| |  Pats' success similar to Rams' Cinderella story
By Greg Garber
ESPN.com
NEW ORLEANS -- Kurt Warner is only 30 years old, but he sounds like an old man talking about Tom Brady, the Patriots' 24-year-old quarterback.
"There are a lot of similarities between Tom and myself, what we went through when we got into the league," Warner said Wednesday. "People have been asking me about it a lot, and it's really true."
Brady, the Patriots' third-string quarterback in training camp, vaulted past Damon Huard and was thrust into the starting role when Drew Bledsoe was injured in the second game of the season. Brady is 13-3 as a starter and the Patriots are in the Super Bowl. In 1999, Warner got the Rams' starting job when Trent Green got hurt in training camp. Warner went on to a sublime season, going 15-3 as a starter, winning the league's MVP award and carrying the Rams into the Super Bowl.
"They've handled that (quarterback) situation really well, and so did we," Warner said. "We won it in '99 -- but I hope his Cinderella story stops short."
The 1999 Rams and the 2001 Patriots share similar story lines. They both entered the ultimate game driven by unknown quarterbacks and playing with house money. And that's a big reason the 2001 Rams, favored to beat the Patriots by two touchdowns in Super Bowl XXXVI, are feeling a gnawing pressure down here in the Big Not-So-Easy.
St. Louis head coach Mike Martz was asked Wednesday which issue was the toughest his team had faced this season. He did not hesitate.
"The challenge, from the very beginning, was being identified as a team that might be in the Super Bowl," Martz said. "That was tough because teams get up for you on a weekly basis; every game is like a playoff game. Our guys have done a remarkable job of rising to the occasion very effectively."
But does Super Bowl familiarity breed contempt -- or confidence?
"I think guys understand more what it's all about and the expectations coming down here," Warner said. "People say we're the favorites, and this and that. That's one thing we learned by going to the Super Bowl and getting knocked out in the first round, and now we're back in the Super Bowl ... all of that stuff doesn't mean anything. It's hard to get to this point, and you have to finish it off. You don't get opportunities like this every year. You don't know when you're going to be back, so you really have to focus and
take advantage of it."
This Rams have acquired maturity and, finally, a defense that actually stops people. This season's 16-game point total was 273 points, 198 fewer than last year's sieve-like unit. Newly arrived defensive coordinator Lovie Smith and cornerback Aeneas Williams have made the biggest difference.
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In '99, we caught so many people by surprise. Somebody told me one time that we had basically a 17-0 advantage through that whole season on teams ... This year, we didn't have that luxury. But our defense has played so well that it has kept us in games and even won games for us. I think that's what separates us from the '99 team. ” |
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— Kurt Warner, Rams quarterback |
"In '99, we caught so many people by surprise," Warner said. "Somebody told me one time that we had basically a 17-0 advantage through that whole season on teams, so when you get up 17-0, your defense can kind of just tee off and do what they do. This year, we didn't have that luxury. But our defense has played so well that it has kept us in games and even won games for us. I think that's what separates us from the '99 team."
That, and the unnatural level of expectation. The 1998 Rams were horrible, a 4-12 disaster under head coach Dick Vermeil. Tony Banks was the starting quarterback. The leading rusher was one June Henley, who racked up
all of 313 yards. The leading receiver was running back Amp Lee.
Of course, 1999 brought a doughy-soft, last-place schedule and two guys named Warner and Faulk. Does any of this sound remotely familiar?
The 2000 Patriots were a grisly 5-11 under first-year head coach Bill Belichick. The leading rusher was named Faulk, but his first name was Kevin. Terry Glenn led all receivers with 963 yards, and Drew Bledsoe was the franchise quarterback.
Thanks to a soft-serve, last-place schedule, the Patriots flip-flopped their record to 11-5. The funny thing? Bledsoe and Glenn were nowhere to be seen for much of the season. Antowain Smith rushed for 1,157 yards, and Troy Brown caught 101 passes.
Like Warner, who matriculated from NFL Europe and the Arena Football League, Brady was initially overlooked. He didn't start the first three years at Michigan. He was a sixth-round draft choice (199th overall) in 2000 and threw all of three passes as a rookie. Now, he's going to the Pro Bowl.
"When I got my shot my fourth year (at Michigan), I was ready to go," Brady said. "The same thing happened here. When I got here last year, I was so far from being an NFL quarterback.
"Then I finally got my shot this year and we've gone out and played pretty well. Here we are."
Greg Garber is a senior writer for ESPN.com
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SB XXXVI Over/Under
