King's Corner

TRADING E-MAIL WITH...
Titans running back and 1995 Heisman winner Eddie George

SI: Your Heisman vote?

George: My ballot changed last weekend. My picks: 1. Willis
McGahee. 2. Carson Palmer. 3. Ken Dorsey.

SI: Does the Heisman mean anything to you now?

George: No, not really. [The trophy] is more for my guests and my
family. They're more amazed than I am. I guess when I'm done
playing, I'll think about it more.

SI: Why the 3.3 yards per carry this year?

George: We struggled early running the ball. We were behind in
games and couldn't get the attempts we needed. The average has
come up since early in the season and hopefully will continue to
rise.

SI: Tennessee is the Lazarus of the NFL--how did this team stay
in the playoff race?

George: We got back to our brand of football, running the ball,
mixing in a potent passing attack and playing good defense.

SI: Three words to describe Michael Vick?

George: Incredible. Jordanesque. Fast.

SI: Last movie you saw?

George: Red Dragon. Suspenseful, gory, great. I loved it.

SI: Is signing autographs torture?

George: If I'm out eating, it's torture. It's harmless if it's
kids. It's fun if it's all women.

SI: When I'm 40, I'll live in (blank) and be a (blank).

George: Hawaii. Massage therapist.

MATCHUP OF THE WEEK
Peyton Manning, 1998 No. 1 pick, versus Tim Couch, 1999 No. 1

pick When Manning brings the Colts into Cleveland, Browns backers
will be reminded how one year's top pick can turn out to be a
franchise quarterback and the next year's pick an average passer.
Manning has 132 touchdown passes, 97 interceptions and three
4,000-yard passing seasons. Couch has 54 touchdown throws, 59
interceptions and no 4,000-yard seasons. Let's see how Couch
responds with the Browns suddenly challenging in the AFC North.

THE LIST

If offensive-minded Giants coach Jim Fassel loses his job after
this season, one reason will be his inability to get the offense
to play at a consistently high level. Here's how New York's
attack has ranked during Fassel's six-year tenure with the
Giants.

YEAR RUSHING PASSING TOTAL OFF. SCORING

1997 7 28 27 21
1998 12 28 29 23
1999 T-24 8 17 T-20
2000 11 13 13 15
2001 15 T-8 9 T-21
2002 17 7 12 28

MY TWO CENTS

1. Surrendering a franchise-record 52 points to the Panthers and
their generally pathetic offense has to spur the Bengals to hire
a football man to run the franchise. Club president Mike Brown's
stubborn reluctance to cede control to someone who knows what
he's doing is reminiscent of Hootie Johnson's resistance to
admitting women to Augusta National.

2. Unless he has an opportunity to hire Mike Holmgren--and that
would happen only if Holmgren were fired as general manager and
coach of the Seahawks--Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is likely to
stick with coach Dave Campo (15--30 in two-plus seasons) for at
least another season, regardless of how 5--8 Dallas fares in the
final three weeks. --P.K.