 1992, 1994-1995
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive seasons with 11+ touchdowns (8) 2002–2009
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive seasons with 12+ touchdowns (8) 2002–2009
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive seasons with 13+ touchdowns (6) 2002–2007
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive seasons with 14+ touchdowns (6) 2002–2007
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive seasons with 15+ touchdowns (6) 2002–2007
 * Shares the all-time NFL record for the most consecutive seasons with 16+ touchdowns (5) 2003–2007. - tied with Shaun Alexander 2001-2005
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most seasons with 17+ touchdowns (5) 2003–2007
 * Holds the all-time NFL record for the most seasons with 18+ touchdowns (4) 2004–2007
 * Shares the all-time NFL record for the most seasons with 20+ touchdowns (2) 2005-2006. -tied with 4 other players

Personal
Tomlinson was introduced to his future wife, LaTorsha Oakley, while the two were students at TCU. The couple married on March 21, 2003. After years of trying to conceive, LaTorsha became pregnant in 2009. Tomlinson's son, Daylen, was born on July 8, 2010.

In spite of Tomlinson's tenacity on the football field, he is described as quiet and humble.

In 2007 LaDainian's father, Oliver Tomlinson, and brother-in-law Ronald McClain, died in an auto accident. Tomlinson who had a "great relationship" with his father was devastated by the tragedy.

Tomlinson has been featured in several commercials for Nike, Campbell Soup and Vizio. As late as 2005, he was wearing Nike Zoom Air football cleats (size 13½).

In April 2007, Tomlinson turned down a request to become the cover athlete and official spokesperson for EA Sports' Madden NFL 08 video game. Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young was eventually selected for the cover.