|
|
January 19, 2004
Like Peas In a Pod
Davis, Foster share rushing duties, strong praise in equal measures
By Joe Menzer | JOURNAL REPORTER
They complemented each other the entire game.
Then, they complimented each other afterward.
That's the way it was last night for Stephen Davis and DeShaun Foster as the Carolina Panthers marched into Super Bowl XXXVIII.
The two combined for 136 yards rushing as the Panthers stunned the Philadelphia Eagles 14-3 in the NFC championship game, with Davis rushing for 76 yards on 19 carries and Foster adding 60 yards on 14.
And all they wanted to do was heap praise on each other.
Davis raved and raved about Foster's 1-yard touchdown run that gave the Panthers a 14-3 lead with 4:11 left in the third quarter, when he broke at least three tackles and dragged two Eagle defenders into the end zone with him.
"I'll tell you what that run was, that run was desire, heart and want," Davis said. "A lot of guys don't have that. But we've got a lot of guys on this team who have it, and we showed it tonight."
Then Foster returned (lip) service, praising Davis for playing through the pain of a strained quadriceps that he suffered in last Saturday's overtime win at St. Louis.
"Stephen is so amazing," Foster said. "He's been so knicked up all year, and this game he showed all the heart he has. There were times he'd get up limping and I knew his leg was hurting, but he just kept going and going. That just shows the drive he has. When you see a guy running that hard, you want to do the same thing. So my hat's off to him."
The Panthers clearly had concerns about both going into the game.
Davis did not practice until Friday, and he was listed as questionable right up until gametime. According to Davis, he made the decision to play after going through a morning workout with running backs assistant Jim Skipper and trainer Ryan Vermillion yesterday morning.
He came out blazing on the Panthers' first drive, however, running for nine yards on his first carry, and carrying six times for 26 yards on the initial drive.
"Nothing was going to keep me out of this game," Davis said. "Nothing will keep me out in two weeks, either. We made the decision that I was well enough to go out and be effective, so then it was just a matter of making plays. It was a real good boost to play well early. It was a confidence builder for me, and it set the tone for the rest of the team."
Foster had picked up the slack when Davis went out at St. Louis, but there were some concerns about how he might react to having to carry the load if Davis couldn't play.
As it turned out, both got plenty of carries, and both played well.
"It worked out well," Foster said. "It was just a good rhythm we both got into. He did a real good job of going out there and fighting through it, and I just wanted to help him whenever I could. It would have been fine with me if he would have played the whole game, of course. That's the way I go into every game. But this did work out well."
And make no mistake, having both backs running well was as big a key to the game as anything.
"With both of them playing the way they did, we were able to stick to our gameplan - and our gameplan is hard-nosed football," fullback Brad Hoover said. "Everybody on this team believes in it, and everybody works towards it. It's been successful, and it was successful again tonight."
• Joe Menzer can be reached at jmenzer@wsjournal.com