Backup Steps to Front

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Stayin' Alive

The Redskins bring their 'A' game to Minnesota and throttle the Vikings at the Metrodome, 32-21, to take control of their playoff fate. Washington needs a victory over the Cowboys in its final game to squeeze into the postseason.

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The man with a front seat on that carpet is Collins. Yet early in the fourth quarter, after the Vikings cut their deficit to 25-14, Collins felt for an instant that the rug might be snatched out from under him. While trying to get off a quick snap to prevent the Vikings from having time to challenge a 23-yard completion to Santana Moss, Collins made exactly the kind of needless, but killing mistake that a veteran backup must avoid. He fumbled the hurry-up snap.

But Gibbs, on advice from coaches with replay access, challenged the play, claiming Minnesota had 12 men on the field. As proof, perhaps, that Gibbs's luck, on challenges, timeouts and when to go-for-it -- may have turned, the Redskins won the challenge.

"I thanked Coach Gibbs for bailing us out," said Collins. Of course, Mr. Backup has been doing most of the bailing lately.

Playing quarterback in the NFL is about recognition. For 10 years, Collins did not start a single game, but every day, as a Chief or Redskin, he stood on the field in practice and learned to recognize what he saw. Somewhere, during all those years, the pro game, despite all its speed, violence and apparent confusion, began to make sense to him. "I did so many drills all those years working on footwork, timing, getting things to happen as quickly as they need to in this offense," said Collins. "Sometimes, I felt like I was out of my comfort zone going at that speed. But I got there."

Collins arm isn't strong as Jackson's or his feet as nimble. But Collins understood what he saw in front of him; the Viking didn't. In the second quarter, Collins was back doing what he does best: recognizing. Throughout the NFL, the current trend is to isolate a superior wide receiver on a deep bomb and trust the best athlete to come down with the ball. In his starts, Campbell hesitated to risk such deep one-on-one throws, fearing they might be intercepted. Collins has no such luxury. When Collins spotted Moss alone racing up the sideline with rookie cornerback Marcus McCauley, he lobbed a perfectly pleasant but not particularly special spiral that either man might catch. Moss did. Ring up a 32-yard touchdown for a 16-0 Redskins lead. And credit it to recognition and the humble ability of a backup quarterback to let a star like Moss perform his adjust-to-the-bomb-in-flight specialty. "We have guys on the perimeter that can win," said Collins, who'll let them try.

Collins presents a fascinating paradox. While his athletic limits prevent him from doing much scrambling or attempting pass patterns that require a rifle arm -- in other words, while he tries to do considerably less than Campbell in a purely athletic sense -- Collins's grasp of the entire system actually allows Al Saunders to attempt far more in a strategic sense.

So, just how good is this Todd Collins? Gibbs doesn't pretend to know. "I'm thrilled to see him get his chance," he said.

Until Collins arrived, the Washington offense under the young still-learning Campbell never looked as smooth as it does now. Can a team so injured and emotionally exhausted actually be peaking? Or is the fuel almost gone?

Collins, who waited so long for this, prepared so achingly, thinks he knows. His tank is full.