Chiefs'
Hall reigns again in weekly awards
(Oct. 8, 2003)
-- Wide receiver Marvin Harrison of the Indianapolis Colts,
defensive end Courtney Brown of the Cleveland Browns and
kick returner-punt returner Dante Hall of the Kansas City
Chiefs are the AFC Offensive, Defensive and Special Teams
Players of the Week for games played the fifth week of
the 2003 season (Oct. 5-6). Harrison was part of one of
the greatest late-game comebacks in NFL history on Monday
night as the Colts became the first team to win after
facing a 21-point deficit with 4:00 or less remaining
in the fourth quarter to keep their perfect record intact
at 5-0. Indianapolis scored three touchdowns in the final
four minutes at Tampa Bay to force overtime and won in
sudden death, 38-35. Harrison caught 11 passes for 176
yards (16.0 avg.) and two touchdowns in the victory. The
second of his two scores occurred on fourth-and-six from
the Tampa Bay 28-yard line with 2:38 remaining in the
game, narrowing the Buccaneers' lead to 35-28. "We're
not a great team yet, but we've got great chemistry,"
says Colts head coach Tony Dungy, who celebrated his 48th
birthday on Monday and defeated his former team. "Nobody
on our sideline gave up. We talked about needing to play
our game and not giving up, and that's exactly what happened."
Harrison hurt the Buccaneers with a brilliant second half,
posting 152 receiving yards and two touchdowns on seven
catches. Six of his 11 receptions on the night resulted
in first downs.
Harrison (9,268)
is now eight receiving yards away from surpassing Pro
Football Hall of Famer Raymond Berry (9,275) for the most
in club history. The 6-foot, 175-pounder holds franchise
records in receiving touchdowns (79) and receptions (698)
and now leads the AFC in catches (33), yards (468) and
touchdowns (6). Harrison's second touchdown catch of the
night from quarterback Peyton Manning was the duo's 64th
touchdown connection, surpassing John Unitas and Berry
(63) for the fourth-most all time. In his eighth year
out of Syracuse, this is Harrison's fourth Player of the
Week honor. Cleveland's Brown and his teammates utilized
a primetime Sunday night stage to defeat AFC North rival
Pittsburgh 33-13. Brown registered one of his finest days
as a pro, recording 2.0 sacks along with forcing and recovering
a fumble on the same play. Pittsburgh entered the game
with the AFC's No. 1-ranked offense and was limited to
1 of 11 (9.0 pct.) on third-down conversion attempts.
"Courtney plays with a lot of confidence all the
time," says Browns head coach Butch Davis. "It
is extremely critical that we have some versatility and
can rotate people across the line. With Courtney healthy,
we can do that." On Pittsburgh's third play from
scrimmage from its own 28-yard line, Brown worked his
way into the Steelers' backfield, reached across his body
to knock the ball out of the passer's throwing hand and
pounced on the fumble. The turnover led to a Browns field
goal for a 10-0 lead, stunning the Steelers' home crowd.
Brown and the entire Cleveland defensive front kept pressure
on Pittsburgh throughout the game, limiting a potent Steelers
offense to 209 total yards. The 6-4, 280-pounder is tied
for third in the AFC with 4.0 sacks. In his fourth year
from Penn State, this is Brown's second-career Player
of the Week award.
For an unprecedented
fourth consecutive week, Kansas City's Hall was the AFC's
top special teams player in helping the Chiefs remain
unbeaten (5-0) with a 24-23 win at home against Denver.
Trailing 23-17, Hall fielded a punt at his own seven-yard
line, deftly scampered out of traffic by changing direction
three times and used his blazing speed down the left side
of the field to go 93 yards for a touchdown and give Kansas
City a 24-23 lead and eventual win. Hall's feat marks
the first time in NFL history that a player has scored
on a punt or kickoff return in four consecutive weeks.
The Chiefs are 5-0 for the first time in franchise history.
"It's no fluke what he does," says Chiefs head
coach Dick Vermeil of Hall. "It's not by accident."
"That run was unbelievable," says Chiefs Pro
Bowl tight end Tony Gonzalez. "He's half man, half
amazing. I told him if he was in California, he could
run for governor." The Texas A&M product has
returned seven kicks for touchdowns in his past 10 games.
He has tied the NFL record for most kick returns for touchdowns
in a season with four, which has now been done by eight
players, most recently by Denver's Rick Upchurch in 1976.
Hall now leads the NFL in punt return average (21.6) and
tops the AFC in kickoff return average (32.7).
