| Griese has Super opportunity with Dolphins By Adam Schefter, Post Sports Writer Swallow a scene that would go down a lot easier in Miami than in Denver. Flash ahead to a scene so unreal it would be surreal. The Miami Dolphins going to the Super Bowl. Quarterback Brian Griese leading them there. Something tells me it's going to happen, and it's going to jolt this city far more than watching former Broncos linebacker Bill Romanowski wear silver and black on the final Sunday of the season, on football's biggest stage. Griese big dancing. Denver gets the first trip this season to Houston - site of Super Bowl XXXVIII - but the sneaking suspicion is that Griese gets the last. And of all the possible NFL story lines that will unfold this season, can anybody come up with a juicier one than Griese getting the Dolphins back to the Super Bowl, where they have not played since Dan Marino's second season in January 1985? Didn't think so. Think of the embarrassment Denver felt after Oakland quarterback Rich Gannon nearly Don Larsened the Broncos last season, completing 21 consecutive passes. Or the humiliation Denver experienced after San Diego running back LaDainian Tomlinson used the Broncos as a welcome mat last season, running for 220 yards in one game against them. Double that embarrassment and humiliation, and we begin to get an approximate idea of what the Broncos could experience if the worst of their conceivable scenarios unfolds this season. Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer isn't as successful as his new employer would like. Former Broncos quarterback Griese is. It's a scenario that could threaten to financially ruin The Denver Post, so much newspaper ink would be used. And anyone who doubts the feasibility of this possibility is in denial. Heading into the season of the fish, the Dolphins look as good as Joe's Stone Crab. No running back has more talent than Ricky Williams, who fell only 147 yards short of 2,000 last season. No defensive end rushes the passer as does Jason Taylor, who led the NFL last season with 18 1/2 sacks and seven forced fumbles. No linebackers play with more intensity than Junior Seau and Zach Thomas, a duo so good it should be banned. No cornerbacks blanket receivers more effectively than Sam Madison and Patrick Surtain, a less heralded but equally effective duo. In other words, even in football's toughest division, no team has a better chance than the fish. And no quarterback has positioned himself better than Griese, who proved his smarts by picking Miami over Dallas. Now, it is true that as of today, two days after Dolphins camp opened, Griese isn't even Miami's starting quarterback. Jay Fiedler is. But around the league, it has become the norm for a quarterback who enters training camp as the backup not only to leapfrog his competition, but to vault to the top of the league. Kurt Warner did it in 1999, when he replaced injured Rams quarterback Trent Green and took St. Louis to football nirvana. Trent Dilfer did it the next season, when he replaced struggling Ravens quarterback Tony Banks and led Baltimore to its exalted state. Tom Brady did it the next season, when he replaced injured Patriots quarterback Drew Bledsoe and carried New England past any alleged Boston sports jinxes. And Brad Johnson did it last season, when he went to training camp and beat out Tampa Bay's Shaun King and Rob Johnson for a starting job that few knew who was going to win. Now it's Griese's turn, and he has the backing of the Dolphins, if not all of South Florida. No way the Dolphins would have pursued Griese with the vigor they did if they didn't believe he could be their starter. They wouldn't have given him a $1 million signing bonus this season, and the chance for another $5.9 million roster bonus that is due the first day of the 2004 league year, typically March 1. The Dolphins recognize the skills Griese brings them. They are the same skills that allowed the Broncos and their fans to believe Denver could be Super Bowl-bound the past three seasons. If Griese seemingly was good enough to lead the Broncos to a Super Bowl - as much of Denver once believed - surely he is capable of doing the same for a team with a superior defense. So let the comparisons begin. Griese vs. Fiedler. Griese vs. Plummer. Griese is ready to conquer them all. It's possible Griese and Plummer both could excel in their new offenses and new environments. But the worst-case scenario for the Broncos and their fans is this: Griese flourishes in Miami and finishes in Houston, big dancing. Prepare for the worst-case scenario. |