How Many NFL Players Have Scored 1 Passing, 1 Receiving, and 1 Rushing Touchdown in the Same Game?

In Week 8 of the 2022 NFL season, newly acquired San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey pulled off a rare feat. In a 31-14 victory over the Niners’ NFC West rival Los Angeles Rams, Christian McCaffrey threw for a touchdown, caught a touchdown pass, and rushed for a touchdown. That stat line — one passing, one receiving, and one rushing touchdown — hadn’t been done since 2005. And before that, 2001, and before that, 1979. Here is a list of all the NFL players who’ve put up a passing, receiving, and rushing touchdown in the same games. 

NFL players with one passing, one receiving, and one rushing touchdown in a single game

There have been over 16,000 games in NFL history, and only 11 of those games had a player who posted one passing, one receiving, and one rushing touchdown in the same game, per Statmuse.

In the early days of football, where playing multiple positions was much more common, so was this feat. In the pre-AFL-NFL merger days (before 1970), seven players scored three different ways. Those players were: 

• Atlanta Falcons RB Harmon Wages, 12/7/1969 vs. New Orleans Saints
• Dallas Cowboys RB Dan Reeves, 12/10/1967 vs. Philadelphia Eagles
• San Diego Chargers FB-HB Keith Lincoln, 11/7/1965 vs. Denver Broncos
• Pittsburgh Steelers FB-HB John Henry Johnson 12/11/1960 vs. Philadelphia Eagles
• Detroit Lions HB Gene Gedman, 11/16/1958 vs. San Francisco 49ers
• New York Giants HB-FL-WR Frank Gifford, 12/2/1956 vs. Washington Redskins
• Cleveland Browns HB-FL Ray Renfro, 12/6/1953 vs. New York Giants

As you see, players on this part of the list often played multiple positions, and obviously, the game was a lot different back then. 

You’ll also see some familiar names on this list. Former Denver Broncos, New York Giants, and Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Reeves is on this list, as is legendary Monday Night Football commentator Frank Gifford. 

Since the 1970s, as specialization began to dominate the NFL, scoring a passing, receiving, and rushing TD in a game became far less common. In fact, in the last fifty-two years, it’s only happened four times. The more modern players to accomplish this feat were: 

• San Francisco RB Christian McCaffrey, 10/30/2022 vs. Los Angeles Rams
• San Diego Chargers RB LaDainian Tomlinson 10/16/2005 vs. Oakland Raiders
• New England Patriots WR David Patten, 10/21/2001 vs. Indianapolis Colts
• Chicago Bears RB Walter Payton, 10/21/1979 vs. Minnesota Vikings

On this list, you’ll see two Hall of Fame players in Tomlinson and Payton and one of Bill Belichick’s favorite jack-of-all-trades in the early 2000s in Patten. 

RELATED: Christian McCaffrey Trade Just Set Panthers up for a Huge Move at Quarterback

Now McCaffrey is on this list, and he seems closer to the Hall of Fame group than the David Patten group. Time will tell which side he ends up on, but by joining this exclusive club, he definitely gets closer to the former. 

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