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How Does Edgerrin James Feel?

In the week since the Super Bowl, I’ve thought a little bit about a guy not many people have mentioned recently. His name is Edgerrin James. As you may remember, he was the star running back for the Indianapolis Colts from 1999 through 2005. He left for the Arizona Cardinals in the off-season a year ago, and the Colts went on to win the Super Bowl without him.

It was clear for a while before James left that the Colts would have a hard time retaining him. They’re in the salary cap straight jacket as it is without him. He was looking for the team who was going to offer the most money, and the Cardinals were that team. It’s my impression that he didn’t even consider staying with the Colts for less money.

He moved onto the Cardinals and had a mediocre season at best. Here are his stats from his last year in Indianapolis and his first year in Arizona:

Ouch. In his first year in Arizon, he ran for over three hundred fewer yards, his yards per carry fell by eight tenths of a yard, and he scored fewer than half as many touchdowns as in his last year with the Colts. Add the insult of the Colts winning the Super Bowl without him, and you have my main question: how is Edge feeling today?

Is he happy he took the money and ran? He knew when he signed with the Cardinals that they weren’t going to be anywhere near the level of the Colts this season. So it’s not like he’s feeling shocked over that at this point. But I’d like to know how he’s weighing the extra money he got last off-season and no Super Bowl ring versus if he had taken less money to stay and probably earned a Super Bowl ring.

James will turn 29 years old before next season starts. The threshold for running backs seems to be 30. As soon as they hit 30 years old, the wheels fall off, and they tend to not even approach past levels of production. That gives the Edge one season, maybe two, to be a central figure on a Super Bowl winning team. Don’t you think that he knows that’s not going to happen in Arizona at this point?

With all the talk about how Peyton Manning finally cemented his legacy with this Super Bowl victory, I’m curious if James has done any thinking about his legacy. Does he even care about such things? Or is it all that money in the bank and the fancy cars that he’s after? I’m not passing judgment here; I’m just honestly curious if what he’s thinking this off-season is any different than what he was thinking last off-season.