NFL defenses didn't know what they were in for when Joe Morris became a full-time starter in 1985, during his third season with the New York Giants. After all, he was just 5-foot-7 and 195 pounds, so how much damage could he do?
As it turned out, plenty. Morris rushed for a then-team record 1,326 yards and a league-leading 21 touchdowns on his way to his first of two Pro Bowls.
Fool them once, sure, but could he do it again?
Indeed, he could. In 1986, Morris responded by breaking his own club standard with 1,516 rushing yards to go with 14 touchdowns (both ranked second in the NFL) while gaining his second Pro Bowl selection and the only All-Pro honor of his career.
In short, he was the engine that made the offense hum, especially in 1986 when he helped lead the Giants all the way to a 14-2 record and a victory in Super Bowl XXI.
Head coach Bill Parcells understood that defenses had difficulty finding Morris behind the Giants' large and powerful offensive line.
The running back would have shifted into second gear and made his way into the second level of the defense by the time they figured out where he had gone.
This element became even more important because Parcells believed in a ball-control offense that complemented his dominant defense.
Morris opened the first five weeks of the championship season with just one 100-yard game, but then found his stride.
He ran for more than 100 yards in five of his next six games, including a stretch of four straight contests that included back-to-back 181-yard outbursts (with two touchdowns in each) in critical victories over the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys.
He bookended those two games with 111 rushing yards and two touchdowns to spark a triumph in Philadelphia.
In Week 15, Morris rushed for 179 yards and registered three touchdowns for the sixth and final time in his career.
He kept the momentum going in the first round of the playoffs, churning out 159 yards and two touchdowns in the rout over San Francisco. Then, Morris capped off his stellar season with rushing touchdowns against Washington and Denver.
Morris played eight NFL seasons, missing the 1989 campaign due to a foot injury before returning in 1991 as a member of the Cleveland Browns.
As a Giant, he appeared in 94 games with 64 starts. He rushed 1,318 times for 5,296 yards and 48 touchdowns, leading the league in rushing touchdowns in 1985 with 21.
Morris was also a solid receiver out of the backfield, having caught 111 out of 178 pass targets for 960 yards and two touchdowns.
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