Inside the NFL
Posted: Wednesday November 11, 1998 01:03 PM
This week's topics:
Double Trouble | Avoiding
the Franchise Tag
The Flawed
View Of Quarterbacks | Oilers Consider Hiring
Headrick
He's Elvis in Name Only | The Old Emmitt Is Back
The Buzz | The Inner Game
Double Trouble With both marquee quarterbacks injured, how far
can the Vikings go?
By Peter King
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Cunningham went from backup to top-rated quarterback in the league before getting hurt. Al Tielemans |
At the end of the strangest football weekend of
his life, Vikings quarterback Brad Johnson could offer
only a wry smile. In 24 hours he had gone from second-fiddle passer to a
player who apparently had won back his starting job to a patient of a
Minneapolis hand specialist. By Sunday night Johnson had been relegated to
sideline spectator again, the result of a broken right thumb he had
suffered during an otherwise sterling relief appearance in a 31-24 win over
the Saints earlier that day. "That's the way life goes, I guess,"
Johnson said in his soft North Carolina drawl. "Hopefully I can come back
to play Chicago [on Dec. 6], then take a run at the playoffs." In one
afternoon the Vikings went from having the healthiest quarterback situation
in the league to one that's sickening. Ready to play for the first time
since he broke his right leg in Week 2 against the Rams, Johnson was listed
as backup to Randall
Cunningham against New Orleans. Cunningham, who had taken over as the
starter, was the NFL's highest-rated quarterback. Yet as Vikings coach
Dennis Green walked out of the Metrodome on Sunday night, he didn't know if
either of his passers would be available for the stretch run. Cunningham
was undergoing an MRI on his injured right knee, and Johnson was on his way
to the hand specialist. "I've always said you need two good quarterbacks,"
Green said glumly. "I just hope I don't need three." He does. Johnson
had his hand put in a cast. On Monday morning Cunningham had arthroscopic
surgery. The double hit could hardly have come at a worse time for
Minnesota, which, in a 12-day stretch beginning this Sunday, plays host to
Cincinnati and Green Bay and then visits Dallas. The Vikings' two
healthy quarterbacks are Jay Fiedler, a third-year
pro out of Dartmouth who has thrown four NFL passes, and Todd Bouman, a rookie out
of St. Cloud State who has been inactive for each of Minnesota's first nine
games. Barring a miraculous recovery by Cunningham—"I know I'll be
back in a week," Cunningham, a born-again Christian, said late Sunday. "God
will make me well"—Fiedler will get his first NFL start against the
Bengals. As of late Monday, Minnesota was hoping that Cunningham would be
healthy enough to start in the showdown against the Packers on Nov. 22.
The bizarre injuries to Cunningham and Johnson occurred, coincidentally, on
Minnesota's third offensive plays of the first and second halves. In the
first quarter Saints defensive end Jared Tomich jumped
offside, and the Vikings tried to take advantage of the free play. But
Tomich pulled Cunningham down with an awkward tug on the quarterback's
right leg. Cunningham also sprained his ankle on the play. In the third
quarter Johnson banged his passing hand on the helmet of a New Orleans
defender after releasing a throw. "I knew it was bad," Johnson said. "I
looked down, and it was bent sideways. But there was no way I was coming
out of the game." From that point on Johnson completed 11 of 14 passes,
though free safety Sammy
Knight's interception return for a touchdown tied the game at 24-24.
Johnson completed 12 of 13 third-down passes, the most notable of which
came with about five minutes left in a tie game. Facing third-and-eight at
the Saints 25, Johnson was caught from behind by defensive tackle Wayne Martin. But as he
was falling, Johnson switched the ball from his right hand to his left and
shot-putted a pass to running back Leroy Hoard, who raced to a
19-yard gain. Three plays later Hoard scored the winning touchdown.
Though now 8-1, the Vikings face their first crisis. Who could have
imagined Minnesota being in such a predicament before Sunday's game? "This
could end up being like the '72 Dolphins," Johnson said last week. "Randall
could be Earl Morrall." Twenty-six years ago the 38-year-old Morrall
replaced the injured Bob Griese and led the Dolphins down the stretch of
their 14-0 season and into the playoffs. Griese returned in the second half
of the AFC title game and started the Super Bowl victory over the Redskins.
If Cunningham is Morrall, that means Fiedler is Jim Del Gaizo, the
Dolphins' third-string quarterback that year. Now it's up to
Fiedler—whose grandfather was famed Boston Pops conductor Arthur
Fiedler's second cousin—to keep the fine-tuned Vikings offense playing
smoothly. "We won't change what we do to accommodate Jay," Minnesota
offensive coordinator Brian Billick said on Monday. "He was a pentathlete
in college. He knows all our routes well. You'll see he throws a nice, deep
ball. Cincinnati obviously will load up on the run and force us to win with
Jay. Great. Bring it on." Back to
the top Avoiding the
Franchise Tag In the wake of the
pathetic Eagles' signing of Bobby Taylor to a
seven-year, $27.9 million extension, which made him the league's
fourth-highest-paid cornerback, here's what the two parties who made the
deal would like you to believe: Taylor felt loyalty to the team that made
him a second-round draft pick in '95, and Philadelphia wanted to reward him
for that loyalty. In truth, here's what sealed the deal: The 2-7 Eagles
were desperate to make a move that their fans, who despise thrifty owner
Jeffrey Lurie, would perceive as a positive step. More important, Taylor
knew that if he didn't sign an extension, Philadelphia could have slapped
its franchise player tag on him in February, severely limiting his earning
potential. With such a designation, the Eagles would have been obligated to
offer Taylor a one-year deal in '99 for about $4 million, the average '98
salary of the five highest-paid corners in the league. Taylor could have
negotiated with other teams, but any club that signed him would have had to
send Philadelphia two first-round draft choices or some other agreed-upon
compensation. "I knew they would have put the tag on me, and that's the
last thing you want," Taylor said last week. "You get no money up front,
and you'd never see free agency." Packers wideout Antonio Freeman and
Vikings middle linebacker Ed McDaniel would be wise
to follow Taylor's lead. Both are free-agents-to-be who are sure to be
labeled franchise players if they don't get deals done before the end of
the season. Back to the
top The Flawed View
Of Quarterbacks One team's college
scouting board, which rates seniors by position, has a particularly rank
ranking at quarterback. Listed at No. 11—behind such big-timers as
Mickey Fein of Maine, Ted White of Howard and Mike Cook of William and
Mary—is UCLA's Cade McNown, who is only on an 18-game winning streak,
is a four-year starter in a league renowned for preparing NFL quarterbacks,
is running the same pass offense as the Packers' and has guts and guile. At
worst the 6'1", 214-pound McNown, who has thrown for an average of 279.8
yards a game, with 17 touchdowns and eight interceptions this season,
should be the third-rated senior passer, behind Central Florida's Daunte
Culpepper and Syracuse's Donovan McNabb. You would think that NFL
scouts would have learned something from watching Doug Flutie. The Steelers'
director of football operations, Tom Donahoe, who remains impressed with
McNown, says, "Some people are maybe concerned with his measurables: You'd
like a guy a little taller and maybe a little faster, but he's been a very
productive quarterback at a high-level program, and you can't disregard
that." Oilers scout C.O. Brocato says, "He's got great touch, but what
I worry about is the zip he needs for the 15-yard out." After watching
McNown this fall, a scout for one NFC team wrote in his report, "Arm's a
little short for throws he'll have to make.... Probably a West Coast
[offense]-type player who can move around and make things happen." Too
many scouts operate on the assumption that every quarterback prospect has
to be 6'3" and have an Elway-like arm. McNown may come up a couple of
inches short, but consider this: This season 6'5" Colts rookie Peyton Manning has had 11
passes batted down at the line, seven more than Flutie. As one personnel
director who likes McNown as a low first-round pick said last week, "If
Doug Flutie hasn't proven anything to us, we all ought to be hung out."
Last Saturday, after his 377-yard, four-touchdown game in the rain at
Oregon State, McNown said, "Wait until the combine. Then they'll see my arm
strength. And I'm not five eight, five nine." Back to the top Oilers Consider Hiring Headrick Commissioner Paul Tagliabue is pushing Oilers owner
Bud Adams to hire former Vikings president Roger Headrick to run the team.
Headrick interviewed with the club last week.... Raiders free safety Albert Lewis is bemused by
those who doubt that Oakland's defense is as good as its stats. The Raiders
have rocketed from last in the league last year to the No. 2 ranking this
season. "Well," Lewis says, "Mike Tyson doesn't think Evander Holyfield's a
good fighter either." Back to the
top He's Elvis in
Name Only Last week People named
Chiefs quarterback Elvis
Grbac its sexiest athlete of the year. The news stunned his teammates.
"Was that the Braille edition?" one player wondered. Back to the top The Old Emmitt Is Back In a mostly empty Cowboys locker room last Friday,
guard Nate Newton turned
to running back Emmitt
Smith and said candidly, "I can tell the difference in how you're
running this year. Last year you were running on your heels because you
just weren't sure [where to go]. It was my fault and the fault of the other
guys on the line. Now I see you running on the balls of your feet. You've
got confidence again." His 1,074 yards rushing last season was his lowest
total since his rookie year, in 1990, and it looked as if the then
28-year-old Smith was past his prime. This season, new coach Chan Gailey
has shown his confidence in Smith by calling more runs to the outside. On
plays to the inside, Smith is more aggressive and is finding wide alleys to
run through thanks to the dominant play of Newton and left tackle Larry Allen. On Sunday, in
the Cowboys' 16-6 win over the Giants, Smith carried 29 times for 163
yards—his biggest rushing day since Oct. 29, 1995, when he had 167
yards against the Falcons—and passed Tony Dorsett to become Dallas's
career rushing leader, with 12,105 yards. Now Smith, in his ninth season,
needs 208 yards to pass Jim Brown, who quit after nine seasons, and move
into fifth place on the alltime rushing list. Here's how Smith's 1998
totals stack up against his past top performances nine games into a season.
| Year
| Yards
| Rushes
| Avg. Per
Rush |
| 1995 | 1,137 | 216 | 5.3 |
| 1992
| 963 |
219 |
4.4 |
|
1994 | 911
| 219
| 4.2 |
| 1998 | 871 | 194 | 4.5 |
| 1991
| 829 |
186 |
4.5 |
| Back to the
top The Buzz
1. GUT CHECK Here's how
great the 49ers have it in the NFC West: On Sunday they sat Steve Young because of an
abdominal pull, committed six turnovers and still beat the Panthers 25-23.
Now they travel to 7-2 Atlanta. Take away a one-point Falcons win in 1995,
and the Niners have won eight meetings between the two teams since 1994 by
an average of almost 25 points. Time for the Falcons to prove they belong.
2. ENIS'S PLIGHT Lost for the season after tearing the ACL in his
left knee during the Bears' 20-12 loss to the Rams, Chicago running back Curtis Enis might now
regret his decision this summer to turn down a six-year deal with a $7.2
million signing bonus. Instead, Enis agreed to a three-year pact with $3.6
million up front because he wanted to be able to test free agency earlier.
Now he'll be fortunate to be a starter in the third year of his contract.
3. HARDLY A NEW LEAF During the Chargers' bye week at the end of
October, rookie quarterback Ryan Leaf returned to his
college haunts at Washington State and, according to published reports,
threw beer on two students, made obscene gestures and was thrown out of two
bars and a convenience store. Leaf, who admits he and some old friends
visited "places we used to frequent to have a good time," denies all the
allegations of misbehavior. Leaf also looks immature on the football
field—four completions in 15 attempts against the Broncos on
Sunday—so it's no wonder that the Chargers are crying in their beer
about their supposed franchise savior. "You've got to constantly work on
him about being professional and having class," says coach June Jones.
Back to the
top The Inner Game:
Grooming a Young Passer Jim Zorn
works on more than mechanics with Charlie Batch
There were still 51 seconds left in the second quarter of the Lions' game
with the Cardinals on Nov. 1, when Detroit quarterbacks coach Jim Zorn
began preparing rookie Charlie Batch for the following week's game against
the Eagles. After throwing his third interception of the half, Batch took
his spot next to Zorn on the Detroit bench. Zorn was about to tell Batch
that he was being benched for the first time in his six-game NFL career,
but before that Zorn wanted Batch to understand why his pass had been
picked off. "What did you see?" Zorn asked. Batch explained that he was
throwing over the middle to tight end David Sloan. Zorn then
produced a photograph of the defense on that play (shot from upstairs).
Batch hadn't realized that the Arizona defenders were taking deeper drops
than usual, and the result was an easy interception by Cardinals free
safety Kwamie Lassiter.
"For this defense that was not the right read," Zorn said. The coach
was more concerned with how his pupil would react to the benching. "I told
him, 'Don't overreact. Let's watch films on Monday and see what took
place,'" says Zorn, an NFL quarterback of 11 seasons who played for the
Seahawks, Packers and Bucs. "First thing Monday at the quarterbacks
meeting, I had to see how he felt about being pulled and get him to talk
about it." As soon as Batch and fellow quarterbacks Frank Reich and Scott Mitchell took their
seats, Zorn addressed the class pup. "You are not always going to be
benched when things go bad," Zorn told Batch. "At some point you are going
to have to play through it." Batch's response was just what Zorn wanted to
hear. "That's what I wanted to do, keep playing," Batch said. "I got us
into trouble. I wanted to get us out." Convinced that Batch had the
right mind-set, Zorn spent much of the rest of the week trying to break two
of the rookie's destructive habits. Batch has repeatedly missed receivers
on corner routes because he throws to a spot before considering what impact
the defender's positioning might have on the receiver's angle. "He can't
anticipate," says Zorn. "He has to wait for the receiver to break." Batch
has also been unnecessarily checking off at the line after misreading
defensive adjustments. The best remedy for this deficiency is experience.
"When I explain these things to veterans, I'm just refreshing their
memories," Zorn says. "Batch is learning it for the first time." Batch
was back for some on-the-job training on Sunday. He completed 14 of 27
passes for 146 yards, and while he didn't throw any interceptions, he
didn't get the Lions into the end zone either. He did drive them 40 yards
in the final 3:23, but the Eagles hung on for a 10-9 win when Jason Hanson's 58-yard
field goal attempt fell short. "He's a rookie, and we're going to wade
through," Lions coach Bobby Ross said afterward. "We're struggling with
some things, relative to reads. But we're going to work through that."
—By Richard Deutsch Issue date: November 16,
1998
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