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Rams QB
Kurt Warner
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What year would be complete without a look back at its most notable events?
Just think back to the turn of the century — this century. How many retrospectives
clogged the airwaves? There were so many rankings out there that the Bowl Championship
Series seemed easy to follow. But every one provided insight and served as a public diary
of the years left behind.
In keeping with the trend, the editors of Pro Football Weekly set out to name
the top 10 stories of the 1999-2000 NFL season. Forty stories were nominated, but only the
biggest made the cut.
There’s no better story in the NFL — and arguably all of sports — than
Rams QB Kurt Warner, who worked his way through the ranks to become the league’s
highest-rated passer and join future Hall of Famer Dan Marino as the only quarterbacks to
throw at least 40 TD passes in a season. Warner spent three seasons with the Iowa
Barnstormers of the Arena Football League before spending the spring of 1998 in NFL
Europe. After appearing in just one game for the Rams last season, Warner was forced into
action this season when starter Trent Green suffered a season-ending knee injury in the
Rams’ third exhibition game. But it wasn’t long before Warner was lighting up
opposing defenses. He recorded three 300-yard games and 14 TD passes in St. Louis’
first four games before running away with the league MVP award. Warner capped off the
season with an MVP performance in the Super Bowl, passing for 414 yards.
A year ago, these teams were licking their wounds after last-place finishes in their
respective divisions, the Rams at 4-12 and the Colts at 3-13. But you know the old adage:
What a difference a year makes. This season both teams went 13-3 and earned first-round
byes in the playoffs after winning their divisions. The Rams took their success to another
level. Powered by one of the league’s most explosive offenses and an opportunistic
defense, the Rams won their first NFL title since 1951, holding off the Titans 23-16 in
Super Bowl XXXIV. Indianapolis rode the coattails of its "Triplets" — QB
Peyton Manning, RB Edgerrin James and WR Marvin Harrison — to the biggest one-season
turnaround in NFL history. In fact, never before have two teams made such dramatic
improvements in the same season.
Despite speculation that RB Barry Sanders was contemplating retirement, the Lions
expected him to report to training camp on time. But Sanders never showed. On July 28,
just two days before camp opened, Sanders announced his retirement from football. In a
prepared statement, Sanders said, "My desire to exit the game is greater than my
desire to remain in it." Sanders drew criticism for giving the Lions no advance
notice of his plans, thus leaving them scrambling to find a suitable replacement. They
never did, and Detroit’s problematic running game eventually led to its demise after
a surprising 6-2 start. Sanders ended his football career just 1,457 yards short of Walter
Payton’s NFL career rushing record of 16,726 yards. Since Sanders announced his
retirement, there has been much speculation about his possible return. But as of this
printing, that’s exactly what it remained — speculation.
| 4. |
Beware of the injury bug |
Though statistics show that fewer players were injured this season than last season,
marquee names seemed to drop like flies, especially on three of last season’s
final-four squads — the Broncos, Falcons and Jets. Denver lost RB Terrell Davis, who
rushed for 2,008 yards the previous season, to a season-ending knee injury in Week Four.
Atlanta lost RB Jamal Anderson, who finished second to Davis in rushing yards (1,846) in
1998, to a season-ending knee injury in Week Two. And New York lost QB Vinny Testaverde,
the league’s second-rated passer the previous season, to a torn Achilles before Week
One was over. But the bug didn’t stop there. Cowboys WR Michael Irvin was lost for
the season — and possibly his career — with a serious neck injury in Week Five,
and 49ers QB Steve Young was knocked out (literally) with a concussion in Week Three. Of
these five teams, none finished above .500, and only the Cowboys made the playoffs, though
they didn’t last long.
| 5. |
The Music City Miracle |
To some, it was the greatest finish to a playoff game in NFL history. To others, it was
a travesty on par with the 1972 U.S. Olympic basketball team, which believed it was
cheated out of a win vs. the Soviet Union. Whatever the point of view, few can argue with
the drama the play provided in the Bills-Titans wild-card game Jan. 8. Trailing 16-15 with
16 seconds left in the game, the Titans used a bit of trickery to return a kickoff 75
yards for the game-winning touchdown. FB Lorenzo Neal fielded the ball and handed it to TE
Frank Wycheck, who whirled and fired a cross-field lateral to WR Kevin Dyson. After
leaning back for the pass, Dyson turned and raced down the left sideline for the score
with three seconds left. After enduring a video review of the lateral by referee Phil
Luckett, infamous for botching a coin toss and being part of a crew that called an
incorrect TD last season, the Titans could finally exhale and officially celebrate the
franchise’s first postseason win since ’91. Tennessee would go on to its first
Super Bowl appearance.
On Feb. 2, 1999, Bears Hall of Fame RB Walter Payton announced that he was suffering
from a rare disease that was causing the bile ducts of his liver to be blocked. The
condition required a liver transplant, but before a suitable donor could be found, cancer
had set in, and on Nov. 1, Payton died at age 45. In his 13 NFL seasons,
"Sweetness" rewrote the record books, but the mark that stands out most is his
career rushing record of 16,726 yards. He played the game with a passion known by few and
a child-like exuberance that made him a fan favorite. Payton’s life was celebrated at
a Soldier Field ceremony the Saturday following his death, the day before the Bears would
face the archrival Packers. Chicago beat Green Bay 14-13 by blocking a last-second field
goal, which at least one Bear credited to Payton. "I think Walter Payton picked me
up," said Bryan Robinson, who got a hand on the potential game-winning kick,
"because I can’t jump that high."
| 7. |
Ditka trades in all his chips |
For a while, it didn’t look as though Mike Ditka would be able to pull it off. But
with a little help from then-Redskins GM Charley Casserly — not to mention Colts GM
Bill Polian — the Saints head coach made it happen. In the first round of the 1999
NFL draft, the Colts were expected to take Texas RB Ricky Williams, whom Ditka craved,
with the No. 4 overall pick. But when Polian opted for Miami (Fla.) RB Edgerrin James, it
set off a whirlwind of trading, starting with Ditka, who sent New Orleans’ first-,
third-, fourth-, fifth-, sixth- and seventh-round picks in ’99 and first- and
third-round choices in 2000 to Washington for its first-round pick, No. 5 overall. Ditka
got his man, but not necessarily the results he expected. Williams, who held the NCAA
career rushing record when he was drafted, gained 884 yards in an injury-plagued season
that ended with Ditka’s dismissal. James, on the other hand, led the league with
1,553 rushing yards and earned Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.
It began with a QB controversy, and it ended with the head coach’s retirement
— not the way Jimmy Johnson wanted his coaching career to conclude. After a Week Four
loss to Buffalo, Johnson dared to criticize QB Dan Marino, a living legend in Miami and a
certain Hall of Famer. Marino responded with a comeback win at Indianapolis, but in the
process, he suffered a pinched nerve in his neck. Marino was forced to the sideline the
following week at New England. But backup Damon Huard saved the day, leading the Dolphins
to a come-from-behind victory. With Marino still ailing, Huard went 4-1 as a starter.
Marino returned on Thanksgiving Day at Dallas and threw five interceptions in a 20-0 loss.
What was Johnson to do? While the team won with Huard, the coach knew it was Marino whom
the Dolphins needed to lead them into the playoffs — which he did, despite winning
only one of his last six regular-season starts. After an impressive wild-card win over
Seattle, the Dolphins — and Marino — laid an egg vs. Jacksonville in a 62-7
defeat. After the game, the 38-year-old Marino, whose impending retirement had been
speculated all season, seemed determined to play one more year — but it would not be
under Johnson. The following day, J.J. announced his retirement as head coach.
This wasn’t what the 49ers expected. If their incredible run of NFC dominance was
going to end, they at least wanted to have a say in it. They at least wanted one last shot
at wearing the crown that had been theirs for so long. But once QB Steve Young went down
with a concussion in Week Three, things began to unravel. Defensive breakdowns, offensive
inefficiency, injuries and front-office turmoil all contributed to a demise of gargantuan
proportions. A year ago, the 49ers recorded their 16th straight season with at least 10
wins and played postseason football for the seventh straight year. Both streaks came to an
end this season, when the Niners plummeted to 4-12, their worst record in a 16-game season
since 1979. Now the franchise faces an offseason that could determine its level of
competitiveness in the near future.
| 10. |
Return of instant replay |
For the first time since 1991, instant replay was used to help officiate NFL games. By
a vote of 28-3, team owners brought replay back last March following a rash of suspect
calls during the ’98 season. But this version of replay included a "challenge
system" that allowed coaches to dispute no more than two calls for the first 28
minutes of each half. If the call was not overturned, the challenging team would lose a
timeout. In the final two minutes of each half and throughout overtime, only the NFL
replay assistant could call for a video review, with no limit to the number of reviews he
could request. For the most part, the system worked very well, though there were still a
few kinks here and there (mostly during Buccaneers games, it seemed). Still, replay served
its purpose. There were very few glaring calls that should never have been made, and the
officials tried their best to make the correct rulings and keep review times to a minimum. |
