Is this a make-or-break year for Vinny Testaverde?
Absolutely. After four years as a pro, the book on the Tampa Bay Buc quarterback is: great arm strength and football sense, throws well on the run, slower than average but not plodding, needs a trusting, back-patting coach to prosper. Testaverde was handled with kid gloves at the University of Miami and won the Heisman Trophy. Then, after Tampa Bay made him the first player chosen in the ’86 draft, he was handled with boxing gloves by coach Ray Perkins and won nothing. Headcase in point: Last year, Testaverde was leading the league in passing five weeks into the season, but he aggravated a turf-toe injury that caused him to miss a game in San Diego in Week 8. With the Chargers up 24-7 at halftime, Testaverde, in street clothes, suggested the Bucs try a play that would take advantage of a weakness in the San Diego defense. “That’s not in our game plan,” said Perkins, in a way that humiliated Testaverde. “It made me feel like I wasn’t a part of the team,” says Testaverde. The next week,
