You can't change the lineup after just one game? Tell that to the Panthers.
It took them about 24 hours into the season to realize they needed a shakeup at quarterback.
Preparing to travel to Tampa to face a team known for, among other things, torturing quarterbacks, the Panthers wasted no time Monday announcing Jake Delhomme, 28, will start in place of Rodney Peete, 37. "Every game is so tough in this league, but what better way to get your first start than to go against the world champions," Delhomme said. "They have certainly made a lot of good quarterbacks look bad."
Delhomme earned a shot to, ahem, Buc that trend, by leading the Panthers to a 24-23 come-from-behind victory against the Jaguars on Sunday. Delhomme threw three second-half touchdowns, including the winner to Ricky Proehl with 16 seconds left to erase a 17-0 deficit.
For the half, Delhomme was 12-of-20 for 122 yards and two interceptions. More important, he lit a fire under the team.
"It would have been tough not to start him," Panthers coach John Fox said. "It was very evident that he sparked our offense."
The Bucs won't face a rookie. Delhomme, who signed a two-year deal worth $4-million during the offseason, spent five seasons as a backup in New Orleans.
SOUTH BEACH SWEATING: There are 15 more games, and the reality is whatever happens in Week 1 will be largely insignificant by, say, Week 10. But the Dolphins' 21-20 loss to the Texans (yes, those would be the second-year Texans) sent a shock wave through South Beach.
"This isn't the same Dolphins team that was in the locker room only (days before)," defensive tackle Larry Chester told the Miami Herald. "There's no rhyme or reason for what happened to us." Truth is, Miami imploded.
"I wish I could stand here and pinpoint one area of our team, but that wasn't the case," coach Dave Wannstedt said. "We did not get it done in any area. You fumble, you throw a pick, you jump offside. You don't win doing those things in the NFL, college or high school. Even junior high school."
How unpredictable was the performance? The Texans gave up an NFL-record 76 sacks last season, and Dolphins defensive end Jason Taylor led the league with 181/2. Sunday, he had none. "It's a slap in the face, what happened out there. A couple of times, I got close. But when he's dropping back only six or seven steps and getting rid of the ball, you can't do much," Taylor said of Texans quarterback David Carr.
MUM'S THE WORD: After amassing 183 yards from scrimmage and scoring two touchdowns, Chiefs running back Priest Holmes likely silenced doubters who believed his hip was not completely healed.
But Holmes isn't willing to forget them. He kept the media waiting for quite a while after Sunday's 27-14 victory against the Chargers. And when he came out, he said, "I won't be talking."
But apparently angered by what was written and said about him during an offseason in which he had hip surgery and talked about a new contract, Holmes did speak and took the opportunity to lay into the media.
"There's a reason I won't do interviews for a while," Holmes told the Kansas City Star. "In my mind, all these people had opinions about me before this game. They all decided to run with their opinions. "Priest is done!' "Priest will never be the same!' "Priest isn't worth the money!' All that. Well, they didn't talk to me then. They did just fine without me. So why do they need me now? They have all sorts of opinions about me. Fine. They can take another stab at it."
REMEMBER ME?: For fantasy players curious why Broncos veteran receiver Ed McCaffrey was nowhere on the stat sheet for Sunday's 30-10 victory against the Bengals, here's why: He has been benched in favor of second-year player Ashley Lelie.
"It does hurt a little not to be involved in the game plan, but I'm just happy we won," McCaffrey told the Denver Post.
What also likely irked McCaffrey was in limited playing time, he was held without a catch for the first time in 68 games, the franchise record he started in 1997.
PICKETT FENCES: Rams defensive tackle Ryan Pickett, a former standout at Zephyrhills High, still is bothered by the high ankle sprain sustained in a preseason game against the Bucs. Pickett, who started at nose tackle Sunday, limped off the field during the fourth quarter and was taken for an X-ray after the game.
"It started to bother me a little, but I don't have time to dwell on it," Pickett said. "I have to be ready for San Francisco."
- Information from other news organizations was used in this report.
