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Sports Watch
NO wonder the NFC All-Stars lost yesterday's Pro Bowl. They had trouble covering No. 88 for the AFC. It was double trouble for
NFC trying to cover
two No. 88sThere were two of them --Kansas City Chiefs' tight end Tony Gonzalez and Indianapolis Colts' wide receiver Marvin Harrison
Oakland quarterback Rich Gannon, the game's MVP, hit both No. 88s for touchdowns in the first two possessions as the AFC romped to a 38-17 victory before a sell-out crowd of 50,128 at Aloha Stadium.
Harrison also caught a touchdown pass from Colt teammate Peyton Manning, who took over for Gannon.
Fans saw duplicate numbers by the bunches as NFL officials decided to allow the players to keep their own uniform numbers for the first time in the Pro Bowl.
No more determining jersey numbers based on seniority -- number of years in the Pro Bowl or in the league.
"We did it because fans identify players with their numbers," said Bill McConnell of the NFL.
"I think it's what it should be. That's what the fans know us as," said Gonzalez, who had to wear No. 87 in last year's Pro Bowl because Harrison had first dibs on No. 88.
"I told him if I didn't have 88 this year, I'm going to beat him up. He got lucky," Gonzalez said with a laugh.
"I think it works well. We all get to wear the number we wore all season long," Harrison said. "It enables the fans to look for our numbers."
Two AFC wide receivers -- Buffalo's Eric Moulds and Rod Smith of Denver -- wore No. 80, but Smith left the game early with a shoulder sprain, so NFC defenders didn't see two No. 80s running around.
The AFC also had two 68s (Kevin Mawae of the Jets and the Chiefs' Will Shields) and two 72s (the Raiders' Lincoln Kennedy and the Titans' Brad Hopkins) playing on the offensive line.
The NFC had double jersey numbers sprinkled throughout the roster, including quarterbacks Donovan McNabb (Eagles) and Jeff Garcia (49ers), who both wear No. 5.
But the NFC really went overboard with three players wearing No. 24 -- Champ Bailey (Redskins), Michael Bates (Panthers) and Robert Griffith (Vikings), plus three No. 80s -- Cris Carter (Vikings), Stephen Alexander (Redskins) and Desmond Howard (Lions).
It could have been worse. Isaac Bruce of the St. Louis Rams also wears No. 80. But an injury kept him out of the Pro Bowl.
Gonzalez thought it was great to team up with Gannon once again. They were teammates at Kansas City.
"We got history together," said Gonzalez. "Me and Rich played together for two years. We know each other's moves and what each other's thinking. We talked all week about how to get open."
Gannon completed 12 of 14 passes for 160 yards -- all in the first quarter -- before sitting the rest of the game out because of an injury to his left shoulder which he sustained in the AFC championship game against Baltimore. Raiders' coach Jon Gruden thought Gannon's performance should silence any critics about his ability.
The AFC offense didn't lose a step either with Manning, who completed 16 of 22 passes for 150 yards and two touchdowns. By the way, Manning's jersey number is 18, the same as the Chiefs' Elvis Grbac, who finished up at quarterback for the AFC, which won for the ninth time in the last 11 years.
McConnell said the NFL will evaluate whether to continue using duplicate numbers in the Pro Bowl or not.
The players like it. Especially Harrison, who sat just a locker away from Gonzalez.
