After a 'bad (expletive) dream' in Arizona, Edgerrin James' priorities change

After spending the summer looking for a job, it now appears Edgerrin James, who has more rushing yards than any active NFL player, will prolong his career as a Seattle Seahawk.

Not that it was that big a priority to James.

His longtime girlfriend Andia Wilson, the mother of his four children, lost her battle with leukemia in April. James has been so committed to looking after his kids, none older than 12, that he balked at joining the Seahawks until he'd taken them to their first day of school Monday, something Wilson had traditionally done.

"I had to be there," James told Yahoo! "There was no leaving."

After a tumultuous final year with the Cardinals -- James termed it a 'bad (expletive) dream' as he dealt with Wilson's illness and his own midseason benching even though he regained his starting role during Arizona's Super Bowl run -- he is now just looking to fit in with Seattle.

"The way I look at it is I've played 10 good years, and I've done everything a running back can do. I want to help. I think I want to be like Ginobili now -- I want to come off the bench," James said, referring to the San Antonio Spurs' electric sixth man. "I'm the new Manu Ginobili! How about that?"

Seahawks coach Jim Mora thinks James could take over for released T.J. Duckett as Seattle's best option near the goal line and in short-yardage situations.

"I think Edgerrin does that," Mora told seahawks.com. "He rarely takes a negative run. He always falls forward. So he'll be a good addition for this football team."

James previously played for Mora's father, Jim, early in his career with the Indianapolis Colts.

"I had my best seasons, statistically, under Jim Mora, so it's tough not to see that as a positive. I played for the father; now I'm playing for the son. It's cool," James said.

"I told Coach Mora the other day, 'Damn, why couldn't I have been in this system three years ago?'" James said of running in Seattle's new zone-blocking scheme.

But no matter how many yards the NFL's 11th all-time leading rusher (12,121 yards) adds in the Pacific Northwest -- he needs 619 to move up to seventh place and 1,139 to surpass Eric Dickerson for sixth -- his children remain priority No. 1.

"As football players, we're so programmed to do well in our job that sometimes we forget about our house," he said. "I look at my mom, who's helping with my kids, and then I look at them. My kids don't have that mom. When you really think of it like that – damn, it's heavy.

"If my daughter would've said, 'Daddy, I don't want you to go play,' then 100% guaranteed I wouldn't be playing. I've gotten to enjoy so many things, but right now it's time to be a parent first, and I don't want to blow it."



(usatoday.com)