Anderson a Big Hit on Defense

The gentleman in the corner, the bare-chested one with the purple pants and the black leather cap and the matching Louis Vuitton satchels, is not instantly identifiable without a nameplate above his locker or a number on his shirt. His is more of a handsome profile than it is a high profile.

Yet the virtually anonymous Eddie Anderson was the leading tackler for the Raiders last season when they got as far as the on-deck circle of Super Bowl XXV, as he was the leading tackler--by far--in the 16-0 shutout they pitched Sunday at the Coliseum, where the Indianapolis Colts kept running into him everywhere they went.

Not everybody notices Eddie.

But the Raiders do.

“He might not be as vocal as some, might not be hootin’ and hollerin’,” tackle Scott Davis said, “but Eddie’s definitely out there hittin’.”

Not even 90 seconds remained in Sunday’s game when Indianapolis inched to the Raider six and attempted to salve their wounds with at least one touchdown. When they ditched the ball to Eric Dickerson, creeping out of the backfield, right there to meet him for a five-yard loss was Anderson, who hit Dickerson so hard he practically knocked the horseshoe off his helmet.

Such is now the fate of any adversary who happens to run into either of the Raiders’ deepest deep backs. At strong safety is the esteemed Ronnie Lott, recently leased from San Francisco, who for years has been famed as one of the game’s greatest cleanup hitters. By his side, at free safety, is the less notorious but increasingly noteworthy Anderson, who makes hits like Lott--a lot.

And Anderson attributes any success he is having directly to his new partner, saying: “I already feel like we’ve been playing together for four or five years. Having Ronnie Lott out there with me has helped my game 100%, because he’s more than just my teammate out there. He’s my coach.”

Together, Anderson and Lott are an ever-ready battery. Maybe they make a mistake now and then, but neither John Elway nor Jeff George put many passes past them in recent weeks, and completions are taken very personally. Receivers pay for every catch.

Hardest-hitting safeties in football?

“Two of the hardest, I’d say,” said teammate end Howie Long. “The other two being those two in Denver.”

Whether being likened to the Bronco tag-team of Dennis Smith and Steve Atwater is the kind of praise that would please Lott and Anderson, we never got a chance Sunday to ask. But this is a definite compliment, a heartfelt one by Long, who is not alone in the Raider locker room in his growing regard for the guys who stand behind him.

Lionel Washington, one of the starting cornerbacks--along with Terry McDaniel--whose presence also is being felt out there, took pride in his own play but couldn’t help observing, over and over, that any time Indianapolis seemed to get something going, Anderson and Lott suddenly appeared to get somebody stopped.

“Eddie and Ronnie kept coming up to make tackle after tackle,” Washington said. “Any time somebody would get behind the rest of us, Eddie or Ronnie would show up and lower the boom on them. Eddie was, like, everywhere.”

Anderson made 10 tackles, with no other Raider making more than six. More than once, when Dickerson slithered away from others who had clean shots at him, it was Anderson who stepped up to put him down.

Who is Eddie Anderson?

It is not an unreasonable question. Not many magazine covers featured a collegiate defensive back from Fort Valley State, wherever that is. And not many autograph hunters huddled around to gape at a 1986 sixth-round draft choice who spent five games with the Seattle Seahawks and then got shown the door.

When the Raiders needed “replacement players” in 1987 to fill in for the regulars who were out on strike, Anderson got a second chance. He started all three replacement games, was invited to stick around and played in all 10 games after that. One day against Kansas City, Anderson personally put 16 Chiefs on their backs, a single-game high for Raider defensive players that season.

“What we did was show more patience with Eddie Anderson than some teams do with certain players,” said Long, one of the team’s elder statesmen. “What Eddie was given was a chance to demonstrate his strengths without anybody being able to exploit his weaknesses. He’s been given an opportunity to shine.”

What are his strengths?

“Speed and hitting,” Long said.

And his weaknesses?

Lately, nobody has noticed any.