Stopping Jerry Rice an Impossible Task : 49ers: Wide receiver doesnât care what the Rams try to do against him. He is expecting to make big plays today.
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SAN FRANCISCO â Injuries have forced the Rams to manufacture makeshift defensive units, but that means nothing to San Francisco 49er wide receiver Jerry Rice.
The most valuable player in last yearâs Super Bowl and the NFLâs only unanimous all-pro pick this season doesnât care who will or wonât be playing for the Rams in todayâs NFC title game at Candlestick Park. All that matters to him is that he will be there, and he intends to make the Rams well aware of his presence.
Rice, who scored on touchdown pass plays of 72 and 13 yards last Sunday in San Franciscoâs 41-13 rout of the Vikings, said the 49ers donât plan to exploit any single specific weakness in the Ramsâ defense. And he doesnât expect the Rams to concentrate solely on him, because of the 49ersâ many scoring threats.
âTheyâll try to keep us from making big plays because weâre a big-play team,â he said.
But can they stop Rice, who led the NFL this season with 17 touchdown receptions and 1,483 yards receiving--his fourth consecutive season of 1,000 or more yards receiving?
âI donât think so,â Rice said, smiling. âWhenever I get a chance, thatâs my job, to make a big play. Iâm looking forward to this (game).â
Playing the Rams is a familiar task for Rice, who did not catch a scoring pass in either of the 49ersâ games against the Rams this season. He had only two catches for 36 yards in the Ramsâ 13-12 victory Oct. 1 at San Francisco and five for 38 yards in the 49ersâ 30-27 comeback victory Dec. 11 at Anaheim Stadium.
Although he didnât score in the second game, he did draw double coverage, leaving John Taylor wide open for touchdown pass plays of 92 and 95 yards.
âTheyâve got to respect John,â Rice said. âYou canât play that guy one on one. If they try to focus on me, someone is going to be one on one with him and heâs going to get into the end zone.
âThey might still come out and say, âWeâve got to double cover Jerry Rice. Weâre not going to let him beat us,â but I think theyâve got to respect John.â
Rice shrugged off questions about how the Ramsâ defense will line up and the 49ersâ plans to foil their strategies.
He said only that he expects to see a defense âlike a man to man. . . . theyâre going to roll through my side with one guy coming up in my face and one guy behind. Theyâre not going to leave the middle wide open.â
But he wouldnât discuss the 49ersâ plans to counter that, contending that the 49ers are more concerned about themselves than about their opponentsâ possible defensive schemes.
âWeâre not going to focus in on the Rams,â he said. âThe thing weâll try to key on is what weâre going to do in certain situations. Weâre just going to play 49er football. Weâve got to be ready mentally and physically, thatâs the key for us.
âI donât look at whoâs injured or whoâs not injured. Weâre just going to go out and try to establish ourselves and get into the end zone. Iâm not out to compete against (Henry) Ellard and (Flipper) Anderson. My job is to help this team.
âThe thing about this is, I had a feeling it would come out this way. The Rams are a great football team and we are also. The team that goes out and plays the better game is going to win the football game Sunday.â
He made it clear that he considers the 49ers the better team.
âWeâve got a lot of guys who make big plays, the best quarterback in the league, and John Taylor and I complement each other very well,â he said.
Most compliments directed at Rice are for his speed--he lost 15 pounds last summer, improving his acceleration--but he says he is strong in every area.
âMost of my touchdowns were on long passing routes and I wanted to be able to catch underneath, those five-yard passes, too,â he said. âI also block. I think Iâm a complete receiver. I feel real good about the situation now.â
So good that he simply doesnât care who he goes against today.
âIt makes no difference if (cornerback) Jerry Gray plays,â Rice said. âEither way, Iâll be ready. Theyâd better be ready.â