It has been a lost season for the Kansas City Chiefs, but star running back Jamaal Charles is on the cusp of making NFL history.

Charles has 739 career NFL rush attempts. He is 11 carries from qualifying for career carry records. Charles is averaging 5.7 yards a carry. That, by far, is the best average in NFL history for running backs.

The legendary Jim Brown (5.22 yards per carry) is the current all-time per-carry average leader in NFL history. He had 2,359 career carries. According to the NFL Record Book, former quarterback Randall Cunningham has the highest yards per carry mark overall by averaging 6.3 yards per carry in 775 career rushing attempts.

For Charles to be on the brink of this record is special. For a lead tailback to rip off nearly six yards per carry for his career is stunning.

It is particularly impressive since Charles is coming off a torn ACL he suffered in Week 2 last year. Charles has come back strong. He has 1,220 yards this season and he is averaging 5.1 yards a carry. In 2010, Charles, a third-round draft pick in 2008, averaged 6.4 yards per carry.

A special thanks to Katharine Sharp of ESPN Stats & Information for her help on this post.