Decade in Review: 2000 NFL Season

Now that we have turned the calendar on a new decade (I know, not technically, but in the sports world, the 00’s are over and the 10’s have begun), it’s kind of fun to look back on the last 10 years.  I am going to try and periodically throw out a post that remembers a sports season or so.  Since we’re in the middle of the NFL playoffs, I figured where better to start than the first NFL season of the decade.  In these (at least the NFL ones), I think I’m going to focus less on the Super Bowl and more on the playoffs leading up to it because most of us remember the Super Bowl, but may have forgotten the interesting drama that took place to get us there.

One interesting note is that I had forgotten how recent the four division setup was, as 2000 still had three divisions in each conference.  There were 31 teams (no Houston yet), and the AFC Central actually had 6 teams.  The odd number of teams led to some strange scheduling, like the Eagles having a bye week in Week 16.  Also, the playoffs started a week earlier than they do now (the season started the week before Labor Day until 2001), so there were playoff games on New Year’s Eve.  And, the Saturday playoff format was the same as Sunday, with two afternoon games; the primetime playoff games did not start until 2001 also.

NFC Regular Season
On Thanksgiving Day, when the Minnesota Vikings beat the Detroit Lions 24-17, it looked like the Vikes (who were now 11-2 and 2.5 games ahead of anyone else in the NFC) were going to cruise to the NFC’s top-seed and home-field advantage.  But, they lost their final three games, including a 31-10 drubbing in Week 17 to the Indianapolis Colts, to finish at 11-5, while the New York Giants won their last five games to win the NFC East by one game and the secure the NFC’s #1 seed.  The Vikings did still get the bye and the #2 seed.

The Eagles lost 15-13 in Week 14 to the Titans, which ended up costing them the division title and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.  The Birds finished 11-5 and took the NFC’s #1 wild card.  The big shocker was out West, where “The Greatest Show on Turf,” the defending Super Bowl champion St. Louis Rams, were beat out for the division title by the Aaron Brooks-led New Orleans Saints.  Both teams were 10-6 and made the playoffs, but the Saints won the division via tiebreaker.  The third wild card was the Tampa Bay Bucs, who finished 10-6, just edging out their 9-7 division rivals in Green Bay and Detroit.

The worst teams in the NFC were the 3-13 Arizona Cardinals and the 4-12 Atlanta Falcons, who were both outscored by more than 150 points by their opponents on the season.  The Cards were especially bad, as they scored few points and gave up more points than any other team in the NFC.

AFC Regular Season
Unlike the NFC, the AFC featured some juggernauts at the top of this top-heavy conference.  The Titans (13-3), the Raiders (12-4), and the Ravens (12-4) were all dominant all season long.  Tennessee and Oakland took the 1- and 2-seeds, respectively, while Baltimore had to settle for a wild card.

The surprise of the AFC was probably the upstart Miami Dolphins, who, led by Ivy League product, Jay Fiedler, won the AFC East at 11-5–one game better than the Indianapolis Colts.  The Colts and the 11-5 Broncos joined the Ravens as the conference’s three wild card teams.  The New York Jets, after starting 9-4 behind Vinny Testaverde, lost the final three games of the season, and finished 9-7, one game out of the playoffs.  The Steelers also fell one game short.

The San Diego Chargers finished a league-worst 1-15, but the Cleveland Browns (3-13) were, statistically, much worse, as they, on average, were outscored by their opponents by over 16 points per game.  The Cincinnati Bengals (4-12) were only slightly better, and the New England Patriots finished 5-11 in the first year of the Belichick Era.

The Eagles
The season could not have started any better for the Birds, as they went down to Dallas and handed the Cowgirls a 41-14 defeat in Cowboy Stadium.  It was well over 100 degrees on the field and is often remembered as the “pickle juice” game because Andy Reid had all his players drinking pickle juice to stay hydrated.  Duce Staley went off for 201 yards.  However, they followed that up with back-to-back losses to the Giants and the Packers before rattling off two wins against New Orleans and Atlanta.  Staley went down in the Atlanta game with a season-ending injury, so the Birds had to turn to a plethora of journeyman backs the rest of the way, including Darnell Autry, Stanley Pritchett, Brian Mitchell, and eventually Chris Warren.  After two more divisional losses to Washington in Week 6 and the Giants in Week 9, the Eagles looked in trouble, as they sat at 5-4 and in serious jeopardy of not making the playoffs.  But the calendar turned November, and the Birds turned it on.  It all started with back-to-back overtime wins over Dallas at home and Pittsburgh on the road.  They then blew out the hapless Cardinals and won another thriller at Washington on a last-second field goal by David Akers.  This four-game winning streak (three of the wins coming on the last plays of the game) had put the Eagles at 9-4 and right back in the hunt.  They even had a shot at the #1 seed, but an Al Del Greco 50-yard field goal as time expired gave the Titans a 15-13 win over the Eagles in Week 14.  The Birds finished with wins over Cleveland and Cincinnati (on Christmas Eve–I was there, it was very cold) to finish 11-5 and grab the top NFC wild card.

On the personnel level, Donovan McNabb made another Pro Bowl (which is miraculous, considering the lack of offensive talent on this team once Staley went out).  The starting receivers were Charles Johnson and Torrance Small, with Todd Pinkston and Na Brown coming in on passing downs.  Chad Lewis was a Pro Bowl tight end, who caught a team-high 69 balls for 735 yards.  The defense was stout, led by Pro Bowl years from Jeremiah Trotter, Hugh Douglas, and Troy Vincent.  Bobby Taylor was on the other side of Vincent, with Brian Dawkins and Damon Moore at safeties.  The outside linebackers around Trotter were Carlos Emmons (maybe the most underrated player in recent Eagles history) and Barry Gardner.  The d-line around Douglas included decent 1st round pick Corey Simon, terrible 1st round pick Mike Mamula, and the big guy, Hollis Thomas.

Regular Season Standouts

• MVP:  Marshall Faulk, St. Louis
• Offensive POY:  Marshall Faulk, STL
• Defensive POY:  Ray Lewis, BAL
• Offensive ROY:  Mike Anderson, DEN
• Defensive ROY:  Brian Urlacher, CHI
• Passing Yards:  Peyton Manning, IND, 4413
• Passing TD:  Peyton Manning, IND & Daunte Culpepper, MIN, 33
• Passer Rating:  Brian Griese, DEN, 102.9
• Rushing Yards:  Edgerrin James, IND, 1709
• Rushing TD:  Marshall Faulk, STL, 18
• Receptions:  Muhsin Muhammed, CAR & Marvin Harrison, IND, 102
• Receiving Yards:  Torry Holt, STL, 1635
• Receiving TDs:  Randy Moss, MIN, 15
• Interceptions:  Darren Sharper, GB, 9
• Sacks:  La’Roi Glover, NO, 17
• Non-Offensive TDs:  Eric Allen, OAK & Darrick Vaughn, ATL, 3

The Draft

• Interesting First Round Picks:  LaVar Arrington (WAS-2), Chris Samuels (WAS-3), Jamal Lewis (BAL-5), Corey Simon (PHI-6), Thomas Jones (ARI-7), Plaxico Burress (PIT-8), Brian Urlacher (CHI-9), Ron Dayne (NYG-11), Sebastian Janikowski (OAK-17), Chad Pennington (NYJ-18), Shaun Alexander (SEA-19), Keith Bullock (TEN-31)
• First-Round Busts:  Courtney Brown (CLE-1), Peter Warrick (CIN-4), Stocker McDougal (DET-20), Anthony Becht (NYJ-27)
• Other Notable Picks:  Todd Pinkston (PHI-36), Laverneus Coles (NYJ-78), Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila (GB-149), Dante Hall (KC-153), Marc Bulger (NO-168), Dhani Jones (NYG-177), Adalius Thomas (BAL-186), Mike Anderson (DEN-189), Tom Brady (NE-199)

Okay, on to the playoffs… 

AFC Wild Card Game:  #6 Indianapolis (10-6) at #3 Miami (11-5), Dolphins win 23-17 in OT
 In the first Wild Card Game on Saturday, the Indianapolis Colts traveled to division rival and Miami for a thrilling playoff opener.  The Colts offense came to play early, as Manning led the team on two very long drives, but both were stopped inside the 10, and they had to settle for two short Mike Vanderjagt FGs.  Then, late in the second quarter, Payton Manning connected with Jerome Pathon for a touchdown.  The Colts decided to go for two and converted it, taking a 14-0 lead into halftime.  The Dolphins offense looked terrible, turning the ball over 3 times in the first half. 

Fiedler, who was awful in the first half (5-14 for 42 yards and 2 interceptions) came right out of the locker room and led a long TD drive, finished off by a 2-yard run by Lamar Smith, to cut the Colts lead in half, 14-7.  The defenses buckled down and the score stayed 14-7 heading to the fourth.  Early in the fourth, Smith (who ended up with 209 yards rushing on the day) burst off another big run, leading to a 38-yard field goal by Olindo Mare.  The Colts answered right back with a 50-yard field goal by Vanderjagt, giving them a 17-10 lead with just over 3 minutes left.  The Dolphins got the ball, and Fiedler led them on a 14-play, 80-yard drive, finally finding Jed Weaver in the back of the end zone from 9 yards out to tie the score and send this Wild Card game into overtime.

The extra session got really interesting.  The Dolphins won the toss, but were forced to punt.  The Colts marched down into Miami territory, but were stuck with a 3rd-and-12 from the Dolphins 42-yard line.  Manning threw a pass over the middle to Marvin Harrison, but he was tackled just shy of the first down marker.  However, the Dolphins were offsides on the play.  The great Jim Mora had a tough decision in front of him.  He decided to decline the penalty and bring on Vanderjagt to try a potential game-winning 49-yard field goal, instead of running a play on 3rd-and-7.  Vanderjagt missed the field goal, and Manning never saw the ball again.  The Dolphins drove right down the field, eventually winning on a 17-yard touchdown run by Smith.  The Dolphins advance in this wild game.  They move on to play the #2-seeded Oakland Raiders.

NFC Wild Card Game:  #6 St. Louis (10-6) at #3 New Orleans (10-6), Saints win 31-28
How could the second game top the first wild wild card game?  Well, it just may have.  It did have the same kind of storyline–a surprise division winner hosting a favored wild card team from their own division.  And, this one added the cache of having the defending champs in the game.  And, the Rams jumped out to a 7-0 lead on their very first drive with a Kurt Warner touchdown pass to Isaac Bruce.  But, New Orleans took the ball and methodically drove down the field to tie the game, early in the second quarter with an Aaron Brooks touchdown pass to Robert Wilson.  Late in the first half, Warner threw his first of 3 interceptions (and 4 turnovers) to Sammy Knight, which he returned 52 yards to the Rams 20.  The Saints couldn’t put the ball in the end zone, but Doug Brien did hit a 33-yard field goal to give New Orleans an unexpected 10-7 halftime lead.

As the second half began, Kurt Warner was about to implode.  The Rams first drive was going smoothly when Warner threw an ill-advised pass that was picked off by Chris Oldham.  The Saints drove down and scored on a Brook to Willie Jackson touchdown to make it 17-7 Saints.  Then, early in the fourth quarter, Brooks found Jackson again on a 49-yard touchdown strike.  Two plays later, Warner was hit and fumbled the ball, which was recovered by La’Roi Glover on the Rams 16-yard line.  It only took one play for Brooks to find Willie Jackson AGAIN on a touchdown pass.  The Saints had rattled off 31 unanswered points (with three straight Jackson TDs) and were in command 31-7 with less than 12 minutes left in the game.

But, the Rams had life in them.  Warner led a quick touchdown drive, capped off with a 17-yard pass to Ricky Proehl, cutting the lead to 31-13 (they missed the 2-point conversion attempt).  The Rams got the ball right back and drove right down the field again, but on the 10-yard line, Warner threw yet another interception to Sammy Knight and the Saints took over again.  But, the Rams defense held and got its potent offense the ball back again with just under 5 minutes to play.  Three plays later, Marshall Faulk was crossing the end zone, making it a 31-20 game with 3:52 to play.  Dre’ Bly recovered an onside kick and the Rams were in business again.  Again, three plays was all they needed, as Warner found Az-Zahir Hakim for 38 yards inside the 5.  Warner ended up running it in again.  They added the two-point conversion and the lead was a mere FG now, and the Saints were sweating.  The Saints did recover this onside kick, but were forced to punt again.  However, the dangerous Hakim muffed the punt, the Saints recovered and ran out the clock.  Crazy ending to a great game.

This was the first playoff win in the 34-year history of the Saints.  Warner actually finished with 365 yards and 3 TDs, but the 4 turnovers were devastating.  His counterpart, Aaron Brooks, threw for 4 TDs of his own.  The Saints defense really stepped up, holding league MVP Marshall Faulk to a season-low 24 yards rushing.  The Saints win sends them to Minnesota for the Divisional Round.

AFC Wild Card Game:  #5 Denver (11-5) at #4 Baltimore (12-4), Ravens win 21-3
The first game on Sunday (New Year’s Eve) had nowhere near the excitement of the two Saturday games.  And, that is just how the Ravens wanted it.  This game was a total domination by the Ravens top-ranked defense, as they held a Denver offense that was second only to the Rams in points to one single field goal.  The Broncos, who were averaging over 30 points per game led mainly by their rushing attack, managed only 9 first downs and 42 yards on the ground.  It was total domination.  The Ravens, on offense, got two touchdowns by Jamal Lewis and one by Shannon Sharpe, which were far more than this vaunted defense needed.  This win by the Ravens sets up a much-anticipated matchup with their division rivals from Tennessee, as the two teams with the best records in football will meet up in the Divisional Round.

NFC Wild Card Game:  #5 Tampa Bay (10-6) at #4 Philadelphia (11-5), Eagles win 21-3
In a game eerily similar to the first game of New Year’s Eve, the Philadelphia Eagles continued the Tampa Bay Cold Curse, as their defense completely shut down Shaun King and the Bucs offense.  Tampa actually scored first in this game, on a second-quarter field goal by Martin Gramatica, but the Eagles struck right back when a Hugh Douglas sack led to a fumble that was recovered by Mike Mamula.  That turnover set up a Donovan McNabb touchdown run and the Birds never looked back.  They added another touchdown before halftime on a TD catch by Na Brown.  The defense just dominated after that, holding the Bucs to just 50 yards rushing and 199 yards of total offense.  Interestingly, the star for the Eagles, on the ground, was Chris Warren, who was cut by the Cowboys after 13 games and brought in by the Eagles during their bye week in Week 16 (hoping to finally stabilize the running back position that had been a revolving door since a season-ending injury to Duce Staley in Week 5).  He only played in one regular season game and now steps into to the feature back role here in the playoffs, rushing 22 times for 85 yards.  The Eagles win sets up a key Divisional Round date with the hated New York Giants in the Meadowlands, the winner of which will probably be the odds-on favorites to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. 

NFC Divisional Game:  #3 New Orleans (10-6) at #2 Minnesota (11-5), Vikings win 34-16
The momentum from the Saints big win over St. Louis in the Wild Card Round did not carry over into the Divisional Round here in Minnesota, as the Vikings trounced New Orleans pretty much from the get-go.  The third play from scrimmage was a 53-yard touchdown pass from Daunte Culpepper to Randy Moss.  Then, after a New Orleans field goal, the Vikes rattled off 17 more unanswered points, and this game was in the books.  For the day, Culpepper threw for 305 yards and 3 touchdowns (2 to Moss and 1 to Cris Carter), and the Minnesota defense held Ricky Williams to just 14 yards on the grounds.  The Vikings move on to the NFC Championship Game either in the Meadowlands against the Giants or at home against the Eagles.

AFC Divisional Game:  #3 Miami (11-5) at #2 Oakland (12-4), Raiders win 27-0
In the late game on Saturday, the Dolphins just forgot to show up.  They looked good on their first drive, marching the ball all the way down inside the Oakland red zone, but Fiedler tried to throw an out pattern around the 10-yard line and Tory James picked it and returned it 90 yards for the first score of the game.  The Dolphins offense would never again see the red zone.  Sebastian Janikowski kicked a pair of field goals, Rich Gannon threw a TD pass to James Jett, and Tyrone Wheatley added a scoring run, as the Raiders cruise into the AFC Championship Game against either the Ravens at home or at Tennessee.

AFC Divisional Game:  #4 Baltimore (12-4) at #1 Tennessee (13-3), Ravens win 24-10
The best team in the regular season was the Tennessee Titans.  They finished the season with a league best 13-3 record, but one of those three losses came to the Baltimore Ravens.  Now, the Ravens wanted another piece of them.  The Titans drew first blood, as they took the opening kickoff right down the field and scored ona 2-yard touchdown run by Eddie George.  The Ravens finally answered midway through the second quarter with a TD drive of their own and a 1-yard plunge by Jamal Lewis.  The Titans had two good chances to score before the half, but Al Del Greco had a 45-yard field goal blocked and flat-out missed another one from 31.  So, the game was deadlocked at 7-7 at the half.

The third quarter saw these two phenomenal defense continue to have their ways.  The teams exchanged long field goals, making it a 10-10 game heading into the 4th quarter.  Then the tide turned.  Early in the fourth quarter, Del Greco was lining up for another long field goal, but his kick was partially blocked; the blocked attempt was caught by Ravens special-teamer Anthony Mitchell on the 10-yard line who then proceeded to return it 90 yards for a touchdown, putting the Ravens up 17-10.  The teams then exchanged punts before the Titans had the ball again, with 6:55 remaining, trying to drive in for the game-tying touchdown.  The Titans offense got the ball down near midfield, when Steve McNair dropped back and threw an interception to Ravens middle linebacker, Ray Lewis, who caught the ball and returned it 50 yards for the game-sealing touchdown.

If you just looked at the numbers, you would have no idea that the Ravens could have won this game, as they were outgained by the Titans 317 to 134 in total yards.  The Ravens rushed the ball 23 times for a mere 49 yards, and quarterback Trent Dilfer completed only 5 passess all game.  On the other side, Steve McNair went 24-46 for 176 yards, and Eddie George rushed 27 times for 91 yards.  But, the Ravens defense held strong when they needed it, and they are heading to Oakland for the AFC Championship Game.

NFC Divisional Game:  #4  Philadelphia (11-5) at #1 New York Giants (12-4), Giants win 20-10
The final game of the weekend was the one that had all of us in Philly waiting for with bated breath.  And, it took about 7 seconds for that “bated breath” to become a punch in the stomach, as Ron Dixon took the opening kickoff back 97 yards for a touchdown.  Before you blinked, the Giants were up 7-0 and never looked back.  The Birds went three-and-out on their first three drives, and then on the fourth drive, Torrance Small fumbled the ball, the Giants recovered deep in Eagles territory and picked up three more points for a 10-0 lead.  Then, late in the second quarter, as the Eagles were trying to drive in for a score to end the half, Giants cornerback Jason Sehorn made the greatest play I have ever seen on a football field.  I say it all the time that Sehorn’s athletic ability to be able to pick off the ball and return it for a touchdown was other-worldly.  Anyway, it was devastating because the Giants took a 17-0 lead.  The Eagles did manage a late field goal drive right before half to go to the locker room down just two scores, 17-3.

The Eagles got some life in the third by forcing a fumble by Giants receiver Amani Toomer, but the Giants defense held, and David Akers missed a chip-shot 31-yard field goal.  The Giants then took the ball and drove right down for a field goal of their own, making it 20-3.  In the fourth, the Eagles blocked a Brad Maynard punt, setting up a 10-yard touchdown pass from McNabb to Small, but the Birds could not recover the onside kick and the Giants ran out the clock for a 20-10 win and a chance to host the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship Game the following week.

NFC Championship Game:  #2 Minnesota (11-5) at #1 New York Giants (12-4), Giants win 41-0
The early game on Championship Sunday was a dub from the very beginning.  The Giants offense, on the opening possession of the game, took less than two minutes to drive 74 yards for a touchdown.  The Vikings Moe Williams then fumbled the subsequent kickoff, the Giants recovered and scored another quick touchdown, giving the Giants a 14-0 lead before their defense had even taken the field.  The massacre continued, as when the halftime gun mercifully went off, the Vikings were staring at a 34-0 deficit.  The Giants outgained the Vikes 386 yards to 45 in the first half, and it was over.  When it was all said and done, Kerry Collins had completed 28 for 39 for 381 yards and 5 touchdowns, while his counterpart, Daunte Culpepper managed just 78 yards and 3 interceptions.  The Giants cruised into their first Super Bowl since 1991.

AFC Championship Game:  #4 Baltimore (12-4) at #2 Oakland (12-4), Ravens win 16-3
Another great defensive performance by the Ravens may have been a bit overshadowed by accusations of dirty play.  Late in the second quarter, Ravens defensive tackle, Tony Siragusa laid a vicious hit on Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon, pummeling him into the ground.  Gannon tried to stay in the game, but was completely ineffective and eventually replaced by backup Bobby Hoying.

The Ravens opened the scoring on a 3rd-down play from their own 4 yard line.  After a great positional punt by Shane Lechler (the best punter I’ve ever seen, hands down), the Ravens were pinned inside their own 20.  Then a sack gave them a 3rd-and-18 from their own 4.  Trent Dilfer, probably just trying to give their punter some room, threw a short pass to tight end Shannon Sharpe, but Sharpe broke a few tackles and was gone…96 yards for the first score of the game.  The ensuing Raiders possession is when Siragusa laid out Gannon.  Hoying came into replace him and, on his very first pass, threw an interception to Duane Starks, who returned it to the Oakland 20-yard line, setting up a short Matt Stover field goal, giving the Ravens a 10-0 halftime lead.

The Raiders showed a little life in the second half, as they followed a Dilfer interception with a drive inside the 10, but the Ravens defense held them to a field goal, making it 10-3.  Ravens return man, Jermaine Lewis, took the ensuing kickoff down to the Raiders 28-yard line, setting up another Stover field goal and giving the Ravens a 10-point lead again.  Ray Lewis recovered a Gannon fumble on the Raiders 6-yard line that gave the Ravens another field goal.  The Raiders took one more shot, as Andre Rison caught a long touchdown with about four minutes left, but it was called back due to offensive pass interference on the play.  That was it for the Raiders offense, as the Ravens ride the defense to an AFC Championship and a date with the New York Giants in Super Bowl XXXV.

Super Bowl XXXV in Tampa:  Baltimore Ravens 34 – New York Giants 7
If there was anyone left that thought the Ravens defense was overrated, they quickly changed their tune as this incredible defensive unit held the Giants to just 152 yards of total offense and forced 5 Giants turnovers.  And this was the same Giants team that hung 41 on the Vikings just two weeks prior.  Ray Lewis became the first linebacker ever to lead his team to a Super Bowl victory and garner Super Bowl MVP honors, as well.  Jamal Lewis ran for 102 yards, becoming only the second rookie (along with Timmy Smith) to rush for over 100 yards in a Super Bowl.