After the season’s first quarter, it’s clear the most desirable Super Bowl is a match between the last two winners, St. Louis and Baltimore.
Their last meeting was in the 1999 season opener, before the Rams had established themselves as a dominant offense and before the Ravens became a dominant defense. The Rams won 27-10.
They are not scheduled to meet this year, so a Super Bowl is the only chance for NFL fans to watch the first true game of the century pitting teams that are taking offense and defense to unprecedented levels.
While the Rams are the league’s only remaining undefeated team, cruising by an average margin of 32-13, the Ravens have regained their strut following a loss in Cincinnati. After an impressive win in Denver and an easy one against Tennessee, the Ravens are one-point favorites Sunday at Lambeau Field against Green Bay.
As good as the Ravens’ record-breaking defense was a year ago, it is off to a better start. After four games in 2000, the Ravens had allowed 55 points en route to a 16-game record of 165, breaking the 1986 Bears’ mark of 187. In 2001 they’ve allowed 47 points. They have allowed only five touchdowns. Four turnovers and a blocked punt led to those five touchdowns.
“As much as they don’t want to believe, I think everyone is finally realizing we’re one of the top defenses in history,” Ravens defensive end Michael McCrary said. “We’re forcing the issue now with our consistency.”
Three touchdown drives against the defense have covered 3, 18 and 33 yards. The Ravens don’t believe a team can go 80 yards against them. Since the Bears drove 74 yards to the 2-yard line on the first series of the season, no opponent has started a drive in its own territory and penetrated farther than the Ravens’ 19-yard line.
Last week the Ravens and coach Brian Billick returned to pre-Cincinnati levels of confidence in a 26-7 dismantling of once-formidable rival Tennessee, in which the Ravens forced a turnover or a three-and-out on nine of the Titans’ 13 possessions.
“They earned a shutout,” Billick said. “They really did. I know that sounds petty and personal. But I’m petty and personal, what the heck.”
As for the Rams, they are 10 1/2-point favorites–the largest margin of the weekend–even though they are playing the New York Giants, a 3-1 team that is merely the defending NFC champion.
It’s a long time until the Feb. 3 Super Bowl, and it will be worth the wait only if St. Louis and Baltimore are still standing. At this point, anything less looks like a disappointment.
Hearst headlines: The rare and amazing comeback of Garrison Hearst comes full circle Sunday when the San Francisco running back starts against the Atlanta Falcons, 33 months after a playoff injury in the Georgia Dome kept him out of football for two seasons.
The Georgia native’s mother, who couldn’t bear to watch the first 49ers games on television this year, will be among many friends and relatives in the Dome, just as she was in the 1998 playoffs when Hearst broke his left ankle on the first play from scrimmage.
“I don’t think that will bother me at all,” Hearst said. “More than anything I just want to go back and win this game. I’m happy to be back and happy to be doing what I’m doing, but in my mind I always knew I would be back. Each week I’ve been getting better and better.”
Hearst developed avascular necrosis after an operation during the 1999 off-season. The circulatory problem killed part of one of the bones in his foot and led to two additional operations. He had a fourth arthroscopic surgery earlier this year, and he has undergone thousands of hours of rehabilitation.
Hearst is the NFC’s fifth-leading rusher. Falcons cornerback Ray Buchanan recalled watching the replay on the scoreboard after Hearst was injured.
“We looked up at the thing, and I saw that his body turned one way, and his ankle turned another,” Buchanan said. “The first thing that’s going to do is bring butterflies to your stomach. That’s a gross look. How can a guy ever come back from something like that mentally?”
The Walter chase: Everybody figured Emmitt Smith would need part of the 2002 season to reach Walter Payton’s career rushing record of 16,726 yards. At his current rate, it will take him almost all of 2002. Smith has 208 yards in four games for the punchless Cowboys.
“We’re not running anymore,” Smith said. “We’re running into walls. We’re going backward. We’re moving but we’re taking itty-bitty steps.”
The Cowboys are 31st in passing, so defenses are stacking against Smith.
“It’s not Emmitt,” coach Dave Campo said. “Everybody is looking at Emmitt. Emmitt is doing the best he can.”
At this rate, 52 yards per game, Smith will need 26 more games to pass Payton.
Rollerdome noise: Although the Metrodome has been quieter in the absence of Mike Ditka, the Vikings still get complaints about illegal piped-in noise. Last week the Vikings got a taste of their own medicine in New Orleans and had to unplug sub-woofers on the sideline.
“If the Saints did this in retaliation for perceived slights in the past, then I think that’s petty and juvenile,” Vikings executive vice president Mike Kelly said.
Coach Dennis Green said he didn’t complain.
“It’s part of the game of football,” Green said. “I’ve been in the league 10 years and I’ve never filed a grievance or complained to the league about anything. Football is football. [Crowd noise] has nothing to do with getting zero sacks on the quarterback. It’s got nothing to do with dropping interceptions. It’s got nothing to do with fumbling the ball. It’s not even worth talking about.
“I don’t know who opened their big mouth, but no one has ever known Dennis Green to be a crybaby.”
Bucs luck: Tampa Bay beat Green Bay last week to go 2-1 but Warren Sapp has zero sacks, Brad Johnson has zero touchdown passes and Keyshawn Johnson has zero TD catches.
The Bucs don’t know whether that’s a good sign or a bad one.
Packers cornerback Tyrone Williams on Keyshawn: “He’s a good player, but I think he was a lot better when he was with the Jets. It’s all underneath little stuff now. They don’t look much to go downfield with him. He was doing that with the Jets.”
Love of Brian: Bears coach Dick Jauron on linebacker Brian Urlacher: “There have been a number of occasions on the field in practice where you’ll just look at whoever is next to you because he will do some things that I haven’t been around.”
Like Rice: It’s time Rod Smith gets his due. Like Jacksonville’s Jimmy Smith, Denver receiver Rod suffers from lack of name recognition. After the Broncos lost receiver Ed McCaffrey for the season and running back Terrell Davis for a while, you would think defenses could stack against Smith. Yet he leads the league with 36 catches and 470 yards, NFL record-setting paces.
“It’s pretty obvious he’s our best player and you want to get the ball in the hands of your best player,” quarterback Brian Griese said.
“He’s better than our other receivers. So I do look for Rod in man-to-man situations, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have confidence in the other guys.”
Alexander the honored: After Seattle’s Shaun Alexander was honored as AFC offensive player of the week, he found out former NFL and Super Bowl MVP Davis, recovering from injury, is practicing on the Broncos’ scout team and mimicking Alexander.
“Oh, that’s an honor,” Alexander said. “That’s an honor and a half.”
Monday madness: At least the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys are evenly matched in the first Monday night game between 0-4 teams. Researchers are trying to find a worse start in NFL history than the Redskins, who have been outscored by 110 points, 135-25. Neither the winless 1976 Bucs nor the 0-11-1 1960 Cowboys were outscored that badly in their first four games. Even the ’43 Brooklyn Dodgers, who failed to score in the first four games, were outscored by just 91.
