Background and career
Jerome Abram Bettis Sr. (born February 16, 1972) is an American former professional football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Nicknamed "the Bus" due to his large size and forceful running style, he is regarded as one of the greatest power runners of all time and ranks eighth in NFL rushing yards. Bettis played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and was selected 10th overall by the Los Angeles Rams in the 1993 NFL draft. He was a member of the Rams for three seasons before being traded to the Steelers, where he spent the remainder of his career. Bettis received six Pro Bowl and two first-team All-Pro selections, in addition to being a member of the Steelers team that won Super Bowl XL, the franchise's first title in over two decades. He was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2015.
Bettis was born February 16, 1972, in Detroit, Michigan. He is the youngest of three children of Gladys Elizabeth (née Bougard) and Johnnie E. Bettis. Bettis did not start playing football until high school, as his primary passion as a youth had been bowling. At age 14, he was diagnosed with asthma. As a youth in Detroit, Bettis and his brother made ends meet by selling crack cocaine. He attended Mackenzie High School in Detroit, where he was a standout running back and linebacker. As a senior, he was rated the top player in the state by the Detroit Free Press, and was the Gatorade Circle of Champions Player of the Year award winner.
Bettis enrolled at the University of Notre Dame to play college football for the Fighting Irish. Bettis finished his career with 337 rushing attempts for 1,912 yards (5.7 yards per attempt), and made 32 receptions for 429 yards (13.4 yards per reception). In his sophomore year, he set the Notre Dame touchdown record with 20 in one season, with 16 rushing, and 4 receiving (23 total touchdowns including the 1992 Sugar Bowl, a record which still stands). In his last game as a junior, a 28–3 win by Notre Dame over Texas A&M in the 1993 Cotton Bowl, he rushed 20 times for 75 yards, ran for two touchdowns and caught a 26-yard touchdown pass. Following this Bettis decided to forgo his senior year and enter the 1993 NFL draft. He returned to Notre Dame in 1996 when he was having a dispute with the St. Louis Rams and was considering retirement. He registered for courses in "history, philosophy, marketing and business" totaling an 18 credit class load. He returned to the NFL shortly thereafter. Bettis later returned to Notre Dame to complete his college degree, and on May 15, 2022, he graduated with a business degree.
The Los Angeles Rams selected Bettis in the first round, with the tenth overall selection, of the 1993 NFL draft. On July 22, 1993, He signed a three-year, $4.625 million contract with a signing bonus in excess of $2 million. As a rookie, he flourished under Chuck Knox's ground-oriented offense. He quickly earned the nickname "The Battering Ram" as he rushed for 1,429 yards (second in the NFL, behind only Emmitt Smith's 1,486 rushing yards), drawing comparisons to Earl Campbell. Bettis also had an NFL-best 79 rushing first downs and an NFL-best 38 runs of 10 or more yards, and tied for the league lead with seven 100-yard rushing games despite not becoming the full-time starter until the sixth game of the season. Bettis was named a First-team All-Pro (the only rookie named to the team) and Consensus NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. He rushed for over 1,000 yards and was selected for the NFC's Pro Bowl team in each of his first two seasons with the Rams. He was one of the few bright spots on a dreadful team. The Rams finished last in the NFC West in both of his first two seasons, never coming remotely close to contention. The Rams moved to St. Louis for the 1995 season. New coach Rich Brooks instituted a more pass-oriented offense, a major reason why Bettis was limited to 637 yards, a significant dropoff from his 1993 and 1994 totals. Brooks asked Bettis whether he wanted to move to fullback for the upcoming 1996 season or preferred to be traded. Bettis opted for a trade. By this time, most NFL fullbacks were primarily blockers, and Bettis still believed he could help a team as a rusher.
On the day of the 1996 NFL draft, Bettis was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers with a third-round pick in the 1996 draft in exchange for the Steelers' second-round pick and their fourth-round pick in the 1997 NFL draft. In the first round, the Rams drafted Lawrence Phillips as Bettis' intended successor. The Steelers drafted Steve Conley with the Rams’ third round selection. With their second round pick in the 1996 draft the Rams took Ernie Conwell. In 1997 the Rams traded their fourth-round pick from the Steelers and two sixth-round picks to the Dolphins in order to move up nine slots and take offensive tackle Ryan Tucker. The Rams had given Bettis the option of selecting where he wanted to be traded to. He chose the Steelers over their AFC Central rival Houston Oilers (who would draft Eddie George that year instead) due to the Steelers' more storied history. The Steelers were in need of a running back because Bam Morris, their feature back for the 1994 and 1995 seasons, was arrested in March 1996 for marijuana possession. Morris eventually pleaded guilty to marijuana possession and was cut by the Steelers a little over a month after the draft, handing the feature back position to Bettis. Conley was traded to the Colts two seasons later for a fifth-round pick. Meanwhile, Phillips was cut by the Rams after only one-and-a-half seasons due to myriad off-the-field issues, and would be out of the NFL altogether by 1999, making the trade one of the most lopsided in NFL history.
In his first season in Pittsburgh, Bettis rushed for a then career-high 1,431 yards and 11 touchdowns and was named to his second 1st team All-Pro team. He also won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year, NFL Alumni Running Back of the Year, was voted Steelers' team MVP and finished the 1996 season as the leader in Football Outsiders rushing DYAR metric.
