Edge has become an afterthought

He came to the desert, flashed that bright smile of his, and we were hooked.

The Cardinals signed Edgerrin James? Are you kidding?

But it wasn't a joke. The Bidwills were about to move into their new stadium and they were putting their money where their luxury suites were, signing James to a four-year, $30 million contract.

It was heralded as the most significant free-agent signing in franchise history, and who could argue?

James was a four-time Pro Bowl selection, the yin to Peyton Manning's yang in Indianapolis.

He was a symbol of hope and a promise of better days ahead.

"We're serious about winning," vice president Michael Bidwill said.

Thirty months have passed. The Cardinals are still serious, but James no longer is the front man, the face of the franchise. Instead, he has become an afterthought, the commercial pause while Kurt Warner, Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin catch their breath.

James' skills haven't completely eroded. He had 93 yards Sunday - averaging 5.2 yards per carry - and he's on pace to rush for 1,321 yards, which would be his most since 2005, his final season in Indianapolis.

But James isn't having the kind of impact - either on a Sunday afternoon or over the course of the season - you'd expect from a $30 million player.

Last year, James' longest run from scrimmage was 27 yards. His longest gain this year is 16 yards, making him the only back in the top 10 in rushing who doesn't have a carry of at least 20 yards.

To be fair, James never was a home run threat. His longest run over his last six seasons in Indianapolis was 43 yards.

But he seems to have reached the point of his career where defenses no longer fear him.

Some of that is beyond James' control. One of the reasons he was so effective with the Colts is that he was playing with Manning, Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne and behind a good offensive line. Defenses were preoccupied with Indianapolis' passing attack, which gave James room to run.

In addition, the Cardinals haven't made James a focal point of their offense. He no longer carries the ball in goal-line situations - rookie Tim Hightower has both of Arizona's rushing touchdowns - and he rarely has the ball thrown to him.

James, 30, caught a combined 207 passes in his final four years in Indianapolis. But he had just 27 receptions last season, and he's caught only three balls this year.

Here's the thing, though: If James were still one of the NFL's best backs, wouldn't the Cardinals make it a point of emphasis to get the ball in his hands?

No, the truth is, James has lost just enough bounce in his step that he's become an average back.

The Cardinals know it. The team considered waiving James after last season, but only if it could acquire a younger, every-down back.

There's already talk, after three games, that Arizona needs to give Hightower more carries because he has the explosiveness James lacks.

James isn't going to disappear. Barring injury, he'll carry the ball 300 times or so and rush for more than 1,000 yards.

But the running back who once represented everything the Cardinals were going to be has become a supporting actor.

And when James' days do end here - his contract runs through 2009 - he likely won't be remembered for the yards he gained, the passes he caught or the touchdowns he scored.

He'll be defined, instead, by what the Cardinals did in the first round of the 2007 draft.

Content with James, they took Penn State tackle Levi Brown with the fifth overall pick.

And passed on Adrian Peterson.

(eastvalleytribune.com)