When I was short a running back late last season one of the guys I tried to acquire was Jacksonville’s Maurice Jones Drew.

The guy had a rough opening to the season, as he continued sharing time with 87-year-old Fred Taylor and the team’s offensive line fell victim to a ridiculous spate of injuries and mediocre play.

But as the season wore on, Jones-Drew got stronger and as he has done throughout his career, he continued to be a touchdown machine, scoring 15 in 2008 despite starting just one game and touching the gall just 212 times.

Jones-Drew was already likely to improve upon his numbers in 2009 just based on the likelihood that the offensive line would be more healthy (center Brad Meester missed time with a biceps injury and guards Vince Manuwai and Maurice Williams missed all but the season opener due to injuries and backup Richard Collier had his career ended by a gunshot wound shortly before the season started).

The back’s stock rose again before free agency when the Jags cut loose Fred Taylor. And then Monday it hit the wires that the Jaguars had inked former Philadelphia Eagles Pro Bowl tackle William Tra Thomas, an 11-year veteran who rarely misses games (15 or more games played in 10 of 11 seasons) and who says he has several good years of football left in his body.

The Eagles have several young linemen in place to fill Thomas’ spot on the roster, but that doesn’t mean Eagles fans are thrilled to see him go.

Add that to the re-signing of Meester, who inked a four-year deal before the end of February, and the team appears to be solidifying for 2009 what was a weak spot in 2008.

Now, if I were the Jaguars, I would still either game plan Greg Jones into the mix or find another slightly bigger, change-of-pace back to take a handful or so carries away from the 5-foot-7 Jones-Drew, just to keep him fresh.

But I love what the fourth-year back could do as the full-time starter in Jacksonville, given what he’s done as a part-timer thus far.

In barely more than 175 carries per season he’s run for 2,533 yards and 34 touchdowns in three seasons. He’s added 148 catches for 1,408 yards and another four touchdowns through the air.

Jones-Drew was on the Dan Patrick radio show last week saying he deserved to be the highest-paid back in the NFL based on his first three seasons. I think that’s a bit of a stretch at this point. But if you add another 35 to 40 percent to those carries and catches, the sky is the limit on what this diminutive superstar could accomplish for the Jags in 2009.

If he’s not toward the top of your fantasy draft list you might want to think about finding another hobby.