Raiders' Huff seems to be pulling his career out of a black hole
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PHOTOS () —
By Charean Williams
McClatchy Newspapers
(MCT)
San Francisco 49ers cornerback Tarell Brown always knew he could do what he did last week. All he needed was a chance.
Brown made his second career start, taking over at left cornerback in place of Nate Clements. In 76 plays against the Indianapolis Colts, the ex-Texas Longhorns standout had only five minus plays. He gave up no big plays and no touchdowns. Pierre Garcon, whom Brown shadowed, had only four catches for 53 yards.
Not a bad start.
"Getting the opportunity was a blessing," Brown said in a telephone interview. "The coaches had faith in me to go out there and felt like I could be an every-down corner. I think I proved that last week."
After Clements fractured his right shoulder blade, Brown has the job for the foreseeable future. But the 49ers had faith in Brown even before they saw him stare down Peyton Manning.
They signed Brown to a three-year, $7.1 million contract extension, with a $2.5 million signing bonus, four days before their loss to the Colts.
"It's a positive that they really like me," Brown said. "When I first got here, I had a lot of red flags and a lot of people didn't expect me to do the things that I did. I think I overcame a lot of that and just kept working. At the end of the day, it's not how you start; it's how you finish. I just want to keep working and keep getting better. I want to be one of the top corners in the league, and I believe that if I keep working hard every day that I can do that."
Brown, 24, has overcome long odds to make it as a starter in the NFL. In 2007, character questions dropped him to the fifth round, where the 49ers figured they had nothing to lose.
He ended up winning the Thomas Herrion Award, named for the Fort Worth native who died in 2005 after a 49ers exhibition game, and a spot on the roster. The award is given annually to the rookie or first-year player who best exemplifies Herrion's spirit. Now, two years later, the North Mesquite product has a bright NFL future.
Moats stars
Texans running back Ryan Moats wanted to be clear: This isn't his first 100-yard game. How soon we forget ...
He did have one, with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2005. He rushed for 114 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries against the New York Giants. He had only 333 yards and two touchdowns on 91 carries in the 27 games he appeared in after that.
This season, in the only previous game he carried the ball, Moats gained 56 yards on 15 carries against the Oakland Raiders in Week 4.
That's why last Sunday's performance against the Buffalo Bills was such a surprise, at least to everyone but Moats. Moats came off the bench to rush for 126 yards and a team-record three touchdowns on 23 carries in a 31-10 victory over Buffalo.
"I knew what I could do," Moats said in a telephone interview. "... Of course, it is a great feeling, and of course, it does build some sort of confidence. But you know, in order to do well out there, you have to have confidence in the beginning. I believe in what I can do. So when I go out there I give it my all. As long as you do that, you should get the result."
Steve Slaton was benched after losing his fifth fumble of the season at Buffalo. Coach Gary Kubiak won't commit to a starter this week, saying only that Slaton, Moats and Chris Brown will play against the Colts.
Moats, who played at Dallas Bishop Lynch, has earned his chances.
"That's how it works sometimes," Moats said. "You have to wait your turn, and then your chance will come."
Charles ready
Jamaal Charles has mostly been a third-down back since the Kansas City Chiefs drafted him in the third round last year. This season, the Texas ex has only 23 carries, mostly on draws and other runs out of passing formations. He was a healthy scratch at Oakland.
Charles has been fumble-prone, losing three fumbles in 90 career carries. But with Larry Johnson out, the Chiefs are going to put the ball in Charles' hands.
"I'm ready to go, whatever they give me," Charles told "The" ''Kansas City Star". "I'll go out there and try to make plays for the team. I'm a running back. I know how to run the ball. Whatever running plays they give me, I'll be able to do them."
The blitz
Miami Dolphins receiver Ted Ginn Jr. had kickoff returns of 100 and 101 yards, but he played only 16 snaps on offense, had only one pass thrown his way and made no receptions. Ginn has been targeted 41 times this season, with 18 catches and five drops.
In the past two games — blowouts of the Tennessee Titans and the Tampa Bay Bucs — Tom Brady has completed 79 percent of his passes for 688 yards with nine touchdowns and two interceptions.
Peyton Manning is on pace to throw 601 passes for a league-record 5,090 yards.
Chicago Bears receiver Devin Hester is on pace for 1,038 receiving yards, which would be more than he had his first three seasons combined. Over the past three games, Hester has the second-most receptions in the NFL with 21.
In two games against the Green Bay Packers this season, Brett Favre finished with a passer rating of 135.9. In Minnesota Vikings coach Brad Childress' first six games against Green Bay, his starting quarterbacks compiled a rating of 62.7.
No team has rushed the ball more than 25 times against the Pittsburgh Steelers this season. Three teams didn't even reach 20 carries. San Diego ran the ball eight times in a loss to Pittsburgh.
In their past five games, the Houston Texans are 4-1 with a three-game winning streak. They have reduced their run defense from 205 yards a game to 113.3. The defense has gone from 32nd to 16th. They lead the league in forcing three-and-outs with 35. They have forced 14 turnovers, ranking fifth in the NFL.
John Fox is 7-0 against the Saints in Louisiana, including a 2005 game in Baton Rouge when the Superdome wasn't available due to Hurricane Katrina. Quarterback Jake Delhomme, a Louisiana native who spent the first five years of his career in New Orleans, is 5-0 on the road against the Saints. He also was 1-0 as a starter with New Orleans in the Superdome, directing a 1999 win over Dallas.
The New York Giants lead the NFL with 38 plays of 20 yards or more. Thirty-two of those are passes.
The Titans travel to San Francisco, where they are 1-9 in their past 10 games in the region, including eight consecutive losses.
Who's hot
In the four games since the Carolina Panthers' bye week, defensive end Julius Peppers has 23 tackles, six sacks, eight quarterback pressures, two forced fumbles and an interception return for a touchdown.
Who's not
Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan has been intercepted seven times in the past three games, the worst stretch of his brief NFL career. He has had three consecutive games with a passer rating of less than 70, including a 46.6 last week against the Saints. The Falcons are 1-2 in their past three games.
He said it
"I'm definitely not going to Mexico, not going to Cabo." — Bills receiver Terrell Owens, on his bye week plans
Number game
5.6Frank Gore's yards per carry, which is the highest figure of his career and third best in the NFL. He has three carries for 223 yards. Gore's other 62 carries have gone for 141 yards, an average of 2.27 yards.
My five cents
1Minnesota Vikings left guard Steve Hutchinson was called for holding last week. It was the first time that's happened since Nov. 30, 2003, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. That's 97 starts, including the postseason, without a holding penalty. In his fifth season with the Vikings, Hutchinson has only three penalties against him. Two of them have come in the past two weeks. He was called for a false start two weeks ago against Pittsburgh.
2Linebacker Vernon Gholston is not turning into the player the New York Jets had hoped he would be when they made him the sixth overall pick in 2008 and guaranteed him $21 million. He has made three starts in two seasons, and this year, he has 11 tackles on defense and one on special teams. The Jets could make Gholston inactive in favor of linebacker Marques Murrell, who is a better special teams player.
3The Atlanta Falcons went back to the drawing board to perk up their rushing attack. Michael Turner watched some old video of his runs before last week's game and decided he needed to get back to his bruising running style. Atlanta coaches unleashed Turner from some new formations. It worked. Turner rushed for 151 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries against the New Orleans Saints.
4The Indianapolis Colts rank first in passing and 30th in rushing. They are throwing 62 percent of the time. Only Arizona, with quarterback Kurt Warner and the league's 32nd-ranked rushing game, is more pass-dependent (69 percent). Drew Brees is throwing only 50.2 percent of the time.
5Todd Haley will lose the locker room if Larry Johnson is reinstated. Yet, if the Kansas City Chiefs release Johnson, they will give every disgruntled player an exit strategy. Johnson could be deactivated the rest of the season, which likely won't sit well with the players association or his agent. It's a no-no-no-win situation for Kansas City.
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(c) 2009, Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
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Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
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PHOTOS (from MCT Photo Service, 202-383-6099):
"NFL"
