RB Respect Month Vol. 2, Day 19: It's time to appreciate LSU's Kevin Faulk
Maybe the most underrated back of his generation.
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Welcome to day 19 of Running Back Respect Month™! Yesterday, Chris Johnson taught Boise State what real speed is in the 2007 Hawai'i Bowl. Here's where we're at today, and how the rest of the month looks:
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Today: Kevin Faulk vs. Kentucky (1997)
RB Respect Month Vol. 2, Day 19: It's time to appreciate LSU's Kevin Faulk
Do you realize how valuable you have to be as a football player to play for the Bill Belichick-era New England Patriots for 13 consecutive years? As a running back he didn't even draft, no less? That's exactly what Kevin Faulk did from 1999-2011.
Faulk never ran for more than 600 yards in a season, and only broke the 1,000-scrimmage yards mark once (2003). Even though he only started 47 of 161 career games, he still put up 3,607 yards rushing and 3,701 yards receiving. He did everything the Patriots asked of him, including a few big seasons as a kick returner. It's why Belichick called him the "ultimate team player," and why Tom Brady crashed his 2016 induction into the Patriots Hall of Fame while rocking Faulk's No. 33 jersey:
Kevin Faulk is a legend in New England, doing whatever the team needed en route to three Super Bowl titles in his 13 seasons. Despite that, he's probably not in the top ten of players mentioned by Patriots fans when it comes to their first dynasty era.
At LSU, though? Kevin Faulk was the man. His 4,557 rushing yards are still most in school history, as are his 46 rushing touchdowns. 212 yards and five of those TD –also an LSU record– came in the Tigers' 63-28 win at Kentucky in 1997:
