Eight's A Crowd in the New England Patriots' Stuffed Backfield

(Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Fred Taylor is one of the class acts of the NFL. Gold-plating his Hall of Fame credentials, Fred Taylor crossed the 11,000 yards rushing mark for his career last year. He signed with the Patriots this year after spending all 11 of his seasons in Jacksonville.

He has managed more than 1600 yards from scrimmage in a single season four times in his career, with a fifth season just 31 yards short from that mark.

Despite his success he has been sent to just one Pro Bowl, which is a worse reflection on the Pro Bowl voting system than Taylor himself.

While you may question his choice of climates, he leaves Jacksonville to enter a Patriots backfield with considerable mileage on his odometer. After 11 tough seasons in the NFL, he must wake up with a lot more pains than his less-worn counterparts on the roster.

The life of an NFL running back is not an easy one. The forces put on a person's body are equivalent to a car wreck.

Getting into 20 of those a weekend, for six months a year, for 11 years of your life, is hardly combated solely by clean living and a pure heart.

The Patriots signed him to a two-year, $5 million contract that owes him $3 million this year and $2 million next. How much the Patriots would owe against the cap for cutting him if he turns out to have slowed considerably is a question, however.

He was cut from Jacksonville, but largely because of the $6 million they would've owed him this year; a sum he's, most likely, just not worth.

But at $3 million the Patriots get a guy this season that they can use as much or as little as needed, who just so happens to have found himself with the ball in 70 NFL end zones and managed over 13,600 yards from scrimmage in his career.

You have to wonder what Taylor has left in the tank, though—a question the Patriots are surely going to try to find the answer to in camp.

Given his contract, I'd say the Patriots are expecting him to perform well enough to earn his roster spot, but there is considerable depth around him and the veteran will certainly have to put in the time and effort.

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