Spotlight On Rex

john1981cr · Joined: 16 Aug 2006 Posts: 111

By Tim Sullivan
Inspin.com/WagerWeb.com contributing writer

Who knows, maybe January is the month of the unheralded Florida Gator quarterback.
Last week, Chris Leak erased four years of inconsistency and led the SEC school to its second national championship. This week, former Gator Rex Grossman looks to follow Leak's lead and throw the Chicago Bears on his back and carry them into the Super Bowl.
A stretch? Perhaps, but you have to admit, their paths are similar. Leak dealt with an offensive scheme change, was always looking over his shoulder and was forever compared to Gator greats named Danny Wuerffel, Steve Spurrier, and yes, Grossman.
Grossman, meanwhile, has looked over his shoulder all season and found Brian Griese. He has looked up into the stands and seen fans who want him benched. And he has read papers and watched television reports that have analyzed his poor play in every way imaginable.
Yet, here he is. He's the offensive leader of a team that is 14-3 and two wins away from a world title. He wins, albeit ugly, but he wins nonetheless. And like him or not, he and the Bears are 2.5-point favorites over the Saints on WagerWeb.com.
"I don’t care how we do it, I really don’t. This is an unbelievable situation we are in now," Grossman said. "We’re in the NFC championship and we win one game we’re in the Super Bowl, two wins away from having a ring on my finger for the rest of my life. We are excited to be moving forward.”
It's hard not to be excited. Let's face it, the Saints are a great story. They're having the kind of magical season movies are made of. But the Bears are a better, more complete team. That's why they're at home. That's why they're the favorites.
“In every game," Grossman said, "you’re not going play perfect."
And no one is expecting that to happen Sunday, either. But there should be enough blown coverages in the Saints' shaky defensive backfield that Grossman can exploit. Combine that with the Chicago weather, a healthy, well-balanced running game, and the Bears have plenty stacked in their favor.
"I’ve learned that he knows how to bounce back from tough situations," Chicago coach Lovie Smith said of Grossman. "He’s been roasted the past couple weeks over all different kinds of things. He is our quarterback. When you push him up against a wall, he knows how to come out fighting."
He'll come out fighting against the Saints. And it'll help that he has that mighty defense to rely on when he's not on the field. Sure, the unit has been plagued with inconsistencies itself recently, but it's still one of the best in the business. And the Saints know it.
"We can go down to the wire," Bears defensive lineman Tank Johnson said after the overtime win over Seattle, "with the best of them."
This game figures to be much of the same.
Rex Grossman, this is your life.

STILL A WARRIOR: Record-breaking quarterback Colt Brennan's decision to remain at the University of Hawaii is both good and bad. Sure, there are plenty of quarterbacks in this year's NFL Draft already, and he figures to make more headlines in the next draft. But, remember, most of those gaudy numbers came against bad WAC teams, and this just gives those savvy scouts another season to read between those lines.
Brennan had 58 touchdown passes this season and 5,549 passing yards. But when Brennan went up against Arizona State in the Hawaii Bowl, he struggled mightily in the first half. When the Warriors lost to Oregon State in the regular-season finale, he was worse. There are only so many Idahos and New Mexico States out there. And the scouts know it.
Listen, it's simply food for thought. Right now, he's a good college quarterback in a perfect system for good college quarterbacks. There are plenty of those types -- Chris Weinke, Eric Crouch, Ken Dorsey, Jesse Palmer, Major Applewhite -- who never made a dent on Sundays.
He could join that crowd, he may miss that crowd. Who knows? Either way, we'll have to wait at least a year to find out.

EXTRA POINTS: Falcons running back Warrick Dunn is recovering from arthroscopic shoulder surgery and should be ready for training camp. But when he returns, Coach Bob Petrino might start him off at the No. 2 role behind Jerious Norwood. ... Colts linebacker Cato June (concussion) is practicing with the team and is expected to play against the Patriots on Sunday in the AFC title game. Indianapolis is -3 on WagerWeb.com.

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