TAMPA, Fla. -- A tour around Vinny Testaverde's home would be a warming
experience for any Jets fan who's concerned about the health and rehabilitation
of their prized quarterback.
|  | | Vinny Testaverde led the Jets to the 1998 AFC Championship Game. |
Testaverde is in good hands. His own.
At his home, where he spends as much time as he can during the offseason, is
a collection of the best, state-of-the-art fitness and rehab equipment that
money can buy.
Off to the side of Testaverde's house is a separate building. Inside it is
everything the Jets have in their own weight and rehab training rooms.
There's even a punching bag that can be lowered from a hole in the
ceiling at the flick of a light switch.
"My kids love this the most," Testaverde said of the boxing bag.
Outside the separate workout facility is a tennis court, where cut out in
the screens surrounding the court are holes with nets and bullseyes to which
Testaverde fires footballs in practice by himself.
"I can throw anything from a five-yard out pattern to a 35-yard post,"
Testaverde said as he surveyed the targets. "I can make just about any throw
from here, simulating what I do on the field."
Jets coach Al Groh need not worry about how Testaverde is taking care of
himself. He's serious about returning to championship form after missing the 1999 season with a ruptured Achilles tendon suffered in the opening
game of the year.
Testaverde, who's been playing a lot of golf along with working out, insists
"if there was a game tomorrow I'd be ready to play."
In the wake of the widespread disappointment Jets fans exerienced last year,
along with the offseason losses of Bill Parcells and Bill Belichick from the
sideline, Keyshawn Johnson to the Tampa Bay Bucanneers and Leon Johnson to another knee injury, this is the best news the team's devout followers can
hear.
As the offseason has progressed, Testaverde has passed all tests without a
hitch. He's worked out with the team in the offseason conditioning program.
He's thrown on the side.
Perhaps the best evidence of his successful comeback trail was his
performance at the team's veteran minicamp in May. Playing in full team
drills, Testaverde looked as if he was never injured.
That four-day minicamp was perhaps the biggest hurdle Testaverde had to leap.
"I had a nervous stomach in the days (before camp) anticipating getting out
there," Testaverde said. "I was real anxious to get started. I'm happy that
the first practices are over. I was looking forward to getting around the
guys, taking some snaps and feeling like a part of the team again.
Groh said seeing Testaverde "back in the saddle" was "uplifting."
Testaverde said his arm felt strong and there was no pain in the left leg.
His teammates said Testaverde was throwing darts.
"I liked what I saw out of Vinny," Groh said. "I was very pleased with what
he did. This was the 10th or 11th time Vinny's been out there throwing with
us and progressively he looks stronger and more confident."
|
“ |
I don't want to come
back as just another player. I want to come back as the player I was before I was
injured. ” |
|
|
— Vinny Testaverde, Jets quarterback |
Jets guard Randy Thomas noticed a distinct difference in the huddle with
Testaverde back in command.
"I didn't get to play with him but a few snaps last year, but you can feel
his leadership in the huddle," Thomas said.
"He looks like he just picked up where he left off (from '98)," Jets
punter and emergency quarterback Tom Tupa said. "He came out in his first
practice and was firing the ball."
Said Jets center Kevin Mawae: "As long as he stays healthy I think he'll be
back to where he was two years ago."
To ask for his career-best numbers of 29 touchdowns and only seven
interceptions again this year is likely a bit much to ask. But at least a
comparable performance is the goal.
"My arm feels fresh," Testaverde said. "But it's not not my arm that's a
worry. It's the speed of the game in my mind's eye. The slower it goes the
better it is. (Minicamp) was a good test for me to get out there and get in
with the team drills, which I hadn't done.
"I'm anxious to get through (the minicamp). I haven't worked my Achilles
that hard to see how it'll respond to this test. I don't anticipate any
problems. If we had to play tomorrow I'd be ready to play."
Testaverde, too, made it clear that he's not merely trying to come back just
to return to the field.
"I don't want to come back as just another player," he said. "I want to
come back as the player I was before I was injured.
"The next big test is that first game when we go live against another team
and I know I have to push off to step up and avoid a big hit," he went on.
"When the action is live, that'll be a big test for me."
Testaverde, though, insisted that he's not thinking about the injury when
he's out there in practice.
"That's the only thing that'll prevent me from being successful -- constantly
thinking about the injury and the psychological standpoint of not moving
forward," he said.
Chrebet takes over Jets' top target
With Keyshawn Johnson in Tampa Bay counting his millions, Wayne Chrebet is the Jets No. 1 receiver and counting his blessings.
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| Chrebet |
"I've been asking for this since I've been in the league," Chrebet said
recently. "I came into the league that way (in 1995), being pretty much the
only guy. Then, I kind of got pushed aside, not by my choice.
"I've just been working with the plays they gave me the past handful of
years. But I've produced. I've caught my 60, 70, 80 balls. Who's to say I
can't do that and more?
"This is what I've been waiting for. I feel I'm the No. 1 receiver, but the
whole offense from Vinny to the line, has to pick up the slack. I'm excited
about the opportunities to take on more responsibility and get some more
balls thrown my way from playing on goal line, playing in one-receiver sets,
moving around. This is why I play. I want to be put in the most situations to
get the ball in my hands."
Bengals prepared for 2000 A.D. (After Dillon)
Want to hear the best joke in the AFC?
The Bengals say they'll get along just fine without disgruntled running back
Corey Dillon.
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| Dillon |
"We think we have some good people, four guys who can contribute," team
president Mike Brown said.
Here's a look at the four candidates the Bengals are counting on to carry
their offense:
Michael Basnight, who was signed as rookie free agent in April 1999,
played in 13 games, including a start against Jacksonville, and gained 308 on
62 carries.
Brandon Bennett, who missed all of 1999 with a knee injury, but
gained 243 yards rushing for the Bengals in 1998.
Curtis Keaton, a fourth-round draft pick from James Madison, where
he ranks second in school history in career rushing yards (2,783) and rushing
touchdowns (30).
And former Patriot Sedrick Shaw, who rushed for 236 yards, a
4.9-yard average, in 1998 for New England but went to Cleveland and then
Cincinnati in the next 12 months. He rushed for 20 yards and a touchdown in
four carries in his only game as a Bengal.
The Bengals tendered Dillon a one-year offer of $1.371 million, which will
be reduced to $553,575 if he doesn't accept the tender. The organization's
last long-term offer was $18.3 million over five years.
Good luck to the sad-sack Bengals trying to find a 1,000-yard rusher among
the above-mentioned four replacements.
Denver turns its attention to Dawkins
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| Dawkins |
Now that Steve Young is retired and not headed to the Broncos, Denver is
focusing on some other free agents, which could include former Indianapolis
and Seattle receiver Sean Dawkins, whom the Jets and Packers are also
interested in. Should Dawkins not come to Denver, the Broncos might look to
veteran Andre Reed, who was cut by the Bills.
Dawkins, who was cut by the Seahawks in a salary-cap move, was due to
make $1.9 million this season. The eight-year veteran caught 58 passes for a
team-leading 992 yards last season, scoring seven touchdowns.
Mark Cannizzaro of the New York Post writes an AFC notebook every other Thursday for ESPN.com.
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