HOUSTON – Six months ago, most folks hadn’t even heard of Jake Delhomme.
The NFL diehards probably knew he had knocked around the NFL since the late 1990s, had played in NFL Europe, had spent time backing up Aaron Brooks in New Orleans.
And that was about it.
And now? Well, what don’t we know about Delhomme?
We know his name is pronounced Duh-lome. We know he grew up and makes his home in Breaux Bridge, La., due east of Houston on Interstate 10, roughly two-thirds of the way to New Orleans.
We know Jake, his father, Jerry, and brother Jeff raise and train thoroughbred horses.
We know his grandfather, Herman Bienvenu – after suffering a stroke late in life – once received permission from his doctor to be taken by ambulance to watch Jake play a football game at Louisiana-Lafayette.
We know he was the backup to Kurt Warner – and threw four interceptions, without a touchdown – with the Amsterdam Admirals in 1998 but helped the Frankfurt Galaxy to the World Bowl title a year later.
We know he replaced former Lions quarterback Rodney Peete in the second half of Carolina’s season opener and has started every game since.
And we know Delhomme will be the Panthers’ quarterback Sunday when they meet the favored New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVIII.
What we also know – and what Delhomme knows as well – is that this Super Bowl is not all about Jake Delhomme, certainly not the way Super Bowl XXXI was about Brett Favre or Super Bowl XXXIII was about John Elway or Super Bowl XXIV was about Joe Montana.
“I’m not going to let it get that big for me,” Delhomme said Monday. “I’m not going to put it as all the pressure of the world, “This is the Super Bowl, you have to go out and play great.’ Certainly, I’m going to have to play well, but so will all other 45 guys that are going to dress out on Sunday.
“In these last three playoff games, the approach I’ve taken is be the same guy. Coach Fox preaches that to us all the time. I was the same guy last week in my preparation, I’m going to do the same thing again this week. I don’t need to try to win this by myself, I know that. I’ve got a couple of studs behind me, and I think I’ve got a few weapons to throw to. I’m just one link in this chain.”
That is exactly how coach John Fox and offensive coordinator Dan Henning likely will look at it when they complete the game plan.
Delhomme, 29, will get chances to throw to wide receivers Steve Smith and Muhsin Muhammad, but running backs Stephen Davis and DeShaun Foster will get as many – probably more – chances to run the ball. Especially if the Panthers get the lead or the game is close.
Fox likes to control the clock and keep his defense off the field. The 14-3 victory over Philadelphia in the NFC title game was the perfect example. Delhomme threw only 14 passes, three in the second half. But when the Panthers have needed Delhomme, he has provided Montana-like results.
Twelve of Carolina’s 16 regular-season games were decided by six points or fewer, and eight games were decided in the final two minutes. The Panthers tied NFL records with seven victories by three points or fewer and winning three in overtime.
And Delhomme played a major role in four of those games with late completions that went for touchdowns or set up scores.
In three playoff victories, he has completed 43 of 69 passes for 664 yards and three touchdowns, with one interception. His passer rating is 102.6.
Although Delhomme was not drafted and had thrown only 86 passes in six previous seasons as a backup in New Orleans, he never gave up on himself.
“I thought I could play football,” he said. “I started all four years in college and did some decent things, but sometimes if you’re not the tallest guy or the strongest arm, you just kind of get pushed off to the side. But one thing you can’t measure out of all those tests, you can’t measure someone’s heart. I thought I had a lot of heart and, given an opportunity, I could maybe do well. I did take some time.”
One more thing we know about Delhomme. It took time, but he made it.
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PHOTO (from KRT Photo Service, 202-383-6099):
Delhomme
AP-NY-01-26-04 2224EST
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