FOXBORO, Mass. — Patriots running back Fred Taylor sounded like a man who was seriously considering retirement Sunday, but he was cautious about rushing into a decision.
So often, players say their emotions of a season's conclusion can get in the way of one of the most important decisions of their lives. Taylor, though, missed seven games with a toe injury during the regular season, and he was inactive twice more for depth-chart reasons, including Sunday's loss to the Jets.
"I don’t know," Taylor said when asked if he made up his mind about retirement. "I think, right now at this point, I've got a million things kind of twirling through my brain. It's kind of hard to comprehend. None of it is really clear. I don’t know. I've just got to probably take some time to be realistic. I kind of know what my body is telling me and what my family has been telling me. But I also know that this is what I've been programmed to do the majority of my life. I'll probably just take some time, get to training this offseason. The camaraderie, being around the guys, it's just hard to really separate from that. I don’t want to be too fast on the trigger, I should say."
Taylor was at peace with being a healthy scratch Sunday. Taylor, who will turn 35 on Jan. 27, had 155 rushing yards in the regular season, which was the second-lowest total of his career (only to an injury-plagued 2001 season). He also didn't score a touchdown for the second time in his career.
After the Patriots' 28-21 loss to the Jets, Taylor was asked if he was disappointed that he didn't get a chance to play, especially if this turned out to be his last game.
"I'm not disappointed," Taylor said. "I'm not disappointed at all. Like I've said from day one, even when I came here, when we got together back in the spring … some of the guys, the older guys on the team got together and had lunch. I just told the guys, whatever it took from me to support this team, to help this team in any fashion, that I would do it. I'm not disappointed about not playing [Sunday]. I am probably more saddened that I couldn't do anything to help them or to help us. I'm not disappointed at all."
