Super Bowl XXXIV • Site: Georgia Dome • Kickoff: 6:25 p.m. EST Sunday • TV: ABC • Line: St. Louis Rams by 7½ • Discuss the Game • Who's Going to Win?

By Leonard Shapiro
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000; Page D1

ATLANTA, Jan. 29 – "Got to go to work" has been the St. Louis Rams' mantra since training camp in July. Sunday, they will have their work cut out for them against the Tennessee Titans, who have been calling themselves "destiny's darlings" throughout the week leading up to Super Bowl XXXIV at the Georgia Dome.

Both teams completed their final preparations today for a game that will be played in the comfort of an indoor stadium located in a city being gripped by icy weather. Nearby interstates were closed for a while today, and many Super Bowl revelers were not able to get here as planned because of numerous flight cancellations Friday and today at Hartsfield International Airport.

The outdoor temperature is supposed to reach the middle 40s by Sunday, but in the dome Tennessee's defense will face considerable heat from the Rams' explosive offense. It's headed by up-from-the-bootstraps quarterback Kurt Warner and features a deep cast of big-play opportunists – the most prominent being running back Marshall Faulk and wide receiver Isaac Bruce – who often turn apparent five-yard gains into 50-yard extravaganzas.

The AFC champion Titans got here in nearly the hardest way possible, with three victories in the playoffs, two of them on the road and two of them aided by instant-replay officiating decisions. A replay-confirmed 75-yard kickoff return for a touchdown on a trick-play lateral sent the Buffalo Bills home. A replay reversed a no-call on an apparent 87-yard punt return on which Indianapolis's Terrence Wilkins stepped out of bounds by inches and helped the Titans turn away the Colts in Indianapolis.

But any questions about Tennessee's somewhat fluky victories in those games were answered last week in a dominant performance on the road in the AFC championship game. The Titans beat the Jacksonville Jaguars for the third time this season, using the same formula that helped produce 16 victories in 19 games overall – a grind-it-out running game, including 91 yards from quarterback Steve McNair and a defense that helped create six turnovers.

The Rams nevertheless are favored by seven points, and that's just the way the Titans like it.

"We've become accustomed to outsiders not giving us respect," said running back Eddie George, who rushed for 1,304 yards this season.

This matchup of the teams with the NFL's best records this season hardly could have been imagined when the squads headed for training camp last summer. The Rams (15-3) were coming off a 4-12 season in Coach Dick Vermeil's second year, and despite denials to the contrary now, his job security was tenuous at best, especially if the Rams had started slowly.

Vermeil – who had been out of coaching and, in his words, "stealing money" as a TV broadcaster for 14 years – was in this game once before, with the 1980 Philadelphia Eagles. They lost to the Oakland Raiders, 27-10, in Super Bowl XV that season, and within two years he was out of coaching, a victim of his own seering intensity and coaching burnout.

Vermeil has said he plans to honor the remaining two years on his contract, but there has been speculation he could resign if the Rams win Sunday.

Before this season, Tennessee also was treading water after finishing its third consecutive 8-8 season under extremely difficult conditions. There was a lame-duck year in Houston after the team's move to Tennessee had been announced, followed by a year of playing "home" games in Memphis, and then last season playing at Vanderbilt's stadium. Fan support was lukewarm, and the team essentially worked out of a trailer park at its temporary practice facility.

Worse for Coach Jeff Fisher, Titans owner Bud Adams said publicly there would be a change if the team did not make the playoffs this season. Fisher has insisted he never considered that to be any extra added pressure because: "My number one goal was always to get Mr. Adams to the Super Bowl. I'm very excited for him."

With new uniforms, a new nickname and a new stadium, the Titans went undefeated at home, including a 24-21 victory over the Rams on Halloween, when neither team played particularly well.

The Rams did not distinguish themselves last week, scoring only one touchdown in an 11-6 victory over Tampa Bay in the NFC title game. Still, they found a way to win, and Vermeil said this week his team also found out it could prevail with defense as well as its robust offense.

"We got away from what we do best in" the NFC championship game, St. Louis offensive coordinator Mike Martz said. "I made a mistake. I was too conservative."

The Titans have used man-to-man pass coverage for most of the season, relying on their defensive line, led by Pro Bowl rookie defensive end Jevon Kearse, to hurry opposing quarterbacks into rushed throws. The Bucs did that against the Rams a week ago. If the Rams offensive line can protect, the Rams swift corps of wide receivers could do major damage.

The Rams likely will test Titans free safety Anthony Dorsett, the son of former Dallas Cowboys great Tony Dorsett. He replaces injured starter Marcus Robertson, who broke his leg last week.

"If they want to try Anthony, that's fine with me," Dorsett said this week. "This is not my first football game. I need more interceptions anyway. If they want to find a way to beat me, go ahead. If they come at me, I'll make the plays. Who knows, make enough plays, and I might be the Super Bowl MVP."

Super Bowl Notes: The Titans were scheduled for a final walk-through at the Georgia Dome today but canceled it because of icy roads. Instead, they worked out in a tent next to their team hotel that had been used earlier in the week for media interviews. . . . The Rams spent their day in meetings and did not have a walk-through. . . .

Jesse Jackson will conduct a brief demonstration outside the Georgia Dome at 3 p.m. to protest the continued use of a confederate battle flag in the Georgia state flag, just as he did when the game was last played here in 1994. "It's something the league really should not allow," Jackson said today. "Most of the players on that field are greatly offended, just as I am offended." Asked if he'll attend the game, Jackson said: "Of course."