When the Patriots’ season came to an end, Fred Taylor sounded like a man who was ready to call it quits. But that’s not necessarily the case.
The 35-year-old Taylor told Tania Ganguli of the Florida Times-Union that he may play in the NFL in 2011, and he thinks he actually has two more years left in him.
That sounds awfully ambitious, considering that Taylor was the oldest halfback in the NFL last year. Then again, Taylor just turned 35 a couple months ago, and Marcus Allen gained 2,791 scrimmage yards and 25 touchdowns after his 35th birthday. And Taylor won’t be the oldest halfback in the NFL in 2011 if Tiki Barber comes back.
Taylor is still conflicted about whether to play or not because he’s concerned that more wear and tear on his body could affect his life after football. But he told Ganguli he thinks the limited playing time he got in New England (a total of 106 carries in two years) has served as something of a career refresher.
So if there’s a running back who can keep playing beyond the age of 35, it’s probably Taylor, who will be a free agent able to sign with any team as soon as the lockout ends. Barber had better hope there’s more than one team looking for a running back in his mid-30s, because if there’s only one, that one will likely call Taylor first.