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Burning Questions Home-field advantage firmly in the camp of ... Dilfer?
Updated: Wednesday January 17, 2001 9:00 AM
By Don Banks, Sports Illustrated Some would say Super Bowl week is the worst week of the year on the NFL calendar. But for our money, the week before Super Bowl week is the toughest to endure: All talk, no game. Still Burning Questions finds fodder to chew on as we count the days until the real hype-fest begins. 1. If there's a home-field advantage to be had in this Super Bowl, who has it? Answer: Trent Dilfer. The Baltimore starting quarterback played his home games at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium in 1998-99, the ballpark's first two seasons. And despite losing his grip on the Bucs' starting job during that span, Dilfer was no stiff, going a combined 10-3 at RJS in 13 career games. Dilfer was 6-2 at home in 1998, when the Bucs finished 8-8, and he was 4-1 in 1999, before a broken collarbone ended his season in late November. The Bucs finished 11-5 and won the NFC Central that season. Ironically, maybe Dilfer's worst game ever at Raymond James came in his final season with Tampa Bay, against his Super Bowl XXXV opponent, the New York Giants. In the 1999 regular-season opener, New York beat Tampa Bay 17-13, thanks to five Bucs turnovers. Dilfer single-handedly gave the game away, throwing three interceptions and losing one fumble. The Giants scored a touchdown on a 38-yard Jason Peter fumble recovery/return -- it was Dilfer coughing it up -- in the first quarter. They added a second defensive touchdown in the third quarter, when cornerback Andre Weather intercepted Dilfer and returned the ball eight yards for the go-ahead score. Dilfer's third interception of the game set up a 36-yard capping field goal by Giants kicker Brad Daluiso, and resulted in Dilfer being benched in the fourth quarter in favor of backup Eric Zeier. All 17 of New York's points resulted from Dilfer turnovers. The Giants won despite accumulating just four first downs, 107 total yards and going 1-of-14 on third downs. In fairness to Dilfer, one of his 10 career wins at Raymond James was also against the Giants, in 1998. In early October of that season, Tampa Bay handled visiting New York 20-3, with Dilfer completing 12-of-20 passes for a modest 85 yards and one interception. 2. If it comes down to a choice between Buffalo and Cleveland's head coaching vacancies for Ravens defensive coordinator Marvin Lewis, as it looks like it will, why should the smart money be on the Bills? Answer: For the same basic reasons that current Ravens head coach Brian Billick chose Baltimore instead of Cleveland in January 1999, when he was then Minnesota's offensive coordinator. Billick said he was wary that with team president Carmen Policy and director of football operations Dwight Clark on hand in Cleveland, his power and input in regards to personnel decisions would be limited. Billick had a comfort level with the Ravens director of player personnel, Ozzie Newsome, who is the team's de-facto general manager. Lewis has a comfort level with Bills new general manager Tom Donahoe, whom he worked with in Pittsburgh in the first half of the 1990s. Lewis' agent is Ray Anderson, the same man who represents Billick and went through the Billick negotiations with Cleveland in 1999. Having seen the Carmen and Dwight show up close two years ago, don't be surprised if Anderson would counsel a prospective head-coaching candidate to look for a team where he could have a clear voice in personnel matters and some level of autonomy. Chris Palmer's brief two-year stay in Cleveland -- he was fired last week with three years remaining on his contract -- only reinforced the perception that Policy and Clark can be difficult to work for and may not have the patience found in other NFL locales. With Bills longtime owner Ralph Wilson only occasionally known for meddling in his team's affairs, Buffalo would seem to be the safer choice. Even with Wade Phillips fired recently after going to the playoffs in two of his first three seasons. Lewis is also apt to judge that the Bills, even with some serious cap issues to grapple with this offseason, are far closer to returning to the playoffs than Cleveland is of getting there for the first time. The Bills have a solid base of personnel in place and should remain competitive for the foreseeable future. Buffalo's defense was one of the league's best until injuries decimated it this season. Given Lewis' background on that side of the ball, and the example that this year's playoffs provided of how far a team can go with talent on defense, Buffalo again looks like the clear front-runner over the struggling Browns. If the two offers are roughly equivalent financially, the Bills are likely in the pole position on Lewis' list. If the Browns perceive that early on, don't be surprised if they shift courses and head a different direction, say towards New Orleans offensive coordinator Mike McCarthy. The last thing anybody in Cleveland wants to do is look like they came in second again in any race involving someone from Baltimore. Art Modell, Brian Billick or Marvin Lewis be damned. 3. We know all the popular Super Bowl story lines already. Old guard owners Modell and Mara. The cast-off quarterbacks Dilfer and Collins. The best of buds head coaches Billick and Fassel. But what are the top three other Super Bowl-week stories that should get their 15 minutes of fame? Answer: 1. Giants guard Glenn Parker has more Super Bowl experience than any of his teammates. All of it bad. Parker was a Buffalo Bill from 1990-96, and he went to the Super Bowl in his first four seasons in the league, as regular as training camp. But the Bills, of course, lost them all, giving Parker perhaps one last chance at Super Bowl redemption seven years down the road. "You always wonder if you're going to get another shot at it," Parker said. "This one feels as good as any of them, let me tell you. This one feels better." 2. Tiki Barber gets to go to the Big Game in identical twin brother Ronde's house. Everyone had the Tampa Bay Bucs and cornerback Ronde Barber with a great shot at staying home on Super Bowl Sunday, becoming the first team to play a Super Bowl on its own field. But while the Bucs never made it out of the first round of the playoffs, it will be the Giants and running back Tiki Barber who'll take the field at Raymond James Stadium on Jan. 28. At least Ronde should be able to land great seats. 3. It's hard to put anyone in the same league as Ravens tight end Shannon Sharpe in terms of being a professional talker. He is the gold standard when it comes to sound bites. But the non-stop tongues of Baltimore nose tackle Tony Siragusa and head coach Brian Billick combine to give the Ravens an overwhelming edge in the all-important Super Bowl quote-off. Sharpe, Siragusa and Billick are a reporter's dream, capable of color at the drop of a mini-cassette record button. They will dominate the quote of the day competition, with Sharpe's previous Super Bowl experience perhaps giving him the slightest of edges. New York? Please. Michael Strahan, Jessie Armstead and Jim Fassel might all have their moments. But Baltimore's Big Three will provide us with the soundtrack of Super Bowl XXXV. Don Banks covers pro football for CNNSI.com.
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