Steven Jackson talks retirement following St. Louis Rams’ Week 16 win

The St. Louis Rams got back to winning ways on Sunday with a 28-13 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but it was too little, too late to save the season. Steven Jackson had another fine day on the field, and he will only need 10 yards to break 1000. It will be his eighth straight 1000-yard season if he makes it, a feat that very few running backs have ever accomplished.

With the team he has not looking much like a Super Bowl contender any time soon, the 29-year-old could test the waters of free agency during the off-season thanks to his new contract. After comments Jackson made following the Rams win over the Bucs, it sounded like there could be another option on the table: retirement.

“I will allow myself that time to sit back and reflect, think about the things I’ve accomplished in my career, what I’ve done this season and think about how much longer I want to play the game as well,” Jackson said Thursday after practice.

(…)

A first-round pick in 2004, Jackson has nine seasons of wear and tear. It’s starting to manifest itself through a cascade of nagging injuries. Just how many seasons does he have left?

“Maybe this last one,” Jackson confessed. “Those hits hurt.”

Running backs are generally known to hit a wall of sorts around age 30 where their skills begin to decline, with their position being one of the more rough-and-tumble positions one can play in football. He will turn 30 next July and no matter what team he ends up with, an every-down back like Jackson will probably not last more than a few more seasons in the NFL — what he decides to do with those last few potential seasons is yet to be seen.