Over an eight-year career, former first-round pick Jamal Lewis has carried the ball an impressive 2,120 times for 9,150 yards – a respectable average of 4.3 yards per carry. These totals work out to around 265 carries and 1,144 yards every year. If we exclude the entire 2001 season he missed due to injury, it’s even more impressive: 303 carries for 1,307 yards each year he actually played. One reason these totals are so high is they include a historic 2003 season with the Baltimore Ravens where Lewis broke the single-game rushing record (at that time) by piling up 295 yards against the Cleveland Browns. He went on to finish the season as only the fifth player in NFL history to rush for over 2,000 yards in a single year.

But NFL careers don’t last forever, especially for Running Backs who take a lot of pounding. After being released by the Ravens in February 2007, Lewis signed with the division rival Cleveland Browns and many expected the inevitable decline in productivity by the aging back. But instead, Lewis ended the season as a top-five RB in rushing yards, with 298 carries for 1,304 yards, with another 200+ yard game against the Cincinnati Bengals. 2007 turned out to be Lewis’s best season since that historic 2003 one.

Lewis has been a workhorse for a long time in the NFL and has seen a LOT of yards pass by in the rearview mirror. Now, after signing a three-year deal with the Browns in February of this year, Lewis is heading into his 9th season. He’ll also be 29 when this season starts – nearly ancient for most NFL running backs.

So now, just as when he started in Cleveland last year, the fantasy football fans look towards the inevitable and again the question in many minds is, “Does Lewis still have anything left in the tank?”

Can Jamal Lewis be expected to be the same reliable back he surprisingly turned out to be last year? With a new deal locked up, will he still be hungry enough to endure another season-long grind? Can his aging body even withstand the wear and tear of yet another year?

Two of the Whiz’s own tackle these questions and, not surprisingly, come up with differing opinions:

(2) Forum Discussion

-- Chris Fries says: YES

Is Jamal Lewis aging? Sure. It happens to the best of us.

But is he worn down and washed up? Not hardly.

When Jamal Lewis signed with the Browns for a one-year contract, many were expecting him to suffer behind a suspect offensive line, be Cleveland’s only threat, take too much pounding, and finish the season a mere shadow of his former self. They envisioned him facing defenses continually keying on the run, and they predicted Lewis’s productivity would decline over the course of the season, and, by the end of the year – if he miraculously escaped serious injury -- Lewis would be severely struggling or sharing time in a RBBC.

It didn’t happen.

Instead, Cleveland unleashed a potent passing offense led by QB Derek Anderson, WR Braylon Edwards and TE Kellen Winslow. That effective air attack allowed Lewis to find open running lanes against defenses back on their heels. Lewis went on to have a great season, rushing 298 times for 1,304 yards and 9 TDs.

Did he get hurt? Well, yeah, but that was back in week 5 when he rushed only once for 11 yards. He then missed week 6 completely. But missing at least some time to injury is the norm for virtually every player in the NFL.

But did he wear down over the season? No – not at all. In fact, the situation was exactly the opposite:

Weeks 1 – 8:  94 attempts, 443 yards, 2 TDs
Weeks 9 – 17:  204 attempts, 861 yards, 7 TDs

Six of the seven games Lewis had with 90+ yards came in weeks 11 – 17. Six of the nine games he had with over 20 carries came in that same season-ending stretch.

Lewis clearly wasn’t wearing down over the course of the season – he was getting more opportunities and becoming more productive at the end of the season.

Did the emergence of the passing game diminish his role in the offense? Well, obviously not, given the numbers above. Plus, consider this: Lewis only had 4 catches for 33 yards before week 9, but 26 catches for 215 yards and 2 TDs week nine and later.

This shows that the improved Browns passing game not only gave Lewis more room to run and better rushing productivity, it also enabled him to become more involved as a receiver. This gave him even more opportunities to touch the ball as the season went on.

So what reason is there to expect that Lewis will not build on last year’s trends? Frankly, none that I can see.

He’s not injured. He’ll still be under 30 all season, the typical age at which a back tends to really decline. There’s no new high-price rookie or free agent RB in Cleveland he will  have to share carries with. The passing game is likely to be as productive as it was last year, preventing defenses from keying on the run. The offensive line has proven to be reliable, particularly on the left side.

So why be down on Jamal?

OK, I’m no fool -- I wouldn’t take Lewis too highly in any dynasty draft, simply because you can’t reasonably expect another four to five years of solid productivity out of him.

But for this year in a re-draft league -- Especially considering that you can get him as your second RB?

Absolutely!

-- James Bebermeyer says: NO

Ah, Jamal Lewis. The Browns knew what they were doing by picking him up, even if he never played a down for them. At least he wouldn’t trample all over them like he did when he was with the Ravens for 7 seasons, especially in 2003 when he ran for 295 and 205 yards in the teams two meetings. Oh and he also included 4 TDs. OUCH!

I loved that 2003 season, as he and Steve Smith helped me win my first league championship in a league I’ve been in since 2000. Yep, he is the same guy who doesn’t smile in his player picture on NFL.com, ESPN.com or FOXSports.com, come to think of it I don’t think I have ever seen him smile. Must be a jail thing.

He is the guy who is 29 heading into his ninth season in the NFL, after having his best season since 2003. With over 1500 total yards and 11 TDs in 2007, many are very high on him heading into 2008.

I am not one of them, and I will explain why. Read on….

Lewis is facing the cusp of his career for most running backs as he turns 29 on August 26th.  Yes, I am aware of the stories where running backs usually do not start to decline until they hit that 30-something mark. However, Lewis is a bigger back that has taken a beating for several years. He has only finished a full season four times in his career, while missing the entire 2001 season with a knee injury. He has only missed a total of six games since the injury, so that is not bad at all for an RB. Even though his durability has been fairly decent over the last six years, he is due to miss time this season with the heavy workload he has endured, averaging 302 carries a season. With all the pounding he has taken, I am worried that he will start to breakdown in 2008, and the investment is too high to waste on a player I think will miss time.

Another reason I would steer away from Lewis is that the passing game has shown serious promise in Cleveland.  With the defense a bit questionable going into 2008, it would not be too fair fetched for QB Derek Anderson (if he does start in 2008 over Brady Quinn) and company to have to pass a ton. The simple presence of Braylon Edwards, Kellen Winslow Jr, and now Donté Stallworth should bring pause to the expectations of Lewis in 2008.

Ah yes, one more thing, his 2007 season was an attempt to prove to the league he still had it in him to perform at a high level after substandard performances in 2005 and 2006. He proved it for 2007 and was paid nicely by the Browns for his efforts. Recent history shows that running backs seem to hit a wall after getting their payday and this could be the case for Jamal Lewis.

Even with the reasons I have given you, it is still likely you are going to take Lewis as a late second, early third round running back. However, I would take the cautious side of this decision, as he is getting in the age danger zone for running backs and has a good number of players around him that want their hands on the ball.

Consider yourself warned.