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Thursday, January 4
Lewis honored to play another day
By John Clayton
ESPN.com
BALTIMORE -- Jamal Lewis broke through a surprisingly stingy Broncos defense and said to himself, "Oh, gosh." He was heading directly for Broncos middle
linebacker Al Wilson, his roommate at Tennessee.
|  | | Jamal Lewis proved his playoff mettle. |
Had they had the time, they'd reflect on the good times and the bad times. Wilson emotionally encouraged Lewis during his recovery from a 1998 knee reconstruction. They didn't have the time. Lewis was heading directly at Wilson for a collision that would decide Sunday's 21-3 victory over the Broncos. Wilson tried to shoulder tackle Lewis. The 231-pound rookie halfback lowered his shoulder and charged through Wilson for what turned out to be a 27-yard touchdown run.
"I went ahead and took him on and he missed the tackle," Lewis said matter of factly. "It cost them."
Wilson found his close friend and told him, "You got me this time. You'll not get me again." It didn't matter. Lewis "got" Wilson and the
Broncos' defense for 110 yards on 30 carries and two touchdowns. In a game in which quarterbacks' passes were affected by gusting 20 to 25 mph winds, this AFC wild-card game was going to be determined by which offensive rookie of the year would outperform the other. It was Lewis vs. the Broncos' Mike Anderson.
On Monday, the Associated Press will probably announce Anderson as this year's winner. Thanks to his determination and skills, Lewis' season will have longer legs.
"Offensive rookie doesn't matter to me. That's an individual award," Lewis said. "The only thing that matters to me is getting into the second round of the playoffs. I'm playing next week. I don't have to go home."
Actually, Lewis does have to return to Tennessee because the Ravens are playing the Titans in Nashville next Sunday. Anderson deserved Rookie of the Year honors because of his regular-season numbers -- 1,500 yards, a 5.1-yard rushing average and 15 rushing touchdowns compared to Lewis' 1,364, 4.4 and six rushing touchdowns.
"I'm biased, so I'd vote for Jamal," Ravens tight end Shannon
Sharpe said. "If you take Mike Anderson out of the Broncos' offensive system, they still succeed. Terrell Davis gained 2,000 yards. Olandis Gary gained 1,300. They had two 1,000-yard receivers. You look at Jamal and the pounding he took and what he did. Look how successful we've been since he's come on the scene.
"Normally, they look at the numbers and obviously Anderson has the better numbers. My vote is for Jamal, tough."
Anderson is a product of a great blocking system. Retiring Broncos offensive line coach Alex Gibbs has a system that asks a back to run a couple of downhill plays well while his linemen knock down everybody in sight. If the Broncos' linemen do their job, all the back has to do is get through the first wave of defenders and jump over or avoid the fallen bodies on the ground.
Lewis has to gain yards the tough way. He has to pound into a defender and wear them down. The Broncos thrive on finesse. The Ravens rely on power and inflicting fatigue. And the weather conditions were such that power overcame finesse.
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Offensive rookie doesn't matter to me. That's an individual award. The only thing that matters to me is getting into the second round of the playoffs. ” |
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— Jamal Lewis, Ravens running back |
And imagine if Lewis wore gloves. Being one of the few running backs who doesn't wear gloves, the Ravens' rookie was indirectly responsible for all three touchdowns against the Broncos. Three times Trent Dilfer passes bounced off his freezing, raw hands. Once, it worked for a touchdown.
The Ravens led 7-3 with less than five minutes remaining in the first half. Dilfer threw a short pass in the flat to Lewis because the
Broncos went to a two-deep zone coverage that took away a deep pass coach Brian Billick called. The ball bounced out of Lewis' hand and into Sharpe's.
Sharpe caught the Broncos' defense napping as he raced 58 yards for a touchdown with the ball that was intended for Lewis.
"I bailed him out," Sharpe said. "The deep post was covered by the two-deep zone. I was supposed to run a hook, but I cut my hook quicker as he threw the ball to Jamal. I was in the right place at the right time."
Lewis joked that Sharpe's touchdown was wind-aided. "I think he had a 70-mile-an-hour wind behind him that helped him take it up the
sidelines," Lewis said. Sharpe countered that he could beat Lewis in a race.
The glove issue is another story. Most running backs and receivers wear gloves regardless of the weather. Lewis is one of the few that doesn't. He'll put tape on his fingers, but he believes that he needs to have a feel for the football to avoid fumbling it.
"I've never known him to wear gloves," Wilson said. "I think he feels more comfortable without gloves, that he gets a better grip on the
ball with his hands on it. He doesn't wear much padding either. A lot of running backs wear arm pads. He doesn't wear a thing. He goes out and plays good football."
Lewis' explanation is old school. "I think gloves are for show," he said. "Basically, I tape my hands and that's all I need."
Sharpe offers a different perspective. "He's country -- he doesn't know any better," Sharpe said. "He doesn't know that gloves help him. Growing up in high school, he had to buy his own gloves and he didn't have a whole lot of money, so he didn't buy any."
But Lewis' glove opinions fit his style. He's old school, no-nonsense. He pounds his body into a defensive body and hopes to win the
battle. If he doesn't get you in the first quarter, he plans to wear down a defender by the fourth.
Unfortunately, he had to embarrass his college roommate to accomplish that.
"He's a big, wide guy," Wilson said. "I couldn't wrap my arms around him."
The rest of the Ravens team wrapped their arms around Lewis to celebrate their 21-3 victory. Rookie of the Year may go to Anderson, but the Ravens' year continued because of Lewis.
John Clayton is the senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.
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