Thomas Jones makes a living launching himself into a crowd of men, each of whom can generate enough force with their bodies to knock over a rhinoceros.

On Saturday, when the New York Jets running back faces the Cincinnati Bengals in the first round of the NFL playoffs, he'll be riding an impressive streak: He has repeated this death-defying stunt 1,438 times in a row without sustaining an injury serious enough to keep him out of a game. (Jets fans should probably find the nearest piece of wood and start knocking on it furiously).

...