Curtis Martin
Encyclopedia
Curtis James Martin, Jr. (born May 1, 1973) is a former American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...

. He is an alumnus of Taylor Allderdice High School
Taylor Allderdice High School
Taylor Allderdice High School, also referred to by the Pittsburgh Public Schools as “Pittsburgh Allderdice” or informally by students as "Dice", is a public high school located in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh’s East End. Allderdice is the "largest of the Pittsburgh Public Schools'...

 in Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...

. Martin played in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...

 for the New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...

 and the New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 and amassed the fourth highest total of rushing yards in NFL history.

New England Patriots

Martin entered the NFL in 1995, as a third round draft pick of the New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...

. He was scouted by Greg Rollage from Union/Finley. He won the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award
NFL Rookie of the Year Award
Since 1967, the Associated Press has given two annual Rookie of the Year Awards to National Football League players: one for an offensive player and one for a defensive player. These two are often regarded as the "official" awards...

 after rushing for 1,487 yards, and was named to the Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...

. The following year, he rushed for a franchise record 166 yards and three touchdowns in his first career playoff game, against the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...

. The Patriots went to Super Bowl XXXI
Super Bowl XXXI
Super Bowl XXXI was an American football game played on January 26, 1997, at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana to decide the National Football League champion following the 1996 regular season. The National Football Conference champion Green Bay Packers defeated the American...

, but lost to the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...

. Martin rushed for 42 yards, caught three passes for 28 yards, and scored a touchdown in the game. Though he was much less effective in 1996 than he had been in his rookie season , Martin was again named to the Pro Bowl squad.

New York Jets

After the 1997 season
1997 NFL season
The 1997 NFL season was the 78th regular season of the National Football League. The Oilers relocated from Houston, Texas to Nashville, Tennessee...

, Martin, a restricted free agent, signed an offer sheet with the New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 for $36 million over six years. The Patriots did not match the Jets' offer and received first and third round draft picks
NFL Draft
The National Football League Draft is an annual event in which the National Football League teams select eligible college football players and it is their most common source of player recruitment. The basic design of the draft is each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order...

 as compensation. Thus, Martin went to the Jets, and was reunited with his former Patriots coach Bill Parcells
Bill Parcells
Duane Charles "Bill" Parcells is a former American football head coach, most recently with the Dallas Cowboys from 2003 to 2006...

. In his first seven seasons with the Jets, Martin missed only one game and was selected to the Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...

 three times. In 1998, Martin gained 182 yards from scrimmage and scored two touchdowns against the Jacksonville Jaguars
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 in a Jets playoff win. Martin won the NFL rushing title in the 2004 NFL season
2004 NFL season
The 2004 NFL season was the 85th regular season of the National Football League.With the New England Patriots as the defending league champions, regular season play was held from September 9, 2004 to January 2, 2005...

 with 1,697 yards (one more yard than runner-up Shaun Alexander
Shaun Alexander
Shaun Edward Alexander is a former American football running back who played for the Seattle Seahawks and the Washington Redskins. He was drafted by the Seahawks 19th overall in the 2000 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Alabama.- Early career :Alexander was born and...

, the closest margin in NFL history). He also won the FedEx
FedEx
FedEx Corporation , originally known as FDX Corporation, is a logistics services company, based in the United States with headquarters in Memphis, Tennessee...

 Ground Player of the Year Award in 2004. Martin made history for being the oldest player in history to lead the league in rushing at 31 years old.

In 2005, Martin failed in his quest to become the first running back in NFL history to start his career with eleven straight 1,000 rushing yard seasons. He missed a game versus the Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 with a knee injury and was placed on injured reserve for the final three games of the season. Martin finished with 735 rushing yards, for a career total of 14,101 rushing yards. Martin began the 2006 season on the Physically Unable to Perform list
Physically Unable to Perform
Players can be labeled Physically Unable to Perform in the National Football League if they suffer from football-related injuries during the preseason...

 due to complications from the injury. It was announced he would miss the rest of the regular season with a bone-on-bone condition in his right knee on November 1, 2006. On July 26, 2007 Martin officially announced his retirement from the NFL. On January 24, 2010 Martin signed with the Jets to serve as honorary captain for them during the AFC Championship Game against the Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....

 at Lucas Oil Stadium
Lucas Oil Stadium
Lucas Oil Stadium is a multi-purpose sports stadium in Downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. The stadium celebrated its grand opening on August 24, 2008, and its ribbon-cutting ceremony August 16, 2008. It replaced the RCA Dome as the home field of the NFL's Indianapolis Colts. The stadium was built to...

.

Accomplishments

Curtis Martin rushed for over 10,000 yards in his first 10 professional seasons, a feat previously accomplished only by Barry Sanders
Barry Sanders
Barry Sanders is a former American football running back who spent all of his professional career with the Detroit Lions in the NFL. Sanders left the game just short of the all-time rushing record...

. On November 6, 2005, he scored his 100th career touchdown, joining an elite group of only 16 players to do so. Martin is currently 4th on the all-time rushing yardage list, and on November 27, 2005, in the first quarter against the New Orleans Saints
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....

, he became the 4th running back in NFL history, behind Walter Payton
Walter Payton
Walter Jerry Payton was an American football running back who played for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League for thirteen seasons. Walter Payton was known around the NFL as "Sweetness". He is remembered as one of the most prolific running backs in the history of American football...

, Emmitt Smith
Emmitt Smith
Emmitt James Smith, III is a retired American football player who was a running back in the National Football League for fifteen seasons during the 1990s and 2000s. Smith played college football for the University of Florida, where he was an All-American; thereafter, he played professionally for...

 and Barry Sanders
Barry Sanders
Barry Sanders is a former American football running back who spent all of his professional career with the Detroit Lions in the NFL. Sanders left the game just short of the all-time rushing record...

, to pass the 14,000-yard rushing mark. He is the all-time Jets leader with 10,302 rushing yards with the team. He is also fourth in the same category for the Patriots with 3799 yards. Additionally, although it is not statistically relevant, Martin has a perfect passer rating
Passer rating
Passer rating is a measure of the performance of quarterbacks or any other passers in American football and Canadian football. There are at least two formulae currently in use: one officially used by the National Football League and the Canadian Football League, and one used in college football...

 of 158.3: 2 completions on 2 pass attempts, 2 TD passes, and an average of 18 yards per attempt.

Martin was one of finalists for the 2011 Pro Football Hall of Fame, but was not selected for induction.

Career statistical rankings

  • 3,518 career rushing attempts (3rd all-time)
  • 14,101 career rushing yards (4th all-time)
  • 17,430 career yards from scrimmage (7th all-time)
  • 90 career rushing touchdowns (12th all-time)
  • 100 career rushing/receiving touchdowns (19th all-time)
  • Oldest player to win a rushing title (age 31) in 2004


On August 16, 2010, during halftime of the Giants-Jets preseason game at the New Meadowlands Stadium, Martin was inducted as a member of the inaugural class to the Jets' Ring of Honor.

Career statistics

Year Team Games Attempts Yards YPC TDs
1995
1995 NFL season
The 1995 NFL season was the 76th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 30 teams with the addition of the Carolina Panthers and the Jacksonville Jaguars...

 
New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...

 
16 368 1,487 4.0 14
1996
1996 NFL season
The 1996 NFL season was the 77th regular season of the National Football League and the season was marked by notable controversies from beginning to end...

 
New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...

 
16 316 1,152 3.6 14
1997
1997 NFL season
The 1997 NFL season was the 78th regular season of the National Football League. The Oilers relocated from Houston, Texas to Nashville, Tennessee...

 
New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...

 
13 274 1,160 4.2 4
1998
1998 NFL season
The 1998 NFL season was the 79th regular season of the National Football League.The Tennessee Oilers moved their home games from Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis to Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville, still awaiting construction on a new stadium in Nashville.This was the first season that CBS...

 
New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 
15 369 1,287 3.5 8
1999
1999 NFL season
The 1999 NFL season was the 80th regular season of the National Football League. The Cleveland Browns returned to the field for the first time since the 1995 season...

 
New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 
16 367 1,464 4.0 5
2000
2000 NFL season
The 2000 NFL season was the 81st regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl XXXV when the Baltimore Ravens defeated the New York Giants.Week 1 of the season reverted to Labor Day weekend in 2000...

 
New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 
16 316 1,204 3.8 9
2001
2001 NFL season
The 2001 NFL season was the 82nd regular season of the National Football League.Following a pattern set in 1999, the first week of the season was permanently moved to the weekend following Labor Day...

 
New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 
16 333 1,513 4.5 10
2002
2002 NFL season
The 2002 NFL season was the 83rd regular season of the National Football League.The league went back to an even number of teams, expanding to 32 teams with the addition of the Houston Texans. The clubs were then realigned into eight divisions, four teams in each...

 
New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 
16 261 1,094 4.2 7
2003
2003 NFL season
-Milestones:The following teams and players set all-time NFL records during the season:-Team:-Individual:-Awards:-External Links:**-References:*NFL Record and Fact Book *...

 
New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 
16 323 1,308 4.0 2
2004
2004 NFL season
The 2004 NFL season was the 85th regular season of the National Football League.With the New England Patriots as the defending league champions, regular season play was held from September 9, 2004 to January 2, 2005...

 
New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 
16 371 1,697 4.6 12
2005
2005 NFL season
The 2005 NFL season was the 86th regular season of the National Football League.With the New England Patriots as the defending league champions, regular season play was held from September 8, 2005 to January 1, 2006...

 
New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 
12 220 735 3.3 5
Career NE
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...

/NYJ
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 
168 3,518 14,101 4.0 90

External links

  • Curtis Martin at ESPN.com
    ESPN.com
    ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN and a division of ESPN Inc. Since launching in 1995 as ESPNet.SportsZone.com, the website has developed numerous sections including: Page 2, SportsNation, ESPN 3.com, ESPN Motion, My ESPN, ESPN Sports Travel, ESPN Video Games, ESPN Insider, ESPN.com's...

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