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Dream scenario
Dilfer close to going 'home' to play in Super Bowl
Posted: Saturday January 13, 2001 1:30 PM
Updated: Saturday January 13, 2001 9:02 PM
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Trent Dilfer played six seasons in Tampa Bay before being picked up by Baltimore last year. AP |
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- All week long, Trent Dilfer has heard the same question:
What would it mean to go back to Tampa to play in the Super Bowl?
His answer, in effect, is: Whoa, let's not get ahead of ourselves.
The query popped up again Friday night, hours after the Baltimore Ravens arrived in Oakland for Sunday's AFC Championship Game against the Oakland Raiders.
Dilfer fielded the question with a smile and replied, "Obviously it would be a great experience. But if I allow myself to start thinking about that, it takes away from what I should be thinking about, and that's preparing for the Raiders. That greatest part, though, is that I'll be in the Super Bowl. I don't care where it's played."
| Ravens, Dilfer relish role as underdogs |
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OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- The Baltimore Ravens haven't lost since October. Last week they earned their NFL-high 14th victory, knocking off the AFC's top seed by two touchdowns on the road.
And, in spite of all this, the Ravens still can't find anyone of note who thinks they can beat the Oakland Raiders in Sunday's AFC Championship Game.
Upon arriving in Oakland on Friday, Baltimore checked its brash attitude at the door. At a news conference, neither coach Brian Billick, quarterback Trent Dilfer or safety Rod Woodson boasted about stuffing the Raiders.
But the Ravens still have the perception that no one thinks they belong here.
"This team has a certain personality. Keep in mind now, we're still kind of the underdog here," Billick said. "We're not looking for any sympathy, but I'm looking hard, I'm trying to find one of you all that's going to pick us to win. Just one. And I haven't found it yet."
Even though the Ravens are coming off a 24-10 win over the defending AFC champion Tennessee Titans, Oakland is a six-point favorite. The Ravens have toned down their bragging this week, but privately remain a confident bunch.
"When you come in as the [fourth] seed, and you have to go on the road to Tennessee, and you have to come into Oakland to face the top remaining seed, you'd better have a bit of an attitude," Billick said. "You'd better come in with a little bravado, or you have no business being here."
Some might say Dilfer has no business being within one victory of being in the Super Bowl, given that his numbers over the past month have been quite unimpressive. But Dilfer has done exactly what he's been asked to do, which is not let the offense get in the way of a sensational defense.
"I don't care what people think about my ability," Dilfer said. "I've done everything I could to win football games for any team I've played on. My stepfather taught me how to play football when I was very young, and he instilled in me the attitude that you do anything you can to win games, whether it's basketball, tiddlywinks, football, whatever.
"Am I the most talented guy in the NFL? I wouldn't believe so? Am I the least talented? I wouldn't believe that either."
Last January, Dilfer had just completed his sixth season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. A fractured clavicle in a game on Nov. 28 against Seattle cost him his starting job and paved the way for Shaun King, who performed well enough to make Dilfer realize he had worn out his welcome with the Bucs.
Dilfer latched onto the Ravens as a free agent and accepted the role as backup to Tony Banks. But when Banks struggled, Dilfer stepped in in late October and got Baltimore on a nine-game run that has taken the league's most surprising team to the brink of the Super Bowl.
Playing in the Super Bowl would mark a return to his NFL roots for Dilfer, who's enjoying a different kind of reunion this week. Dilfer is a California native who played linebacker in high school but made a name for himself as a quarterback at Fresno State.
Said Dilfer: "I have a lot of close friends who are Raiders fans who have left messages this week saying, 'Hey, Trent, we're rooting for you. But Go Raiders!'" |
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A year ago, it would have been inconceivable to think that Dilfer would be such a scenario, addressing the media on behalf of the Baltimore Ravens two days before the AFC championship game.
Last January, Dilfer had just completed his sixth season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. A fractured clavicle in a Nov. 28 game against Seattle cost him his starting job and paved the way for Shaun King, who performed well enough to make Dilfer realize that he had worn out his welcome with the Bucs.
Dilfer latched onto the Ravens as a free agent and accepted the role as backup to Tony Banks. But when Banks struggled, Dilfer stepped in late October and got Baltimore on a nine-game run that has taken the league's most surprising team within one win of trip to Tampa for the Super Bowl.
Granted, the Ravens' success can be attributed heavily to the defense. Dilfer completed only five of 16 passes last week against Tennessee, but so what? He's done his job, which is to make sure the offense backs up the defense with a turnover-free, conservative attack.
And now Dilfer is one of only four quarterbacks left with a shot at playing for the championship.
"I don't care what people think about my ability," he told the crowded room. "I've done everything I could to win football games for any team I've played on. My stepfather taught me how to play football when I was very young, and he instilled in me the attitude that you do anything you can to win games, whether it's basketball, tiddlywinks, football, whatever.
"Am I the most talented guy in the NFL? I wouldn't believe so? Am I the least talented? I wouldn't believe that either."
Is he within one victory of a triumphant return to Tampa? Absolutely.
Actually, this game also marks a return of sorts for Dilfer, a California native who played linebacker in high school but made a name for himself as a quarterback at Fresno State.
"It's neat anytime you come home, to play around people you care about and have seen as a player and a person," he said. "I have a lot of close friends who are Raiders fans who have left messages this week saying, 'Hey, Trent, we're rooting for you. But Go Raiders!'"
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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