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From superb to mediocre Why are many former stars looking so average?
The phenomenon of an All-Pro or near-All-Pro losing his identity on a new team always has interested me. What is it that turns him into, well, just another guy? Change of scenery or system, the normal aging process, what? Hardy Nickerson was a functional part of the great Tampa Bay defense, but do you really notice him in Jacksonville? He's just a guy who happens to be playing middle linebacker. Jeff Christy, a two-time Pro Bowl center with the Vikings, has certainly been an improvement for the Bucs, but I haven't seen him doing anything out of the ordinary. Is Shannon Sharpe really the tight end for the Ravens, or is that an imposter wearing No. 82? And then we come to Keyshawn Johnson. He hasn't been exactly invisible with the Bucs, but he isn't the same player he was for the Jets. The numbers are only part of it. After six games last year, he was two receptions off the NFL lead and his average per catch was 14.4, with a long of 65 yards. This year 20 receivers have more catches than Keyshawn does, and his average is 11.3, with a long of 38. But the thing that struck me, as I watched Monday night's Vikings game, was his blocking, his intensity level. In Bill Parcells' system last year Keyshawn was an important perimeter blocker in the running scheme, and he seemed to enjoy it. He cracked down on linebackers, even defensive ends, with a real passion. I've written about this many times. I felt the Bucs were really getting something special, in ways not everyone understood. Monday night I saw typical wideout position-blocking from Keyshawn, you know, just kind of obstructing someone, the kind of thing that gets announcers raving about what a great job a guy is doing. Maybe that's what the Tampa Bay system calls for, maybe Keyshawn has just decided that he doesn't have to expend so much energy on grunt work. It was almost a typical night for Keyshawn. With the Jets, he was always good for at least one great catch and one drop per game. Well, he made his great catch Monday night, on the last, desperate Tampa Bay drive. It came on a crossing pattern, and, in full motion, he had to reach way back for the ball. An incredible catch, the kind he can make but few other receivers can duplicate. Then two plays later he had the ball on the seven-yard line, but gave it up on a big hit by the free safety, Orlando Thomas. I called it a drop, his fourth of the night by my count, but I'm a tough grader. On TV, they called it a great play by Thomas, implying that it would have been almost impossible for Keyshawn to hold onto the ball. But I had the radio on as well (more about this lunacy later), and to Matt Millen and Boomer Esiason, it was a drop. "He's got to hold onto that pass," Esiason said. What was with my dual input? Well, I decided beforehand that this game was too important to have to suffer through Dennis Miller's one-liners, so I started off with the radio voices accompanying the TV. I'd like to say that this was a perfect formula, but it wasn't. It was like one of those picture puzzles you used to do as a child -- "What's wrong with this picture?" Something was missing. On TV, they're usually tuned in to the replay that's coming, so they can set it up for you, and I have to admit that I missed that. So I turned the TV sound on, softly, with the mute button within easy reach, for use when the nonsense started, and the radio in the background. What did all of this do? Nearly drove me nuts. Somewhere there's an answer to the problem, and I'll let you know as soon as I find it. Random ThoughtsSam Wyche is out with a larynx problem, so ex-Cowboy fullback Daryl Johnston, a rookie TV analyst, worked the Patriots-Colts game with Kevin Harlan. How was Johnston? Simply terrific. Poised, articulate, intelligent and, most important, able to see things on the first go-round, before the replay. Best newcomer since Brian Baldinger, and it might upset my theory that ex-linemen make better analysts. ... I'm always amused and confused by the language used by referees. Why do they say, "Before the snap," when announcing a motion penalty? Does anyone believe it could come after the snap? And isn't it time we do away with "encroachment" and "violation of the neutral zone", and simply call it "offside?" For a while it seemed they were getting back to it last year, now all the heavy wording is encroaching on the neutral zone again. ... Motivational study: Miami coach Dave Wannstedt took his team to see the movie Remember the Titans on Saturday night before the Bills game. He even pushed the team meeting up an hour to make sure everyone got to the show on time. Dolphins won. Jets' coach Al Groh distributed flashlights with the Jets' logo on the side to his players, had them go into a dark room, shine them by position groupings, then by ... ah, why go on? You get the point. As a team, we can light it up, etc. Then the Steelers lit them up, 20-3. So the score is 1-1 for motivationals. Personally, I always appreciated a motivational film the night before a game. What was the one that got me psyched up? Nosferatu the Vampire, the silent flick from 1922. ... I'm keeping track of excuses the Raiders have come up with for the erratic kicking of their No.1 draft pick, Sebastian Janikowski. Hard to kick off the baseball infield, tricky wind -- that's two. If you hear some more, please send them to me so I can add them to the collection. ... Nifty quote from Arizona defensive coordinator Dave McGinnis, describing Cleveland's rookie running back, Travis Prentice, after Prentice spent the afternoon faking out Cardinals defenders: "The kid's got some ju-ju's." ... The Denver defense did a good job against San Diego. Players credited Greg Robinson's scheme of more man-coverage, fewer substitution packages. The Patriots' defense gave the Colts' Peyton Manning a very rough time in the second half, holding him to 1-for-12 with two interceptions during one stretch. Shifting schemes, never the same look, lots of zone mixtures. So which way do you go? Frankly, I suspect it might have something to do with who's calling signals for the other side. ... Don't believe the tackle and assist stats you read in the paper. I've sat next to the guys who score them, and a lot of times they'll give someone credit after he merely falls on the pile, especially if he's a big name (the unknowns seldom get a break). Ray Lewis' 13-1 tackle-and-assist numbers against Jacksonville are a myth. Much different in my own scoring. In fact, Lewis in general is a much different player this year. He's not that guided missile to the ball that he was in the past. I see him having trouble disengaging from blocks, I see him just a fraction slow on his reactions. You can take this for what it's worth. I'm not necessarily trying to relate it to his offseason, just reporting what I've seen. ... Why do teams kick off into the wind at the start of a game? I've seen it three times now. Is it some new kind of strategy, or did they just blow it, no pun intended?... I'm intrigued by the Patriots' 255-pound inside backer, Andy Katzenmoyer. Highly regarded plugger at Ohio State as a youngster, but then tailed off as a senior and really cooled by draft day. The Pats made him a first-rounder anyway, and what intrigues me is his pass coverage, something he never was known for in college. I mean, the guy has real coverage instincts and he's always good for one break-up downfield. ... Sleepers to watch: Cleveland rookie nickel back Lewis Sanders, who looks better than the starters, Green Bay situation sub, DE-T Cletidus Hunt, Oakland substitute DT Roderick Coleman. Whenever they're in the game, they seem to make things happen, but that's often the case with an unknown dee-lineman. Once he gets known, he gets the old double team and then things change. ... College strategy amazes me. I'm watching the Miami-Florida State game. At the end, Miami, protecting a lead, drops its rush to three, or occasionally four, and sends seven or eight back into coverage. Bing, bing, bing, FSU marches down the field and scores. Now the Seminoles have the lead and they play the same style defense. Down comes Miami and scores. Now the 'Noles have one last gasp, and they fall short, but the Hurricanes had dropped back into that same soft defense. I've never yet talked to a defensive player who likes that kind of strategy. OK, if you're sitting on a two- or three-TD lead, that's one thing, although I don't even like it in that situation. But when you're in position to get beaten by one score, to allow yourself to get eaten alive, or subjected to what Sam Rutigliano used to call "the slow burn," well, it just doesn't make sense. The problem is that eight men in coverage guard an area, and DBs have told me that they never get up for that. The challenge is to shut down a player. And the receivers were going through those post-like defenders Saturday like flies through a chain link fence. It's weird. Life is weird. I'm weird. You are, too, if you've read my column this far down. Sports Illustrated senior writer Paul Zimmerman covers the NFL for the magazine and CNNSI.com. His "Inside Football" column and Mailbag appear weekly on CNNSI.com. To send a question to Dr. Z's mailbag, click here. The opinions expressed here are solely those of the writer.
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