New Cowboys receiver Roy Williams went back to Detroit on Monday night for the team’s annual Halloween party, the same event that Jon Kitna attended last year dressed as a naked man to poke fun at an embarrassing moment for one of the Lions’ assistant coaches.
And what did Williams do? He dressed up as former Detroit running back Tatum Bell stealing the luggage of his replacement, Rudi Johnson, poking fun at an embarrassing moment from earlier this year.
“I actually got the approval from (Bell),” Williams said. “If I didn’t get the approval from him, I wouldn’t have done it. He said it was cool, so I did it.”
He did it right, too.
“I dressed up in my bellhop uniform with a `Hello, my name is Tatum Bell’ name tag,” Williams said. “I had my Louis (Vitton) bag with Rudi Johnson’s tag on it and Rudi’s underwear outside my pants that said `Johnson’ on the butt. It was just all in good fun.”
Alas, it wasn’t good enough to win.
“I should’ve won, but I’m not a Detroit Lion so they didn’t give it to me,” Williams said, laughing.
The prize went to receiver John Standeford, who dressed as Michael Phelps, wearing a skimpy swimsuit, a swim cap, goggles and eight gold medals around his neck.
There was no word on whether Standeford got Phelps’ permission.
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SINGLE MESSAGE: Tony Dungy might be the most stoic coach in the NFL.
He also knows San Francisco coach Mike Singletary does not have the same personality. The Hall of Fame linebacker is fiery, passionate and leaves little for interpretation.
So when Dungy was asked about his response to Singletary’s postgame rant last week, Dungy turned to reporters with measured words and smiled.
“I guess knowing Mike, I’m not surprised at it,” Dungy said. “You have to be yourself. That’s who they hired as the coach, and that’s how Mike’s going to be. His coach (Mike Ditka) was that way, and it was pretty effective for him. Mike (Singeltary) is the same type of person.”
Dungy is not one to openly criticize players, coaches or team officials, preferring instead to handle his concerns behind closed doors. It hasn’t always been that way. Dungy frequently reminds people he had to learn how to control his temper years ago.
And now, Dungy, the first black coach to win a Super Bowl, believes Singletary will take a valuable lesson from Sunday’s blowup.
rt of his makeup. I think maybe what he’s learned from this situation is maybe you try not to make those situations all that public.”
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HONORING VERMEIL: It’s no coincidence the St. Louis Rams are adding Dick Vermeil’s name to their stadium Ring of Honor on the day the quarterback who helped Vermeil win the franchise’s lone Super Bowl also is in town.
Vermeil coached the Rams’ 23-16 victory over the Tennessee Titans after the 1999 season, clinched by Kurt Warner’s touchdown pass to Isaac Bruce. The old coach will be honored at halftime of St. Louis’ game against the Cardinals, whose offense is led by Warner.
Vermeil picked the Cardinals game to be honored because he wanted Warner, who won two NFL MVPs with the Rams, to be there. That means a lot to Warner.
“One of the greatest years of my life was that year with coach Vermeil, and winning the Super Bowl,” Warner said. “I just can’t say enough about him.
“It’s neat that I’m going to get an opportunity to be playing the game where he’s inducted into the Ring of Honor.”
Vermeil was 5-11 and 4-12 in the first two seasons with the Rams before the franchise’s surpass breakthrough in ’99. The keys to a 13-3 season were Warner’s rise from obscurity after Trent Green’s season-ending knee injury in the preseason, and the pre-draft trade for running back Marshall Faulk.
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NOT GIVING UP: Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer hasn’t thrown in the towel on playing again.
An elbow injury has sidelined Palmer for half of the Bengals’ eight losses. Even though Cincinnati is headed nowhere, Palmer is going through a rehabilitation program, hoping to play again this season.
“He’ll continue to follow their program of rehab,” coach Marvin Lewis said. “He is doing great. At some point, they’ll try to evaluate him a little further. Carson wants to play. As soon as he can get to that point and can progress back into throwing on the field, then we’ll have a better indication.”
The Bengals have their bye next week, which would provide a good time to take stock of Palmer’s status. If the elbow isn’t healed, he could decide that surgery is needed. Palmer has declined to talk about the injury, other than to emphatically deny reports he won’t play again this season.
Why even try?
“That certainly says a lot about him,” quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick said. “He is the leader of this team. It’s unfortunate that he’s hurt right now, but he’s still acting as the leader of this team.”
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JOE COOL: Joe Montana was in Seattle last weekend, on the sidelines at Husky Stadium. He was there for son Nate, who is following in Dad’s footsteps as a freshman backup walk-on quarterback at Notre Dame, while the Irish played Washington.
Montana shooed away almost all interview requests. And Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren was sorry he didn’t get to see the legend, who had Holmgren as his position coach from 1986-91 with the San Francisco 49ers. Holmgren was in San Francisco that night preparing for Seattle’s game at the 49ers the next day.
“He’s special. Special guy,” Holmgren said this week. “Think of that: my first job in the National Football League, I get to coach Joe Montana. He wasn’t very good until I got hold of him.”
Yes, Holmgren was laughing.
“He had already been MVP, already won Super Bowls, he was a rock star,” Holmgren said. “(Yet) our first meeting, I remember driving to the office my second day with the 49ers – and keep in mind, I was four years removed from being a high school coach in San Jose – I’m going, ‘What in the world am I going (to say)? How am I going to help?’ I just didn’t know.”
Bill Walsh introduced them and suggested Holmgren and Montana go down the road from 49ers headquarters for a cup of coffee, to get to know each other.
s! I’d never met him before!” Holmgren said, still marveling 17 years later. “He just kind of opened the door for me, and I think we had a really good relationship. He was the most unassuming superstar you can imagine.
“In Super Bowls, he was at his absolute best. He was just unbelievable. He played about as perfect a game in the one in 1989 against Denver as any quarterback could possibly (play). He was brilliant. And he’s a good guy.”
There’s another Montana besides Nate playing quarterback, too. Joe’s younger son Nicholas is a junior, following Nate at national power De La Salle High School in Concord, Calif.
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AP Football Writer Barry Wilner and Sports Writers Gregg Bell in Seattle, Michael Marot in Indianapolis, R. B. Fallstrom in St. Louis, Jaime Aron in Dallas and Joe Kay in Cincinnati contributed to this story.
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