s a committee toting the ball, catching it or blocking.No club handles depth

HOMESTEAD, Fla. -- Jimmie Johnson didnt shy away from talk of a record-tying seventh Sprint Cup championship.So he has no reason to shy away from talk of an eighth.Within hours of hoisting his seventh Sprint Cup, Johnson couldnt avoid questions Sunday night at Homestead-Miami Speedway about earning an eighth, a championship that would put him in elite company -- with himself. He currently sits tied with Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt Sr. for the record with seven titles.I dont know what the chances are, but lets go, Johnson said a couple of hours after his victory celebrations. Im so excited to put that in front of myself and the team as a hurdle to get over and an accomplishment to achieve.Johnson swears that all he ever wanted to do was race. He obviously has done more than that with 80 victories and the seven titles -- with the seven coming in a shorter span (11 years) than Earnhardts first seven (15 years) and Pettys (16 years).The 41-year-old Johnson won five consecutive titles from 2006 to 10 and then again in 2013, with all of them coming in the 10-race mini-season format. This was his first in the elimination-style format implemented in 2014.I had a lot of fun racing for the sixth, Johnson said. This one and the calm nature and the way we went about business and got it done only gives me more confidence for the future.I honestly feel like Im playing with house money. I never aspired to be famous. I never aspired to be a champion. I just wanted to race.Even his car owner, Rick Hendrick, didnt shy away from the conversation. Hendrick has won 12 of the past 25 championships -- seven with Johnson, four with Jeff Gordon and one with Terry Labonte.I think the five in a row was pretty phenomenal, and I think winning seven and tying seven is pretty special, Hendrick said. Im excited to see him and [crew chief] Chad [Knaus] try to break the record now because were tied, and you cant go to eight until you get seven.A seventh title didnt appear likely for much of the 2016 season, which included Johnsons longest winless streak -- 24 races -- of his career. His calm demeanor throughout it all likely helped, especially in the season finale Sunday, when he ran last among the four finalists for much of the race.He thinks he can bring the same attitude toward trying to win an eighth title.Ive found a way to put it in that simple mindset here the last couple attempts, in 13 and now in 16, Johnson said. 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Brett Martin Jersey .35 million, one-year contract that avoided salary arbitration. Plouffe batted .254 with 14 home runs and 52 RBIs in 477 at-bats last season, his second as a regular in the lineup.They get downgraded in the draft and told their NFL lifespan rarely goes beyond their 30th birthdays.In the pass-happy pro football world, running backs sometimes become afterthoughts. Then, guys like C.J. Anderson, DeAngelo Williams, Matt Forte and Carlos Hyde go wild on the field.Yes, the Patriots and Saints have found ways to prosper chucking the ball all over the yard. But as the first 17 games this season proved -- including Fortes 100-yard, three-touchdown extravaganza for the Jets on Thursday night against Buffalo -- the ground game still matters.Bigtime.Just ask one of the NFLs top passers.With all the fantasy football and all the stuff, from a players perspective, you have to stop the run first, Arizonas Carson Palmer says. Thats what every defense wants to come in and do. You dont talk about it maybe as much, you hear so much about protecting quarterbacks, passing games ... but every team is trying to give up big chunks of yards in the run game, and every team is trying to run the football successfully. From a players standpoint, its a focal point of everything we do.From some coaches standpoint, too.Obviously, they are a huge part of what we like to do. There is not a substitute for a good runner, says Browns coach Hue Jackson, a noted offensive mind. If you have a guy who can wear the defense down a little bit and a guy who knows how to carry the ball, be physical and make those tough yards, there is no substitute for those guys.Would the Broncos have been champions without the performances of Anderson last year? In some ways, hes more valuable than Peyton Manning and his replacement at quarterback, Trevor Simian.No team has a better aerial game than the Steelers. Yet what makes it even more dangerous is what Pittsburgh gets from its backfield.With LeVeon Bell sidelined by a knee injury for much of 2015 and suspended for the first three games this season, Williams has soared. At 33, he appears in his prime -- something Washington learned Monday night when Williams scooted for 143 yards and two touchdowns . He also had six receptions, and he can handle onrushing blitzers.Its one of those things if you can carry the load, you can carry the load, says Williams, who has prospered from splitting carries in Carolina with Jonathan Stewart before landing in Pittsburgh. In this league now, youve got to have two backs if you want to be where you want to be, and thats the Super Bowl.Few teams get that faar without a strong passing attack, of course.dddddddddddd With all the rules changes favoring throwing, and the onset of fantasy football, it sometimes seems like getting down and dirty with the running game is, well, down and dirty.But one of the real pleasures of watching the NFL is how Adrian Peterson can befuddle defenses while bedazzling viewers. All-around backs such as Williams, Forte, Doug Martin, Jamaal Charles and LeSean McCoy spice up the sport.Youngsters Hyde, Todd Gurley, David Johnson and Devonta Freeman add even more juice.Maybe fans cant wrap their allegiances around running backs (except in fantasy football, of course) because many teams use several RBs each game. The wear and tear of the position warrants a rotation, something inconceivable at quarterback and unlikely at wideout -- no teams take out the top target when they go to multiple-receiver sets.Behind the QB, though, sometimes theres a committee toting the ball, catching it or blocking.No club handles depth at running back better than Kansas City. Even with its star, Charles, hobbled, Andy Reids team can send Spencer Ware , Charcandrick West and Knile Davis at opponents. When Charles gets back to full health, that makes him even more dangerous: Reid can pick and choose when and how to use the versatile Charles because his other backs are dependable.Every running back is a little different and thats the beauty of our guys, theyre all a little different, says Chiefs co-offensive coordinator and running game mastermind Matt Nagy. You have Jamaal with the speed, Spencer with the power, Charcandrick with the mix, and Knile with the power and the mix. So for us, its just a matter of us putting them in and letting them roll to their strengths.Its a matter of identifying what your backs do well, and its dictated more by the player than the team.When teams can dictate the pace of a game on the ground, they can control the clock and, often, the scoreboard.Thats not to say having a star or solid quarterback doesnt lead to winning. But ask Ben Roethlisberger or Alex Smith or whoever lines up behind center in Minnesota about the importance of running the ball.They know.---AP Sports Writers Dave Skretta, Tom Withers, Bob Baum and Will Graves contributed.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '