[te843]

Updated: May 9, 2007, 9:04 PM ET
Barlow to leave Jets after reaching deal with SteelersBy Len Pasquarelli
ESPN.com



Barlow


Still seeking to fill the void they experienced last season when the retirement of Jerome Bettis left the offense without a power-type tailback, the Pittsburgh Steelers have reached agreement with free agent Kevan Barlow on a one-year contract.


Financial details of the agreement, which has been rumored for the past several days, were not immediately available.


A Pittsburgh native who attended that city's Peabody High School and then starred at the University of Pittsburgh, the six-year veteran will sign the deal before the Friday morning start to the team's first mandatory minicamp under new coach Mike Tomlin.


Barlow, who grew up idolizing Steelers Hall of Fame running back Franco Harris, met with Pittsburgh officials last week. He also generated interest from several other teams, including the Indianapolis Colts, after he was released by the New York Jets early in the spring.


In Pittsburgh, it's expected that Barlow will compete with Najeh Davenport for the No. 2 tailback job behind Willie Parker. The coaching staff wants to reduce the workload for Parker, a speedy but undersized tailback who logged a career-high 337 rushes in 2006. Davenport carried just 60 times as Parker's backup in 2006; third-down tailback Verron Haynes, who might still be in camp with Pittsburgh if he can successfully rehabilitate his surgically repaired knee, had only 15 carries.


Parker rushed for 1,494 yards and 13 touchdowns, but the consensus is that he might be even more productive with a little more rest.


Plus, the Steelers hope that either Barlow or Davenport can serve as a complement to Parker and be the kind of late-game "closer" that Bettis was in the waning stages of his career.


Barlow, 28, was a third-round pick of San Francisco in 2001 and played five seasons with the 49ers before being traded to the Jets last summer for a fourth-round draft choice. In his first three seasons, he posted an impressive 4.7-yard average, mostly as a backup to then-49ers star Garrison Hearst. In 2003, his third season in the league, Barlow rushed for a career-high 1,024 yards and averaged 5.1 yards, despite starting only four games.


Over the past three seasons, though, Barlow's productivity has waned. In that stretch, he has averaged only 3.2 yards per carry and his rushing yards have declined every season since he posted his 1,000-yard campaign in 2003.


Presented an opportunity to regain his status as a starting-caliber back with the Jets in 2006, Barlow had a career-low 370 rushing yards.


For his career, Barlow has carried 1,022 times for 3,984 yards and 30 touchdowns. He also has 144 receptions for 1,164 yards and three scores. Barlow has appeared in 84 games and started in 33 of them.

[518-JeTS-FaN]

good he sucked anyways..bye bye kevan

[Amen]

i thought he idolized curtis martin last season. blah.. f*** these agents always feeding stories to the press to make the fans try and like the players more.
good luck in pittsburgh.. maybe you can bring up that 2.9 average, ya jackoff.

[S-Dubb]

i thought he idolized curtis martin last season. blah.. f*** these agents always feeding stories to the press to make the fans try and like the players more.
good luck in pittsburgh.. maybe you can bring up that 2.9 average, ya jackoff.

[Smedsthejet]

good he sucked anyways..bye bye kevan

His production sucked but his TDs were crucial in some of our early victories.

[518-JeTS-FaN]

His production sucked but we should his TDs were crucial in some of our early victories.

thats ok thomas jones should be able to pound he ball in the redzone as good if not better...barlow sucked and im so happy hes gone..plus we still have houston who should be able to get some tough yards by the goal line too

[#73jetsfan]

How did that saying go ? "Kevan Set the Bar Low "?

[ganggreen_ewok]

How did that saying go ? "Kevan Set the Bar Low "?

Hahahahaha thats hilarious. Good riddance him and Blyalock, they sucked diiicccccccccckkkkkkkkk

[NIGHT STALKER]

I may be of the minority, but I would have liked to have seen Barlow have a complete training camp under Mangini and a injury free season...he never had that.

[smallguy]

He was a good goal line back, but besides that he was awful.

[VaNDelaYInDusTrIEs]

The only thing Barlow showed was that he could score when they get inside the 5. I think Cedric Houston could do that just as well, if not better. He's also younger and cheaper. There just aren't enough carries to keep "set the" Barlow around.

[Jetsfan115]

jones is a way better version of barlow. thomas jones is very similar to what martin was. and leon is the small shifty back. its the perfect set

[JetsMan4012]

i aggree with most of the ppl in this thread(rarely said by not only me but any1), i mean i kinda liked barlow for some reason, but he really was just a goal line back for us. plus i also aggree on the point that thomas jones will fill his spot at being succesful at the goal line and will prbly be even better at it, or even cedric houston on the goal line aspect.

[Merenguito]

Watch him do good with the Steelers.

[nysackexchange]

Watch him do good with the Steelers.

I think he'll be fairly effective. They have a pretty good o-line, and if he is more healthy than last year (he claimed he was playing on 1 leg) i expect him to be a pretty good goal line runner.

[santana]

i always wanted to see jamal lewis fall to the steelers. i thought he would be an excellent replacement for that bruising runner they need. barlow.... hes just about done.