OCR Text |
Show Page H4 1111 IHItY HI RALD. Provo, I lah. Thursday. October 29, 1998 PRO FOOTDALL NFL DneecOs DDOti FOantiiie, vice versa 1 Diminutive QB seeks to shatter stereotypes By DAVE JOSEPH Newspapers Knijihl-Riiki- He never needed us. Not you, not me. "I didn't need the NFL," said Doug Flutie Wednesday morning. And that's the beauty of Flutie this second time around. Finally, nine years after throwing his last pass in the NFL, we realize that Flutie didn't need us. needed Flutie. We didn't need a bloated coach or overweight linemen to compare a game with war. We didn't need Reggie White to preach to us. We didn't need r pregame shows. We needed someone in a feathered cap and paper sword to remind us of what sport was supposed to be. We needed a David to slay Goliath. We needed fun on Sunday afternoon. That's why we needed Flutie. So now, 14 years after his Hail beat Mary Jimmy Johnson and the Hurricanes, Flutie is once again having fun and scrambling across NFL fields; throwing passes on one leg, rallying the Bills on broken plays with time running out. ..watching Flutie Flakes fly off the supermarket shelves. Leading the resurgent Bills Sunday afternoon against the Dolphins Suddenly, Flutie has reminded us of what we missed. ; We ' five-hou- Elvis: I KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) pen again." "I think I disappointed the entire organization, and probably the community," Grbac said following the Chiefs' first pracloss to the tice since their 3 Steelers on Monday night. "I feel sorry for that." An angry and frustrated after coming back Grbac, 0-from a shoulder injury, had singled out tight end Tony Gonzalez backs and running Tony Richardson and Donnell Bennett in his comments. 'The guys who have to make plays on this team have to start realizing they've got to make 2 post-gam- V. 3 V'u'wrfiAiJ'C J' ' Suddenly, Flutie is back. But from where? From three Grey Cup championships and six MVP titles in the Canadian Football League (CFL)? From throwing for more than 40,000 yards? You see, Flutie never stopped performing miracles on the football field. We simply didn't see . f - Mariucci vows open attack when San Fran meets Pack them. How sad. While Flutie was rolling out of the pocket to find a receiver 50-yar- four-gam- XT' downfield during a snow storm in Hamilton, Ontario, the NFL was giving its fans Browning Nagle? Heath Shuler? Dave Brown? There wasn't a place in the NFL for Doug Flutie, but there was for Andre Ware? The reasons were plenty. "I can't throw deep," said Flutie, mimicking those in the NFL after leading the Bills win Sunday night to a 30-1over Carolina. "I'm too old and too short.. .I've heard it all." Mike Ditka tried to find a place for Flutie in Chicago, but quarterback Jim McMahon "polarized the offensive unit against Flutie," according to then Bears' GM Jerry Vainisi in the book, "Flutie." Then, after being traded to his hometown Patriots, Flutie was stuck in Raymond Berry's offense and eventually benched for Tony Eason. Despite going 4 ball-contr- as a starter, despite being one of the most exciting player in the league, Flutie couldn't 8-- 5 SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) Turnovers, overly conservative play and just plain bad starts have all figured in the San Francisco 49ers' losing streak to the Green Bay Packers. San Francisco coach Steve Mariucci wants to attack those Sunday when problems head-othe teams meet at Lambeau Field in a rematch of last season's NFC championship game. "We are not going to come out trying to play smashrnouth, run the ball at them for three yards and a cloud of dust," Mariucci said. "We are going to play it wide open and try to be explosive, mix run and pass and everything under the sun and let 'er rip. It will be a little bit different game plan." San Francisco ) has been ousted from the playoffs by the ) in each of the last Packers three years, most recently a 23-1- 0 decision in last year's NFC title game. Fritz by Hamstrung Shurmur's confusing defensive schemes and unable to contain Brett Favre, the 49ers have never even held a lead in any of those postseason meetings. i J If'f Ji. 1 n MARK Ml l.Vll.l.K IlKAssimaicdPress Rutiemanla: Buffalo quarterback Doug Flutie talks with fans while signing boxes of Flutie Flakes. play NFL football. "They didn't want me down here," said Flutie Wednesday of in the NFL. the powers-- t hat-blooked ut me as a risk." "They So instead of beating his head against the wall, "I went and had fun for eight years (in the CFL)," he said. And, of course, we were the losers; left standing with only a few precious souvenirs until Flutie signed with the Bills for a base over the salary of $200,000. But it's like e n Flutie said Wednesday: "Kveryone wants to cover their butts." The NFL tells us quar225 terbacks should be pounds, and throw between 70-8- 0 yards. And when that player 6-- doesn't meet expectations? "That's his fault," said Flutie, e speaking as a coach or player personnel director. "He's an underachieves" When Flutie failed to win, it wasn't because of the talent around him, or his protection failing. That would have meant wasn't doing its the job. No, it was because Flutie was too short.. .too small. "I've lived with it for 14 years," he said. Flutie is back, and suddenly football is fun again. Instead of analyzing zone blitzes and prevent packages, Flutie is allowing us to to enjoy Sunday afternoons for their most basic pleasures. "It's just a game," he said front-offic- e Wednesday. That's why we needed Flutie. (6-1- (5-2- They have committed 11 turnovers in the playoff games to just one for Green Bay and been out scored 108-6The closest game was a 1996 regular season contest in which Green Bay defeated the 49ers 23-2in overtime. Former coach George Seifert, in what he later acknowledged was a tactical blunder, left the Packers an opening by passing up a shot at the end zone and settling for a chip-sho- t field goal in the last couple of minutes of regulation. Brett Favre then drove the Packers to the tying field goal and they kicked another to win it. "I think in any game we play, it's very important to get off to a good start, to kind of set the tempo and go from there," San Francisco receiver J.J. Stokes said. "We haven't set the tempo when we've played this team, so we definitely need to do that this time around." They're a tough, hard-nose- d defense and we know that going in," Stokes added. "But we still feel like we have the tools and the opportunity to make things 0 happen. " Green Bay has shown some vulnerability to an aggressive passing game, giving up better than 400 yards in the air in a loss to Minnesota, and Mariucci said the 49ers are in a much better position to pursue a gameplan. 37-2- 4 wide-ope- n ain't nothin' but a hound dog Quarterback Elvis Grbac apologized to the Kansas City Chiefs on Wednesday for criticizing teammates by name and promised, 'This will never hap- 20-1- r e plays," he had said. 'The Tony the Gonzalezes, Tony Richardsons, Donnell Bennett. It's got to be a combination of guys making plays." Grbac, who threw two interceptions and lost a fumble in the game, had also faulted himself. But he came under intense media and fan criticism on Tuesday. T didn't sleep at all last night. It was eating at me," he said. "I was in bed after watching the news about 12 o'clock and I wanted to start calling the guys at home." He said he spoke individually with the players he named and r then had a meeting with the entire team. Player dissension is the last thing the Chiefs need now. The loss plunged them to and they play host to the New York Jets, who have won four of five, clear-the-ai- 4-- 3 on Sunday. Grbac said he was just trying to provide the leadership a team expects from a quarterback. "But it came out in the wrong way," he said. "The thing is, as a team leader you've got to know when to say it and how to say it the proper way. I didn't do that. I should have gone to those guys individually and kind of motivated them on an individual basis instead of doing it the way I did." He said the entire team voiced its support in the meeting. "The one thing that was very positive is that everybody backed me up. As a quarterback, I did the wrong thing. I made the wrong statements. I promise it will never happen again. My intention was not to blame other players. But there was no excuse on my part. I hurt some guys." Georgia Hunting Boot "E" Center 1 7:00 p.m. Saturday, November 14th Kemovabie Orthic Insert .Ma - 400 gr. Thinsulate peed Ring and Hooks linched on Steel Washers M M w m w I KepairaDie ooodyi eariiv-'- Welt Construction a 1 i i Waterproof Liner Full grain rr Leather Bob Sole i 3 12" &3$shotaiT""bff!3 Wood or Synthetic Stock c . 99 S239 S2CO Pg. Field & Stream te7 Hunting Vest Game Pouch Shell Holder Heavy Duty Bar KOMETS Padded Collar r- I Utah Grizzlies vs. Ft. Wayne Soft Roll Waterproof Leather Tacked Stitched Sale $19." teg. $30 Camo Jacket Waterproof Breathable Scale $69." Csg. $140 Duck and Pheasant Shell Sale $4." get your tickets, stop by The Daily Herald Circulation office or call 375-510- 3 to charge by phone. To Clay Pigeons 135 DAILY HERALD THE Provo Freedom 1555 Blvd. N. Valid only 375-510- count 3 at The Daily Herald While supplies last Ml Is ..- - i . ... J,... POOR |