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In the 2001 AFC championship game, the Pittsburgh Steelers out-gained the New England Patriots by 47 yards, owned a plus-eight advantage in first downs, averaged nearly one yard per snap more than their opponent, and still managed to lose the title contest by a 24-17 count.

The culprit: A Chernobyl-like special teams meltdown in which the Steelers allowed Troy Brown to return a punt 55 yards for a touchdown following a bizarre penalty on the Pittsburgh coverage unit, and in which the Patriots also returned a blocked field goal for a touchdown as well.

The overall domination on special teams by the Patriots led Steelers coach Bill Cowher, whose first job in the NFL was as a kicking-game coach and who excelled in that area as a player in the league for six seasons, to dump assistant coach Jay Hayes. For the most part, under successor Kevin Spencer, the Steelers have enjoyed strong special teams play. But then, in last Saturday's divisional-round game at Heinz Field, New York Jets return ace Santana Moss smoked Pittsburgh with a 75-yard punt runback for a touchdown.

And for those Steelers with the club long enough to recall the 2001 special teams debacle against the Patriots, the special teams letdown re-opened an old wound, and reinforced the significance of the kicking game in the playoffs.

"It's just natural that, with playoff games usually being close and maybe determined by just one play, every mistake is (magnified)," allowed Steelers linebacker Joey Porter. "And since we're talking about a lot of yards changing hands with special teams, in terms of field position and stuff, well, those mistakes can really be big. It's hard enough to win once you get to this level, and you don't want to give up any cheap scores, you know?"

This weekend's conference championship games feature four of the premier special teams mentors in the league -- Spencer (Pittsburgh), Brad Seely (New England), Joe DeCamillis (Atlanta) and John Harbaugh (Philadelphia) -- and you can bet that all of them spent part of this week hammering home to their charges the critical X-factor the kicking game can play in determining who advances to Super Bowl XXXIX.

Compounding the importance of special teams could be the weather. With cold and snow predicted in both championship game sites, field position becomes crucial, and there are very few elements in any game that control field position as much as special teams do. A long punt or kickoff runback, an errant field goal, one of those incessant penalties for an illegal block in the back, all translate into so-called "hidden yardage." Real estate gained and lost this weekend on special teams could well determine the outcomes.

There have already been some great plays and gaffes on special teams in the '04 playoffs. Among them: a missed field goal in overtime by San Diego rookie kicker Nate Kaeding; two field goal misses in the final two minutes of regulation by Jets placement specialist Doug Brien; the 75-yard punt return for a touchdown by Moss; a 68-yard punt return, and 152 yards on three punt runbacks, by Atlanta's Allen Rossum; a botched fake field goal by the Minnesota Vikings.

And that doesn't account for the missed tackles, or perhaps standout blocks, that took place in any of the first eight playoff contests, and which went unnoticed, except by the special teams coaches of the clubs involved. The big plays, of course, are the returns, and every franchise playing this weekend features at least one standout in that regard.

For the Falcons' Rossum, who returns both kickoffs and punts and who had 1,707 yards combined on runbacks in 2004, the NFC championship game against a Philadelphia club for which he once played represents the opportunity of a lifetime.

"It's the dream of every return man to run one back (for a touchdown) in a game like this, a conference championship or a Super Bowl," he said. "Maybe this is the week."

Around the league

	Adam Vinatieri Kicker New England Patriots Profile
	2004 SEASON STATISTICS FG Att PAT Att Pts Long 31 33 48 48 141 48

Everyone knows about the kicking game horrors at Heinz Field where, in four seasons, the longest field goal converted was 48 yards. But since Adam Vinatieri has knocked home the winning field goal in two of the last three Super Bowls, one would think the New England star has (pardon the pun) a leg up in any clutch situation on Sunday evening, right? Well, maybe, but Vinatieri hasn't been as sure a thing in the playoffs as many people assume. In fact, he has converted 21 of 28 postseason attempts, a success rate of 75 percent. During the regular season, though, Vinatieri has been considerably better, with a career conversion rate of 82.1 percent (243 of 296). In '04, he enjoyed a career-best season, converting 31 of 33 tries, for a gaudy 93.9 percent success rate. The average length of Vinatieri's 21 playoff conversions is 32.1 yards, 10 of those were from less than 30 yards. The average length of Vinatieri's seven misses is 43.1 yards, and he is just six-for-11 from 40 yards or longer. His misses have come from 31, 36, 44, 46, 47, 48 and 50 yards. Notable, though, is that Vinatieri has converted four of his eight attempts from 45 yards or more. The Pats star has made at least one field goal in 10 consecutive postseason outings, three games shy of the league record, held by Toni Fritsch during his career with Dallas and Houston. One final Vinatieri item: The nine-year veteran is in the final year of his contract and, while there have been plenty of discussions between New England officials and agent Neil Cornrich, the two sides remain apart. A Patriots staff member we trust told ESPN.com this week that the team is prepared to use the "franchise" marker, if necessary, to retain the clutch kicker.

It seemed a bit redundant on Thursday when the Tampa Bay Bucs hired former Oakland Raiders offensive line coach Aaron Kromer and handed him the title of "senior assistant." Kromer is anything but "senior," at just 37 years old, and with only four seasons of league experience on his résumé. Tampa Bay already has an outstanding offensive line mentor in Bill Muir, who also holds down the offensive coordinator post, and who is a very close confidant of head coach Jon Gruden. But there was a method to the madness of Gruden and general manager Bruce Allen, who hired Kromer at Oakland in 2001, and who have followed his career closely. For one thing, Muir has only one season remaining on his contract, and there are some indications that he will retire after the 2005 campaign. So the Bucs could spend '05 grooming Kromer as his successor. And, thanks to ESPN colleague Chris Mortensen, whose excavation skills know no bounds, this insight: Muir is suffering from a serious and painful back condition, one that affects his spine, and might require surgery. In fact, Gruden announced Thursday evening that neither Muir nor defensive line coach Rod Marinelli will accompany the Bucs to Mobile, Ala., next week, where they will coach in the annual Senior Bowl game. As for the potential addition of Paul Hackett to the Tampa Bay staff, Gruden, ever the historian, is impressed by the glowing 91-54 record the former Jets staffer has compiled as an offensive coordinator in the league. Current quarterbacks coach John Shoop signed just a one-year contract in Tampa for 2004, might look to move on, and Hackett could replace him.

Timing is everything in life, and in the NFL as well, and Mike Heimerdinger and Scott Linehan would probably second that emotion. In a surprise and incredibly abrupt move, Heimerdinger left the Tennessee Titans on Wednesday, in a lateral switch, to become the Jets offensive coordinator. The same evening, Linehan made a similar jump, joining Nick Saban's staff with the Miami Dolphins after three seasons in Minnesota. But while the moves were lateral as far as job titles, that is hardly the case in terms of finances for Linehan and Heimerdinger. After averaging about $300,000 per year with the Vikings, Linehan signed a contract in Miami that will pay him about $850,000 per season. And Heimerdinger became the newest member of the seven-figure salary fraternity among NFL assistants, getting a three-year deal that averages about $1.05 million. According to figures compiled by the NFL Coaches Association, defensive coordinators were far ahead of their offensive counterparts in 2004. The defensive chiefs averaged $556,000 while the offensive coordinators were at $416,000, or roughly 25 percent less. Looks like the trend toward fatter contracts for assistants -- which is an area that has represented one of the biggest payroll escalations for owners league wide -- has skewed to the offensive side for now. Former Jacksonville offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave, whose play-calling was openly criticized by Jaguars players in 2004, bumped his salary from $300,000 to about $500,000 by moving to the Washington Redskins. And that was despite accepting a demotion to quarterbacks coach and after being fired by the Jaguars.

	LaMont Jordan Running Back New York Jets Profile
	2004 SEASON STATISTICS Rush Yds TD Rec Yds TD 93 479 2 15 112 0

Look for the Raiders, whose miserable running game ranked dead last in the NFL in 2004 at an average of 80.9 yards per game, to make a run at LaMont Jordan when the Jets backup becomes an unrestricted free agent in less than two months. The only misgiving about Jordan, who has already been closely studied by some Oakland coaches and team officials, is whether he can be the kind of workhorse back favored by head coach Norv Turner. Under the Raiders coach, the feature back almost always gets at least 325 carries. Jordan averaged just 65.5 carries in his four seasons with the Jets and never got more than 93 rushes. But the Raiders like his power, his deceptive speed to the outside, and are desperate to upgrade the position. Oakland used a lot of backs in '04 -- Amos Zereoue, Zack Crockett, Tyrone Wheatley, Justin Fargas and J.R. Redmond -- and none of them was effective. "We're not lining up with that bunch again (in 2005), I can promise you that," said one Raiders staffer. Oakland also likes Buffalo tailback Travis Henry, a lot, but his penchant for fumbling concerns the Raiders. The Bills, of course, have given Henry and his agent permission to speak to other teams about a trade. Among the veteran backs who are, or might be available, the Raiders have no interest in Reuben Droughns of Denver, who also has permission to seek a deal.

If the Steelers and Atlanta Falcons are to spring upsets in their respective conference championship games on Sunday, each will likely need a fairly anonymous player to lead(-block) them to victory. The fullbacks for the two underdog teams, Dan Kreider of Pittsburgh and Atlanta's Fred McCrary, are among the very best running game lead-blockers in the league. It's unlikely the Falcons can run the ball with consistency and effectiveness unless McCrary gets into the grille of Eagles middle linebacker Jeremiah Trotter. An eight-year veteran journeyman, McCrary was nothing short of sensational as the Falcons ran for 327 yards in last Saturday's divisional-round dismantling of the St. Louis Rams. What makes his performance more remarkable is that McCrary was just a desperation addition by the Falcons in December, a player signed after Atlanta lost three fullbacks (including potential Pro Bowl performer Justin Griffith) to injuries during the season. Out of football all year, McCrary reported in terrific shape, assimilated the playbook quickly, and has been a real steal. Time after time last week, he blew up Rams linebackers, rooting them out of the hole. In hindsight, Kreider probably should have been the fullback on the ESPN.com all-pro team a few weeks ago. The five-year veteran is one tough hombre and he figures to have a lot of train wreck-level collisions with the New England linebackers this week. Between them, McCrary and Kreider have logged just 51 carries in 13 combined NFL seasons. But their coaches know they mean a lot more than that to their teams.

Keep an eye on two ailing right offensive tackles in the weekend's contests. Both Jon Runyan of Philadelphia and Todd Weiner of Atlanta will be operating at far less than 100 percent physically. And both face fierce pass rushers in Jevon Kearse and Patrick Kerney. Neither team can much afford to be without its starting right tackle, since both are thin in terms of depth at the position.

	Michael Vick Quarterback Atlanta Falcons Profile
	2004 SEASON STATISTICS Att Comp PaTD RuTD Int Rat 321 181 14 3 12 78.1

The consensus entering Sunday's NFC conference title matchup is that, if crafty and creative Philadelphia defensive coordinator Jim Johnson can conjure up a scheme that forces Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick to beat him from the pocket, the Eagles will advance to the Super Bowl. One guy who disagrees with that rationale, not surprisingly, is Vick. "If it comes down to the left arm," Vick said, "we'll be ready. Trust me on that. It's something I pride myself on, being very efficient in the passing game and getting guys involved, and throwing touchdown passes. I've been studying all week and will be prepare. And if it boils down to us (having to) throw the ball 50 times, then I'll be ready for it." Perhaps so but, in his four-year NFL career, Vick has never attempted 50 passes in a game. In fact, his average number of attempts in 39 starts (counting playoffs) is actually less than half of 50. Vick has attempted 24.2 passes per game. He had 30 or more attempts in just six of his 39 starts. In 12 starts, he logged fewer than 20 attempts.

Pretty good evidence that the Baltimore Ravens will switch to a 4-3 defensive front under new coordinator Rex Ryan: Star pass rusher Terrell Suggs, who played strong-side linebacker in the 3-4 scheme, has already been told he'll be playing with his hand on the ground, at defensive end, in 2005. Suggs, who recorded 22½ sacks in his first two NFL seasons, is excited about the change. Ryan also feels the move back to the 4-3 will be a good one for linebacker Ray Lewis, protect him more, and allow him to flow to the football from sideline to sideline.

Scouts are mentioning what they are terming the "Tedford Factor" as they begin to assess University of California quarterback Aaron Rodgers for the 2005 draft. The reference, of course, is to Cal head coach and noted quarterback developer Jeff Tedford. The allusion, though, isn't necessarily a flattering one. Tedford has worked wonders for quarterbacks at the college level, upgrading their games dramatically, and transforming fairly ordinary players into stars. But those same players -- Akili Smith, Joey Harrington, A.J. Feeley, Kyle Boller, among others -- haven't exactly translated their college success yet to the pro ranks. Rodgers still figures to be a top 10 selection, and maybe even the first overall choice, in the '05 draft. But for now, at least, there is a definite caveat emptor approach to analyzing his talents.

Coaching carousel: The Raiders, who must fill the vacancy created when Kromer went to Tampa Bay this week, on Thursday met with Tony Wise, ESPN.com has learned. The veteran line coach, with 16 seasons of NFL experience on his résumé, worked for the Dolphins the past four seasons. … Dolphins head coach Nick Saban, who continues to fill out his staff, still wants Hudson Houck of San Diego as his offensive line coach. Houck, whose contract expires at the end of the month, could return to the Chargers, but only under the right circumstances and for the right money. He will explore options next week during Senior Bowl week. … Mike McCarthy of New Orleans is now the new hot commodity among offensive coordinators. He has huddled with at least two teams, Detroit and Jacksonville, seeking new coordinators. And, with Tennessee now having a vacancy, could draw some interest from Titans coach Jeff Fisher. … Speaking of the Titans, they dodged a bullet when defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz decided to stay on with a contract extension. Schwartz, who interviewed for the San Francisco 49ers head coach job, came very close to joining Saban's staff. That would have left the Titans and Fisher scrambling to fill both coordinator spots. … It now looks like Saban will choose either Tampa Bay secondary coach Mike Timlin or New England linebackers aide Dean Pees as his coordinator. … There are whispers that Terry Robiskie, who served as the interim head coach in Cleveland after Butch Davis' departure, could stay on as the offensive coordinator on Romeo Crennel's staff if New England's defensive coordinator indeed gets the job. … Rams coach Mike Martz could have a difficult time filling out his special teams opening. Larry Pasquale, Bobby April and the recently dismissed Mike Stock were all regarded as special teams gurus before going to work for Martz. All struggled in their respective Rams tenures and all ended up being canned by Martz. One reason all three failed: Martz historically does not permit his special teams coaches to use top players in the kicking game. … There now figure to be 13 teams in 2005 with new offensive coordinators.

Punts: It's still a long shot that Pro Bowl wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad returns to the Carolina Panthers in 2005. After all, the Panthers owe Muhammad a $10 million roster bonus in early March, and the veteran will be 32 in May. But agent Joel Segal and general manager Marty Hurney will huddle at the Senior Bowl next week to see if there is any way a deal can be struck. … The Colts will at least consider adding a conventional fullback to their roster in 2005. The rationale is that, if they are going to continue to have to play cold-weather games in postseason, where they are required to run the ball, having a lead-blocking fullback might be necessary. … One reason that running backs coach Dave Atkins was fired by the Saints was the feeling that he didn't do enough to keep star tailback Deuce McAllister in shape. Saints head coach Jim Haslett has been less than happy about McAllister's extra weight each of the last two seasons. … The Cowboys might switch standout right offensive tackle Flozell Adams to the left side next season. That might allow Jacob Rogers, a second-round pick this year but a guy who struggled trying to make the transition from the left side to the right, to move into the lineup. … In last week's divisional-round game, Vick became the first quarterback since Bob Griese in 1973 to lead his team to a playoff victory while post more rushing than passing yards. … Philadelphia's Andy Reid is just the third coach in league history to record a playoff victory in five straight years. … Green Bay figures to make sweeping changes in its defensive lineup next season. Coach Mike Sherman began the overhaul off the field, firing secondary coach Kurt Schottenheimer on Thursday evening. … Phil Savage, the new general manager in Cleveland, said this week that he is keeping an open mind about the future of Browns quarterback Jeff Garcia. There aren't many people in the league, though, who believe the veteran quarterback will return in '05. … Browns pro personnel director Jeremy Green could join his father, Dennis Green, in Arizona.

The last word: "It'll take some time. My two kids couldn't care less and they're going to remind me of that real fast. That will help. I've made big kicks. I've missed big kicks. I have a pretty good perspective. I know I'll be OK. I just feel bad for my teammates." -- Jets kicker Doug Brien after missing two potential game-winning field goals in a divisional-round loss at Pittsburgh last weekend.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com. To check out Len's chat archive, click here .