The Football Scientist, KC Joyner, is a Fifth Down contributor. Lab results from “Scientific Football 2009,” to be published in August, are now available for those who preorder the book.

Many of the responses to the Monday post on the Cardinals’ offensive line run blocking metrics were from Arizona fans inquiring about how the Birds’ blocking affected the relative performances of Edgerrin James and Tim Hightower. James was the starter early in the year, lost the job to Hightower after a case of fumbleitis, and then regained it during the playoff run.

There was talk that James got his old gig because he was a postseason veteran who could handle the spotlight, but a metric review shows there might have been more to it than that. I looked at each runner’s yardage when he had a play with no Point of Attack (POA) run-blocking losses and when there was at least one POA loss. Here are those results:

Edgerrin James	Att	Yds	YPA	% of att
All POA wins	85	431	5.1	63.4%
At least one POA loss	49	81	1.7	36.6%
Total	134	512	3.8		Tim Hightower	Att	Yds	YPA	% of att
All POA wins	81	356	4.4	56.6%
At least one POA loss	62	44	0.7	43.4%
Total	143	400	2.8

What was surprising to me was that James and Hightower had a nearly identical number of runs with all POA wins. I would have expected a certain amount of consistency but would not have thought it would be within four carries.
These totals show that Edge was better regardless of whether he received good blocking. He averaged .7 of a yard more per carry than Hightower when given adequate blocking and topped him by a yard when there was at least one POA loss.

The bottom line is threefold. First, if James can average 5.1 YPA runs with all POA wins, I can only imagine what Chris “Beanie” Wells can do. Second, it shows why James seems in no hurry to sign with a team. He knows he has tread left on his tire and isn’t going to underplay his hand because of it. Third, it shows that for all of his fantasy football hype last year (and I was one of those hyping him), from an overall football perspective, at this point Hightower is simply not an everydown running back.

(nytimes.com)

Say what you will about NCAA "student-athletes." Say they are on occasion not the most studious of students. Say they're using their college experience as a pro sports internship. Say they often enter school without any intention of exiting in the traditional cap-and-gown manner.

Just don't tell me they don't care about the schools they attend or their college teammates. For the second consecutive year, I went and stood outside a club Saturday night as Santana Moss rolled up to celebrate his birthday party, not in a party bus filled with Redskins teammates, but in a party bus filled with teammates from the U. (The Redskins teammates arrived separately.)

Last year, I asked Reggie Wayne whether these bonds were stronger than the bonds connecting, say, the Indianapolis Colts. "Yeah, for REAL for real, and you can say it again," he told me. "We've been through all the hard times, all the hardship, and you understand all the pain ... It's a brotherhood, brothers from another mother all across the board, and it's a bond."

It's just like your fantasy football league. If you're like me, you have a draft both with your current co-workers, the guys you sometimes meet at the copy machine, and with your college roommates, the fellows whose vomit you once lovingly wiped from their passed-out necks. It's just a different sort of connection, and NFL players feel it, too.
This year, as Edgerrin James and Andre Johnson and others pushed through the crowd outside a downtown D.C. club, I again asked why these Miami guys are still doing things together.

"We always do," Johnson told me. "It’s something I can’t describe, but you know, it’s a beautiful thing that we have."
Anyhow, amid the cleavage and flashing cameras, I was thinking football, so I asked James whether he still has something left in his tank.

"Of course I've still got it," he said with a laugh. "I was in a bad situation. Just look at my track record. I averaged 4.5 yards a game the last five, six games. Trust me, there's nothing wrong with me. It was a passing team. You're not gonna find a top two or three passing team with a top running game. Choose one or the other. Show me a team that's No. 1 passing and No. 1 running. You ain't got enough time."

James, of course, was released by the Arizona Cardinals, and has been linked with teams like the Saints. But with Biz Markie en route and the club beckoning, he didn't feel like discussing any possible destinations Saturday night.

"I'm trying to think about football next month," he said. "I'm just gonna take it easy and enjoy what I'm doing right now."

With his collegiate teammates, of course.

I didn't go to Sunday's pool party and barbecue that capped off Santana Moss's 30th birthday weekend, but I did make a brief appearance at Current on Connecticut Avenue Saturday night. A few observations.

* Maybe I'm crazy, but if a star of the Pittsburgh Steelers was doing it up outside a club in a crowded downtown Pittsburgh neighborhood, I've got to believe the young crowds arriving to go to other spots would stand around and gawk. Instead, we got a few gawkers, a lot of indifference, and a few people asking us who Santana Moss was. Or just not noticing the Moss part at all.

"Like, Carlos Santana?" one reveler asked me. "That's the only Santana I give a crap about."

* Biz Markie was the DJ, fulfilling his role as Official DJ for every D.C. athlete birthday party. I've lost count, but he's definitely done birthday parties for Caron Butler and DeShawn Stevenson. I'm pretty sure he did Joe Gibbs's most recent birthday party, but I lost my invitation to that one.

"I just know everybody," Biz said, when I asked about his athletic ubiquity.

This time, there was some sort of dispute when Rock Cartwright's group got ushered into the club before Biz's group. Sports are all about the drama.

* That particular block of Connecticut Avenue has several nightlife options, and the stretch limos with the hordes of angry young men and chattering young women kept arriving all night. Moss's first load of friends, though, came in one of those shuttle buses used by wedding parties. Nice change-up with that one.

Also, there were at least three bachelorette parties on the block. None, sadly, was there for the Santana affair.

* Among the Redskins I spotted: Clinton Portis, Cartwright, Stephon Heyer, Devin Thomas, Chris Horton, Kareem Moore. Heyer didn't want to discuss Jon Jansen's release in that setting, which was fair enough. Thomas was happy to discuss Moss, whom he called his mentor.

"He's my big brother," Thomas said. "I've got to show him some love here because he's shown me the ropes."
I asked Thomas what he'd be doing when he turns 30.

"Hopefully still tearing up the football field like he does," Showtime said. Then he remembered something. "I got a birthday present for him," he said. "A wheelchair and a cane."

As for the party, "he does it big," Thomas said.

* It wouldn't really be a party without an ice sculpture, now would it? Every year, I plan on getting one of those for myself, and every year, it somehow slips my mind. Slip. Ha.

* There was some foot traffic from the goth industrial crowd, there for the dance party around the corner at Midnight. I'm sure there are two social groups that are better opposites than goth industrial dancers and NFL football players from the U., but you're gonna have to suggest them.

* Edgerrin James turned 30 last Aug. 1, 10 months to the day before Moss. (Today is Moss's actual birthday.) So I asked him what it's like, not that I don't know myself.

"When you get to be 30, you already know exactly what you want," Edge told me. "Life kind of mellows out. It's trial and error."

* So is Santana old? "Nah man, he's not old," Andre Johnson told me. "I mean, we all wish that we could stay young. He's 30 years old now, and he still goes out on the field and performs well. Everyone says 30 years is an old age in the game of football, but you can still go out and play and produce on the field, and he's a guy that can do it."

"We don't age, we just get better," Edge said of the Miami crew.

* I'll go ahead and give the fashion prize to WKYS's Jeannie Jones, who was wearing nothing but a Moss jersey, slightly altered into a dress-like shape. "I love everything about Santana," she said.

* While I didn't see any other football jerseys turned into evening wear, I saw plenty of other outfits that fit the same aesthetic, said aesthetic being wear as little cloth as possible, to minimize the amount of flammable fabric on your body in case of a raging fire, I'd guess.

"It is so freakin' competitive, and the girls have such butts and such boobs," said April Jones of the April Jones Show. "It's serious. These girls, they invest their life savings in their hair, their breasts and their butts. It's a whole different ball game."

(voices.washigtonpost.com)

Edgerrin James was scheduled to attend a cookout at the New Hope Ministries Speed & Agility Football camp Saturday.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW PHOTOS

But James had another commitment and couldn't attend.

So in typical Edge fashion, he just showed up -- at Thursday night's camp, instead.

James, who was released by the Arizona Cardinals last month, has been showing up all over Southwest Florida since February, when he became the first Collier County native to play in a Super Bowl. James was a high school football star at Immokalee, his hometown, before going on to star at the University of Miami and in the NFL, for the Indianapolis Colts and then the Cardinals. James is currently seeking another NFL team; various Internet reports have suggested that the New Orleans Saints are interested.

While he has never played pro football for a Florida team, James continues to spend most of his time in South Florida. He remains dedicated to helping young football players like the ones he saw at the New Hope Ministries camp, many of whom were from low-income families and allowed to attend for free, according to New Hope youth pastor Ron Arevalo.

Arevalo said James was so vested in the camp that after attending on Thursday, he invited Arevalo and camp director Andrew Perez, a longtime Pop Warner coach in Collier County, to his house next week, to give them pointers about how and when to best run the camp.

"Having Edgerrin at the camp was a big encouragement for the kids, even a big encouragement for myself," Arevalo said. "He just walked up and starting walking around the field with the kids and talking to them. It was a lot more of (James) wanting to play with the kids rather than give a speech to them."

"Especially the ones that are really into football, their mouths just dropped," Arevalo said, adding that one camper asked James to sign his forehead.

James' appearance was a big accomplishment for the New Hope camp, which is in its first year with 40 campers: four 8-year-olds and 36 players from ages 12-17. Perez, who coached James in Pop Warner football in Immokalee from age 8-10, had the idea for a football camp at church after coaching youth football in Collier County for more than 25 years. Perez and Arevalo are the main camp instructors, with help from other local football luminaries, including Naples High's Bill Kramer, who came earlier this week, former Chicago Bears running back Mark Green and 2008 Immokalee grad Carl Elie, who now plays running back for Louisiana-Monroe.

Saturday, at a cookout to wrap up the camp, which is not open to the public, Arevalo said he's expecting Naples High grad and former NFL fullback Fred McCrary to attend, along with James' cousin, Javarris James, who was a standout at Immokalee and now plays for the University of Miami, 2009 sixth-round NFL draft pick and former Naples High/University of Miami linebacker Spencer Adkins, and NFL free agent/former Gulf Coast and Florida Atlantic cornerback Corey Small.

Arevalo said having the coaches and local NFL and college players attend the New Hope camp did a lot to encourage the campers, especially those who may not otherwise have a chance to attend football camps because of the expense.

Churches don't often hold football camps, but New Hope has a sports focus and is currently in the process of constructing a multi-function gymnasium on the church campus. Arevalo said the church is hoping to hire a coach to work with kids on sports such as football, basketball and baseball.

"We really do want to encourage the people from around our neighborhood to know that we are here for the community. We're out there too to have fun with sports and stuff like that," Arevalo said.

(naplesnews.com)

The New Orleans Saints are open to the idea of giving their running game an "Edge."

Saints general manager Mickey Loomis told FOXSports.com that the team is still considering making a contract offer to free-agent running back Edgerrin James.

"We've spent some time evaluating Edgerrin," Loomis said Tuesday morning. "We think he can still play. We're going to continue to evaluate that and see where it ends up. We haven't made a decision on Edgerrin yet."

In an expected move, James was released last month after the Cardinals drafted Ohio State running back Chris "Beanie" Wells (first round) and LaRod Stephens-Howling (seventh). James is the NFL's active rushing leader with 12,121 yards, which also ranks 11th on the league's all-time list. James, though, turns 31 in August and isn't believed to have drawn strong interest in free agency.

James could be a nice fit in New Orleans, which didn't draft or sign a replacement for the released Deuce McAllister. Loomis, though, expressed confidence that Pierre Thomas and Reggie Bush could carry the Saints' rushing load. A five-game starter last season, Thomas scored nine times and gained 625 yards on only 129 carries. Bush generated 844 yards from scrimmage in an injury-plagued 2008 campaign.

"Every time Pierre has had the opportunity to play, he's performed really well," Loomis said. "I think he was one of the leaders in the league in not getting tackled for a loss among running backs (in 2008). He's not the big prototype back that Deuce was but we're confident that Pierre can do some good things for us.

"Obviously, Reggie is an explosive back and he's had a real strong offseason so far. I know he's looking forward to the challenge of carrying the ball a little more."

James was unhappy last season with his role as a part-time back in Arizona splitting carries with rookie Tim Hightower. James repeatedly asked for his release before it was finally granted.

James enjoyed a strong finish to the 2008 season. He averaged 67.2 rushing yards in Arizona's final five games and started all four postseason contests, including a Super Bowl XLIII loss to Pittsburgh.

James played the past three years in Arizona, producing 2,895 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns. James reached four Pro Bowls during his first seven NFL seasons with Indianapolis.

(foxsports.com)

Although I really applaud the Bengals' pickup of former Rutgers running back Brian Leonard for depth at the running back position, it's hard to believe that they would rely on the highly unreliable Cedric Benson at the top of their depth chart. And Seattle hasn't put forth a convincing argument that they have a solid situation at running back with former-Cowboy Julius Jones backed up by T.J. Duckett.

In ten starts last season, Benson only averaged 3.5 yards per carry and ran for just two touchdowns. In Seattle, Jones averaged 4.4 yards per carry in 10 starts and 15 game appearances, but he scored just two rushing touchdowns and was highly erratic from week to week. Meanwhile, Duckett averaged just 2.8 yards per carry last year.

There's little doubt that James would be an immediate upgrade for both clubs with his experience and skill set. During his first two seasons in Arizona, he rushed for no less than 1,100 yards per season. Despite his role being reduced in 2008, he averaged 3.9 yards per carry during the postseason against some top-notch defenses to help the Cardinals earn a Super Bowl appearance.

But time is slipping by, and James should get his nose in a playbook soon if he wants to make an impact with a new team in 2009.

(michigan.scout.com)

The New Orleans Saints have held internal discussions about pursuing free-agent RB Edgerrin James, but they most likely will wait until after this weekend’s minicamp before re-visiting those conversations, general manager Mickey Loomis told NFL.com.

“There’s been talk about Edgerrin James, and we’ve spent some time evaluating that prospect,” Loomis said. “We’ll continue to do that. We haven’t made any decision or closed any doors on acquiring another running back if we feel that’s something we need to do. We do feel a lot better about what we have in-house than people do outside of our building.”

Pierre Thomas and Reggie Bush are the top returning running backs for the Saints, who released Deuce McAllister after last season. New Orleans considered drafting a running back last month but used its four selections on three defenders and punter Thomas Morstead.

James, who has 12,121 career rushing yards, was cut by the Arizona Cardinals last week. His agent, Drew Rosenhaus, said James plans to continue playing and that teams were interested in the 10-year NFL veteran.

James was demoted for nine games last season before being re-inserted as the starter for the playoffs, where he played well as the Cardinals made a run to the Super Bowl. James, who had a career-low 10 carries per game and 514 yards in 2008, requested to be released or traded by the Cardinals at various points of last season.

(blogs.nfl.com)

Edgerrin James played last season for Todd Haley while they both were in Arizona, but a reunion could be coming in Kansas City. ESPN is reporting that the Chiefs are looking at the possibility of adding James to their mix now that he's been released by the Cardinals.

The team was openly flirting with the option of cutting Larry Johnsnon few months back, and this could possibly give them a replacement if that's still the plan. Still, moving from LJ to Edge would be a downgrade for the offense, so I think Haley will consider this cautiously before moving ahead. I could also see James being added to pair with LJ, which would likely signal the end of Kolby Smith's run in KC.

(espn.com)

As expected, Edgerrin James was recently released by the Arizona Cardinals. Nearing 31, James' best days are behind him, but as the 11th leading rusher in NFL history he'll still get a chance with a team for the upcoming season. SI.com NFL writers Don Banks, Jim Trotter and Ross Tucker discuss which team makes the most sense and what his impact would be.

• DON BANKS: Given he's north of the historically pertinent 30-year-old plateau for NFL rushers, I'm convinced we'll never again see the Edgerrin James of his lead-back glory days in Indianapolis. But as a complementary piece of the puzzle, there are a number of teams that could still use the occasionally productive ex-Cardinal.
If I were James, and I were still chasing the elusive dream of earning a Super Bowl ring all my own -- and I'm not counting the sympathy bling he was given by the 2006 Colts, the year after he left Indy for Arizona -- I know I'd be hoping to sign with the New Orleans Saints. Sean Payton's offense last season finished first in points (28.9), first in total yards (410.7) and first in passing (311.1), and remains only a significant defensive upgrade away from serious Super Bowl contention.

That may sound like a mouthful, but the Saints do have some talent on defense, and I expect first-year New Orleans defensive coordinator Gregg Williams to get some results this season from a unit that suffered a plague of injuries en route to ranking 23rd overall in yards allowed (339.5) in 2008.

The Saints make sense for James, because while many expected them to draft Ohio State's Chris "Beanie'' Wells at No. 14 in the first round last weekend, they did the smart thing and opted for defensive help in ex-Buckeyes cornerback Malcolm Jenkins. Left unfilled for now was the veteran void created by the release of the franchise's all-time leading rusher, Deuce McAllister, in a February cap move.

The Saints have a talented tandem of Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas slated to carry the load this season, but they'd like to have a third backfield option. Both Saints runners are a bit on the small side, and James would add a valuable bit of insurance and experience alongside Bush and Thomas, who are entering their fourth and third seasons, respectively.

***

• JIM TROTTER: Philadelphia is a perfect fit. Brian Westbrook is an elite back, but injuries are always a concern with him. Rookie second-round pick LeSean McCoy has potential, but no experience. James could be an insurance policy for Westbrook and a mentor for McCoy. Coach Andy Reid would love James because he perennially ranks among the league leaders in fewest negative rushes, plus he's an excellent pass protector who can slip out of the backfield and handle those screens that Donovan McNabb likes to throw.

The question that needs answering is whether James will accept a backup role. He said on multiple occasions during last season's playoffs that he still believes he's an effective starter who can chase down other backs on the all-time rushing list. The problem for him is nearly every contender has set the top of its depth chart, and no team is going to change it for a 31-year-old back whose longest run the past four years is 26 yards.

Green Bay would be a good fit for James, but Ryan Grant is the starter. Chicago meets James' criteria, but Matt Forte isn't going anywhere. New Orleans has a definite need for a durable inside runner, but the Saints have thrown the football at least 238 more times than they've run it each of the past two seasons. Balance, that ain't.
Ironically, the best fit for James might be the team he just left. After losing his starting job (and regaining it late last season), he grew to hate the Cardinals' overreliance on the pass. Arizona ranked last in rushing attempts and had three players surpass 1,000 yards receiving. But things figure to balance out now that coordinator Todd Haley has moved on to Kansas City. Coach Ken Whisenhunt reportedly will call the plays to start the season, and the last time he filled that role with a playoff team was the 2005 postseason, when the Steelers had 142 rushes and 96 passes en route to their Super Bowl win. That's just the type of ratio and success that James is seeking.

***

• ROSS TUCKER: The Houston Texans make the most sense. They are desperately in need of a complement to last year's rookie sensation, Steve Slaton, and they didn't fill that void during the draft. Though they did pick up undrafted free agents Arian Foster from Tennessee and Jeremiah Johnson from Oregon, it would be unlikely that one of them is ready to contribute on a consistent basis unless Alex Gibbs and Gary Kubiak can duplicate their success in picking up low-budget running backs from their Denver days. Veteran Chris Brown has been unable to stay healthy and Ryan Moats is more of a third-down back.

James would be able to help get a Texans franchise over the hump of making the postseason in a division with which he is very familiar, the AFC South. James just helped get a moribund franchise to the Super Bowl and is very experienced playing with a group of talented skill players and blending in while doing his part. He could give the Texans 5-10 carries a game, especially in short-yardage situations due to his uncanny knack for finding enough of a crease to get positive yardage and then falling forward. Just as importantly, he showed during last year's postseason that he could carry the load should Slaton go down.

(cnnsi.com)

After admitting that he and the organization had tried very hard to try to get back into the first round in an attempt to get Chris "Beanie" Wells, Sean Payton later said that the New Orleans Saints may already have their big back in the building, citing Mike Bell and Lynell Hamilton as examples.

Clearly, if Payton and the Saints felt that way, they would not have pursued Wells diligently. Wells ended up being drafted by Arizona. His arrival spells the departure of veteran Edgerrin James from the Cardinals.

Disgruntled with the way he was being utilized (or not), James asked for his release last season and reiterated it following the Cardinals' improbable run to the Super Bowl despite the fact that he returned to a starting role in the playoffs.

James carried 133 times for 514 yards and three scores in 2008. A 10-year veteran, while James is not the player he once was, he still has gas left in the tank, particularly after not taking a pounding last season. That may be of particular interest to the New Orleans Saints.

The Arizona Republic and ESPN report that James may be of interest to Sean Payton and the Saints. Based on his ability to catch the football, his ability to handling blitzing linebackers and defensive backs and his still solid running skills, James may be a good fit here for a two-year window if you can get him at a reasonable price. From his perspective, he would be a 12-15 touch per game player, a perfect role for this stage of his career. James can make a tough yard. He is big enough and has good vision. He is a slightly more elusive version of Deuce McAllister.

Despite entering his 11th season in 2009, the 6'0, 220 pound James will be just 31 years old this fall. He has eclipsed 1,000 yards rushing in seven of his ten NFL seasons. He has 430 career receptions. He is motivated to prove that he can still play at a high level. Don't be very surprised to see this big back in the building on Poydras Street this fall.

(neworleans.com)

PHOENIX -- The Arizona Cardinals granted running back Edgerrin James' wish to be released on Tuesday and cut two others who played significant roles in the team's run to the Super Bowl.

While James' move was anticipated, the release of cornerback Rod Hood and defensive end Travis LaBoy was not.
The moves clear salary cap space for the Cardinals, who want to sign new deals with linebacker Karlos Dansby and safety Adrian Wilson, and eventually with unhappy wide receiver Anquan Boldin.

James, Hood and LaBoy combined were to have made $10 million next season, but because of the $7.5 million signing bonus given to LaBoy a year ago, the cap savings will be several million dollars less than what the three would have earned. Still, it gives spending room to a franchise that had been just below the salary ceiling.

"Edgerrin James had a great run in Arizona and now it is time for him to continue his Hall of Fame career elsewhere," James' agent Drew Rosenhaus told ESPN.com's John Clayton. "One of his goals was to help the Cardinals get to a Super Bowl and he is eager to help another team get to that same level. Edgerrin is excited about signing with a new team. So far, several teams have expressed interest and we may have a deal in place in the very near future."

James had 794 carries for 2,895 yards and 16 touchdowns in his three seasons in Arizona. He topped 1,000 yards in 2006 and 2007, and his resurgence during last season's playoffs gave Arizona the running game it had sorely lacked.

He was benched for seven games earlier in 2008, the first time that's happened in his career, and he asked the team to release him then. The Cardinals refused, and he was reinserted into the lineup late in the season.
Despite it being such a difficult year, it led to James' only Super Bowl.

James had sought his release early in the free agency period, but the Cardinals held off until after last weekend's draft, where they chose Ohio State running back Chris "Beanie" Wells in the first round, the No. 31 pick overall. Wells and second-year pro Tim Hightower are expected to be Arizona's featured backs in the coming season.

James, 30, had one year left, at $5 million, on the four-year, $40 million deal he signed with Arizona before the 2006 season. He recently experienced a personal tragedy with the death of his longtime girlfriend, and mother of his four children, of leukemia at age 30.

In his 10-year career, James has rushed for 12,121 yards, 11th on the NFL career list and first among active players.

(espn.com)

The Cardinals drafted two running backs over the weekend, which is expected to lead to the release of running back Edgerrin James.

The Cardinals were holding on to James to make sure they were covered at running back. With selection of Chris "Beanie" Wells in the first round and LaRod Stephens-Howling in the seventh, the club now has five backs on the roster, excluding James.

James could be released before the team's mandatory minicamp this weekend.

(azcentral.com)

Well, as expected there is no news about a University of Miami player being selected but one draft move does determine the future of one NFL U player: Edgerrin James. The Arizona Cardinals drafted Ohio State running-back Chris Wells with the 31st pick in the 1st round. Look for the Cardinals to not take a very long time to grant Edge’s wish and release him.

Edgerrin is in Miami today at the Miami Heat game. He has had a whirlwind of week with the loss of his longtime girlfriend and mother of four of his children.He was also inducted into the UM Sports HAll of Fame on Thursday. Best of luck to Edge and hopefully he will be out of Arizona soon.

A day after his longtime girlfriend's funeral, one of the University of Miami's greatest football players attended his induction into the UM Sports Hall of Fame, choosing not to elaborate on the sadness but instead to embrace the goodness.

Edgerrin James, now an Arizona Cardinals running back who has a UM football meeting room named in his honor for his $250,000 donation, received a standing ovation Thursday as one of seven athletes in the Hall's newest class.

''This is big because the University of Miami means a lot to me and always has,'' said James, 30, who lost the mother of his four children -- Andia Denise Wilson -- to leukemia last week. ``To be a part of something like this, it's one of my biggest accomplishments ever. This is something I'll look back on and always cherish.

``When you think of the players who have come through this school and have great NFL careers, to be a Hall of Famer at this school, that's probably one of the toughest tickets going.''

The other members of the 2009 class were equally ecstatic, though former UM basketball star Tim James couldn't make it to Jungle Island because he's training for the Army in Austin. Also, 2009 Hall of Fame newcomer Aubrey Huff of the Baltimore Orioles was previously inducted before the UM season opener in February and didn't attend Thursday. Organizers showed a video of Huff thanking UM for the honor.

The 2009 inductees:
• Warren Bogle, a pitcher and power hitter who lettered in 1966 and 1967. He struck out 242 batters in 191 innings for an average of 11.4 strikeouts per nine innings -- still a UM record.

• Davian Clarke, a two-time NCAA national champion and six-time All-American 400-meter runner at UM from 1995 to 1998. He is still the only UM male to win an NCAA individual title.

• Huff, who led the baseball team in 1998 with 21 home runs and a school-record 95 RBI. His .400 career batting average is second all-time at UM.

• Edgerrin James, the only Hurricane to post consecutive 1,000-plus-yards rushing seasons. He ranks second in school history with 2,960 yards in three seasons. His 35 touchdown total is tied with Stephen McGuire for the UM record. He is tied for the record of 14 100-plus-yard rushing games. His biggest UM thrill: 299 yards in the Canes' 49-42 upset victory over No. 2 UCLA to end the 1998 regular season.

• Tim James, a Miami Northwestern High graduate who became the second Hurricane to have his number -- 40 -- retired, joining Rick Barry's No. 24. A 6-7 forward, he is the only player to record more than 1,500 points, 800 rebounds and 200 blocked shots in his career.

• Cathy Morse, a golfer who lettered from 1975 to 1977. Her stroke average of 76.36 was the second-lowest in UM history. In June 1977, Morse won the AIAW national championship.

• Mike Sullivan, a guard/tackle who lettered from 1987 through 1990. Sullivan started every game for four years, setting the school record for consecutive starts at 48. Miami went 44-4 during that span and won two national titles.

Also honored was UM freshman cornerback Brandon Harris, who earned the Walter Kichefski Endowed Football Scholarship for ''his respect of fellow man, loyalty, dedication, sacrifice, motivation and inspiration,'' according to presenter Don Mariutto Jr. Harris, represented by his father, Tim Harris Sr., couldn't attend because he was at the Penn Relays.

(miamiherald.com)

Edquisha James, the 11-year-old daughter of NFL player Edgerrin James and Andia Wilson-James, sat on a beach and, smiling at the camera, said goodbye to her mother.

During a video tribute shown at their mother's funeral Wednesday afternoon that moved many of the about 1,000 in attendance to tears, Eyahna, 7, Edgerrin II, 4, and Euro, 2, the couple's youngest three children, also appeared, saying and waving goodbye.

"Mommy, you will not be forgotten," Edquisha said.

One of children had drawn "I Love You Mom" in the sand.

The two-hour funeral service took place at First Baptist Church off Orange Blossom Road in north Naples. Christian songs of praise were played, including "Praise Is What I Do," sung by family friend Rhoderica Washington.

The subdued but joyful gathering included numerous current and former teammates of James, 30, from the 1996 Immokalee High School graduate's time with the Arizona Cardinals, the Indianapolis Colts and the University of Miami Hurricanes.

Reggie Wayne, Santana Moss, Bubba Franks, Clinton Portis, Andre Johnson, Anquan Boldin and Nate Webster were among the players in attendance, along with James' agent, Drew Rosenhaus.

Wilson-James, 30, died last Tuesday after a year-long battle with acute myeloid leukemia. Her doctors and friends spoke of Wilson-James' courage, tenacity, strength and faith throughout her ordeal.

They also talked about how James, behind the scenes of his prominent NFL career - he's the 11th all-time leading rusher in the league with 12,121 yards - took weekly cross-country trips from Arizona throughout last season to care for Wilson-James and their children.

"He put together an entire support team," said Pamela James, Edgerrin's aunt, who spoke at the funeral and urged the audience to applaud that team.

"It's not the years in the life, but the life in the years," Pamela James said during the service. "She loved her family and she loved her friends. And she had a lot of friends.

"Even though she had faith, she did not give up. She said, 'I want them (her children) to know that I did everything I could do.' "

Edgerrin James and Wilson-James met at Immokalee High in the mid-1990s, when they were students there.

Wilson-James attended Super Bowl XLIII on Feb. 1 in Tampa, in which the Cardinals lost 27-23 to the Pittsburgh Steelers, despite her weakened condition because of constant chemotherapy treatments that began about a year ago.

Walter James, Edgerrin's uncle, praised his nephew for keeping the family focused during Wilson's grueling treatment, which Dr. Jeffrey Lancet of Tampa described during the service as being extremely difficult.

"He is humbled, and he is human," Walter James said of Edgerrin, who had numerous talks with his children about their mother's final destination of heaven.

"He explained everything to them in great detail," Walter James said. "He took the fear out of it for them."

Edgerrin James, who has one season remaining on his contract with the Cardinals, declined to comment at this time but thanked The News-Press for attending. He will continue to lean on his large family that has mutually supported one another long before James gained fame as an elite running back.

"That's not going to take the place of mom," Walter James said of family and friends. "But we're going to be there to help fill those gaps."

(news-press.com)

When former Hurricanes tackle Mike Sullivan got the phone call from a woman who told him he would be inducted into the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame, he didn't believe her.

So Sullivan did what any skeptic with jokester UM buddies would do. He googled Jodi Appelbaum-Steinbauer -- the Hall president and woman who identified herself as the caller.

''I had just spoken to some UM guys I hadn't heard from in a while,'' said Sullivan, the San Diego Chargers offensive line coach. ``Then I got the call from Jodi. I thought it was a locker-room-type prank because it was just too much of a coincidence. I was happy to find that Jodi is well-represented on the Internet as being legitimate.''

UM's other newest Hall of Famers to be inducted Thursday night at Jungle Island:
• NFL star Edgerrin James.
• Sunrise Piper High graduate and Olympic runner Davian Clarke.
• Miami Northwestern grad and former Miami Heat player Tim James.
• Retired LPGA Tour member Cathy Morse.
• South Miami Middle School teacher and former major-leaguer Warren Bogle.

Baltimore Orioles slugger Aubrey Huff, already inducted into this class before a UM baseball game, will not attend. Tim James is in Texas training for the Army and will be represented by former UM football player Duane Starks.

Arizona Cardinals running back Edgerrin James, second in UM history with 2,960 yards in three seasons, will be at the ceremony with a heavy heart. Longtime girlfriend Andia Denise Wilson, the mother of his four children, died April 14 of leukemia. James declined to speak before Thursday's event.

Among those in attendance: former UM pitcher and power hitter Bogle, who lettered at UM in 1966 and '67. He left the Hurricanes with a .329 batting average and .523 slugging percentage.

The first Hurricane to make it to the majors, Bogle was drafted in the fourth round of the '67 Major League Baseball secondary draft by the then-Kansas City Athletics, now the Oakland Athletics. A relief pitcher for one summer, Bogle made his first and only major-league start at Yankee Stadium on July 31, 1968.

''When Jodi Steinbauer came into school at the end of the day with her daughter and told me about making it to the UM Hall of Fame, I got pretty choked up,'' said Bogle, 62, about to retire from teaching at South Miami after 36 years. ``It's a great honor to be recognized by any institution, but especially the University of Miami.

``I don't mind showing emotion. It proves to people that you're human.''

OLYMPIC RUNNER
At times during his UM career, Clarke, now 33, seemed super human. The two-time NCAA national champion 400-meter runner became the first -- and still only -- UM male track and field athlete to win an NCAA individual title. He did it outdoors as a sophomore in 45.29 seconds. That summer, he went on to win a bronze medal for the Jamaican 1,600-meter relay team at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.

''After 400 meters,'' Clarke told The Miami Herald after winning the NCAA title, ``your body is in agony. Your legs are like lead weights that refuse to walk. Your head starts pounding. And the dizziness makes you stumble like a drunk looking for a place to vomit.''

Today, Clarke lives in Austin, where he is training to become a University of Texas police officer.

''I wouldn't trade my UM experience for anything,'' said Clarke, a three-time Olympian and gold medalist in the 1,600-meter relay at the 2004 indoor world championships. He has been married 10 years to Jamaican Olympic hurdler Lacena Golding-Clarke.

Sullivan, the offensive lineman, is a Chicago native whose greatest personal moment at UM -- despite winning national titles in 1987 and '89 -- was defeating Notre Dame 24-0 in the Orange Bowl as a redshirt freshman. Sullivan's parents were from Ireland, and his extended family idolized the Fighting Irish.

''The championships were great, he said, but beating Notre Dame was amazing,'' he said.

RELIABLE PLAYER
Sullivan started every game for four years, the first UM player to do so. Known as one of the smartest Canes, he was drafted in the sixth round in 1991 by Dallas Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson, his first UM coach, and played another five seasons for Tampa Bay. Today, he coaches with San Diego assistant head coach Rob Chudzinski, a former UM player, offensive coordinator and roommate of ''Sully's'' for three years.

''As I look back on my career, my life's path,'' Sullivan, 41, said, ``it has been the people from the University of Miami football program who have steered every single avenue I've taken. . . . I was telling my wife that they made an emphasis on having a short acceptance speech. I have a slight reputation, if someone gives me a microphone, to talk a bit. They underlined in bold face three to four minutes. I can triple that.''

Chudzinski can't make the ceremony because of this weekend's NFL Draft. But he said his heart will be with the UM ``brotherhood.''

''I miss those times,'' Chudzinski said. ''Mike was a great, incredibly tough player,'' adding that Sullivan also was ``a neat freak. If anyone left crumbs or an unwashed plate around, you'd end up finding them on your bed.''
Said fellow UM Hall of Famer Randal Hill: ``Mike is very animated, very intelligent and very deserving.''

(miamiherald.com)

The girlfriend of former Immokalee star football player Edgerrin James and mother of his four children died of leukemia on Tuesday.

Andia Denise Wilson, 30, of Naples died at the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa after battling acute myeloid leukemia. James, who plays for the NFL's Arizona Cardinals, is listed as Wilson's "loving spouse and significant other'' in an obituary notice. James and Wilson had four children: Edquisha, 11, Ehyanna, 7, Edgerrin Jr., 4, and Euro, 2. Wilson also is survived by her parents, Jodi Wilson and Larry Green, and grandmother, Viola Fuller.
James, 30, started for the Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, becoming the first Collier County high school product to participate in a Super Bowl. He rushed for 33 yards in the Cardinals' 27-23 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Tampa on Feb. 1.

James was a Parade All-American in high school, and starred at the University of Miami before being drafted fourth overall by the Indianapolis Colts in 1999. He played seven seasons for the Colts, then signed with Arizona as a free agent in 2006. James is to be inducted into the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame on Thursday. James, who has rushed for 12,121 yards in 10 seasons, asked the Cardinals to release him after the season, after he lost his starting job midseason.

Pierre Rutledge, head of the Edgerrin James Foundation, said the family would not be doing any interviews this week but would like to invite people to attend the funeral to honor Wilson's life. "It's tough on him,'' Rutledge said.
According to the American Cancer Society's Web site, acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a cancer that starts in cells that would normally develop into different types of blood cells. Most cases of AML develop from cells that would turn into white blood cells (other than lymphocytes), but some cases of AML develop in other types of blood-forming cells. (Acute leukemia that develops in lymphocytes is called acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL). For more information on this type of leukemia, see the American Cancer Society document, Leukemia--Acute Lymphocytic.)
AML starts in the bone marrow (the soft inner part of the bones, where new blood cells are made), but in most cases it quickly moves into the blood. It can sometimes spread to other parts of the body including the lymph nodes, liver, spleen, central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), and testes.

A funeral service and celebration of Wilson's life will be Wednesday at 1 p.m. at the First Baptist Church of Naples, 3000 Orange Blossom Drive in North Naples. Visitation will be at the church on Wednesday, prior to the service, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Interment will be private.
In lieu of flowers, expressions of sympathy may be made to Avow Hospice, 1095 Whippoorwill Lane, Naples, 34105.

(naplesnews.com)

Edgerrin James: 4th Pick 1999: James' 12,121 career rushing yards is best among active running backs and 11th all-time, 122 yards behind Marcus Allen at No. 10.

Ed Reed: 24th Pick  2002: In one of the more loaded picks, Reed wins by virtue of being one of the best ever to play safety. A testament of how widely respected he is, Reed was the only unanimous selection to the 2008 All-Pro team.

Jon Beason : 25th Pick 2007: One of the game's best young linebackers, Beason led the Panthers in tackles each of his first two seasons and earned All-Pro honors in 2008.

Reggie Wayne: 30th Pick 2001: Making a name for himself as Peyton Manning's No. 2 receiver early in his career, Wayne has now solidified himself as the Colts' No. 1. He has started every game since 2003 and has five straight 1,000-yard seasons.

(cnnsi.com)

We hear the widely anticipated release of disgruntled Cardinals RB Edgerrin James might not be such a slam-dunk after all. “I still think he’ll be gone, but it does appear (head coach Ken) Whisenhunt is at least leaving open the possibility of bringing ‘Edge’ back,” a team insider told PFW. “I think the team is a bit leery of Tim Hightower as the No. 1 back probably splitting time with a rookie. They’ve paid James $25 million of the $30 million in his contract, and they think that gives them the right to cover themselves at running back.”

(pfw.com)

Most of us have assumed that Edgerrin James would become an ex-Cardinal this off-season. And while that's still likely, don't rule out the possibility of James returning to the team for the final year of his contract. I talked to coach Ken Whisenhunt for a few minutes this morning between meetings at the NFL owners confab at Dana Point, Calif. I asked him about a few subjects (I'll have more later), but regarding Edge, Whisenhunt said he would like to shore up the running back position before deciding to release James. The Cardinals signed Jason Wright in free agency, and he could be the team's third-down back. The Cardinals are expected to draft a back to share time with Tim Hightower. But even with those three players, the position is thin. Whisenhunt said he could foresee James returning, depending upon personnel moves over the next month to six weeks or so. And it seems certain that James won't be released before the draft in late April. That's not going to make James happy. He wanted to be released right after the season in order to have a better shot at landing a featured role somewhere else. The Cardinals, however, have paid James $25 million of the $30 million contract he signed three years ago. They figure that kind of money gives them the right to cover themselves until the need at running back has been addressed. Despite his unhappiness, James has been a diligent worker and he proved late last season that he can still be effective. It will be hard for the Cardinals to release him and place the workload on Hightower, in his second year, and a draft choice.

(cnnsi.com)

Hurricanes running back Javarris James and his ex-Canes cousin Edgerrin James are waiting and hoping -- Javarris for an injury-free season, Edgerrin for a divorce from the Arizona Cardinals.

After a terrific freshman season (802 yards, 4.7 per carry), Javarris battled injuries and mustered 582 yards (3.7 per carry) in 2007 and 286 yards (4.2) in nine games in 2008.

Javarris thought he would be at UM for three years and admits that turning pro was ''tempting, but I didn't have a healthy season and I didn't really accomplish nothing here.'' James said his freshman year was ''good,'' his sophomore season ''average'' and ``last year was my downfall year.''

Coach Randy Shannon has challenged him to rebound. ''He had early success and everything was so easy,'' Edgerrin said. 'You've got to continue to have that hunger. The hunger is more than just showing up and putting in the workout. . . . Life is challenging him. I was working out and I said, `Man, you see what I'm doing? I'm working without someone telling me I have to be here.' I told him he's got to work much harder than in the past.''

Javarris said, ''Maybe I need to work out harder. I don't know how that's possible.'' He said Mark Whipple's offense ''is going to be fun,'' with more chances in the passing game.

Edgerrin said, 'Whipple understands the type of player he's dealing with. I never thought Javarris' style was shotgun and gadget stuff. His thing is line up like the pros do.''

Competition is fierce, with Lee Chambers, Mike James, Damien Berry, and eventually Lamar Miller pushing James and Graig Cooper. ''My job is to make sure they don't take my job away,'' Javarris said.

Edgerrin, the NFL's active rushing leader and 11th all-time, wants out of Arizona after losing his starting job in November, despite postseason playing time. Though many expect Arizona will cut him instead of paying him $5 million in 2009, general manager Rod Graves told The Arizona Republic that until ``we feel it's prudent to release him, he's here. He's still very effective.''

Said James: ``The sooner the better. That's not what I came there for [to be a backup]. I may never get the credit, but I've only been involved in one losing season. I've carried myself the right way. To run for 1,200 yards in Arizona -- that's not easy. [Some] say I'm average. It's a joke. I'm 30, but I take care of myself. I'm going to come out on top.''

(miamiherald.com)

It's time to sign the divorce papers.

This legal separation involving the Cardinals and Edgerrin James isn't working. The Cardinals are coming across as manipulative, James as a spoiled athlete ungrateful for the $25 million he pocketed from this team. Release him so both sides can save face.

General Manager Rod Graves is delaying cutting James loose because, "Despite all the emotions, we have to do what's in the best interest of this team."

"Until we get to a situation where we make a roster move and feel it's prudent to release him, he's here," Graves said Friday. "While some feel he may not have the glamour and glitz of a young running back, he's still very effective."

It's a reasonable argument until you take into account that James is beginning to morph from a guy who wants out to a guy who's making a scene about it. When an ESPN.com writer caught up with him Tuesday working out at the University of Miami, James made sure he pointed at his Cardinals jersey hanging over a chair, and said it's right where it belongs: near a trash can. He gestured toward a photo of himself in a Cardinals uniform and said the picture needed to change. He hollered to another former Hurricanes players, Cardinals safety Antrel Rolle, and said, "You're about to have Arizona all to yourself."

OK, we get it. You want out. You don't need to turn into a cliche and trash the organization in the process. We're tired of that song and dance here.
This comes from someone who really likes James. He came here in 2006 when other big names wouldn't touch the Cardinals. He played a significant role in a postseason that gave a struggling community a much welcome distraction. He was funny, bright and often accessible.

But his darts have turned into arrows, and this organization is all about exorcizing the bad karma that for so long defined the Cardinals.
"I would certainly rather not see negative comments from any of our players about not wanting to be here," Graves said.

It becomes a tougher decision when you have just one other running back - Tim Hightower - under contract. The team wants to protect itself until the draft/free-agent picture becomes a little less cloudy. Can the Cardinals secure someone who would justify releasing James, who has one year and $5 million left on his contract? It's self-preservation and has nothing to do with wanting to stick it to James, as some believe.
James' frustration is understandable, too. He has pleaded his case to the Cardinals several times this off-season out of fear the market is passing him by.

Although 30 is a signal that a running back is near the end of his career, James still has something left. His yards-per-carry average of 3.9 last season was his best since 2005. His 133 carries were the lowest of his career, too, and nobody knows what he would have done with more.
He's the NFL's active career rushing leader and 11th all time. He is well aware of who's ahead of him, and if he had rushed in 2008 what he had averaged the previous nine seasons, he would have leapfrogged to seventh, ahead of Tony Dorsett, Jim Brown, Marshall Faulk and Marcus Allen.

If the Cardinals release him, he'll garner attention but probably not comparable money. It would have to be the right fit, a team that does not expect a big-play back but one who sets up the offense for manageable third-down distances. Only five times did James surpass 20 yards in a single carry during his three seasons with the Cardinals.

Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt is not a fool. He wouldn't have sat James during the season simply out of spite.

If the Cardinals release James, that's $5 million more in cap space, which would leave them at about $27 million under the cap of $127 million.
It's time to get moving. Let James go. The team doesn't need to start the season with a guy who doesn't want to be here. The Cardinals know that, and James should be allowed to test the free-agent market.

Sometimes irreconcilable differences are simply irreconcilable differences.

(azcentral.com)

MIAMI -- Arizona Cardinals running back Edgerrin James made no attempt to hide his disdain for his current employer while working out at the University of Miami on Tuesday afternoon.

You could see his frustration when he pointed at a framed photo of himself in a Cardinals uniform and said the picture needed to change. You could see it when he found one of his Cardinals jerseys lying over an office chair and said the uniform was right where it needed to be -- near the trash can. And that bitterness surfaced again when James welcomed Cardinals safety and fellow Miami alum Antrel Rolle into the Hurricanes' weight room by shouting, "You're about to have Arizona all to yourself."

If you haven't noticed by now, James is really ready to leave Arizona. He already has told other media outlets that he wants to be released, and he is making even more noise now that the unrestricted free-agency period has started. ESPN.com's John Clayton reported Wednesday that James contacted Cardinals general manager Rod Graves on Tuesday night and pleaded for his release. James has one year remaining on a four-year, $30 million contract he signed as an unrestricted free agent on March 12, 2006.

In James' eyes, it's bad enough that he had to endure the worst individual season of his career -- one that included his being benched midway through the season -- even if it did end with the Cardinals' reaching the Super Bowl. Now he's watching the open market fly by without any opportunity to see what value he might have to other teams.

But as difficult as that has been for James, he knows he has to be patient. He understands the Cardinals need to consider all their options at this stage, but he also stresses that he had a mutual agreement with the team when the season ended, one that revolved around his eventual departure.

"I never try to blame anybody for [the current situation] because at the end of the day, I made the decision to go there in the first place," said James, who left the Indianapolis Colts after seven productive seasons -- including four Pro Bowl selections -- to join the Cardinals.

"The only thing I don't agree with is holding on to me. That's not fair to me. But I also know that while I may have missed some opportunities, I've always found a way to wind up on top."

That is the key message James, who turns 31 in August, wants to deliver to the NFL. His career isn't dead yet, and he's not about to start fretting about the possibility that he'll be the next 30-something running back to find himself unwanted by other teams (think Shaun Alexander). As far as James is concerned, he still has plenty of time to prove that his career-low 514 yards in 2008 had more to do with poor coaching than a mercurial decline in his skills. In other words, he has more motivation now than at any other point in his 10-year career.

That is one reason James was training at such a brisk clip during his 90-minute workout inside his alma mater's weight room Tuesday. Even though he'd been out partying until 5 a.m., he went through his squats, curls and bench press exercises with the same vigor that could be found in the current Hurricanes players who watched him from afar. James was just as eager to check in with Miami team doctor John Uribe, the man who repaired James' torn ACL during the 2001 season. James figures it is better to keep a closer eye on how his body is functioning now that he has reached the age of 30.

The bottom line is James knows he's facing the most critical offseason of his career. Sure, that knee injury was hard for him, but that's a different type of issue. James knew he could work his way back to a Pro Bowl level if he simply trained as hard as he always had. When Cardinals head coach Ken Whisenhunt benched him, it was the first time James had been told he just wasn't good enough to be on the field.

Although James rebounded to help play a key role in the Cardinals' postseason run -- he ran for 236 yards on 61 carries during the playoffs -- some of the feelings from that humiliation still haven't subsided. He still remembers all the supportive messages he received at that time and all the ways he tried to cope. In fact, he laughed at the memory of sitting in a Miami nightclub during Arizona's bye week. He ran into Baltimore Ravens running back Willis McGahee, another former Hurricane who also had slipped to second-team status with his squad. The two men joked about whether they eventually would be relegated to scout-team duties, and that humor helped lift James' spirits.

That's one thing you can say about James: His confidence has not waned. He didn't become the league's active career rushing leader by accident (he has 12,121 yards, which ranks him 11th in league history). He is held in high enough esteem that the Hurricanes' team meeting room in the football office now is dedicated to him (also thanks to a large donation). James is convinced other teams could use him better.

"People know what I'm about," he said. "[The situation in Arizona] was like somebody buying a computer just so they could play solitaire on it. Why not use me to the best of my abilities? I've had seasons where I've caught 60-plus passes, but I only caught 12 last year. It's not like I forgot how to catch."

James added that he's excited about the prospect of playing four or five more seasons, mainly because the game has changed noticeably since his rookie season in 1999. He likes the trend of teams splitting carries among running backs, and he's certain the league isn't nearly as brutal as it used to be. Gone are the days when he faced punishing hitters like Bryan Cox and Marvin Jones on a regular basis. Now James sees a league filled with defensive ends preoccupied with sacks, defensive backs focused on interceptions and a game so devoid of lethal blows that he refers to it as "finesse football."

But James also has another incentive to keep playing: unfinished business. As proof, he keeps a list on his BlackBerry of the runners who rank ahead of him on the league's all-time rushing list. When he pulled out the phone Tuesday, he noted that he needs 123 yards to surpass Marcus Allen and that 619 more yards this past season would have moved him into the top five. "I should've been number seven by now instead of number 11," said James, who rushed for 2,381 yards during his first two seasons in Arizona. "But I'm not worried. I'll get there."

That was James' way of saying people shouldn't be surprised if he finds a way to help another team win. Right now, he's so certain his Arizona career is over that he says the only way he'll be with that team next season "is by force." But James also isn't ready to say where he'd like to end up next. All he knows is that the worst season of his career is behind him and that there's no reason to think good times don't lie ahead.

(espn.com)

Edgerrin James spoke with Cardinals GM Rod Graves and pleaded to be cut. James knows that he will eventually be cut and he is missing out on other teams right now.




(nfl.com)

Arizona Cardinals General Manager Rod Graves spoke with running back Edgerrin James by phone this week, and though Graves wouldn't reveal details of the conversation, the parties likely agreed to disagree.

James wants to be released, and the Cardinals aren't going to do that until they have a suitable replacement.

"We have not made a definitive decision on Edgerrin James," Graves said. "We did have a conversation during the season where that was an acknowledgement how he felt about him being with us after the season. We said we would sit down and talk about it after the season was over.

"But there was no commitment with respect to a timeframe or even that we would let him go."

(azcentral.com)

Less than three weeks after completing an unlikely postseason run with a solid effort on Super Sunday, Edgerrin James feels like he’s running in place. The veteran halfback wants the Arizona Cardinals to release him – sooner, rather than later – insisting that he and his employers came to a de facto agreement that he would not return to the team for the 2009 season after he was benched midway through ’08.

James, who has one year and $5 million remaining on the four-year, $30-million contract that brought him to the desert in February of ’06, believes he does not fit the Cardinals’ offensive system and wants to go to a team that will better utilize his abilities.

“We had a clear, mutual understanding of where we both were at – that this was going to be my last year – so it shouldn’t be that big a deal,” James said in a recent telephone interview. “My mind is already set. It didn’t work, and it’s time for me to push on.

“I’ve been a professional during this entire situation, and it’s only right that they do the same. Instead of dragging things out with a player that’s not going to be around next year, why not let him go?”

James’ agent, Drew Rosenhaus, is scheduled to meet with Cardinals officials at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis this week to discuss the situation – as well as the desire of another Rosenhaus clients, Pro Bowl wideout Anquan Boldin, to be traded. Rod Graves, Arizona’s general manager, did not respond to requests seeking comment on James’ status. A source familiar with the Cardinals’ thinking says James is considered the team’s top halfback and is unlikely to be released unless and until a suitable replacement is obtained, most likely via the draft in late April.

In the wake of their first Super Bowl appearance, which ended in a last-minute, 27-23 defeat to the Steelers, the Cardinals are dealing with a multitude of offseason issues, including the future of quarterback Kurt Warner – who could retire or test unrestricted free agency starting Feb. 27 if not re-signed – and other key players whose contracts are expiring, including defensive ends Bertrand Berry and Antonio Smith. (The team applied the franchise tag to inside linebacker Karlos Dansby earlier this week. Warner’s agent, Mark Bartelstein, has been negotiating with the Cardinals and will continue discussions in Indy this week. The two sides are likely to agree on a two-year deal that would pay Warner well over $20 million.)

There has also been upheaval in the coaching ranks. Offensive coordinator Todd Haley was hired as the Chiefs’ head coach, and defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast was fired. Though neither opening has been formally filled, a team source says Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt will assume Haley’s duties and split the nominal coordinator title between two current assistants – offensive line coach Russ Grimm is expected to be named “running game coordinator,” and receivers coach Mike Miller will be named “passing game coordinator.” The source said linebackers coach Billy Davis will be promoted to replace Pendergast, who joined Haley’s staff in Kansas City on Tuesday in an unannounced capacity.

James considers his departure to be a given. The halfback hasn’t been back to Arizona since before the Super Bowl, and in his mind, he has already relocated. His belongings were packed and shipped back to his offseason home in Miami in November, after he was benched by Whisenhunt.

“They already lost their running back,” James said of the Cardinals. “They lost me in Week 8, 9 and 10, when they stopped playing me. I’ve been lost. Clearly, I wasn’t what they wanted. That was when I packed up my bags and shipped my stuff home.”

The resurrection he enjoyed during the postseason did nothing to change his mind. After the Super Bowl, which was played in Tampa, Fla., James stayed in his home state rather than flying back to Arizona with the team. “For what?” he asked. “Exit meetings last 10 minutes, and I’ve been through nine of those. What was the point?”

James, 30, is the NFL’s active rushing leader with 12,121 yards, the 11th-highest total in league history. A two-time NFL rushing champion during his stellar, seven-year stint with the Colts, James believes he can return to All-Pro form if utilized the way he was in Indy. He favors “stretch” running plays, on which he can use his patience and vision, and believes he can be effective catching balls out of the backfield and setting up play-action passes.

After grinding out consecutive 1,000-yard seasons in his first two years in Arizona, James was benched in early November, as Whisenhunt inserted rookie Tim Hightower into the lineup. Over the next eight games James carried the ball just 11 times, and he asked Graves for his release. The team declined, but James believes that an understanding was reached regarding his future.

Then again, James’ perceived value to the organization has changed since then because Whisenhunt went back to the veteran before the regular season finale. James ran for 100 yards in that game against the Seahawks and remained productive throughout Arizona’s four-game playoff run, gaining 236 yards on 61 carries and injecting some much-needed balance into the offense.

Still, James is convinced that he is a “bad fit” for Whisenhunt’s offense.

“I never came to play in a passing system,” James said. “I’m no scatback, and I’m not going to try to be one. I don’t train to be a scatback – I train to be an RBI hitter. I’ve worked too hard to build this style of play I’ve got, and it works. People say I can’t break off the big run anymore, but the funny thing is, when I won the rushing title (in 2000, with 1,709 rushing yards) my longest run was 30 yards. This year, it was 37. So have I gotten better?”

As to where he might want to sign if granted his freedom, James has long professed a desire to play in or near the Sunshine State. Of the three teams based in Florida, the Buccaneers would seem to be the team most likely in need of a veteran back.

However, James said finding an organization committed to winning, and one which features an offense in which he could excel, would be the biggest considerations in his decision.

“[Playing close to home] has always been something, from Day 1, that I’ve wanted,” James said. “Any time you get a chance to play for your family and friends, it’s a big deal. But playing for a winner, and being in the right situation, overrides that.

“I might pay attention to some of the stuff I didn’t pay attention to last time [in free agency]. I want to play for a winner, somebody that’s used to winning – a winning organization that could actually use a back. Because let’s be realistic: Put me back in a situation where I can do the things I did when I was at my best, and I’ll kill it.”

Given that James also says he’s not averse to splitting carries, the obvious question is this: Would he consider a return to the Colts, where he could share the workload with Joseph Addai, the runner who replaced him? James was never thrilled with spending half the year in the heartland, but he remains on excellent terms with his ex-teammates and even received a Super Bowl ring from Indy owner Jimmy Irsay after the team won a championship the season after the halfback departed.

For one thing, he’d have no trouble fitting back into longtime coordinator Tom Moore’s offensive scheme.

“That’d be the easiest offense to play for,” James said. “Indy’s always a team that makes sense. It’d be like one of those R&B groups when one member leaves and then comes back after a few years, and it’s like he never left.”

Asked how he would react if the Cardinals were to insist on keeping him in ’09, James said, “My mind is pretty much 100 percent that I’m not going to be there, but if I have to be there, I’ll deal with it when the time comes. I like Rod Graves. I like a lot of the people around the organization. The city of Phoenix has been good to me. But that’s not where we are, and it’s only right that they let me move on.

“I’ve always tried to be a pro and do everything the right way, and so technically I’m under contract and I want to continue playing football, and they have my rights. But clearly, I’m not what they want. I’ve been a pro, so why not let me go?”

(yahoosports.com)

Edgerrin James, expected to be released by the Cardinals, reportedly wants to finish his career in Florida.

The Tampa Tribune reports a "piping hot" rumor about Edge joining the Bucs, but it turns out to be simply an ESPN analyst suggesting Tampa as a sensible landing spot. The Bucs should be rebuilding on offense instead of throwing money at aging mediocrities.

(rotoworld.com)

Edgerrin James reiterated Monday to the Cardinals that he wants to be released, according to Profootballtalk.com.

James, who rushed for 236 yards in four playoff games, is overvaluing himself. He wants to be a feature back again and won't get that opportunity as a free agent. Edge's best course of action would've been to take a pay cut with incentives giving him a chance to earn the money back in Arizona. Instead, he'll likely find himself as the lesser half of a committee elsewhere.

(rotoworld.com)

Update:
James is virtually certain to be released by the Cardinals this offseason, the team's official site reports.

Recommendation:
This has been in the works for months. The fact that James reclaimed his starting job in Week 17 and fared reasonably well in the playoffs isn't expected to change that. James believes that he can still be an effective starter and his performances from Week 17 through Super Bowl XLIII (a 4.5 YPC average on 75 carries) provide some hope. However, he stumbled to a 3.5 YPC average as a starter in Weeks 1-8 and he lost his starting gig in Week 9. James has declined sharply over the last three years and he will turn 31 during training camp. He may not find much interest on the open market.

(rotowire.com)

In an interview on Dan Patrick’s radio show, Dan Bickley of the Arizona Republic and XTRA Sports 910 said in no uncertain terms that Cardinals running back Edgerrin James is already gone.

Bickley said that James didn’t return to Arizona with the team, and that he fully expects James not to be back in 2009.

James is entering the final year of his contract, at a base salary of $5 million.

By cutting him, the Cardinals would create $5 million in 2009 cap space — which would push their bulge under the spending limit to at least $47 million.

James currently is 11th on the all-time rushing list, with 12,121 yards.  He trails Marcus Allen by 122 yards, and Jim Brown by only 191 yards.

Tim Hightower presumably will be the starting running back in 2009; backup J.J. Arrington is due to become an unrestricted free agent.

(profootballtalk.com)

TAMPA — As the Pittsburgh Steelers continued to rejoice following their victory in the 43rd Super Bowl, Edgerrin James grabbed a personal sized pepperoni pizza on his way out of the Arizona Cardinals locker room and headed for the team bus, parked outside Raymond James Stadium.

On his way to the bus, James expressed his mixed emotions about finally, in his 10th NFL season, playing for the league’s championship — and coming up short, 27-23.

“We didn’t have many opportunities,” James, a 1996 Immokalee High School graduate, said of running the ball. “We were playing from behind, so you don’t get many opportunities.”

James, 30, led the Cardinals with nine carries for 33 yards. He also caught four passes for 28 yards.

“Every player who plays wants to be a part of it,” said James, who walked as he talked, in a hurry to get on the bus and move on to meet with members of his family.

More than 200 friends and family members of James traveled from Immokalee and Orlando and elsewhere to be a part of the atmosphere. Only about 55 of them had tickets to the game. The rest watched the game from the parking lot of nearby Jesuit High School.

“It’s good to have support,” James said. “It’s good to have nice, community support and to have the whole family come out.”

One longtime friend, Pierre Rutledge, cut short his vacation in the Virgin Islands by a day.

“Two months ago, who would have thought?” Rutledge said of the Cardinals reaching the Super Bowl. “I cut the trip short so I could be a part of history. Saturday afternoon, I flew from St. Thomas to Fort Lauderdale, drove to Orlando and got there right about 10:30 p.m.

“This is big. He deserves it, and we want to witness it.”

James has one year remaining on his four-year, $30 million contract with the Cardinals. He said he wanted to think things over during the offseason about his future. He wants to play next season, but it may not be with the Cardinals, who might release James.

In the meantime, James planned on having his normal offseason — which means spending more time with his extended family.

“I’m home already,” James said. “I’m always home.

“It’s one of those things where I’m used to being home. I’m used to being around everybody.”

With that, James boarded the bus, leaving his Super Bowl experience behind him.

(news-press.com)

Too-on-One spent a few minutes with Cardinals defensive tackle Gabe Watson to get the dirt on his teammates:

Q: Who’s the best dresser on the team?
A: Antrel Rolle. He’s a clean-cut guy. Everything is neat about him.

Q: Who has the best car?
A: Edgerrin James, with that Lamborghini. That’s my favorite car. He actually called me and asked how to put it in gear. I told him everything about it.

Q: Who is the coaches’ pet?
A: Calais Campbell. Sometimes in meetings the coaches will say something that might not be right, and he’ll agree with it. Then one of us will say something that all the players agree with, and he’ll agree with the coach. I’m like, 'C’mon man, whose side are you on?’

(eastvalleytribune.com)

Sometimes the rich just get richer, huh?

Not that Pittsburgh didn't have a great team this year with a defense that even Naples High (joking) couldn't beat -- but the sentimental part of you wanted Arizona, didn't you?

And what an ending. As a sportswriter thinking of deadline, it about makes you throw up that cold gameday hot dog you made the mistake of eating ...

Anyway on from that lovely thought ...

It has been a whirlwind here in Tampa. So much to say and so little time to say it here in the big white media tent outside Raymond James Stadium -- no it doesn't feel like a wedding reception this time. So I'll try to focus on the hometown boy, Edgerrin James.

Clearly a disappointment not only on the team level but also on the personal contribution level for James. He finished his first Super Bowl with just 33 rushing yards on nine carries. Yes, nine.

He wouldn't talk about it tonight, understandably, but James is going to find a more run-friendly option next year. He has been around this league a long time and done a lot of things, but he's clearly still hungry and feels he has more left to do in this league.

"I don't know ... we'll sit down and figure it all out. You need to give yourself a few days to digest this," he said after the game.

But he's not giving up on a return trip to the Super Bowl.

"Oh yeah, I'll be playing football," James said.

Was touching after the game to see James and Kurt Warner sit next to each other in the locker room, heads bent in discussion, immediately after the game. Both have done a lot in the NFL. Given their backgrounds -- some could consider James and Warner pretty opposite -- but I think that would be misleading. Maybe James isn't quite as media-friendly as Warner, and maybe it took him some time in the league to mature from the reputation he carried with him from the University of Miami, but I keep thinking about what James did for his family and for the city of Immokalee with this Super Bowl.

"A ton of people came up here, but as far as actual tickets I got about 50," he said during the post-game interviews. "I'm happy we got a lot of people in the game ... I'm glad they were able to enjoy it."

James didn't do what he wanted to do on the field tonight. Maybe he even disappointed himself or some people watching him.
But 50 tickets. Regardless of anything else, that's an accomplishment and it says something about the man who went to the work to get them.

(marconews.com)

The Arizona Cardinals trailed the Pittsburgh Steelers 10-0 in the second quarter of Super Bowl XLIII before their high-powered offense finally found a spark.

That spark came from Immokalee native Edgerrin James, and he helped provide momentum that allowed the Cardinals to stay close enough to the Steelers to provide a close finish among the greatest in Super Bowl history.

In the second quarter, the Cardinals produced their first scoring drive of the game. On the drive, James rushed once and caught three passes helping set up Kurt Warner’s touchdown pass to Ben Patrick. The TD cut the Pittsburgh lead to 10-7, and may have prevented the Steelers from running away with the game.

Earlier in the first quarter, James recovered a Kurt Warner that could have given the Steelers the ball deep in Arizona territory.

In the third quarter, James carried the ball five times - three plays in a row at one point - and caught another pass.

However the Cardinals didn’t call James’ number once in the fourth quarter, with rookie Tim Hightower getting the nod in James’ place. Hightower played the majority of plays when Arizona used a running back in the final quarter, targeted for two passes and catching one. Hightower had no rushes in the fourth quarter.

James started the game as the Cardinals running back. James finished Super Bowl XLIII with 9 rushes for 33 yards and 4 receptions for 28 yards.
By playing in the game, James became the first Collier County graduate ever to play in a Super Bowl. While James failed to earn a Super Bowl Championship of his own, he already possesses a Super Bowl ring. Despite leaving the Indianapolis Colts prior to their Super Bowl winning season in 2006, the Colts still sent James a championship ring as a gesture of thanks for his years of service to Indianapolis before he departed for Arizona.

(nbc-2.com)

TAMPA — This state has its share of big-time football programs, with the University of Florida and Florida State leading the way in more recent years.

But when it comes to the NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals, one school leads the way: the "U."

That's the University of Miami, the home of five national championships since 1983, two Heisman trophy winners and Cardinals players Edgerrin James, Antrel Rolle and Calais Campbell. (Although Florida State graduates Anquan Boldin and Darnell Dockett may disagree).

"I got text (messages) from Edge and Antrel right after I was drafted by the Cardinals," Campbell said. "It's a big brother-type thing."

As the Cardinals prepare for Sunday's Super Bowl at 6 p.m. at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium, these three players will be focused on the red and white -- but they still bleed orange and green.

"I'm always helping recruit (to Miami)," said James, an Immokalee native. "We're the ones that set the trend for everyone else (in Florida)."

James' commitment to Miami might be the most visible of the three Cardinals players -- the 30-year-old star running back made a $250, 000 donation to his alma mater in 2000, the largest amount of money ever donated to Miami by a former Hurricanes athlete, and the team meeting room is named after him. He was selected to the school's Ring of Honor in September.

But Rolle and Campbell also add to the South Florida feel on this Southwestern NFL team.

"It was like no other, man," Rolle said, reminiscing about his Miami team's national championship in 2001. "I've never been part of an organization where I didn't work for myself, I worked for the guy next to me. It was a team of brothers."

Of the three Cardinals from UM, Rolle best represents the program's glory years -- he was at Miami from 2001-04, when the Hurricanes advanced to the national championship twice and played in the Orange Bowl and the Peach Bowl his other two seasons.

A Miami-area native himself, Rolle attended South Dade High School, where he was an all-American, before choosing the hometown Hurricanes. The then-cornerback was an All-American in college, too, and a first-team all-Atlantic Coast Conference player as a senior. The Cardinals then chose Rolle eighth overall in the 2005 NFL Draft, and he has been a regular in Arizona's defensive backfield since, picking up five interceptions in 2007 and 77 tackles in 2008.

As for James, his future at Miami looked bright after the Hurricanes won the 1994 National Championship in James' junior year of high school. But Miami received NCAA sanctions in 1995 before James arrived, and his sophomore year the Hurricanes were 5-6, including an embarrassing 47-0 loss to Florida State. Still, James rushed for 1,098 yards on just 184 attempts.

James left Miami after his junior year as the only player in school history to post back-to-back seasons of 1,000 yards rushing or better. The program had started to rebound, with a 9-3 record in 1998 including a 49-45 win against then-No. 2 UCLA.

Despite Miami's recent problems, James' support for the Hurricanes hasn't wavered, even given his sanction-ridden experience there.

"You have to understand why the program is that way," said James, addressing the Hurricanes' 5-7 season in 2007 and 7-6 campaign in 2008. "We've had guys that are consistently good enough to leave. ... No other school could come back right away after losing that many players."

Campbell was part of that exodus from Miami. The rookie defensive end left the Hurricanes after his junior season and was picked up by the Cardinals in the second round of the 2008 NFL Draft.

"He's the baby of the group," Rolle joked. "But you've got to look out for him."

Campbell, 6-foot-8 and 282 pounds, was a first-team All-American for the Hurricanes after a streak of seven straight games with a sack as a sophomore. He was highly recruited by several big-time football schools after earning a Colorado high school record of 58 sacks in his four seasons.

"I had an opportunity to go a lot of places," Campbell said. "But I still had a good time at UM. To me, it still taught me what I needed to know ... They just need to get back that, well, swagger is what we called it when I was there."

(naplesnews.com)

The high school coach thinks of Edgerrin James when he looks at the football field.

"He wrote a check to upgrade our facilities, our field, a big number like $100,000," Israel Gallegos said.

The restaurant manager thinks of James when it gets crowded.

"He didn't go to New York for the big NFL Draft party — he stayed here and threw a party for everyone," Linda Lozano says at the Mexican restaurant, Lozano's. "It was packed. People waited outside."

The cousin thinks of James when she goes home, considering the house was a gift from James. And when she goes to their grandmother's home at Second Street, considering the renovations made by James.

"That used to be a nightclub," Tammy Means says, pointing at a redone stucco home. She points to the similar home beside it. "That used to be a crack house."

James bought both, re-did both and called them the "Fun House." It's a summer place where kids can lift weights, watch TV, play on computers or play basketball on the outdoor court. James bought them and re-built them years ago.

He holds a summer celebrity basketball game that brings a couple dozen NFL players to town. It was played at Immokalee High the first couple of times, but James didn't like people having to pay to watch, Means said. He moved it to the Fun House.

"It's free," Means said.

The sports world is full of people who left their hometown and never came back. Never gave back. Never even looked back, because it was too twisted and painful and rife with riff-raff. James' past is no different.

His father kept his distance. The family ate off food stamps.

Three brothers and an uncle are in prison, the result of drugs, violence or some volatile combination of the two. Immokalee isn't the land of opportunity, what with the agricultural-based economy and 46 percent poverty rate for children under 18.

Role models? James had his mother and grandmother. He also had the guys with a wad of money from selling drugs who paid him $100 for every touchdown he scored in high school.

"I scored five touchdowns a few games," he said.

Now, two hours south of the Super Bowl he'll play in Sunday, James still makes his mark. Just last week, he was in town. On Second Street, where a teenage James bought crack cocaine for addicts and watched them get high for entertainment, he paid a couple junkies $20 to spot weights for him in the Fun House. Just to get them off the street.

The stories pile up like that. He filled up a semi-truck of food and water when Hurricane Wilma buckled Immokalee in 2005, then helped pass out relief to anyone who needed it. He bought rings for the Immokalee High State football champions in 2004, then showed up to present them to the team.

A weekend for 60 kids to Disney World? School clothes for kids who need it? Uniforms for Pop Warner teams?

"Lots of things people don't need to know about, too," Means says.

She sits in her teen-counseling office and tells how she was woken up one night several years ago by a phone call from James. He had bought a home for her. She could move in immediately.

"You know how many homes he has bought for people?" she asks.

She counts seven families from his family tree he's bought homes. But here's the kicker to this: The homes are in Orlando. He didn't want to just give them a house. He wanted to give them a chance, where there better jobs and upgraded dreams.

That was finalized when his younger brother, Cherron, returned to prison in 2006. Cherron had moved to Indianapolis to live with Edgerrin, who was then a Colt. Things were going well. He then returned to Immokalee for two weeks and assaulted a police officer.

"That broke my heart, him going to prison again," James said in Tampa.

James is 30 now. He's 10 years in the league from the University of Miami. He has had the strangest of years, benched, forgotten and then rising like the city where he plays by rushing for two 73-yard games in the playoffs. Some think he's the key to the Super Bowl. James thinks of the road up I-75.

"I'd like to bring all of Immokalee up for this one," he said.

At the sheriff's office, Tim Howell, says James already has. Look who he's helped. What he's done. Even the crime rates decreased in the area since the Fun House opened. Then again, the gifts don't surprise the deputy.

He was James' high school coach, after all. When James made the Pro Bowl as a rookie, he told Howell to pack some luggage. Howell was going to Hawaii with him. All expenses paid, of course.

Dave Hyde can be reached at dhyde@SunSentinel.com

TAMPA, Fla. -- This is my dream scenario for Edgerrin James:

In Super Bowl XLIII, he rushes for 150 yards and two touchdowns. He's named the game's MVP. The confetti falls, the smiles beam. The team gathers on the podium at midfield. James is passed the Lombardi Trophy, gives it a kiss, and then is asked to say a few words.

James takes hold of the microphone, clears his throat, looks into the camera and then tells the American people:

"And to those of you who doubted me, including the coaches on the Arizona Cardinals staff, please take a moment, pucker up real big, and kiss my round, ample behind."

If there is a god in this universe, that will happen.

Few great players in recent years have been so disrespected as James, who underwent the kind of postseason resurgence that has earned him the right to say, "I told you so."

It's James' heart, almost as much as Larry Fitzgerald's gams and Kurt Warner's game, that's allowed the improbable and impossible Cardinals to flourish.

And the coaches on the Cardinals, who basically benched and humiliated James, should please stop talking about how much they now like him. The tulips and love taps emerging from that staff come off as shallow and bankrupt.

The Cardinals treated James like garbage and James in return put a clown suit on the staff. The only thing missing is a red nose and floppy feet.

"He is a veteran that has been to the playoffs a number of years that understands what it takes to be successful at this time of the year," Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt said. "We have said all along that were going to need Edge, especially in the playoffs, and that has come true because he has been a big part of the reason why we have had success."

Oh really? You knew all along you'd need James?

No one believes that except gullible Cardinals fans jumping on the bandwagon.

Of all the stories in this Super Bowl, Revenge of the Edge might be the best.

He leads the league in postseason rushing yards and even more fascinating about James -- and reassuring -- is that he never threw a public tantrum about his exile. You know James was hurt and angry over his treatment yet there was no sideline blowup or scream-fest after he was benched and treated like a melted candy bar stuck in a pair of jeans that just went through the wash.

"Nobody else can complain about their time or role on the team if the superstar on our team has acted gracefully in that situation," Cardinals receiver Sean Morey said. "He really, truly earned a lot of respect from the team. We understood that it is more about the team than any one individual. He encapsulated that lesson."

James says all the right things. He talks about how he wanted to play but never publicly crosses the line into outright petulance.

It cannot be understated how much respect James earned in that locker room by mostly keeping his cool. It was something noticed particularly by the man taking many of his snaps, Tim Hightower.

"Our relationship got even better, and that's the funny part of it," Hightower said. "The more I played, the more he was talking to me. And every single time I'd come off of the sideline, he'd point out things that he saw. He showed me how to watch film. He was calling me every day to make sure I put the right things in my body, that I was taking care of my body. It just blows my mind away to think that someone could be so selfless, even in spite of it.

"He should have had no vested interest in helping this rookie out, and yet he was the bigger man and he did. I'm forever grateful and thankful for him to do that. He didn't have to do that. Our relationship got better, and it's getting better right now."

Then Hightower added something fairly striking.

"People don't understand the half of what he went through, and they don't understand the half of what he meant to me," Hightower said. "You really can't understand it unless you experience it. For me, he served as a friend, a mentor, a brother, a father, all in one -- a teammate, a coach, all in one. It's not very often that you get to experience that much in one person at one time. I don't know how he knows what he knows, but he knows something about everything. He's not shy to share those things with me, trying to make me the best I can be."

That about says it all.

Make my dream come true, Mr. James.

Then ride off into the free-agent sunset. You deserve it.

(cbssports.com)

Edgerrin James figured he needed some wheels for Super Bowl week to cruise around Tampa. Most people would go out and rent a car.

Not Edge.

The Arizona Cardinals running back special-ordered a brand new Lamborghini, silver exterior with crushed red velvet interior, the color of his Cardinals.

"My first time seeing it was the day it got here, so I had to kinda learn how to drive it and everything on the fly," James said. "I bought it out of Miami and had it shipped up here. The day we had off last week, Thursday, we went by the Lamborghini store and scoped it out."

But in preparation for the Super Bowl, you wouldn't think the Edge had much time to be tooling around, taking in the sights.

"I drive it after practice and whenever we get some free time," he said.

So, Edge, why the Lamborghini?

"Because it's a special car. It's something no one has," James said. "It's fast and it's one of those cars that you don't drive all the time. I don't like to really drive that much so it's fitting; it's perfect for someone like me.

"You don't have to drive it all the time, you know ... it's one of those things where less is more."

And why this week?

"Why not?" James said. "Because it's the Super Bowl and this is a fun week. Why not have it?"

(orlandosentinel.com)

TAMPA - Stars have been benched before. It’s not unusual to see some future Hall of Famers who are getting on a bit in years removed from the starting lineup in favor of a younger player.

That doesn’t mean they have to like it or accept it.

With Edgerrin James, it’s no secret. He was not a happy camper in November when Arizona Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt sat him down after he gained just 17 yards and committed a costly fumble in a loss to the Carolina Panthers.

Why would he be? He had just lost his job to a rank rookie (Tim High-tower).

James may be 30, on the wrong side of a running back’s shelf life, but he was coming off a 2007 campaign that saw him run for 1,222 yards - his seventh career 1,000-yard season.

He wanted to play. All great running backs want to play. So he asked to be traded or released.

When that didn’t happen, James had few choices. He could sulk and make everyone around him miserable, or he could continue to work, help his teammates any way he could, and hope for another chance.

James chose the latter. He even boosted Hightower, providing encouragement, support and advice.

The payoff?

He won his starting job back at the end of the regular season, and has been a key contributor in the Cardinals’ improbable march to Super Bowl XLIII. Perhaps even better, he’s regained the respect of his coaches and teammates in the process.

“I’ve really loved the fact he’s emerged late in the season as our go-to guy,” said teammate Sean Morey, the Pro Bowl special teamer, former Patriot and Marshfield native. “He’s been in that (starting) role most of his career, and I think it says a lot about a man’s character and resilience when faced with adversity.

“He wasn’t playing as much as he’d like, but he remained a professional. . . . He really, truly earned a lot of respect from our team.”

James returned as the starter in the regular-season finale against the Seattle Seahawks. He responded with a 100-yard game. And as the Cardinals’ approach has shifted to a more balanced attack to complement Kurt Warner and the extraordinary passing game, James has piled up a playoff-leading 203 yards.

“You want to play,” James said yesterday. “The thing about it, if there was one point where I would have accepted the role and sounded like I was happy, that meant I believed what was going on, and not once did I believe that I should have been on the bench. I never hid the fact that I didn’t want to be on the bench. It’s frustrating, but at the same time, it’s life. In life, you’re not going to get everything you want.”

Case in point his experience with Indianapolis. After seven seasons with the Colts, James left as the team’s all-time leading rusher. The year he departed as a free agent (2006), the Colts won the Super Bowl. While the Irsay family generously gave him a ring for his past service, he finally has a chance to earn one on the field.

“Three years ago when I first (came to Arizona), we talked about what it would take to get over the top. Now, it’s happened,” he said. “It kind of happened under the radar. Everything kind of came together.”

Including his re-emergence as the starter.

James won’t discuss his future with the Cardinals. He’s living in the moment.

“For 10 years I’ve been playing, and to finally get here, that’s big,” he said. “You’ve tried to put yourself in a position to be in games like this, and it didn’t happen. It’s not that I didn’t do something, or that I didn’t work hard enough, or that I didn’t put up enough numbers, it’s just that everything has to work out.”

(bostonherald.com)

How will the Cardinals cope with the Steelers’ tough run defense on Sunday?

You may hear some suggest that the Cardinals will all but abandon the run and go to a pass-heavy attack, but unless Arizona falls behind by a considerable margin early — think at least two TDs — I think the Cardinals are going to stick with the run. This strategy has worked well for them to this point. They are averaging 111 yards on the ground in the postseason, which reflects the success they have had as well as a general intent to have a more balanced offense.

There’s another reason for the Cardinals to keep running until they absolutely have to stop: RB Edgerrin James has performed well vs. the Steelers in past outings. In fact, James’ 124 yards on 29 carries vs. the Steelers on Nov. 28, 2005 as a member of the Colts is the second-most yards any opponent has rushed for vs. Pittsburgh in the Steelers’ last 91 games (including playoffs). (I omitted Fred Taylor rushing for 147 yards on 25 carries vs. the Steelers last season from my first calculation; my apologies for the mistake.) What’s more, only three backs — James, Jamal Lewis and Taylor — have twice rushed for 75 yards or more vs. Pittsburgh in the last four years. (James also rushed for 56 yards and a TD on 13 carries vs. the Steelers in the divisional-playoff round in the ’05 playoffs. Note that James rushed for 10-47-0 in the first half before the Colts, who were in catch-up mode in the second half, had to go away from the run.)

James racked up 77 yards and a TD on 21 carries in Arizona’s 21-14 win vs. Pittsburgh on Sept. 30, 2007. The yardage total isn’t as important as the number of carries. The Cards stuck with the run on that day, and don’t be surprised if they stick with that strategy in Super Bowl XLIII.

(nflblogs.profootballweekly.com)

TAMPA -- When the Cardinals decided to move rookie running back Tim Hightower into the starting lineup in November, offensive coordinator Todd Haley knew how incumbent Edgerrin James would feel.

"Edge is a very, very prideful guy," Haley said of the 10-year veteran who ranks 11th on the league's all-time rushing list. "Of all the players that I've been around, I don't know that there are many that you would look at and say, 'Well, there's somebody who is more prideful than this kid.'

"Edge takes great pride in his craft. He takes great pride in the men who have come before him at that position. He's a historian and I've always loved players who know what has gone on before them. To come in and have it go the way it went early for him was devastating for him. It was an uncomfortable situation for everyone. But the way he handled it was 100 percent class."

You can point to numerous reasons the Cardinals are playing in the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history, among them the re-emergence of the defense, the pass-catching skills of Larry Fitzgerald and the cool under fire Kurt Warner. But high on the list you'll also find the positive way James handled the benching and the decision of the coaching staff to reinsert him into the starting lineup for the season finale and beyond.

James was demoted initially because the coaching staff thought Hightower's speed and big-play ability would be a better complement to a passing game that featured three receivers who surpassed 1,000 yards this season. While sound on the surface, the coaches failed to factor in Hightower's penchant for taking negative yards.

In 2007 the Cardinals had a league-low 34 negative rushes, including 19 on 324 rushes by James. This season they had 48, with Hightower accounting for 19 on 143 carries.

The negative plays resulted in a lot of third-and-11s and third-and-12s, situations that are a prescription for a quick exit from the playoffs. So coach Ken Whisenhunt returned to James, who has averaged 76 yards rushing the past four games. His effectiveness has forced defenses to honor the run and created more opportunities for the passing game.

"When you can run the football, you can run play-action passes and that really opens things up for you offensively," said Fitzgerald, whose 419 yards receiving are a league record for a single postseason. "Opponents don't know what's coming. If you look back to early in the season, we weren't able to do that. We were spread [formation] a lot of the time. We were in the shotgun, trying to beat people like that. But now we've become a lot more balanced."

Balanced best describes James' approach to the situation. The demotion cut him deeply. He entered the season with expectations that he would have his best season since joining the Cardinals in 2006 after signing a $30 million, four-year deal. He was thinking playoffs and a climb up the all-time rushing list, past Hall of Famers such as Tony Dorsett and Jim Brown. But after failing to average more than 3.2 yards a rush in five-of-six games, he was replaced as the starter.

Even so, James never let his personal unhappiness turn into team drama. Privately he asked for a trade, but the team declined. Rather than make a nuisance of himself, he continued to work hard in practice. In fact, Hightower says he and James actually became closer after the initial lineup change.

James not only provided tips and observations as Hightower came off the field during games, but also was the first to call the rookie afterward to make sure Hightower was taking care of his body, replenishing it with fluids and stretching out the kinks with trips to a massage therapist. He also showed Hightower how to practice, how to break down film and how to deal with the media (even when he didn't realize Hightower was watching).

"It just blows my mind to think that someone could be so selfless," Hightower said. "He should have had no vested interest in helping this rookie out, and yet he was the bigger man and he did. I'm forever grateful and thankful for him to do that. He didn't have to do that. Our relationship got better, and it's getting better right now."

The two now represent a formidable tandem. Hightower has come off the bench to score a touchdown in each of the Cardinals' three playoff games, including the game-winner on an eight-yard reception against the Eagles in the NFC Championship Game; and James has rushed for 73 yards in two of the games and consistently provided positive yards on first down.

"It was not easy for him to sit, especially for somebody who has the pride that he has," Haley said. "I have to believe it was difficult for him to keep his mouth from saying what he probably felt -- and he had a right to feel everything that he felt. ... He has a great belief in himself as a runner, and he never lost that when a lot of guys would have lost confidence. He kept believing what his abilities were and what he was capable of doing. When he got the chance, when it came back around, which it usually does in this league, he took advantage of it. I'm just happy for him in general as a person."

James is equally happy for the team, but apparently not enough to change his desire to leave the Cardinals after this season. Whisenhunt points out that no one in the organization has ever said that James will be jettisoned, still James talks like it is a fait accompli. Perhaps it's because he wants as much.

"To go through that again, that's tougher than people think," he said of getting only 11 carries over the eight games he was demoted. "After you've played for so long, it's not easy to sit on that sideline. I just want to finish off strong and go from there, because what happens if I go through training camp and something comes up again?

"I don't have anything to prove. I know what I can do. I'm going to play as long as I'm able to play and make sure I'm able to get into that Hall [of Fame]. When you start doing something, you might as well finish. I'm right there, so why not finish? A lot of people say, 'I play for this, I play for that.' One of my goals was to be one of the top runners of all time. I'm going to try to be, to the best of my abilities, one of the top guys."
Whether it's in Arizona or elsewhere.

(cnnsi.com)

TAMPA -- During the tough times, when it looked as if all they were doing in Arizona was wandering the desert, Edgerrin James, Antrel Rolle and Calais Campbell could find direction in their brotherhood.

The tie that binds them is the fact they all played at the University of Miami. And they argue that is every bit as important as one out of similar DNA.

''It really is a brotherhood,'' Rolle insisted Tuesday as the Cardinals continued preparations for Super Bowl XLIII against Pittsburgh. ``No matter what, it can never be broken. Nobody should even try.''

If you think there is nothing extraordinary about the bond between players at ''The U,'' examine the relationship the three Cardinals players share. They come from different Miami classes and teams that reached different levels of success.

But when they were united on the same Arizona roster, they connected. It was natural. It was expected.

''We have a special relationship,'' James said. ``It's a bond that has been going on for years with players from that school. It's something that no other team and no other school can duplicate.

``It's something that's super special. It's really hard to explain, but you talk to anybody from the University of Miami, they know what it's about.''
It's about men who wouldn't otherwise be friends becoming each other's support system.

When Campbell, 22 and still a rookie, was selected by Arizona in the second round of last April's NFL Draft, the first call he took was from the Cardinals. The second and third calls he took were from James, 30, and Rolle, 26.

WELCOME TO THE CLUB
''As soon as I got drafted by the team, they called me and welcomed me to the team,'' Campbell said. ``There's just that connection you have that comes from work ethic and knowing what you have to do to get where you want to be. We had that and learned that at UM and it carries over.

``So when I got to Arizona, these guys helped me with getting a house and showed me what people to talk to. They helped with simple decisions like places to eat. They took care of me like a little brother. They looked out for me.''

That apparently applies in times of trouble as well as triumph. And this trio has tasted both this season.

After being drafted as a cornerback in 2005 and enjoying only modest success his first two seasons, Rolle lost his starting job in 2007. James was the teammate who encouraged Rolle.

''Since I first stepped into this league, he's been that guy in my ear telling me the right things to do,'' Rolle said. ``He pulls you to the side and talks to you, he's not a spotlight person. He doesn't tell you what you want to hear, but he does tell you what you need to hear.''

Rolle handled the demotion by moving to safety, where he has become a ball-hawking, touchdown return waiting to happen.

Rolle has nine interceptions in his career and has returned four for touchdowns. He also had a fumble return for a touchdown during the playoffs.
James also has a playoff touchdown to go with his 203 yards on 52 carries. He is again a starter and a key to bringing balance to a pass-first Arizona offense.

But midway through the season, James was practically erased from the offense -- with 27 carries in 10 games between Oct. 5 and Dec. 21. He was benched in favor of rookie Tim Hightower.

It was a difficult time for the NFL's leading active rusher.

''You want to play,'' James said. ``This year I worked extremely hard in the offseason, and I had a chance to pass some of the greatest rushers of all time. You want to build on the previous year, and the previous year I had 1,200 yards, and that was a new system. In training camp we were doing certain things that looked like it was going to be promising, and then we were going in a different direction.''

It was a time in which James could lean on Rolle and Campbell.

''I was in the same situation as him last year,'' Rolle said. ``I got pulled from my starting job last year and every day there was a conversation with him. He'd say, `Antrel, keep balling, keep working, keep doing what you do. They're going to have to play you, they're going to have to put you on the field.'

LEARNING TO BE A PRO
'And so when the same thing happened to him, I told him, `Edge, you know who you are. I mean, the whole world knows who you are and it's going to come back. Trust me, it's going to come.' For whatever reason, the coaches thought he wasn't getting the job done. But he never let them keep him down.''

The professionalism James and Rolle showed this season didn't go unnoticed by Campbell.

He didn't start any games and had only 25 tackles on defense and 16 more on special teams, but Campbell learned by watching Rolle and James.

''The way Edgerrin carried himself and the way he came back was a great story,'' Campbell said. ``I learned all it takes is one opportunity to be at the top again. You can never get down on yourself. If something bad happens, you let it go into yesterday and think there's always tomorrow and try to better yourself.

``It was a good lesson to learn from a guy I think of as an older brother.''

(miamiherald.com)

TAMPA — Arizona Cardinals running back Edgerrin James is celebrating his first Super Bowl appearance in style — with a sparkling new Lamborghini.

"I always said if I got to the Super Bowl, I would do something I would never do otherwise," he says. "A Lamborghini is something nice, something fast, something everybody doesn't have."

Not that he expects to put much mileage on the Italian sports car, the vehicle of choice for many of the rich and famous.

"I really don't like to drive," he says. "I'm usually in the passenger seat, text messaging and those things."

The 10th-year veteran can be forgiven the indulgence. Despite Arizona's first Super Bowl berth, this season has represented a difficult personal journey before his re-emergence as a force in the playoffs.

After he churned out his seventh 1,000-yard effort with 1,222 yards last season, James was stunned in November when second-year coach Ken Whisenhunt benched him in favor of rookie Tim Hightower, a little-known fifth-round draft pick from Richmond.

In August, James turned 30, a worrisome age for all running backs. Suddenly, there were questions about all that mileage on his legs. Suddenly, there were whispers that he might have lost a step.

The startling move was made after James gained just 17 yards and was guilty of a critical fumble in a 27-23 road loss to the Carolina Panthers on Oct. 26. Whisenhunt thought Hightower might give the offense more spark than James, who averaged 3.8 yards per carry in 2007 and did not snap off a run longer than 27 yards.

Not surprisingly, the decision did not sit well with James. The owner of two rushing titles (1999 and 2000) asked to be traded or released, requests that were ignored.

"At the end of the day, I made no secret that I wanted to play. Somebody else might have been content to get paid and not work," he says. "I didn't want to just be here."

James did not take one handoff in a Nov. 2 game against the St. Louis Rams, the first time in his career he remained sidelined while active for the game.

If James had chosen to become a negative influence in the locker room, he might have done irreparable damage to the Cardinals' postseason hopes. Instead, he helped drive them to the franchise's first division title since 1975 by showing how much he cared about the team.

James turned his attention to helping Hightower through a complex situation for both of them.

"Our relationship got even better, and that's the funny part of it. The more I played, the more he was talking to me," Hightower says. "Every single time I'd come to the sideline, he'd point out things that he saw.

"He showed me how to watch film. He was calling me every day to make sure I was putting the right things in my body. It just blows my mind away that somebody could be so selfless."

Hightower rolled for 109 yards against St. Louis but experienced growing pains after that. James returned as the primary back before the regular-season finale against the Seattle Seahawks, and erupted for 100 yards on 14 carries.

With Arizona emphasizing a more balanced attack in postseason, he's responded with a playoff-leading 203 yards and a touchdown in the Cardinals' improbable three-game march to Super Bowl XLIII.

Whisenhunt says of his return to James, "We knew that if we had a chance to go to the playoffs … that having a back that had been there, that was a good back, was going to be something that we were going to have to rely on."

James appeared in nine postseason games when he played for the Indianapolis Colts from 1999-2005. He then signed a four-year, $40 million contract with Arizona as a free agent.

He needs 123 regular-season yards to move past Marcus Allen (12,243 yards) for 10th place on the all-time rushing list. It is unclear what uniform he will wear when he reaches that milestone.

James remains confident he can be as productive as ever. "I know I can do it. Everybody knows I can do it," he says. "It's a matter of the situation and the right opportunities."

NFL Network analyst Marshall Faulk, a former running back and league MVP who played in Indianapolis before James was drafted, agrees with that assessment. "The only thing he lost was playing time," Faulk says. "Edgerrin is the same old Edgerrin. He's going to take a straight line from Point A to Point B and get you positive yardage."

James intends to meet with Arizona general manager Rod Graves to discuss his future after the Super Bowl. Worst-case scenario? He drives to another town, and another team, in his new Lamborghini.

(usatoday.com)

TAMPA, FLA. - He signed with the Cardinals three years ago, and lots of sports fans scratched their heads. Why would a big-time football player such as Edgerrin James, who has a shot at the Hall of Fame, go to Arizona, otherwise known as the NFL’s burial ground?

Well, here he was Tuesday, one of the focal points during media (circus) day at Super Bowl XLIII.

James evidently had instincts that nobody else did.

“If you go up and down that roster,” James said, “that was my reason for going to Arizona.”

James was at ease answering questions. He even got off one of the best one-liners of the week so far.

Asked if he liked playing as an underdog, James said, “I’m African-American. We’re always underdogs.”

Another time, he was more candid than he’s been so far about his midseason benching.

He finally admitted that the demotion gnawed at him because, “I worked extremely hard in the off-season, and I had a chance to pass up some of the greatest players of all time.”

His reference: He started out 2008 as the No. 13 rusher of all time.

By playing part time, he only moved up to No. 11, past Hall of Famers Thurman Thomas and Franco Harris.

Had he played full-time, he could have pushed past Marcus Allen, Marshall Faulk, the great Jim Brown and maybe Tony Dorsett, into the No. 7 slot.

“He’s a historian of the game,” offensive coordinator Todd Haley said. “He recognizes and is very aware of the running backs that have come before him in his league.

“You always appreciated that as a coach, when a guy has an understanding of some of the history of the league, because not all players do.”
Clearly, James sees himself in this select class of players who are — or will be — in the Hall of Fame.

“He’s a very prideful individual who has a belief and confidence in himself and his abilities,” said Haley, who also praised James for keeping his cool during his time on the bench.

“You see a lot of guys fail at ... handling that adversity. Edge has just been terrific.”

After James regained his starting role at the end of the regular season, Haley was moved to “put him right in the middle” of a meeting of offensive players just before the playoff game at Carolina.

Haley talked of “what he’s gone through this year” and that the team needed to get the job done for him.

The talk couldn’t have hurt. The Cardinals shocked the NFL, including some of their own fans, by blowing out the Panthers on the road.
“I think Edge is a well-liked player, and guys gravitate toward him; they look up to him,” Haley said.

Agreed Sean Morey, one of the team’s captains and most experienced players, “He’s a consummate professional, a great role model for all our guys in the locker room. The way he practices, the way he studies film, all the things you guys don’t get to see — we see it day in and day out.

“He’s the standard to which a lot of guys set themselves. He sets the bar really high.”

Now, he’s finally reached the pinnacle.

“For 10 years I’ve been playing,” James said, “and to finally get here, that’s big.”

About as big as James sees his place in history.

(eastvalleytribune.com)

TAMPA, Fla. -- Arizona Cardinals running back Edgerrin James doesn't have a hard time pointing the moment his career started moving in a positive direction again.

It was right after his team's 47-7 loss to the New England Patriots on Dec. 21. James went from being a bit player in a wide-open offense before that loss to an integral part of a more balanced attack after that point. He also knows why.

"The key to winning in the postseason is running the football," he said. "You can play gadget-ball during the regular season and win games, but you'd better have balance at this time of year. If you don't, you're done."

His re-emergence has been a dramatically underrated factor in the Cardinals' playoff run. This isn't to take anything away from the efficient passing of quarterback Kurt Warner, the electric performances of Pro Bowl wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald or the inspired efforts of a suddenly staunch defense. It's just that James was a forgotten man in the Cardinals' offense as recently as two months ago. Now he has spent the past three weeks reminding people of what he really means to this team.

After gaining a career-low 514 yards in the regular season -- and losing his starting job to rookie Tim Hightower midway through the campaign -- James is now giving the Cardinals just enough of a threat in the running game that opponents have to respect him. He's averaging about 68 yards per game in the postseason, and that reliability has led to more play-action opportunities for Arizona's explosive passing attack.

It has also given Arizona a chance to pull one last upset in these playoffs. As explosive as the Cardinals are with the pass, they need to gain something on the ground if they want to thrive against the Pittsburgh Steelers' top-ranked defense here Sunday in Super Bowl XLIII.

Of course, it was hard to imagine Arizona's having any shot of running the ball in the playoffs three weeks ago, especially because the Cardinals had the league's worst rushing attack (73.6 yards a game). But there's more commitment to the run these days by coach Ken Whisenhunt and offensive coordinator Todd Haley. Along with James, the Cardinals can rely on Hightower and the shifty J.J. Arrington, who has been plagued by a recent knee injury. It also helps that Haley is running more plays that James likes, including the stretch play that allows James to use his vision and cutback ability.

The Cardinals saw the value in this approach in late December, when James gained 100 yards on 14 carries in the regular-season finale against the Seattle Seahawks, and they've been more dangerous ever since.

"We started playing my game," James said. "I'm not a scatback type. My game is moving forward, getting positive yards and letting the defense know that they're going to wear down before I do. That's what we got back to."

"Edge is a huge part of [the Cardinals' success in the run game]," Warner said. "The way he runs and his ability to make something out of nothing are huge keys. The difference between a zero-yard gain and a 2-yard gain is huge within the course of a drive. He does that as well as anybody."
James is taking obvious pleasure in his recent contributions because he clearly heard all the talk about his decline. Skeptics saw a worn-out runner who turned 30 in August and was still cashing in on the four-year, $30 million deal he signed in 2006. When James received that contract, there were people who wondered how long he would last after he earned four Pro Bowl nominations in seven seasons with the Indianapolis Colts. His critics grew louder after his first two years with the Cardinals, when people looked more at his average yards per carry (3.6) during that time than his overall yardage (he gained 1,159 yards in 2006 and 1,222 in 2007).

Of course, James points to other reasons for his numbers' falling off after he left the Colts. There was all the dysfunction that hovered around the final season of former head coach Dennis Green in 2006. There was the change to a new offense when Whisenhunt arrived a year later. And don't forget that Arizona's formerly inconsistent offensive line didn't become more reliable until this season.

"Nobody had come to Arizona and gained 1,000 yards after taking the hits I took," said James, who has 12,121 career rushing yards. "That's why I know I'm still good. Who else could come to Arizona and run the ball? If you put me in the right situations, I know I'll kill it."

James also scoffs at the notion that his age is a reason for concern. He said his offseason workouts in Miami were so strong that he expected to have some kind of impact on the field this season. He adds that people who question whether he has lost a step need to remember what his game is all about in the first place.

"People say I can't hit the home run anymore," James said. "But I never could hit the home run. I led the league in rushing with 1,700 yards [he gained 1,709 in 2000] and my longest run was 30 yards. This year my longest run was 35 yards. So what's the difference?"

The real difference for James at this point is a combination of fresh legs and undeniable desire. He clearly hated his diminished role when he was benched for three games and received just seven carries in four other contests. He also had no problems voicing those frustrations whenever somebody asked (although he says comments that he made about nearly quitting were blown out of proportion). But James also worked hard behind the scenes and remained sharp at the lowest point of his career.

As Haley said: "A lot of guys would just tank it in that situation. It's a credit to Edge that he hung in there."

That's why James is so excited to be contributing to a team he always believed could be a Super Bowl contender when he arrived.

"If you had told me at the start of my career that I could get paid a lot of money to do nothing, I would've been fine with it because I would've done some serious partying," James said. "But all I care about is playing at this point. I just appreciate the opportunity a lot more."

The Cardinals also appreciate something else: the fact that James never gave up on the idea that he still had more to offer this surprising team.

(espn.com)

PHOENIX — The story seems all wrong. The casting is completely out of place. Someone has tinkered with the script.

Supporting role?

Edgerrin James doesn't do supporting roles. Does he?

The guy has star quality, okay? And if the Cardinals were ever going to make a Super Bowl run, it was going to be on Edge's legs. He was going to lead the turnaround. He was going to be the homecoming hero. Wasn't he?

Why, then, has James spent most of this season in the passenger's seat?

James was never destined to be a passenger, either. He was never meant to be a spare part, or a backup singer, or a supporting actor. After 12,000 yards, after a decade in the league, that should be obvious. Shouldn't it?

As it turns out, some things are harder than linebackers, and some assignments are tougher than third and 2. Just ask James, the guy with the front-burner resume and the back-burner of a season. The guy whose career is finally moving again.

As James comes back to his home state, he is one of the more compelling players in Sunday's Super Bowl. How much he has left, and how much of it he will show Sunday, will be one of the featured story lines of the week.

It can be a tough thing, exile. One day, James was a headline, and the next, he was on the sideline. The Cardinals benched him Nov. 2 in favor of rookie Tim Hightower — a younger, more explosive back — and for the next eight games, James carried the ball only 11 times. In three games, he didn't touch it at all.

For someone else, perhaps it would have been a maddening transition. After the Cardinals denied his request for release, James settled in and waited.

"The way I grew up, this was a piece of cake," said James, who returned to the starting lineup in the playoffs. "They say, 'We're going to sit you on the bench.' If I was someone who had it easy, someone who was given everything, I would probably complain and act up.

"I wasn't raised to act up. I have three brothers in prison because of the way they reacted."

James shrugs. He stands in front of his locker after the Cardinals had beaten the Eagles in the NFC title game. A large gold lion dangles from his neck, as if it, too, is roaring again.

"I wasn't benched because I couldn't play," he said. "Everyone knows that. It was like, 'The team is going in a different direction.' I said, 'Damn, I wish I knew that earlier.' But at the same time, I signed up for this. When you sign up for something, you either deal with it or you say, 'I can't take it.' "

Either that, or you bide a little time.

During the playoffs, the Cardinals rediscovered James, who seems to have rediscovered himself. In three victories, he has run 52 times for 203 yards. No, they are not staggering numbers, but considering that James didn't run that many times for that many yards over the final 11 games of the regular season, it's not bad. It beats keeping the punter company.

"In life you have to take the good with the bad. Everything's not always going to be good. Playing football has always been easy for me," James said Friday. "I never had to face any real adversity in football because I've always tried to outrun people and do everything the right way.

"This time, even though I took that same approach, we went in a different direction. It's not something that I'm going to sit up there and show off or try to be disruptive to the team. You have to go out and take it like a man. You have to take the good with the bad. When things aren't that good, I continued to come out here and tried to help Hightower and the other running backs and do as much as I could."

Still, he allows, "this has been a weird year."

According to Ken Whisenhunt, the return of James hasn't come as a surprise. At the time, the second-year coach suggested Arizona would need James before the season was complete.

"He's a good back," Whisenhunt said of the former Miami Hurricane who signed with Arizona in 2006 after seven seasons with the Colts. "He still doesn't agree with (being benched), but that's part of what makes Edgerrin the player he is. He has a lot to prove, and I think that's shown in his play."

Perhaps. Perhaps James is trying to prove Whisenhunt wrong. And perhaps he's trying to audition for next season's team, too.

Either way, the playoffs have his attention. A few weeks ago, he gave offensive coordinator Todd Haley a list of plays he liked to run. "When I got off the bench," James said.

The question remains: How much of James' considerable skills remain? It's hard to say. There for a while, it seemed as if the Hall of Fame voters were going to have to add up his numbers. Two more 1,000-yard seasons and James was going to be in the top five rushing all time. At 30, can he still get there? And if so, with whom?

Perhaps it shouldn't surprise anyone to hear James credit his tough upbringing to getting him through the tough moments. Hasn't it always?

Somewhere along James' path, you might have heard the story. Of how tough things were in Immokalee when he grew up. About how his father kept his distance. About how uncles ended up dead or drugged or in prison. About Christmases without presents and birthdays without notice. About the food stamps. About 16-hour days James spent loading watermelons into a truck to buy his first car.

Compared to that, what harm can a bench do to a guy?

Today, James comes back to his home state. Soon, he will have at least one more game in a Cardinals uniform. The world will be watching. Maybe another team, too.

For James, that has always been the lesson. Keep running, and the end of the story may be just fine.

He said it
Cutting Edge
Edgerrin James has never been one to mince words. A few of his gems:
• "I can't go through this again. I didn't come here to block. I'm not an offensive lineman." — on his displeasure with a reduced role with the Cardinals (2008)
• "It worked out for (Martha Stewart). She got five months in jail, a slap on the wrist, and she's still getting paid. The way I look at it, I've got five months to serve, too." — on wanting out of Indianapolis after the Colts slapped a franchise tag on him (2005)
• "You know what got me through college? It was the dollar, not the diploma. It was knowing that football would let me walk into that cafeteria one day and tell 'em to keep my mom's little ol' uniform and that little ol' check." — 2000 interview
• "What happened to the other one vote? It should have been 50." — jokingly inquiring why he got only 49 of the 50 votes when he was named 1999 NFL offensive rookie of the year

(tampabay.com)

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Edgerrin James was a big part of many terrific teams as running back for the Indianapolis Colts.

Yet he never made it to the Super Bowl until he was with an Arizona Cardinals franchise that has no history of winning, in a season that saw him benched for the first time in his career.

"Yeah, it's weird," he said, laughing. "This has been a weird year."

James is back in his accustomed role as lead back in a rejuvenated ground game that figures large in the Cardinals' plans against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

"He brings a lot to the table for us that has been seen in the improvement of our running game," Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt said.

James said after Arizona's practice Friday that at the end of his seven-game exile to the bench he drew up a few of his favorite running plays and showed them to offensive coordinator Todd Haley.

"I think you play better when you actually make a suggestion and the coach listens to you," James said. "We've been running some of those plays that I've been comfortable with and we've been getting results."

James came back in the final regular-season game to rush for 100 yards in a victory over Seattle, a performance that moved him into 11th on the NFL career rushing list.

In the three playoff games, he has 203 yards in 52 carries, an average of 3.9 yards per attempt. Arizona has outgained its playoff opponents on the ground 333 yards to 232. That's an average of 111 yards per game after a league-worst 73.6 yards per game in the regular season.

James said the Cardinals are just giving him and the running game more opportunities.

"You throw the ball 50 times and you run the ball nine or 10 times you are most likely not going to have a good rushing game," he said.

He felt he didn't fit in when Arizona went to an offense that relied so heavily on throwing the ball.

"I've always played the game a certain way," James said. "This is my style of play, mixing up the pass and the run versus lining it up to throw it every time. I'm no scatback. I never tried to be."

After he gained 17 yards in seven carries and had a critical fumble in a 27-23 loss at Carolina on Oct. 26, James lost his job to rookie Tim Hightower.

James had his agent ask the Cardinals to release him. They refused to even consider it, and James did not raise a fuss personally.

"You have to go out and take it like a man," he said. "You have to take the good with the bad. When things weren't that good, I continued to come out here and tried to help Hightower and the other running backs and do as much as I could."

He joked about having more leisure time.

"I ended up reading a ton of books," he said. "I didn't look at the playbook as much."

Kurt Warner knows how it feels to lose a starting job, so he empathized with James. Warner said James "is a huge part" of Arizona's hopes against the Steelers.

"The way he runs and his ability to make something out of nothing are huge keys," Warner said. "The difference between a 0-yard gain and a 2-yard gain is huge within the course of a drive. He does that as well as anybody. I've seen him when there's nothing there, but he puts his head down and moves the pile."

Any semblance of a run game against the fierce Steelers' defense would allow Arizona to go to play-action passes that create favorable matchups with the Cardinals' standout receivers.

James' teammates are happy to have him back in the huddle.

"Just his leadership ability is outstanding," wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald said, "the way he practices, he finishes runs, picks up pass protection, never complains, always on time, durable, you can continue to go on about Edge and what he brings to this team."

James has a year left on his contract with Arizona, but he said several weeks ago that he believed he would not be back by mutual agreement with the organization. That means the Super Bowl could be his last game in a Cardinals uniform.

"I'm not even focused on anything past this game," he said Friday. "Anything beyond this game I'm not going to think about."

He said he sees the Cardinals operating now at a level he always felt they could reach since he signed as a free agent three seasons ago.

"We put it together," he said. "This team has a lot of talent. For some reason, it just wasn't coming together. Coach Whisenhunt and his staff and everybody came together and we got it rolling."

(ap.com)

Minutes after last Sunday's NFC Championship Game, someone thanked Cardinals running back Edgerrin James for autographing a football for a kid way back in training camp.

"It may be worth something now," James said, laughing.

It sure didn't look like it would be for most of the latter half of the season. Benched for rookie Tim Hightower, James carried just seven times for 15 yards in the next seven games. He didn't get off the sideline in three of them.

So, the irony of making it to the Super Bowl in a season in which he felt like an inmate awaiting his release, is not lost on James.

"I don't know how you define this season," he said. "It's weird. Everything worked out the right way, and that's the end result."

That James is in a Super Bowl is not a surprise. But most people thought it would come in his seven seasons with the Colts, not in Arizona, and especially not in a season that saw him benched for the first time in his life.

A funny thing happened late in the season, however. The Cardinals re-committed themselves to the run, and James returned as the featured back.

Hightower had passed James based on his potential for making a big play, but as the season progressed, Hightower had too many runs for negative yardage. So coaches turned to James, who has averaged about 68 yards a game and 3.9 per carry in the playoffs.

Those numbers aren't astounding, but for a passing team that ranked last in the NFL in rushing this season, they indicate a dramatic improvement.

"They (coaches) could have continued to say, 'O.K., leave Edge over there by the heaters and let him just chill," James said. "But we got serious about playing football. Then we go to the style of play I'm accustomed to and that's a big factor in us making this type of move.

"We got away from just being one dimensional and just passing and running out of the shotgun."

No one saw this coming, especially not James, who was benched before the Rams game on Nov. 2. In the two weeks before that, James had expressed frustration at his diminishing role, then he watched that role change into The Invisible Man.

It seemed his time in Arizona would end ingloriously, and the Super Bowl would remain an elusive goal.

James came to Arizona in 2006 after seven years with the Colts, perennial Super Bowl contenders, signing a four-year, $30 million deal. He thought he could help turn the Cardinals around, although he admits now that he sometimes wondered what he had gotten himself into.

The Colts, who were willing to let James go, won a Super Bowl the season after James left, and his old team made sure he received a championship ring.

Now, it's his former teammates, such as receiver Reggie Wayne, sending him texts of congratulations, instead of the other way around.

"In life, you have to take the good with the bad," James said. "Everything's not always going to be good. Playing football has always been easy for me. I never had to face any real adversity in football."

Until this year. After his benching, James kept a relatively low profile, declining most interview requests. Coach Ken Whisenhunt emphasized that no one was upset with James and maintained at some point the Cardinals would need the 30-year-old running back.

"I just sat there and waited," James said. "I just made sure I went out and continued to practice and do what I've always done."

Most veterans of James' stature - he's 10th on the NFL's all-time rushing list - wouldn't have handled the demotion as well as James did, according to offensive coordinator Todd Haley.

"It's the majority that can't handle it," Haley said. "You get a lot of guys that tank it or say, 'screw this.' But he hung in. He's really a special guy and I'm happy he gets to the promised land, because it's been a long road for him."

James wasn't entirely quiet during his time off. He and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, asked the team to release him, and Rosenhaus let everyone know that James' silence about his benching didn't mean he accepted it.

James cracks jokes about his time off now. He said he learned a lot about sideline etiquette in those seven games and enjoyed the extra free time. "I ended up reading a ton of books," he said.

"Early in my career, if you tell me I'm going to get paid and don't have to go out there and get hit, I would have like all over that (expletive)," he said. "But as the time goes on and realize how hard it is to get into these positions . . . . I've done everything you could possibly do from an individual standpoint. I want to get into that big game and see what it feels like."

James refuses to address questions about his future as a Cardinal. Several weeks ago, it was doubtful he would be back in 2009, the final year of his contract. It had nothing to do with the $5 million salary he was due, because the team has the salary space to accommodate him.

But James wanted out and it didn't seem the Cardinals wanted him back. It's hard to say if the team's playoff success will cause either side to have a change of heart.

"I'm not really worried about the future," James said. "I'm just living day-by-day. I think anybody who is thinking about next week, or the weeks ahead, they're doing this team a disservice."

(azcentral.com)

Ask anyone. Ask him. Edgerrin James is all about enjoyment.

So imagine how the longtime Indianapolis Colts fan favorite is keeping it real now that what had been his worst NFL season will culminate in his first Super Bowl appearance.

"I'm living the life, loving the life," the Arizona Cardinals running back said this week in a telephone interview. "Hey, if it's taken away from me today, they can say, 'Boy, he maxed out every day.' Every day."

Just last month, it seemed the NFL's 11th all-time leading rusher was getting run out of the desert. He fumed about being relegated to a backup role and vowed he would not return to the Cardinals for the final year of his contract.

Now, after reclaiming his starting spot, he's the league's leading postseason rusher with 203 yards and a key reason Arizona has advanced to its first Super Bowl, versus Pittsburgh on Feb. 1 in Tampa, Fla.

"Man, it would mean so much to win the ring," said James, 30. "Everybody knows how hard I worked, all the work I put into it.

"It's been 10 years and I've done everything a player can do individually, you know, but I haven't played in this game. Now I can say I played in the game. Going out there and having some success and win the game, that makes it even better.

"I've put everything in this life to football."

The fourth pick in the 1999 NFL draft, James made his fame with the Indianapolis Colts, rushing for a franchise-record 9,226 yards and leading the league his first two seasons. But after seven hard-running years that included knee and back injuries, the Colts didn't make an effort to re-sign him after his contract expired in 2006, and he left for Arizona.

There, as James was averaging a career-low 3.4 yards a carry in his first season with the downtrodden Cardinals, he watched his former team conclude a stirring playoff run with Indy's first Super Bowl title.

He joined the festivities in Miami, hosting a Super Bowl party and hanging with his old teammates. He even received a ring from Colts owner Jim Irsay.

It wasn't the same, but it wasn't bad.

"It wasn't tough because I actually felt like I was a part of them," James said. "I felt like I was with them every step of the way. Even though I was away, I was still part of that family."

He stays in touch with several Colts, including wide receiver Reggie Wayne and quarterback Peyton Manning.

"Me and 'P,' we text from time to time," he said. "Me and Reggie, it's all the time."

As for James' former teammates, everyone reached for this story said they were ecstatic the man they call Edge has finally reached the championship game.

"I'm so happy for him," said retired tight end Ken Dilger, who played with James in Indy from 1999-2001 and won a Super Bowl with Tampa Bay in '02. "Forget the records, forget how much you get paid. Everybody wants to get the ring. That's what sets you apart from everybody else."

Said retired offensive tackle Tarik Glenn: "He's such a good back and such a good teammate. He's the life of the locker room. In the time he wasn't there, the one thing we missed was his lively spirit. He made everything fun."

"I love it. I love it," former Colts coach Jim Mora said of James reaching the Super Bowl. "He's one of my favorite Colts. He was just so much fun to coach and have on the team."

It wasn't by accident. Having fun is a life credo James picked up from his grandmother Ann. He visited her in Florida this week, and, at 84 and largely incapacitated, she reminded him again.

"You're looking at somebody who's not capable of moving around. All she's got is those memories," James said. "I want to have so many memories, I want to have stuff that I forget then, all of a sudden think of, telling stories and people thinking I'm lying and making up stuff.

"But you know me, I'm always going to be 100 (percent real) with everybody. I'm going to kick it all the way 100, keep it real with you, tell you exactly how I feel and not beat around the bush."

And if the Cardinals win it all?

Just one more thrill to share on the porch with Grandma.

"I always want to have some new stuff, man," he said.

(indystar.com)

Edgerrin James ran for 73 yards on 16 carries and caught a 16-yard pass as the Cardinals were crowned NFC champs on Sunday.
James started again, but Tim Hightower stole the show late with Arizona in clock-killing mode. Edge seems unlikely to see more than 15 carries in the Super Bowl, no matter who the Cards play. They will likely lean heavily on the pass so as to avoid either Pittsburgh or Baltimore's stout run defense.

(rotoworld.com)

Running back Edgerrin James is slashing again for the Cardinals, and not just when he's carrying the football.

James provided some light moments after the team's workout in Tempe on Thursday, mostly about his benching and return to the lineup.

"It's kind of boring, that's the only thing," he said of his bench time. "You get bored standing around, and you have to learn sideline etiquette.

"You learn when to get up, when to move, where to stand. It's a new world."

For instance, he said when Larry Fitzgerald comes looking for the heater, he has to move. For most, he said "I've got a little seniority."

Somebody asked how the Eagles defense is different from the two defenses the Cardinals have faced in the playoffs.

"I don't know." James said, laughing, "I was by the heater the whole game. The first game, I was on the sidelines."

James is serious about his game and the NFC Championship, though. He said he kept practicing and working as usual until he was called upon again.

(azcentral.com)

One's career is on the rise, the other on the wane.

Larry Fitzgerald and Edgerrin James both fill crucial roles in the Arizona Cardinals' plans to beat Philadelphia on Sunday and advance, believe it or not, to the Super Bowl.

James, though, could be playing his last game for the Cardinals on Sunday. The 30-year-old running back, in his 10th NFL season, said two weeks ago he believes he and the team will part by mutual agreement.

The man who ranks 11th on the NFL's career rushing list was benched halfway through the season in favor of rookie Tim Hightower. But it didn't do much to help Arizona's woeful ground game. The Cardinals finished last in the league in rushing.

Whisenhunt brought James back in the regular-season finale against Seattle.

James rushed for 100 yards that day and has been solid, if not spectacular since. Any semblance of a running game helps clear the way for Warner and the potent Arizona passing game.

Whisenhunt said switching to Hightower gave the team the best chance to win. He said that the team would need James somewhere down the road. James wasn't sure that was true.

"I never knew," he said. "I just sat there and waited. I didn't know when I was getting in the game. I just made sure I went out and continued to practice and do what I've always done and not let whatever is going on take you from the type of player or person you are."

James stayed quiet, but his agent didn't. Drew Rosenhaus called general manager Rod Graves to ask that James be released. Graves said no, that such a move made no sense for the team.

Whisenhunt said he and James maintained a professional relationship, no matter what the agent was saying.

"I don't know if there was ever any real tension between Edgerrin and me," Whisenhunt said. "I know a lot of times he wasn't happy because he wasn't playing, and that's what you want. You want players like that. He has been respectful. ... I have a great deal of respect for him and what he has done for our team, especially in the latter part after going through a hard time."

James never made it to the Super Bowl despite all his success with Indianapolis. He does have a Super Bowl ring from owner Robert Irsay when the Colts won it all a year after James left and signed a free agent contract with Arizona.

James was asked if he ever pinched himself to see if it was true that he and the long downtrodden Cardinals were a win away from the Super Bowl.

No, he said, that came earlier in the season.

"I pinched myself on the sideline," he said. "I couldn't believe I was on the bench."

(ap.com)

During an eight-game stretch starting in Week Nine, Arizona Cardinals veteran running back Edgerrin James was a virtual non-entity as a backup to rookie Tim Hightower.

James was not happy sitting on the bench and made his displeasure known in no uncertain terms, asking to be released following a 35-16 victory over the St. Louis Rams on November 16.

Arizona declined James' demand, and now he might want to rethink his position.

After being limited to 11 carries in that eight-game span, the former Indianapolis Colts standout regained his starting role in Week 17 and has helped fuel the Cardinals' surprising run to the NFC championship game.

"I got some adversity," James said. "Did I deserve adversity? No, I'll never agree with that. But the thing about it is, this is where I am at, this is what I signed up for. You sign up with an NFL team, you take the good with the bad."

On January 3, the Cardinals hosted their first home playoff game since 1947, defeating Atlanta, 30-24, in a wild-card contest.

Arizona then went to Carolina and knocked off the second-seeded Panthers, 33-13, in a divisional playoff game Saturday. The Cardinals received an added bonus Sunday when Philadelphia, the No. 6 seed, ousted the No. 1 seed and defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants, 23-11.

That means Arizona gets to host Philadelphia next week with a berth in the Super Bowl on the line.

The Cardinals will be looking to avenge a 48-20 loss at Philadelphia on Thanksgiving - one of three games this season in which James did not receive a single carry.

Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt joked that there was a method behind his madness to bench James.

"It was planned all along," Whisenhunt said. "We knew if we gave him a couple weeks off, he'd be ready to go at the end of the season."

After five straight 1,000-yard campaigns in Indianapolis and Arizona, James was limited to 133 carries and career-low 514 yards this year.

However, he never thought he couldn't still be a productive runner.

"If I got to the point where I couldn't play, I would've just go home," said James, who turned 30 before the start of the season.

"But it didn't get to that point. I love to play the game and I'm not going to be somebody who is going to be a sore loser. I want to be somebody that regardless of how things went, I want to try and man up and stand there and not pout about things."

James finally got a another start in the regular-season finale against Seattle and ran for a 100 yards on just 14 yards against the league's worst rushing team.

"He never went in the tank on us," Arizona wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald said.

James rushed for 73 yards on 16 carries against Atlanta in the playoff opener, then added 57 yards on 20 carries at Carolina. Much of that total came in the first half when the Cardinals surged to a 27-7 lead.

Now the 10-year veteran is one step away from a trip to the Super Bowl - something that eluded him after he left Indianapolis to sign with Arizona in 2006. The Colts capped that season by beating Chicago, 29-17, in Super Bowl XLI.

(nationalpost.com)

Edgerrin James rushed 20 times for 57 yards and a touchdown as the Cardinals upset the Panthers in the Divisional Round of the playoffs. He also caught one nine-yard pass.
James didn't have a run over seven yards, but he did a fine job of falling forward at the end of runs and kept drives alive as the Cardinals nursed their big lead. He'll have a tough time breaking free next week against either the Eagles or Giants, but should remain the Cardinals' feature back.

(rotoworld.com)

It's a good thing the Cardinals coaching staff threw a few bones to Edgerrin James after he was benched in favor of rookie Tim Hightower, because the veteran running back revealed hat he would have quit on the team and walked away.

It almost got to that point, too, as James didn't play in three games and in four others, had only seven total carries. Until responding with 173 yards his past two games, including a 73-yard effort to beat the Falcons in last Saturday's playoff game, James has spent much of the season on the sideline.

"It was a different world, but you've got to take the good with the bad," he said after practice on Tuesday. "Throughout my career, everything's been easy and finally you get some adversity. Did I deserve that adversity? No, I'll never agree with that.

"But this is where I'm at and when you sign up to play in the NFL, you've got to take the good with the bad. If it got to the point where I couldn't play, I would have just went home, I would have said '(expletive) it, I ain't going to play then.' But, it never got to that point."

James' return to the Cardinals' offense has given the team new hope, especially this week heading into their NFC divisional playoff game against the Carolina Panthers.

"We all feel great for Edge," quarterback Kurt Warner said. "He's been a great teammate and a great leader on this team. I know he went through some frustration and disappointment earlier in the year, but couldn't be more excited, not only for what he's doing for us, but for him to get back out there and have some success himself."

Asked whether being more of a contributor down the stretch could make him think twice about his future with the Cardinals, James paused to reflect, but wouldn't bite.

"All I want to do is play right now," he said. "I'm not going to think about that or entertain those thoughts because we've got a chance to do something great right now and talking about stuff like that can only take away from things and be a distraction and more to hurt the team than help it."

(azcentral.com)

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Edgerrin James wasn't sure he'd ever get back in the lineup, let alone the playoffs. He is cherishing the opportunity.

"You don't understand the importance of being in the playoffs in your early years," James said after the Arizona Cardinals practiced Tuesday. "But as you go down in your career, those things become bigger and bigger. For somebody like me, it's super big to be in the playoffs and especially doing it here."

James' return from an eight-game benching and the successful running game he's brought with him are intriguing subplots to the Cardinals' advance to an NFC semifinal game at Carolina on Saturday night.

"I think we all feel great for Edge," quarterback Kurt Warner said. "He's been a great teammate and a great leader on this team. I knew he went through some frustrations and some disappointment earlier in the year, and we couldn't be more excited not only for what he's doing for us but for the chance for him to get back out there and have the success that he's had."

James came to Arizona in 2006 as probably the highest-profile free agent acquisition in the franchise's history. He signed a four-year, $40 million contract and went on to become the second player in Cardinals history to have consecutive 1,000-yard rushing seasons.

But Arizona's ground game was awful this season, and the offense more and more relied on Warner's passing. There was a perception, fairly or not, that James had lost a step from his salad days with the Indianapolis Colts.

And he didn't like the heavy emphasis on the passing game, where he'd be blocking far more often than he carried the ball.

After James gained 7 yards in 17 carries and had a critical fumble in a 27-23 loss at Carolina on Oct. 26, coach Ken Whisenhunt benched the 30-year-old running back in favor of rookie Tim Hightower. Whisenhunt said at the time he was going with the player he felt gave the team the best chance to be successful.

Hightower had a big game the following week, gaining 109 yards in 22 carries against St. Louis, then the Arizona ground game went dormant again. James, though, mostly watched. Over the next seven games, he had seven carries for 15 yards. It picked up to four carries for 19 yards in the team's 47-7 debacle in the snow of New England, then James without fanfare returned as the lead back in the regular-season finale against Seattle.

Whisenhunt pointed to James' experience — nine playoff games with the Colts — as a big reason for the switch.

"We knew that if we had a chance to go to the playoffs ... that having a back that had been there, that was a good back, was going to be something that we were going to have to rely on," Whisenhunt said.

James didn't make any waves personally during his exile, but agent Drew Rosenhaus asked the Cardinals to trade the running back. The Cardinals ignored the request. James said it never got to the point where he thought about simply leaving.

"I love to play the game and I'm not going to be somebody that's a sore loser," he said. "Regardless of how things went I was going to try to man up and stand there and do what I've got to do and not pout about things."

He acknowledged he'd had life pretty easy in his seven years with Indianapolis, where he'd topped 12,000 yards in a season five times.

"Finally you get some adversity," he said. "Did I deserve that adversity? I'll never agree to that. But the thing about it is this is where I'm at. This is what I signed up for. When you sign up to play in the NFL and you sign up to play with a team, you've got to take the good with the bad."
James has a year left on his contract, but said last week he expects to be gone after this season by mutual agreement with the team. He declined to speak on the subject Tuesday.

He gained 100 yards in 14 carries in the season-ending 34-21 victory over Seattle, passing Franco Harris into 11th in the NFL's career rushing list.

Then he had 73 yards in 16 attempts in last Saturday's 30-24 victory over Atlanta, outgaining the Falcons' Michael Turner.

His teammates' confidence in the ground game grew with James' return.

"It definitely motivates us when you see him break a tackle, running hard, fighting for every yard," tackle Mike Gandy said. "That can't help but motivate you. You feel that energy building, you feel that crowd getting behind him."

As prolific as the Cardinals are at passing, they know they have to have some success on the ground to survive in the playoffs.

"That's enormous at this stage," Warner said. "It takes pressure off of our front five guys. I think that's the biggest benefit of all is people knowing that we're not going to drop back every snap and they've got to pass protect on every snap."

James looks at Adrian Wilson, Arizona's Pro Bowl safety in the playoffs for the first time in his eight NFL seasons, and realizes how precious this experience should be.

And the running back is thrilled to be part of it and not a bystander.

"You want to play," he said. "I'll never be one of the guys that's just going to be happy to be on the team. I want to be part of the ones making it happen. That's the rush I get out of playing the game. I don't like to be somebody that's just filling in or just sitting around."

(ap.com)

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Given the declarations coming from the Cardinals’ locker room about proving naysayers wrong, it was curious that as Edgerrin James pulled on a sweatshirt Saturday after Arizona’s 30-24 win over Atlanta, there did not appear to be a discernable chip on either of his shoulders.

If there was anyone among the Cardinals who could talk about being disrespected or written off, it was James.

Earlier this season, he lost his starting job to the rookie Tim Hightower. His request to be released was rebuffed, and he said last week that he did not plan on being back with the Cardinals next year. He said his idea of playing running back was not to block in pass protection 50 times a game.
So, did James view his performance Saturday — when he rushed for 73 yards on 16 carries and gave the Cardinals a semblance of balance that they lacked almost all season — as redemption?

“It’s playoff football, man,” said James, who brushed off several versions of the question.

This might have been the most disappointing and least productive season of his career, but there is no bitterness in James.

“It really has nothing to do with proving something to somebody,” James, 30, said. “Once I feel like I can’t play, I won’t go play the game. I’m not in a situation where I have to play. If I couldn’t play at a high level, I would hang it up.”

When James left the Indianapolis Colts and signed a four-year, $30 million contract with Arizona as a free agent in 2006, it seemed a good fit. The Cardinals had not had a 1,000-yard rusher since 1998. James was expected to be the complement to a passing game that would be developed around quarterback Matt Leinart, their first-round draft pick; and two of the N.F.L.’s best young receivers: Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald.

But James struggled behind a woeful offensive line, the Cardinals got off to a 1-8 start, and Coach Dennis Green was fired at the end of the season. The Cardinals hired Ken Whisenhunt as the coach, and when Leinart was injured early in the 2007 season, they turned to Kurt Warner, who began to resemble the quarterback who had won two Most Valuable Player awards.

James entered the season with questions about how much he had left, given that he began 2008 with 366 more career carries than any other back in the league. He rushed for 100 yards on 26 carries in a season-opening victory over San Francisco, but he was rarely productive after that. After he was benched in Week 9, James carried 11 times over the next eight games.

“Obviously, things didn’t go the way he envisioned them, or the way I’m sure a lot of us envisioned our offense going,” guard Reggie Wells said. “But he persevered and showed up every day to do his job.”

Not that this should have been a surprise. Peyton Manning once called James the best teammate he had ever had, and the Colts’ owner, Jim Irsay, gave James a Super Bowl ring even though he left the team a season before they won the title.

“It’s just part of the business,” James said. “I’m not going to embarrass my family. I’m not going to embarrass my momma because I wasn’t raised to act crazy and go off. I said, You know what? This is what I signed up for. You’ve got to take the good with the bad. You’ve got to stand on the sidelines and do what you’re supposed to do. If I didn’t want to do it, all I had to do was not play. Just say, O.K., I’m going home. But I want to play.”

James got his chance in an otherwise meaningless season finale, rushing for 100 yards on 14 carries against Seattle. With Hightower struggling for an offense whose 3.3 yards a carry was the lowest average in the N.F.L., Whisenhunt turned to James against Atlanta on Saturday.

He carried the ball on three consecutive plays, for 6, 9 and 6 yards, to begin the Cardinals’ second series. He was given the ball on the next play, but flipped it back to Warner, who threw a 42-yard touchdown pass to Larry Fitzgerald.

“Edge, from Day 1 of his career, has been known as a guy who doesn’t go backward, who doesn’t take negative runs,” Wells said. “He takes what he can get.”

Late in the third quarter, James took a handoff, juked defensive end Chauncey Davis at the line of scrimmage, ran through the arm tackle of linebacker Keith Brooking, and was brought down by three Falcons after a 10-yard gain. It was part of a drive in which he carried four times for 19 yards and caught a 9-yard pass to convert a third down. The drive ended with Hightower’s touchdown run that put Arizona ahead, 30-17.

“That’s his game,” said Falcons tight end Marcus Pollard, who played six seasons with James in Indianapolis. “He’s strong enough to run over people and quick enough to run around them and make people miss. He looked like Edgerrin James to me in every way.”

When James was asked if he might reconsider leaving the Cardinals, it was the one time he did not take the ball and run with it.

“I don’t want to bring a dark cloud over what is going on right now,” he said. “Everybody knows I can run. It’s just a matter of the situation.

Situations dictate a lot in this business. As far as next year, I’m just going to enjoy this and ride it out.”

(nytimes.com)

Will the Cardinals lose their edge when they lose their Edge?

Will they re-evaluate their fractured relationship with the running back because of his performance in Saturday's playoff victory over Atlanta?

At the very least, Edgerrin James should give management moment of pause. The offense challenged the Falcons with uncharacteristic balance and the outcome was surreal: Quarterback Kurt Warner . . . taking a knee . . . on a field that says "NFL Playoffs" . . . amid a screaming crowd . . . awash in Cardinals red.

Are you kidding me?

As the final seconds ticked off, several defensive players sidled up to James and gave him a piece of their mind.

What were they saying?

"Uh," James said smiling, looking down at his feet. "They were telling me they're not ready for me to go yet."

He's not going, at least for another week. His 73 yards helped set up some of the team's biggest offensive moments.

He carried three straight times before quarterback Kurt Warner connected with Larry Fitzgerald on a 42-yard first quarter scoring play - on a flea-flicker play that started with a handoff to James.

During a drive that lasted seven minutes and 43 seconds in the third quarter - that's right, 7:43 - James carried four times for 19 yards before Tim Hightower took over and capped the drive with a 4-yard touchdown run.

"In the playoffs, you got to be able to run the football. I really believe that," Falcons coach Mike Smith said. "Edgerrin James is one of the top runners in the league."

It wasn't just James who wanted to see the team keep it on the ground Saturday. At halftime, the offensive linemen were quite animated as they made their case to offensive coordinator Todd Haley to run block a little more in the second half.

They must have made a convincing argument. In the third quarter, the Cardinals had 12 pass attempts versus eight carries. In the fourth, it was nine and nine.

"They finally got the opportunity to run block," James said. "That's why I've never criticized them. Other teams run 30, 35 times. We might run one or two times and then go a long time without running again.

"That's what the playoffs are all about, doing things people think you're not gonna do."

The Cardinals did some things James didn't expect them to do this season. James lost his job to Hightower after seven games and posted just 11 carries during the next eight. His request to be released or traded was refused and then against Seattle last week, he rushed for 100 yards.

In the locker room afterward, he was asked whether the game made him feel differently about his perceived imminent departure. He hemmed and hawed, troubled by the question and worried about the timing.

"I want to enjoy this moment, not be the one to bring a dark cloud to all this," he said. "We'll just see what the situation dictates."

Sounds like James might be leaving the door open just a bit. The situation shouldn't be irreparable if keeping James around next season is in the best interests of the team. How confident can the Cardinals be that they'll find an equal replacement for James in the draft or via free agency?

And really, can it be that bad for James? This team has treated him well, with an extremely generous guaranteed bonus as part of the $30 million deal he signed in 2006.

Yes, things unraveled this season, but both sides proved they could still work together.

"You never want to see a Hall of Fame running back walk out the door," said defensive end Bertrand Berry, who became friends with James when both played for Indianapolis in 1999. "Obviously, he feels he's at a disadvantage in this situation so you can't really blame him, but you don't want to see the guy leave."

Are those seven-minute drives the new look of Cardinals football?

"I don't know what Cardinals football is anymore," James said, laughing.

For another week at least, it surely includes James.

(azcentral.com)

Don’t read too much into the curious late-season re-emergence of veteran RB Edgerrin James. “The situation with him has gone too far to be rectified,” said one team source, who also mentioned James’ firm belief that, at the age of 30, he could still be a dependable starting back elsewhere. What James’ revival does signal is the real possibility that the Cardinals might make the selection of a starting-caliber running back a top priority in the 2009 draft. Such is the case, with James supposedly as good as gone, J.J. Arrington’s stock as an unrestricted free agent improving and rookie Tim Hightower proving to be a solid spot performer but not an every-down type. Ken Whisenhunt’s preference continues to be for a more balanced attack with a strong run game similar to the one he coordinated in Pittsburgh, and word is the Cardinals might have a very hard time resisting a back in the mold of Bears rookie Matt Forté at the end of April.

(profootballweekly.com)

Edgerrin James stood in his locker, Washington Nationals hat on his head underneath his bright orange hoody, answering questions about his 100-yard rushing performance – just like he did (save the outfit) after the Cardinals’ first game of the season.

It served as a metaphor.

A lot happened with James between that first 100-yard game in San Francisco – a lot – and Sunday’s regular-season finish, a 34-21 win over Seattle. But just as James produced more than he had in weeks, so too did the Cardinals as a whole.

With a playoff game less than a week away, it’s what the Cardinals needed.

“This is when it is fun,” James said. “The regular season, it’s all good. It is cool. But this is when football starts. This is when everything is serious. One mistake could be the deciding factor.”

The Cardinals had played poorly for two games, and while coach Ken Whisenhunt said it was more important for his team to play well Sunday, it felt like a victory was necessary.

To get that win and to have it echo some of the Cards’ best successes of 2008 – Kurt Warner’s touchdown passes, the defense forcing turnovers, a semblance of a running game – should provide some of the momentum the team so desperately craved as it they awaits the Falcons.

“We finally got back to what we wanted to do,” guard Reggie Wells said.

Yet it was hard not to notice James suddenly playing a factor.

Benched for rookie Tim Hightower at midseason, James had just 11 carries in five appearances since and didn’t play a snap in three other games. His agent was vocal in the press that James would like to be released, but mostly, James kept to himself and avoided causing distractions.

Whisenhunt said multiple times when asked that, at some point, the Cardinals were going to need James.

Sunday, with the Cards’ running game generating little production of late, the Cards needed James.  

“I just think the direction we took as a team was the difference,” James said of his hiatus from the starting lineup. “I could always play. In the offseason, I don’t train to be no speed back. I try to be the guy who gets the RBI, who gets on base and keep the party going. My thing is, I hate to lose yards. I want to keep moving forward.”

It took just 14 carries for Edge to gain 100 yards. He had a 35-yard run, not only the longest for a Cardinal this season but James’ longest in three Arizona seasons.

James would probably argue the point, but he looked fresher than he ever had as a Cardinal, too. His motivation is double – not only was he desperate to play, but with the likelihood he will be released after the season, he wants to prove to the rest of the NFL he is worthy of another hefty contract.

That meshes perfectly with what the Cardinals need too.

Wide receiver Anquan Boldin sat out a second straight game with a sore shoulder, but he will play in the playoffs. Fellow receiver Larry Fitzgerald three times provided highlight catches Sunday and was spectacular in his postseason tuneup.

If Warner can stay sharp – Whisenhunt said Warner’s lone interception was a miscommunication between Warner and the receiver – the passing game should be fine. James grinding out yards would be the perfect accessory.

Whisenhunt said he wasn’t “down” on Hightower and that he didn’t yet know what the best fit is for the Cardinals going forward. Whether the coach was being coy and unwilling to tip his hand to the Falcons or whether he is truly undecided in his backfield will make for an interesting storyline this week.

“No one wants to go home,” James said. “As much as people complain about practice and the schedule you have, when it comes down to this time right here, nobody will mind staying out a little longer and doing what it takes to win. You are three games away from Tampa, and to make it to Tampa and be in the Super Bowl, that would be one of the greatest things ever.”

James doesn’t want to lose yardage when he carries the ball. He also doesn’t seem to lose sleep over his situation – which, in the end, could help the Cardinals.

“That’s the one thing you love about Edge,” Warner said. “He never goes backwards.”

(azcardinals.com)

The Cardinals have put their own spin on a box-office smash. Call it The Curious Case of Edgerrin James, a triumphant tale about a man who clearly is aging backward.

Ken Whisenhunt's comments Monday that James looked "fast" and "fresh" against Seattle signaled another interesting turn in the Cardinals' running-game saga. Although the coach was non-committal, James is expected to land the role of lead back in Saturday's playoff game against Atlanta, a fascinating twist considering earlier implications that the back's 30-year-old legs couldn't cut it anymore.

Wrong. James is back, and although this awkward reconciliation followed a bizarre series of events, the truth is it will benefit both sides greatly.
James looked strong against Seattle, and if the Cardinals hope to succeed against the Falcons, they need a running game that can eat up the clock and help a pass attack be productive. Let's be honest. This playoff game is like a highly publicized combine for James. He wants to do his best for the Cardinals, but if it also means showcasing his skills for other teams, so be it.

Both sides should embrace the circumstances. The Cardinals are a team that catches few breaks. If this unlikely series of events led to this positive outcome, celebrate it.

Yes, it has been head-scratching.

"It's like we said a long time ago," Whisenhunt said. "If we have Edgerrin, we can count on him later in the year."

What does that mean? That he's good enough now but wasn't good enough four weeks ago?

Whisenhunt also said it's nice to have a player "looking like he's in good shape for the playoffs."

The coach almost sounds like he was saving James for the postseason.

The truth is a lot more complicated, a convergence of events that led to this improbable outcome. Whisenhunt liked what he saw from Tim Hightower at a time when he didn't like what he saw from James, including a missed practice and words that challenged the coach's decision-making.

His running style was also less in demand when the Cardinals shifted to a pass-heavy attack. Throw in some big-play performances by Hightower and the need by Whisenhunt to exert some disciplinary muscle.

In recent weeks, however, Hightower hasn't done enough to hang onto the role of featured back. It doesn't mean he can't be one; it just means James is more deserving right now.

Whisenhunt said the Cardinals opted to give James the bulk of the carries against Seattle "to see where he was."

Clearly, he's in a good place.

"Edge is really underrated, I think, when it comes to how hard he runs and how he continually goes forward," Cardinals guard Reggie Wells said.
He proved that Sunday with 100 yards on 14 carries against Seattle.

He's 11th on the NFL's all-time career rushing list and a pair of 100-yard games from eighth.

He's 30, not a geriatric.

As twisted as the path to this reunion was, it's a great Xs and Os decision for a team everyone is writing off, including most oddsmakers who have the Cardinals as underdogs for this home game.

The opportunity for a playoff victory appears to have infused both player and coach with the ability to live in the moment.

"Edge is one of the best teammates any of us has been around," Wells said. "Obviously, maybe things didn't work out the way he envisioned them this year, but he's never changed, never been a different guy on the field or in the locker room with us."

Wells spoke Monday of how James walked around the locker room after the team clinched the NFC West title and asked teammates to sign his hat.

"He wants to win, and he's still very much into this team and its success," he said.

Good to know, because the Cardinals will need him more than ever Saturday.

(azcentral.com)

As a group of reporters surrounded Edgerrin James in the Cardinals' locker room Sunday, fullback Terrelle Smith walked by with a grin on his face.

"Who is that over there?" he said.

It was a valid question.

Before Sunday's 31-21 victory over the Seattle Seahawks, James had become the invisible man. He had just 11 rushing attempts in the Cardinals' previous eight games, and he didn't carry the ball a single time in three of those games.

It seemed a foregone conclusion that James would be little more than a cheerleader as the Cardinals wrapped up their season.

But that all changed Sunday. Given a chance by coach Ken Whisenhunt, James responded with 100 yards on 14 carries and, in the process, likely reclaimed the starting job he had lost to rookie Tim Hightower.

Whisenhunt wouldn't confirm James' reemergence as the starter, but it seems inevitable. Hightower had just three carries for three yards, while James ran with power and speed, breaking off a 35-yard run in the fourth quarter that was the longest gain by a Cardinal this season and the longest of his Cardinals career.

Whisenhunt said he went with James because he thought his experience in late-season and playoff games would be helpful.

"We said early in the season we were going to need him at some point," Whisenhunt said. "Give him credit, he worked and he did a good job today."

One Cardinal who was happy to see James was quarterback Kurt Warner.

"He's seeing things, getting us an energy in the running game that we haven't had in a while," Warner said. "I think he is going to pay some big dividends for us down the road."

James, who was told early in the week by running backs coach Maurice Carthon that he would start, said he wasn't out to show anyone inside or outside the organization that he still had it. He just wanted to do what he's done throughout his 10-year career.

"I train to be somebody who hits the RBI and keeps people on base," he said. " ... I hate to lose yards. I just want to keep moving forward. At the end of the day, you're going to have big days."

Other than requesting a trade, James had made little noise since Hightower replaced him in the starting lineup against St. Louis on Nov. 2.

"My family has gotten in trouble because they've always reacted," he said. " ... I think it would have been embarrassing to my mama to if I acted up and behaved badly. That is what I didn't want to do - become a distraction."

James not only re-established himself as Arizona's primary back, he moved past Thurman Thomas and Franco Harris into 11th place among all-time rushers.

"That's big for me," said James, who also had his 57th career 100-yard game. "The first day I stepped onto the football field, I wanted to be one of the best backs to play this game."

(eastvalleytribune.com)

Edgerrin James replaced the ineffective Tim Hightower to start the second quarter.

Hightower ran seven times for 12 yards in the first quarter. In addition, on the final play of the quarter, he caught a short pass from Kurt Warner and fumbled.

Stephen Spach recovered for the Cardinals to prevent a likely Patriots' touchdown.

James had 19 yards on four carries.

Hightower returned to see more action late in the game, finishing with 10 carries for 17 yards.

He also dropped a pair of passes.

(eastvalleytribune.com)

Running back Edgerrin James' frustration over his playing time isn't likely to subside until he finds a new employer. And that will come after the season.

James, benched after the seventh game, has played sparingly since, although he could play a larger role Sunday in New England. Backup J.J. Arrington might not play because of a knee injury, and that could mean more time for James.

"We said all along that we're going to need Edgerrin," coach Ken Whisenhunt said. "He's an experienced back. He's played in New England before."

James, however, wants a larger role. This is the first time in his career that he has not started. Since losing the job to Tim Hightower, James hasn't played in three games and has seven carries for 15 yards.

James declined comment, but his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, said his client is frustrated.

"He feels like he can help so much," Rosenhaus said. "It's befuddling for him. Since the change has been made, there hasn't been an improvement. He's certainly not going to create a distraction but the level of frustration, it's rough."

As a starter, James carried 108 times for 380 yards, a 3.51-yard average. In his starts, Hightower has gained 246 yards on 81 carries. A 3.03-yard average.

James has played well against the Patriots. In nine games, he's averaged 105.6 yards rushing.

The Cardinals are sticking with Hightower as the starter because coaches view him as more of a big-play threat. James has had just four runs of more than 20 yards in three seasons with the Cardinals.

(azcentral.com)

Running back Edgerrin James isn't happy with his diminished role, but he enjoyed the division clinching victory and celebration. "It's the reason why I can here," he said. "I know it had the potential to accomplish this. It's unfortunate for the situation with myself. But at the end of the day, you're happy for the city of Phoenix. I'm for all of my teammates at the end of the day. It's not about me."

(mia.scout.com)

Edgerrin James showed up in the Cardinals second series of the game Sunday, his earliest appearance in weeks. He finished with three carries for 11 yards.
He's still behind Tim Hightower and J.J. Arrington on the hierarchy of carries and isn't likely to be a part of the team next season. However, he's softened his "release me" rhetoric of earlier in the season and appears content to be a team player from here on out.

(rotoworld.com)

If this was Terrelle Smith's football team, he knows exactly what he'd do next. He'd reinstate his roommate.

He'd bring back Edgerrin James as a featured running back.

"I wish they would," said Smith, the Cardinals' fullback. "Because the guy I live with is a terrific running back, and he's a true professional."
Let's hope Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt is open for suggestions.

Go to Edge. Talk to him. Enlist his help. Clear the air. Give him the ball. Lean on his experience. With the clock ticking toward the playoffs, it seems to be the only move the Cardinals have left.

It's worth a shot for many reasons, and if you haven't noticed, the crowd has thinned out around the punch bowl. After these past two games against the Giants and Eagles, it's clear the Cardinals' high-flying passing game can't impose its will against top-flight defenses. Their signature dish doesn't smell so special. At the moment, they are easy fodder for teams that can play rough and nasty come January.

Hence, the new data, the new elephant in the room: If the Cardinals' running game continues to be an embarrassment, they will just be taking up room when the playoffs begin. Even Kurt Warner knows that a change is needed, even though his MVP candidacy is built largely on an avalanche of 300-yard passing games.

"We've got to figure something out," Warner said. "When you're playing against good teams with good schemes, it's tough to throw all the time. It's tough to be a one-dimensional team and continue to be successful week in and week out.

"Do I think we do it as well as anybody in the league? Yeah. Can we be successful doing it? Yes. But it's tough to do it every single week. And so, we just have to get better, and we have to figure out a way to balance our passing attack."

The Cardinals can attack this problem from many fronts. They can throw shorter passes that look like running plays. They can block better. They could even integrate Anquan Boldin as a primary ball carrier. But gimmicks go only so far in football, a game where brute force usually prevails. Look it up. Historically, teams built to succeed are teams that can run the ball, stop the run and pressure the opposing quarterback.

Sadly, the Cardinals don't do any of that particularly well. But they can get hot, they can be a terrific team at home, and they can be a real threat if they regain some respect up front. The easiest fix seems to be stoking the pride of James, who does not make big plays but gets the tough yards.

While he lacks burst, James brings an earthy feel to the Cardinals offense. He makes a bigger impact against the better teams. That's the way he's built. That's why it's worth another shot, especially if James has something to prove.

Consider this another bizarre twist in a topsy-turvy season. On his first day of sideline exile, James watched the Cardinals punish the Rams, rushing for 176 yards. While James has made cameo appearances since, the refitted rushing attack has all but collapsed.

Collectively, the Cardinals' running backs have rushed for 27 yards or fewer in three of the past four games. Rookie Tim Hightower is no longer considered a draft-day steal, a guy worthy of national attention. He has just 85 yards on his past 42 carries. He is starting to dance a little too much, showing his inexperience and getting caught in the backfield a little too often.

"I guess I'm just focusing on doing whatever I can to help the team win," Hightower said when asked about the decline of the running game. "Regardless of what play is called and who is in the game, we've got to make it work. I don't think it's what other teams are doing to us. I don't think we're making plays in critical situations like we did earlier in the season."

Problem is, football constantly evolves. It changes with the weather and it changes with the calendar. When the games get later and the games get tougher, the holes (and the hurt) are inside. That's James' neighborhood.

So go to him, coach. He has pedigree. He won't pull a Stephon Marbury and turn the other cheek. He may even react like Donovan McNabb in Philadelphia, proof that you can bench a superstar and go home again.

(azcentral.com)

NAPLES — Edgerrin James could just watch Friday night, much like the night before.

The All-Pro running back stood along the fence near the Dunbar sideline, watching the Tigers’ tilt against the Naples High Golden Eagles at Staver Field.

The night before, Thanksgiving night, he stood on the sideline with an imaginary fence, that felt more like bars, surrounding him as the Arizona Cardinals were drummed by the Philadelphia Eagles, 48-20. The man who has seven 1,000-yard rushing seasons didn’t make it on the field. He didn’t get a single carry.

The lack of playing time is becoming a trend, which has James wanting out of Arizona.

The former Immokalee High and Miami Hurricanes standout may have lost his starting job but he still has a sense of humor. James joked that his situation in Arizona is like prison.

“I’m just waiting for my release ... like an inmate,” said James, pausing to give the punch line.

James, who was at the high school game to watch two of his relatives play for the Tigers, isn’t frustrated. The 30-year-old actually understands the situation. He said he doesn’t fit into Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt’s one-dimensional passing offense. The Cardinals only had 25 yards rushing on Thursday night.

“I don’t fit into their system,” said James, who stood out Friday night wearing a multi-colored striped shirt and a Yankees cap. “That’s all it is. So now I am just waiting for my release. I know I can still play. I’m not any different than last season when I had over a 1,000 yards, so I know it’s not me.”

James has one year remaining on a four-year contract signed in 2006. He is scheduled to make $5 million. He’d prefer to go to another team and try to show that he is worthy of the Hall of Fame.

James is only 9 yards shy of 12,000 career yards. But this season, he’s only run for 384 yards with 112 carries. Not exactly numbers associated with Canton.

“You don’t get this far and lay down,” James said. “I know I still belong in the league and I still believe I will be in the Hall of Fame.”

Across the sidelines at Staver Field, former Naples High standout and former NFL running back Fred McCrary could feel James’ pain. This is McCrary’s first season out of the NFL. And while he doesn’t miss it, enjoying time with his three boys, McCrary understands why James is disappointed.

“It’s frustrating when you can still play and want to play and you can’t get on the field,” said McCrary, who won a Super Bowl ring in his one season in New England, “especially when you know you are better than the other guy who took your spot.”

McCrary has no doubts that James’ 10-year career is far from over.

“He’ll definitely be playing next season,” McCrary said. “I’m not worried about him.”

To make it to Naples for Friday night’s high school tilt, James boarded a 6 a.m. flight to Miami and drove across Alligator Alley. Watching his nephew E.J. German, a defense end, and his cousin Davouris Mean, a wide receiver, play for the Tigers, James didn’t seem to have a care in the world.

“It’s a good time to be around family,” James said. “I try to get home as much as possible. It helps me keep my mind of other things.”

During halftime, a young boy approached James to remind him that he’s still a star. The boy told James that he is his favorite player.

“Last night, I used you as my running back when I was playing Xbox,” the boy explained. “And I won.”

James’ smile grew bigger and he rubbed the kids’ head as a form of gratitude. For James, at least someone’s giving him some love. At least, he’s getting playing time somewhere.

(naplesnews.com)

The news of running back Edgerrin James' request didn't appear to produce any added anxiety at the Cardinals' training facility on Thursday, perhaps because team officials dealt with it more than two weeks ago.

That's when James made the request through his agent, Drew Rosenhaus. The rest of the world found out about it Wednesday when the news became public.

"That was something that was brought up a couple of weeks ago and it was the same answer we've said all along," coach Ken Whisenhunt said. "We're interested in doing what's best for this team and what puts us in the best position to win."

For the rest of this season, that means James serving as a backup. James declined comment on Thursday beyond saying "I'm just in here working and doing what I'm supposed to do."

That's what Whisenhunt expects.

"Edgerrin, I'm sure, is unhappy," he said. "I understand that. But that happens a lot in the NFL. That happens a lot in life. The mark of being a professional is continuing to work and we expect Edgerrin to be a professional. That's what he's been."

(azcentral.com)

For a guy that can't get on the field, Edgerrin James just dropped the ball. He interrupted the feel-good story of the NFL, distracting the Cardinals and their fans before the biggest game of the year.

It will be a costly fumble in a Hall of Fame career.

Through his agent, James recently requested his release from the Cardinals, and on some level, his unhappiness is understandable. James effectively ranks fourth on the Cardinals' depth chart of running backs. His three carries over the past two games are fewer than wide receiver Anquan Boldin (four). In Sunday's win at Seattle, he watched as J.J. Arrington got the call and the ball in the fourth quarter of a close game. A proud man has been embarrassed by Ken Whisenhunt, who is using James to make a powerful statement.

The head coach will not tolerate players who gripe during the good times, who miss the only scheduled practice during a bye week, who strike some members of the organization as a guy not running that hard, particularly in that loss to the Panthers.

In his last 49 carries, James has gained 137 yards. Those numbers scream of a running back in decline, which James most certainly is not. They also don't reflect how much James has selflessly helped rookie Tim Hightower.

But it will be hard to defend James now, and here's the problem: By the end of the season, James will have collected $25 million of his $30 million contract with the Cardinals. And before the season is over, James will surely be needed by a team entering uncharted territory.

He should have kept his mouth shut, worked like Arrington to get back into good graces, and played out the season without any further complaints. In a worst-case scenario, he would've remained in the doghouse, released without any further attrition to his body, and able to resume his career next year with rested legs.

Instead, James just confirmed the public's worst perception of him - that he's driven only by money and statistics. It is in stark contrast to what James said earlier in the season when asked about his diminished role:

"Me? I want to win. I want to make my trip out here worthwhile. I want to do whatever it takes to help turn this program around."

Whatever it takes? Sometimes that means holding a clipboard, like Matt Leinart. Sometimes that means giving up carries because the team has two of the best wide receivers on the planet. It means being a team guy, and understanding the civic impact of the big picture. The worst franchise in sports history is 7-3 and could clinch its division title before Thanksgiving. The once-beleaguered Cardinals are in the hunt for a first-round playoff bye, and have a puncher's chance at the Super Bowl. This is no time to spike the Kool-Aid.

It's popular to bash the agent in stories like this, particularly a public nuisance like Drew Rosenhaus. When reached on Wednesday, Rosenhaus said James didn't want to be a distraction, which is almost laughable.

The story first appeared on a highly credible, football-specific website (profootballtalk.com). It appeared without any sources or attribution. That means the story was likely leaked by the agent, who was then conveniently forced to comment when his office was flooded with phone calls. But, hey, sorry for the distraction.

Bad move, guys. James was guaranteed his $5 million salary in 2008 when he made the opening day roster. It's one of many reasons why the Cardinals do not and will not release James, who might be needed if Hightower gets injured.

James is highly intelligent, and should have known as much. He should have known that such a tactic was not only futile and fruitless, but likely to land him in the fan's doghouse at the worst possible time.

After all, it's been a historic season for the Cardinals. Too bad not everyone is enjoying the view.

(azcentral.com)

Edgerrin James asked the Cardinals to release him after he was benched in favor of Tim Hightower in Week 9, according to Profootballtalk.com.
Arizona refused, opting to keep Edge as a third stringer for insurance behind Hightower and J.J. Arrington. James' $5M salary for 2008 is guaranteed, so there was no reason for Arizona to give him to another team. At the time Joseph Addai was struggling in Indianapolis and the Colts could have given their old friend a long look. Denver also could've put in a waiver claim.

(rotoworld.com)

A day after rookie Tim Hightower ran for 109 yards in his first NFL start and former Pro Bowl running back Edgerrin James was relegated to the bench without playing a down, Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt emphasized James “is a valuable part of this team.”

Left unsaid was what that means on a tangible level.

Not surprisingly, most of the questions to start off Whisenhunt’s Monday press conference were about the status of the veteran James after his benching in a 34-13 win in St. Louis.

Whisenhunt said James will get chances to carry the ball and “we are going to need Edge.”

It was clear, however, that James’ most important role at this point will be insurance in case of any injury to Hightower. James does not play special teams, so when he doesn’t play running back – as in Sunday’s game – he takes up a valuable roster spot.

But even with J.J. Arrington making plays as a runner himself (62 yards on six carries against the Rams), the Cards will need James should Hightower go down. For that reason, Whisenhunt said he doesn’t see a reason James would be made inactive on game days.

Bigger picture, Whisenhunt said it’s up to the player to handle such a demotion and not let it affect the team. He pointed to the way veteran Jerome Bettis dealt with his lesser role in Pittsburgh while Whisenhunt coached there, at the point where Willie Parker became the featured back.

“A lot of that is the responsibility of the player and how he deals with it,” Whisenhunt said. “Edge has tremendous credentials, he’s been an important part of this team and he still is.

“For us to win … the thing that has to be the most important in our players’ minds is the team. I’ve seen tremendous signs of that. They understand we will need everybody.”

Of course, by the time Parker burst on the scene, Bettis was already thinking retirement and dearly wanted a Super Bowl ring first. Bettis had also been losing carries to Duce Staley or Amos Zeroue the previous few seasons.

James wants a ring, but he clearly does not see himself as at the end of his career and has been the workhorse back every year since arriving in the NFL. At the same time, James – who, like all players was off Monday and unavailable – did not sound like he was looking to undermine the team even after watching healthy from the sideline for the first time in his career.

“They can sit me down for the rest of the year,” James said after the Rams’ game. “I’ll (still) come out and go to work.”

Whisenhunt repeated a couple of times there are situations for which James would be the best player – the coach was not specific what those would be – and cautioned Hightower had not yet “arrived.”

Offensive coordinator Todd Haley pointed out that Hightower had too many negative runs. Hightower had four such runs against the Rams for a total of 14 yards in losses.

But Hightower also had four runs of at least 15 yards (and one wiped out because of a penalty). In his 2½ seasons in Arizona, James had just 14 runs of at least 15 yards (in 769 rushing attempts). Ultimately, that bigger-play ability put Hightower into the lineup – and got James removed.

“I believe guys are given opportunities when they earn it and you’re judging it on how they do on the field,” Whisenhunt said. “If you hold true to those decisions, by and large you will make the right decisions. That is what has guided me, guided us, since we have been here.”

(azcardinals.com)

It would be a mistake to believe the benching of Cardinals running back Edgerrin James last week was a direct result of James' recent expressions of frustration over his diminishing role.

Although his comments didn't endear James to anyone in the organization, they weren't inflammatory enough by themselves to keep him standing on the sideline, healthy, for the first time in his career. It was, instead, a confluence of many factors that brought James and the Cardinals to this point.

The reasons for the benching can be traced to 2007, when Ken Whisenhunt was named head coach of the Cardinals, a season after the team signed James to four-year, $30 million deal.

Part of the reason for signing James was to sell tickets in the opening season of University of Phoenix Stadium. But no one is saying that James didn't play hard and produce with the Cardinals. He rushed for more than 1,000 yards in consecutive seasons, the first Cardinals back to do that since Ottis Anderson in 1983-84.

But it was telling that as soon as the season ended, the Cardinals talked about the need to add a running back with big-play ability. In 2½ years with the team, James' longest run is 27 yards and he's had only four runs that have gained more than 20 yards.

So the Cardinals drafted Tim Hightower out of Richmond in the fifth round, and it was obvious from his first practice that his skills were much different from those of James. Vision and agility are James' strengths. He has an instinct for finding creases in the defense and he rarely loses yards.

Hightower is a powerful runner who makes quick, decisive cuts and explodes through a hole. Those attributes are a nice fit for this offense, so it seemed only a matter of time before Hightower began to take carries away from James.

James' personality played a part in losing the job, too. Not that he's a bad influence in the locker room. He's liked by his teammates and he has been selfless in mentoring Hightower in the nuances of the NFL, from how to take care of his body to how to watch video of opponents.

But James hasn't been a team leader, either. As he said Sunday, he is not a "yes man," and he's often gone his own way. He never wanted to be a team captain, and he valued his independence when it came to decisions on working out at the team facility in the off-season or attending voluntary workouts.

The fact that James missed the only practice during the recent off week didn't go unnoticed, either.

So it wasn't a few comments in a few interviews that sent James to the bench. It was a culmination of factors, with one being the most important: This Hightower kid could be pretty good.

(azcentral.com)

Week Nine was one of those changing-of-the-guard weeks that occur every so often, with a bunch of relatively anonymous players having breakthrough performances and several established veterans finding themselves unofficially marginalized. Here’s a look at five established vets who reached the end of the road this past weekend.

1. Edgerrin James — It seemed inevitable that Tim Hightower would take over as the Cardinals’ lead back at some point this season. The rookie had been making the most of the half-dozen or so touches he’d been getting each game, and James was getting fewer and fewer carries as the season progressed. But the passing of the torch came abruptly in Week Nine, when James stood idling on the sideline while Hightower carried 22 times for 109 yards and a TD. James never quite met expectations with the Cardinals after his amazing seven-year run with the Colts. The Edge is gaining 3.5 yards per carry this season and has never gained 4.0 yards per carry during any of his seasons in Arizona after averaging at least 4.0 in six of his seven years with Indianapolis. Hightower had a 30-yard TD run against the Rams on Sunday; in 2½ seasons with the Cardinals, James has a long run of 27 yards. Now it appears that his long run as a valuable fantasy contributor is over.

2. Willis McGahee — A bad ankle sidelined McGahee during the Ravens’ Week Nine win over the Browns, but the play of rookie Ray Rice could keep McGahee sidelined in the weeks to come. McGahee has been hindered by injuries all year, which might be part of the reason why he’s gaining only 3.5 yards per carry. He ran for 105 yards in Week Seven and finished the month of October by running for TDs in consecutive games, but there have been warning signs lately, including an eight-carry, 18-yard performance against a bad Indianapolis run defense in Week Six and a per-carry average of 2.5 yards against the hapless Raiders in Week Eight. Rice and Le’Ron McClain both have run well for the Ravens this season, and Rice’s 154-yard performance against the Browns was an eye-opener. McGahee simply hasn’t been that effective this season, and with the 5-3 Ravens in the thick of the playoff chase, it’s a good bet that head coach John Harbaugh will use his best runner(s) rather than stubbornly sticking with the high-salary guy.

(profootballweekly.com)

The Arizona Republic reports though he fully supports RB Tim Hightower, Cardinals RB Edgerrin James privately is peeved about his new role - as a potential Hall of Fame player being phased out of the equation and likely being released after this season. Cardinals HC Ken Whisenhunt, when pressed Monday about the running-back controversy on his 5-3 team, said it is his hope that James responds like RB Jerome Bettis did in Pittsburgh when the Steelers were getting ready to unleash RB Willie Parker. James wasn't available for comment Monday, as Whisenhunt gave the team the day off. But after Sunday's game, James said the decision to not play him "was personal." And therein lies the difference between him and Bettis. Three years ago, when the Steelers won Super Bowl XL, Bettis already had decided he was going to retire and make way for Parker. But James, who is under contract with the Cardinals for another year, says he is nowhere near done playing. Whisenhunt said for the Cardinals to reach the playoffs, "the thing that has to be the most important in our players' mind is the team, and I see tremendous signs of that with our football team." Yes, but does he see that from Edgerrin James? "I have no indication otherwise," Whisenhunt responded.

(ffmastermind.com)

Edgerrin James still has a role with the Cardinals. But while coach Ken Whisenhunt made this point clear on Monday, he didn’t exactly define what that role will be, other than he will back up Tim Hightower, the team’s new starting running back.

James, the No. 13 rusher in NFL history, sat out Sunday’s win at St. Louis entirely while Hightower made a smashing debut with 109 yards.

“Edge” speculated afterward he was benched because he wasn’t a “yes man.” He had previously lobbied publicly for a bigger role in the offense.

James is still “a valuable part of this team,” Whisenhunt said.

Whisenhunt didn’t spell out if James would play in all future games. But he said, “He’s a good running back. When the opportunity presents itself, he’ll get chances to carry the ball. We’re going to need Edge.”

The coach indicated James will be on the active roster for games, saying, “I would hate to think if, God forbid, something would happen to Tim in a game, it would be nice to have Edge available to carry the ball.”

“Just like we’ve done all year, Tim has gotten carries, J.J. (Arrington) has gotten carries, as well as Edge. We’ve used backs in situations that give us the best chance to win.”

Whisenhunt said he’s “excited” to see Hightower’s progress. But he reminded everyone not to get carried away by one big game.

“We have to see over time in order to say Tim has arrived, as a lot of people want to say based on one game. ...

“Let’s be very clear about this: The reason he played is because he worked hard and earned the opportunity to play and has shown in games he can pick up blitzes, that he could do a good job running with the football, that he’s a receiver coming out of the backfield.

“We wouldn’t have put him in there if we didn’t feel like he was going to have a chance to be successful and give us the best chance to win.”

Hightower seems to be in the mold of his coach, a guy who supposedly has limited physical tools (he was ignored by the NFL draft combine) but is a hard-working overachiever.

Whisenhunt pointed to several other young Cardinals who seem to have the same approach, including Steve Breaston, Calais Campbell and Ali Highsmith.

“That’s the type of attitude we’ve tried to instill, that’s the kind of environment we’ve tried to foster.

“Is Tim part of that? Absolutely. He does have that attitude.

“I don’t know if you can relate that to me, but ... yes, Tim has those qualities.”

(eastvalleytribune.com)

ST. LOUIS - The torch has been passed at the Cardinals’ running back spot. Tim Hightower replaced Edgerrin James in the starting lineup Sunday; James had started 135 straight games in his career.

What’s more, the Cardinals went with Hightower, who ran for 109 yards, and J.J. Arrington (62 yards) in the backfield, not “Edge.”

Whisenhunt said he hadn’t planned on sitting James, the NFL’s No. 13 running back of all time, for the whole game. But with the Cardinals rolling, he stuck with what was working.

“That is just the way the game developed,” Whisenhunt said.

James, though, said, “It’s been brewing for a while. I’m not surprised. I’m happy for Tim.

“I’m supportive of him and happy for him.”

James, though he wasn’t specific, seemed to suggest his suggestion two weeks ago that he be more involved in the offense worked against him.
“I don’t fit the yes-man mode. It’s always going to come down on me.”

James, asked if his earlier comments played a role in his benching, replied, “I don’t know what it was.

“I’m not going to be a yes man. They can sit me down for the rest of the year.

“It don’t matter. I’ll come out and go to work.

After his comments, James had a subpar game at Carolina, including a lost fumble.

James said he expected High­tower to play, and, “I expected him to have a big day. We knew we should have a big day running the ball regardless of who was in there.”

James and Hightower have become friends, a relationship James said he intends to keep.

“I’m not gong to let somebody come between me and Tim. That’s just how I am.

“When this is all over, I’ll still be friends with Tim. That’s more important.”

James and Hightower stood near each other during the game, with the veteran giving the rookie advice.

“I’m going to help him as much as I can. Tim is going to be all right.”

Hightower praised James:

“Edge prepared me all week. He helped me to know what to look for and kind of calmed me down. He stayed with me all game and helped me out.”

(eastvalleytribune.com)

Update:
Though there was no announced starting lineup change before the game, James was benched in favor of Tim Hightower on Sunday, the Arizona Republic reports. James did not receive a single touch all game, while Hightower surpassed 100 yards off 22 carries. J.J. Arrington was used as the Cardinals' second back, gaining 62 yards off six carries and adding five receptions for 57 yards.

Recommendation:
At this point, there have been no reports that James was banged up. There is also nothing that has surfaced that would lead to the conclusion that James' lack of action was the result of any disciplinary action from the team, so the fact that he went without a single touch on Sunday is a bit baffling. More light on this situation is sure to be shed over the next few days but, for the time being, James' value has taken an enormous hit. He's no longer startable in leagues of any size or format.

(rotowire.com)

Edgerrin James has had to navigate some treacherous terrain in his career, but never in territory that felt this unfamiliar.

Call it the land of aging running backs who feel they're being phased out for younger, shinier models. In the Cardinals' case, that model is Tim Hightower.

"It's cool with me," James said Monday when told Hightower could get more snaps. "That's the way it was heading, anyway."

It's not cool with him.

He's a proud man who believes he still has a lot to offer. He's knocking at the Hall of Fame's door but could barrel through it by adding a pair of 1,000-yard seasons. Today, he's already 13th overall on the NFL's all-time rushing list with 11,987 yards. Two more 1,000-plus efforts would leapfrog him to seventh.

James, 30, caused a stir last week when he told The Republic's Kent Somers that he was frustrated by his role in the Cardinals offense. On Monday he added that he feels like the team has "put me in a position to fail."

Though it's tempting to lump James into the category of disgruntled, disruptive athlete, it wouldn't be right. He was asked fair questions and responded with honest answers. He didn't call the organization cheap or clueless or any other pejorative some past Cardinals have flung the team's way. He believes he could be used better and, although he might not be right, he's entitled to his opinion. This is not divisive, split-the-team stuff. He is well liked in that locker room, and as Anquan Boldin has shown, if you have the respect of your teammates, what you say doesn't matter if they still believe you'll give your heart, your right arm, your sinus membrane or anything else for the team.

"(What James said) isn't even talked about in here," Boldin said Monday. "I would expect him to say that. He's a playmaker, a competitor, and that's just him being competitive. He wants the ball in his hands. What's wrong with that?"

I get that. I also get James feeling uncomfortable Monday when questions were asked about his playing time.

"Perception never works in my favor," he said.

Labels are a tricky thing. Dreadlocks and a since-removed grill are about appearance, not judgment. They make him an individualist, not a separatist. There's a difference.

Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt never said Hightower was supplanting James. He simply said Monday, when asked, that he is open to the possibility.

"I think we've shown we're going to play with the players that we feel give us the best chance to win," he said. "We've done that with the quarterbacks, we've done that with linebacker, with the offensive line.

"At a point we feel Tim gives us the best chance to win, then absolutely. Just don't think we'll judge it based on just yesterday's game. It's a process."

After averaging 20 carries in the Cardinals' first three games, James has carried nine and seven times, respectively, in the past two.
Hightower carried seven and six in those games but has six touchdowns overall to James' three.

The scenario is complicated by a recent offensive shift to a pass-heavy attack. Against Carolina, the Cardinals had 14 carries to 51 pass attempts in part because the Panthers frequently had seven or eight players in the box, creating situations such as one of the touchdown passes to Boldin, when he was covered by only a linebacker.

James is no dummy. The Cardinals aren't announcing a shift, but it sure feels like the beginning of a transition, and although Hightower has looked impressive, he's a rookie. Things change.

James needs to stay on top of his game and not let the concern about his future dictate the present. I believe he's bigger than that.
The Cardinals need him to be.

(azcentral.com)

The University of Miami has announced its 2009 class of inductees to the UM Sports Hall of Fame.

The six former student-athletes range from a track-and-fielder to a golfer to baseball and football players. All were stars in their respective sports, though some are more well known than others.

UM football fans will immediately recognize running back Edgerrin James, who also will soon be introduced as a new member of UM's Ring of Honor. James played from 1996-98 and holds the school record of 299 yards in 39 carries against UCLA in 1998. He is second all-time in rushing yards (2,960) and rushing touchdowns (32).

James, whose cousin Javarris James currently plays for UM, was drafted fourth overall by the Indianapolis Colts in 1999 and now plays for the Arizona Cardinals.

The other soon-to-be inducted UM Sports Hall of Fame members:
• Warren Bogle, baseball, 1966-1967.
• Davian Clarke, track, 1995-1998.
• Aubrey Huff, baseball, 1997-1998.
• Cathy Morse, golf, 1974-1977.
• Mike Sullivan, football, 1987-1990.

The induction ceremony will be April 23 at Jungle Island in Miami.

(miamiherald.com)

Edgerrin James' numbers are in decline, but James insists that his talents are not. That is part of what has the veteran running back so frustrated about his role in the Cardinals offense, and irritated by the criticism generated by his decreased production.

James insisted he didn't want to cause controversy by answering questions about how he's being used this season. But he admitted several times on Wednesday that he's frustrated.

With 363 yards on 101 attempts, James is on pace to rush for 968 yards and 269 carries this season. Both numbers would be his lowest totals since 2001, when he missed 10 games with a knee injury.

"I don't know what's going on," he said. "I'm just here, just going to ride it out and get to the playoffs and, hey, that may be it right there."
That's a reference to his future with the team, not his career. James' contract runs through the 2009 season, but there are no assurances the Cardinals will keep him after this year.

He is due to make $5 million in salary next season, and the club has a promising young player in rookie Tim Hightower.

Asked if he wanted to return next year, James said he just wants to play.

"I don't want to just be on a team; I like to play," he said. "If I'm not playing, it's not serving a purpose. What purpose is it serving? I don't want to feel like I'm selfish but you want to play.

"Hey, I still got years in me, I know that. I can still play some ball. I ain't worried."

Eye for the records
James came to Arizona in 2006, signing a four-year $30 million deal, and he became only the second back in team history to gain more than 1,000 yards in consecutive seasons.

Statistics have always been important to James. When he came to the Cardinals from Indianapolis, he jokingly warned his offensive line not to mess up his Hall of Fame chances. He is just 30 yards shy of 12,000 career rushing yards and needs 105 more to pass Thurman Thomas to become 12th on the NFL's all-time list.

Those 105 yards won't be easy to come by this year. Hightower has emerged as the team's short-yardage and goal-line back. Ten times the team has called upon him when it's needed a yard on third and fourth downs, and he's converted each time.

Backup J.J. Arrington has played an integral role on offense in the past two games, while Hightower is likely to get more carries as the season progresses.

Coach Ken Whisenhunt views the depth at running back as something that will serve the team well, just as it did at receiver and on the defensive line.

"I'm glad that (James) wants more carries," Whisenhunt said. "I think that's a good sign for all competitive players; they want the ball. That's why Edge is where he is and why he's been so successful, but I think the trend, not just with us but throughout the league, is sharing the carries."

The main criticism of James is that he lacks big-play ability. In three seasons here, he has 762 rushing attempts but has only four carries of 20 or more yards.

Unreasonable expectations?
In the off-season, the Cardinals expressed a desire to acquire a speedier back. They settled on Hightower, a fifth-round choice out of Richmond not known for his speed. But he's made some explosive plays already this season, including a 17-yard touchdown run in a victory over the Bills.

James knows he's not much of a threat to go 70 yards. The Cardinals should have known it, too, when they signed him.

"When I came here, I came a certain way," he said. "I wasn't going to hit no 70, 80 (yards). I was going to non-stop grind, make my plays and keep wearing a team out.

"That's what I've always done and now it's like I'm supposed to be Superman. You want to have success, you want to do things and that's the most frustrating thing, I know I can play, I know I'm a good player."

The Cardinals are ranked 28th in the NFL in rushing, averaging 86.8 yards a game, but they are third in passing and sixth overall.

They have also won two consecutive games and at 4-2, have a two-game lead in the NFC West division.

"I don't want to seem like I'm bad-mouthing the system," James said. "I've never been somebody to just go off on somebody. I don't want this to appear negative because that's not my style."

But this offensive system, he said, is "totally different" from the one he expected the Cardinals would use when he signed in 2006. "And I have to take all the criticism," he said.

With the Cardinals winning, James doesn't want his frustration to become a focal point. It would be an accomplishment, he said, to make the playoffs at least once while with the Cardinals.

But James believes he still an elite player. The 30-something running back who has lost a step is "not me," he said, "but my career won't end like that. I know that."

(azcentral.com)

It's too early in the season to tell for sure if running back Edgerrin James' role in the offense will diminish, but that might be the case. In his first two years in Arizona, James was the Cardinals workhorse, averaging about 330 carries a year. But those numbers have dropped this year.

Through six games, James has carried 101 times; an average of about 17 carries a game. At that pace, he'll finish with 272 carries, his lowest total since 2002 when he was with Indianapolis.

It's hard to say if the fewer number of carries is a trend or just a result of offensive schemes in a small sample of games. James carried nine times in the victory over Dallas, for instance, but had 21 the week before the victory over the Bills. He carried just nine times against Miami in Week 2, mostly because the team relied on the pass in the victory.

But there are indications too, that James' backups are assuming larger roles in the offense. Rookie Tim Hightower appears ready to become more than just the team's short-yardage and first-down back. He's more of a one-cut running back and is more explosive than James, whose strength is his vision and agility.

While Hightower doesn't have blazing speed, he appears faster than James. And it's important to note that in three seasons in Arizona, James has just four runs of 20 yards or more. And he's carried the ball 762 times.

J.J. Arrington, the team's No. 3 back, is playing a larger role on offense too. Inactive for the first four games, Arrington is an excellent situational back, and his speed makes him dangerous if the team can get him in some open space, usually through screens and draws.

(ind.scout.com)

Edgerrin James ran for 57 yards and a touchdown and caught two passes for 21 yards in the Cardinals' Week 5 win.
James has now scored in consecutive weeks after going touchdown-less in Weeks 1-3. Still, he is an grinding runner without big-play ability and continues to lose goal line chances to Tim Hightower. Sell high if you can.

(rotoworld.com)

Edgerrin James totaled 29 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries and caught five passes for 37 yards in Week 4 against the Jets.
Nine carries tied James' lowest total since Week 12 of the 2006 season, but he scored twice from short yardage after the Cardinals fell behind huge in the second half, producing multiple touchdowns for the first time since 2005. Tim Hightower figures to keep getting goal-line work in non-blowouts, so don't make too much of James' afternoon.

(rotoworld.com)

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)

ASHBURN, Va. (AP) _ Edgerrin James and Clinton Portis aren't comparing notes this week.

The University of Miami pals usually call each other all the time, offering ad hoc scouting reports on opponents past and future. One can only imagine what the conversations are like when two elite backs are talking shop.

"Everybody else that we play, it's 'What do you see?' 'What you think?' 'What works?'" Portis said. "This week, I'm sure neither one of us is going to give each other advice on how to help defeat the other team."

Of course not. James' Arizona Cardinals and Portis' Washington Redskins are going head-to-head Sunday, offering a treat for running back aficionados. James and Portis are two of only six players in league history to average at least 110 total years from scrimmage per game.

"It's enjoyable because I know he's playing against a great defense," Portis said, "and he knows I'm playing against a great defense, so it's always a competition."

James ranks fourth on the list with an average of 115.6, while Portis is sixth at 111.5 among backs who have played a minimum of 85 games. Nos. 1, 3 and 5 — Jim Brown, Barry Sanders and Walter Payton — are in the Hall of Fame. LaDainian Tomlinson is No. 2.

James has been easy to overlook this season because Kurt Warner is back to his old self at quarterback, leading the Cardinals to 23-13 and 31-10 victories with downfield passes to Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald. James has 44 carries for 155 yards, a modest 3.5 average, although last week he became 14th player in league history last week to reach 15,000 scrimmage yards.

Portis, like the rest of the Redskins offense, picked up his game in Week 2 after a difficult opener. He ran for 96 yards in last week's victory against the New Orleans Saints, giving him 180 yards on 44 carries for a 4.1 average.

"Watching Clinton Portis strain for the extra yard can fire you right up," Redskins coach Jim Zorn said. "That is what a running back is made for in this game."

Portis' has been in the news for other reasons in recent days. Last week, he made remarks to The Washington Post that could have been interpreted as an insult to his offensive line or his team's offensive scheme. Then, on Tuesday, he and former Redskins kick returner Brian Mitchell had a testy exchange on a radio show, with Portis upset over the way he had been criticized by Mitchell.

"He said what he had to say," Portis said. "I said what I had to say, and that's pretty much it."

Portis added that he has no problem with his linemen or the Redskins organization.

"If they had a problem with me, they wouldn't have gone out and blocked," Portis said. "If I was calling my linemen out, why didn't they quit on me? ... Portis wants to be here. If Portis wanted to be somewhere else, I'd be somewhere else."

Both squabbles were readily dismissed in light of the team's performance in the 29-24 win over the Saints, a game Portis said was just a taste of things to come.

"Just knowing this offense can get better is exciting," he said. "It's just a matter of doing it, week-in and week-out."

(rockymountainnews.com)

Cardinals running back Edgerrin James became the 14th player in NFL history to surpass 15,000 career yards from scrimmage with a third quarter run Sunday against the Dolphins.

James' game jersey and the ball he carried to reach the milestone are being sent to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio for display.

James is the 12th running back on the list and the only current player.

(azcentral.com)

With his 55 rushing yards on the day, Cardinals running back Edgerrin James now has 15,004 yards from scrimmage in his career, and is just the 14th player in NFL history to have that many yards, according to the Arizona Republic.



(nooffseason.com)

Edgerrin James' vision has always given him an edge.

Taken by the Indianapolis Colts as the fourth pick in the 1999 draft -- a slight surprise one spot ahead of Ricky Williams -- James has rushed for 11,607 yards in nine seasons. After games, he'd flash back to plays as if he had a photographic memory. He could tell you the defensive coverages or the angle a linebacker was taking. James runs with his mind as well as with his legs.

James offers an interesting insight in regard to the state of running backs in the league. "This is no more smash-mouth football,'' James said.

Come to think of it, he's right. Brandon Jacobs (264 pounds) of the Giants, LenDale White (235 pounds) of the Titans and Jamal Lewis (245 pounds) of the Browns may cause big headaches for defenses because of their size and impact, but it's not the size of the dog that works in backfields nowadays, it's the speed of the dog.

"It's a speed game,'' James said. "Everybody is passing. The NFL has turned into a passing game. You have the stretch play and zone blocking.''
James isn't complaining. At 215 pounds, James is rarely going to overpower a defender. Early in his career he didn't have to, he could just outrun them, but a knee reconstruction forced him to make a few changes. Once he came back from his knee injury, the yards kept coming. He's had seven 1,000-yard seasons, including five in a row.

James believes the leaguewide shift to short, safe passes has created more of a level playing field for running backs.

"Look at the guys on the defensive side of the ball,'' James said. "They aren't as big. You don't have all of those 250-pound linebackers that you used to have back in the day. Now, you have only a few. Now, there may only be three or four big guys on the field on defense at any given time. A lot of the linebackers are 220 or 230 pounds. ''

James gets a break playing in the NFC, where there are only three teams that use the 3-4 defense -- an alignment designed a little more for size. The three-man front requires a big nose tackle and bigger linebackers, because they engage guards and centers more often. The NFC is more of a Cover 2, 4-3 defense conference, featuring smaller linemen and linebackers than the AFC.

At 215 pounds, James feels at home in the NFC, and he definitely feels comfortable with the way the game is changing. Coaches around the league are copying the Giants' four-defensive end pass-rush scheme that caught fire late last season and helped them upset the Patriots in the Super Bowl. James feels the more defensive ends, the better.

"Defensive ends, they just want sacks,'' James said. "You don't worry about them. There are some defenses where you see only two big guys on the field. When everybody is trying to get sacks, that works in a running back's favor.''

James turned 30 this summer, a scary age for running backs. Teams target backs for replacement when they get to 28 or 29 and have wear and tear on their bodies from more than 1,600 carries. Though his rushing average has slipped under 4 yards an attempt in the past two seasons, James believes backs can last longer now thanks to the greater emphasis on passing.

He looks at the success stories of Fred Taylor, Tiki Barber and Curtis Martin having career years in their 30s. Williams beat out Ronnie Brown for the starting job in Miami. He's 31. The league isn't geared toward rewarding backs once they turn 30, but the opportunity is there if an older back is smart enough to take advantage of it.

"I think the 30th birthday thing is more of a cliché,'' James said. "I've talked to Curtis Martin, Tiki Barber and Fred Taylor. The main thing is every year you have to make sure you don't get bigger. The offseasons are more important as you get older. Look what Fred Taylor did last year. You don't worry about 30.''

James didn't turn back the clock this offseason, but he did fight the scale. In 2007, the Cardinals, under new coach Ken Whisenhunt, tried to find their identity. Whisenhunt wanted to bring the Pittsburgh Steelers' power running game to the Cardinals, a team that has been based on the three-receiver philosophy. Assistant head coach Russ Grimm tried to build a bigger, more physical offensive line.

The running game struggled. Matt Leinart was injured and Kurt Warner took over at quarterback. The situation wasn't easy for a running back. The Cardinals trailed in a lot of games and had to pass to stay competitive. Warner played with an elbow injury, making it hard to hand off to his right.

James finished with 1,222 yards and a 3.8-yard average, which he considered a good start in a new offense. After the season, he immediately started training for 2008.

First, he made sure he would be lighter. For the power game of 2007, he bulked up to 220 pounds. Now he's 215, give or take a pound or two. He did more squats to build up his leg strength and explosiveness.

"Stronger and lighter equals being faster,'' James said.

Even though Whisenhunt still wants to establish the Cardinals' physical presence with a power running game, James believes the trends of the league suggest the Cardinals will stay with a three-receiver set and a balanced attack. After all, the trend toward more passing makes the NFL a finesse league, which James likes.

"It's still a simple game,'' James said. "As a running back, you go where they aren't, you have a forward lean and you keep playing. As the game goes on, the yards are going to come.''

James does it the smart way. He'll keep running until the NFL takes the ball away from him.

(espn.com)

Beat writer Kent Somers said on ESPNews Friday that he'd guess Edgerrin James will get two-thirds of the Cardinals' carries this season.

We project Arizona to run 383 times in 2008. 2/3 of that would give Edge 257 carries, way down from the 325 he saw last year. If he maintains his YPC average (3.8), it leaves James at 977 yards. He could lose short-yardage carries to Tim Hightower and third-down work to J.J. Arrington.

(rotoworld.com)

The Arizona Cardinals have had more bad years than good ones over the past decades, perhaps in part because when they do have decent players they don’t use them right?

I’m guessing on that for the most part. But it’s definitely true in the case of Edgerrin James, whom they acquired during free agency from Indianapolis in 2006. In his two seasons in Phoenix James has caught 38 and 24 passes, the latter tying for his lowest production out of the backfield in his career.

The previous seven with the Colts he never had fewer than 44 catches in a season during which he played more than six games - and the year he hurt his knee, 2001, he was on pace to have another 64 catches for more than 500 yards.

Cardinals offensive coordinator Todd Haley hopes to better utilize that part of James’ game, according to an ESPN blog. He’d be well served to do so. While the Cards have a great wide receiver duo in Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald, neither are speed burners, so utilizing an underneath option can only help open the field for bigger plays.

Getting James the ball in the flats and beyond the line of scrimmage is also a way to put it in his hands without subjecting him to monstrous hits in the trenches, never a bad thing for a running back in his 10th season and approaching the big 30.

James probably isn’t going to start producing 2,000 combined yardage seasons again as he did three times with the Colts. But a similar season to 2007 rushing the ball coupled with a doubling of his receptions and receiving yardage would put him in the mix as a solid fantasy contributor during the season ahead.

(zoneblitz.com)

Running back Edgerrin James turns 30 Friday, but don't tell him or the Cardinals that's cause for concern. Whisenhunt says there are high expectations for James, who has shown more quickness than a year ago. There was a lot of speculation that the Cardinals would use a high draft choice on a running back, but that didn't happen. Instead they waited until the fifth round to take Hightower.

James' numbers were up across the board last season in his second year with the Cardinals, and the team -- and James -- expects that trend to continue this season. So far he looks spry in camp.

(cnnsi.com)

You can’t tell for sure yet, but so far Edgerrin James doesn’t look like he’s lost anything.
“Edge looks good,” said Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt, who called James’ 1,222-yard season last year “solid.”

He hopes the running game will be better this season because “We’ll all be a little better.

“Our line will be a little bit better. We know what Edge does well. We know what our line does well.

“If we blend those things, we hope we’ll be a little better running team than we were last year.”

The Cardinals ranked only 29th in rushing last season, with 90 yards per game.

Whether James has slowed down a bit, he cautioned, can’t be seen definitively in practice where breaking tackles and running in the open field aren’t the issues they are in games.

The scrutiny will be ramped up because James turns 30 on Friday.

That’s the time running backs are considered eligible for their AARP card.

“That’s like a cliché,” James responded. “After all I’ve done and the way I take care of my body, I’m not even concerned with that.”

“I see guys who haven’t played as long as I have, they’re missing practice and not able to play every game … the past couple years, I’ve been there every day for practice, I’ve been out there every week for the games.”

James ranks No. 13 all time with 11,607 rushing yards. If he runs for 1,200 this season, he’ll rank No. 7 all time.

(eastvalleytribune.com)

Edgerrin James turns 30 Aug. 1, normally a dangerous age for veteran running backs – especially ones with 2,849 career carries. But James will be the centerpiece for the Cardinals’ running game in 2008, thanks to three key factors: he keeps himself in phenomenal shape; his game isn’t based on speed, so it hasn’t diminished much; and the Cards really didn’t bring in anyone to challenge James. Holdovers Marcel Shipp and J.J. Arrington will battle fifth-round pick Tim Hightower for roster spots while Edge sits atop the depth chart. James is a proud man who believes he is as good as he always has been, and improvement from the offensive line will help.

(azcardinals.com)

6. Willis McGahee, Baltimore Ravens. On an offense that can only run the ball, McGahee was the runner. He is a versatile rusher who can attack the edges as well as take on defenders between the tackles.

7. Frank Gore, San Francisco 49ers. Gore has carried his team in recent seasons and established himself as one of the league's premier backs with little help. With Mike Martz in the fold as the Niners' offensive coordinator, look for Gore to become a force once again as a dual threat runner and receiver.

12. Clinton Portis, Washington Redskins. Another back who is a tremendous fit for the zone-blocking scheme. Portis is a power runner with the vision and cutback ability to find daylight and get to and through linebackers.

14. Edgerrin James, Arizona Cardinals. Although James is on the downside of his career, he is still a productive runner who will benefit from the run-first mentality in Arizona.

Click here to see the rest of the rankings.

Our sources in the desert tell us that starting RB Edgerrin James couldn’t have looked in better shape for what figures to be another 20- to 25-carries-per-game workload this coming season.




(pfw.com)

Running back Edgerrin James has been in a light-hearted mood minicamp weekend, and there could be several reasons for that.

For one, the Cardinals didn’t draft a running back high – Tim Hightower was a fifth-round choice and won’t unseat James anytime soon – so James remains the unquestioned starter. Second is the stability of the offense, which James said is so much better defined than it was during times in 2007.

“Last year, we really didn’t even know who we were,” James said. “Now, I think from a coaching staff standpoint, they know exactly what they want and what they have.”

But the biggest reason is because James has stayed away from Arizona since the end of the season, a process he always regards as important.

“If you stay around this is becomes mundane and kind of boring,” James said. “For me, that’s always something that makes me miss the game, getting totally away and rest and recovery. I (do) train. When I get bored, I train. I hang with my cousins, and the University of Miami, so I am always around them and I am always training.

“As far as being with the guys and playing football, you look forward to that because you have been away. If I had been here every week, I’d be like, ‘Same old (stuff)’ ”

James is expected to take part in at least some of the voluntary OTAs that begin later this month.

(azcardinals.com)

The biggest winner in the Cardinals' draft may not be a draftee. Edgerrin James, you would think, would be ecstatic. While all the pundits predicted the team almost certainly would grab a running back with one of their first two picks, the Cardinals didn't take one until Round 5.
And even then, the little-known Tim Highsmith doesn't figure to take a whole lot of time away from "Edge."

Yet James says he had no celebration:

"I never worry about somebody coming in and playing my position. If they come, I'm going to help them as much as I can.

"Because I know it's not me."

By this, he means that in analyzing the Cardinals' offense, "Running back is not the problem here. That's the least of my concerns.
"If they want to get something, it's their organization. If you look at the film, you look at everything, it's not me. So I'm not worried about it.

"I know where I stand in this game and at this position."

More is riding on James' starting status than for the average player.

He now ranks No. 13 on the all-time rushing list. With a solid, injury-free 2008, he will rise well into the top 10.

Two more such years and he could elbow his way into the top five, and that would generate a strong Hall of Fame bid.

To do this, though, James - who doesn't turn 30 until Aug.1 - needs to keep grinding in the offseason.

"There's no slippage," James reports. "I made sure I got stronger. The main thing is to go out and work. You'll see for yourself."
By not taking a running back early, the Cardinals seemed to agree that James can be counted on.

"I know I'm getting older. People say you're getting to be 30. But I take good care of myself. And I prepared for all of this in the early years. You won't see any slippage from me."

(eastvalleytribune.com)

Since the end of last season, there has been speculation the Cardinals were eager to replace running back Edgerrin James with a younger, faster model.

Not so, team officials say. They would like to add a running back in this weekend's draft, but they would be content to again go with James and develop a potential replacement.

This draft is deep in running backs, but there might be only two or three worthy of being taken at No. 16 by the Cardinals.

"I think there are going to be maybe two or three positions where there is going to be a quick run on those players," General Manager Rod Graves said. "I think the concern will be about the depth later. And the running back position could be that way."

The Cardinals are careful not to disparage James when they evaluate their running back position. James still has great vision and agility and is adept at turning what should be a 3-yard gain into 6. But James turns 30 on Aug. 1 and doesn't possess as much big-play ability as coaches want.

James had four runs of more than 20 yards last season, and the Cardinals would like more from a starting back. Backups J.J. Arrington and Marcel Shipp aren't the answers.

The best backs in the league often have 10 or more rushes that gain at least 20 yards. For instance, Pittsburgh's Willie Parker had 12 last year. The Eagles' Brian Westbrook and the Vikings' Adrian Peterson each had 11.

The Cardinals passed on Peterson last year when they took offensive tackle Levi Brown at No. 5, but it will be difficult for them to skip taking an elite runner for a second straight year.

At the scouting combine in February, Whisenhunt said the Cardinals were "obviously always looking to get a young player at the position to hopefully develop. And it would be nice to have a guy who would give us the home run ability at that position, like we've seen a lot of young backs do recently."

That type of back is available in this draft, said several NFL personnel officials. One team's running backs coach called it "the best class in my 10 years in the league. There are probably three legitimate superstars and possibly two to three more.

"There probably will be 25 to 30 running backs drafted by the time this is over with."

The Cardinals have provided few hints at their plans, but it's worth noting that Oregon's Jonathan Stewart and East Carolina's Chris Johnson visited the team's Tempe facility in recent weeks.

Stewart is coming off recent toe surgery and is questionable for the start of training camp. But it's not a condition that's expected to hamper him significantly. He has good size (5 feet 10 inches, 235 pounds) and speed, and is regarded as a tough runner.

Johnson appears to have climbed on some draft boards over the past month. He's one of the faster backs (4.3 seconds in the 40-yard dash) in this draft and is a capable receiver and returner.

The Cardinals insist that they would be fine entering the season with James as the starter. Whisenhunt has pointed out that James deserves considerable credit for his performance last year. He played behind a rebuilt offensive line, and the team relied predominantly on the pass.
"He had 1,200 yards (rushing)," Whisenhunt said, "and any time you can do that in the NFL, you are a good back."

(azcentral.com)

The Arizona Republic reports since the end of last season, there has been speculation the Cardinals were eager to replace RB Edgerrin James with a younger, faster model. Not so, team officials say. They would like to add a running back in this weekend's draft, but they would be content to again go with James and develop a potential replacement.

(ffmastermind.com)

While surfing through a piece on ESPN's Web site in which the authors predict which 50 active NFL players will ultimately end up in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, The Heat Index was stunned to find Edgerrin James ranked all the way down at No. 37.

So was James, when THI caught up with the Cardinals running back in Flagstaff on Monday.

"I saw it. I saw it," James said, nodding as he walked off the practice field. "It's a joke. But it's OK. In the end, it's all going to show up."

Former University of Miami star tailback Edgerrin James turned 29 last week, but he said Wednesday he hopes he can hang on in the NFL at least long enough to share the same backfield with first cousin Javarris James -- of current UM fame.

''One of my dreams is to play on the same team with Baby J,'' James, of the Arizona Cardinals, said by phone Wednesday. ``That's the one thing I've been wanting, so hopefully I can hold on. That's the first person I'll be willing to be a backup to.''

James called The Miami Herald and said he has been hearing for months that people believe he thinks freshman running back Graig Cooper should start over his cousin.

Definitely not true, he said.

FLAGSTAFF – For a man who gained 1,159 yards rushing, Edgerrin James saw most of his 2006 season as a disappointment.

And so did many others.

The Cardinals’ running back arrived in Arizona owner of a four-year, $30 million contract and as savior to a moribund running game. It didn’t quite work out that way, especially when the team struggled through the first half of the year. He left some wondering if – despite just turning 29 Wednesday – James has what it takes to remain an elite back.

Those are the questions that burn James, mostly because he feels critics are missing the point.

“For the situation I was in, for what I was working with,” James said, “I did pretty good to hold up.”

Coach Ken Whisenhunt isn't sure how much running back Edgerrin James will play in the preseason. James, who prefers to play as little as possible until the regular season, likely will carry the ball more than he usually does because the offense is new and the line has been revamped. But Whisenhunt emphasized that James has been getting plenty of work in practice, too

(azcentral.com)

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — Arizona Cardinals running back Edgerrin James was collared by linebacker Monty Beisel as he burst through the line during a non-contact drill.
"Hold up! Hold up!" coaches shouted.

Beisel let go, but James kept churning his legs and didn't stop until he was 15 yards downfield.

James didn't look like a back who had gained 3.4 yards per carry last year, his lowest average in eight NFL seasons. Nor did he look like a back who was planning to coast into retirement any time soon.

"I still feel young," said James, who turned 29 on Wednesday. "I still feel good. If you come out here and just watch me practice, you wouldn't think I've been playing nine years."

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — Curtis Martin never blocked for Edgerrin James, but James sees big things from following in Martin's footsteps.

That path, littered with would-be tacklers, could ultimately lead both to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Martin, 34, retired July 27 as the New York Jets' all-time leading rusher and the fourth-leading rusher in league history. James visited Martin in New York weeks before James began his second training camp with the Arizona Cardinals.

They shared a night on the town and their goals beyond football.

"I made a special trip to New York just to go see Curtis," says James, who turns 29 Wednesday. "I look at Curtis as a mentor. He's one of the greatest players to play the game."

Football is coming, and change is in the air. Edgerrin James has even ditched the gold teeth.

"It was time to take them out," the Cardinals running back said. "I had them for a long time, but I took off my mask. Now the real 'Business Edge' will surface."

Rejoice, Cardinals fans.

Even if his smile no longer is capable of blinding innocent bystanders, your starting running back is happier than he has been in months. Even after enduring the year from Hades, in which his game turned pedestrian and his ex-teammates won a Super Bowl.

And if you didn't notice, new salt keeps pouring into old wounds. This time, another Colts player not named James just hit the jackpot. This time, it was defensive end Dwight Freeney, who snagged a $30 million signing bonus from Indianapolis.

It must hurt to be so not missed.

"Man, I am so over that," James said. "When the Super Bowl was done, we were all hanging out again. They know I was a part of what they did. They know I helped build what they became. And all throughout the year, (Colts running back Joseph) Addai and I became really close friends. He was calling me for advice like every day, all day long."

Will the real Edge please stand up?

Last year was a tale of two seasons for Arizona Cardinals running back Edgerrin James, who was inked to a lucrative deal with expectations he would be the showpiece in the team's retooled offense.

In the first half of the season, James rushed to the tune of a meager 2.8 yards per carry, punctuated by the most inefficient single-game performance in Cardinals history in the team's fateful Monday night loss to the Bears last October. In that contest James rushed 36 times for 55 yards, adding to the woes of then-head coach Dennis Green.

Clearly, the dreadlocked one missed Peyton Manning and the open lanes the high-powered Colts offense provided him. Eventually, the ascension of Matt Leinart and presence of stud receivers Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald helped some of those avenues open up again. In the second half of the campaign, the Cards' offense jelled in garbage time and James turned his season around, averaging 4.2 yards a carry while breaking the 100-yard mark in three of his last five games.

Despite some conflicting reports on his whereabouts, Cardinals running back Edgerrin James did return to organized team activities earlier this week as expected. His arrival came shortly after Coach Ken Whisenhunt got him on the horn and said that he needed him in the Valley.

"He said, 'I am going to be there at some point,' and I said, 'Edgerrin, I need you here,' " Whisenhunt said. "He said, 'I'm gonna be there Coach, I've got my calendar.' I said, 'Bring it in and we'll talk about it.' And that's all I can ask for."

It's really nice to see James answer the call. Although he would probably prefer to be in Florida working out with the Giants Plaxico Burress and Jeremy Shockey, the team comes first and rhythm with teammates is extremely important.

By all accounts, James is expected to return next Monday and spend the entire week (Thursday) with the team as they round out their OTA's. From there he'll likely go back to Florida and workout until training camp begins on July 30th.

(aolsportsblog.com)

Quarterback Matt Leinart and running back Edgerrin James both were missing from Tuesday’s voluntary workout. Whisenhunt, who spoke to both, said Leinart will return today. James, who returned home to Florida, will be back for next week’s work beginning Tuesday.

(eastvalleytribune.com)

Running back Edgerrin James was back Sunday, after missing Saturday’s minicamp opening practices because of a family funeral.

Coach Ken Whisenhunt said James looked “sharp” and in shape, which was really little surprise.

Whisenhunt also said the two had discussed how many of the voluntary organized team activities James will attend.

“I don’t know exactly,” Whisenhunt said. “He’s probably not going to be there for all 14, but it is my understanding he will be there for a number of them.”

The Cards’ organized team activities begin Wednesday, with the 14 workouts spread over four weeks and ending June 7.

(eastvalleytribune.com)

Running back Edgerrin James will miss the first day of the team's upcoming minicamp to attend the funeral of a relative in Florida, team officials said Wednesday.

The camp, which starts Saturday and runs through Monday, is mandatory unless the player is excused by coach Ken Whisenhunt.

" 'Edge' called and let me know about the death in his family," Whisenhunt said in a statement. "Obviously, it's more important for him to be there Saturday for the services and for his family."

Edgerrin James laughed when asked about his recent minor right knee surgery, no surprise after he had just completed the Cards’ first practice of the offseason without any problems.

“It was a scratch,” James said of the surgery. “I was in and out. The same night I was hanging out at the clubs. Everything is normal.”

The surgery took away some swelling that had bothered James last season, but he emphasized — with a smile — it was no big deal by pointing out that if he hadn’t been able to practice, he probably wouldn’t have shown up to the voluntary minicamp.

“I had an opportunity to get out of practice, and I should have used my pass,” James said, before adding, “Nah, I like to practice. I don’t want to stand around.”

After carrying the ball 337 times last season, James said he wants 350 carries this year. Contrary to needing more help toting the load, James said, “I am in the good years right now. That’s why I have been taking good care of myself.”

INDIANAPOLIS • Adrian Peterson, Arizona Cardinal? It’s a crazy notion. Running back would seem to be far down the list of draft needs for the Cardinals, especially after handing Edgerrin James a four-year, $30  million contract last offseason.

But new coach Ken Whisenhunt has talked about the need for another back to step in and lighten James’ load after James piled up 337 carries last season. With the explosion of successful teams with two good halfbacks — think New Orleans with Deuce McAllister and Reggie Bush, Chicago with Thomas Jones and Cedric Benson, Indianapolis with Joseph Addai and Dominic Rhodes — teaming Peterson with James isn’t far-fetched.

Subtly feeding into the idea is Cardinals vice president of football operations Rod Graves, who said his goal of free agency is “take the pressure off feeling we have to address a certain position with our No. 1 pick.”

Dear Edgerrin James,

How are you holding up?  Sunday couldn’t have been much fun for you.  And my guess is you’re about to have a pretty rough week. 
 
After all, everyone you come into contact with is wondering how you feel about your former team, the Indianapolis Colts, winning the Super Bowl.  Most people probably won’t ask.  They won’t even want to bring it up.  They’ll steer clear of the subject entirely.  But some will inquire.  And when they do, I’m sure you’ll say all the right things.   You’ll tell them how happy you are for your former teammates.  How you were cheering for them all along. 

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. -- It's 5 a.m. a day before Super Bowl XLI and Edgerrin James is as fresh and enthusiastic as if he was about to play with his old teammates.

The former Indianapolis Colts running back is chillin' after three hours of clubbing at Spirits, a popular dancing nightspot at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Time for breakfast, but he blows it off to talk about his team's chances Sunday against the Chicago Bears at Dolphin Stadium.

"The Colts are still my team," said James, who ran for a franchise record 9,226 yards in a horseshoe helmet through 2005 before signing with Arizona last offseason. "I've been telling everybody that since midseason, it's the Colts' year."

It's amazing to think that a $30 million Cardinals running back doesn't have a place in Arizona to call his own but that is precisely the case for Edgerrin James. Obviously this is not to say James doesn't have a personal residence. In fact he owns an extremely nice home of his own in Miami, Florida. At any given time James could likely buy our own homes with the cash he carries in his pocket, yet he chooses to live at the Cardinals facility in Arizona during the season.

During a short Q&A session with AZCentral.com, Edge explained why he doesn't own a place in the desert.

"I live at the Cardinals facility. That's my address. I don't have nothing to do but work. That's all I want to do" James said

MIAMI - Much of the time, the Indianapolis Colts talk of Edgerrin James like he is a fallen soldier. A man lost on the arduous journey to Super Bowl XLI.

They wouldn’t have gotten here, former teammates such as Peyton Manning and Dominic Rhodes say, without Edge’s contributions. James isn’t dead. He just isn’t a Colt, toiling instead for the Cardinals after trading any chance to stay with his Indianapolis buddies for $30 million in the desert.

And no one understands that more than Edge.

“I got what I wanted, and (the Colts) got what they wanted,” James said without a hint of regret. “It is business. It is football.”

MIAMI -- Edgerrin James is a better man than I, at least when it comes to athletic ability, energy (the man views sleep as an occasional indulgence) and decency.

James is the star running back whom the Colts would not pay like one, and last March, after seven successful years in Indy, he signed a four-year, $30-million deal with the Arizona Cardinals. James promptly struggled behind a dubious offensive line and suffered through the worst season of his life; the Colts, meanwhile, plugged in rookie Joseph Addai and James's former backup, Dominic Rhodes, and finally won a conference championship.

Wouldn't you be at least a tad bitter? I know I would. But not James who, each of the 30 times I've asked him, smiles and swears he's rooting for Indy without a trace of ambivalence.

MIAMI — Edgerrin James' cellphone has been blowing up. Some good friends have a bit of Super Bowl XLI business, but before buckling down, there's sightseeing to do.

James, who attended the University of Miami, lives here during the offseason and knows all the hot spots. No wonder he was eagerly awaiting the Monday night arrival of the Indianapolis Colts, who finally advanced to the Big Game — without him.

"This is like the only night we'll have to hang out," James said Monday afternoon before heading to the Colts hotel. "It's like I told them, I don't have a curfew, but they do. I'm going to make sure that my boys won't get in trouble."

After six seasons in Indianapolis, James signed a free agent deal with the Arizona Cardinals last spring. He doesn't sound bummed the Colts reached this point in their first season since his departure.

Edgerrin James, Cardinals running back: Had he just returned for an eighth season with the Colts, he'd likely be packing for Super Bowl XLI. Instead, he had a different strategy: Take the Cardinals' money and run. He ran for a respectable 1,159 yards in 2006 and could run for even more with the addition of coach Ken Whisenhunt, who's now at the controls of a potentially dynamic offense. One problem: They're still the Cardinals. Potential Super Bowl: Post-2009, when his Cardinals contract expires.

(contracostatimes.com)

Edgerrin James is in Miami. Soon the Indianapolis Colts will be, too. And that’s fine with the Cardinals running back, who left the Colts to sign with Arizona as a free agent almost a year ago — and a year before his original NFL team finally made it to the Super Bowl.

Echoing similar thoughts he repeated all season, James said rather than feeling he is missing out he instead is “super excited” his former team has reached Super Bowl XLI.

“I’ve always said I wanted to see the Colts in the Super Bowl,” James said in a phone interview from Florida. “All the pieces were there.”

SAN FRANCISCO - For both the Cardinals and Edgerrin James, reaching the 1,000-yard rushing plateau is somewhat remarkable. Even James, who normally downplays such things, understands that.

“Under the circumstances, it means a lot,” James said Sunday, after he ran for 105 yards on 29 carries.

James has 1,093 yards this season, the highest total for a back since the franchise moved to Arizona, besting the 1,070 Garrison Hearst gained in 1995.

The Cardinals have had just three previous 1,000-yard rushers since moving to Arizona in 1988, the last being back in 1998 when Adrian Murrell ran for 1,042 yards.

TEMPE, Ariz. - Despite all his struggles in his first year in Arizona, Edgerrin James is closing in on a 1,000-yard season.

That's no big deal for James. He topped 1,000 in each of his last three seasons in Indianapolis and five times in his seven NFL seasons. But the Cardinals haven't had a 1,000-yard rusher since Adrian Murrell in 1998.

With three games to play, James has 925 yards and is coming off consecutive 100-yard efforts in victories over St. Louis and Seattle.

"Anything that's good for the franchise is good for me," James said after Thursday's practice. "It would be something that shows that the offensive line has improved. It would be a nice accomplishment, but me, I'd like to be in the playoffs and play for that Super Bowl ring. I've had 1,000 yards."

SEATTLE - A year ago, they were two running backs approaching free agency at full speed.

Shaun Alexander set the league's season touchdown record, and Edgerrin James surpassed 1,500 yards rushing for the fourth time in seven NFL seasons.

They were two Cadillacs headed toward the open market with one caveat: their mileage. Each was well past the average career span of an NFL player, but Alexander and James were anything but average.

They run into each other today, the second intersection of their star-crossed seasons. Alexander was stopped for six games by a broken foot, while James has been battered behind a busted line after going from Indianapolis to Arizona.

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Edgerrin James has some simple advice for those who are plotting the Arizona Cardinals' future.

"If around here they do right by Matt, we're going to be all right," he said.

Enduring a losing season and often running into a brick wall on game day, James said that the future of the franchise is in the hands of Matt Leinart, the rookie who has coolly taken control of the Cardinals' offense.

He compares Leinart to Peyton Manning, his quarterback in much more successful times.

ST. LOUIS - Edgerrin James ran the ball most of the time, and then Marcel Shipp came in to score the touchdowns. And that was fine with James. “I told Shipp to go get all the touchdowns,” James said. “I want to get some yards.”

There was some irony that, after tying an NFL record for the fewest rushing attempts in a game the week previous, the Cardinals had two different running backs smiling after Sunday’s 34-20 win.

James finally got to his coveted 100-yard plateau, gaining 115 yards on 26 carries. Shipp had a threetouchdown day — the first touchdowns Shipp has scored since running in two and catching a third Dec. 15, 2002, in the same Edwards Jones Dome against the Rams.

December 4, 2006) — The Arizona Cardinals had the NFL's worst rush offense (67.7 yards per game) and the host St. Louis Rams had the league's worst rush defense (allowing 154.8 yards rushing per game) entering Sunday's game.

If Edgerrin James ever was going to break the ice with his first 100-yard rushing game with Arizona, this figured to the spot. It was. James had 26 carries for 115 yards in a 34-20 win.

James had 49 100-yard rushing games in seven seasons with Indianapolis, including 237 yards in two games vs. the Rams. He was 0-for-11 this season with Arizona.

(democratandchronicle.com)

Edgerrin James was back at practice Wednesday, after the Cardinals’ running back had missed Monday’s walk-through tending to a sick relative in Florida.

And he kept his sense of humor in the aftermath of his four-carry day Sunday in Minnesota, the first time in his career he had been used so little for virtually no reason.

“Hey,” James joked, “they’re saving my career.”

James’ 28-year-old legs don’t need the rest, of course. He started strong against the Vikings, rumbling for 14 yards on the Cards’ fourth offensive play, and was barely seen again.

A day after sitting out most of the second half against the Minnesota Vikings, Cardinals running back Edgerrin James didn't participate in a scheduled walk-through session at the team's facility in Tempe.

A team spokesman said James was visiting a sick relative in south Florida. He's expected to return for Wednesday's practice, five days before the 2-9 Cardinals visit the St. Louis Rams.

James, the team's prized off-season acquisition, rushed only four times for 15 yards in Sunday's loss. He caught two passes for 10 yards but spent most of Arizona's late comeback watching from the sideline.

Edgerrin James was glad to break a two-month losing streak, but there was still a bit of an edge to the Edge on Sunday.

James set his Cardinals high with 96 yards rushing in a 17-10 victory over Detroit, although he was a typical carry short of reaching his personal goal for every game, 100.

The Cardinals killed the final 4:35 with eight running plays, including five by James for 24 yards, before Matt Leinart took a knee on the final two scrim--
mage plays.

The last time I hung out with Edgerrin James, he was the Prince of the Desert, the hottest thing to hit Arizona since ... well, you know what I mean.
After the former Indianapolis Colts halfback signed a four-year, $30 million contract with the Arizona Cardinals last March, he became the symbol of the rampant optimism surrounding the long-suffering franchise.

Five months later, when I arrived to cover the team's first preseason game at its sparkling new stadium in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, James was large and in charge: scoring a Plasma TV for the locker room, shepherding a switch to black cleats and winning side bets from teammates on the sidelines and in local pool halls.

OAKLAND - Running back Edgerrin James again expressed surprise and dismay Sunday about his lack of production since joining the Cardinals this off-season.

He can't say he wasn't warned.

"I got a lot of warnings," he said.

He watched tape of the Cardinals games last year and was reassured. He didn't see a lot of defenders near the line of scrimmage, so he figured he would have plenty of room to run.

I'm staring at the duplicity that is Edgerrin James. No, seriously. He possesses adjacent locker spaces at the Cardinals practice facility, one that says, "Edge," the other, "Edgerrin James."

Justin Timberlake's SexyBack is spilling out of the running back's stereo, although he insists it's just a coincidence, not a statement of self-perception. James, with his dreads, gold teeth and expensive suits may be audacious, but he has earned that right, and the sooner the Cardinals find a way to capitalize on his talents, the better.

James suggested Thursday that the promotion of offensive coordinator Mike Kruczek would help his cause.

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) - Perhaps no back in NFL history worked so hard for so little as Edgerrin James did Monday night.

After gaining 55 yards in 36 carries, no wonder he hopes a change in offensive coordinators this week will create at least a little more room to run.

James, who has yet to have a 100-yard rushing game since coming to the Arizona Cardinals, said teams have loaded up against the run, and a shift in tactics under new coordinator Mike Kruczek might change that.
"I'm looking forward to that," James said, "so I can play my game rather than running into these brick walls."

When your big-ticket running back runs for 17 yards on 17 carries in the second half of an implosion for the ages, what's the next logical move?

If you're Dennis Green, you fire your offensive coordinator.

The Cardinals head coach canned offensive coordinator Keith Rowen this afternoon for Arizona's Monday night disintegration against the Bears. The move brings Tuesday's offensive coordinator casualty count to two.

Tuesday afternoon, Ravens head coach Brian Billick "removed" Jim Fassel from his spot as Baltimore's offensive coordinator.

I think we can all agree that last night's Arizona-Chicago game was one of the most shocking games in NFL history. Shocking in how Arizona dominated the first three quarters, and shocking in the way they choked at the end.

How on earth did the Cardinals manage to blow their 23-3 lead? Sure, kicker Neil Rackers deserves some blame for missing the game-ending field goal, and everyone on the Arizona punt coverage team is wearing goat horns today. But the biggest culprits in this loss were running back Edgerrin James, the offensive linemen who couldn't block for him, and the coaches who kept calling his number.

Yes, normally it is a good idea to run out the clock with a lead, rather than stop the clock with incomplete passes or worse, risk an interception. But not every general statement applies to every specific situation. The Cardinals have not been able to run the ball against anyone this year, let alone the Bears. When asked why he suddenly started dominating, Brian Urlacher told reporters “First of all, they weren’t blocking me.” Matt Leinart, meanwhile, was killing the Chicago zone coverage in the first half. Every single play he'd find some guy open and ping, first down.

MESA, Ariz. -- The Chipmunks' song "Mr. Lonely" warbled through the Cardinals' locker room Thursday, courtesy of resident disc jockey Edgerrin James.

A statement, perhaps?

"No, man, it's just XM radio," James said.

Fair enough, but you can't blame James if he's feeling a bit forlorn these days.

The Cardinals are 1-4 and James has gone a career-high eight straight games without rushing for 100 yards.

Most of running back Edgerrin James' Sunday afternoons with the Cardinals have followed a similar pattern: He carries the ball fewer times than he wants, watches his team lose and then complains about how he is being used.

Tired of that rut, James said Thursday that he's changing.

"I just got to make use of what I get," James said of his carries. "I've come to that conclusion. Just to make use of what I get and whatever happens, just roll with it because talking about it is not going to do anything."

MESA, Ariz. - The Chipmunks' song "Mr. Lonely" warbled throughout the Cardinals' locker room Thursday, courtesy of resident disc jockey Edgerrin James.

A statement, perhaps?

"No, man, it's just XM radio," James said.

Fair enough, but you can't blame James if he's feeling a bit forlorn these days.

The Cardinals are 1-4 and James has gone a career-high eight straight games without rushing for 100 yards.

Running back Edgerrin James harshly criticized the team's play-calling after Sunday's 23-20 loss to Kansas City, saying the Cardinals didn't run the ball enough in the fourth quarter.

"We just got away from the run," said James, who gained 71 yards on 24 carries. "That's the stupidest thing. You have to be able to finish the game. You got to give us a chance, you know."

James carried four times for 10 yards in the fourth quarter.

A couple of weeks ago, Edgerrin James said he wanted to be a bigger part of the Cardinals’ offense. With rookie Matt Leinart starting at quarterback, James might get his wish.

The Cardinals are expected to use the running game and the short passing game more often with Leinart, which will mean more opportunities for James against a Kansas City defense ranked third in the NFL.

“Whenever they call my name, I’m ready,” James said. “If I have to carry it 50 times, I’ll be ready 50 times.”

Edgerrin James is averaging 3.1 yards per carry through his first four games with the Arizona Cardinals - by far his career-low. He says there's no use blaming his offensive line.

"A lot of people want to point fingers here and there, and I just say there's no need to point fingers because this is what we've got," James said after practice Thursday. "We're not going to have a new offensive line, a new system. We're not going to have nothing new, and we've just got to make the best of it and do what it takes."

When Cardinals RB Edgerrin James said last week that he thought he was being underutilized, our sources surmised that it wasn't so much that he wanted more carries but rather more receiving opportunities. We hear James would like to catch at least 4-5 passes per game.
(profootballweekly)

TEMPE, Ariz. -- End the mistakes and success will come.

That's the simple recipe Edgerrin James is offering after his first three games with the Arizona Cardinals.

"Go out and play the game and don't beat yourself," James said after Thursday's practice. "That's what it boils down to. We just go out and play and don't make mistakes and we do all right."

Running back Edgerrin James smiled while fielding reporters' questions after the Cardinals' 16-14 loss to the Rams Sunday, but he wasn't happy.

Despite having his best day with the Cardinals, James didn't think his number was called often enough.

"No, I'm not going to say anything about the play-calling," James said. "I just want to play. I just want to be a part of it. I want the ball in my hands. When you're in the game and you don't have the ball in your hands, that's hard. I can't question why this and that. It's always a reason, but I don't know what is."

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Edgerrin James leaned against the side of his locker after adjusting the brim of his brown San Diego Padres cap and placing his bling neatly over his matching caramel shirt. With his gold grill shining from the camera lights around him, he simply laughed in frustration as he tried to figure out how the Cardinals found a way to lose to the Rams, 16-14, in one if the wilder finishes the league has seen this season.

"It's ridiculous man. It's a joke," said James who had 24 carries for 94 yards and one touchdown. "It's crazy. We got to do something different if we want different results. It's something we're not doing right. I don't know what it is. I'm just trying to do my job."

The Arizona Cardinals had the worst running game in the N.F.L. last season and went into the off-season determined to fix it. They made what would seem to be a logical move, signing the free agent Edgerrin James, who was coming off two consecutive 1,500-yard seasons for the Indianapolis Colts, to a four-year, $30 million contract.

But after two games, it is clear that the Cardinals’ problems are anything but solved. James, who gained at least 88 yards in 13 consecutive games last season, had 73 yards against San Francisco and 64 against Seattle. His early average of 3.1 yards a carry is far below his career average of 4.2.

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Still looking for his first 100-yard rushing game in an Arizona uniform, Edgerrin James at least finally has the Cardinals' offensive line in place as envisioned when training camp started.

Right tackle Oliver Ross, sidelined since the first week of training camp while recovering from knee surgery, will be back in the starting lineup Sunday when Arizona (1-1) is host to the St. Louis Rams (1-1). That allows Reggie Wells to move from right tackle back to his normal spot at left guard.

Edgerrin James has never entered Week 3 of an NFL season still searching for his first 100-yard performance.

In seven years with the Indianapolis Colts, James averaged 114 yards through two games. This season, his first with the Arizona Cardinals, he is averaging 68.5.

Coach Dennis Green explained James' lack of production during Monday's weekly news conference. In short, he said it's not the running back's fault. Too many sacks and penalties pushed the Cardinals into long-yardage situations in Sunday's 21-10 loss to the Seahawks in Seattle. Too many fumbled snaps also disrupted rhythm that led to, in the coach's opinion, one of Kurt Warner's worst games as a Cardinals quarterback.

Trying to preserve a seven-point lead against San Francisco last week, Arizona coach Dennis Green made a late-game decision that would have been unthinkable last season.

He decided to use the running game for a time-consuming drive.

The Cardinals, who unsuccessfully relied on J.J. Arrington and Marcel Shipp to run the ball in 2005, dug deep into their financial pockets in the offseason to sign running back Edgerrin James.

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Edgerrin James wasn't exactly boffo in his Arizona Cardinals debut, just good enough to believe the running game is moving ever-so-slowly in the right direction heading into Sunday's game at Seattle.

That wasn't the case early in Arizona's 34-27 victory over San Francisco.

James, the Cardinals' prize free agent signing, had 4 yards in his first eight carries. Slowly, though, the line began creating a few small creases for the big running back. He wound up with 73 yards in 26 carries.

James also had runs of 11 and 13 yards called back by penalties.

"That's 24 yards," James said after Thursday's practice, "and then you just eliminate a couple of negatives and you're right at 100. So it's not bad. We're on the right track and we're going to get better. We can only get better."

After one quarter of play Sunday, the Arizona Cardinals’ running game looked a lot like it did in the preseason.

But then for the first time as a Cardinal, Edgerrin James ran onto the field for the second quarter (and the third and the fourth) and showed a glimpse of the player Arizona bought for $30 million this offseason.

“Preseason is preseason. I don’t think anyone expects that much,” offensive guard Reggie Wells said. “He’s making a lot of money and they got it out of him today.”

James had just 4 yards on eight carries in the first period of the Cardinals’ 34-27 win over the 49ers. It was a frighteningly similar output to the preseason when he gained 1 yard on seven carries.

But over the final three quarters, James ground out 69 yards on 18 carries and the Cardinals proved they were truly dedicated to sticking with the running game.

GLENDALE, Ariz. — There was nothing flashy or picturesque about Edgerrin James' performance in his first game with the Arizona Cardinals.

In Arizona's 34-27 victory on Sunday afternoon, the former Indianapolis Colts running back's longest run was 10 yards, and the longest of his three receptions gained 6.

Yet it was James' steady play in the fourth quarter that might have been the difference in the game. After the 49ers closed to within 31-24 on a 22-yard field goal by Joe Nedney with 8:52 to play, James took control.

James carried the ball seven times for 20 yards on the Cardinals' final possession, which consumed more than 7 minutes. The drive ended with a 30-yard Neil Rackers field goal, and it left the 49ers with precious little time to overcome a 10-point deficit.

"That's what I'm here for — to hold the ball and finish the game," James said following his 26-carry, 73-yard day. "Last year, they had a problem finishing the game. That's not going to be a problem this year."

It's opening weekend in the NFL and I feel compelled to lead with the Arizona Cardinals.

In most years, this would be considered so wrong and offensive, I would be fired.

But not in 2006. Not for a team that made the biggest splash in free agency with the signing of star running back Edgerrin James. Not for a team that clearly boasts the best receiving tandem in the NFC. Not for a team that owned the NFL draft, highlighted by the scooping up of one of the most successful quarterbacks in college football history, who is going to be a star at the NFL level. Not when the Arizona Cardinals, for the first time in, well, forever, will have a legit home-field advantage as they break in a gorgeous new stadium this weekend.

The influence of all of the above cannot be understated.

James has come in and changed everything, from the clubhouse music to the equipment to the team chemistry to the tempo in practice. As star receiver Anquan Boldin told me this summer, "Edge has set the bar high for us. He believes we are a playoff team. He wants us to work like a playoff team. He wants us to bond like a playoff team off the field. Edge knows what it takes, and we are ready to follow."

It seems Edgerrin James isn't doing a lot of fond looking back on his seven-year stay with the Indianapolis Colts.

Now with the Arizona Cardinals after signing a four-year, $30 million deal in the offseason, James made it clear in a USA Today story that he didn't appreciate the Colts giving him a one-year franchise contract two straight years while big-name teammates were signing long-term deals.

"All season, I told (backup running back Dominic Rhodes), 'Dog, if I get through this season, I'm out of here, and it's going to be your show. Just let me get a chance.' It was like I was breaking out of jail or something."

Also in the story, James took umbrage with Colts president Bill Polian's draft-day description of James' possible successor, Joseph Addai. Polian said the LSU rookie is "what we haven't had here in a while, in terms of taking an 8-yard run that's blocked and turning it into a 22-yard run."

TEMPE, Ariz. — The running woes that have long plagued the Arizona Cardinals could be history. Now, Arizona has the `Edge.'

After only a cameo appearance in the preseason, Edgerrin James will be on full display in the Cardinals' opener Sunday against San Francisco. It's time to earn that four-year, $30 million contract.

"I'd say Edge should get probably 25 runs and probably five touches with the pass," coach Dennis Green said after the Cardinals practiced Wednesday.

Cardinals fans packed the team's new stadium for two home preseason games, but only got a glimpse of their new star running back. James carried seven times for 1 yard in four preseason games, caught two passes for 11 yards, and would have preferred not to have played at all.

PHOENIX — Before heading off into a sweltering Arizona night, Edgerrin James lowered the window of the SUV he was riding in and playfully engaged in role-playing.

He was suddenly an Eddie Murphy character.

"Billy Ray Valentine: Capricorn," James said, citing the line with the same pitch, pace and accent that Murphy did in the 1983 comedy classic, Trading Places.

"But really," he added in his own voice, laughing, "I'm a Leo."

James, a lion of a running back for seven years with the Indianapolis Colts, has indeed traded places.

Edgerrin James didn’t need to be introduced to Antrel Rolle during his first practice with the Arizona Cardinals. A look and a nod was all it took.

James knew a fellow ’Cane when he saw one.

“We’re the biggest family in the business. We’re the boldest family, we’re the closest,” James said of the brotherhood of former Miami players who out-talk, out-bond and outrepresent any other alumni group in the NFL.

“That’s one thing. We let you know that we love where we come from, and you’ll see why we brag on what we do.” There’s plenty to brag about. Miami has had at least one player selected in the first round of the NFL draft in each of the last 12 years. It’s the longest such streak in NFL history.

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. - Edgerrin James doesn't find the rancid history of the Arizona Cardinals all that repugnant. He isn't turned off by their comic ineptness through the decades, their mustering just one playoff victory in the past 60 seasons and never once making the Super Bowl.

That part James can stomach.

``I've always been my own person,'' James said. ``That's what got me this far, doing my thing, making my own decisions. If I did what everybody else did, I would probably be in trouble. If `Edge' doesn't have an interest in doing this, `Edge' is not doing this. That's how I live.''

But even though James was able to overlook the Cardinals' sordid past when he signed a four-year, $30 million deal in March, bidding farewell in the process to the high-powered Indianapolis Colts, the running back from Immokalee, Fla., and the University of Miami cringed when he took one look at their uniforms, the cleats in particular.

They were white, as in inappropriate for smash-mouth football.

It's funny. The one thing the Cardinals could be reasonably sure of going into the season was they could throw the ball. And we haven't seen any reason to dispute that belief. In fact, I'm starting to think they will be able to throw the ball with either Kurt Warner or Matt Leinart.

But their offseason emphasis was on improving a running game that was utterly incompetent one year ago. They made Edgerrin James a rich, or rather, richer, man.

So the one thing you'd think the Cardinals would want to prove to themselves in the preseason was that they could run the ball. They haven't done that up to this point.

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — Single coverage.
The mere mention of the concept had Anquan Boldin twisting with an incredulous expression, much like someone would upon stumbling on an intriguing fact in a history book.
"I haven't seen single coverage since my rookie year," said Boldin, in his fourth season with the Arizona Cardinals, as he sat on a bench after a recent practice. "None."
Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald each caught more than 100 passes for 1,400-plus yards last season, just the second time in the NFL's 86-year history that two teammates had that combination. The Detroit Lions' Herman Moore and Brett Perriman did it in 1995.

Edgerrin James, who often spouts his philosophy that life is too short to stress, applied that to his football team.

The Cardinals’ running back was mellow after Saturday night’s 30-3 preseason loss in New England, emphasizing that no one should worry about the team’s still stagnant running game.

“As long as you don’t get tackled in the backfield, and I didn’t get tackled in the backfield, it’s sweet,” James said. “Trust me. There is a reason why you lose, but I’m not worried about it. When the regular season starts, we’ll be fine. We’re just working out all the kinks right now.”

In the parity-driven N.F.L., it is difficult to make the playoffs only one time in 23 seasons

The Cardinals franchise has managed that. So why should anyone foresee an end to the playoff drought in the Arizona desert, despite the signing of Edgerrin James, the drafting of Matt Leinart and the sparkling new Cardinals Stadium that looks like something out of “Star Trek”?

CORAL GABLES, Fla. - Javarris James has plenty of speed.

He uses it to dart through small holes in the line of scrimmage, dodge pursuing linebackers and blow past defensive backs. He rushed for 300 yards in one high school game and finished his prep career with 72 touchdowns, even though nearly every defense was loaded up with the singular goal of slowing him down.