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02-03-2006, 10:01 AM
http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060203/SPORTS03/602030449/1100
Pro Bowl running back says signals are clear he has played his final game in Colts uniform
DETROIT -- Edgerrin James has resigned himself to the possibility his playing days with the Indianapolis Colts are over.
"I don't see nothing happening,'' he said Thursday night after a taping session here with the NFL Network. "You can read between the lines and from the things I'm hearing, nothing's going to happen.
"And that's crazy, man. I'm part of the solution, I'm not part of the problem. Crazy, man.''
The Colts retained James for the 2005 season by naming him their "franchise'' player. He played his seventh season under a one-year, $9.1 million contract.
The team had no comment Thursday night on James' statements.
Team president Bill Polian has made it clear in recent interviews the Colts' offseason priorities included retaining wide receiver Reggie Wayne, who like James will become an unrestricted free agent in early March, and extending the contract of three-time Pro Bowl defensive end Dwight Freeney.
James has heard the talk, and noticed how his name seldom is at or near the top of the Colts' list. He wonders how a two-time league rushing champion who will appear in his fourth Pro Bowl on Feb. 12 can be so underappreciated, so easily replaced.
That's why James fully expects to be playing elsewhere in 2006. When the veteran free agent market opens March 3, he'll see who's interested in a consummate running back who has rushed for a club-record 9,226 yards and amassed 12,065 total yards from scrimmage.
"Maybe I'll get to a situation where somebody appreciates me,'' James said. "I'm going to always be a ballplayer. You know I've got game. You can't knock what I do.
"I'm a running back like Walter Payton, somebody who played a long time. I'm in that mold . . . guys who played 12, 13 years and always were consistent.''
James summarily dismissed the criticism that he's an old running back and a damaged one. He'll be 28 when the '06 season opens, and another year removed from the injury to his left knee that forced him to miss the final 10 games of the 2001 season.
"People want to bring up the knee injury,'' he said, shaking his head in disbelief. "I'm like, 'Haven't I shown you what I can do? What more can I do?' ''
In '05, James ranked fifth in the NFL is rushing with 1,506 yards. It was his fourth 1,500-yard season, enabling him to join Barry Sanders (five), Eric Dickerson (four) and Payton (four) as the only players in NFL history with at least four 1,500-yard campaigns.
As good as he has been, James vows to be better next season for his next employer. He'll participate in the Pro Bowl, take two weeks off, then attack his normal offseason workout regimen in South Florida.
"I'm going to be a better player,'' James said. "I've always worked on being a better player, regardless of the situation. This ain't no different.
"A lot of people try to downplay my significance (with the Colts), but I know better.''
The Colts were 3-13 in 1998, and drafted James with the fourth overall pick in '99. They mounted the biggest turnaround in NFL history in his rookie season, posting a 13-3 record. James won the first of two straight league rushing championships with 1,553 yards. He rushed for a franchise-record 1,709 yards in 2000.
James points to the bottom line when assessing his value to the Colts. Since 1999, the Colts are 77-35. They're 70-26 when he plays, 7-9 when he doesn't.
"I know I did my part. That's the way I look at it,'' James said. "I did what I could do and I made a difference. I know I made a difference. When I was going to the team, people were saying, 'Man, you're going to a 3-13 team.' My first year we were 13-3.''
If James' career with the Colts is indeed over, he'll walk away with no regrets and no angry words. He said playing for owner Jim Irsay and coach Tony Dungy was "cool.''
"That's just me,'' James said. "At the end of the day I can say I did my part. I did what they asked me to do. At the end of the day the truth will be seen and everybody will see what kind of player I am and how important of a player I am.
"For somebody else to come in and do what I did, it would be tough. Look at the difference when I'm there and when I'm not there. That's all you got to do.''
Pro Bowl running back says signals are clear he has played his final game in Colts uniform
DETROIT -- Edgerrin James has resigned himself to the possibility his playing days with the Indianapolis Colts are over.
"I don't see nothing happening,'' he said Thursday night after a taping session here with the NFL Network. "You can read between the lines and from the things I'm hearing, nothing's going to happen.
"And that's crazy, man. I'm part of the solution, I'm not part of the problem. Crazy, man.''
The Colts retained James for the 2005 season by naming him their "franchise'' player. He played his seventh season under a one-year, $9.1 million contract.
The team had no comment Thursday night on James' statements.
Team president Bill Polian has made it clear in recent interviews the Colts' offseason priorities included retaining wide receiver Reggie Wayne, who like James will become an unrestricted free agent in early March, and extending the contract of three-time Pro Bowl defensive end Dwight Freeney.
James has heard the talk, and noticed how his name seldom is at or near the top of the Colts' list. He wonders how a two-time league rushing champion who will appear in his fourth Pro Bowl on Feb. 12 can be so underappreciated, so easily replaced.
That's why James fully expects to be playing elsewhere in 2006. When the veteran free agent market opens March 3, he'll see who's interested in a consummate running back who has rushed for a club-record 9,226 yards and amassed 12,065 total yards from scrimmage.
"Maybe I'll get to a situation where somebody appreciates me,'' James said. "I'm going to always be a ballplayer. You know I've got game. You can't knock what I do.
"I'm a running back like Walter Payton, somebody who played a long time. I'm in that mold . . . guys who played 12, 13 years and always were consistent.''
James summarily dismissed the criticism that he's an old running back and a damaged one. He'll be 28 when the '06 season opens, and another year removed from the injury to his left knee that forced him to miss the final 10 games of the 2001 season.
"People want to bring up the knee injury,'' he said, shaking his head in disbelief. "I'm like, 'Haven't I shown you what I can do? What more can I do?' ''
In '05, James ranked fifth in the NFL is rushing with 1,506 yards. It was his fourth 1,500-yard season, enabling him to join Barry Sanders (five), Eric Dickerson (four) and Payton (four) as the only players in NFL history with at least four 1,500-yard campaigns.
As good as he has been, James vows to be better next season for his next employer. He'll participate in the Pro Bowl, take two weeks off, then attack his normal offseason workout regimen in South Florida.
"I'm going to be a better player,'' James said. "I've always worked on being a better player, regardless of the situation. This ain't no different.
"A lot of people try to downplay my significance (with the Colts), but I know better.''
The Colts were 3-13 in 1998, and drafted James with the fourth overall pick in '99. They mounted the biggest turnaround in NFL history in his rookie season, posting a 13-3 record. James won the first of two straight league rushing championships with 1,553 yards. He rushed for a franchise-record 1,709 yards in 2000.
James points to the bottom line when assessing his value to the Colts. Since 1999, the Colts are 77-35. They're 70-26 when he plays, 7-9 when he doesn't.
"I know I did my part. That's the way I look at it,'' James said. "I did what I could do and I made a difference. I know I made a difference. When I was going to the team, people were saying, 'Man, you're going to a 3-13 team.' My first year we were 13-3.''
If James' career with the Colts is indeed over, he'll walk away with no regrets and no angry words. He said playing for owner Jim Irsay and coach Tony Dungy was "cool.''
"That's just me,'' James said. "At the end of the day I can say I did my part. I did what they asked me to do. At the end of the day the truth will be seen and everybody will see what kind of player I am and how important of a player I am.
"For somebody else to come in and do what I did, it would be tough. Look at the difference when I'm there and when I'm not there. That's all you got to do.''