Preds Run Rings Around Ex-teammates
Dan Ryan
Sunday June 3, 2001
So do all the former Predators have their championship rings, finally? There are only three more home games to do these presentations.
Let`s figure this one out. Most of the core of the Predators` 2000 championship team has dispersed throughout the league, but somehow, the Bart Starr of Arena Football has reassembled a team that could be better than the one that won the whole ball of wax last year.
Then again, maybe the key is to schedule those teams that have Orlando alumni. Saturday night, it was Toronto, with Pat O`Hara, Ty Law, and Webbie Burnett resigned to having their heads handed to them in a 70-22 vintage Predator victory. The threesome was probably used to dishing this kind of loss out rather than taking it. You can check out my gamer on the other side of the page if you want the gory details.
Can a team be rebuilt in five weeks? The Preds scored 50 points their first two games. They had 56 at halftime against Toronto.
"All that missing was a few pieces of the puzzle,`` said Orlando quarterback Craig Whelihan, who threw for 165 yards and five touchdowns in the first half. "You had people here who’ve won championships. We just had to put everything together, and you see what`s happening. The confidence is skyrocketing``
Perfecting timing, especially with that unbeaten team from down the road coming in next week, not to mention Eli and Ms. Arrington trying to talk over the joyous strains of AC/DC and Guns-N-Roses.
"A lot of teams, a lot of people could have buried their heads in the sand and given up,`` said Jay Gruden. "We have some classy guys who never gave up, and that`s why we`re selective on who we bring in here. The quarterback change rejuvenated them.``
But on the other hand, getting an ex-Predator QB or superstar doesn`t translate into instant championship for anyone outside the 407 area code. Connell Maynor doesn`t have the line or receivers at New Jersey that he had here, and the not-so great Gladiators are 1-6. Then there’s the almighty Barry Wagner … hey, can our San Jose guy figure out what`s going on out there? Toronto didn`t have anyone who can cover the likes of a Siaha Burley, and Kenny McEntyre had O`Hara`s number big time.
It`s the whole package.
"Sometimes we lose players that the fans love,`` Gruden said. "But we like to think we`ve gotten better on the field year in and year out. You have to make hard decisions, but we like to go forward and we like to get better.``
Getting better in this case meant getting everything together.
Dan Ryan has been involved with all forms of arena football since 1988, including writing for ArenaFan when Joe Kauffman and Tim Capper aren’t killing his columns because they don’t get his jokes or perspective. His day job is at Bethune-Cookman University, which has produced both an NFL Hall of Famer (Larry Little) and an Arena Football Hall of Famer (Stevie Thomas) and his hobby is tracking how many f-bombs Adam Markowitz drops in the chat room on game nights.
