| | | | | | | | Tuesday, January 22, 2002
MNF Past, Present and Future: Week 15
By George Hill and Malibu Kelly Hayes
Special to ABC Sports Online
Monday Night Football's spotting and statistical gurus, George Hill and Malibu Kelly Hayes, view the game from a unique perspective. The two share it each week on ABC Sports Online, giving an in-depth preview of the upcoming MNF game by looking at the matchup from the past, present and the future. Here is the latest installment, leading up to this Saturday's game between the Tennessee Titans and Oakland Raiders (ABC, 9 p.m. ET).
The Past: A look at some past performances on MNF by this week's teams.
The Present: A look at several of this week's key performers.
The Future: Chat with George and Kelly on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET. Click here to send in a question.
Monday Night Past
The first game in the history of these two franchises -- the Houston Oilers and Oakland Raiders -- occurred in the season opener of the old American Football League on Sept. 11, 1960. The Oilers defeated Oakland 37-22 that day. Since that memorable opening game, they have met 34 more times. Today we look back at a Monday Night matchup between these two teams that occurred on Oct. 9, 1972, and is memorable only for what occurred off the field.
In the 1970s, Monday Night Football had become a cultural phenomenon, with the words of the three-man booth of Howard Cosell, Frank Gifford and Don Meredith garnering almost as much attention as the game itself.
The Oilers started the '72 season 0-2 with road losses at Denver and Miami, but had upset the Jets in their home opener. They looked forward to hosting the Oakland Raiders in the Astrodome in front of the Monday Night cameras. The Oilers were making their second appearance on MNF, having lost their first game to Cleveland in 1970. The Raiders were making their third appearance on Monday Night Football, having won their first two games in 1971 and 1972 by the identical scores of 34-20.
The Raiders, featuring a team of all-stars and future Hall of Famers coached by John Madden, had no intention of being the Oilers' second upset victim. Quarterback Daryle Lamonica got Oakland rolling when he threw TD passes of 16 and 27 yards to Fred Biletnikoff and Mike Siani, respectively, and George Blanda, a former Oiler, added a pair of field goals. Then a pair of fourth quarter interceptions -- the Raiders picked off five Oiler passes that night -- set up the final two TDs, a 14-yard run by Clarence Davis and a two-yard pass from Ken Stabler to Bob Moore.
The Oilers did not put up much of a fight, as they totaled just 89 yards of total offense, which at the time set a team record for ineptitude.
As the game became a runaway and the fans started streaming out of the Astrodome, the TV audience became just as upset. Oilers officials claimed that as many as 75 calls came to the stadium from viewers (remember, there were only the three networks at that time) blasting everything from the play of the Oilers to the announcer's commentary.
Despite the fact that the game turned into a rout, the evening was not without some historical significance to Monday Night Football. As the stands emptied, a cameraman spotted a solitary man sleeping in a near-empty section of the stadium. The camera zoomed in for a close up, and Cosell described the shot as, "A vivid picturization of the excitement attendant upon this game." With the camera on him, the fan opened his eyes, looked up and casually extended his middle finger. This prompted Meredith to say, "He thinks they are number one in the nation."
Few people remember the score of the game was 34-0 -- the Raiders third consecutive 34-point turnout on Monday Night Football -- but Meredith's "Number One" has gone down in Monday Night lore.
Monday Night Present
|  | | Brown |
RAIDERS WR TIM BROWN
"Make no mistake," said Jerry Rice, "the Raiders are Tim Brown's team." And what a year Brown has been having. So far he has 73 receptions and last week he passed the 1,000-yard receiving mark for the ninth straight season -- a feat that is second only to his teammate Rice -- who once surpassed 1,000 yards 11 straight years.
Brown is having a season that few thought the 35-year-old could muster, especially having to share the ball with Rice. But the pair has been nothing short of magical. Brown is on pace to catch 90 passes this year, which would tie the second-highest total of his career.
In the last few weeks Brown has supplemented his pass-catching contributions by going back deep in punt coverage. Last Saturday he fumbled a key kick that put the Raiders in dire straits as the Chargers nearly marched to a winning TD. But the week before, Brown, who did not look like he had lost a step at all, took a punt 88 yards for a score against Kansas City to give him an even 100 TDs for his career.
This week he faces a team that he has been successful against. In five starts against the Titans, he has scored five TDs.
|  | | Thomas |
RAIDERS LB WILLIAM THOMAS
Though the Raiders have come under criticism for their inability to stop the run this season, nobody has commented negatively on the play of linebacker William Thomas. Thomas, in his 11th year out of Texas A&M, has had a stellar season. Twice in the last four weeks he has been named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week.
Last week against the Chargers he won the aforementioned award, as he was the difference in the game. Thomas intercepted Doug Flutie twice, including a key pick late in the contest that sealed the Raiders win that earned them their second consecutive AFC West division crown.
Thomas has always been known as a big-play guy. He began his career as a Philadelphia Eagle. When Jon Gruden was the Eagles' offensive coordinator from 1995 to 1997, Thomas was the team's defensive MVP for three straight seasons. In 2000 he reunited with Gruden, signing as a free agent with the Raiders.
Thomas has had big games before on Monday Night Football. In 1997 he picked up a Dallas fumble and returned it 37 yards for a primetime TD. He is currently on a roll, so don't be surprised if William Thomas makes a big play this week against the Titans.
This week he faces a team that he has been successful against. In five starts against the Titans, he has scored five TDs.
|  | | George |
TITANS RB EDDIE GEORGE
What a long, strange year it has been for Titans running back Eddie George. For the first time in his career, he will likely end a season with fewer that 1,200 rushing yards, and unless he can get on track in the next three games, 1,000 yards may be unreachable.
George came into the season optimistic after having toe surgery. He felt that he had healed properly, but obviously it has taken its toll on the former Heisman Trophy winner. Thus far he has averaged an anemic 2.8 yards per carry and his longest run is just 27 yards. And he has not had a 100-yard rushing game since Week 16 of last season, when he exploded for 176 yards against the Cleveland Browns.
Last week, back-up Skip Hicks handled the bulk of the running game, and turned in a 142-yard effort against the Packers.
If there is a bright side for George, who likely will make his 94th consecutive start (he has started every game of his career), it is that he has had great outings in the past against the Raiders. In fact, his career-high rushing game of 216 yards came against the Raiders in 1997. He followed that with a 199-yard effort in 1999. With Oakland's propensity for giving up big rushing days, this may be the week that Eddie returns to past form.
The Titans sure could use the boost.
Monday Night Future
Ho, Ho, Ho. With Christmas just a few days away and the Titans traveling to Oakland for the rare Saturday telecast of Monday Night Football, it's time to check to see who has been naughty or nice this season.
The Raiders have been a little of both, while the Titans have been mostly naughty. Tennessee, which started the season 0-3, stumbled early due to injuries, free agent losses and perhaps from the effects caused by defensive coordinator Gregg Williams' departure to coach the Buffalo Bills.
The Raiders, on the other hand, have survived bouts of poor tackling, recent turnover problems and some huge rushing attacks to win the AFC West for the second consecutive year and are headed to the playoffs. Next on Gruden's wish list is a first-round bye plus home-field advantage throughout the postseason.
The Titans, at 6-7, have a mathematical chance to make the playoffs, but they would have to win all three of their remaining games, plus have a lot of help with other AFC teams losing. If Santa Claus actually does show this Christmas Eve -- that might happen. If not, we think it's too little, too late this year for the Titans, and on Saturday, Oakland gets a nice 21-14 win to keep Gruden's quest to be home for the playoffs alive.
MNF Past, Present and Future with George Hill and Malibu Kelly Hayes appears each Friday at ABC Sports Online.
| | |
| | | | |
ESPN.com:
HELP |
ADVERTISER INFO |
CONTACT US |
TOOLS |
SITE MAP
Copyright ©2001 ESPN Internet Group. Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and Safety Information are applicable to this site. Employment opportunities at ESPN.com.
| |
| 
|
