Tolliver Hears Cheers in Boo-Ville

Billy Joe Tolliver heard the boos.

He heard them during pregame introductions, not that he was at all surprised.

However, he might have been surprised when he got to the Chargers’ first offensive huddle of the afternoon and his offensive line booed him.

“They made light of it,” he said. “It made it easier.”

There were more boos, such as after his first pass fell incomplete. Yes, there were more after a couple of other incomplete passes. It is, after all, easier to be a perfectionist in the stands--and, yes, in the press box--than it is on the field.

And, in the fourth quarter, the Chargers’ fans got what they were clamoring for. They got Mark Vlasic at quarterback. This was the guy who would lead this team out of the wilderness.

But a funny thing happened, or didn’t happen, when the quarterback change took place. Nothing. There was not a ripple of reaction.

Billy Joe, you see, came out in triumph rather than frustration. Vlasic was called upon to mop up for the last 8:39 of what was to be a rather surprising 41-10 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

If anyone in the crowd of 40,653 noticed, it was not apparent. Most were amusing themselves with a poor rendition of the wave by then, the game safely tucked away almost by halftime.

This, indeed, was a case, which underscores the fact that a quarterback, any quarterback, is going to look good or bad in relation to how his teammates perform. On this afternoon, the Chargers played a complete if not perfect game.

“Winning locker rooms are always great,” Tolliver said. “It’s a great life, isn’t it?”

Billy Joe was brilliant because the running attack was efficient, the defense stuffed the Bucs and the special teams were splendid. The reflected glow was wonderful.

Forget that Tolliver completed only 11 of 24 passes for 157 yards, but remember that none of his passes were intercepted, he threw a beautiful 31-yard touchdown pass to Anthony Miller, he avoided a sack with an impromptu left-handed pass and he ran the offense without a flaw.

This was an afternoon to put the boo-birds to flight, at least for a week. These people can, to be sure, be fickle. All was beautiful after a 39-3 victory two weeks earlier against the New York Jets and then back in the dumpster a week earlier against the Raiders.

“We’ve seen two different teams,” cautioned Coach Dan Henning. “The Raiders are a better team than Tampa Bay. We beat Tampa and we didn’t beat the Raiders. We played a much better football team than the Jets and Tampa Bay when we played the Raiders. Unfortunately, we had a great deal of overreactions in both directions. We can’t exist that way. We are trying to avoid those perceptions.”

In other words, the guys in the locker room have to maintain an even keel when everything is tumultuous on the outside.

“It was a big step,” Tolliver said, “dealing with the outside distractions and still playing a pretty good football game. I wasn’t a model of consistency, but we did a good job as a whole team.”

That’s what counts, of course, but doesn’t the quarterback look so much prettier when everything is going so well around him?

Tolliver understands it won’t always be like it was Sunday afternoon.

“It’s all part of the growing process,” he said. “Fans are going to do what they want. All I can do is try and minimize it. This wasn’t the first time I’ve been booed, and it won’t be the last. I can’t control that.”

Tolliver does have a support group, of sorts. He has some chums who have been through what he is going through. Their names are Jim McMahon, John Elway and David Archer. Notice that they are all quarterbacks, all used to the eye of the storm.

He talked to them all in the last few days.

“They’ve all been through it,” he said. “Those guys, those are my friends. It helps when buddies like that call you.”

Those buddies would have been pleased with what they saw Sunday afternoon. Not to overreact, of course, but Billy Joe Tolliver led his team to a nice victory. The defense and special teams gave the offense field position, and this time it capitalized. They did not hit the 20-yard line like a marathoner hitting the wall at the 20th mile.

This time, the Chargers delivered the knockdown punches and Tolliver’s right arm was right in there swinging.

One of the delicious incongruities of the aftermath was that a reporter asked Henning why he took Tolliver out of the game and replaced him with Vlasic. Only a week ago, Henning was being asked to explain why he didn’t take Tolliver out and replace him with Vlasic.