No. 32, 34 | |||||||||||||
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Position: | Running back | ||||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||||
Born: | Sikeston, Missouri, U.S. | May 12, 1958||||||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||||
Weight: | 225 lb (102 kg) | ||||||||||||
Career information | |||||||||||||
High school: | Sikeston (MO) | ||||||||||||
College: | Missouri | ||||||||||||
NFL draft: | 1981 / round: 2 / pick: 34 | ||||||||||||
Career history | |||||||||||||
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Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||
Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||
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Player stats at PFR |
James Curtis Wilder Sr. (born May 12, 1958) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Redskins, and the Detroit Lions.
Wilder played high school football at Sikeston High School where he set school records in career rushing yards and single season rushing yards. He led the Bulldogs to an undefeated season in 1976, his senior year with the team.
Wilder played at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College in Miami, Oklahoma, then attended and played college football at the University of Missouri where he led the Tigers to three bowl games and became known as the "Sikeston Train" and one of the most popular players for the program.[ citation needed ]
Wilder was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the second round of the 1981 NFL draft. After he shared the backfield as a rookie with Jerry Eckwood in 1981, the Buccaneers released Eckwood in favor of Wilder prior to the 1982 season. [1] He played for most of his career with Tampa Bay, and was a Pro Bowl selection in 1984. Wilder almost set an NFL record that season for combined rushing and receiving yards in a season finishing 16 yards short with 2,229. In an attempt to give Wilder one more chance to break the record in the final minute of the final game of the 1984 season against the New York Jets, head coach John McKay (in what would be his final game as the Buccaneers head coach) ordered his defense to let the Jets score, so that the Bucs could go back on offense. This resulted in one of the strangest plays in NFL history where the Tampa Bay defense simply stood still as the Jets ran the ball into the end zone; McKay was given a large fine from the league for that stunt. [2]
He ranks first in Buccaneer history in rushing yards, rushing attempts and receptions (later broken by Mike Evans) and even set an NFL record with 43 carries in a single game in 1984 (since broken). Also in 1984, he set NFL records for carries (407) (later broken by Jamal Anderson then Larry Johnson) and touches (492) in a single season. [3] [4]
Lawrence Taylor has stated that Wilder was one of the toughest running backs that he played against during his career. [5]
Legend | |
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NFL record | |
Bold | Career high |
Year | Team | Games | Rushing | Receiving | Fumbles | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GP | GS | Att | Yds | Avg | Y/G | Lng | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | FR | ||
1981 | TB | 16 | 16 | 107 | 370 | 3.5 | 23.1 | 23 | 4 | 48 | 507 | 10.6 | 38 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
1982 | TB | 9 | 9 | 83 | 324 | 3.9 | 36.0 | 47 | 3 | 53 | 466 | 8.8 | 32 | 1 | 5 | 1 |
1983 | TB | 10 | 10 | 161 | 640 | 4.0 | 64.0 | 75 | 4 | 57 | 380 | 6.7 | 31 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
1984 | TB | 16 | 16 | 407 | 1,544 | 3.8 | 96.5 | 37 | 13 | 85 | 685 | 8.1 | 50 | 0 | 10 | 4 |
1985 | TB | 16 | 16 | 365 | 1,300 | 3.6 | 81.3 | 28 | 10 | 53 | 341 | 6.4 | 20 | 0 | 9 | 1 |
1986 | TB | 12 | 12 | 190 | 704 | 3.7 | 58.7 | 45 | 2 | 43 | 326 | 7.6 | 25 | 1 | 10 | 3 |
1987 | TB | 12 | 12 | 106 | 488 | 4.6 | 40.7 | 21 | 0 | 40 | 328 | 8.2 | 32 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
1988 | TB | 7 | 7 | 86 | 343 | 4.0 | 49.0 | 19 | 1 | 15 | 124 | 8.3 | 24 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
1989 | TB | 15 | 4 | 70 | 244 | 3.5 | 16.3 | 14 | 0 | 36 | 335 | 9.3 | 27 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
1990 | DET | 15 | 0 | 11 | 51 | 4.6 | 3.2 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 8.0 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
WAS | 1 | 0 | Did not record any stats | |||||||||||||
Career | 129 | 102 | 1,586 | 6,008 | 3.8 | 46.6 | 75 | 37 | 431 | 3,500 | 8.1 | 50 | 10 | 44 | 13 |
Wilder's son, James Wilder Jr., is a professional football player who is currently signed with the Edmonton Elks of the CFL. He played football for Florida State and was a part of their 2013 National Championship winning team, and the 2017 Grey Cup winning team. Coincidentally, Marc Trestman, who was a Buccaneers assistant coach during the senior Wilder's career, was the junior Wilder's head coach. Wilder's daughter, Courtney Wilder, played running back on the Tampa Breeze during the 2011–12 LFL season. [6]
Carnell Lamar "Cadillac" Williams is an American football coach and former running back who is the running backs coach for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the running backs coach at Auburn University from 2019 to 2023, he also served as their interim head coach in 2022, the first African American to hold the position in Auburn history.
Derrick LaRon Ward is a former American football running back in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the New York Jets in the seventh round of the 2004 NFL draft and played for the New York Giants, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Houston Texans. He played college football at Fresno State University and Ottawa University.
Gerald Louis Carter is a former professional American football player who was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the ninth round of the 1980 NFL draft. A 6'1", 190-lb. wide receiver from Texas A&M, Carter played in 8 NFL seasons from 1980 to 1987. Carter's peak performance in his career came during the 1984 season for the Buccaneers when he caught 60 receptions for 816 yards and 5 touchdowns.
The 2005 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 30th season in the National Football League (NFL), the 8th playing their home games at Raymond James Stadium, and the 4th under head coach Jon Gruden. The season began with the team trying to improve on their 5–11 record in 2004; they made a complete reversal from last season by going 11–5, clinching their first winning season, playoff appearance and division title since 2002. Cadillac Williams won Offensive Rookie of the Year. The Buccaneers would lose in the Wild Card playoff game at home to the Washington Redskins.
The 2003 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 28th season in the National Football League (NFL), the 6th playing their home games at Raymond James Stadium, and the 2nd under head coach Jon Gruden. The season began with the team trying to defend its Super Bowl XXXVII title of 2002 along with being the first to team win back to back super bowls since the 1998 Denver Broncos and first NFC team to win back to back super bowls since the 1993 Dallas Cowboys. Despite high expectations, several last-minute losses led to locker room tension and front-office struggles. The Buccaneers finished 7–9, and missed the playoffs for the first time since 1998 and finished with a losing record for the first time since 1996.
The 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's first season in the National Football League (NFL). The Buccaneers played their home games at Tampa Stadium and their inaugural head coach was John McKay. The Buccaneers gained infamy as the first team to play an entire 14-game season without winning or tying a single game. It remains one of only four winless seasons since the merger. The Buccaneers did not score until their third game and did not score a touchdown until their fourth. They lost by more than a touchdown eleven times. Colorful, maverick former USC coach McKay, whose wisecracking remarks occasionally agitated fans and the league, led the team. The only bright spot was future Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Lee Roy Selmon, who made his rookie debut in an injury-plagued season.
The 1977 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 2nd season in the National Football League, the 2nd playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and the 2nd under head coach John McKay. After one lone season in the AFC, it was the franchise's first season in the NFC, competing in the Central division. It continued the losing streak that encompassed the entire 1976 season, and extended it to 26 games, second only to the Chicago Cardinals who lost a total of 29 games in a row from 1942 to 1945. Fear of becoming the Buccaneers’ first victim provided motivation to opposing teams. It took nearly two seasons for the Buccaneers to achieve their first franchise victory, a 33–14 win over the New Orleans Saints in the second-to-last game of the year. The next week, the Bucs earned their first home victory, over the St. Louis Cardinals.
The 1978 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's third season in the National Football League, the third playing their home games at Tampa Stadium, and the third under head coach John McKay. As their two 1977 victories had been in the last two games of the season, they entered the 1978 season with the longest active winning streak in the NFC Central.
The 1979 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 4th season in the National Football League. All home games were played at Tampa Stadium. After having won just seven games in the previous three seasons combined, the 1979 Buccaneers won ten games for their first winning season. They finished as NFC Central division champions and won the first playoff game in franchise history.
The 1980 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 5th season in the National Football League (NFL), the 5th playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and the 5th under head coach John McKay. They failed to improve on their 10–6 record from 1979 and finished 5–10–1.
The 1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 6th season in the National Football League the 6th playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and the 6th under head coach John McKay. The team improved on their 5–10–1 record from the 1980 season and finished 9–7.
The 1982 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 7th season in the National Football League the 7th playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and the 7th under head coach John McKay. The Bucs were regarded for the first time as a regular playoff contender. They were considered by some to be the best Buccaneer team yet, despite a mediocre offensive line and the lack of a feature running back. The team played only two games before the players' union called a labor strike, which resulted in a nine-game season. The season began with a three-game losing streak, as the Buccaneers outplayed their opponent statistically in each game, but showed a tendency for mental errors at crucial moments. The first game in which they were outgained by their opponent was their first win, a franchise-first victory over the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football. The team made a playoff run against a difficult schedule, facing only two opponents with losing records. Their schedule included all four eventual Conference Championship participants. They overcame double-digit deficits to win on last-minute field goals in their final two games, and had to survive opponents' last-minute rallies in all five of their victories. In the strike-season playoff format in which the top eight conference teams made the playoffs, the Buccaneers' seventh-place finish gave them a first-round matchup with the Dallas Cowboys. Despite a poor performance by the offense, the Buccaneers carried a 17–16 lead into the fourth quarter, before the Cowboys rallied for a 30–17 victory following a controversial penalty call. This was the last playoff appearance of the John McKay era, and was followed by fourteen consecutive losing seasons.
The 1983 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 8th season in the National Football League the 8th playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and the 8th under head coach John McKay. They failed to improve on their 5–4 record from 1982 and finished with an equal league-worst 2–14 record as personnel changes and a rash of injuries and missed out the playoffs for the first time since 1980.
The 1984 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 9th season in the National Football League the 9th playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and the 9th and final season under head coach John McKay. They improved on their 2–14 season and finished 6-10, but missing the playoffs for the second straight season.
The 1985 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's ninth season in the National Football League, the ninth playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and the first season under head coach Leeman Bennett. The team failed to improve on a 6–10 season, once again finishing at 2–14, the same as in 1983.
The 1986 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 11th season in the National Football League playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and their second under head coach Leeman Bennett. The team matched their 2–14 season from 1985, for one of the worst seasons in franchise history, and according to statistics site Football Outsiders, the sixth-worst team in the NFL since 1950. There is some sentiment that the 1986 team was even worse than the winless team of 1976, and the 473 points conceded was not beaten by any NFL team until the 2001 Indianapolis Colts gave up 486. The Buccaneers selected Bo Jackson with the top pick in the draft, but were unable to convince him to join the team. Three weeks after the draft, Jackson signed a three-year baseball contract with the Kansas City Royals. Despite holding four of the first forty selections in the draft, and the presence of a great influx of fresh talent from defunct USFL teams, the Buccaneers were unable to find any impact players in either the draft or free agency. They entered the season with a roster nearly identical to the previous season's 2–14 team.
The 1987 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 12th season in the National Football League, the 12th playing their home games at Tampa Stadium, and the first under head coach Ray Perkins. It was a year of great change for the Buccaneers. Perkins had only needed three seasons (1979–1981) to build the New York Giants into a playoff team, and it was hoped that he would be able to repeat the feat with the Buccaneers. They improved over their 2–14 record from 1986 and finished 4–11.
Jerry Eckwood is a former NFL running back. He played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1979 to 1981, and was a key member of the Buccaneers team that made the first playoff appearance in franchise history in 1979. Eckwood played collegiately for the Arkansas Razorbacks from 1975 to 1978.
The 1997 Detroit Lions season was their 68th in the National Football League (NFL).
Gregory Keith Horton was a professional American football player who played offensive lineman for the Los Angeles Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
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