The New England Patriots have had some great running backs wear the Flying Elvis over the last 20 years, but Corey Dillon has been the best of them.
New England traded a second-round pick to the Cincinnati Bengals for Dillon's services in 2004 after he had already made three Pro Bowls and rushed for over 8,000 yards in his first seven seasons in the league.
While some were skeptical of how the former Washington Husky would gel in the Patriots locker room, Dillon was exceptional. In his first season with the team, he ran for a career-high 1,635 yards (still a franchise record to this day) and 12 touchdowns on 4.7 yards per attempt on way to a Super Bowl win.
In 2005, Dillon battled injuries but still found a way to put up 733 yards and 12 touchdowns in 12 games.
Heading into the 2006 season, Dillon's final with the team and in the league, New England used their first-round pick on Minnesota running back Laurence Maroney, who was expected to be the veteran's replacement. However, Dillon, who was still a productive back in his 30s, wasn't upset by the team's decision.
"OK, you still have to come in here and play. You know what I mean," Dillon said on a recent episode of the "Pats from the Past" podcast. "Just because you were drafted doesn't mean anything. A great player told me this, 'It doesn't matter what round you were drafted. It matters what you do when you get here.' That was the great Boomer Esiason. You still have to come here and play. At the end of the day, what's the worst thing that'll happen? Somebody gets cut? I'm not getting cut, so I'm not worried about that aspect of it.
"So, what it boiled down to was, we're gonna mix it up. We split carries, and that's fine with me. I never griped about that whatsoever. I kind of thought it like I needed a break too sometimes. I never took it as a negative. On top of that, we embrace guys that come in here that can help you win. Who doesn't want that? I never looked at it in a negative light. I looked at it as another teammate to help us win."
Dillon rushed for 812 yards and 13 touchdowns on 4.1 yards per attempt while Maroney rushed for 745 yards and six scores on 4.3 yards per rush. New England released Dillon the following offseason, and Maroney only rushed for another 1,685 yards and 15 touchdowns in his final three seasons with the team.
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