INSIDE THE NFL
So Much For Parity
by Peter King
Posted: Wed October 7, 1998
Now that every team has played at least four games, here are some
observations:
1. The Broncos stand alone atop the sport. Denver is so good that
it can lose first-ballot Hall of Famer John Elway for 13 quarters
and still win easily. The Broncos have played 300 minutes this
season and have trailed for all of 4:23. Their average margin of
victory is 17.8 points. In this ever-changing game, it's rare
when the winner of the Super Bowl looks significantly better the
next season. Ranking just below the Broncos are the Packers,
49ers, Jaguars, Vikings, Steelers, Patriots, Dolphins and Chiefs,
but from there the drop is precipitous.
2. For all their offensive might, the Packers have the
least-feared running game in the league. Dorsey Levens (broken
right leg) might be out for the year, Travis Jervey has been
slowed by a bum hamstring, and off-season free-agent pickup
Raymont Harris is not much more than a plow horse. Add to this
mix 228-pound tweener Darick Holmes, who was acquired last week
in a trade with the Bills after starting just three games over
the last three years, and this is some motley crew.
3. Need a pass rush? Look to the 30-and-over crowd. The NFL sack
leaders through Sunday—the Panthers' Kevin Greene (nine sacks),
the Chiefs' Derrick Thomas and the Seahawks' Michael Sinclair
(seven each) and the Packers' Reggie White (5 1/2)—are 36, 31, 30
and 36 years old, respectively. The first four defensive ends or
outside linebackers taken in this year's draft (the Cardinals'
Andre Wadsworth, the Rams' Grant Wistrom, the Cowboys' Greg Ellis
and the Panthers' Jason Peter) have combined for five sacks.
4. The once proud Eagles have disintegrated. They're winless,
having dropped their first five games by an average of 17
points. Philadelphia coach Ray Rhodes and defensive coordinator
Emmitt Thomas, two admired defensive minds, watched on Sunday as
the Broncos piled up 28 points and 242 yards in the first 14
minutes. "Bubby [Brister] was all happy he threw four touchdown
passes," Broncos tight end Shannon Sharpe said after the Eagles
had absorbed a 41-16 beating. "Hey, I told him, I could have
thrown three against that team."
Issue date: October 12, 1998
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