Charged up and rarin' to go

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By DARRELL FRY

© St. Petersburg Times,
published September 25, 2001

With the rescheduling of Week 2 games and all the patriotic tributes before Sunday's games, this has become one of the most unusual beginnings to a season in NFL history. If you need further proof, consider that Cincinnati and San Diego, a combined 5-27 last season, are 2-0 and tied for their division leads.

What's next? The lowly Chicago Bears are going to upset the high-flying Minnesota Vikings? Oh yeah, that happened, too.

Amazingly, the Bengals are 2-0 for the first time since 1995, and the Chargers, who have the league's third-ranked defense and are averaging 31 points, already have doubled their win total from last season, when they went 1-15.

While the Chargers beat two weak teams in Washington and Dallas, the Bengals stunned the defending Super Bowl champion Ravens following a season-opening victory over New England.

Said Ravens tight end Shannon Sharpe: "In 12 years in the league, that's as good as I've seen a Cincinnati team look from top to bottom."

One of the feel-good stories, though, is about to take a hit. Cincinnati plays at San Diego on Sunday.

BITTER SWEET START: The Jaguars probably never have had a 2-0 start seem so glum.

Enthusiasm over the team's surprising start is tempered by the loss of starting running back Fred Taylor, who is expected to be out three weeks or more with a strained groin from Sunday.

Backup Stacey Mack played well in relief, but Taylor is considered by many to be irreplaceable.

"My first thought is that we're in trouble," quarterback Mark Brunell said. "He's our best player on offense, and when he goes down, we lose a big weapon."

The good news is, the Jags may be able to win without Taylor with upcoming games against the likes of Cleveland, Seattle and Buffalo, plus an open date between Seattle and Buffalo.

AN ODD VOTE OF CONFIDENCE: It's early, but you have to wonder about the decision-making skills of Lions coach Marty Mornhinweg.

He benched quarterback Charlie Batch after he went 20-for-39 for 276 yards, two interceptions and seven sacks against Green Bay, but announced Monday he's sticking with backup Ty Detmer after he went 22-for-42 for 212 yards, seven interceptions and a touchdown against Cleveland.

Go figure.

DALLAS QBs SHOULD TAKE A HIKE: Fans in Dallas are asking the 0-2 Cowboys to hang on. Literally.

In two games, Dallas quarterbacks Quincy Carter, Anthony Wright and Clint Stoerner each has fumbled a snap. Carter, in fact, had considerable difficulty handling snaps during the preseason.

"We have to get that hammered out," veteran center Mark Stepnoski said. "It just makes me sick to see that, because it absolutely kills us. We just can't have that."

IS THERE A TELEPHONE RINGING?: Quarterback Jay Fiedler's last-ditch drive to win the game for Miami was even more impressive when you consider that one series earlier, the Dolphins weren't sure Fiedler was coherent enough to call a play.

In the final three minutes, Fiedler scrambled and went into a hook slide but was plastered by Raiders linebacker William Thomas. It was such a vicious hit that Fiedler's teammates thought he was knocked silly and motioned to the sideline for a replacement.

"We weren't sure if he was all there," Miami coach Dave Wannstedt said.

Said Fiedler: "They told me to read something off my wristband as a precaution, and I did it without hesitation."

QUOTE OF THE DAY: Vikings center Matt Birk on the team's 0-2 start: "You look around the locker room and I know we have the guys to turn it around. We have the guys to still have a successful season."

There's no law against dreaming, right?

-- Information from other news organizations was used in this report.

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