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[SIZE=+2]Hall of Fame window can slam shut
[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]05:17 PM CDT on Tuesday, October 16, 2007
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When tight end Shannon Sharpe retired after the 2003 season, I assumed he'd be a slam dunk for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Sharpe left the game with the triple crown for tight ends – most career receptions, yards and touchdowns. Statistically, there had never been anyone better at the position.
But that's what we thought about Art Monk, too. When he retired after the 1995 season, he was the NFL's all-time leading receiver with 940 catches. Being the best at what you do logically would qualify you for Canton.
But by the time Monk became eligible for the Hall of Fame, Jerry Rice had motored past him on the all-time receiving list. Rice became the new standard – and Monk was passed over by the Hall of Fame selection panel in his first year of eligibility in 2001. And every year thereafter – seven years up, seven years down.
Now five players are ahead of Monk on the all-time receiving list: Rice, Cris Carter, Tim Brown, Marvin Harrison and Andre Reed. It's tougher to sell the sixth all-time leading receiver as a profile in greatness than it is the first.
And as offensive statistics continue to explode in the pass-happy NFL, Monk will continue his slide down the receiving chart. Every year that passes makes it more difficult for him to secure a bust in Canton.
http://www.***BANNED-URL***/sharedcontent/dws/img/10-07/1017gonzalez.jpg Getty Images
Kansas City's Tony Gonzalez is on his way to becoming the statistical standard for NFL tight ends.
And that's the potential pitfall facing Sharpe. By the time he's eligible in 2009, he will not be the all-time leading receiver for his position. Here comes Tony Gonzalez.
The Kansas City tight end broke Sharpe's record for career touchdown receptions by a tight end last weekend with two against the Cincinnati Bengals, giving him 64 in his career. Sharpe had 62.
Gonzalez also posted his 20th 100-yard receiving game against the Bengals, moving him past Sharpe into sole possession of third place on that list with 20. By 2009, Gonzalez will be the statistical standard for the position. Here are the all-time leaders at the tight-end position:
RECEPTIONS
1. Shannon Sharpe – 815
2. Tony Gonzalez – 759
3. Ozzie Newsome* – 662
4. Kellen Winslow* – 541
YARDS
1. Shannon Sharpe – 10,060
2. Tony Gonzalez – 9,048
3. Ozzie Newsome* – 7,980
4. Jackie Smith* – 7,918
TOUCHDOWNS
1. Tony Gonzalez – 64
2. Shannon Sharpe – 62
3. Jackie Smith* – 60
4. Wesley Walls – 54
100-YARD GAMES
1. Kellen Winslow* – 24
2. Jackie Smith* – 22
3. Tony Gonzalez – 20
4. Shannon Sharpe – 19
* Hall of Famer
Sharpe amassed his statistics in 14 seasons. Gonzalez has constructed his resume in 11. And off in a distance you can see the likes of Antonio Gates, Kellen Winslow Jr., Dallas Clark, Chris Cooley, Jeremy Shockey and Todd Heap getting situated for their own runs at the tight end record book.
So the first year of his eligibility will be an important one for Sharpe. That will be his best shot for induction. Every year thereafter, the memory of Sharpe and his statistics may fade. Ask Art Monk.
Now, onto the NFL season. It doesn't appear the NFC has closed the gap on the AFC. The AFC has won the last four Super Bowls and six of the seven in this decade. The best team in the AFC collided against the best team in the NFC last weekend on the NFC team's home turf, and the New England Patriots smoked the Dallas Cowboys, 48-27, in a battle of unbeatens. It appears the true Super Bowl will once again be the AFC championship game.
If the Super Bowl were played tomorrow
You have to like 6-0 New England – and I'm not sure I'm ready for a Patriots-Cowboys rematch. So let's try the Green Bay Packers this week. Like the Cowboys, the Packers are 5-1. But they haven't been paddled by an AFC team yet. Green Bay whipped the San Diego Chargers in September in its only game against the AFC. I'm sure the Patriots would love a rematch with the Packers. Green Bay handed New England a 35-21 defeat in Super Bowl XXXI at the end of the 1996 season.
The Darren McFadden Derby
More and more it looks like Miami will have the first overall pick of the 2008 NFL draft. The Dolphins fell to 0-6 last weekend with a loss at Cleveland and, with Trent Green's concussion problems, likely will put their season in the hands of quarterback Cleo Lemon the rest of the way. So quarterback is more of a pressing need than running back for the Dolphins. Miami will have attractive options to consider at the position: Brian Brohm of Louisville, Matt Ryan of Boston College and Andre Woodson of Kentucky.
Commish for a day
I'd schedule all the interconference games in October. Get them all out of the way by Halloween. That would add to the mystique of the Super Bowl, because then no AFC team would have played an NFC team for three months before the two conferences square off for the championship. As long as we're on scheduling, I'd also schedule division games only in September and December. Each team would play its division rivals the first three weeks of the season and also the last three weeks. The first three weeks would give the fans a look at the competition. The last three weeks would allow the teams to decide the division race among themselves.
Goose 101
Special teams coaches will tell you they'll take a 40-yard punt with a 40-yard net every time. It's less gut-wrenching than a 60-yard punt and a 20-yard return. It's the same result – a 40-yard net – but fewer ulcers because you're not chasing an elite returner. The height of the kick is more important than the distance. A five-second hang time on a 40-yard punt will produce a fair catch. A four-second hang on a 60-yard punt will produce a return. Bottom line: Don't outkick your coverage. Give your cover men a chance to make the tackle.
Which brings us to the most dangerous kick returner in the game today – Devin Hester of the Chicago Bears. He has returned six punts for touchdowns in his brief NFL career, although one was nullified by a penalty. Time and again he's been the beneficiary of punt teams outkicking their coverage. As a point of reference, the average NFL punt in 2006 was 43.2 yards. The longer the punt, the more difficult it is to cover – and the more room Hester has to maneuver. If you let him to build up a head of steam, he's gone. Here's a look at the opponents, the length of the Hester's TD returns and the distances of each kick:
Year Opponent TD distance Punt distance 2006 Green Bay 84 yards 50 yards 2006 Arizona 83 yards 50 yards 2006 Minnesota 45 yards 37 yards 2006 Kansas City 73 yards 48 yards 2006 Seattle 66 yards* 52 yards 2007 Minnesota 89 yards 54 yards * Nullified by holding penalty
Looking back at my weekend in Green Bay
With the Arizona Cardinals moving from Sun Devil Stadium indoors to University of Phoenix Stadium in 2006, the Green Bay Packers are now the last NFL team with bench seating in their stadium. No chairbacks – just a dozen of your best friends sitting on the same wooden plank for three hours on a Sunday afternoon. Makes a cozy environment for a football game even cozier.
Looking ahead at my weekend in Philadelphia
In case you're wondering, I don't miss the Vet. I wasn't a big fan of those flying saucer-shaped, multi-purpose stadiums designed to house both baseball and football teams. They were built in Cincinnati, Oakland, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, St. Louis and Washington, D.C. The only one still serving in a dual capacity is the Oakland Coliseum. The only other one still standing is RFK Stadium. Goodbye and good riddance to all of them. The sight lines were terrible for both sports.
Rising stock
Sammy Knight, S, Jacksonville. Knight fell victim to Kansas City's youth movement last March. Seeking to get youngsters Jarrad Page and Bernard Pollard on the field at safety, the Chiefs cut the 32-year-old Knight. Despite his 38 career interceptions and 1,067 career tackles, he remained unemployed until the Jaguars signed him in mid-August. But Knight was in the starting lineup by opening day and has amassed 36 tackles and an interception in a top-10 defense for the surprising 4-1 Jaguars. A 2001 Pro Bowler, Knight made a season-best 12 tackles last week in a rout of Houston and figures to be even busier this Monday night as the traffic cop at the back end of the defense when the Jaguars play the Colts.
Falling stock
http://www.***BANNED-URL***/sharedcontent/dws/img/10-07/1017alexander.jpg Getty Images
Shaun Alexander of the Seattle Seahawks isn't finding much running room.
Shaun Alexander, HB, Seattle. Maybe it's the fact he missed a chunk of the 2006 season with a broken foot. Maybe it's the fact he turned 30 in late August, the traditional tipping point for running backs. Whatever the reason, Alexander is not the same back who scored 28 touchdowns and won the NFL rushing title in 2005 on his way to league MVP honors. He's laboring in 2007 and so are the 3-3 Seahawks. Alexander won the rushing title with 1,880 yards in 2005, averaging 5.1 yards per carry. But he averaged 3.6 yards per carry last season and he's stuck on 3.6 again this fall. Alexander has gained a combined 60 yards the last two weeks against Pittsburgh and New Orleans, both losses, and hasn't scored a touchdown in his last four games.
Around the Ranch
The 5-1 Cowboys have a one-game lead over the 4-2 New York Giants in the NFC East. In reality, it's a two-game lead because the Giants still must play the New England Patriots. So do the 3-2 Washington Commanders and the 2-3 Philadelphia Eagles. Thankfully for the Cowboys, they're done with the Patriots. New England has an eight-game winning streak against the NFC and has won 16 of the last 17 against the other conference. The only NFC team to beat New England in the last four seasons was Carolina in 2005.
Factoid
The NFL times players in the 40-yard dash. It isn't often you see a player run 50 yards in a football game. On Sept. 23-24, the last time the NFL played 16 games in a weekend, there were 10 touchdowns of 50 yards or longer. On the opening weekend of October, there were 10 touchdowns of 50 yards or more in a 14-game schedule. But there were a whopping 14 touchdowns of 50 yards or more last weekend in a 13-game card. Five of them came in one game – Minnesota at Chicago. Here's the list:
Yards Player Team Scoring play 89 Devin Hester Chicago Punt return 81 Devin Hester Chicago Reception 77 Daryl Smith Jacksonville Fumble return 75 Kevin Curtis Philadelphia Reception 73 Adrian Peterson Minnesota Run 69 Donte' Stallworth New England Reception 69 Joey Galloway Tampa Bay Reception 67 Adrian Peterson Minnesota Run 67 Jerious Norwood Atlanta Run 66 Thomas Howard Oakland Interception return 65 Steve Smith Carolina Reception 60 Troy Williamson Minnesota Reception 57 Charles Woodson Green Bay Fumble return 57 Maurice Jones-Drew Jacksonville Run
From the wallet
If I'm buying an NFL ticket this week, here's how I spend my money:
Luxury box, Indianapolis at Jacksonville. This Monday nighter is a battle for first place in the NFL's best division. The Colts put their perfect (5-0) season on the line against the 4-1 Jaguars. The Colts have a harder time in the division than they do on the outside, losing to all three AFC South foes last December on the way to the Super Bowl. The last time these two teams met, Jacksonville slapped 375 rushing yards on the Colts in a 44-17 romp last December.
Club seat, Pittsburgh at Denver. This one is a rematch of the 2005 AFC title game. The Steelers upset the Broncos in Denver that day and went on to win the Super Bowl. At 4-1 and sitting atop the AFC North, the Steelers remain an elite team. But the Broncos are not. They are 2-3 and their Mile High mystique is gone. Long the best home team in the NFL, the Broncos have lost their last two games at home and six of their last eight. Here's the problem – Denver can no longer stop the run. They rank last in the NFL in run defense. Bad news for the Broncos this week – the Steelers bring in the AFC's best rushing attack.
Downstairs on the 50, Minnesota at Dallas. How's this for a double dose of defensive trouble – the Cowboys faced the best passer in the NFL last week and draw the best runner this week. Tom Brady chewed up the Cowboys for 388 yards and five touchdowns in New England's romp at Texas Stadium last week. This week the NFL's leading rusher comes to town with the Vikings. Rookie Adrian Peterson of the University of Oklahoma and Palestine, Texas, brings his 607 yards and 6.3-yard average to Texas Stadium fresh off a 224-yard game against the Chicago Bears.
The game I've got circled on my calendar
Green Bay at Kansas City, Nov. 4. The last time Green Bay won an NFL championship, in 1996, the Packers lost to Kansas City at Arrowhead Stadium during the regular season. Is this an omen? Could a November loss to the Chiefs propel the Packers to another Super Bowl?
Slot receivers
I wrote a story last week on the emergence of the slot receiver in the NFL and could have written a book on it. It takes a different breed of receiver to line up on the inside, both physically and mentally. What I couldn't work into the story was how a team comes to find a quality slot receiver.
The thought process of the Indianapolis Colts was interesting in their decision to draft Ohio State's Anthony Gonzalez in the first round last April. The Colts already had two Pro Bowlers on the flank and needed someone in the slot who could flourish without the workload or the adulation of Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne. The Colts deemed Gonzalez a perfect fit.
"You have to be careful drafting that [slot] guy," Colts coach Tony Dungy said. "If you go out and draft a No. 1 receiver from a college team and say he's going to be our slot guy and third receiver, so many of those guys are not in rhythm. He'll say, 'I wasn't into the game … I couldn't get into the flow.'
"But Gonzalez was used to that [at Ohio State]. He played inside with Santonio Holmes and Ted Ginn. He never was the No. 1 option there. He's used to catching the balls when they come. That's what that guy has to have – the mental ability to focus and catch every ball that comes to him even if it's one in the first quarter and one in the fourth. Not everyone can do that."
Book review
My 75 Years with the Pittsburgh Steelers and the NFL, by Dan Rooney. This one is a pleasant surprise. Rooney is the owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers, so you figured to read the history of his team in these pages. Rooney was born in 1932 – a year before his father Art purchased the Steelers – and worked his way up from ball boy to club owner. He was negotiating player contracts by the age of 19 and running the team's draft by the time he was 23.
But the history Rooney provides of the NFL is a bonus. He was in the room as a management participant for the first labor negotiations with the NFL Players Association in 1956. He was on the phone with then-commissioner Pete Rozelle in November 1963 discussing whether the NFL should play or not the weekend following the assassination of President Kennedy. He also was a key player in the realignment of AFL and NFL in 1970 when the Steelers, Colts and Browns switched to the AFC.
There are some great nuggets throughout this book. Here are some of the better ones:
■ As a high school senior, Rooney was a second-team all-city quarterback in Pittsburgh. The first-teamer? Johnny Unitas.
■ It was Rooney who put the steel logo on one side of the helmet in 1962 – the yellow, red and blue hypocycloids offered to the team by Republic Steel. Rooney wasn't sure how it would look on the yellow helmet, so he told the equipment manager just to put it on one side until "we decided whether to stick with it." The Steelers had their best season in years in 1962, posting a 9-5 record. They changed the color of the helmet from yellow to black in 1963, but when the equipment manager asked Rooney if he wanted the logo on both sides of the helmet, Rooney said, "No. We got here with the logo only on the right side, so let's keep it that way."
■ The year the Steelers drafted Franco Harris in 1972, the other consideration with that first-round pick was Robert Newhouse, who went on to play for the Cowboys.
■ Rooney himself steered the 2003 draft-day conversation to Ben Roethlisberger in the first round because, "I couldn't bear the thought of passing on another great quarterback prospect the way we had passed on Dan Marino in 1983."
Draft Watch: offensive line
Need a blocker? The University of Michigan should be the first stop on every scout's tour. The Big Ten in general and Michigan in particular produce the best blockers for the pro game. This draft he's left tackle Jake Long, the Big Ten's Offensive Lineman of the Year in 2006. Tackles who have come out of Michigan include a Hall of Famer (Dan Dierdorf), Pro Bowlers (Mike Kenn, Jon Runyan, Jon Jansen) and Super Bowl starters (Jumbo Elliott, Bubba Paris). Jansen, Runyan, Jeff Backus (No. 1 pick by Detroit in 2001) and Maurice Williams (No. 2 pick by Jacksonville in 2001) are all current NFL tackles and long-time starters. Here's a list of the top 10 offensive line prospects for the 2008 NFL draft heading into this fall:
Player School Ht. Wt. Jake Long (OT) Michigan 6-7 313 Gosder Cherilus (OT) Boston College 6-6½ 313 Mike McGlynn (OG) Pitt 6-4 314 Eric Young (OG) Tennessee 6-4 305 Steve Justice (C) Wake Forest 6-3½ 283 King Dunlap (OT) Auburn 6-8½ 310 Sam Baker (OT) Southern Cal 6-5 314 Tony Hills (OT) Texas 6-5½ 307 John Sullivan (C) Notre Dame 6-3 305 John Greco (OT) Toledo 6-4½ 322
Two-minute drill
■ Here's Page 1 of the manual for all playoff aspirants – win your home games. The NFL season is just six weeks old yet only six teams remain unbeaten at home. Twenty-six teams have already lost at home and we aren't yet to Halloween. Unbelievable.
■ The 0-6 Dolphins host the 6-0 New England Patriots on Sunday. Miami doesn't stand a chance, right? Well, the Dolphins didn't stand a chance last season, either, when the 9-3 Patriots rolled into Miami in December. The Dolphins were 5-8 and sinking under Nick Saban. Not only did the Dolphins beat the Patriots, they shut them out, 21-0 – one of just two shutouts of the Patriots in the Bill Belichick era.
■ What I find impressive is that Green Bay is 5-1 and shares the best record in the NFC as the youngest team in the NFL. Even with 38-year-old Brett Favre, the average age of the Packers is only 25.72 years. You can play youth in the NFL and still win. The Indianapolis Colts won a Super Bowl in 2006 with the second youngest roster in the NFL.
■ Despite that home loss to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday night, you still have to like the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC West. They are the only team in the division still playing its No. 1 quarterback (Matt Hasselbeck). The Cardinals are down to Tim Rattay, the 49ers Trent Dilfer and the Rams Gus Frerotte.
Final thought
Jacksonville Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio caught all kinds of grief on the eve of the season when he cut starting quarterback Byron Leftwich in favor of David Garrard. Some apologies are in order. Garrard ranks fourth in the NFL in passing behind Super Bowl quarterbacks Tom Brady, Jake Delhomme and Peyton Manning with a 104.7 efficiency rating. Garrard has yet to throw an interception in five games for the 4-1 Jaguars. Del Rio was right.
[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]05:17 PM CDT on Tuesday, October 16, 2007
[/SIZE]
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When tight end Shannon Sharpe retired after the 2003 season, I assumed he'd be a slam dunk for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Sharpe left the game with the triple crown for tight ends – most career receptions, yards and touchdowns. Statistically, there had never been anyone better at the position.
But that's what we thought about Art Monk, too. When he retired after the 1995 season, he was the NFL's all-time leading receiver with 940 catches. Being the best at what you do logically would qualify you for Canton.
But by the time Monk became eligible for the Hall of Fame, Jerry Rice had motored past him on the all-time receiving list. Rice became the new standard – and Monk was passed over by the Hall of Fame selection panel in his first year of eligibility in 2001. And every year thereafter – seven years up, seven years down.
Now five players are ahead of Monk on the all-time receiving list: Rice, Cris Carter, Tim Brown, Marvin Harrison and Andre Reed. It's tougher to sell the sixth all-time leading receiver as a profile in greatness than it is the first.
And as offensive statistics continue to explode in the pass-happy NFL, Monk will continue his slide down the receiving chart. Every year that passes makes it more difficult for him to secure a bust in Canton.
http://www.***BANNED-URL***/sharedcontent/dws/img/10-07/1017gonzalez.jpg Getty Images
Kansas City's Tony Gonzalez is on his way to becoming the statistical standard for NFL tight ends.
And that's the potential pitfall facing Sharpe. By the time he's eligible in 2009, he will not be the all-time leading receiver for his position. Here comes Tony Gonzalez.
The Kansas City tight end broke Sharpe's record for career touchdown receptions by a tight end last weekend with two against the Cincinnati Bengals, giving him 64 in his career. Sharpe had 62.
Gonzalez also posted his 20th 100-yard receiving game against the Bengals, moving him past Sharpe into sole possession of third place on that list with 20. By 2009, Gonzalez will be the statistical standard for the position. Here are the all-time leaders at the tight-end position:
RECEPTIONS
1. Shannon Sharpe – 815
2. Tony Gonzalez – 759
3. Ozzie Newsome* – 662
4. Kellen Winslow* – 541
YARDS
1. Shannon Sharpe – 10,060
2. Tony Gonzalez – 9,048
3. Ozzie Newsome* – 7,980
4. Jackie Smith* – 7,918
TOUCHDOWNS
1. Tony Gonzalez – 64
2. Shannon Sharpe – 62
3. Jackie Smith* – 60
4. Wesley Walls – 54
100-YARD GAMES
1. Kellen Winslow* – 24
2. Jackie Smith* – 22
3. Tony Gonzalez – 20
4. Shannon Sharpe – 19
* Hall of Famer
Sharpe amassed his statistics in 14 seasons. Gonzalez has constructed his resume in 11. And off in a distance you can see the likes of Antonio Gates, Kellen Winslow Jr., Dallas Clark, Chris Cooley, Jeremy Shockey and Todd Heap getting situated for their own runs at the tight end record book.
So the first year of his eligibility will be an important one for Sharpe. That will be his best shot for induction. Every year thereafter, the memory of Sharpe and his statistics may fade. Ask Art Monk.
Now, onto the NFL season. It doesn't appear the NFC has closed the gap on the AFC. The AFC has won the last four Super Bowls and six of the seven in this decade. The best team in the AFC collided against the best team in the NFC last weekend on the NFC team's home turf, and the New England Patriots smoked the Dallas Cowboys, 48-27, in a battle of unbeatens. It appears the true Super Bowl will once again be the AFC championship game.
If the Super Bowl were played tomorrow
You have to like 6-0 New England – and I'm not sure I'm ready for a Patriots-Cowboys rematch. So let's try the Green Bay Packers this week. Like the Cowboys, the Packers are 5-1. But they haven't been paddled by an AFC team yet. Green Bay whipped the San Diego Chargers in September in its only game against the AFC. I'm sure the Patriots would love a rematch with the Packers. Green Bay handed New England a 35-21 defeat in Super Bowl XXXI at the end of the 1996 season.
The Darren McFadden Derby
More and more it looks like Miami will have the first overall pick of the 2008 NFL draft. The Dolphins fell to 0-6 last weekend with a loss at Cleveland and, with Trent Green's concussion problems, likely will put their season in the hands of quarterback Cleo Lemon the rest of the way. So quarterback is more of a pressing need than running back for the Dolphins. Miami will have attractive options to consider at the position: Brian Brohm of Louisville, Matt Ryan of Boston College and Andre Woodson of Kentucky.
Commish for a day
I'd schedule all the interconference games in October. Get them all out of the way by Halloween. That would add to the mystique of the Super Bowl, because then no AFC team would have played an NFC team for three months before the two conferences square off for the championship. As long as we're on scheduling, I'd also schedule division games only in September and December. Each team would play its division rivals the first three weeks of the season and also the last three weeks. The first three weeks would give the fans a look at the competition. The last three weeks would allow the teams to decide the division race among themselves.
Goose 101
Special teams coaches will tell you they'll take a 40-yard punt with a 40-yard net every time. It's less gut-wrenching than a 60-yard punt and a 20-yard return. It's the same result – a 40-yard net – but fewer ulcers because you're not chasing an elite returner. The height of the kick is more important than the distance. A five-second hang time on a 40-yard punt will produce a fair catch. A four-second hang on a 60-yard punt will produce a return. Bottom line: Don't outkick your coverage. Give your cover men a chance to make the tackle.
Which brings us to the most dangerous kick returner in the game today – Devin Hester of the Chicago Bears. He has returned six punts for touchdowns in his brief NFL career, although one was nullified by a penalty. Time and again he's been the beneficiary of punt teams outkicking their coverage. As a point of reference, the average NFL punt in 2006 was 43.2 yards. The longer the punt, the more difficult it is to cover – and the more room Hester has to maneuver. If you let him to build up a head of steam, he's gone. Here's a look at the opponents, the length of the Hester's TD returns and the distances of each kick:
Year Opponent TD distance Punt distance 2006 Green Bay 84 yards 50 yards 2006 Arizona 83 yards 50 yards 2006 Minnesota 45 yards 37 yards 2006 Kansas City 73 yards 48 yards 2006 Seattle 66 yards* 52 yards 2007 Minnesota 89 yards 54 yards * Nullified by holding penalty
Looking back at my weekend in Green Bay
With the Arizona Cardinals moving from Sun Devil Stadium indoors to University of Phoenix Stadium in 2006, the Green Bay Packers are now the last NFL team with bench seating in their stadium. No chairbacks – just a dozen of your best friends sitting on the same wooden plank for three hours on a Sunday afternoon. Makes a cozy environment for a football game even cozier.
Looking ahead at my weekend in Philadelphia
In case you're wondering, I don't miss the Vet. I wasn't a big fan of those flying saucer-shaped, multi-purpose stadiums designed to house both baseball and football teams. They were built in Cincinnati, Oakland, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, St. Louis and Washington, D.C. The only one still serving in a dual capacity is the Oakland Coliseum. The only other one still standing is RFK Stadium. Goodbye and good riddance to all of them. The sight lines were terrible for both sports.
Rising stock
Sammy Knight, S, Jacksonville. Knight fell victim to Kansas City's youth movement last March. Seeking to get youngsters Jarrad Page and Bernard Pollard on the field at safety, the Chiefs cut the 32-year-old Knight. Despite his 38 career interceptions and 1,067 career tackles, he remained unemployed until the Jaguars signed him in mid-August. But Knight was in the starting lineup by opening day and has amassed 36 tackles and an interception in a top-10 defense for the surprising 4-1 Jaguars. A 2001 Pro Bowler, Knight made a season-best 12 tackles last week in a rout of Houston and figures to be even busier this Monday night as the traffic cop at the back end of the defense when the Jaguars play the Colts.
Falling stock
http://www.***BANNED-URL***/sharedcontent/dws/img/10-07/1017alexander.jpg Getty Images
Shaun Alexander of the Seattle Seahawks isn't finding much running room.
Shaun Alexander, HB, Seattle. Maybe it's the fact he missed a chunk of the 2006 season with a broken foot. Maybe it's the fact he turned 30 in late August, the traditional tipping point for running backs. Whatever the reason, Alexander is not the same back who scored 28 touchdowns and won the NFL rushing title in 2005 on his way to league MVP honors. He's laboring in 2007 and so are the 3-3 Seahawks. Alexander won the rushing title with 1,880 yards in 2005, averaging 5.1 yards per carry. But he averaged 3.6 yards per carry last season and he's stuck on 3.6 again this fall. Alexander has gained a combined 60 yards the last two weeks against Pittsburgh and New Orleans, both losses, and hasn't scored a touchdown in his last four games.
Around the Ranch
The 5-1 Cowboys have a one-game lead over the 4-2 New York Giants in the NFC East. In reality, it's a two-game lead because the Giants still must play the New England Patriots. So do the 3-2 Washington Commanders and the 2-3 Philadelphia Eagles. Thankfully for the Cowboys, they're done with the Patriots. New England has an eight-game winning streak against the NFC and has won 16 of the last 17 against the other conference. The only NFC team to beat New England in the last four seasons was Carolina in 2005.
Factoid
The NFL times players in the 40-yard dash. It isn't often you see a player run 50 yards in a football game. On Sept. 23-24, the last time the NFL played 16 games in a weekend, there were 10 touchdowns of 50 yards or longer. On the opening weekend of October, there were 10 touchdowns of 50 yards or more in a 14-game schedule. But there were a whopping 14 touchdowns of 50 yards or more last weekend in a 13-game card. Five of them came in one game – Minnesota at Chicago. Here's the list:
Yards Player Team Scoring play 89 Devin Hester Chicago Punt return 81 Devin Hester Chicago Reception 77 Daryl Smith Jacksonville Fumble return 75 Kevin Curtis Philadelphia Reception 73 Adrian Peterson Minnesota Run 69 Donte' Stallworth New England Reception 69 Joey Galloway Tampa Bay Reception 67 Adrian Peterson Minnesota Run 67 Jerious Norwood Atlanta Run 66 Thomas Howard Oakland Interception return 65 Steve Smith Carolina Reception 60 Troy Williamson Minnesota Reception 57 Charles Woodson Green Bay Fumble return 57 Maurice Jones-Drew Jacksonville Run
From the wallet
If I'm buying an NFL ticket this week, here's how I spend my money:
Luxury box, Indianapolis at Jacksonville. This Monday nighter is a battle for first place in the NFL's best division. The Colts put their perfect (5-0) season on the line against the 4-1 Jaguars. The Colts have a harder time in the division than they do on the outside, losing to all three AFC South foes last December on the way to the Super Bowl. The last time these two teams met, Jacksonville slapped 375 rushing yards on the Colts in a 44-17 romp last December.
Club seat, Pittsburgh at Denver. This one is a rematch of the 2005 AFC title game. The Steelers upset the Broncos in Denver that day and went on to win the Super Bowl. At 4-1 and sitting atop the AFC North, the Steelers remain an elite team. But the Broncos are not. They are 2-3 and their Mile High mystique is gone. Long the best home team in the NFL, the Broncos have lost their last two games at home and six of their last eight. Here's the problem – Denver can no longer stop the run. They rank last in the NFL in run defense. Bad news for the Broncos this week – the Steelers bring in the AFC's best rushing attack.
Downstairs on the 50, Minnesota at Dallas. How's this for a double dose of defensive trouble – the Cowboys faced the best passer in the NFL last week and draw the best runner this week. Tom Brady chewed up the Cowboys for 388 yards and five touchdowns in New England's romp at Texas Stadium last week. This week the NFL's leading rusher comes to town with the Vikings. Rookie Adrian Peterson of the University of Oklahoma and Palestine, Texas, brings his 607 yards and 6.3-yard average to Texas Stadium fresh off a 224-yard game against the Chicago Bears.
The game I've got circled on my calendar
Green Bay at Kansas City, Nov. 4. The last time Green Bay won an NFL championship, in 1996, the Packers lost to Kansas City at Arrowhead Stadium during the regular season. Is this an omen? Could a November loss to the Chiefs propel the Packers to another Super Bowl?
Slot receivers
I wrote a story last week on the emergence of the slot receiver in the NFL and could have written a book on it. It takes a different breed of receiver to line up on the inside, both physically and mentally. What I couldn't work into the story was how a team comes to find a quality slot receiver.
The thought process of the Indianapolis Colts was interesting in their decision to draft Ohio State's Anthony Gonzalez in the first round last April. The Colts already had two Pro Bowlers on the flank and needed someone in the slot who could flourish without the workload or the adulation of Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne. The Colts deemed Gonzalez a perfect fit.
"You have to be careful drafting that [slot] guy," Colts coach Tony Dungy said. "If you go out and draft a No. 1 receiver from a college team and say he's going to be our slot guy and third receiver, so many of those guys are not in rhythm. He'll say, 'I wasn't into the game … I couldn't get into the flow.'
"But Gonzalez was used to that [at Ohio State]. He played inside with Santonio Holmes and Ted Ginn. He never was the No. 1 option there. He's used to catching the balls when they come. That's what that guy has to have – the mental ability to focus and catch every ball that comes to him even if it's one in the first quarter and one in the fourth. Not everyone can do that."
Book review
My 75 Years with the Pittsburgh Steelers and the NFL, by Dan Rooney. This one is a pleasant surprise. Rooney is the owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers, so you figured to read the history of his team in these pages. Rooney was born in 1932 – a year before his father Art purchased the Steelers – and worked his way up from ball boy to club owner. He was negotiating player contracts by the age of 19 and running the team's draft by the time he was 23.
But the history Rooney provides of the NFL is a bonus. He was in the room as a management participant for the first labor negotiations with the NFL Players Association in 1956. He was on the phone with then-commissioner Pete Rozelle in November 1963 discussing whether the NFL should play or not the weekend following the assassination of President Kennedy. He also was a key player in the realignment of AFL and NFL in 1970 when the Steelers, Colts and Browns switched to the AFC.
There are some great nuggets throughout this book. Here are some of the better ones:
■ As a high school senior, Rooney was a second-team all-city quarterback in Pittsburgh. The first-teamer? Johnny Unitas.
■ It was Rooney who put the steel logo on one side of the helmet in 1962 – the yellow, red and blue hypocycloids offered to the team by Republic Steel. Rooney wasn't sure how it would look on the yellow helmet, so he told the equipment manager just to put it on one side until "we decided whether to stick with it." The Steelers had their best season in years in 1962, posting a 9-5 record. They changed the color of the helmet from yellow to black in 1963, but when the equipment manager asked Rooney if he wanted the logo on both sides of the helmet, Rooney said, "No. We got here with the logo only on the right side, so let's keep it that way."
■ The year the Steelers drafted Franco Harris in 1972, the other consideration with that first-round pick was Robert Newhouse, who went on to play for the Cowboys.
■ Rooney himself steered the 2003 draft-day conversation to Ben Roethlisberger in the first round because, "I couldn't bear the thought of passing on another great quarterback prospect the way we had passed on Dan Marino in 1983."
Draft Watch: offensive line
Need a blocker? The University of Michigan should be the first stop on every scout's tour. The Big Ten in general and Michigan in particular produce the best blockers for the pro game. This draft he's left tackle Jake Long, the Big Ten's Offensive Lineman of the Year in 2006. Tackles who have come out of Michigan include a Hall of Famer (Dan Dierdorf), Pro Bowlers (Mike Kenn, Jon Runyan, Jon Jansen) and Super Bowl starters (Jumbo Elliott, Bubba Paris). Jansen, Runyan, Jeff Backus (No. 1 pick by Detroit in 2001) and Maurice Williams (No. 2 pick by Jacksonville in 2001) are all current NFL tackles and long-time starters. Here's a list of the top 10 offensive line prospects for the 2008 NFL draft heading into this fall:
Player School Ht. Wt. Jake Long (OT) Michigan 6-7 313 Gosder Cherilus (OT) Boston College 6-6½ 313 Mike McGlynn (OG) Pitt 6-4 314 Eric Young (OG) Tennessee 6-4 305 Steve Justice (C) Wake Forest 6-3½ 283 King Dunlap (OT) Auburn 6-8½ 310 Sam Baker (OT) Southern Cal 6-5 314 Tony Hills (OT) Texas 6-5½ 307 John Sullivan (C) Notre Dame 6-3 305 John Greco (OT) Toledo 6-4½ 322
Two-minute drill
■ Here's Page 1 of the manual for all playoff aspirants – win your home games. The NFL season is just six weeks old yet only six teams remain unbeaten at home. Twenty-six teams have already lost at home and we aren't yet to Halloween. Unbelievable.
■ The 0-6 Dolphins host the 6-0 New England Patriots on Sunday. Miami doesn't stand a chance, right? Well, the Dolphins didn't stand a chance last season, either, when the 9-3 Patriots rolled into Miami in December. The Dolphins were 5-8 and sinking under Nick Saban. Not only did the Dolphins beat the Patriots, they shut them out, 21-0 – one of just two shutouts of the Patriots in the Bill Belichick era.
■ What I find impressive is that Green Bay is 5-1 and shares the best record in the NFC as the youngest team in the NFL. Even with 38-year-old Brett Favre, the average age of the Packers is only 25.72 years. You can play youth in the NFL and still win. The Indianapolis Colts won a Super Bowl in 2006 with the second youngest roster in the NFL.
■ Despite that home loss to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday night, you still have to like the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC West. They are the only team in the division still playing its No. 1 quarterback (Matt Hasselbeck). The Cardinals are down to Tim Rattay, the 49ers Trent Dilfer and the Rams Gus Frerotte.
Final thought
Jacksonville Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio caught all kinds of grief on the eve of the season when he cut starting quarterback Byron Leftwich in favor of David Garrard. Some apologies are in order. Garrard ranks fourth in the NFL in passing behind Super Bowl quarterbacks Tom Brady, Jake Delhomme and Peyton Manning with a 104.7 efficiency rating. Garrard has yet to throw an interception in five games for the 4-1 Jaguars. Del Rio was right.
