Running Back,
Indianapolis Colts
Age: 21
College: Miami
(FL)
Height: 6’1” Weight: 220
Prelude:
James rushed
for over a thousand yards twice in college, including 1416 yards and 17
touchdowns as a junior in 1998. He declared for the NFL draft and was chosen in
the first round (fourth overall) by the Colts, who were looking to replace the
Marshall Faulk, who had been traded to the Rams, and felt that, with his
receiving ability out of the backfield, he was a better fit for their offense
than Heisman Trophy-winner Ricky Williams.
1999 Season Summary
Appeared in all
16 games
[Bracketed
numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]
Rushing
Attempts – 369
[1]
Most
attempts, game – 32 (for 118 yds.) at New England 9/19
Yards – 1553 [1]
Most yards,
game – 152 yards (on 22 carries) at Philadelphia 11/21
Average gain
– 4.2 [13]
TDs – 13 [2,
tied with James Stewart, 1st in AFC]
100-yard
rushing games – 10
Pass
Receiving
Receptions – 62
Most
receptions, game – 7 (for 92 yds.) vs. Dallas 10/31, (for 90 yds.) vs. Kansas
City 11/7, (for 53 yds.) vs. NY Jets 11/28
Yards – 586
Most yards,
game – 92 (on 7 catches) vs. Dallas 10/31
Average gain
– 9.5
TDs – 4
All-purpose
yards – 2139 [2, 1st in AFC]
Scoring
TDs – 17 [1,
tied with Stephen Davis]
Points – 102
Postseason: 1 G (AFC Divisional playoff vs.
Tennessee)
Rushing
attempts – 20
Rushing yards
– 56
Average gain
rushing – 2.8
Rushing TDs –
0
Pass
receptions – 1
Pass
receiving yards - 8
Average yards
per reception – 8.0
Pass
Receiving TDs - 0
Awards & Honors:
NFL Rookie of
the Year: Sporting News
NFL Offensive
Rookie of the Year: AP, PFWA
1st
team All-NFL: AP, PFWA, Sporting News
1st
team All-AFC: Pro Football Weekly
Pro Bowl
Colts went 13-3
(following two straight 3-13 records) to finish first in the AFC East while
leading the conference in total yards (5726), passing yards (4066), and scoring
(423 points). Lost AFC Divisional playoff to Tennessee Titans (19-16).
Aftermath:
“The Edge”
had another Pro Bowl season in 2000 as he again led the NFL in rushing (1709
yards) and also in yards from scrimmage (2303), scoring a total of 18
touchdowns. However, a knee injury finished him for the year six games into the
2001 season and, while he came back in ’02, was hindered by ankle and rib
problems. While having lost some of his earlier explosiveness, he came back to
rush for 1259 yards in 2003 and returned to the Pro Bowl in ’04 after running
for 1548 yards and going over two thousand yards from scrimmage for the third
time with 2031. After rushing for 1506 yards and 13 TDs in 2005, achieving one
last Pro Bowl selection, he moved on to the Arizona Cardinals as a free agent. James
was over a thousand yards in each of his first two years with the Cards,
although with a declining average gain per carry and less production as a
receiver out of the backfield. In clear decline by 2008, although he performed
well in Arizona’s postseason run, he was let go afterward and finished his
career with Seattle in 2009. Overall, James was chosen to the Pro Bowl four
times as he rushed for 12,246 yards (9226 with the Colts) and gained a total of
15,610 yards from scrimmage as he added 3364 yards on 433 pass receptions. He
scored a total of 91 TDs.
--
Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were named Rookie
of the Year in the NFL, AFL (1960-69), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized
organization (Associated Press – Offense or Defense, Newspaper Enterprise
Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, or the league
itself – Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year).
