List of NFL annual rushing touchdowns leaders
In American football, rushing and passing are the two main methods of advancing the ball down the field. A rush, also known as a running play, generally occurs when the quarterback hands or tosses the ball backwards to the running back, but other players, such as the quarterback, can run with the ball. A rushing touchdown is a play where the runner carries the ball into the end zone without a forward pass being involved.
The National Football League did not begin keeping official records until the 1932 season. In addition to the NFL rushing touchdowns leaders, league record books recognize the rushing touchdowns leaders of the American Football League, which operated from 1960 to 1969 before being absorbed into the NFL in 1970. The NFL also recognizes the statistics of the All-America Football Conference, which operated from 1946 to 1949 before three of its teams were merged into the NFL, since 2025.
The record for rushing touchdowns in a season is held by LaDainian Tomlinson of the San Diego Chargers who rushed for 28 touchdowns in. Prior to Tomlinson's 2006 season, the record was jointly held by Priest Holmes and Shaun Alexander, each rushing for 27 touchdowns in and, respectively. There have been eleven instances where a player has rushed for 20 or more touchdowns in a season and only two players, Emmitt Smith and Priest Holmes, have done so twice. Jim Brown led the league in rushing touchdowns five times, the most of any player in league history.
NFL annual rushing touchdowns leaders
| Symbol | Meaning |
| Leader | The player who recorded the most rushing touchdowns in the NFL |
| TDs | The total number of rushing touchdowns the player had |
| GP | The number of games played by a player during the season |
| Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame | |
| ^ | Active player |
| * | Set the single-season rushing touchdowns record |
| Denotes the number of times a player appears in this list |
AAFC annual rushing touchdowns leaders
| Season | Leader | Team | |||
| 1946 | 6 | 10 | San Francisco 49ers | ||
| 1946 | 6 | 13 | Cleveland Browns | ||
| 1946 | 6 | 14 | Los Angeles Dons | ||
| 1946 | 6 | 13 | New York Yankees | ||
| 1947 | 18 | 14 | New York Yankees | ||
| 1948 | 10 | 14 | Buffalo Bills | ||
| 1948 | 10 | 14 | San Francisco 49ers | ||
| 1949 | 8 | 11 | Cleveland Browns | ||
| 1949 | 8 | 11 | San Francisco 49ers |
AFL annual rushing touchdowns leaders
| Symbol | Meaning |
| Leader | The player who recorded the most rushing touchdowns in the AFL |
| TDs | The total number of rushing touchdowns the player had |
| GP | The number of games played by a player during the season |
| * | Player set the single-season rushing touchdowns record |
| Denotes the number of times a player appears in this list |
| Season | Leader | Team | |||
| 1960 | 9* | 14 | Dallas Texans | ||
| 1961 | 9 | 14 | Dallas Texans | ||
| 1961 | 9 | 14 | San Diego Chargers | ||
| 1962 | 13* | 14 | Buffalo Bills | ||
| 1962 | 13* | 14 | Dallas Texans | ||
| 1963 | 12 | 14 | Buffalo Bills | ||
| 1964 | 6 | 14 | Houston Oilers | ||
| 1964 | 6 | 14 | Buffalo Bills | ||
| 1964 | 6 | 14 | Buffalo Bills | ||
| 1965 | 6 | 14 | Buffalo Bills | ||
| 1965 | 6 | 14 | Denver Broncos | ||
| 1965 | 6 | 14 | San Diego Chargers | ||
| 1965 | 6 | 14 | Kansas City Chiefs | ||
| 1966 | 11 | 14 | Boston Patriots | ||
| 1967 | 10 | 8 | New York Jets | ||
| 1968 | 8 | 14 | Cincinnati Bengals | ||
| 1969 | 9 | 14 | Miami Dolphins |