Brock a rock for Colts since Birds pinched him over pennies

MIAMI - Raheem Brock is proof that the Eagles do occasionally get it right when it comes to evaluating defensive linemen. Unfortunately, he also is proof that they occasionally get it wrong when it comes to managing their salary cap.

The Eagles selected Brock in the seventh round of the 2002 draft, only to later tell the Dobbins Tech and Temple product to take a hike before he ever reported to training camp.

He will make his 68th straight start for the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday night in Super Bowl XLI.

Feeling they had gotten shortchanged by the league in their allotment of rookie pool money that year, the Eagles weren't in the mood to haggle with their late-round picks. When they offered Brock a slightly below-market signing bonus ($26,000) and his agent had the audacity to ask for a few more dollars ($29,000), the Eagles rescinded their offer and relinquished their rights.

Brock was devastated at the time. Getting drafted by the Eagles had been a dream come true. A hometown kid playing for the hometown team he grew up cheering for; the team his father, Zachary Dixon, played for in its 1980 Super Bowl season. A hometown kid with a young daughter he could watch grow up while pursuing his NFL dream. Then the dream, at least the Philadelphia part of it, died.

"It was tough," Brock said yesterday at Super Bowl Media Day. "Any guy that grows up watching his hometown team and then gets drafted by them, you're excited. You want to play for them. Then things happened.

"Everything happens for a reason. I learned early that this is a business. The NFL is a business. I had to do what I had to do, and I'm happy to be where I'm at."

Shortly after the Eagles relinquished their rights to Brock, he signed with the Colts. General manager Bill Polian figured that, at the very least, Brock would be a pretty good special-teams contributor. But he turned out to be much more than that.

The 6-4, 274-pounder started six games at left end as a rookie and has started every game since, including 19 this season at left tackle. The guy the Eagles kissed goodbye over $3,000 signed a 5-year, $23.6 million deal with the Colts last March that included an $8 million signing bonus.

"That was big for me, man," Brock said. "I came a long way. It took a lot of hard work to get to that point. I'm just pleased to still be here and be in the situation I'm in. To still be healthy. To have avoided serious injuries. I mean, it's a blessing.

"I used [the Eagles not signing him] as motivation when I first got here. I came in and just tried to take care of my business. I studied my playbook, studied hard. I tried to go out there and do the best I could. It paid off for me."

Brock is one of three former Temple players who will be playing in Super Bowl XLI, along with Colts defensive tackle Dan Klecko and Bears fullback Jason McKie.

"That's a once-in-a-lifetime thing, man," Brock said. "To have three guys [from Temple] in the Super Bowl, it's great for the school."

During his first four seasons, the Colts used Brock much like the Eagles did Darren Howard this year, lining him up at end on first and second down, then moving him inside to tackle in their nickel package. He developed into a good run defender and registered 6 1/2 sacks in both 2004 and '05.

This season, injuries at tackle forced the Colts to move the undersized Brock inside full-time.

"It's been tough, it's been a tough year," said Brock, whose unit allowed a league-worst 5.3 yards per carry in the regular season. "A lot of teams have been running the ball on us. They know we're a small defensive line. So they're going to run on us.

"Learning all of the techniques and fundamentals of tackle was tough for me. But Booger [McFarland, who was acquired in an October trade from Tampa Bay] helped me out and Montae [Raegor, injured tackle] helped me out. I was able to come along pretty good late in the season. I'm doing fine now. We're right where we want to be."

Brock hardly is the only undersized player on the Colts' defense. Ends Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis are 265 and 245, respectively. Middle linebacker Gary Brackett is just 5-11. Weakside linebacker Cato June is listed at 225, but the former safety is at least 5 pounds lighter than that.

Bolstered by the return of free safety Bob Sanders, the Colts, who allowed a league-worst 173 rushing yards per game during the regular season, have given up just 73.3 per game in the playoffs. They have held their three playoff opponents to 3.6 yards per carry.

"We're undersized, so we have to use our speed and quickness," Brock said. "We have good, explosive defensive linemen that come off the ball fast and get after the quarterback. Our linebackers fly around and make tackles. Same with our secondary.

"The key is being solid with your technique and fundamentals. If I lose my fundamentals even a little bit, I know I'll get dominated out there. I don't want to let that happen."

Brock long ago put his rejection by the Eagles behind him. But Philadelphia remains a big part of his life. He still lives there in the offseason and remains close to Temple and Dobbins. In November, he brought nearly three dozen Dobbins players and coaches out to Indianapolis for the Eagles-Colts game. He gave them a tour of the Colts' training facility. He took them out to dinner the night before the game.

"I try to go back and do things in the community with the kids," Brock said. "I go back to [Dobbins] a lot. I talk to players. Try to give them some positive feedback. Do positive things for them. It's tough enough already for them, coming from the inner city." *