There are 10 unbreakable NFL records

Nowadays, in the NFL, it feels like there’s a record broken every week in almost every game. Once the league moved to an 18-game schedule, certain records — such as most catches by a rookie, or a team’s single-season mark — have been surpassed. But then there are those feats that have — and will — stand the test of time.

We’ve compiled a list of the 10 most unbreakable records currently standing in the NFL that have very little chance of being touched.

This is probably a record you want to stay away from, but it’s still one hell of a feat. Or debacle, however you choose to view it. Until the mid-1990s, when Tony Dungy arrived in Tampa, the Buccaneers had been the laughingstocks of the league for years. From the orange creamsicle uniforms to the logo on their helmets to just being plain bad, the Bucs could never seem to get on the right track.

Between the 1976 and 1977 seasons, the expansion baby Bucs lost 26 games consecutively. Nope, that’s not a typo. The team was terrible, the franchise was inept, and they didn’t have the talent of other, more established teams. That organization went through one of the longest growing pains stages ever in sports. Nowadays, Tampa has two Super Bowl titles to its name.

George Blanda suited up for 26 years from 1949-1975, which sounds crazy. A good part of that was in the AFL but to play football for that long in any professional league is an accomplishment worth noting. Tom Brady is close but would need another few years to match Blanda, and with everything going on in his life, that doesn’t seem fathomable.

With all the receiving records we’ve seen fall over the past decade, this record might not seem untouchable, but Anderson has held this record since 1989. You do the math. Calvin Johnson came close in a 2013 game but ended seven yards shy of matching Anderson. With all these super-talented wideouts in the league getting so many targets each week, you’d think this one could be in jeopardy every week. Flipper’s record, set while playing with the Rams, is likely to be safe for a while longer.

Bruce Smith terrorized QBs for 19 seasons accumulating 200 sacks in the process. Reggie White is the closest with 198 and held the record before Smith. Von Miller is the closest active player with 121.5 career sacks. Reaching 200 at this point for Miller would take some miracle.

Even at the QB position, this stat is wild, but he was undoubtedly an iron man in his day. You’d think that with athletes getting bigger, faster, and stronger over the years, someone would be close to this mark, but it has yet to happen. Jim Marshall is the closest at 270, and he played DE in the 60s and 70s. For QBs, it’s Phillip Rivers, who retired after the 2021 campaign, with 240.

Every now and then, we’ll see a game where a team rushes the ball upwards of 40 times. But it’s safe to say that Morris’ record of 45 carries in one game for Washington in ‘88 will hold the top spot for the rest of eternity. Most teams today barely care to run the ball 20 times a game, so they certainly won’t be running it 40-plus times with one guy. That’s a quick way to run a player out of the league.

When LaDainian Tomlinson burst onto the scene in 2001, he was different. His main comparison was Marshall Faulk, but the next-gen LT was slightly different. In 2006 he set the record for most single-season TDs with 31. He ran for 28 and caught another three out of the backfield. Back then, you still had many QBs who weren’t throwing 30-plus TDs in a season, but Tomlinson nearly rushed for that many. Tomlinson’s record is safe because nobody is touching this one anytime soon.

As pass rushers go — or defensive ends, as they were once referred to — Thomas was one of the best of his era. During a game during the 1990 season, Thomas sacked Dave Krieg of the Seattle Seahawks seven times. Multiple players have come close to matching Thomas with six sacks in-game, including Thomas himself in ‘98.

Although there are many good pass rushers today, offenses are set up for the QB to get the ball out quicker, so this is a record Smith could hold for many more years

Winning in the NFL is hard. Doing it on the road is even more challenging. But coming out on top in 18 consecutive away games sounds unreal. The 49ers won 18 road games over two seasons from ‘88-90. This was the peak of that San Francisco dynasty of the ‘80s, as they won back-to-back Super Bowls during this stretch. With the parity in today’s game, this record continues to stand the test of time.

Between the passing game explosion we’ve seen in the past 15 years, rule changes on touching quarterbacks and receivers, and the devaluing of the running back position, Smith’s all-time rushing record could stand for many decades. Smith also holds the record for most career rushing TDs with 164.

Luckily Smith played in a run-heavy era, and while he did have a great QB (Troy Aikman) and wide receiver (Michael Irvin) tandem, the Hall of Fame rusher was the most crucial piece to that Dallas Cowboys dynasty. Those teams were built to run the ball behind one of the best offensive lines ever assembled. Mark Ingram is the closest active player to touching Smith’s mark, and he’s barely over 8,000 yards in his career, having been in the NFL for over a decade now. The closest active player in TDs is Derrick Henry, with 70.