Slash Burning Path From MIA to MVP

Kordell Stewart has endured the boos and the booze--a Pittsburgh fan once tossed a full beer in his face--as well as the rumors questioning his sexuality.

He survived the downward spiral from Slash to slush, when he went from being the quarterback of the future to a guy who wasn’t even allowed to attend quarterback meetings. Instead, the Steelers clumped him with the receivers.

Week by week, win by win, Stewart has reinvented himself this season. His team is 12-2, and he has proved he can win with Jerome Bettis on the bench. He still doesn’t throw many touchdown passes, 11--the Pittsburgh ground game is too effective near the goal line--but he has thrown the fewest interceptions, five, of any starting quarterback.

Is he the league MVP? I think so, both because of what he’s doing now and how far he has come. Here are three other people, each of whom views Stewart from another perspective, who also think he should be the MVP:

* Seattle quarterback Trent Dilfer.

Like Stewart, Dilfer had to tailor his style to his team last season, taking fewer risks, often looking off the hero passes for the sake of moving the chains. Last season, the Baltimore Ravens won the Super Bowl with Dilfer, then dumped him in favor of Elvis Grbac.

“I see a lot of similarities between Kordell and me. I’m only a year older than him, but I’m so proud of how he’s handled adversity. He hasn’t let outside influences affect how he approaches the game. He’s definitely the MVP.

“We played against each other in our last college game, and we still talk a lot. We’ve both had similar things said about us.... One of the hardest things is when a guy is an aggressive thrower in college, then he comes into a pro system and is told to be less aggressive. You’ve got to retrain your instincts. Both Kordell and I have had to do that.”

* Hall of Fame receiver Lynn Swann.

Swann, who still lives in Pittsburgh, has a special understanding of the pressures of playing in the Steel City. He has seen a lot of Stewart’s seven-year career, and has long lobbied the team to hire a quarterback coach, which it did this season for the first time since 1971.

“I felt that Kordell needed a position coach, not just a coordinator who was concerned more with the game plan. When he was at Colorado, he had Rick Neuheisel as his position coach for one year.... That’s when Kordell started improving and getting better.

“He got to the NFL, where no one’s working with you. And he came from a system with two wide receivers and two tight ends. That limits what the defenses will do, so you don’t get as much of an opportunity to read a variety of coverages. So all that was new to Kordell. It’s not like he was at Stanford, or Florida, or Florida State, where quarterbacks see as many pro defenses as you could possibly imagine. He had to learn all that and still work on his technique.

“The best thing for the Steelers and Kordell is [quarterback coach] Tom Clements. His job is to help [Stewart] be a better passer and quarterback and not worry so much about the game plan.”

* Kordell’s father, Robert Stewart.

The elder Stewart, a retired barber who lives in New Orleans, is very close to his son. He still has hard feelings about former Steeler offensive coordinators Ray Sherman and Kevin Gilbride, who he believes never had confidence in his son.

“Kordell wasn’t comfortable, and they weren’t letting him play his game. Those [jerk] offensive coordinators would say, ‘I’m the boss. You don’t tell me what to do.’ He’d just call and let me know what was going on. I tried to pull him out of it. It was a hard time, man. Those are some hard fans in Pittsburgh. They’re definitely hard on quarterbacks.

“Pittsburgh’s not an easy place to play football, especially for quarterbacks. People look at you like you stink. I look right back at them like they stink and go about my business.... [But] Kordell’s a nice guy. If you press his buttons, though, he will strike back at you. It’s like me: If you sling something at me, partner, you better get a shield because it’s definitely coming back at you.

“Some players want to be in the limelight. All Kordell wants to do is play ball. The hardest time was when he called me and said some mixed-up people were saying stuff about his sexuality. Stuff like that really tore him up.... Now they want to be all for him. They want to be his pal. That’s all people care about is winning.”

Finally, someone is telling it like it is about Minnesota receiver Cris Carter, maybe the most self-centered guy in football. If Carter decides to try the free-agent market after this season, Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre plans to hang a no-vacancy sign outside Packer headquarters.

“I don’t know if [Carter] would fit within the framework of our system,” Favre told reporters this week. “I know one thing: What’s made this team successful over the years is unselfishness.

“Not saying that he’s selfish and wants the ball, but if he went through a season like our guys have to ... where he might only get two catches in a game, how impatient will he be?”

Might be time for Notre Dame to make another run at Steve Mariucci. The 49er coach could not have been too pleased when, after making it known he was disappointed that his bosses hadn’t congratulated him for making the playoffs, they made light of the situation.

“Don’t forget I told you congratulations,” team owner John York said, shaking General Manager Terry Donahue’s hand.

Mariucci, who has the ideal temperament for a college coach, might just find himself wooed away by the Irish this time.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

THE TIMES’ RANKINGS

Sam Farmer’s NFL rankings and comments:

TEAM (Record), COMMENT

1 PITTSBURGH

(12-2) The Bus should be nice and warm for the playoffs.

2 ST. LOUIS

(12-2) Could hang 50 on the Colts.

3 CHICAGO

(11-3) Looks as if Jauron is here to stay.

4 SAN FRANCISCO

(11-3) 49er defense has made an impressive U-turn.

5 GREEN BAY

(10-4) Home-field advantage? Packers have never lost playoff game at Lambeau.

6 NEW ENGLAND

(10-5) Brady hunch paid off in a big way.

7 OAKLAND

(10-4) Can’t run or stop run. Now, Janikowski’s started missing. Hard to win like that.

8 BALTIMORE

(9-5) Struggling defense is coming off a much-needed shutout.

9 TAMPA BAY

(8-6) Buccaneers are 11-1 at home in December under Tony Dungy.

10 PHILADELPHIA

(9-5) Had seven tries from point-blank range without scoring in 13-3 loss to 49ers.

11 N.Y. JETS

(9-5) Getting Aaron Glenn back gives secondary a boost.

12 MIAMI

(9-5) What happened to the team that stomped Indianapolis three weeks ago?

13 TENNESSEE

(7-7) Revenge is sweet for former Raider Joe Nedney.

14 NEW ORLEANS

(7-7) Losing Cam Cleeland--again--hurt this offense.

15 N.Y. GIANTS

(7-7) Consecutive victories keep playoff hopes flickering.

16 DENVER

(7-7) Might be time for Shanahan to take a serious look at Notre Dame.

17 SEATTLE

(7-7) When the game is on the line, the Seahawks simply fold.

18 ATLANTA

(7-7) When uninjured, Chris Chandler still has great touch.

19 JACKSONVILLE

(6-8) With nothing to gain, Jaguars’ defense held Vikings to 28 yards on ground.

20 WASHINGTON

(6-8) Could spoil Saints’ dim hopes Sunday night.

21 CLEVELAND

(6-8) No more home games, so Brown offense won’t have to duck bottles.

22 ARIZONA

(6-8) Cardinals’ specialties are dropped passes and penalties.

23 KANSAS CITY

(5-9) At last, Chiefs win consecutive games under Vermeil.

24 INDIANAPOLIS

(5-9) Colts will never win with that defense.

25 SAN DIEGO

(5-10) A blessing: Charger season ends Sunday.

26 DALLAS

(4-10) Cowboys could have a top-five pick for first time since 1990.

27 CINCINNATI

(4-10) A rite of late December: Let the bickering begin.

28 MINNESOTA

(5-9) Vikings sink to lower depths each week.

29 DETROIT

(1-13) History will forget how close the Lions came in so many games.

30 BUFFALO

(2-12) Defense might still be on the field.

31 CAROLINA

(1-13) Hello, No. 1 pick! Oh, Houston gets that?