Earlier today RB Curtis Martin, the Jets' all-time leading rusher, was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Martin became the third player who played most and best years of his career for the New York Jets to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, QB Joe Namath and WR Don Maynard being the other two. Martin ran for 14,101 yards over the course of his 11-year career, placing him fourth on the NFL all-time list. He's also one of the only two running backs to start his NFL career with 10 straight 1000-yard seasons.
Martin joined the Gang Green as a restricted free agent, following the 1997 season. The Jets had to give up 1st and 3rd round picks to the Patriots in the 1998 Draft, but it was sure well worth it, as the Jets ended up winning their division and reaching the AFC Championship Game. In his first seven seasons with the Jets, Martin missed only one game and was selected to the Pro Bowl three times.
In 2004 Curtis Martin finally won the league's rushing title, edging Seattle's Shaun Alexander by just 1 yard. It was arguably Martin's best statistical season, as he ran for 1,697 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also became the oldest player, at age 31, in league history to win the rushing title.
In 2005, Martin suffered what was deemed as a strained right knee injury in the Jets' second game of the season against the Miami Dolphins. He continued playing through pain, hoping to become the first player to start his career with eleven 1000-yard rushing seasons. As the severity of his injury increased, Martin chose to have a season-ending injury in December, finishing with 735 yards on the season.
He started the 2006 season on the PUP list, as the post-operation recovery period took longer than expected. By November 2006, despite months of rehabilitation, Martin was declared out for the season with a bone-on-bone condition in his right knee. He announced his retirement in July of 2007.