and four touchdowns. In the fourth quarter of a 23-20 loss against the Seattle Seahawks, he surpassed Ronnie Harmon's record for most receiving yards by an NFL running back with a two-yard reception. He also surpassed Hall of Famers Charlie Joiner and Michael Irvin to reach the top ten in all-time receptions by a player. New England Patriots After spending another year with Buffalo, Centers joined the Patriots in 2003. By this time, 35-year-old Centers' role as a receiver (along with ball carrier) had diminished. He was released after the sixth game of the season due to a knee injury, before re-signing with the Patriots in December. He recorded 19 receptions for 106 yards and rushed for 82 yards. Still, his blocking contributions as part of the Patriots offense allowed him to earn a Super Bowl ring; New England finished the season with a 14-2 record and went on to defeat the Carolina Panthers 32-29 in Super Bowl XXXVIII. Centers retired from professional football before the beginning of the 2004 season. Career achievements In his 14 NFL seasons, Centers rushed for 2,188 yards, caught 827 passes for 6,797 yards, returned five punts for 30 yards, returned 33 kickoffs for 617 yards and scored 42 touchdowns (14 rushing/28 receiving). Centers's 827 receptions are currently the most by any running back and were the most by any non-wide receiver in NFL history, until tight end Tony Gonzalez surpassed this mark in 2008. He caught passes in 128 consecutive games, at one point the third longest streak in the NFL. When Centers retired, he was 7th in passes caught in league history. Because NFL fullbacks are now almost exclusively used as blockers, Centers is widely recognized as one of the greatest pass receiving fullbacks ever. References 1968 births Living people American Conference Pro Bowl players American football fullbacks Arizona Cardinals players Buffalo Bills players New England Patriots players National Conference Pro Bowl players Sportspeople from Tyler, Texas Phoenix Cardinals players Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football players Washington Redskins players People from Tatum, Texas Players of American football from Texas