The Facts: Emmitt Smith has been the NFL's all-time rushing leader for 13 seasons. If Peterson doesn't break Smith's record, then who knows when it will ever be broken. "If he doesn't get it, I don't know who's going to get it," Smith said. "He's still got a lot of yards to go. I'm not going to lie to you."

Diehards Line:Jim Brown held the NFL rushing record for 21 years and Walter Payton kept it for 18. Peterson is the only player in the NFL right now with a realistic opportunity to break Smith’s record of 18,355 yards. Peterson has gained 11,675 yards, which puts him 6,680 yards behind Smith. If Peterson plays four more seasons, he must average 1,670 yards. If he plays five seasons, he would need to average 1,336 yards to break Smith’s record. Peterson led the NFL with 1,485 yards in 2015, but he’s 30 years old -- an age when most running backs have retired to the golf course. Only six other running backs gained 1,000 yards this season as teams continue to use multiple runners to carry the ball. Peterson was the only runner to carry the ball more than 300 times last season; Smith had seven seasons with at least 300 carries. “It’s a reflection of the changing times in terms of how they value the running back position and how the game has changed into a running back-by-committee approach,” Smith said before adding he misses the days when running backs regularly received 20 carries a game, allowing them to find a rhythm and wear down defenses. Fantasy owners wouldn't argue that point.