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| College: North Carolina State |
Height: 6-0 |
| Born: June 5, 1976 |
Weight: 190 lbs. |
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Torry's Take: Another challenge
By Torry Holt
Special to ABC Sports Online
ST. LOUIS -- It was an emotional game on Sunday, with the long pregame ceremony and the tribute to our nation. It was good to see both teams come together like we did, holding the flag and singing the National Anthem, and then to give the fans and the world exactly what they wanted to see -- a great ball game.
|  | | Marshall Faulk helped run out the clock and preserve the Rams' win on Sunday. |
We overcame a lot of adversity, with the holding penalties, three on my part. But we were able to put together a great series at the end to run out the clock, and Isaac Bruce came through with the go-ahead score. The defense played well again, coming back to hold their offense.
It was just a great win for us, on the road against a divisional opponent. And the 49ers are a good team.
The win does a lot for our confidence. It’s tough to win on the road, because we’re targets. Everyone wants to beat us, so to go into other teams’ homes and beat them is satisfying. It also gives the defense confidence. Everyone’s saying we have an average defense, so it means a lot to them to go on the road and shut these offenses down, and it helps our offense put up points when we need to. That’s how we win games.
We’re 2-0 now, with both wins coming on the road, which gives us the confidence that we can go on the road and win anywhere. That allows us to come back to our home field and be relaxed and comfortable, because we know we play well at home.
There were some questions about Kurt Warner’s thumb heading into the game, and I think it’s OK. Kurt is doing a great job week-to-week going in and treating it, rehabbing it. Sometimes you get some bumps and bruises, that’s just the nature of the game. Kurt’s a competitor and a tough individual. He’s going to hang in there. They’ll have to cut his thumb off for him not to play. That said, we think he’s going to go out there and continue to get better as he continues his treatment.
This Sunday we get the Miami Dolphins for our home opener. We’re all anxious to play at home, and that might come into effect early in the game -- just the excitement and emotion of being at home -- and playing against a tough opponent like the Dolphins. But I think once we settle in and realize that it is just a game, we’ll calm down and be fine. The fans will be our 12th man and give us a boost.
The Miami team we’re facing this week is much different than the one we saw in the preseason. They’re a confident team also. Watching them on film, they’re flying around on defense, making plays. Their front four is playing well, their linebackers are playing well, and so is their secondary. So we’ve got to come out and be ready and be prepared to play our A-game. We have to execute, stay focused and make plays up and down.
|  | | Patrick Surtain has made life miserable for many wide receivers. |
I like Miami’s enthusiasm on defense. It’s similar to the way we play on the offensive side of the ball. That will be a challenge for us.
As far as our wide receivers against their corners, I’m going in thinking it’s equal-equal. Sam Madison and Patrick Surtain are two of the best. They make great reads and are quick to the ball. Against them, the only thing to do is stay within your route and use the techniques and skills that you’ve worked on for so long. You have to trust your skills and have faith in them. You have to stay focused, play fast and attack these guys the same way they attack you. They’re good, but we can make plays against them.
It’s been talked about how our defense hasn’t been challenged. I disagree. They’ve been challenged in both games, and will face a different challenge this week. They say we haven’t been challenged on the ground, and I’m sure the Dolphins are going to try to pound the ball down our defense’s throat with Lamar Smith. Hopefully they will step up to the task, and I’m sure they will.
We know how good of a team the Dolphins are. It’s going to be a challenge for everyone.
I don’t think either team will have a problem getting up for this game. It’s going to come down to who executes and pays the most attention to detail. It’s also going to come down to which team has the most stamina, because it’ll be rough out there, and the last man standing will win.
St. Louis wide receiver Torry Holt contributes a weekly column throughout the 2001 season for ABC Sports Online. Click here to go to Torry's official web site, www.torryholt.com.
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