Football
Associated Press 18y

Shawne Merriman wins Defensive Rookie award

SAN DIEGO -- Peyton Manning, Donovan McNabb and Priest
Holmes were among the NFL players who found out the hard way why
Shawne Merriman is nicknamed "Lights Out."

The San Diego Chargers' outside linebacker counted Manning and
McNabb among his sack victims, and knocked Holmes out for the
season with a clean hit en route to winning The Associated Press
Defensive Rookie of the Year award Wednesday.

Merriman didn't earn a starting spot until just before
midseason, but his relentless style down the stretch earned him 28½
votes from a nationwide panel of sports writers and broadcasters
who cover the league. He easily beat Seattle linebacker Lofa
Tatupu, who got 16½.

"You would like to go to the playoffs and the Super Bowl as a
team, but with all I've worked for and put in, this is a big honor
for me," said Merriman, also one of six Chargers voted to the Pro
Bowl.

Merriman, the 12th pick overall in the NFL draft, exceeded coach
Marty Schottenheimer's expectations.

"He's an extremely talented young man who brings it every
snap," Schottenheimer said.

Merriman promised more.

"I had a meeting with Coach Schottenheimer the other day, and
he said that I would be destined for greatness if I keep working. I
said, `I put no limitations on how far I can take the game and how
much better I can get."

Merriman finished with a team-high 10 sacks among his 54
tackles. He made his biggest headlines when San Diego handed
Indianapolis its first loss in Game 14. Merriman sacked Manning
twice, including once with a big swipe at Manning's legs.

"I didn't know I took him completely off his feet with one
swipe. When that happened, I just looked and said, `Man, that was a
cool play.' It took me a while before I realized I still had to do
the 'Lights Out' dance because I didn't know I sacked him," the
extroverted Merriman said.

It was a hit by Merriman on Oct. 30 that gave Holmes a
season-ending neck injury.

All the players receiving votes played linebacker in some form
this season. Behind Merriman and Tatupu were Odell Thurman of
Cincinnati with four votes and DaMarcus Ware of Dallas with one.

While all of them were standouts, Merriman showed the most
explosiveness and made more spotlight-grabbing plays. As anyone
with the nickname "Lights Out" would expect.

After being picked 12th in the draft out of Maryland, Merriman
had a shaky start with the Chargers when his agent held him out of
offseason workouts until he signed a contract. Despite fears of
protracted negotiations, he missed only a week of training camp
before signing a deal potentially worth $15.73 million, with $9
million guaranteed.

As most first-round draft picks are forced to do, Merriman had
to take the team to dinner at an expensive restaurant, with the tab
coming to $32,000. Afterward, Merriman recalled, star running back
LaDainian Tomlinson got up and said, "Look, man, we're going to
need this guy," followed by applause.

"That gave me more of a reason to go out and do what the team
expected me to do," Merriman said.

He hurt his knee in the final exhibition game and missed the
season opener. He made up for it with a succession of big plays,
especially after becoming a starter on Oct. 23 at Philadelphia.

"I think anybody who goes as high as I did in the draft should
be planning to be a game-changer, point blank," he said. "I
figured somewhere down the line, if I learned fast enough and stuck
by these older guys, sit back and learn as much as I could, that I
could get out here and perform, that was really it. I've got a
bunch of great teammates, and you almost can't go wrong being
around those guys, with their years of experience."

Merriman is the first Chargers player to win the award. He also
is the third straight linebacker and fifth in the last six years to
win.

Last year's top rookie defender was Jonathan Vilma of the Jets.

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