Monday, Dec. 10, 2001

Monday Musings

Steelers kicker is on shaky ground; Bears need more offense

By Jeff Reynolds, Associate editor of special projects

I’m no astronomer, but who knew it would take the constellation that is Tampa Bay WR Keyshawn Johnson so long to break through. Sunday, after Johnson had set a new NFL record for most receptions in a season without a touchdown, he finally caught a ball in the endzone on his 93^rd catch of the season.

It seems to me that a couple of teams posing as major players in the postseason have some repairs to make. One such case is Chicago, which lost to Green Bay for the second time this season, squandering a chance to take possession of the NFC Central and proceed as the NFC’s top seed with possible home-field advantage in the playoffs. The Bears are a playoff team, no doubt. But they need to find some offense. Chicago’s defense is very good and expects to carry the load from week to week. But it has shown an inability to do that without help from the offense. The Bears had 189 net yards, were 2-of-12 on third downs and held the ball for just 23 minutes, 40 seconds. The Packers took away WR Marty Booker, and that erased the Bears’ passing game, which was transformed into pitch-and-catch between QB Jim Miller and TE Fred Baxter, an average tight end at best. The difference in contenders like the Packers is the training wheels have been removed, and they can win a game on both sides of the football.

In the AFC, the Jets haven’t had more than 200 yards passing in a game this season. They rely on RB Curtis Martin to carry the offense, but when a team like Pittsburgh shuts down the running game, QB Vinny Testaverde doesn’t have a reliable set of hands to turn to, given the injury-riddled campaign turned in by WR Wayne Chrebet. Chrebet has one touchdown this season, a catch from Martin on a trick play Sunday. In the playoffs, where teams win by stopping the run, the lack of a passing game in New York leaves way too much potential for implosion

I don’t think the emergence of Kansas City RB Priest Holmes is getting the attention it deserves. Holmes has avoided injury and has been the kind of weapon coach Dick Vermeil envisioned when he signed the former Baltimore backup prior to this season. Holmes gives offensive coordinator Al Saunders the same kind — not the same player or talent level — of versatile threat that Saunders and Vermeil got used to having in St. Louis in the person of Marshall Faulk. Holmes averages 5.1 yards per carry and is on pace to amass better than 2,180 total yards from scrimmage. In the first 18 minutes of the Chiefs-Raiders contest in Oakland Sunday, Holmes had 151 total yards, including touchdowns rushing and receiving. With QB Trent Green, TE Tony Gonzalez and Holmes, the Chiefs are a healthy receiver and defensive playmaker away from returning to contention in the AFC West.

There is no limit to the imagination of Rams coach Mike Martz. We’ve seen the fake spike from Marino, endless numbers of reverses and halfback passes, but Sunday, Martz reached a new level of cleverness. With a 4^th-and-2 inside the 49ers’ 10-yard line, the Rams lined up with multiple receivers in a one-back formation with QB Kurt Warner and RB Marshall Faulk in the backfield. With the play clock winding down, Warner appeared to be signaling for a wideout to come in motion. When that didn’t happen, Warner yanked his chin strap and took a step toward the sideline as the ball was snapped directly to Faulk, who picked up four yards and a first down on an unsuspecting Niners defense

No, that wasn’t the Vikings breaking out of an offensive slump with 42 points Sunday. That was talented skill-position players, namely RB Michael Bennett and WR Randy Moss, taking advantage of an abysmal, banged-up Tennessee defense.

Detroit blew a fourth-quarter lead for the fourth time this season and fell to 0-12 at Tampa Bay Sunday, but Lions fans have reason to be optimistic for the future. Rookie QB Mike McMahon didn’t put up staggering numbers, put he did what he had to do to keep the Lions in the football game, on the road, against a very good defense. As McMahon firms up his grasp of the Detroit offense, he looks as though he will be a major asset. President Matt Millen must hope he can survive what could be a two- or three-year lull.

Speaking of Millen, I wonder how many personnel bosses are lining up end-of-season meetings with the representatives of Minnesota backup QB Todd Bouman. In his first NFL start, Bouman threw four touchdowns and compiled 348 yards. In the five quarters since starter Daunte Culpepper left with a knee injury, Bouman is 33-of-48 (68.8%) with six touchdowns and a 129.5 passer rating. Now it is up for the league to decide whether Bouman is the next Tom Brady or the next Scott Mitchell.

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2001 - 2002 Season