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Rams' Faulk Not Sure if He Will Play Another Season
It's too soon to say whether the Marshall Faulk highlight montage the Rams showed at the finish of their home finale was a going away tribute to the running back. Faulk, a former NFL MVP who's been used sparingly this year behind Steven Jackson, hasn't decided if he will keep playing.
Earlier this year, he agreed to a restructured four-year contract and took a pay cut.
After the Rams (5-10) were swept by the 49ers for the first time since 1998 in a 24-20 loss Saturday, he said it wasn't the right time to discuss his future.
"I've been playing football for a long time and it's something I love doing," he said. "So to just give you a quick answer after a hard loss to a division opponent wouldn't even be right."
Then again, he also noted, that it might not be his call.
"You have to understand that although it's a game and it's my career and it's my life and it provides a living for me and my family, it's a business to the people who own it," Faulk said. "And they have to run it.
"There comes a time when they have to make decisions, business decisions."
Faulk had nine catches for 44 yards and three carries for 5 yards against the 49ers. Winding down his 12th season, he has 267 yards rushing with no touchdowns and 42 receptions for a 6.4-yard average and one score.
He hasn't had a 1,000-yard rushing season since 2001. Plus coach Mike Martz, who has such great affection for Faulk he named him a "captain in perpetuity" a couple of years ago, almost certainly won't be back.
Martz has been cleared to return to duty next week after missing most of the season with a heart ailment. It's expected that ownership will reach a settlement on the final year of Martz's contract, given that he's clashed often with the front office.
"A new coach coming in, a new situation, you never know," Faulk said. "I've been around this game long enough to know anything can happen.
"Nobody can guarantee you, that's just how it is."
If the end is near, he tied up a few loose ends. Faulk, who's often been difficult for local media to deal with, perhaps gave a clue of his intentions when he explained why he's been that way.
"It's a tough game and I think you guys don't understand sometimes when my answers are harsh or when I'm very critical of the things you guys write because we put in a lot of time and a lot of hard work and it's not to go out there and lose," Faulk said. "It's easy to pick up a pen and be critical of people and not understand the time that's put in or the guy that's out there hurt with a bad back or a bad shoulder.
"You just don't get to see that, so sometimes I'm a little critical of the things that are said or written."
The Rams totaled 44 yards rushing against the 49ers, with Jackson held to 28 yards on 16 carries. He missed much of practice with a hip pointer and interim coach Joe Vitt said Jackson visited a hospital emergency room at 1 a.m. on game day due to strep throat, then required a painkilling shot for his hip.
"There were a lot of guys battling," Vitt said. "If I had coached the game better, I'd have put ourselves in better position to win."
Source: AP
Earlier this year, he agreed to a restructured four-year contract and took a pay cut.
After the Rams (5-10) were swept by the 49ers for the first time since 1998 in a 24-20 loss Saturday, he said it wasn't the right time to discuss his future.
"I've been playing football for a long time and it's something I love doing," he said. "So to just give you a quick answer after a hard loss to a division opponent wouldn't even be right."
Then again, he also noted, that it might not be his call.
"You have to understand that although it's a game and it's my career and it's my life and it provides a living for me and my family, it's a business to the people who own it," Faulk said. "And they have to run it.
"There comes a time when they have to make decisions, business decisions."
Faulk had nine catches for 44 yards and three carries for 5 yards against the 49ers. Winding down his 12th season, he has 267 yards rushing with no touchdowns and 42 receptions for a 6.4-yard average and one score.
He hasn't had a 1,000-yard rushing season since 2001. Plus coach Mike Martz, who has such great affection for Faulk he named him a "captain in perpetuity" a couple of years ago, almost certainly won't be back.
Martz has been cleared to return to duty next week after missing most of the season with a heart ailment. It's expected that ownership will reach a settlement on the final year of Martz's contract, given that he's clashed often with the front office.
"A new coach coming in, a new situation, you never know," Faulk said. "I've been around this game long enough to know anything can happen.
"Nobody can guarantee you, that's just how it is."
If the end is near, he tied up a few loose ends. Faulk, who's often been difficult for local media to deal with, perhaps gave a clue of his intentions when he explained why he's been that way.
"It's a tough game and I think you guys don't understand sometimes when my answers are harsh or when I'm very critical of the things you guys write because we put in a lot of time and a lot of hard work and it's not to go out there and lose," Faulk said. "It's easy to pick up a pen and be critical of people and not understand the time that's put in or the guy that's out there hurt with a bad back or a bad shoulder.
"You just don't get to see that, so sometimes I'm a little critical of the things that are said or written."
The Rams totaled 44 yards rushing against the 49ers, with Jackson held to 28 yards on 16 carries. He missed much of practice with a hip pointer and interim coach Joe Vitt said Jackson visited a hospital emergency room at 1 a.m. on game day due to strep throat, then required a painkilling shot for his hip.
"There were a lot of guys battling," Vitt said. "If I had coached the game better, I'd have put ourselves in better position to win."
Source: AP