Following a record setting career at TCU, Tomlinson was drafted by the San Diego Chargers with the fifth overall pick in the 2001 NFL Draft. Tomlinson is the first player from the 2001 NFL Draft and just the third former Horned Frog to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, joining Bob Lilly and Sammy Baugh.
During Tomlinson’s rookie season in 2001, he rushed for 412 yards and six touchdowns through his first four NFL games and finished the season with a total of 1,236 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns while capturing Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. Tomlinson would go on to rush for 1,000 or more yards in each of his next seven seasons in the league, joining Emmitt Smith, Barry Sanders, Curtis Martin, Thurman Thomas, and Steven Jackson as the only players in NFL history to rush for 1,000 or more yards in their each of their first eight seasons in the NFL.
Throughout his 11-year NFL career, Tomlinson earned the reputation as a versatile threat to opposing defenses. Along with 13,684 career rushing cards, the fifth most in NFL history, Tomlinson also racked up 4,772 receiving yards on 624 catches. He also showcased his passing skills, throwing for seven career touchdowns which are the second most (behind Walter Payton) among NFL running backs since the NFL-AFL merger.
On December 28, 2003, Tomlinson rushed for a franchise-record 243 yards in a 21-14 win over the Oakland Raiders in the regular season finale. His performance marked the fourth and final game of his career in which he rushed for over 200 or more yards. The Chargers were a perfect 4-0 when Tomlinson ran for 200 or more yards.
In 2006, Tomlinson had a season for the record books. On December 10, he broke the single-season record for rushing touchdowns with his 28th touchdown of the year in a 48-20 win over the Denver Broncos to clinch the AFC West Division. Tomlinson also set the NFL single-season records for most points (186) and most total touchdowns (31) on his way to MVP honors, while leading the Chargers to a 14-2 regular season record and playoff berth.
"It was almost impossible to defend him...Because he had hands like a receiver, he had feet like a ballet dancer and had a heart like a lion -- any time that you have all of those things, you just never know what you are going to get...What made him the hardest thing to deal with was that he always kept a calm demeanor. You never could rattle him. He always stayed true to himself."
"He made everyone around him better. He was a phenomenal leader. When LT spoke, everybody listened. And he backed it up with his actions, more so than anything he could ever say."
"He inspired me because of the respect he had around the league. I think he's a great human being, and that's one of the things I really respected about him. That's how I've gone about doing things. No matter how much leeway you have, you still work the same, just like if you're a rookie. Ten years in, he was still working harder than everybody else around him."