Curtis Martin
Curtis James Martin, Jr. (born May 1, 1973) is a former American football running back. He is an alumnus of Taylor Allderdice High School in Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh. Martin played in the National Football League for the New England Patriots and the New York Jets and amassed the fourth highest total of rushing yards in NFL history.
Contents |
[edit] Professional career
[edit] New England Patriots
Martin entered the NFL in 1995, as a third round draft pick of the New England Patriots. He was scouted by Greg Rollage from Union/Finley. He won the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award after rushing for 1,487 yards, and was named to the Pro Bowl. The following year, he rushed for a franchise record 166 yards and three touchdowns in his first career playoff game, against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Patriots went to Super Bowl XXXI, but lost to the Green Bay Packers. Martin rushed for 42 yards, caught three passes for 28 yards, and scored a touchdown in the game. Though he was much less effective in 1996 than he had been in his rookie season[citation needed], Martin was again named to the Pro Bowl squad.
[edit] New York Jets
After the 1997 season, Martin, a restricted free agent, signed an offer sheet with the New York Jets[2] for $36 million over six years. The Patriots did not match the Jets' offer and received first and third round draft picks as compensation. Thus, Martin went to the Jets, and was reunited with his former Patriots coach Bill Parcells. In his first seven seasons with the Jets, Martin missed only one game and was selected to the Pro Bowl three times. In 1998, Martin gained 182 yards from scrimmage and scored two touchdowns against the Jacksonville Jaguars in a Jets playoff win. Martin won the NFL rushing title in the 2004 NFL season with 1,697 yards (one more yard than runner-up Shaun Alexander, the closest margin in NFL history). He also won the FedEx Ground Player of the Year Award in 2004. Martin made history for being the oldest player in history to lead the league in rushing at 31 years old.
In 2005, Martin failed in his quest to become the first running back in NFL history to start his career with eleven straight 1,000 rushing yard seasons. He missed a game versus the Oakland Raiders with a knee injury and was placed on injured reserve for the final three games of the season. Martin finished with 735 rushing yards, for a career total of 14,101 rushing yards. Martin began the 2006 season on the Physically Unable to Perform list due to complications from the injury. It was announced he would miss the rest of the regular season with a bone-on-bone condition in his right knee on November 1, 2006. On July 26, 2007 Martin officially announced his retirement from the NFL.[3] On January 24, 2010 Martin signed with the Jets to serve as honorary captain for them during the AFC Championship Game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium.[4]
[edit] Accomplishments
Curtis Martin rushed for over 10,000 yards in his first 10 professional seasons, a feat previously accomplished only by Barry Sanders. On November 6, 2005, he scored his 100th career touchdown, joining an elite group of only 16 players to do so. Martin is currently 4th on the all-time rushing yardage list, and on November 27, 2005, in the first quarter against the New Orleans Saints, he became the 4th running back in NFL history, behind Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith and Barry Sanders, to pass the 14,000-yard rushing mark. He is the all-time Jets leader with 10,302 rushing yards with the team.[5] He is also fourth in the same category for the Patriots with 3799 yards.[6] Additionally, although it is not statistically relevant, Martin has a perfect passer rating of 158.3: 2 completions on 2 pass attempts, 2 TD passes, and an average of 18 yards per attempt.
Martin was one of finalists for the 2011 Pro Football Hall of Fame, but was not selected for induction.
[edit] Career statistical rankings
- 3,518 career rushing attempts (3rd all-time)
- 14,101 career rushing yards (4th all-time)
- 17,430 career yards from scrimmage (7th all-time)
- 90 career rushing touchdowns (12th all-time)
- 100 career rushing/receiving touchdowns (19th all-time)
- 119 consecutive regular season starts (3rd all-time)[7][8]
- Oldest player to win a rushing title (age 31) in 2004
On August 16, 2010, during halftime of the Giants-Jets preseason game at the New Meadowlands Stadium, Martin was inducted as a member of the inaugural class to the Jets' Ring of Honor.
[edit] Career statistics
| Year | Team | Games | Attempts | Yards | YPC | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | New England Patriots | 16 | 368 | 1,487 | 4.0 | 14 |
| 1996 | New England Patriots | 16 | 316 | 1,152 | 3.6 | 14 |
| 1997 | New England Patriots | 13 | 274 | 1,160 | 4.2 | 4 |
| 1998 | New York Jets | 15 | 369 | 1,287 | 3.5 | 8 |
| 1999 | New York Jets | 16 | 367 | 1,464 | 4.0 | 5 |
| 2000 | New York Jets | 16 | 316 | 1,204 | 3.8 | 9 |
| 2001 | New York Jets | 16 | 333 | 1,513 | 4.5 | 10 |
| 2002 | New York Jets | 16 | 261 | 1,094 | 4.2 | 7 |
| 2003 | New York Jets | 16 | 323 | 1,308 | 4.0 | 2 |
| 2004 | New York Jets | 16 | 371 | 1,697 | 4.6 | 12 |
| 2005 | New York Jets | 12 | 220 | 735 | 3.3 | 5 |
| Career | NE/NYJ | 168 | 3,518 | 14,101 | 4.0 | 90 |
[edit] See also
List of National Football League rushing yards leaders
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/M/MartCu00.htm
- ^ "Jets make play for Martin". Standard-Times. 1998-03-21. http://archive.southcoasttoday.com/daily/03-98/03-21-98/c01sp112.htm. Retrieved 2009-10-03.
- ^ Morrissey, Michael (2006-11-02). "Done for Season; Career Likely Over". New York Post. https://www.nypost.com/seven/11072006/sports/jets/jets.htm. Retrieved 2009-10-03.
- ^ Weeks, E (2010-01-01). "Curtis Martin to serve as Honorary Captain". New York Post. http://www.thejetsblog.com/2010/01/23/curtis-martin-to-serve-as-honorary-captain/. Retrieved 2009-10-03.
- ^ PFR Jets
- ^ PFR Patriots
- ^ Martin Not Quite Ready as the Jets Open Camp
- ^ Career Flashback: Former Titans RB Eddie George
[edit] External links
- 1973 births
- Sportspeople from Pennsylvania
- African American players of American football
- American football running backs
- Big 33 Football Classic alumni
- New England Patriots players
- New York Jets players
- American Christians
- American Conference Pro Bowl players
- Players of American football from Pennsylvania
- Pittsburgh Panthers football players
- Living people
- National Football League Offensive Rookie of the Year Award winners
- National Football League 10,000 yard rushers
