Watch out NFL: the word out of Nashville is that Eddie George is healthy and can't wait to atone for his dismal 2001 season

Football Digest, Oct, 2002 by Larry Woody

WHO WAS THAT IMPOSTER, anyway? How dare he swipe that No. 27 blue-and-white Tennessee Titans jersey, take the field, and go through the mincing motions of its rightful owner, pile-driving running back Eddie George? Why, the very nerve of that ...

What's that? It really was Eddie George plodding around out there last season? The real Eddie George, a four-time All-Pro, famous and feared among opposing defenders who, in seasons past, tended to be used as cleat, wipes by the tackle-busting runner?

Yes, it was. It was as though Superman had dashed into a phone booth and emerged as mild-mannered Clark Kent. The cape looked familiar, but not much else.

Where did Eddie George go, and--more importantly, in terms of the Titans' prospects this season--when will he come back? It is no secret that as George goes, so go the Titans.

George led the team to the Super Bowl in 1999. He continued to put up impressive numbers in 2000 (1,509 yards on a league-high 403 carries) despite a series of nagging injuries, as the Titans made a return trip to the playoffs. But last season the injuries became more crippling, and as a consequence, George's production dipped significantly. He rushed for 939 yards and had a per-carry average of just 3.0. It was the first time he had been held to under 1,200 yards in his six NFL seasons.

When George dropped off, the Titans dropped out. They got off to a wobbly 0-3 start and never recovered. The once-mighty Titans finished at 7-9, a dizzying dive for a franchise that appeared on the verge of establishing itself among the league's elite.

"Nobody knew how bad Eddie was hurting," says Jeff Legwold, a veteran NFL writer for The Tennessean in Nashville who has covered George ever since the Titans made the Ohio State Heisman Trophy winner their first draft choice seven years ago. "Eddie is a very private person. He tends to keep things inside, and he never complains.

"I'm not sure that even his teammates fully understood. I know some of the fans and media didn't. Eddie kept on playing, keeping the pain private, and all a lot of people knew was that he was on the field and not getting the yards he used to get. Some questioned whether he was giving 100% and that really hurt Eddie. He has a lot of pride, and he tends to take stuff like that very hard. It was tough on him."

Among George's biggest critics was George himself. Once, while watching tapes of some of his games last season, he whispered the word: "Embarrassing."

"In some ways, I felt embarrassed just looking at it," George says. "I try not to be too hard on myself because I know I did my best. I was playing with half my body. Sometimes it didn't even look like me. I fell down easier, got knocked off my feet more, and didn't break tackles like I used to in the past."

George's difficulties in 2001 began even before the season started. He underwent offseason surgery on his right big toe, which had been previously injured and had caused him recurring problems. The surgery repaired a torn tendon that attached his big toe to his right foot. It may not sound like a big deal, but trainers note that your big toe affects every step you take, whether you're headed to the fridge or driving for the goal line. Says George, "l had a surgically repaired toe that wasn't ready for what I was asking it to do."

"Eddie wasn't able to generate any power," says Titans strength and conditioning coach Steve Watterson. "He couldn't push off like he had because the muscle had been inactive for so long. He couldn't create any power. That shortened his stride and caused him to compensate, which can lead to other things."

In the end, Eddie George was no longer, well, Eddie George. "Eddie basically had to learn to run all over again," says Titans coach Jeff Fisher. "Eddie puts a lot of emphasis on his offseason workouts--he's one of the hardest-working players I've ever seen in terms of conditioning--and when he wasn't able to get in the work that he was accustomed to, that affected him. He knew that he wasn't going into the season 100% ready, and that bothered him."

Titans wide receiver Kevin Dyson could relate to George's predicament. Dyson suffered a major knee injury in 2000 but rebounded last season with 54 catches.

"Eddie and I talked about it," says Dyson. "He asked me how long it was before I felt right when I ran. I said eight months, Well, eight months for Eddie last year was right at the end of the season. It isn't just the part where you were injured--it's your whole leg, your hips, and your back. It all goes together." Dyson then echoes the observation of Fisher: "You have to learn to run all over again."

This spring--after yet another offseason surgery, this time to remove cysts in his ankle--George traveled to Sanford, Calif., to work out with several other NFL players. They ran the rugged Bay Area terrain, lifted weights, watched tape, and worked on technique. When George returned to Nashville to begin preseason camp, he pronounced himself 100% ready to roll and still cringed at the memory of last season.