Old men run for the end zone, not over the hill

Whoever said that NFL running backs start to run on fumes once they round the age of 30 was… Whoever said that NFL running backs start to run on fumes once they round the age of 30 was mistaken. What they should have said was that running backs in the NFL are like cheese and wine — they only get better with age.

I know backs are quicker and more explosive when they first enter the league and that most won’t see eye-to-eye with me on this one, but I feel a more-experienced back is more desirable if a team wants to go deep into the playoffs. As a running back matures, he becomes wiser, smarter in his decisions and a better blocker, thus making him a better overall player. Proof of such development was evident last weekend, as was reason to subscribe to the theory that I’ve always held — young halfbacks sell tickets, older halfbacks win ballgames.

Don’t believe me? Ignore Eddie George for a minute and pay close attention to a recap of week one, the Sunday of the geezer.

Pitt alum and 31-year-old Curtis Martin ran for 196 yards and a touchdown in leading his New York Jets to a 31-24 win over upstart Cincinnati on Sunday. He also caught a 3-yard touchdown pass that tied the game early on for the Jets. Fantasy players may be kicking themselves for either not picking up Martin or sitting him on the bench because of his poor output last year, a season where Martin only found the end zone twice.

Out West, Emmitt Smith and Marshall Faulk lined up in opposing backfields, while the Cardinals tangled with the Rams. Smith, 35, whose stint in Arizona has made him a mere caricature of his former all-star self, accounted for 87 yards on the ground while scoring a nifty 11-yard touchdown scamper that gave Arizona a surprising 10-9 lead late in the third quarter. Eighty-seven yards might not be much to scream about, but given Smith’s recent woes as a Cardinal, it was enough to make “SportsCenter’s” Top 10.

Receiving handoffs for St. Louis was Faulk, 31, who, just a few years ago, was considered the most dangerous weapon in the game. He ran for 128 yards on only 22 carries and punched in a key two-point conversion in his team’s 17-10 victory.

And don’t think for a minute I forgot Jerome Bettis, who may have had the stat-line of the century already. After being supplanted by a younger and quicker Duce Staley as the feature back, Bettis had five carries, one yard and three touchdowns in a close 24-21 win over Oakland Sunday. That’s right; it appears the bus still has some gas in its tank. Although it may not be premium, it’s enough to gain 1 yard, or 3 feet if you like to pack the stats.

Even Priest Holmes, who set an NFL record for rushing touchdowns in a season last year with 27, will turn 31 this year. And nobody is going to say that Holmes is past his prime. Like Bettis, Holmes ran for three touchdowns Sunday — although he also piled up 131 yards on the ground.

Now I’m not saying a franchise should go out and sign the oldest running back in the free-agent market. That is not going to accomplish anything. Each of these backs played for outstanding coaches upon first entering the league, and what each has taken from their head man has been a greater understanding of how to be an all-around player.

And a back who is better overall will be worth more than a set of young legs come January.

Look at the teams in the playoffs last season. Eight of the 12 teams that qualified had backs older than 27 starting in their backfields, including the two teams in the Super Bowl. Every playoff team from the NFC started a running back older than age 27, except for the Seahawks, who were eliminated in the first round.

In the AFC, the eventual champions, the Patriots, started Antowain Smith, a 31-year-old veteran who also carried the load for the 2001 Super Bowl Champion Patriots, at halfback. Tennessee and Kansas City followed suit by starting old men at running back and made the playoffs.

So while Clinton Portis and LaDainian Tomlinson, neither of whom were in the playoffs last season, may be dominating the stat sheets throughout the regular season, the old guys — with more performances like last weekend — will be gearing up for better things to come.

They are just like that wine you have sitting on the top shelf of your kitchen, becoming more precious as the years go by.

Geoff Dutelle is a staff writer for The Pitt News.