Priest Holmes takes pride in the fact he’ll remain the Chiefs’ all-time leading rusher now that Larry Johnson has been released 74 yards short of the record.
He also takes pity on Johnson, whose inflammatory remarks against his coach and slurs toward gays led to a groundswell of opposition by Chiefs fans who circulated a petition urging the team not to retain Johnson.
“Breaking records is part of football,” Holmes said Monday from the offices of his Priest Holmes Foundation in San Antonio. “The goal is always to break that record. But to see how fans rallied and petitioned … it’s unbelievable. … I definitely will carry that record in high regard.”
Petitions alone were not why Johnson was released. First-year coach Todd Haley cited “the totality of the situation even before I was around here,” but Holmes cited the backlash by saying, “The power and voices of fans come with a greater volume than most athletes assume.”
Holmes rushed for 6,070 yards during 2001-07, leading the NFL in rushing in 2001, two years before the Chiefs took Johnson in the first round of the draft. Johnson, who was Holmes’ backup for most of his first three seasons, set the club record for yards in a season with 1,789 in 2006 and finished his Chiefs career with 5,996 yards.
“He stated very candidly how he felt about not wanting to be in Kansas City,” Holmes said. “I don’t think anyone can hide the fact that he was unhappy. When he came out of Penn State as a 2,000-yard rusher, he felt whatever team that drafted him, he should be the man, he shouldn’t have to wait. He should come right in there and uproot anyone who is there.
“It didn’t happen. It just snowballed, and with the off-field situations he had in his personal life, these things really blew up in his face.”
Johnson, however, became the man after Holmes’ career was shortened by injury — including 2006, when Johnson set an NFL record with 416 carries and later was rewarded with the richest contract in club history.
“When you look at his goals, both pros and cons, he was able to check off a lot of good things that happened to him,” Holmes said, “and financially, some great things happened for him and his family.”
Holmes still believes Johnson, who turns 30 on Nov. 19, still has some life in his legs.
“We know time is not on his side anymore,” Holmes said. “Once a running back hits 30, it’s not as if you can do the same things you did at 23, 24. I believe he has something in the tank. But when you go to another team, you have to prove yourself all over again, and not only as an athlete, but what type of person will he come into that team as.”
Priest Holmes remains the all-time leading rusher in Chiefs history.
| Player | Years | Yards |
| 1. Priest Holmes | 2001-07 | 6,070 |
| 2. Larry Johnson | 2003-09 | 5,996 |
| 3. Christian Okoye | 1987-92 | 4,897 |
| 4. Ed Podolak | 1969-77 | 4,451 |
| 5. Abner Haynes | 1960-64 | 3,837 |
| Year | Att. | Yds. | Avg. | TDs |
| 2003 | 20 | 85 | 4.3 | 1 |
| 2004 | 120 | 581 | 4.8 | 9 |
| 2005 | 336 | 1,750 | 5.2 | 20 |
| 2006 | 416 | 1,789 | 4.3 | 17 |
| 2007 | 158 | 559 | 3.5 | 3 |
| 2008 | 193 | 874 | 4.5 | 5 |
| 2009 | 132 | 358 | 2.7 | 0 |
| Total | 1,375 | 5,996 | 4.4 | 55 |
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