| During this past weekend, the Bengals confirmed
they were more interested in Trent Dilfer than Elvis Grbac. That confirmation, in a
nutshell, is the ultimate exhibit of the ever-changing ways of the new-age NFL. The
Ravens, fresh off their Super Bowl parade a year ago, decided they didn’t want to try
to repeat under the guidance of Dilfer. It seemed they wanted someone more spectacular,
more reliable. Someone who, well, wasn’t Dilfer. They signed Grbac, who was coming
off a breakout campaign with the formerly run-oriented Chiefs, to a massive deal in hopes
of opening up the offense and putting the final piece in a dynasty puzzle.
Dilfer, meanwhile, seemed to wander through free agency last offseason, spurned by the
league for winning the title with a team that relied so heavily on defense and its ground
game. He eventually signed a one-year deal in Seattle to serve as a backup to Matt
Hasselbeck, a career backup himself.
It’s only a year later, but so much has changed.
A year of the Grbac experiment was enough for the salary-cap-strapped Ravens, who
released him last Friday after efforts to renegotiate his contract failed. One and done
for Grbac, and the fire sale continues in Baltimore.
Dilfer’s Seahawks didn’t make the playoffs, but it was by no fault of his
own. He went 4-0 as the starter and showed so much more than Hasselbeck, Mike
Holmgren’s handpicked quarterback of the future. Seahawks fans were calling
Dilfer’s name before their seats were even warm last fall, and Holmgren caught a lot
of heat for going back to Hasselbeck when he returned from injury.
In 2000, the Ravens seemed to win in spite of Dilfer, not because of him — or so
they thought. But that attitude didn’t hold water in Seattle, where Dilfer’s
presence, poise and leadership were well received.
In a move very few expected but nearly everyone wanted, Dilfer was re-signed to a
four-year deal on Friday night. Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren said in January that he
might consider allowing Dilfer to compete for the starting job during training camp if he
came back. But the day after the deal was done, Holmgren said that the eight-year veteran
had earned the No. 1 job, which was music to Dilfer’s ears.
"He’s our guy, and it’s his job right now as we go into this
thing," Holmgren said of Dilfer, much the same way he supported Hasselbeck after
obtaining him through a trade with Green Bay last offseason. "There will be no
looking over his shoulder. He shouldn’t have to do that. Now, keep in mind, he has to
play well, which I expect him to do. But I don’t know how much clearer I can say this
but to say that Trent is the starter."
The Bengals fit into all of this because they’re not sold on Jon Kitna. They were
very interested in Dilfer, as were at least four other clubs. The irony is that Grbac, who
turned down a bigger offer from Cincinnati before joining up with the Ravens last year,
has been playing second fiddle. He has not drawn the same interest on the free-agent
market as Dilfer did. At least not yet, and it’s doubtful he will, with so many clubs
that have other positions to fill and not much money to work with.
The talks between Grbac’s agent, Jim Steiner, and the Bengals broke down over the
weekend. The team reportedly made an offer after it heard Dilfer was returning to Seattle,
but it was turned down by Grbac. So with talks on hold, the Bengals began focusing their
interests in the direction of other areas of need. "There are plenty of hens in the
hen house," is how Bengals president Mike Brown put it.
Dilfer has a nice new contract and a starting job in the place he wanted all along.
Grbac is currently dangling in the free-agent wind, left scratching his head as to what
went wrong. A tale of two passers enters an intriguing chapter. |
