|
| | | | | | | | Thursday, February 1, 2001
Pro Bowl spotlight: Titans WR/KR/PR Derrick Mason
By Alex Laracy
MondayNightFootball.com
With Kevin Dyson blossoming into stardom after last season's "Music City Miracle," Carl Pickens escaping Cincinnati and winding up in Nashville, and Yancey Thigpen (supposedly) relatively healthy, the chances of wideout/return specialist Derrick Mason leading the Titans in receiving yardage in 2000 were about as good as Ralph Nader's.
|  | | Titans WR Derrick Mason had six touchdowns in 2000. |
As it turned out, Dyson's season promptly ended in Week 2 as he tore his ACL versus the Chiefs. Pickens was so happy to not be in Cincinnati that he forgot he still had to play football (10 catches for 242 yards in nine games). Thigpen once again exercised his right to worsen with every season.
Nader's numbers were also disappointing, but Derrick Mason's definitely were not.
The 5-foot-10, 185-pound former fourth-round pick out of Michigan State established a name for himself as one of the league's premier return men in '99. But with a chance to become Steve McNair's number one target this season, Mason took the ball and ran with it all the way to earning a unanimous Pro Bowl berth (February 4th on ABC, 5:30 p.m. ET).
After seeing almost no time at receiver in the first two games (and no catches), Mason was thrust from the team's sparkplug return specialist to McNair's go-to guy, leading the team in receptions from Week 3 on.
Without a legitimate threat flanking the fourth-year speedster (Mason was the only wide receiver with more than two touchdown catches), head coach Jeff Fisher implemented an ultra-conservative offensive philosophy based on ball-control. With an outstanding offensive line and All-Everything running back Eddie George leading the charge, the Titans mercilessly pounded the ball down defense's throats, and aired it out on medium length routs to Mason and tight end Frank Wycheck when necessary.
As a result, Mason's longest reception went for only 34 yards versus Dallas in Week 17, but this is not to say the little man didn't provide a handful of huge plays in 2000.
Despite his increased role on offense, Mason retained his return responsibilities and was the only player in the league to finish in the top five in both punt and kick return average. Only Atlanta's Darrick Vaughn bettered his 27-yard kickoff return average, while Mason's 13-yard punt return average included a 69-yard return for the go-ahead touchdown against the Redskins in front of a national audience on Monday Night Football in Week 9. It was then Mason's label of "team sparkplug" started to be drowned out by "team MVP" candidate.
Mason set an NFL record for all-purpose yardage this season, with 2,690 yards in kickoff returns, punt returns, rushing, and receiving. He made at least one big play in virtually every game, and caught the most balls (63) by a Tennessee/Houston wide receiver since Webster Slaughter and Haywood Jeffries caught 68 each as part of the run-and-shoot Oilers of 1994. Not bad for a guy who started the season fifth on the receiver's depth chart.
While it is undetermined what Mason's role will be in the Tennessee offense next season (he is currently an unrestricted free agent), he will surely not be able to sneak up on opposing defenses as he did for much of this season. His cornerback size will never allow him to be a prototypical featured receiver, but his ability to slither through the defense and find open cracks make him a viable third-down option for whatever team he plays for.
With Dyson sure to show some rust next season and Thigpen and Pickens about as reliable as Darryl Strawberry, Tennessee will likely find a way to sign Mason for next year, although he is expected to receive a great deal of attention from other teams (Philly, perhaps?). If the Titans shy away, they run the risk of possibly having to face the most dangerous return man in football who's not a half-bad receiver to boot.
Alex Laracy is the assistant editor of MondayNightFootball.com.
| | |
| | | | |
ESPN.com:
HELP |
ADVERTISER INFO |
CONTACT US |
TOOLS |
SITE MAP
Copyright ©2001 ESPN Internet Group. Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and Safety Information are applicable to this site. Employment opportunities at ESPN.com.
| |
| 
 |
