Jets Trade for Barlow

by The AP

The New York Jets acquired running back Kevan Barlow from the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday for an undisclosed draft pick in 2007, their second attempt in a week to shore up the position in Curtis Martin's absence.

Barlow's departure officially handed the 49ers' starting job to second-year running back Frank Gore, who already was well on his way to winning it outright. Gore, San Francisco's leading rusher last year with 608 yards, seemed to be trouncing Barlow, a sixth-year pro, in training-camp competition.

Gore stepped right into his new role, rushing for 42 yards on seven carries in the 49ers' 23-7 exhibition loss at Oakland on Sunday night.

"It's tough for me when you get that call the day of the game and find out that you're going to be the man," Gore said. "As long as I keep working hard and just get relaxed, I'll be fine. I'm excited that the coaching staff feels I'm going to get the job done."

The deal is contingent on Barlow passing a physical -- no sure thing with the Jets, who failed Cleveland's Lee Suggs last Tuesday for mysterious reasons after acquiring the running back from the Browns.

But the Jets are in desperate need of help at running back. Martin has been on the physically-unable-to-perform list since training camp opened because of a lingering knee injury.

Though the 33-year-old Martin hopes to play again, his future is uncertain. The Jets have refused to disclose when Martin could return. Without him, the Jets have relied on Derrick Blaylock, Cedric Houston and rookie Leon Washington. The three played well in their preseason game Friday against Washington -- but the Jets' brass apparently wasn't impressed.

"We talked last week, and then they called us back (Saturday)," 49ers coach Mike Nolan said after Sunday's 23-7 exhibition loss to Oakland. "It got serious this morning, and that's when we decided to do it."

Martin, the NFL's fourth career leading rusher, underwent surgery on his right knee in December. He has yet to practice, and reports have said he has a "bone on bone" condition in his knee.

Still, Martin has been an ironman his entire career, known as much for his running as his ability to play through pain. When he went out last season, he broke a string of 119 consecutive regular-season starts and ended his streak of 10 straight 1,000-yard seasons to start a career, a record he shares with Barry Sanders.

"We have been impressed with Kevan's production in both the running and passing game," Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum said. "We feel Kevan will complement our running back group, and he will come in and compete for playing time."

The 49ers summoned Barlow from the team hotel on Sunday morning for a meeting with Nolan at the club's training complex. Though Barlow was comfortable in San Francisco, he'll have a chance at a starting job in New York -- something he seemed to be losing with the 49ers.

"I didn't need any reassurance, but Frank does a great job," Nolan said after Gore's strong performance against the Raiders. "My conversation with Kevan was good. He likes it here in San Francisco, so it was a little emotional for him. He's been here six years, and who knows, he could be back. ... I don't want to pretend to be in (the Jets') medical room."

Barlow was the 49ers' third-round pick in 2001, and he shared playing time with Garrison Hearst for three moderately successful seasons, gaining a career-best 1,024 yards in 2003.

But he seemed unsuited for the pressure and workload of a full-time starting job in 2004. Running skittishly behind San Francisco's terrible offensive line during a 2-14 season, Barlow managed 822 yards -- just 3.4 yards per carry, two-thirds of his 2003 average.

Barlow had another dismal year in 2005, managing just 581 yards with a career-low 3.3 yards per carry -- 1.5 yards fewer than Gore -- for the NFL's worst offense.

When Nolan confirmed rumors of the Jets' discussions with San Francisco last week, Barlow claimed he wasn't worried about losing his job to Gore -- but he was heard singing along to "New York, New York" on his iPod a few days later.

Maurice Hicks and rookie Michael Robinson, who caught a touchdown pass Sunday night, will move up the 49ers' depth chart behind Gore.


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