Marshawn Lynch moves up to fourth on the all-time playoff touchdown list

Marshawn Lynch’s return to the Seattle Seahawks made sense for a number of reasons. He is exactly the kind of punishing, between the tackles tailback Pete Carroll loves; the team’s top three running backs were lost for the season to injury; and they were a team marching towards the playoffs, and Lynch has proven to be one of the best backs in playoff history.

Though Lynch’s rushing production—and the team’s as a whole—wasn’t there in the post-season, the iconic tailback added to his legacy and moved up the all-time list in the process.

With three touchdowns during Seattle’s post-season run, Lynch moved into a tie for fourth on the all-time rushing touchdown list in playoff history. Lynch’s 12 career rushing scores in the post-season places him alongside perhaps the greatest running back in playoff history in Terrell Davis, and Super Bowl XVI MVP John Riggins.

Ahead of Lynch, Davis and Riggins are Emmitt Smith at 19 touchdowns, and Franco Harris and Thurman Thomas with 16 each. All three tailbacks ahead of Lynch, as well as Davis and Riggins, are in the Hall of Fame.

Lynch is unlikely to make the Hall of Fame, both because of borderline stats and a less-than-objective media conglomerate in charge of the voting, but his playoff résumé is the best reason for him to get in.

That being said, Marshawn Lynch doesn’t need the Hall of Fame.