National Football League

Sunday Wrap: Mike Glennon proves patience can pay off

Published Sep. 29, 2014 12:33 a.m. ET

Mike Garafolo

Mike Glennon wasn't as accepting of his fate this offseason as it seemed. Of course, who would be?

Who would be pleased with being demoted by a new regime after throwing 19 touchdown passes to only nine interceptions while leading a bad team to a .500 mark over the last half of the season? Who would smile while taking a backseat to a journeyman veteran who had started fewer games in the previous seven seasons combined than the incumbent started in just one year? Who wouldn't be bitter and angry?

Glennon was. He just didn't show it as he hoped his chance would come again.

It did on Sunday, and the second-year quarterback made the most of his filling in for the injured Josh McCown by leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a stunning 27-24 upset over the Pittsburgh Steelers, capped by Glennon's 5-yard touchdown pass to Vincent Jackson with 7 seconds remaining.

"I'm just proud of the way I handled it and stayed focused and kept working hard," Glennon told FOX Sports by phone before he and his teammates left Heinz Field, adding this when asked if he ever had to give himself a pep talk following McCown's arrival: "Yeah, I'd say so. It's never fun getting moved from the starter to the backup, but it's part of the business. ... Just stay focused. I'm a young player. Hopefully, I have a long career ahead of me and it was just a small bump in the road that ultimately will help me out in the long run."

That road has been rocky for the Buccaneers since Glennon arrived as a third-round pick last year.

Four games into the season, he was the starter after the Josh Freeman situation erupted. The Bucs lost five straight and then went on a three-game winning streak to begin their 4-4 finish. By the end of the year, coach Greg Schiano was gone and Glennon had a mixed resume to show new coach Lovie Smith and new general manager Jason Licht. It wasn't enough, as Smith backed McCown as his quarterback from the moment the veteran signed.

Glennon's agent, Joby Branion, said Sunday he had "several conversations" with Glennon after his demotion to get him to understand the new regime wanted a "known quantity" for now. Branion assured Glennon he'd get another chance with the Bucs as long as he remained patient.

During a brutal, "embarrassing" (Smith's word) Week 3 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, McCown suffered a thumb injury, and that led to Glennon being back under center in Pittsburgh. He threw for a career-high 302 yards and led the game-winning drive, giving Smith his first victory with the Bucs.

But Glennon was realistic after this one. He knows his play was anything but perfect (he completed only 50 percent of his passes) and realizes a failed drive with just under 2 minutes left could've been the last one of the game.

"I would've had a hard time sleeping tonight," said Glennon, who threw three straight incompletions to end that drive.

But the Bucs' defense forced a three-and-out, giving Glennon the ball back. He threw a gorgeous pass to newly signed Louis Murphy for 41 yards and three plays later hit Jackson, who laid out to make the catch in the left side of the end zone in front of the Steelers' William Gay.

"Right when we got the play call, I knew it was going to be a touchdown. It was a great call by our (quarterbacks coach Marcus Arroyo)," Glennon said before being critical of himself once again by adding, "Vince did a great job. I made it way too hard on him, but he's a talented player and he saved me."

Now, Glennon might get the chance to save himself over the next few weeks. He can thank his pep talks to himself and his refusal to let his emotions take over for that.

"I just kept working, kept preparing to be the starter, even though I knew I wasn't going to be playing," Glennon said. "I wanted to be ready when I got my opportunity. I got my opportunity today, and I'm glad I was prepared for it."

DOLPHINS CAP 'CRAZY' WEEK ABROAD

Controversy swirls around team. Team wins a game nonetheless. Team blames media. Says game result is an indication reports were way off base.

That's the formula for overcoming adversity in the NFL.

So it was for the Miami Dolphins after their 38-14 thumping of the Oakland Raiders on Sunday in London. Still, the players were aware coach Joe Philbin's refusing to say Ryan Tannehill was his starting quarterback created a story line for reporters to chase all week.

"It was a little crazy, though I think it was crazier outside the locker room than it was inside," wide receiver Brian Hartline, who led Miami with six catches for 74 yards, told FOX Sports from Wembley Stadium. "I understand perception sometimes is reality, but it wasn't in this case. We moved forward, we had some conversations and then everybody put it behind us."

They can certainly put any talk of Matt Moore taking over for Tannehill behind them -- for now. Tannehill was 23-for-31 for 278 yards and two touchdowns on Sunday, and he got to those numbers with "good rhythm, good tempo and good command," Philbin said. "He was very decisive out there."

Hartline also noted Tannehill's rhythm, command and speed of decision-making, so if anyone is looking for cues as to what has specifically troubled Philbin about Tannehill's play, it seems to be the overall speed at which he's operating. To his credit, Tannehill admitted he wasn't playing up to his own standards and "to finally come out and do that felt good."

Hartline said it will feel good after the bye and into the leadup to the game against the Green Bay Packers in two weeks to not have to compare the reps in practice to what he was hearing from reporters or teammates in the locker room and beyond.

"A lot of guys, at lunch time, might have been having conversations about something in the media, but overall guys took to their jobs and got things accomplished," he said.

Asked whether he felt the need to say anything to Tannehill, Hartline said he hadn't even spoken to his quarterback yet and deadpanned, "If anything, I told him he should've thrown me the ball more."

FIVE QUICK THOUGHTS

1. In addition to Glennon's play and the victory on Sunday, the Bucs also have to be pleased with the way McCown reacted on the sideline. According to what the FOX cameras caught, combined with McCown's overall reputation as a team-first guy, it was genuine enthusiasm for the team and Glennon. It didn't look phony at all. There's a chance he could be sidelined for a while and that Glennon could show the Bucs the time is right to turn the offense back over to him for good. Based on McCown's reactions on Sunday and what we already know about him, he figures to be more than supportive. "All week, he's been there for me. That's just who he is," Glennon said. "You can't say enough about him as a person, as a teammate. He's a team-first guy and wants the best for the team and wants us to win. Hopefully I'll get to see the clips of him celebrating. I'm really happy to be able to be his teammate."

2. There really doesn't seem to be any good explanation for why the Dallas Cowboys' defense is playing so well, other than the fact their players are going hard and playing aggressively. On paper, they're just not good enough to shut down the New Orleans Saints the way they did for much of the game on Sunday night. But cue the old adage that they don't play games on paper because that's very true for Dallas so far. In fact, the shutout of the Saints over the first two quarters marked the third time in four games the Cowboys have held an opponent scoreless for a half.

3. The Buffalo Bills are going to have to make a decision on quarterback EJ Manuel soon. He had two opportunities to lead a comeback on Sunday and couldn't get it done, with his second attempt ending with an interception on an overthrown ball for Robert Woods. Manuel had an 80-yard touchdown pass to Mike Williams earlier in the fourth quarter, but he struggles with the deep ball overall. The Bills have weapons at Manuel's disposal; he just isn't using them correctly. Sammy Watkins, who made a tough catch for a touchdown early in the game, was targeted only once in the second half. Of all the quarterback controversies around the league right now, this one might be the most underplayed. Kyle Orton is lurking.

4. Aaron Rodgers telling the Green Bay Packers' fans to relax and then playing as calmly as he did on Sunday was so fitting. I've mentioned on FOX Sports Live and America's Pregame the Packers' staff has privately said they believed Rodgers was just about to take that next step to being mentioned among the game's all-time greats when he went down with a collarbone injury last year. (They said it privately because they don't want to make such grand statements publicly

to put undue pressure on a player.) That's how good they thought he was playing and commanding the offense at the time. Rodgers and the offense was slow out of the gate this year, but his play in Sunday's 38-17 victory over the Chicago Bears was in line with those grand statements. The play that illustrated it the best was Rodgers' sensational touchdown pass to Davante Adams, even though it was negated by a penalty. Rodgers was scrambling and not even looking downfield just before he spotted Adams while falling down. Amazing play. Go find and watch the replay if you haven't seen it yet.

5. Let's just take a moment to enjoy Steve Smith's quote from his postgame press conference after he helped the Baltimore Ravens to a win over his former team, the Carolina Panthers: "That film is a coaching session. I'm 35 years old, and I ran around those boys like they were schoolyard kids." Now, we can debate whether a player should have something classier to say after a game, but like Smith said, he's 35. He's like a grandfather who just doesn't care who he offends when he speaks his mind. He's been around long enough. He's earned the right to drop juicy quotes like that. And to promise the "blood and guts" in his first meeting with the Panthers and then to deliver the way he did (seven catches for 139 yards and two touchdowns) was well worth our time in hyping this matchup.

TEN EVEN QUICKER THOUGHTS

1. Brandon Marshall: The most awkward, backward-falling touchdown since Ahmad Bradshaw fell on his rump to win Super Bowl XLVI.

2. Joe Lombardi: Perfect play call by the Detroit Lions' offensive coordinator on the Matt Stafford keeper to clinch the game. That's the last thing the Jets' defense expected in that situation.

3. Dennis Allen: An Associated Press reporter tweeted and then deleted a report about Allen being fired by Tuesday. Though the reporter jumped the gun, the Allen watch is on in Oakland.

4. Mo Claiborne: This young man's mettle is being tested. Jerry Jones, who started Claiborne's week on the wrong foot by criticizing him publicly, said late Sunday night the belief is the former first-rounder tore his ACL.

5. Tony Romo: He's completed 69.5 percent of his passes through four games, which is extremely impressive until we recall he was at 72.4 percent through four games last year before dropping to 60.5 percent over his last 11 games. In other words, stay tuned.

6. Atlanta Falcons: Can anybody figure this team out yet? It doesn't have any kind of identity yet.

7. Teddy Bridgewater: The Minnesota Vikings had better be careful with his ankle on a short week. His exciting debut as a starter shouldn't result in them rushing him back onto the field Thursday night if he's not all the way ready.

8. LeSean McCoy: Remember all of that stuff about how he finally saw the light on Chip Kelly's methods and the two of them were singing "Kumbaya" by season's end last year? Get ready for a rewrite if he doesn't start picking up more than 17 yards on the ground in a game.

9. Philip Rivers: He won the award for comeback player of the year last season (even though I'm still not quite sure what he came back from). The way he's playing, the next award on his mantle could be an MVP trophy.

10. Geno Smith: He should know by now there are cameras everywhere, especially at MetLife Stadium on Sundays. He's allowed a mental lapse and he apologized quickly for cursing at a fan. He can't make that mistake again.