Is this the year the torch finally will be passed?

For decades, all great running backs in NFL history have used Cleveland Browns great Jim Brown as a measuring stick in terms of talent.

Barry Sanders, Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith — they all displayed resiliency, determination, power, quickness, and they had the statistics to back it up.

Over the past several years, however, a new breed of running back has emerged.

Marshall Faulk, Terrell Davis, Priest Holmes, Shawn Alexander and Larry Johnson all have shown amazing abilities, not only to run the ball, but to catch it as well.

Sadly, injuries caught up to Faulk, Davis and Holmes, cutting short what could have been amazing careers.

Johnson and Alexander have the potential to put up amazing numbers, although Alexander did miss several games this year with a foot injury. However, San Diego's LaDainian Tomlinson has clearly shined, especially this year.

His time has come as the most dominating player the game has seen, at least at running back.

Growing up in the 1970s, I never got to witness the talents of Brown, who played only nine years in the NFL before embarking on a film career (much the way the New York Giants' Tiki Barber is leaving after this year, his 10th, to get into network broadcasting) while still the top runner in the league.

Tomlinson has had an amazing and healthy six years in the league and is setting records left and right.

In Sunday's 20-9 win over Kansas City, Tomlinson set the single-season scoring record with 186 points, breaking a 46-year record held by Paul Hornung. He also set the mark of eight consecutive multi-touchdown games.

His 31 touchdowns scored already is a single-season record and he still has two games remaining. He also has rushed for 8,987 yards in his career as well as 100-plus touchdowns.

He's even thrown for three touchdowns this season, which aren't added to his scoring total, and has led the Chargers to a 12-2 record.

The sky's the limit for Tomlinson and he admitted earlier this week he's in mid-season form, which should send shivers down the other teams' spines.

We are witnessing the presence of greatness at the running back position, and, if Tomlinson stays healthy, he could obliterate every record imaginable.

From what I've seen in old films and read, Brown was clearly the best and is the standard by which all others are judged. His leaving at the top of his game and the passage of time only adds to his mystique.

Now, it could be time for a new king.

Recently, an entertainment publication tapped "Seinfeld" as the top television show of all time, knocking perennial giants such as "I Love Lucy," "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," "M*A*S*H," "All in The Family," and "Gunsmoke" down a notch.

"Seinfeld" broke through as a breath of fresh air in the most recent generation. one that could go head-to-head with the champion.

That time finally has arrived in pro football.