New Rice in Seattle, not Franco
On Monday night, I got a call from my brother, John. He was watching MNF when I just finished watching the baseball playoffs and he told me what I would find out the next morning - Jerry Rice was being traded to Seattle...
Whooooo!
Through most of my adult life, I have been able to meet several San Francisco 49ers of my youth, the players who turned the Niners from a sad-sack organization to the Team of the 80s.
Now, with Jerry Rice coming to Seattle, I'll have a chance to, well, meet him to complete my list, which includes Joe Montana, Roger Craig and Steve Young.
At work, the news was met with the usual amount of cynicism - "Does anyone remember when Seattle picked up Franco Harris? Ugh, that was horrible."
In 1984, the Seattle Seahawks lost their main running back, Curt Warner, to a season-ending knee injury. In response, the Seahawks grabbed a gimpy, injured running back who ran for 1,000 yards the year before - Pittsburgh's Franco Harris.
With Seattle, Harris played in eight games, ran for 170 yards and the Seahawks went 12-4 to get into the playoffs and lost in the AFC Divisional game against Miami, 31-10. Miami, with a young Dan Marino, won the AFC title, but lost to San Francisco in the Super Bowl at Stanford Stadium - one year before Rice was drafted by the Niners.
Harris retired and the eventual Hall of Fame running back drifted back to the Steel City.
The comparisons to Harris and Rice are fair, since Rice led the Oakland Raiders last year with 869 yards receiving during the Raiders' dismal season. In 2002, when the Raiders went to the Super Bowl as the AFC Champions, Rice caught 92 catches for 1,211 yards and seven touchdowns - numbers that were his best since the 1996 season with San Francisco.
Rice is considered, by some, as the best player in NFL history and on his last legs of his career, while Harris, when he showed up at the Kingdome he was known as one of the best running backs in NFL history at the time and on his last legs.
Rice will have more of a chance to contribute to the Seahawks than Harris did, but then, Harris was inserted as the starting running back when he arrived and just didn't have it.
Only time will tell if Rice can contribute, but he will have an impact - as a veteran leader in the locker room. Three Super Bowl rings commands respect and in a locker room that has very few playoff-proven players, Rice can be a positive influence on the team.
In a way, Harris provided that influence in his time on the Puget Sound. The 1984 Seahawks were middle-of-the-road and weren't picked to go far into the postseason. Harris' influence on the team helped them to their 12-4 season, even through he didn't help much on the field.
My hope is for the same influence from Rice on the Seahawks. With Darrell Jackson, Koren Robinson and other young wide receivers and players on the Seattle roster, another proven veteran won't hurt. Robinson may be gone for four games - drugs - and Rice can step in and fill the void.
Seattle fans have been aching for a winner to cheer for on the gridiron. This year's Seahawks are good enough to be a threat for the AFC title. Whether Rice can provide the help to that goal won't be seen until later in the season, but Seattle fans can't say that the Seahawks didn't try.
Rice will show us something. I just hope it is good.
(c) R. Burns
Whooooo!
Through most of my adult life, I have been able to meet several San Francisco 49ers of my youth, the players who turned the Niners from a sad-sack organization to the Team of the 80s.
Now, with Jerry Rice coming to Seattle, I'll have a chance to, well, meet him to complete my list, which includes Joe Montana, Roger Craig and Steve Young.
At work, the news was met with the usual amount of cynicism - "Does anyone remember when Seattle picked up Franco Harris? Ugh, that was horrible."
In 1984, the Seattle Seahawks lost their main running back, Curt Warner, to a season-ending knee injury. In response, the Seahawks grabbed a gimpy, injured running back who ran for 1,000 yards the year before - Pittsburgh's Franco Harris.
With Seattle, Harris played in eight games, ran for 170 yards and the Seahawks went 12-4 to get into the playoffs and lost in the AFC Divisional game against Miami, 31-10. Miami, with a young Dan Marino, won the AFC title, but lost to San Francisco in the Super Bowl at Stanford Stadium - one year before Rice was drafted by the Niners.
Harris retired and the eventual Hall of Fame running back drifted back to the Steel City.
The comparisons to Harris and Rice are fair, since Rice led the Oakland Raiders last year with 869 yards receiving during the Raiders' dismal season. In 2002, when the Raiders went to the Super Bowl as the AFC Champions, Rice caught 92 catches for 1,211 yards and seven touchdowns - numbers that were his best since the 1996 season with San Francisco.
Rice is considered, by some, as the best player in NFL history and on his last legs of his career, while Harris, when he showed up at the Kingdome he was known as one of the best running backs in NFL history at the time and on his last legs.
Rice will have more of a chance to contribute to the Seahawks than Harris did, but then, Harris was inserted as the starting running back when he arrived and just didn't have it.
Only time will tell if Rice can contribute, but he will have an impact - as a veteran leader in the locker room. Three Super Bowl rings commands respect and in a locker room that has very few playoff-proven players, Rice can be a positive influence on the team.
In a way, Harris provided that influence in his time on the Puget Sound. The 1984 Seahawks were middle-of-the-road and weren't picked to go far into the postseason. Harris' influence on the team helped them to their 12-4 season, even through he didn't help much on the field.
My hope is for the same influence from Rice on the Seahawks. With Darrell Jackson, Koren Robinson and other young wide receivers and players on the Seattle roster, another proven veteran won't hurt. Robinson may be gone for four games - drugs - and Rice can step in and fill the void.
Seattle fans have been aching for a winner to cheer for on the gridiron. This year's Seahawks are good enough to be a threat for the AFC title. Whether Rice can provide the help to that goal won't be seen until later in the season, but Seattle fans can't say that the Seahawks didn't try.
Rice will show us something. I just hope it is good.
(c) R. Burns
posted by R. Burns at 10/20/2004 01:24:00 PM
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