NFL: 30 running backs who got better after leaving their first team
One of the best college running backs in the modern era at San Diego State, Marshall Faulk was selected No. 2 overall by the Indianapolis Colts in 1994. Many younger fans aren’t even aware of his career with the Colts, but those days on their own helped make Faulk a star.
He spent five seasons with the Colts, with four of them going for at least 1,000 yards on the ground. This includes back-to-back Pro Bowls appearances to begin his career in 1994 and 1995.
But after 1,319 yards rushing in 1998, Faulk was traded to the then-St. Louis Rams due to a contract dispute in the offseason. He was already a Pro Bowl-caliber running back, but joining Mike Martz’s offense took him to the next level.
The first three years of his time with the Rams all saw Faulk go over 1,300 rushing yards and a combined 37 touchdowns. He led the NFL in 2000 with 18 scores from the ground and won NFL MVP. Faulk was part of the “Greatest Show on Earth”, considered to be one of the best offensive teams in modern NFL history.
He wasn’t just part of the running game, Faulk caught over 80 balls four years in a row as well.
The former Aztec back won a Super Bowl in 1999 with St. Louis. He didn’t have much of an impact during that postseason run, but did two years later, including going for 159 yards and two rushing touchdowns in the NFC title win over the Philadelphia Eagles. He had 130 total yards against the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl XXXVI, but the Rams fell by a field goal.
Faulk’s production slowly declined after his sixth Pro Bowl appearance, with injuries, age, and an emerging Steven Jackson in the backfield. But the future Pro Football Hall of Famer’s dignity (inducted on the first ballot in 2011) never ceased on the field before retiring in 2006.
He finished with exactly 100 rushing touchdowns and 36 as a pass-catcher, along with 12,279 career yards on the ground. With an NFL MVP, multiple Pro Bowls, and a Super Bowl ring, few running backs can match the accolades that Faulk has.