Marshall Faulk
Teams
Indianapolis Colts (1994-1998)
Saint Louis Rams (1999-2005)
Playoffs
Appearances - 7 (1995,1996,1999,2000,2001,2003,2004)
Conf Champ Games - 3 (1995,1999,2001)
Super Bowls - 2 (1999,2001)
Championships - 1 (1999)
Awards and Honors
Offensive Rookie of the Year - 1994
Offensive Player of the Year - 3 (1999,2000,2001)
MVP - 1 (2000)
All-Pro First Team - 3 (1999,2000,2001)
All-Pro Second Team - 3 (1994,1995,1998)
Pro Bowl - 7 (1994,1995,1998,1999,2000,2001,2002)
Hall of Fame - 2011
All-Time Ranks
Scrimmage Yards - #5
Total Touchdowns - #7
Rushing Touchdowns - #8
Rushing Yards - #12
Receptions - #41
Rushing Yards per Game - #44
Yards per Rush - #86
League Leads
Rushing Yards (#5-1994,1999,2001, #6-1998, #8-2000)
Rushing Touchdowns (#1-2000, #2-2001, #3-1994, #4-1995, #9-2003)
Yards per Rush (#1-1999,2000,2001, #7-1994)
Rushing Yards per Game (#1-2001, #4-2000, #5-1994, #6-1999, #9-1998)
Receptions (#3-1998, #8-1999)
Receiving Touchdowns (#5-2001)
Total Touchdowns (#1-2000,2001, #4-1994, #7-1995,1999, #10-2003)
Scrimmage Yards (#1-1998,1999, #2-2000,2001, #4-1994, #8-1997)
Yards per Touch (#3-1999, #5-1998, #9-2000, #10-2001)
Marshall Faulk rushed for 386 yards and 7 touchdowns in his second college game at San Diego State, then went on to finish #2 for the Heisman as a sophomore and #4 as a junior before leaving school a year early to enter the 1994 NFL Draft, where he was taken #2 overall by the Indianapolis Colts.
Faulk opened his career by winning the Offensive Rookie of the Year award after rushing for 1282 yards and 11 touchdowns, then followed that up with 1078 yards and another 11 touchdowns in his second season. He led the Colts to the AFC Championship Game that year, but he missed the game with a toe injury, and the team fell short of the Super Bowl by a game.
The toe injury lingered through the next season, and Faulk was limited to only 587 yards on 3 yards per carry, a terrible year by any standard, but he raised that back up to 1054 in 1997, then 1319 in 1998. That season, he also had 908 receiving yards, which put him at 2227 from scrimmage for the season, good enough to lead the league.
The Colts decided to move on from Faulk after that season, trading him to the Saint Louis Rams, where he had a huge and immediate impact. He set a new NFL record with 2429 scrimmage yards, still the #2 total of all time, while leading the league with 5.5 yards per carry. He also became the second player ever to have 1000 yards rushing and receiving in the same season, and he set the record for most receiving yards by a running back in a season as well.
He was named the Offensive Player of the Year for those accomplishments, but he also saw huge team success that year. The Rams went all the way to the Super Bowl behind Faulk and Kurt Warner, and though he had only 17 rushing yards in that game, he had 90 yards receiving, and the Rams beat the Titans 23-16.
He remained amazing in 2000. He led the league again in yards per carry, and had 18 rushing touchdowns, also best in the league. He also broke the league record for total touchdowns in a season, with 26, which is now #4 on the all-time list. He also broke the 2000-yard mark on scrimmage yards for the third year in a row, and was given the Offensive Player of the Year and MVP awards for the season.
There was no dropoff in 2001. He led the league in yards per carry for the third year in a row, and total touchdowns for the second straight year, and became the first player ever to record 2000 scrimmage yards in 4 straight seasons. He won the Offensive Player of the Year award for the 3rd straight season, and guided the Rams back to the Super Bowl after missing it the previous season. He had 130 total yards in that game, but the Rams lost to Tom Brady and the Patriots 20-17.
He was still effective the next season, gaining nearly 1500 scrimmage yards, but age had finally started to catch up to him. After gaining only 818 rushing yards in 2003, he began splitting carries with Steven Jackson in 2004, officially becoming a backup to him in 2005. After missing the entire 2006 season with a knee injury, Faulk officially retired in 2007.
From 1998 to 2001, Faulk had one of the greatest 4-year runs in history. He had over 2000 scrimmage yards in all 4 seasons, the only player ever to do that in 4 straight years, leading the league twice each in scrimmage yards and total touchdowns. He won an MVP and 3 OPOY awards, and led his team to 2 Super Bowls and a championship, cementing himself as one of the greatest of all time.
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