Tag: st louis rams

Dolphins offense reminds Raiders HC Antonio Pierce of Greatest Show on Turf

Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce drew a strong comparison between the Dolphins offense and that of the Rams ‘Greatest Show on Turf’.

Much has been made this week about the sheer speed the Dolphins possess on offense. With the likes Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, Raheem Mostert, and De’Von Achane, they have elite speed. Or as Raiders DC Patrick Graham put it ‘they can run-run‘.

Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce played in the league for nine years from 2001-09. And when he was asked Friday what offense the Dolphins offense reminds him of, he made a strong comparison.

“The Rams. On the turf,” Pierce said referencing the St Louis Rams’ Greatest Show on Turf offense. “Like that was real. When they were rolling with Kurt Warner and [Tory] Holt and [Isaac] Bruce and Marshall Faulk. Even later on down the road, didn’t even matter if it was on grass, they were fast. Like it was on you right now. The speed is legit. You can’t mimic it. We’re doing the best we can in practice.

“But the good part about it like I said, we went against these guys last year and really felt the speed of Hill and Waddle and those guys over there. So we understand that, and we respect it. But at the at the end of the day, with speed you have put hands on them, right? Physicality needs to show up.”

It’s one thing to have to deal with great speed at receiver where the defense lines up their fastest players. It’s another thing to then also have to account for the running backs coming out of the backfield as well as making plays in the passing game.

De’Von Achane leads the team in rushing (457) and yards from scrimmage (774). He’s a legit game breaker whose career has been mired by injuries, including when the Raiders faced the Dolphins last season.

“Just dynamic. Everything’s explosive. Everything’s a big gain,” Pierce said of Achane. “Everything’s an explosive gain in the run game, the pass game, route-running. I think, obviously you look at the size, you think a smaller guy, but he runs like a big boy. He runs behind his pads, does a good job. He gets on you fast, and the arm tackles is not going to work with a player like this. You have to chest him up. You have to just put the body blows on him to slow him down throughout the game.”

That’s your Holt, Bruce, and Faulk comps right there. Tua Tagovailoa is a far cry from Kurt Warner, but with those weapons he may not have to be.

2 Oklahoma Sooners legends named Greatest Players of All-Time from their home state

Two Sooners legends named the greatest player from their home state of all time.

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Sean Merriman and RJ Young of Fox Sports ranked the greatest college football players from all 50 states. It was the state they were from, not necessarily the state they played their collegiate football. Two Oklahoma Sooners legends made appearances on the list, as Sam Bradford of Oklahoma and  Billy Sims of Missouri represent the Crimson and Cream.

The case for Sam Bradford:

Coming out of Putnam City North High in Oklahoma City, Bradford could have played hockey, basketball and golf on scholarship. But he chose football. And he chose football knowing that a five-star prospect in quarterback Rhett Bomar and two other quarterbacks — Keith Nichol and Joey Halzle — were on the depth chart ahead of him when he spurned the likes of Texas A&M and others to commit to OU’s 2006 class. As a redshirt freshman in 2007, Bradford won the starting QB job, vindicating Bob Stoops’ faith in him. In 2008, Bradford took OU to its first (and most recent) appearance in a national title game since the 2004 season and became just the third Heisman Trophy winner from the state (Jason White in 2003, Steve Owens in 1969).

Bradford ranks third in Sooners history in all-time passing yards. From 2007-2009, the Oklahoma City native tossed for 8,403 yards and 88 touchdowns. However, he’s remembered most for his 08′ campaign. As mentioned, Bradford won the Heisman that year and was the last quarterback to bring the Sooners all the way back to a national title game.

Bradford’s 4,720-yard single-season passing record still stands in Norman (although Landry Jones fell just two yards shy of breaking it), and he became the fifth Sooner in program history to win the Heisman. His single-season touchdown record (50)also remains unchallenged in the Oklahoma record books. 

Of course, he’s remembered primarily for his college career. Still, Bradford did carve out an injury-riddled career in the NFL. He accrued more than 130 million dollars between the St. Louis Rams, Philadelphia Eagles, Minnesota Vikings, and Arizona Cardinals before exiting the league as fellow Sooners’ quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray was drafted to the Cardinals. 

Several Sooners could make a case to be considered the greatest player to come out of the state of Oklahoma. In particular, Hall of Famer Lee Roy Selmon, who along with his brothers, formed one of the best defensive fronts in college football in the 1970s.

Turning to the state of Missouri, Billy Sims is the easy selection, though Kellen Moore Sr. would make a strong argument as well.

The case for Billy Sims:

Born and raised in St. Louis, Sims attended the University of Oklahoma, where he started for the Sooners from 1975 to 1979. He was a two-time All-American in his junior and senior year and was the recipient of the 1978 Heisman Trophy. Sims, who rushed for 1,762 yards on 231 carries during his Heisman season, became only the sixth junior in NCAA history to win college football’s most prestigious award. He was the runner-up in his senior year after totaling 1,506 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns. 

Sims may not be from Oklahoma, but he’s certainly a legend there now. As mentioned by Merriman and Young, the running back ran roughshod over college football from 1978-1979, stockpiling 3268 rush yards and 44 touchdowns. 

Sims was the third Sooner to take home the Heisman and is second in Oklahoma history in four statistical categories. Most notably, the running back generated 53 rushing TDs over his five-year college career.

Sims was drafted to the Detroit Lines in 1980, where he spent his entire career and made three pro bowls from 1983-1985. The former NFL Rookie of the Year ran his way into 42 touchdowns and over 5100 rushing yards per Pro Football Reference before a tragic turf accident (behind a paywall) ended his career. 

Billy Sims still runs to this day, just not on the football field. The Sooner turned Lion is now a barbeque titan with over 50 restaurants across seven states. 

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Former Longhorns quarterback Garrett Gilbert waived by the Browns

Former Longhorns quarterback Garrett Gilbert has bounced around the NFL since 2014. The Cleveland Browns waived him during roster cutdowns.

When Garrett Gilbert arrived in Austin, there was a lot expected of him. He was supposed to be the heir to Colt McCoy following the 2009 college football season. A highly touted passer out of Austin at Lake Travis. Gilbert was a five-star recruit and the No. 2 ranked pro style quarterback in the country. It never really became what many expected.

Gilbert showed promise after a rocky start relieving McCoy in the BCS National Championship game. However, the following season didn’t go into his favor. Gilbert eventually would transfer to SMU before heading to the NFL. Since the 2014 NFL Draft where he was drafted in the sixth round by the then St Louis Rams, Gilbert has bounced around.

He made stops in St Louis, New England, Detroit, Oakland and Carolina. His latest gig came in Cleveland. On the cut down to the 53-man roster, the Browns waived Gilbert in hopes he could join their practice squad.

The former USA TODAY High School All-American has thrown just six passes in his NFL career. Before the AAF folded, Gilbert was the passing leader and passing rating leader for the Orlando Apollos. Gilbert will likely be placed on the Browns practice squad, just in case his services will be needed in Cleveland.

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Notre Dame Football: Quarterbacks Get Insight From Kurt Warner

Kurt Warner followed through his plan promise earlier this week to sit down with the Notre Dame quarterback room including Ian Book.

There aren’t a lot of stories that are better than the sudden rise of Kurt Warner from grocery store clerk to NFL and Super Bowl MVP in 1999.  He came from nowhere and would eventually end up in the Pro Football Hall of Fame after a stop with the New York Giants and leading the Arizona Cardinals to a Super Bowl appearance in Super Bowl XLIII.

Since retiring Warner has become a part of both Westwood One and NFL Network’s coverage of the game.  This week Warner followed through on a request made from Notre Dame tight ends coach and former Cardinals staffer John McNulty.

McNulty shot his shot and landed Notre Dame quarterbacks a chance to visit with Warner earlier this week and that has apparently happened.

Nobody offered much information as to what advise Warner had to offer but he did appear to have a good time.

Notre Dame starting quarterback Ian Book took to Twitter to briefly describe the experience as well.

Here’s to hoping whenever we get football again that Ian Book leads a Notre Dame offense that becomes the 2020 version of “The Greatest Show on Turf”.