Steven Jackson is the picture of a Patriots running back
COMMENTARY
In 2004, Bill Belichick saw something in Steven Jackson that made the New England Patriots head coach view the draft’s top running back prospect as a fit for the franchise. Eleven years later, the circumstances are much different and the mileage is much greater on Jackson’s tires, but the two sides can still benefit from joining forces.
With a slew of injuries in their backfield, the Patriots brought Jackson in for a workout last week and on Monday, according to ESPN’s Josina Anderson, the Patriots signed the veteran running back.
For starters, at least we know he’s still in shape — thanks to a picture provided by Jackson on social media.
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But playing football for the Patriots is about more than just being in shape, it’s about being able to live by that age-old mantra: “Do your job.’’ That’s one thing Jackson has always done exceedingly well.
Jackson has been a model of consistency throughout much of his NFL career. Once he became the primary ball-carrier for the St. Louis Rams offense in his second year in the league, Jackson went on a tear of eight straight seasons with 1,000 or more rushing yards. That’s tied for the fourth-longest streak in NFL history behind only Emmitt Smith, Curtis Martin and Barry Sanders.
That streak came to an end in 2013, when Jackson was traded to the Atlanta Falcons. One thing that didn’t end was his ball security, which rivals some of the best backs in the NFL. Over his past six seasons in the NFL (2009-2014), Jackson fumbled just five times. There are 38 backs who carried the ball 600 times or more in that span, and only two (Donald Brown and Michael Bush) had fewer fumbles than Jackson, and neither of them had even half of Jackson’s total number of carries in those six seasons. On that note, Jackson is one of just two backs (along with Ravens running back Ray Rice) who tallied more than 1,000 rush attempts in that span and had fewer than 10 fumbles.
Where his first nine years in the NFL were a roar, his previous two have been a whimper, with 347 carries for 1,250 yards (3.6 YPA) and 12 touchdowns — numbers he had posted in a single season at previous points in his career.
Even though his production was down, his contributions were still positive. Particularly, his value in the passing game has been very high. According to Pro Football Focus, a leading site for football statistics, Jackson was in pass protection on 143 plays from 2013-2014 and allowed pressure just seven times (six hurries, one sack). He also tacked on 53 receptions for 339 yards as a pass-catcher out of the backfield.
That kind of consistency, that kind of versatility, is the model of a Patriots running back, whether that running back is 23 or 32 years of age. So he’s no longer a lightning rod for production, but he runs hard between the tackles and takes care of the football. He’s not going to burn defenders in the open field, but in a power running scheme, he’ll keep the offense on schedule more often than not.
Photos: The best images from Patriots-Titans
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