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1991 Regular Season Player Awards
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1991 Breakouts & Busts
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Breakouts - Quarterbacks
1. Cardinals - Timm Rosenbach - (277 of 471 Att - 58% - 2,895 Yds - 22 TD - 13 Int - 80.7 Rat - 28 Carries - 90 Yds - 1 TD)
Info: Timm Rosenbach was a big surprise this season for the Phoenix Cardinals. Rosenbach was entering into his 3rd season in the NFL during the 1991 kickoff, but the Cardinals were not expecting the vast improvement so quickly from the 25 year old. Rosenbach was originally drafted by the Cardinals in the 1st round of the 1989 NFL Draft.
In his rookie season Rosenbach saw little playing time as he accumulate 9 of 22 passes for only 95 yards and an interception. Hardly ground-breaking numbers. Then last season, in 1990, Rosenbach was given his first opportunity to start as the only quarterback on the Cardinals roster other than him was Tom Tupa. Rosenbach threw a 54% completion rate making 247 of his 452 passes for a respectable 2,441 yards. He also managed to get a higher TD than INT ratio at he threw 13 touchdowns with 10 interceptions, ending his sophomore season with a 70.5 quarterback rating. Rosenbach also showcased his ability to run the football as he had 204 yards and a touchdown on the ground as well. The surprising 14 touchdown 10 pick season for Rosenbach did open the Cardinals eyes.
The Cardinals decided to keep Rosenbach in the off-season as their starter with the hopes that he would improve. This year Rosenbach put up the same record at 7-9 but threw for 2,895 yards and 23 touchdowns with only 13 picks on the season. A vast improvement in his scoring capability has solidified Rosenbach as the Cardinals starting quarterback. Rosenbach improved his quarterback rating 10.2 points from 1990 with a final stat of 80.7, making his QB rating and touchdown total 9th best in the NFL.
If Rosenbach continues this level of play, as well as his progression, he could end up being a big surprise. Many teams around the league were unprepared for the scoring fiesta that Rosenbach would bring, and the Cardinals couldn't be happier about their future at quarterback.
2. Packers - Don Majkowksi – (262 of 476 Att – 55% - 2,628 Yds – 20 TD – 14 Int – 72.7 Rat)
Info: Don Majkowski was entering a make-or-break year in his 5th NFL season with the Green Bay Packers. After originally being drafted in 1987 Majkowski has been the Packers starter since ½ way through that season. He had a solid rookie year with 875 yards and 5 touchdowns with 3 picks, then in 1988 improved to 2,119 yards and 9 touchdowns, but threw 11 interceptions. In 1989 he had his best year yet and exploded for 4,318 yards and 27 touchdowns with 5 rushing touchdowns at the cost of 20 interceptions. His Amazing performance in 1989 surprised many and earned him his first Pro Bowl trip. Then in 1990 he fell from grace and returned to mediocrity as he threw for 2,606 yards and 17 touchdowns with 15 interceptions. Many were wondering if Majkowski was merely a 1 year wonder.
When 1991 finally rolled around Majkowski would be entering the season with a monkey on his back, and the critical eyes of many Packer fans watching his every move. Despite this pressure Majkowski did his best and managed to earn the Packer fan’s respect. He had a 55% completion rate where he tossed 2,628 yards and this time eclipsed the teens with 20 touchdowns and 14 interceptions on the season, giving him a 72.7 quarterback rating.
Don Majkowski is tight roping a thin line with the Packer nation as he is playing well enough but certainly not up to the level he showed in 1989. Will Majkowski be a victim of his own success? Will the Packer fans put the pressure on him to repeat that season?
3. Patriots - Steve Beuerlein – (275 of 467 Att – 58% - 3,023 Yds – 19 TD – 19 Int – 74.7 Rat)
Info: Steve Beuerlein was originally drafted by the Los Angeles Raiders in the 1987 NFL draft in the 4th round. In his rookie season he got to see some time in 10 games due to injuries as he threw for 44.1%, 1,643 Yds, 8 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. A solid performance that only suffered from a slight lack of consistency in his completions. In 1989 he continued this improvement by throwing for 49.8% and 1,677 yards, 13 td’s, and 9 int’s in 10 games as well. Then last season with the Raiders he only played one game, but it was a good one as he threw 63% for 344 yards and 3 touchdowns. Tired of being in the shadow of Jay Schroeder, Steve Beuerlein decided that it was about time for him to leave L.A, and he ended up signing where he would have the best chance to start, New England. With the retirement of Steve Grogan and the release of Marc Wilson the Patriots were in need of a number one quarterback that wasn’t named Tom Hodson. As a result Steve took the starting job, and played surprisingly well for his first time as the definitive number one. While he may have ended with only a 1:1 td to interception ratio with 19 each, he improved greatly in his completion percentage. He threw for 58% on 275 of 467 passes for 3,023 yards. His solid performance helped alleviate Irving Fryar and Hart Lee Dykes in the passing game. Beuerlein managed to help the Patriots end the season with an 8-8 record, just falling short of the playoffs. If Steve Beuerlein continues to improve, as he has every season in the NFL, then he could end up being a top tier quarterback in a matter of seasons.
Busts - Quarterbacks
1. Giants - Jeff Hostetler – (235 of 438 Att – 53% - 2,164 Yds – 8 TD – 18 Int – 56.3 Rat)
Info: Jeff Hostetler has spent the last 6 seasons of his NFL career sitting on the bench behind one of the better quarterbacks to have played the game, Phil Simms. Simms set all kinds of records for a Giants quarterback, and Hostetler was going to find himself having some large shoes to fill. Through those years though Hostetler did manage to see the odd game here and there where he would come in for a dinged up Simms and played relatively well. So far throughout those seasons Hostetler has thrown for 639 yds, 4 touchdowns, and 4 interceptions. When Phil Simms retired after the 1990 season it was Hostetler’s time to shine, and what he had been waiting for since the Giants drafted him in the 3rd round in 1984. The Giants organization passed the reigns over to Hostetler and he proceeded to gallop out of the gates. Hostetler and the Giants started the season winning 6 out of their first 8 games, including some big victories over the San Francisco 49ers, the Washington Redskins, and the Dallas Cowboys. However mid-way through the season Hostetler and the Giants collapsed and the ended the year with a 3-5 finish, totaling 9-7 on the season. While most would consider that a solid year, the Giants were just kept out of the playoffs with that record as they failed to achieve a wild card birth. Jeff Hostetler had a disappointing 53% completion rate with only 2,164 yards in the air. Hostetler’s troubles came when he only averaged 4.9 yards per pass attempt. Not to mention Hostetler struggled all year long in the red-zone as he only managed to garner 8 touchdowns on the season, the lowest of all starting quarterbacks in the league. He also threw 18 interceptions, more than doubling his touchdowns. As a result Hostetler finished the season with a lackluster 56.3 quarterback rating, and an angry New York mob. Whether or not the Giants are willing to give the 30 year old another shot in 1992 will be dependent on exactly what happens this off-season for the Giants. If Hostetler does keep his job though, one thing is for sure, he’ll definitely need to improve to keep the New York franchise, and the fans, happy.
2. Vikings - Rich Gannon – (157 of 274 Att – 57% - 1,632 Yds – 5 TD – 14 Int – 59.4 Rat)
Info: Rich Gannon was drafted by the New England Patriots in the 4th round of the 1987 draft. But before he could step on the field in a Patriot uniform he was traded away to the Minnesota Vikings. As a rookie Gannon only accomplished 2 of 6 passes for 18 yards and an interception. His inauspicious debut worried some Vikings fans. In 1988 he barely played much more as he threw 15 passes, completing 7 for 90 yards. In 1989 Gannon did not see a single snap. After some pretty uneventful seasons from quarterback Wade Wilson, the Vikings decided in 1990 that it was time to see if their investment would pan out. The Vikings decided early in 1990 that Rich Gannon would be the teams starter over the 31 year old veteran Wade Wilson. As a result Gannon struggled last year with 2,607 yards and 15 touchdowns, but with 24 interceptions giving him a 59.9 quarterback rating. However due to the season-long injury to star acquisition Herschel Walker, the Vikings front office was willing to give Gannon the benefit of the doubt and keep him as the teams starter for the 1991 season. After all, despite his statistics he still managed to help the Vikings to a respectable 7-9 season. In the 1991 season is where Rich Gannon finally started to show what kind of quarterback he was going to be in this league, a bad one. Despite the strong running of Herschel Walker Rich Gannon struggled with his Viking team to a 1-6 start before reaching their bye week in Week 8. Through those 7 weeks Gannon had 1,632 yards and 5 touchdowns, but with 14 interceptions giving him a 59.4 quarterback rating. Even worse that his previous season. Since the season was seemingly over the Vikings made the switch back to veteran Wade Wilson, who proceeded to play greatly with 1,392 yards and 11 touchdowns with only 6 interceptions, and helped the Vikings end the year with a 6-3 finish resulting in a 7-9 record. It’s safe to say that Rich Gannon has seemed to have worn out his welcome in Minnesota. He has done his best to play for the team in what little time he was given, and when he finally was given the full-time job Gannon fumbled the opportunity. With only 1 year left on his contract, and Wade Wilson being 32 years old it will be interesting to see what the Vikings do this off-season to remedy their problems.
3. Jets - Ken O'Brien – (261 of 467 Att – 55% - 2,683 Yds – 15 TD – 24 Int – 61.9 Rat)
Info: Ken O’Brien has been the New York Jets starting quarterback for the past 8 NFL seasons, but as of late many are starting to wonder why. O’Brien started off by being drafted by the Jets in the 1983 NFL draft. In 1984 he earned some playing time and threw 1,402 yards for 6 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. Then in 1985 with a full start he astonished the league with 3,888 yards, 25 touchdowns, and only 8 interceptions. Many were wondering if it was a fluke season or if O’Brien was the real deal. The following year Ken threw for 3,690 yards and 25 touchdowns again, this time though throwing 20 interceptions, but still solidifying himself as a capable quarterback in the NFL. In 1987 he struggled with 2,696 yards, 13 td’s, 8 int’s. Then in 1988 a similar outcome for 2,567 yds, 15 td’s, and 7 int’s. With his slow regression continuing the 1989 season is where O’Brien, and the Jets, started to falter. Ken O’Brien struggled to 3,346 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 18 interceptions. Hoping that the next year would be better the Jets staved off Tony Eason in favor of O’Brien, but he threw for 3,003 yards, and 16 touchdowns and a career high 30 interceptions. The New York Jets stumbled all year to a 6-10 record as they began to question O’Brien’s abilities. Despite the season O’Brien was still named the Jets starter in the pre-season of the 1991 year, and he proceeded to start in all but 1 game. O’Brien threw for 2,683 yards and 15 touchdowns with 24 interceptions. This making the third year in a row that O’Brien has struggled. As we enter into the 1992 season Ken O’Brien is turning 32 years old, and the 8-8 Jets are hungrily looking for the next piece to their puzzle that will push them over the edge and into playoff contention. O’Brien is definitely on the chopping block as he is entering into the final year of his contract as well.
Breakouts – Running Backs
1. Rams - Ricky Watters – (203 Att – 3.5 Avg – 718 Yds – 8 TD – 50 Rec – 7.0 Avg – 351 Yds – 2 TD)
Info: Ricky Watters was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams to be their future at running back. The only thing is they didn’t expect him to start off right away. The Rams have had a hard time finding a consistent top back to start year in and year out uncontested. But it seems that they may have found their answer in Ricky Watters. Watters had a solid 3.5 average, besting teammates Buford McGee (3.3), Curt Warner (3.3), Cleveland Gary (2.9), and Robert Delpino (3.0). The rookie started off slow but then finished his season strong as he finally solidified the starting role. He managed to find the end-zone 8 times. The most by a Rams rookie since Eric Dickerson in 1983. Not to mention Watters excelled in the passing game as he caught 50 passes, including 2 more touchdowns. Watters versatility has helped him remain the starter, and he will most likely continue in 1992. When reached for comment Watters stated that his goal for his sophomore season is to get at least 1,000 yards on the ground and 10 touchdowns as well as 500 in the air and 5 touchdowns. While those are some lofty numbers they’re not very far off from the Rookie of the Year season that Watters had this year, so we are inclined to believe him.
2. Buccaneers - Roger Craig – 349 Att – 4.0 Avg – 1,410 Yds – 16 TD – 45 Rec – 7.3 Avg – 333 Yds – 1 TD)
Info: While Roger Craig is undoubtedly consider one of the better running backs currently playing, many people were actually writing him off this season. The 8th year veteran has been lighting up the scoreboard with the San Francisco 49ers since 1983, but 1991 marked his first season away from the west bay and into the east bay in Tampa. The Buccaneers were hardly considered a contender going into the off-season but the addition of Roger Craig to their roster boosted their confidence. Many doubters still said that Craig’s numbers would drastically drop due to the lack of talent around him in Tampa compared to San Francisco, and some believed that the 31 year old would simply stop putting up good numbers because of his breaking down old body. In 1991, Craig proved both of those naysayers wrong. Roger Craig was not only 9th in the league in rushing yards with 1,410, but he also led the league in touchdowns rushing with a career high 16 touchdowns. He combined for 17 total touchdowns, beating out his former personal best of 15 in the 1985 season. Roger Craig put up the best numbers of his career since he was 25, that’s saying a lot for a person that was barely supposed to put up 1,000. Craig’s influence on the Buccaneers helped them immensely as they finished the 1991 season with a 9-7 record, leading their division and sending them into the playoffs.
3. Giants - Rodney Hampton – (386 Att – 3.5 Avg – 1,354 Yds – 9 TD – 39 Rec – 6.3 Avg – 248 Yds – 2 TD)
Info: Rodney Hampton was expected to suffer through the stereotypical sophomore slump during the 1991 season, apparently Hampton decided to graduate early as he stomped the competition with 1,354 yards on the ground. Hampton became the central offensive player for the Giants due to the lackluster efficiency of Hostetler’s passing game. As a result Hampton ended up carrying the ball 386 times. Including his catches Hampton was given the ball on 51.6% of the plays this season for the New York Giants. Hampton made the best of it as he managed to garner 11 touchdowns on the year. This was the first season that Hampton was given the starting load for the Giants and it appears that he will be the next Ottis Anderson. Anderson was starting over Hampton in his 1990 rookie season, and had a similar season with 1,406 yards and 8 touchdowns as well as 26 catches for 251 yards and 2 touchdowns. The similarities between the two bodes well for Hampton as Anderson ended that year as the 8th best rusher all-time in NFL history. If Hampton can obtain a fraction of his ability than he would be considered a great player for the New York Giants.
Busts- Running Backs
1. 49ers - John L. Williams – (218 Att – 3.2 Avg – 703 Yds – 6 TD – 26 Rec – 8.6 Avg – 225 Yds – 1 TD)
Info: The 49ers had to part ways with Roger Craig this off-season as they were simply unable to pay him what he demanded. The 49ers weighed the opportunity cost and felt that Craig would not be worthy of the amount of money that the Buccaneers were willing to give him, as a result Craig went to Tampa and the 49ers picked up former Seahawk, John L. Williams. Boy were the 49ers wrong. The 49ers watched Craig lead the league in rushing touchdowns and Williams reach for the scrapings at the bottom of the barrel. Craig had 16 touchdowns while John L. Williams accounted for 6 touchdowns on the ground. Craig had more than double the yardage of Williams who had 703 yards in comparison to Craig's 1,410. The 49ers were hoping that Williams would break out now that he would be the clear-cut number one running back on the team, but I guess some players are just not meant to be starters. Williams was originally picked up by the Seahawks in the 1986 season where he had a solid 538 yards on 129 carries for a 4.2 average. Then in 1987 he repeated with a 4.4 average garnering 500 yards and 1 touchdown. In 1988 he had his best season ever with 877 yards on a 4.6 average with 4 touchdowns as well as 50 catches for 651 yards and 3 touchdowns. In 1989 he followed it up with 499 yards and 1 touchdown on the ground and 76 receptions for 657 yards and 6 touchdowns in the air. He started to prove himself to be one of the biggest receiving threats out of the backfield in the league. With high-hopes he competed with rookie Chris Warren in 1990 for the starting job. Warren won. Williams ended with 414 yards and 2 touchdowns with only 2 catches for 11 yards. A far cry from the previous 76. As a result he decided to leave Seattle and went to San Francisco. The 49ers tried to utilize him to the fullest but Williams disappointed only gaining the 703 yards on the most carries he’s ever had on his career. Williams still has two seasons left on his contract with the 49ers but that’s not to say that they may end up looking elsewhere soon for an answer at half back.
2. Steelers - Merril Hoge – (274 Att – 3.5 Avg – 968 Yds – 5 TD – 48 Rec – 7.6 Avg – 367 Yds – 2 TD)
Info: While Hoge’s numbers certainly aren’t bad for a running back it does appear that there seems to be a plateau that the youngster can’t seem to pass. After waiting forever to be selected in the 1987 NFL draft the Pittsburgh Steelers took a chance on the young player out of Idaho State in the 10th round. In his rookie season he saw 3 carries for 8 yards but had 7 catches for 97 yards and a touchdown. In 1988 he earned the starting role running for 705 yards and 3 touchdowns making 50 catches for 487 yards and 3 touchdowns as well. The Steelers were confident that Hoge appeared to be the next all-purpose back and would continue to improve. In 1989 he improved his eye for the goal line as he only had 621 yards for a 3.3 average but managed to make 8 rushing touchdowns that season. In 1990 he had 846 yards on the ground with 8 touchdowns as well as 40 catches for 311 yards. With 1991 rolling around and Barry Foster still breathing down his neck Hoge needed to have a big year for the Steelers to warrant keeping him in the starting role. With his 968 yards at a 3.5 average with only 5 touchdowns Hoge didn’t exactly accomplish what was expected. The young running back seems to be capable of being an average back, but nothing more than that, in the NFL. With Foster getting the most carries of his career in 1991 *164) for 585 yards. It does appear that the Steelers are getting less patient with Hoge and more prospective of Foster.
3. Packers - Keith Woodside – (137 Att – 3.1 Avg – 438 Yds – 0 TD – 4 FUM – 13 Rec – 9.2 Avg – 120 Yds)
Info: Keith Woodside was supposed to be the undeniable starter for the Green Bay Packers in the 1991 season, but lackluster performance saw him loose his job to a rookie running back that wasn’t even drafted by the Packers. After a 2-6 start the Green Bay Packers needed to figure out what was wrong with the team. Majkowski was playing decently and Sharpe was catching everything thrown to him. The defense still had some great contributions from Anthony Bell, Mark Murphy, Brian Noble, Johnny Holland, Chuck Cecil, and Cris Dishman. So what was the weak link? Well running back Keith Woodside was under performing with a 2.8 yard per carry average. As a result they threw in rookie Leonard Russell who on 199 carries had a 3.5 average for 707 yards and 6 touchdowns. The rookie sparked interest in Green Bay and it appears that the job is now his to loose. As a result Woodside was put into the 3rd down back scenario. He did managed to bump his yard per carry up to about 3.1 but that still left much to be desired. The Packers ended the year 5-3 after making the switch, which may speak more than Woodside’s numbers.
Breakouts – Wide Receivers
1. Cardinals - Brett Perriman – (86 Rec – 13.1 Avg – 1,132 Yds – 7 TD – 6 Drop)
Info: Brett Perriman was the breakout wide receiver of the year for the Phoenix Cardinals. The Cardinals got lucky when they decided to sign Perriman in the regular season. The surprise was that all the NFL teams had passed on Perriman. Perriman was still sitting in free agency during the pre-season. It wasn’t until Ernie Jones tweaked himself with an injury that the Cardinals decided they needed Perriman’s talent to help give them some depth. Little did they know Perriman would explode for an 86 catch 1,132 yard 7 touchdowns season. Perriman was originally picked up by the New Orleans Saints in the 2nd round of the 1988 draft. Each and every year he has improved starting with a 16 catch 215 yard 2 touchdown rookie season. Then 20 catches for 356 yards in 1989. In 1990 Perriman garnered 66 catches for only an 8.6 average giving him 570 yards and 6 touchdowns, however 12 drops questioned his ability to be a top receiver. The Saints decided that Quinn Early was a much more attractive player and released Perriman in favor of singing Early. Little did they know Brett Perriman would be 7th in the league in receiving yards and 6th in the league in receptions. Perriman’s break out year finally gave the Cardinals a top receiver that they were lacking since they got rid of veteran Roy Green in the off-season (Cowboys). The addition of Perriman also helped quarterback Timm Rosenbach have the best year of his career, as well as having fellow wide receiver, Rickey Proehl managed to put up a league tying 6th place, 9 receiving touchdowns along side Perriman.
2. Bills - Jeff Graham – (76 Rec – 9.7 Avg – 743 Yds – 7 TD – 4 Drop)
Info: For being essentially the 5th wide receiver on the team (Andre Reed, Steve Tasker, TE Keith McKeller, HB Thurman Thomas) rookie wide receiver Jeff Graham made a huge impact on the 13-3 Buffalo Bills. Graham started off slowly catching a few balls here and there for Jim Kelly, until they started realizing that he was making plays with his feet and hands. The Bills started to put Graham into the game more often and he made the most of his opportunities. Graham ended up surpassing Steve Tasker as the Bills #2 wide receiver going neck-and neck with the 77 catch Keith McKeller and the 63 reception Thurman Thomas for a huge passing impact. The rookie got strong consideration for Rookie of the Year honors but just barely lost out to Ricky Watters. The Buffalo Bills were eagerly looking for a replacement for retired James Lofton and seem to have found it in young Jeff Graham. Graham had to fight through other rookie wide receivers in Raghib Ismail, and Mike Pritchard, as well as veteran Don Beebe who were all vying for the same spot.
3. Oilers - Earnest Givens – (88 Rec – 13.5 Avg – 1,189 Yds – 13 TD – 6 Drop)
Info: Earnest Givens went from being the Houston Oilers number three wide receiver to one of the best in the league in the clutch, forming a top NFL tandem with Haywood Jeffries. With the retirement of Drew Hill the Houston Oilers were in need to a top wide receiver, and they found it within the organization. Haywood Jeffries had been Warren Moons numer two for quite some time and easily transitioned into the top spot (89 Rec, 14.6 Avg, 1,306 Yds, 15 TD). But what the Oilers didn’t expect was the surprising play of Earnest Givens. Givens helped boost himself and Jeffries into the top tier of wider receiver tandems such as Denver's Mark Jackson and Vance Johnson. San Francisco’s Jerry Rice and John Taylor. And Los Angeles’ Henry Ellard and Willie Anderson.
Busts - Wide Receivers
1. Redskins – Art Monk – (59 Rec – 9.7 Avg – 577 Yds – 5 TD – 4 Drop)
Info: For a man that many Redskins fans were saying would easily be in Canton once he retires, Art Monk is struggling. After spending the last 11 seasons with the Washington Redskins Art Monk has earned a loyal following as one of the top wide receivers in the nation. He is certainly putting up numbers worthy of that status but in the past two seasons it appears that age is catching up with the 34 year old. Art Monk currently sits 3rd all time on the receiving yards list, just a mere 248 yards away from #2 (Charlie Joiner, 12,146). The 2nd all-time reception leader with 795 catches, just a mere 24 away from the all-time best, (Steve Largent, 819). But for a man who’s name rates amongst some of the best to ever play the position 1991 was a disappointing year. Monk had the least amount of catches since he was hurt for 7 games in the 1987 season (38). And the least in a full 16-game season since his 2nd year in the NFL in 1981, (56). If Monk wants to be inducted into canton he will have to have a few more seasons like his 1984 year instead of his 1991 season.
2. Buccaneers – Mark Carrier – (64 Rec – 12.2 Avg – 783 Yds – 5 TD – 2 Drop)
Info: Mark Carrier was originally drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 1987 draft during the 3rd round. In his rookie season he caught 26 passes for 423 yards and 3 touchdowns. In the following year Carrier gathered 57 catches for an astonishing 17 yards per catch statistic for 970 yards and 5 touchdowns. Becoming the deep threat in Tampa Carrier eased into the number one wide receiver spot in the 1989 season where he blistered defenses for 86 catches, 16.5 average, 1,422 yards, and 9 touchdowns. In 1990 he dipped a little on his average but still had a solid 80 catch, 13.5 average, 1,088 yard, 6 touchdown season. So with back-to-back top-notch season it was apparent that Mark Carrier was a big-time wide receiver, but this season he had some problems. With only 64 catches and 783 yards on the season Mark Carrier still managed to lead the Buccaneers. But his 5 touchdowns left much to be desired. With the welcomed addition of Roger Craig to the Buccaneers family Carrier will need to pick up his game if they want to get deep into the playoffs.
3. Cowboys – Michael Irvin – (49 Rec – 10.8 Avg – 532 Yds – 1 TD – 6 Drop)
Info: For a kid who’s supposed to be the next Jerry Rice, Michael Irvin is taking his sweet time to develop. In 1988, his rookie season, Irvin had 32 catches for a 20.4 average calculating 654 yards and 5 touchdowns. The surprise performance led Dallas to believe they had their next star at wide receiver. In 1989 he faulted slightly with 26 catches for 378 yards and 2 touchdowns. But in 1990 he saw a more prominent role alongside teammate Kelvin Martin. However a struggling Troy Aikman and off-field troubles had Michael see only 49 catches on a 12.4 average go for 609 yards and 3 touchdowns. Unable to eclipse the greatness of his rookie season Irvin deemed that 1991 would be his big year to show the league what he was made of. Apparently he is made of a mediocre material that can do some things good and some things bad. Irvin had only 49 catches for 532 yards and 1 touchdown, a complete regression from his previous year. Not to mention he struggled with his hands as he dropped 6 balls on the season as well. Granted Michael did have the addition of veteran great Roy Green to the team who took away 45 passes for 475 yards and 3 touchdowns, as well as Kelvin Martin, but for a man who is supposed to be the teams number one Irvin needs to make some plays.Comment
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Rookie Round-Up
First Round Production
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Pick
1. Falcons – Brett Favre – (77 of 140 Att – 55% - 868 Yds – 5 TD – 7 Int – 64.8 Rat)
2. Jets – Mo Lewis – (88 Tak – 11 Loss – 7 Sacks – 3 FF – 1 FR – 2 Int – 10 Deflections)**DROY**
3. Dolphins – Michael Sinclair – (25 Tak – 3 Loss – 3 Sacks – 1 FR)
4. Vikings – Bryan Cox – (17 Tak – 1 Sack – 1 Int – 1 Deflection – 1 Saftey)
5. Bears – Herman Moore – (43 Rec – 8.3 Avg – 360 Yds – 2 TD – 3 Drop – 1 Rsh – 4.0 Avg – 4 Yds)
6. Cardinals – Joe Valerio – (26 Pancakes – 9 Sacks Allowed)
7. Raiders – Erik Williams – (12 Pancakes – 6 Sacks Allowed)
8. Rams – Ricky Watters – (203 Att – 3.5 Avg – 718 Yds – 8 TD – 4 Fum – 50 Rec – 7.0 Avg – 351 Yds – 2 TD – 1 Drop)**OROY**
9. Cowboys – Eric Swann – (30 Tka – 6 Loss – 6 Sacks – 2 FR – 3 Deflections)
10. Browns – William Thomas – (105 Tak – 10 Loss – 10 Sacks – 1 FF – 2 FR – 5 Deflections)
11. Saints – Russell Maryland – (34 Tak – 4 Loss – 6 Sacks – 2 FF – 2 Deflections)
12. Colts – Kevin Donnally – (35 Pancakes – 9 Sacks Allowed)
13. Broncos – Eric Pegram – (103 Att – 3.0 Avg – 311 Yds – 1 TD – 1 Fum – 2 Rec – 8.5 Yds – 17 Yds)
14. Giants – Paul Justin – (22 of 48 Att – 45% - 163 Yds – 1 TD – 1 Int – 52.7 Rat)
15. Redskins – Leon Lett – (46 Tak – 11 Loss – 11 Sacks – 2 FF – 1 Deflection)
16. Chiefs – Scott Zolak – (25 of 54 Att – 45% - 233 Yds – 2 TD – 3 Int – 47.8 Rat)
17. Bengals – Aeneas Williams - (62 Tak – 2 Loss – 1 Sack – 2 FF – 7 Int – 10 Deflections)
18. 49ers – Pat Harlow – (9 Pancakes – 1 Sack Allowed)
19. Buccaneers – Calvin Stephens – (3 Pancakes – 0 Sacks Allowed)
20. Steelers – Alfred Williams – (21 Tak – 3 Loss – 3 Sacks – 1 Deflections)
21. Lions – Darryl Lewis – (No Statistics)
22. Seahawks – Ed King – (No Statistics)
23. Bills – Harvey Williams – (109 Att – 3.4 Avg – 381 Yds – 2 TD – 3 Fum – 7 Rec – 4.8 Avg – 34 Yds – 1 TD)
24. Patriots – Jimmy Richards – (7 Pancakes – 2 Sacks Allowed)
25. Packers – Leonard Russell – (199 Att – 3.5 Avg – 707 Yds – 6 TD – 4 Fum – 16 Rec – 6.1 Avg – 98 Yds)
26. Chargers – Eric Turner – (48 Tak – 4 Loss – 3 Sack – 2 FF – 2 Int – 10 Deflections)
27. Oilers – Robert Young – (8 Tak – 2 Loss – 2 Sack – 1 FF)
28. Eagles – Merton Hanks – (3 Tak)
Best 1st Round Performer: Bengals – S – Aeneas Williams : anytime you can get 7 interceptions and 10 deflections as a rookie safety is a good rookie season. In my opinion Williams was robbed of the Defensive Rookie Of The Year award by Mo Lewis.
Best Value Pick Of the 1st Round: Packers – HB – Leonard Russell : Russell stepped in big-time for the Packers at running back after Keith Woodside was unable to finish the job. Fighting his way into the starting spot Russell had a solid 707 yard 6 touchdown rushing season.
Worst 1st Round Performer: 21st Pick – Lions – CB – Darryl Lewis : The reason this pick is so bad is that Lewis didn’t record a single statistics the entire season. With the first round pick the Lions ended up selecting their 5th string cornerback, that’s just bad selection. The Lions have other holes that would’ve been better suited by one of the post-Lions picks like Leonard Russell, Eric Turner, or Roman Phifer.
Best 2nd Round Pick: Cowboys – LB – Roman Phifer : With a 67 tackle, 5 FF, 2 FR, 8 Deflection year Roman Phifer easily beat out his runner-up Keenan McCardell, for the best selection of the 2nd round in the 1991 NFL Draft. Phifer will be a big player for years to come for the Cowboys linebacker corps.
Best 3rd Round Pick: Bills – WR – Jeff Graham : Jeff Graham was easily the best selection of the 3rd round. He not only surprised the league, but even the Bills themselves who were not sure if he would factor as much as he ended up. I suggested he’d be the best pick of the 3rd round in the post-draft analysis and hit the nail on the head. With 76 catches for 743 yards and 7 touchdowns Jeff Graham was the teams top receiver not named Andre Reed, and progressed very quickly right out of college.
Best 4th Round Pick: Jets – P – Chris Gardocki : Yes that’s right, a punter. Gardocki narrowly beat out Shawn Jefferson for the best value pick of the 4th round. He was 8th in the league in yards per punt with 43.6 on 84 punts for 3,668 yards including 29 inside the 20 and 13 touchbacks with a 72 long. Gardocki contributed greatly to the Jets in an unnoticed way.
Best 5th Round Pick: Bills – WR – Mike Pritchard : Another Bills wide receiver makes the value pick, making it 2 out of 3 of their selected wide receivers. Pritchard was originally starting over Jeff Graham when the regular season started, but slowly lost his job. That’s not to say for a rookie he didn’t perform well as he had a solid 20 catches for 11.0 yards per catch at 221 and 3 touchdowns.
Best 6th Round Pick: Cardinals – WR – Alvin Harper : Alvin Harper eventually became the Cardinals number three wide receiver behind breakouts Brett Perriman and Ricky Proehl. Harper managed to catch 24 passes for 254 yards 2 touchdowns making him the most productive player of the 6th round, right in front of another wide receiver, Randal Hill of the Rams.
Best 7th Round Pick: Chiefs – S – Harry Colon : Colon was drafted with the 16th pick of the 7th round and made a solid impact on the Chiefs that dozens of players taken well ahead of Colon were incapable of doing. He managed to rack up 21 tackles, 1 fumble recovery, an interception, and 2 deflections on the year backing up 25 year old Kevin Porter. Hopefully due to his solid performance Colon will be able to see even more playing time in the future.
Best Rookie QB Rnd 1, #1 – Falcons – Brett Favre : The only rookie quarterback of the 1991 NFL Draft to be named the starter for his team. Favre was playing well enough until he had a 4 interception game. When that occurred, in collaboration with Chris Miller shaking off a nagging injury, Miller returned to the starting lineup and the Falcons started to win. As a result Favre stayed on the bench, but did perform well when he was starting.
Best Rookie HB/FB Rnd 1, #8 – Rams – Ricky Watters: Obviously the offensive rookie of the year would go here. Watters amazing versatility earned him much accolade around the league. Not to mention Watters wasn’t even the Rams starter until week 4 of the regular season. His 700+ yards and 50+ catches give lots of hope for the youngsters future career.
Best Rookie WR/TE Rnd 3, #23 – Bills – Jeff Graham : Graham obviously had an outstanding year with lucky number 7 as he had 70+ catches, 700+ yards, and 7 touchdowns on the year. Graham easily surpassed all other rookie wide receivers and was right in the running with Ricky Watters for the rookie of the year award.
Best Rookie OL Rnd 1, #12 – Colts – Kevin Donnally : Donnally, the 3rd offensive lineman selected in the draft, was the one who produced the best numbers in 1991. He played so well in the pre-season and training camp that the Colts started him outright as the teams left guard. He would then proceed to have a solid 35 pancake performance.
Best Rookie DL Rnd 1, #15 – Redskins – Leon Lett : Leon Lett was easily the best defensive lineman rookie this season in a year that had plenty of contribution from lineman rookies. Lett’s 11 sacks led the team and his 46 tackles really helped the Redskins defense against the run. The youngster outperformed the lineman taken ahead of him (Michael Sinclair, Eric Swann, and Russell Maryland) who all contributed as well to their teams, but not in the significance that Lett did.
Best Rookie LB Rnd 1, #10 – Browns – William Thomas : The defensive rookie of the year award was an upset as it went to Mo Lewis of the New York Jets, but William Thomas in my opinion had a much better season. Thomas had an outstanding 105 tackle, 10 sack, 1 FF, 2 FR, 5 Deflection year. He was 1 sack from leading the team in sacks (11, Clay Matthews), and 10 tackles from leading the Browns in that (115, Mike Johnson). There is no doubt that Thomas had an outstanding season that was a big reason the Browns went 10-6, but just barely missed the playoffs. In comparison to Mo Lewis’ 88 Tackle, 7 Sack, 8-8 Jets season.
Best Rookie DB Rnd 1, #17 – Bengals – Aeneas Williams : Williams was without a doubt the best rookie defensive back in the 1991 NFL Draft, and one of the best rookie defensive backs in NFL history. Williams had a 7 interception 10 deflection season. As a rookie he was tied for 2nd in the league in interceptions, only 2 short of the leader, Rod Woodson. If Williams even improves a small bit, he will vault himself into the top safties in the league.
Best Rookie ST Rnd 2, #1 - Falcons –John Kasay : While I’m not sure about the value of taking a rookie kicker as the 1st pick in the 2nd round of the draft, at least it panned out. You know if Kasay didn’t kick mildly well for the Falcons this season they would catch a lot of flak for the selection. Luckily for them the 22 year old had a solid ear where he mad 25 of 32 field goals for 78% and made all but 1 of 30 extra points.
Biggest Draft Steal: Rnd 3, #23 – Bills – WR – Jeff Graham : There’s no way to ignore the impact that Jeff Graham had on the Buffalo Bills passing game as a rookie. His ability to step right in with Jim Kelly and start catching touchdowns left and right is what puts him here. He was a very close candidate for rookie of the year, and the Bills will certainly hope to see how he improves in 1992 as an established #2 wide receiver.Comment
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-
No Injury Problems This Time, No Excuses
AP - The Cincinnati Bengals barely edged out the Pittsburgh Steelers this year for their division lead. Ending the season with a 12-4 mark, the Bengals looked, once again, to be a powerhouse team entering into the playoffs. However the Bengals are hoping for just one thing this year, and that's the health of their teammates.
In 2004 the Cincinnati Bengals had an eye-opening 10-6 season that saw them defeat the best in the league. Boomer Esiason lit up the air with 3,072 yards and 26 touchdowns meanwhile the tandem running attack of James Brooks (829 yards, 3 tds) and Ickey Woods (679 Yds, 3 tds) was a surprising duo. However the worst happened on the final week of the regular season when the Bengals visited the Philadelphia Eagles for a key game that would decide whether or not the Bengals would earn a playoff birth or just miss it at 9-7. The good news, the Bengals ended up winning the game (a meaningless one for the Eagles) 15 to 10. The bad news, in that single game both Boomer Esiason, and James Brooks were injured severely. As a result the Bengals were out of luck when it came playoff time.
The Bengals were not prepared for the injury to Boomer Esaison as they were stuck having 25 year old Erik Wilhelm (67 Ovr) try and lead the team to the Super Bowl. The running game was crippled, but still standing with Ickey Woods (84 Ovr) being the main ball carrier and Eric Ball (69 Ovr) playing 3rd downs. But the Bengals offense was demolished swiftly in the one blow at Philadelphia that left them shell shocked and unable to surpass the San Diego Chargers in the AFC wild card round. The Bengals lost 21 to 14 in a game where Wilhelm threw for 267 yards and a touchdown but had 3 turnovers (2 int's, 1 fumble) and backup runningback Ickey Woods struggled with 51 yards on 32 carries for a horrendous 1.5 yard per carry average. Bengals fans and personnel around the league were bitter about their playoff exit. The Bengals felt that it was their best shot, especially after loosing a Super Bowl to the 49ers, to get back to the big-game in 1990. However fate would not allow that, and they were forced to look to 1991.
This year the Bengals are fighting with even more ferocity than they had last season. With a newely acquired chip on their shoulder Esiason and company are trying their best to push deep into the playoffs. Disappointed that their 12-4 record was only good enough to earn a wild card spot, the Bengals are once again going to face a solid opponent, the Miami Dolphins. However this season will hopefully be different as both Boomer Esiason and James Brooks are entering the playoffs healthy and unscathed. Boomer Esiason had an even more productive season in 1991 with 3,579 yards and 29 touchdowns giving him a 90.3 rating with only 19 picks. However the big-star on offense for the Bengals this year was James Brooks carrying the full load. He had 255 carries for 1,249 yards and 13 touchdowns. He also made 30 catches for 220 yards and 2 more touchdowns. Brooks was a versatile monster on the field, and with the added contribution of Ickey Woods (126 att, 444 yds, 4 tds) the Bengals have one of the league's top rushing attacks.
This burst of ability couldn't have come at a better time for both Esiason and Brooks as they are entering the last leg of their careers. James Brooks in one week will be enjoying his 33rd birthday as the aging running back appeared to make a wish for young legs this year, and it came true. Esiason is currently 30 years old and may not have much longer as well to lead these Bengals to victory in the Super Bowl.
This weeks game against the Miami Dolphins will be a tough game for both teams. The Dolphins have struggled as Dan Marino is just getting his rhythm back this season after a bad 1990 year. With Marino and Esiason on the field we're expecting an all-out air war to ensue. However two very underrated running backs, James Brooks and Mike Rozier may end up taking over the show.Comment
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1991 - Playoff Wild Card Preview
AFC Wild Card Game 1
===============================================
The Matchup
The Injuries
The Key Players
Cincinnati Bengals- LT - Anthony Munoz - 94 Ovr
- QB - Boomer Esiason - 94 Ovr
- SS - David Fulcher - 99 Ovr
- LG - Bruce Reimers - 96 Ovr
Miami Dolphins- QB - Dan Marino - 97 Ovr
- TE - Ferrell Edmunds - 92 Ovr
- P - Reggie Roby - 91 Ovr
- MLB - John Offerdahl - 91 Ovr
Coach's Corner
==========================================
Coach: Bengals - Sam Wyche
Gameplan- We've got word that Mark Clayton has a nagging injury but is still playing. We should be able to shut him down.
- We need to put as much pressure as possible on Dan Marino. Tim Krumrie and Daniel Stubbs need to constantly be after him. We may send James Francis in on multiple blitzes today as well.
- Kevin Walter is out, he's our top linebacker, and with him out we need to keep the defensive leadership and confidence up. If we make some big defensive plays early it will give them the momentum they need.
- James Brooks needs to have a good game, and we're going to start his role early. If we can get his feet wet quickly then it'll open up Esiason's passing game.
- Our rookie Aeneas Williams may be seeing a lot of play due to the pass-heavy Dolphins attack.
Coach: Dolphins - Don Shula
Gameplan- We need to double cover Tim McGee. If McGee is shut down that'll force Eddie Brown and Kendall Smith to make plays, and we can easily cover those two.
- We want to force Esiason out of the game and make the Bengals run the football. We need our front four to step up and get the push.
- We have to allow Mike Rozier to feel out of the defense and get involved. The Bengals have some top linemen and if we don't get the run going early then we'll pay for it in the passing game.
- We feel confident that Dan Marino will be able to exploit Bengals corner Mark Lee. Lee always goes for the big-play interception, which we can exploit whenever Clayton is single covered.
- We suspect that Ferrell Edmunds might play a big role tonight as he'll most likely be covered by a Bengals linebacker, with Walter injured it should make it even more available.
- Marino needs to bring his a-game and not throw any turnovers if possible.
Comment
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1991 Playoffs - Wild Card Round - Game 1
==========================================
Miami Dolphins (10-6)
vs.
Cincinnati Bengals (12-4)
Game Weather
Forecast: Fair
Wind: 11 mph
Temp: 28 Degrees
Team Injuries
-------------------
Miami Dolphins
------------------------
MLB - E.J. Junior - Pulled Hamstring - Out
Cincinnati Bengals
------------------------
MLB - Kevin Walter - Broken Collarbone - Out
Drive Summary
------------------------------------------------------
1st Quarter
-------------------------------
Drive 1-Bengals - Lee Johnson - Punt - (9:38)
Drive 2-Dolphins - D.Marino to M.Clayton - 69 Yd TD Rec - Score: 7-0 Mia - (8:41)
Drive 3-Bengals - Lee Johnson - Punt - (7:28)
Drive 4-Dolphins - Pete Stoyanovich - 45 Yd FG Att - Good - Score: 10-0 Mia - (2:53)
Drive 5-Bengals - Lee Johnson - Punt - (1:18)
Drive 6-Dolphins - Tony Martin - FUMBLE (FF: B.Clark, FR: S.McClendon, 6 yd rtrn) - Mia 47 yd ln - (1:00)
Drive 7-Bengals - Lee Johnson - Punt - (0:00)
2nd Quarter
-------------------------------
Drive 1-Dolphins - Reggie Roby - Punt - (8:05)
Drive 2-Bengals - James Brooks - 81 Yd TD Run - Score: 10-7 Mia - (7:49)
Drive 3-Dolphins - Pete Stoyanovich - 23 Yd FG Att - Good - Scoore: 13-7 Mia - (2:00)
Drive 4-Bengals - Boomer Esiason - INTERCEPTED (J.Williams, 23 yd rtrn) - Cin 23 yd ln - (1:48)
Drive 5-Dolphins - Mike Rozier - 23 Yd TD Run - Score: 20-7 Mia - (1:40)
Drive 6-Bengals - Jim Breech - 43 Yd FG Att - Good - Score: 20-10 Mia - (0:44)
Drive 7-Dolphins - Reggie Roby - Punt - (0:32)
Drive 8-Bengals - Jim Breech - 49 Yd FG Att - Good - Score: 20-13 Mia - (0:00)
3rd Quarter
-------------------------------
Drive 1-Dolphins - D.Marino to M.Duper - 10 Yd TD Rec - Score: 27-13 Mia - (3:56)
Drive 2-Bengals - Lee Johnson - Punt - (1:02)
Drive 3-Dolphins - Tony Martin - FUMBLE (FF: J.Francis, FR: C.Zander, 8 yd TD Rtrn) - Score: 27-20 Mia - (0:58)
Drive 4-Dolphins - Pete Stoyanovich - 52 Yd FG Att - No Good - (0:00)
4th Quarter
-------------------------------
Drive 1-Bengals - Jim Breech - 29 Yd FG Att - Good - Score: 27-23 Mia - (6:11)
Drive 2-Dolphins - Reggie Roby - Punt - (5:05)
Drive 3-Bengals - Lee Johnson - Punt - (2:47)
Drive 4-Dolphins - Reggie Roby - Punt - (1:03)
Drive 5-Bengals - B.Esiason to J.Brooks - 6 Yd TD Rec - Score: 30-27 Cin - (0:11)
Drive 6-Dolphins - End Game - Mia 32 Yd Ln
Game Summary: The game was utter domination by the Miami Dolphins until the last 11 seconds. The Dolphins bursted out to an opening lead and at the 1:40 left in the half mark were up 20-7 sitting comfortably. But the Dolphins dropped the ball allowing 2 field goals by Jim Breech in that 1:40 making it 20-13 at the half. The Dolphins came right out of the locker-room and ended the opening 2nd half drive with a 10 yard touchdown from Marino to Duper to make it 27-13. However a costly fumble on a punt return by Tony Martin was picked up by Bengals defender Carl Zander who ran it back for a touchdown making it a managable 27-20 score. After a couple traded field goals it was nothing but defensive holds leading to punts. It wasn't until the 1:03 mark that the Bengals started their game winning drive. Boomer Esiason and James Brooks moved the ball down the field, and ended up connecting on 3rd and goal at the 6 yard line with a HB screen. The touchdown would put the Bengals in the lead 30 to 27 with 11 seconds left, the first time all game that the Bengals had the lead, and the last time they'd need to.
Game Box Score
------------------------------------------------------
Individual Player StatisticsCode:Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT FINAL Dolphins 10 10 7 0 0 27 Bengals 0 13 7 10 0 30
---------------------------------------------------------------
Miami Dolphins
---------------------------
Code:Individual Stats: Dolphins PASSING CMP ATT YDS PCT YPA SACK TD INT LONG RATING Dan Marino 16 27 204 59 7.5 1 2 0 69 107.6 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG LONG TD FUM Mike Rozier 34 125 3.6 23 1 1 Tony Paige 1 1 1.0 1 0 0 Tony Collins 1 -1 -1.0 0 0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG LONG TD DROP YAC Mark Clayton 6 103 17.1 69 1 0 53 Mark Duper 4 46 11.5 12 1 0 9 Jim Jensen 1 16 16.0 16 0 0 2 Tony Paige 2 14 7.0 9 0 0 14 Greg Baty 1 11 11.0 11 0 0 0 Tony Martin 1 8 8.0 8 0 0 3 Ferrell Edmunds 1 6 6.0 6 0 0 3 KICKING FGM FGA PCT FGSBLOCKED XPA XPM PCT XPSBLOCKED KICKOFFS TOUCHBACKS Pete Stoyanovich 2 3 66 0 3 3 100 0 6 4 PUNTING ATT YDS AVG LONG BLOCKS IN20 TOUCHBACKS Reggie Roby 4 123 30.7 39 0 1 0 KICK RETURNS ATT YDS AVG TD LONG Tony Martin 4 91 22.7 0 29 Irv Eatman 1 12 12.0 0 12 PUNT RETURNS ATT YDS AVG LONG TD Tony Martin 3 3 1.0 3 0 Irv Eatman 0 0 0.0 0 0 DEFENSE TOT LOSS SACK FF FREC YDS TD INT RET AVG DEFLECTIONS SAFETIES John Offerdahl 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Jarvis Williams 6 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 21 21.0 0 0 Kerry Glenn 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 2 0 Jeff Cross 4 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Rod Saddler 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Hugh Green 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 1 0 David Griggs 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Louis Oliver 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 1 0 Tim Hauck 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Shawn Lee 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Liffort Hobley 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Alfred Oglesby 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Paul Lankford 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Mike Reichenbach 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKES SACKS ALLOWED Richmond Webb 4 0 Tony Paige 4 0 Ferrell Edmunds 3 0 Harry Galbreath 3 0 Mark Duper 2 0 Greg Baty 2 1 Jeff Dellenbach 2 0 Keith Sims 1 0 Mark Dennis 1 0 Mark Clayton 1 0
Cincinnati Bengals
----------------------------
Player of the GameCode:Individual Stats: Bengals PASSING CMP ATT YDS PCT YPA SACK TD INT LONG RATING Boomer Esiason 16 29 213 55 7.3 1 1 1 32 75.8 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG LONG TD FUM James Brooks 21 124 5.9 81 1 0 Harold Green 1 4 4.0 4 0 0 Ickey Woods 1 0 0.0 0 0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG LONG TD DROP YAC James Brooks 4 56 14.0 32 1 0 26 Eddie Brown 5 49 9.7 13 0 1 2 Tim McGee 3 42 14.0 25 0 0 5 Harold Green 2 36 18.0 18 0 0 5 Kendal Smith 1 18 18.0 18 0 0 9 Rodney Holman 1 12 12.0 12 0 1 0 KICKING FGM FGA PCT FGSBLOCKED XPA XPM PCT XPSBLOCKED KICKOFFS TOUCHBACKS Jim Breech 3 3 100 0 3 3 100 0 0 0 Lee Johnson 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 1 PUNTING ATT YDS AVG LONG BLOCKS IN20 TOUCHBACKS Lee Johnson 6 178 29.6 36 0 2 0 KICK RETURNS ATT YDS AVG TD LONG Kendal Smith 2 43 21.5 0 23 PUNT RETURNS ATT YDS AVG LONG TD Kendal Smith 0 0 0.0 0 0 DEFENSE TOT LOSS SACK FF FREC YDS TD INT RET AVG DEFLECTIONS SAFETIES James Francis 9 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Aeneas Williams 7 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Mark Lee 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 4 0 David Fulcher 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Carl Zander 7 1 0 0 1 8 1 0 0 0.0 1 0 David Grant 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Jimmy Spencer 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Leon White 3 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Daniel Stubbs 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Clarence Weathers 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Barney Bussey 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Rod Jones 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 James Brooks 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Donnie Eldar 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 1 0 Skip McClendon 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Bernard Clark 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Natu Tuatagaloa 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKES SACKS ALLOWED Anthony Munoz 4 0 Harold Green 4 0 Tim McGee 3 0 Bruce Reimers 3 1 Bruce Kozerski 3 0 Ken Walter 2 0 Rodney Holman 2 0 Eddie Brown 1 0
-------------------------------------------
Bengals- HB - James Brooks - 21 Att - 5.9 Avg - 124 Yds - 1 TD - 4 Rec - 14.0 Avg - 56 Yds - 1 TD
Game Pictures
--------------------------------------------
Left: Dan Marino shows his perfect stance here as he manages to lob the ball to a single covered Mark Clayton.
Right: Mark Clayton catches this Marino pass and watches as Mark Lee dives and misses. Clayton would then turn upfield and and sprint 69 yards for the touchdown and the first score of the game.
Left: In the 2nd quarter James Brooks finally got into a groove after getting stuffed by the Dolphins D all day long and blasted up the middle for an 81 yard touchdown run to put the Bengals on the board, down 10 to 7.
Right: Boomer Esiason threw this errant pass that was intercepted by Jarvis Williams to give the Dolphins the ball late in the first half.
Left: The very next play Mike Rozier ran the ball 23 yards into the end-zone to make it 20-7 Dolphins with 1:40 remaining in the first half.
Right: Jim Breech managed to help the Bengals as the unexpectant Dolphins gave up two field goals in the final 1:40 to make the score 20-13 Dolphins at the half.
Left: Dan Marino shows his poise in the pocket once again as he stands tall and lobs this 10 yarder to Mark Duper.
Right: The Marks brothers flying high again as Mark Duper picks up this Marino pass and waltz into the endzone from 10 yards out to make it 27-13 Dolphins.
Left: Tony Martin pulls his best Garo Yepremian impression here late in the 3rd quarter. With 58 seconds left Martin would fumble this punt return after being demolished by James Francis. Bengals defender Carl Zander would pick it up and run it 8 yards to the end zone for a score, 27-20 Dolphins.
Right: In the final 11 seconds of the game Boomer Esiason finds a wide-open James Brooks on a swing pass. The easy 6 yard touchdown would give the Bengals the lead, and ultimately the victory 30 to 27.
Game Notes
--------------------------------------------
-Punting averages were pretty bad so I moved that slider up.Comment
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Will The Eagles Repeat?
AP - Last year the Philadelphia Eagles stunned the NFL by not only making their way into the playoffs, but winning the Super Bowl.
The Eagles surprised the Houston Oilers with a last second touchdown to win Super Bowl XXV when Randall Cunningham lobbed the ball up to youngster Fred Barnett who caught the game winning touchdown. The storybook year for the Eagles saw Randall Cunningham and company establish themselves as one of the league's top teams.
This year the Eagles started off on a bad note. During the pre-season Randall Cunningham tweaked an injury and would end up not starting the regular season for the Eagles. The Eagles would start off the season with another Super Bowl winning quarterback starting, Jim McMahon. However despite McMahon's accolades he was unable to get the Eagles moving as they lost the season opener to the Raiders 13 to 10, and then were trounced by the Redskins 34 to 10 in the following game. However Philadelphia kept hope as Cunningham would return in week 3 against the Kansas City Chiefs. Cunningham would go to Kansas City and light it up with a 34-20 victory. With Randall back in the lineup the champion Eagles would finish the year with a 10-4 record, finalizing at 10-6 and still leading their division with 1 victory more than the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys, both of whom just barely missed making the playoffs as wild cards.
The Eagles rarely showed weakness throughout the season, with 3 of their 6 losses coming within a single score. Cunningham would finish the year with 2,756 yards and 21 touchdowns with 14 picks. Giving him an 83.8 quarterback rating. He also managed to beat out 3rd down back Heath Sherman in yards with 386 and 3 touchdowns rushing. Last year in the playoffs the Eagles appeared to be sorting out their wide receiver situation, and that progression continued this year as Calvin Williams has broken through the pack. Williams leads the Eagles by 1 catch with 70 for 1,018 yards and 8 touchdowns. Right behind him is the Super Bowl game-winning catch maker, Fred Barnett. Barnett had a solid 69 catch, 887 yard, 6 touchdown year as well.
The Eagles had a two-headed runningback system in 1990 between Anthony Toney and Heath Sherman. Eventually, mainly due to injuries, Anthony Toney was named the starter. He played acceptably during the regular season but a few explosive games in the playoffs opened some eyes. Against the Green Bay Packers last year Toney had 161 yards on the ground as well as 33 in the air, making a huge difference for the steam. In the Super Bowl game Toney had only 70 yards on the ground but accounted for 2 rushing touchdowns. He also had 20 some yards in the air as well. It started though in the first playoff game of the year against the Seattle Seahawks as Anthony Toney rushed for 141 yards and 2 touchdowns, helping the Eagles squeak out a 31 to 28 victory. If Anthony Toney can pick that ability back up in this years playoffs the Eagles have a very good chance of repeating.
Needless to say the Philadelphia Eagles are a very talented football team. They have a top-notch defense installed, as well as the most versatile quarterback in the league. With some young stud wide receivers slowly breaking out and an established tight end in Keith Jackson, the Eagles passing game should soar. The only questionable play is whether or not Anthony Toney's playoff performances last year was for real, or just a fluke. One thing's for certain, no matter who the Eagles are playing they are going to make it an interesting game. Last year the Eagles won all 3 playoff games by 4 points or less. (Seahawks 31 to 28, Packers 27 to 24, Oilers 28 to 24), so they will definitely play to the last snap of the game to fight for victory. If the Eagles get lucky and continue to have things fall their way, then they may need to make room for another trophy.Comment
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1991 - Playoff Wild Card Preview
AFC Wild Card Game 1
===============================================
The Matchup
The Injuries
The Key Players
Chicago Bears- MLB - Mike Singletary - 99 Ovr
- DE - Richard Dent - 99 Ovr
- C - Jay Hilgenberg - 97 Ovr
- CB - Donnell Woolford - 93 Ovr
Philadelphia Eagles- DT - Clyde Simmons - 99 Ovr
- CB - Eric Allen - 99 Ovr
- DE - Reggie White - 99 Ovr
- FS - Wes Hopkins - 98 Ovr
Coach's Corner
==========================================
Coach: Bears - Mike Ditka
Gameplan- We have to make sure that Andre Waters doesn't make any big plays. The Eagles have one of the best saftey combos with Waters and Hopkins, if they get going early, our offense might struggle.
- Randall Cunningham is definately going to use his feet, we're going to need our Ends to contain him and prevent the run.
- If Richard Dent can get to Cunningham early it might slow him down a bit for the game. We can't let him establish himself or else our defense might start second guessing itself.
- Anthony Toney had some big games in the playoffs last year, our linebackers and front four should easily keep him in check, so we should focus on the pass game more.
- We need to wear down Byron Evans by running Neal Anderson up the middle a lot. Anderson needs to get his carries.
Coach: Eagles - Buddy Ryan
Gameplan- Neal Anderson is the workhorse of the Bears offense, we need to stuff him at every opportunity.
- Clyde Simmons needs to clog up the middle to make Anderson force to the outside.
- Shaun Gayle is a very underrated saftey but we need to work our wide receivers around him.
- Woolford is a solid coverage corner and may take Calvin Williams out of the game. We can't rely on one receiver and need to spread the ball around as much as possible.
- We should probably have Cunningham focus more on the pass game. The Bears have some great players on defense and we wouldn't want Cunningham to risk himself while running.
- Reggie White and company need to start intimidating Mark Vlasic, he is efficient when he has time, we can't give him that time. Blitz blitz blitz.
Comment
-
1991 Playoffs - Wild Card Round - Game 2
==========================================
Chicago Bears (10-6)
vs.
Philadelphia Eagles (10-6)
Game Weather
Forecast: Fair
Wind: 8 mph
Temp: 27 Degrees
Team Injuries
-------------------
Chicago Bears
------------------------
No Injuries
Philadelphia Eagles
------------------------
LG - Mike Schad - Torn Shoulder - Will Not Play (Questionable)
Drive Summary
------------------------------------------------------
1st Quarter
-------------------------------
Drive 1-Eagles - Roger Ruzek - 19 Yd FG Att - Good - Score: 3-0 Phi - (6:10)
Drive 2-Bears - Maury Buford - Punt - (4:53)
Drive 3-Eagles - Jeff Feagles - Punt - (3:18)
Drive 4-Bears - Maury Buford - Punt - (1:56)
Drive 5-Eagles - Anthony Toney - 4 Yd TD Run - Score: 10-0 Phi - (0:00)
2nd Quarter
-------------------------------
Drive 1-Bears - Kevin Butler - 37 Yd FG Att - Good - Score: 10-3 Phi - (4:13)
Drive 2-Eagles - Anthony Toney - 15 Yd TD Run - Score: 17-3 Phi - (0:57)
Drive 3-Bears - Maury Buford - Punt - (0:37)
Drive 4-Eagles - Phi 28 Yd Ln - End Half
3rd Quarter
-------------------------------
Drive 1-Bears - Maury Buford - Punt - (10:10)
Drive 2-Eagles - Anthony Toney - 78 Yd TD Run - Score: 24-3 Phi - (9:24)
Drive 3-Bears - Maury Buford - Punt - (6:42)
Drive 4-Eagles - Jeff Feagles - Punt - (5:50)
Drive 5-Bears - Mark Vlasic - INTERCEPTED (W.Hopkins, 55 yd TD Rtrn) - Score: 31-3 Phi - (3:17)
Drive 6-Bears - Lars Tate - 22 Yd TD Run - Score: 31-10 Phi - (0:49)
Drive 7-Eagles - Jeff Feagles - Punt - (0:00)
4th Quarter
-------------------------------
Drive 1-Bears - Maury Buford - Punt - (9:12)
Drive 2-Eagles - Roger Ruzek - 36 Yd FG Att - Good - Score: 34-10 Phi - (4:53)
Drive 3-Bears - Mark Vlasic - FUMBLE - (FF: S.Joyner, FR: C.Simmons, 44 Yd TD Rtrn) - Score: 41-10 Phi - (2:29)
Drive 4-Bears - Turnover On Downs - Phi 26 Yd Ln - (1:58)
Drive 5-Eagles - Anthony Toney - 72 Yd TD Run - Score: 48-10 Phi - (1:13)
Drive 6-Bears - Mark Vlasic - INTERCEPTED (A.Waters, 75 Yd Rtrn) - Chi 7 Yd Ln - (0:49)
Drive 7-Eagles - End Game - Chi 4 Yd Ln - (0:00)
Game Summary: The returning champions showed today exactly why they are the champions. The Philadelphia Eagle stomped all over a very respectable Chicago Bears team. The Bears put up a good fight for the first quarter of the game, at least keeping it manageable, but then everything snowballed into an Eagles evisceration. Anthony Toney was the biggest surprise keeping his reputation earned last year as a big-game performer. He started off with the 1st touchdown for the Eagles at the end of the 1st quarter on a 4 yard run. Then near the end of the half with 57 seconds left he scampered 15 yards for his second touchdown. Mid-way through the 3rd Toney bolted through the Bears defense for a 78 yarder. Then icing on the cake in the 4th quarter with 1:13 remaining as the Eagles were running out the clock, Toney found a hole and pushed for a 72 yard touchdown. Toney would end this game with a single-game Eagles record, playoff or not, of 232 yards and 4 touchdowns. Mike Singletary and Richard Dent were unable to do anything against the run. Randall Cunningham also had an unsung efficient game as he threw for 19 of 23 passes at 82%, giving him a 107.8 quarterback rating on the night. The Bears struggled to get the run game going against a tough Eagles defense as Neal Anderson only averaged 2.2 yards per carry. Since the Bears ended up being down early they were forced to have to go to the pass more, essentially putting Anderson out of the game. Vlasic would throw 51 passes before the night was over in a highly conservative Chicago pass game, which they were not used to. Things seemed to always turn the Eagles way as well as they had some big defensive scores as Wes Hopkins returned a Vlasic interception 55 yards, then Clyde Simmons returned a Vlasic fumble 44 yards for a touchdown, next drive the 72 yard Toney touchdown run, and then the next play Andre Waters intercepted Vlasic and returned it 75 yards just falling short of the end zone on Chicago's 7 yard line, where the game would end as the Eagles gracefully ran out the last few seconds.
Game Box Score
------------------------------------------------------
Individual Player StatisticsCode:Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT FINAL Bears 0 3 7 0 0 10 Eagles 3 14 14 17 0 48
---------------------------------------------------------------
Chicago Bears
---------------------------
Code:Individual Stats: Bears PASSING CMP ATT YDS PCT YPA SACK TD INT LONG RATING Mark Vlasic 24 51 267 47 5.2 0 0 2 21 46.8 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG LONG TD FUM Neal Anderson 11 25 2.2 15 0 0 Lars Tate 1 22 22.0 22 1 0 Brad Muster 1 9 9.0 9 0 0 Mark Vlasic 1 -9 -9.0 0 0 1 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG LONG TD DROP YAC Herman Moore 8 100 12.5 21 0 0 21 James Thornton 5 42 8.3 14 0 0 1 Dennis Gentry 3 33 11.0 16 0 1 9 Ed McCafferey 2 29 14.5 21 0 1 3 Ron Morris 2 20 10.0 14 0 2 1 Brad Muster 2 17 8.5 11 0 2 3 Neal Anderson 1 14 14.0 14 0 1 19 Wendell Davis 1 12 12.0 12 0 0 1 KICKING FGM FGA PCT FGSBLOCKED XPA XPM PCT XPSBLOCKED KICKOFFS TOUCHBACKS Kevin Butler 1 1 100 0 1 1 100 0 0 0 Maury Buford 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 PUNTING ATT YDS AVG LONG BLOCKS IN20 TOUCHBACKS Maury Buford 7 239 34.1 51 0 1 2 KICK RETURNS ATT YDS AVG TD LONG Johnny Bailey 9 158 17.5 0 26 PUNT RETURNS ATT YDS AVG LONG TD Johnny Bailey 1 7 7.0 7 0 DEFENSE TOT LOSS SACK FF FREC YDS TD INT RET AVG DEFLECTIONS SAFETIES Ron Rivera 9 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Mike Singletary 5 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Wayne Haddix 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 1 0 Richard Dent 4 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Mark Carrier 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Jim Morrissey 4 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 3 0 Shaun Gayle 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Donnell Woolford 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Trace Armstrong 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Lamuel Stinson 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Ed McCafferey 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Steve McMichael 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 William Perry 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 John Roper 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 John Mangum 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKES SACKS ALLOWED Keith Van Horne 3 0 Brad Muster 3 0 Herman Moore 2 0 Jimbo Covert 2 0 Ron Morris 2 0 Jay Hilgenberg 1 0 Mark Bortz 1 0
Philadelphia Eagles
----------------------------
Player of the GameCode:Individual Stats: Eagles PASSING CMP ATT YDS PCT YPA SACK TD INT LONG RATING Randall Cunningham 19 23 227 82 9.8 3 0 0 43 107.8 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG LONG TD FUM Anthony Toney 26 232 8.9 78 4 0 Keith Byars 1 3 3.0 3 0 0 Heath Sherman 1 1 1.0 1 0 0 Randall Cunningham 1 1 1.0 1 0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG LONG TD DROP YAC Mike Quick 5 98 19.5 43 0 0 28 Calvin Williams 5 49 9.7 16 0 0 7 Keith Jackson 3 39 13.0 19 0 0 9 Fred Barnett 3 30 10.0 11 0 0 6 Kenny Jackson 1 11 11.0 11 0 0 0 Anthony Toney 2 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 KICKING FGM FGA PCT FGSBLOCKED XPA XPM PCT XPSBLOCKED KICKOFFS TOUCHBACKS Roger Ruzek 2 2 100 0 6 6 100 0 9 0 PUNTING ATT YDS AVG LONG BLOCKS IN20 TOUCHBACKS Jeff Feagles 3 131 43.6 53 0 0 1 KICK RETURNS ATT YDS AVG TD LONG Eric Allen 3 44 14.6 0 17 PUNT RETURNS ATT YDS AVG LONG TD Eric Allen 0 0 0.0 0 0 DEFENSE TOT LOSS SACK FF FREC YDS TD INT RET AVG DEFLECTIONS SAFETIES Izel Jenkins 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 5 0 Jessie Small 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 2 0 Seth Joyner 5 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 1 0 Byron Evans 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 1 0 Wes Hopkins 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 55 55.0 1 0 Ben Smith 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Carlos Jenkins 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Merton Hanks 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Eric Allen 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 2 0 Kenny Jackson 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Reggie White 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Godfrey Myles 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Mike Golic 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Steve Kaufusi 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Andre Waters 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 76 76.0 1 0 Clyde Simmons 0 0 0 0 1 44 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKES SACKS ALLOWED Keith Byars 5 0 Matt Darwin 2 2 Ron Solt 2 0 Keith Jackson 2 0 Fred Barnett 1 0 David Alexander 1 0 Ron Heller 1 0 Anthony Toney 0 1
-------------------------------------------
Eagles- HB - Anthony Toney - 26 Att - 8.9 Avg - 232 Yds - 4 TD - 2 Rec - 0 Yds
Game Pictures
--------------------------------------------
Left: From 4 yards out Anthony Toney stretched the ball over the goal line through a small hole giving the Eagles the lead at the end of the 1st quarter, 10 to 0.
Right: One of the only Chicago Bears that performed well tonight was Richard Dent, who managed to put some pressure on Randall Cunningham and came out with 2 sacks.
Left: Anthony Toney dives for the endzone and barely gets the ball over the plane as he punched it in from 15 yards out for his second rushing touchdown. The Eagles would take a commanding 17 to 3 lead.
Right: A huge block by Keith Byars opens up the field for Anthony Toney mid-way through the 3rd quarter. Toney would go untouched to the endzone on a 78 yard touchdown run.
Left: Mark Vlasic tosses up a floater that is picked off by Wes Hopkins. The safety would barrel down the field for a 55 yard touchdown return making it an embarrassing 31 to 3 Eagles scoreboard.
Right: Lars Tate surpasses all of Neal Anderson's rushing yards in the entire game to this point, on this single run. Tate's 22 yard touchdown scramble would be the first, and only Bears touchdown, with 49 seconds left in the 3rd quarter.
Left: Seth Joyner gets into the backfield and lights up Mark Vlasic. Vlaisc would fumble the football.
Right: Clyde Simmons manages to pick up the fumbled football and returns it 44 yards for the touchdown with 2:29 remaining in the game. The Eagles continued to pile on with a 41-10 score.
Left: Anthony Toney side-steps Mike Singletary, and it's all great Eagles blocking from then on. Toney would blaze down field for his second 70+ yard rushing touchdown on this 72 yard score. The Eagle's final score of the game would have the board read 48 to 10 Eagles.
Right: Andre Waters managed to intercept this errant Mark Vlasic desperation pass. Waters did his best to attempt to score once more for the Eagles, but was brought down after a 75 yard return at the Bears 7 yard line.
Game Notes
--------------------------------------------
-I'm confused as to what to do. The CPU had Anthony Toney (as it always does for some reason) looking like the 2nd coming. Then again it also had Neal Anderson looking horrendous. So i've left the HB sliders alone.
-Same goes for the QB as Cunningham was just about perfect, but Vlasic struggled with a few picks.Comment
-
Backups Bonanza In AFC Wild Card Game
AP - Today's game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Los Angeles Raiders will be one of interest for many around the league as the starting quarterbacks for both teams are out for the game.
Earlier this season Bubby Brister suffered a severe dislocated ankle that has kept him out for a few weeks. Stan Humphries has played well in Brister's absence. He came in during the game against the Oilers which he was unable to salvage, but the final two weeks of the regular season saw Humphries bring victories to the Steelers to help give them a better record than the Cleveland Browns (10-6) and sneak into the playoffs. Humphries threw for 38 of 60 passes giving him a 63% completion rate. He also managed to garner 387 yards, 3 touchdowns, and only 1 interception during this time. Humphries finished the season with a 91.4 quarterback rating. Opening a few eyes around the league for the 3rd year quarterback out of Northeast Louisiana. Stan Humphries will be trying to lead a mediocre Steelers pass attack against a quality Raiders pass defense. The easy way out for Chuck Knoll is to pound the Raiders heavily with the run game of Merril Hoge and Barry Foster, but since the Raiders have one of the best defensive end combos in the league in Howie Long and Greg Townsend that may not be as viable an option. Humphries is on the final year of his contract, and teams around the league are already evaluating him. This week's game against the Los Angeles Raiders could also have a big influence on whether or not Humphries will be seeing a potential shot at a starting job next year.
The Los Angeles Raiders were disappointed when mid-way through the season their starting quarterback, Jay Schroeder, suffered a partially torn PCL injury. The Injury would result in keeping him out for numerous weeks. The recently added backup quarterback, Billy Joe Tolliver, ended up filling in for Schroeder in his stead. Tolliver struggled early loosing the first 3 games as a starter with the Raiders against the Dolphins, Chargers, and Patriots. It wasn't until Week 14 against the Jets did Tolliver finally pull a victory. But key wins in the late stretch at Denver and Washington are what gave the Raider's their playoff birth. Tolliver managed to muster up the ability to push the Raiders past the 7-9 Broncos and 8-8 Chargers to go 9-7 and sneak into the AFC wild card spot. Last year Billy Joe Tolliver left the San Diego Chargers on bad terms, and this season he had the last laugh as he pulled out a 1 victory advantage over his old team to move the Raiders to the playoffs, leaving San Diego in his dust. Tolliver hasn't performed exceptionally well as he has only completed 50% of his passes for 1,066 yards and 6 touchdowns, but with 9 interceptions, giving him a 57.7 quarterback rating.
Jay Schroeder has struggled as the Raiders starting quarterback the past few seasons. The Raiders have seemingly tried to replace him numerous times due to his inconsistancy. Tolliver has a small window of opportunity here to do something special and finally earn what he was angry about not getting a shot at in San Diego, the starting job.
Both teams have a lot to prove this week as their trying to show that they're offense is not dependent on their starting star quarterbacks. Both teams have very acceptable run games in Marcus Allen, and the combo of Hoge and Foster. The key will be which quarterback can play the most efficient mistake-free game, and lead his team one more round into the playoffs.Comment
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1991 - Playoff Wild Card Preview
AFC Wild Card Game 2
===============================================
The Matchup
The Injuries
The Key Players
Pittsburgh Steelers- CB - Rod Woodson - 99 Ovr
- K - Gary Anderson - 99 Ovr
- QB - Bubby Brister - 93 Ovr *Injured
- SS - Carnell Lake - 93 Ovr
Los Angeles Raiders- RE - Greg Townsen - 97 Ovr
- LE - Howie Long - 95 Ovr
- MLB - Ervin Randle - 93 Ovr
- CB - Terry McDaniel - 92 Ovr
Coach's Corner
==========================================
Coach: Steelers - Chuck Knoll
Gameplan- We'll have to double team Howie Long if we want to protect Humphries. We've already got our starting quarterback hurt, last thing we need his for him to get knocked out of the game.
- Jay Schroeder is hurt so we should be able to rattle Tolliver's game by sending blitzs. Greg Lloyd should be blitzing all day.
- If we want to win this game we have to stop Marcus Allen. He's got an eye for the end-zone and if we can halt his confidence early by getting a lead, we may be able to take the game.
- Hoge is going to have to bring his A game if he wants to get through Long and Townsend.
- We have to get Humphries confidence early. We'll let him throw a couple surprise deep passes early and hopefully he can get one to boost that confidence.
Coach: Raiders - Art Shell
Gameplan- We have to penetrated the defense with Marcus Allen. We're going to give him the ball early and hope that he can make a big play to keep the Steelers defense honest.
- In order to run we're going to have to stop Greg Lloyd. We'll run straight at him a lot to force him to make a play and tire him out early.
- Keith Willis may get some pressure through our O-Line so we're going to have to run a lot of play action plays and get Tolliver outside of the pocket.
- Willie Gault is going to be heavily covered by Rod Woodson, but we might be able to get the ball to Tim Brown.
- Washington and Lewis should be able to cover the Steelers wide receivers with ease.
Comment
-
1991 Playoffs - Wild Card Round - Game 3
==========================================
Pittsburgh Steelers (11-5)
vs.
Los Angeles Raiders (9-7)
Game Weather
Forecast: Fair
Wind: 1 Mph
Temp: 50 Degrees
Team Injuries
-------------------
Pittsburgh Steelers
------------------------
QB - Bubby Brister - Dislocated Ankle - Will Not Play (Season)
HB - Willie Williams - Torn Groin - Will Not Play (Questionable)
RG - John Rienstra - Foot Fracture - Will Not Play (7 Weeks)
Los Angeles Raiders
------------------------
QB - Jay Schroeder - Partially Torn PCL - Will Not Play (4 Weeks)
Drive Summary
------------------------------------------------------
1st Quarter
-------------------------------
Drive 1- Steelers - Dan Stryzinski - Punt - (9:50)
Drive 2- Raiders - Jeff Gossett - Punt - (7:09)
Drive 3- Steelers - Merril Hoge - 1 Yd TD Run - Score: 7-0 Pit - (3:41)
Drive 4- Raiders - Jeff Gossett - Punt - (2:16)
Drive 5- Steelers - Dan Stryzinski - Punt - (0:00)
2nd Quarter
-------------------------------
Drive 1- Raiders - Jeff Gossett - Punt - (9:37)
Drive 2- Steelers - Rod Woodson - FUMBLE (FF:R.Birton, FR:S.Smith, 20 yd TD rtrn) - Score: 7-7 Tie - (9:26)
Drive 3- Steelers - Gary Anderson - 26 Yd FG Att - Good - Score: 10-7 Pit - (5:18)
Drive 4- Raiders - Marcus Allen - 3 Yd TD Run - Score: 14-10 LAR - (2:03)
Drive 5- Steelers - Dan Stryzinski - Punt - (1:43)
Drive 6- Raiders - B.Tolliver to W.Gault - 71 Yd TD Rec - Score: 21-10 LAR - (1:35)
Drive 7- Steelers - S.Humphries to L.Lipps - 8 Yd TD Rec - Score; 21-17 LAR - (0:19)
Drive 8- Raiders - End Half - (0:00)
3rd Quarter
-------------------------------
Drive 1- Raiders - Jeff Gossett - Punt - (10:12)
Drive 2-Steelers - Barry Foster - 4 Yd TD Run - Score: 24-21 Pit - (4:26)
Drive 3- Raiders - Jeff Gossett - Punt - (2:48)
Drive 4-Steelers - Stan Humphries - INTERCEPTED (G.Lewis, 21 yd Rtrn) - Pit 15yd Ln - (1:46)
Drive 5- Raiders - Jeff Jaeger - 34 Yd FG Att - Good - Sore: 24-24 Tie - (1:00)
Drive 6-Steelers - Stan Humphries - INTERCEPTED (L.Washington, 5yd Rtrn) - LA 49yd Ln - (0;00)
4th Quarter
-------------------------------
Drive 1- Raiders - Jeff Gossett - Punt - (10:08)
Drive 2-Steelers - Dan Stryzinski - Punt - (7:40)
Drive 3- Raiders - Greg Bell - 1 Yd TD Run - Score: 31-24 LAR - (4:22)
Drive 4-Steelers - S.Humphries to D.Hill - 7 Yd TD Rec - Score: 31-31 Tie - (1:25)
Drive 5- Raiders - Billy Joe Tolliver - INTERCEPTED (R.Woodson, 21 yd rtrn) - Pit 49yd Ln - (0:56)
Drive 6-Steelers - Stan Humphries - INTERCEPTED (T.Benson, 5 yd rtrn) - LAR 45yd Ln - (0:51)
Drive 7- Raiders - Jeff Jaeger - 39 Yd FG Att - Good - Score: 34-31 LAR - (0:00)
Game Summary: In a game where both starting quarterbacks were out it was anybodies chance. The first team to strike were the Pittsburgh Steelers as a grinding drive saw Merril Hoge end it with a 1 yard touchdown scamper. The Raiders would finally get an answer mid-way through the 2nd quarter when Rod Woodson muffed a punt return attempt. Raiders fullback Steve Smith would scoop the ball up and run it back 20 yards for the tying touchdown. Billy Joe Tolliver would prove his worth as the teams starter throwing a touchdown bomb to Willie Gault, and only throwing 1 interception late in the final minute against Rod Woodson. Stan Humphries threw his first playoff touchdown to Louis Lipps only to have the ball picked 2 more times before throwing another to Derek Hill. However Humphries ended up throwing the game-loosing interception with 51 seconds left to Raiders linebacker Tom Benson, leaving him with 2 touchdowns and 3 picks on the night. Barry Foster managed to get some play time and had a 4 yard touchdown run. Meanwhile Marcus Allen score once in the 2nd, and was about to in the 4th, but took a breather, so backup Greg Bell surprised and pounded it in from a yard out. Jeff Jaeger was a big factor for the Raiders as he managed to hit all the field goals that were asked of him, including the game-winning 39 yarder in the last seconds. The Raiders were very lucky to barely pull out the victory in the final seconds over what was considered a vastly superior team entering the game. The 11-5 Steelers took a dive to the 9-7 Raiders in this upset wild card game. Pittsburgh fans can only sit and wonder what might've been if Bubby Brister was healthy. The Steelers played consistantly throughout the game, but a few late mistakes, and allowing a 21 point 2nd quarter, may have been their undoing.
Game Box Score
------------------------------------------------------
Individual Player StatisticsCode:Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT FINAL Steelers 7 10 7 7 0 31 Raiders 0 21 3 10 0 34
---------------------------------------------------------------
Pittsburgh Steelers
---------------------------
Code:Individual Stats: Steelers PASSING CMP ATT YDS PCT YPA SACK TD INT LONG RATING Stan Humphries 31 50 382 62 7.6 2 2 3 47 73.9 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG LONG TD FUM Merril Hoge 18 27 1.5 10 1 0 Barry Foster 2 6 3.0 4 1 0 Stan Humphries 1 -3 -3.0 0 0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG LONG TD DROP YAC Louis Lipps 10 115 11.5 47 1 1 37 Derek Hill 6 86 14.3 33 1 2 9 Lorenzo Davis 4 57 14.2 29 0 1 3 Merril Hoge 4 36 9.0 14 0 0 28 Eric Green 2 36 18.0 30 0 0 23 Chris Calloway 2 28 14.0 18 0 1 6 Mike Mularkey 2 18 9.0 12 0 0 2 Tim Worley 1 6 6.0 6 0 1 5 KICKING FGM FGA PCT FGSBLOCKED XPA XPM PCT XPSBLOCKED KICKOFFS TOUCHBACKS Gary Anderson 1 1 100 0 4 4 100 0 6 0 PUNTING ATT YDS AVG LONG BLOCKS IN20 TOUCHBACKS Dan Stryzinski 4 140 35.0 43 0 0 0 KICK RETURNS ATT YDS AVG TD LONG Rod Woodson 5 101 20.1 0 27 Vernon Turner 1 20 20.0 0 20 PUNT RETURNS ATT YDS AVG LONG TD Rod Woodson 3 0 0.0 0 0 Vernon Turner 0 0 0.0 0 0 DEFENSE TOT LOSS SACK FF FREC YDS TD INT RET AVG DEFLECTIONS SAFETIES Dwayne Woodruff 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 3 0 Greg Lloyd 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 2 0 D.J. Johnson 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Bryan Hinkle 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 3 0 Rod Woodson 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.0 3 0 Larry Griffin 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Hardy Nickerson 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 1 0 Carnell Lake 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Keith Willis 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Brian Blankenship 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Louis Lipps 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Roland Mitchell 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Merril Hoge 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Gerald Williams 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Tim Johnson 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Jerrol Williams 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 David Little 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 1 0 BLOCKING PANCAKES SACKS ALLOWED Terry Long 5 0 Tom Ricketts 4 1 Tunch Ilkin 4 0 Tim Worley 3 0 Eric Green 3 0 Dermontti Dawson 2 0 Derek Hill 2 0 Brian Blankenship 1 1
Los Angeles Raiders
----------------------------
Player of the GameCode:Individual Stats: Raiders PASSING CMP ATT YDS PCT YPA SACK TD INT LONG RATING Billy Joe Tolliver 20 37 252 54 6.8 3 1 1 71 73.2 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG LONG TD FUM Marcus Allen 12 62 5.1 28 1 0 Steve Smith 1 4 4.0 4 0 0 Greg Bell 1 1 1.0 1 1 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG LONG TD DROP YAC Willie Gault 2 77 38.5 71 1 0 55 Tim Brown 5 60 12.0 15 0 1 9 Mervyn Fernandez 5 47 9.3 17 0 0 7 Ethan Horton 3 33 11.0 17 0 0 7 Steve Smith 3 25 8.3 16 0 1 14 Marcus Allen 2 10 5.0 5 0 0 5 KICKING FGM FGA PCT FGSBLOCKED XPA XPM PCT XPSBLOCKED KICKOFFS TOUCHBACKS Jeff Jaeger 2 2 100 0 4 4 100 0 0 0 Jeff Gossett 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 0 PUNTING ATT YDS AVG LONG BLOCKS IN20 TOUCHBACKS Jeff Gossett 6 221 36.8 43 0 2 0 KICK RETURNS ATT YDS AVG TD LONG Tim Brown 6 128 21.3 0 29 PUNT RETURNS ATT YDS AVG LONG TD Tim Brown 0 0 0.0 0 0 DEFENSE TOT LOSS SACK FF FREC YDS TD INT RET AVG DEFLECTIONS SAFETIES Ervin Randle 7 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 2 0 Eddie Anderson 6 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 2 0 Ricky Hunley 6 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Lionel Washington 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 5.0 1 0 Tom Benson 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 5.0 0 0 Solomon Wilcots 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Terry McDaniel 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Garry Lewis 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 21 21.0 1 0 Jerry Robinson 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 1 0 Henry Jones 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Greg Townsend 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 1 0 Willie Gault 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Torin Dorn 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Jake Reed 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Riki Ellison 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Aaron Wallace 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Ron Birton 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Elvis Patterson 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Howie Long 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Steve Smith 0 0 0 0 1 20 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKES SACKS ALLOWED Don Mosebar 4 1 Rory Graves 4 0 Bruce Wilkerson 2 0 Ethan Horton 2 0 Steve Wisniewski 2 0 Max Montoya 2 0 Mervyn Fernandez 1 0 Steve Smith 1 0
-------------------------------------------
Raiders - HB - Marcus Allen - 12 Att - 5.1 Avg - 62 Yds - 1 TD - 2 Rec - 5.0 Avg - 10 Yds
Game Pictures
--------------------------------------------
Left: Merril Hoge just managed to dive past the goal line for the first score of this game.
Right: Raiders fullback Steve Smith managed to pick up this Rod Woodson fumble and return it 20 yards to the end-zone for the first Raider touchdown of the game, tying it up at 7 a piece with 9:26 left in the 2nd quarter.
Left: Marcus Allen does what he does best, finds the endzone. Allen manages to squeeze himself through the smallest of openings at the line to give the Raiders a 14-10 lead over the Steelers.
Right: Billy Joe Tolliver shows some skill as he drops back, sets his feet, and lobs the ball for a touchdown pass to Willie Gault, who ran it in from 71 yards out, to give the Raiders a commanding 21 to 10 lead with 1:35 left in the first half.
Left: Stan Humphries manages to put together a great last minute drive in the first half and capped it off with this 8 yard touchdown pass to Louis Lipps to keep it at a managable 21-17 score going into the 2nd half.
Right: The Steelers came out of the locker room with intensity as they stuffed the Raiders offense on the opening drive, and then put together their own beauty that ended with a 4 yard touchdown run by Barry Foster. This gave the Steelers the first lead since 3:41 in the 1st quarter, 24 to 21.
Left: Jeff Jaeger was accurate all night long as he tied the game up with 1 minute left in the 3rd at 24 a piece thanks to this 34 yard field goal.
Right: Stan Humphries threw his 2nd interception of the night to Lionel Washington who helped stopped their momentum as it transitioned to the 4th quarter.
Left: Marcus Allen helps to pound the Raiders near the Pittsburgh goal line only to step out to take a breather. His backup, Greg Bell, then takes this toss to the outside and easily waltzes in for a 1 yard touchdown run to give the lead back to the Raiders 31 to 24.
Right: Stan Humphries manages to lob up this 7 yard pass to Derek Hill who catches it for the game-tying 31 to 31 touchdown with only 1 minute, 25 seconds left.
[size=1]Left: Rod Woodson leaps high into the air and picks this Billy Joe Tolliver pas out of the air with only 56 seconds remaining. Demoralizing the team it appears as if the Steelers will go ahead and win the game.
Right: Trying to get in range for the game-winning field goal, Stan Humphries ends up being intercepted by Raiders linebacker Tom Benson. The Raiders would pound it with Allen for a few extra yards before allowing Jeff Jaeger to knock in the game-winning 39 yard field goal to advance in the playoffs with a 34 to 31 victory.
Game Notes
--------------------------------------------
-Marcus Allen ran great but Merril Hodge sucked with a 1.5 avg, conflicted agian i left the HB sliders alone as 1 hb had 5.1 the other 1.5.Comment
-
The 49ers Head To Their Prodigal Sons New Home
AP - Roger Craig was originally drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in 1983. After spending eight amazing seasons with the team it appeared that monetary issues would seperate the franchise with one of their greatest running backs to ever play on the team. Craig decided to jump ship to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, going from one bay across the nation to another.
Roger Craig's contract was up with the 49ers at the end of the 1990 season. He had spent eight glorious seasons as the team's starting running back. In those 8 seasons Roger Craig ran for 7,859 yards and 60 rushing touchdowns, making him the all-time leading rusher in 49er history, just beating out Joe Perry's 7,344 yards. But it's his versatility that made him stand out even more as he also had 530 catches for 4,745 yards and another 18 touchdowns. Needless to say Roger Craig was a big and underrated reason for the 49ers success throughout the past decade. There's no doubt that without Roger Craig the 49ers would not have been able to go to back-to-back Super Bowls in 1988 and 1989 and come out victorious. But that's exactly the point the 49ers are trying to make this year, and it's that they can do it without him.
The 49ers refused to pay out the big money desires of Roger Craig when contract negotiations started in the off-season. As a result San Francisco was forced to let him go and he would dip his toe into the free agent shark infested waters. Roger Craig was offered by the Washington Redskins to join the team on a 5 year $25 million dollar deal that would give him on average 5 mill per season. Imagine if he was able to pair up with Mark Rypien and attempt to put the Redskins back into the Super Bowl with a new found star at the running back position. However a few days later the Tampa Bay Buccaneers came with their bloated bank accounts and gave Roger Craig an offer he couldn't refuse. For a single season of play the Buccaneers offered Craig a $5.45 million dollar deal. A huge jump from the paltry $710,000 he was making in San Francisco just a few short months ago. Without fail, Roger Craig stepped up and accepted the offer, sending him across coasts to join a young Buccaneers team.
In 1990 the Tampa Bay Buccaneers surprised the league and finished the year 10-6, making their first playoff appearance since 1982. Vinny Testaverde and company managed to pull a swing from 1989's 5-11 season to 1990's 10-6. A revamped passing game with Mark Carrier and Bruce Hill leaping over defending corners spurred a great season. The Buccaneers defense was surprisingly lauded for their accomplishments, but the Buccaneers celebrations were short-lived as they were quickly out of the playoffs loosing to teh Seattle Seahawks 26 to 20 in the wild card round. After Gary Anderson's horrible 18 carry 19 yard performance in that playoff game, the Tampa Bay fans were ready for some stability and consistancy at the running back position, and that person was easily Roger Craig.
Roger Craig has exploded this year in a season which many critics felt that he would start to show his signs of aging. Instead, Roger Craig has done the opposite and had the best rushing year of his career, and the best season of his career only rivaled by his 1,000+ yard receiving and rushing season in 1985. Roger Craig managed to bowl through opposing defenses for 1,410 yards and 16 touchdowns as well as 45 catches for 333 yards and another touchdown, silencing all of those critics with his performance on the field.
This week the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are once again sneaking into the playoff wild card with their 9-7 season under their belts. The Passing game dipped a little in sacrafice for Craig's ability, but their ready for the 10-6 San Francisco 49ers.
The San Francisco 49ers have been searching for Craigs replacement all throughout the year. Originally thinking that ex-Seahawk running back John L. Williams would be able to carry the full load. After a mediocre performance and some injuries Dexter Carter ended up playing the starting role for a few games. It wasn't until late in the final weeks of the regular season that the 49ers went and signed Ex-Packer running back Brent Fullwood to a contract. Fullwood was part of a Packer team that defeated the 49ers 25 to 3 in the wild card round of last years playoffs. Apparently San Francisco was impressed with his 94 yard 1 touchdown game against them and felt he was the best option in free agency. Fullwood then managed on 66 attempts to garner 221 yards and 2 touchdowns to finish out the final three weeks of the regular season, which were all victories, giving the 49ers the last surge they needed to go 10-6. The 49ers were fighting for a wild-card spot with the Seattle Seahawks who ended up 9-7, just 1 victory behind San Francisco who can thank a surprise Week 17 victory over their division leading 11-4 St. Louis Rams. The 49ers stepped in with a 54 to 9 victory over one of the better teams in the league, in their division, to go into the playoffs.
The 49ers have a lot to fight for as they've been on a role with their 3 game win streak as well as a confidence boosting victory over the Rams. With a new runningback in Brent Fullwood attempting to replace Roger Craig it will be interesting to see if he performs as well as he did for the Packers last year in the playoffs. Roger Craig has played amazingly well in Tampa Bay despite them dropping 1 victory this season in comparison. Craig has nothing to loose as he'll be having his ex-team come to Tampa Bay so that he can attempt to prove to them that they made a mistake by not giving him his payday.Comment
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