Top 15 Sophomore Seasons In Sports History

The first second-year player to earn Defensive Player of the Year honors, J.J. Watt recorded 20.5 sacks, the sixth most ever, 16 pass deflections, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and 69 tackles. The Texans also reached the Divisional Round of the AFC Playoffs for good measure.

Chris Johnson earned the nickname "CJ2K" in 2009. In just his second season in the league, Johnson became just the sixth player in NFL history to rush for over 2,000 yards. Johnson carried the ball for 2,006 yards, scored 16 total touchdowns, and gained 2,509 all-purpose yards, a record that still stands today.

In his second-year as starter of the Seattle Seahawks, Russell Wilson led his team to their only Super Bowl championship. Wilson didn't have the best stats, throwing for just 3,357 yards in the regular season, but he threw 26 touchdowns compared to nine interceptions and led the Seahawks to a 13-3 record. In three postseason games, Wilson had a 63 percent completion rate and threw zero interceptions.

The No. 1 overall pick in the 1978 NFL Draft, Earl Campbell's 1979 season was one of his best ever. Campbell earned MVP and AP Offensive Player of the Year Awards for the second consecutive year and he ran for 1,697 yards and 19 touchdowns, which led the league in both categories. The Oilers also got back to the AFC Championship Game but lost to the eventual Super Bowl Champions, the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The greatest wide receiver in NFL history, Jerry Rice had an OK rookie season, but broke out in his second season. Rice recorded 86 receptions for a league-best 1,570 yards and a league-best 15 touchdowns. Rice was named to both the Pro Bowl and First Team All-Pro squads in 1986.

In 1998-99, the NBA season was limited to just 50 games because of a strike, but that did not stop Tim Duncan from having a spectacular season. During the regular season, Duncan averaged 21.7 ppg and 11.4 rpg, leading the San Antonio Spurs to the NBA Finals. Facing the New York Knicks, Duncan averaged 27.4 ppg, 14 rpg and 2.2 bpg as the Spurs won four games to one. Duncan was also named NBA Finals MVP.

Almost everyone who is even a casual fan of the NFL knows how great Jim Brown was. However, what the Syracuse legend accomplished in his second season is hard to believe, even more than 50 years later. Brown played just 12 games and put up stats that would be impressive in today’s 16-game slate. The NFL MVP in ’58, Brown gained 1,527 yards and scored 18 touchdowns, 17 on the ground.

Tom Brady replaced an injured Drew Bledsoe in the second game of the 2001 season, and the rest was history. Brady threw for an unimpressive 2,843 yards and 18 touchdowns during the regular season, but stepped it up in the postseason. Brady threw for 572 yards against Oakland, Pittsburgh and St. Louis, and led the Patriots on game-winning/comeback drives against the Raiders and the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI.

With the st. Louis Rams, Kurt Warner was the ultimate Cinderella story during the 1999 season. After replacing an injured Trent Green in the preseason, Warner became NFL MVP after he threw for 4,353 yards and 41 touchdowns during the regular season. The Rams reached Super Bowl XXXIV, where Warner became the game's MVP after throwing for 414 yards and two touchdowns.

During the 1960-61 season, Wilt Chamberlain led the NBA in nearly every significant category. Chamberlain led the league in points per game (38.4), rebounds per game (27.2), and minutes per game (47.8). Chamberlain also led the NBA in field goal percentage at .509. The rest for Chamberlain would be history.

After rushing for over 1,800 yards as a rookie, Eric Dickerson became the standard bearer for running back excellence in 1984. Playing with virtually no passing game, Dickerson rushed for 2,105 yards, a record that still stands to this day. Dickerson also found the end zone 14 times and gained 2,246 all-purpose yards. The Rams finished 10-6 that season, but would miss the playoffs.

In his first full season as a starter, Dan Marino put up the most prolific season by a quarterback in NFL history. In 1984, Marino threw for 5,084 yards and 48 touchdowns, records that stood for almost 30 years. The Dolphins finished 14-2 and advanced to Super Bowl XIX.

After seeing his rival Magic Johnson win the NBA Finals as a rookie, Larry Bird won a title of his own as a sophomore. During the 1980-81 season, Bird averaged 21.2 ppg, 10.9 rpg and 5.5 apg. In the playoffs, Bird rallied the Celtics from three games to one deficit against Julius Erving and the Philadelphia 76ers to reach the NBA Finals. Against Houston, Bird averaged 15.3 ppg, 15.3 rpg and seven assists per game.

Before he became Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Lew Alcindor was a rising star for the Milwaukee Bucks, and in his second season he helped the Bucks win their only NBA Championship to date. During the 1970-71 season, Alcindor averaged 31.7 ppg, which led the league, and 16 rpg. Alcindor's Bucks won 66 regular season games, and lost just two postseason en route to the title. In the Finals, Alcindor averaged 27 ppg and 18.5 rpg.

In just his second season in the NBA (1961-62), Oscar Robertson set a mark that hasn't been reached in over 50 years. Robertson became the only player to average a triple-double for an entire season. In 79 games, Robertson averaged 30.8 ppg, 12.5 rpg and 11.4 apg. Because of Robertson's feats, the Cincinnati Royals improved their win total from 33 in 1960-61 to 43 in 1961-62.