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Rushing, TD records within reach and now part of long-term plan
Tim Sullivan
Thursday, March 12, 2009
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LaDainian Tomlinson's brand new three-year contract is accompanied by a bold new five-year plan.
After years of artful evasions and smooth sidesteps, the Chargers' reunited-and-it-feels-so-good running back officially took aim at Emmitt Smith yesterday.
LT declared his desire for the National Football League's career records for rushing and rushing touchdowns, both presently in Smith's possession, and says he is now prepared to pursue them longer than he had previously planned on playing.
“For so long, I blocked it out,” Tomlinson said during a news conference at the Chargers' Murphy Canyon complex. “It was so far out there. But re-evaluating where I'm at in my career now, I think it's reachable.”
Tomlinson finished his eighth NFL season with 11,760 rushing yards, which ranks 14th on the all-time list and leaves him 6,595 yards short of Smith's staggering standard: 18,355.
That's five years at 1,319 yards per year. That's a matter of nearly four miles, a distance no NFL running back has traveled after the age of 30. Because Tomlinson turns 30 on June 23, the relative reachability of Smith's rushing record would seem remote. (Smith leads LT in rushing touchdowns 164-126.)
Still, you can't fault a guy for having goals, and Bolts fans ought to feel buoyed by LT's ambition. If his revised contract is just a reprieve, a one-year commitment with another payroll decision due next spring, Tomlinson's interest in a long-term project is profoundly positive. That he has the confidence to openly target Smith's records tells you there may be more left in LT's tank than was evident last fall.
“I guess I just kind of got the sense of, 'Why not?' ” Tomlinson said. “Why should I, at the end of my career, look back and say, 'I was this close to Emmitt's record. Why didn't I continue to play and try to get it?' I don't want to have that regret. I don't want to have any regrets when I leave this game. I guess that's kind of what's changed.”
Upon reaching the 10,000-yard plateau in November 2007, Tomlinson insisted he would be finished with pro football no later than 2012, and that he would certainly not hang on for statistical significance.
“If my heart is not in it,” he said then, “I'm not going to keep playing to break a record. I would never do that.”
That time has changed his tune is not unusual. The closer an athlete gets to his career's finish line, the more eager he becomes to extend the race. When an athlete plays hurt, as Tomlinson did for much of the 2008 season, he sometimes discovers that the inability to dominate does not eliminate the desire to compete.
If you really love the game, and all of the adulation and rewards that accompany it, you're liable to linger past the point where you're the hottest thing happening. The key question about LaDainian Tomlinson is whether he is already past that point or if it's still possible he can retrace his steps to pro football's summit.
“I think I will continue to be a very explosive player,” he said. “You guys saw me last year where I was banged up all year, played with a hurt toe and, obviously, with the groin injury. I'll be back to full strength (this year) and to being the LT you guys are used to seeing.”
Clearly, the Chargers have some doubts on this score. Unable to rely on a vintage Tomlinson at the end of successive playoff seasons, the Chargers were moved to seek contractual concessions as a condition of the player's continued employment. Ostensibly, management was motivated by a desire for future flexibility under the NFL's salary cap. Presumably, executives picked this point to revisit LT's unguaranteed contract because his leverage was low.
Should he resume being “the LT you guys are used to seeing,” the Chargers would have a great back at a bargain price. Should Tomlinson continue to accumulate injuries and/or perform ineffectively, the Chargers would be positioned to cut bait without costly consequences.
Beyond a certain point, every running back becomes a year-to-year proposition, and after 2,657 career carries, the odds are against a Tomlinson renaissance. Still, it's worth noting that Curtis Martin was 31 when he led the NFL in rushing in 2004; that Tiki Barber ran for 1,860 and 1,662 yards in consecutive seasons after he turned 30; and that Walter Payton averaged 1,523 yards in the first three years after his 30th birthday.
Age is not an arbitrary consideration in pro football, but neither does it exclude an exceptional talent.
“If we're winning and winning championships, I do want to play as long as I can and walk away with all the records,” Tomlinson said. “That would be a heck of a challenge and I'm up for challenges.”
Emmitt Smith can consider himself warned.
