DAL-WAS
A Redskins team that didn’t look ready for game 1 after 5 weeks of preseason took it to Texas’ team today. This is why they don’t give out trophies after 3 weeks. Here’s what we know about the Redskins, they’re rapidly improving, much like their QB Jason Campbell. It looks like Jim Zorn’s tutelage is really beginning to pay off for Campbell. The knock has been that Campbell doesn’t go through his progressions. I really enjoyed watching Troy Aikman (the most football smart commentator I’ve seen/heard) demonstrate how Campbell found his 3rd option on a TD pass.
Here’s what we know about the Cowboys. They’re a “play from ahead” team. It’s always funny when the media anoints a SB Champ in week 1. It’s hilarious when they haven’t won a playoff game in 10 years. Dallas is clearly a top team, don’t get me wrong. But yesterday’s game, with a team few thought could keep up with the Starheads, was never really in doubt.
Here’s the best part though; Terrell Owens crying to the press that the team lost because he wasn’t getting the ball after 17 passes and two handoffs yesterday. Owens even had the gall after dropping a a potentially game changing TD pass late. So let’s get this straight, Jerry Jones pours a ton of money into malcontents and lawbreakers, then tells good ol’ boy wade Phillips to keep an eye on ‘em. Getchya’ popcorn ready!
BUF-STL
I’m not sure Scott Linehan knows how to spell his last name, much less coach an NFL team. When you consider that the best and worst players in the NFL are separated by fractions, no team is as bad as the Rams play. ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reports that the Rams fired Linehan this morning, which (considering Mort’s record for scoops recently) probably means Linehan probably got a 5 year extension. I’m being too harsh though, at least Mort got the Brett Favre trade to Tampa right.
On the other hand, it had to be a strange sensation for the usually hapless Jills to know they were just toying with the Rams. If they continue to be unable to score in the 1st half though, times could get tuffalo in Buffalo. Buffalo has two wins that could very well have been losses.
TEN-MIN
Does any team in the NFL hit like the Flaming Thumbtacks? For years, the alleged physical teams go into TEN and get their butts made into hats. Nothing new this week. TEN beat up the 1-3 Vikings and made AP a non-factor. Of the undefeated, only TN looks legit. If the Preseason Champion Cowboys had to go to TN right now . . . . .well, getchya’ stretchers ready.
Mike Ditka said about the Titans “until somebody beats them, they’re gonna be undefeated”. Yup, that’s what he said. Move over, John Madden.
Even Gus Frerotte knows the Tuxedos are hitters. He had an equipment guy call his wife after a big hit to tell her he was okay. Maybe he should have called a WR to tell them he was going to throw a TD pass instead. Thank goodness the Vikes had Tarvaris Jackson waiting on the sideline when Frerotte cut his hand (probably on the point on top of his head). Having Jackson as a backup is like having someone tell you they’ll jumpstart your car, and then hooking the cables to a pineapple.
TB-GB
This game surprised me, but not really. GB is considerably more talented, and was due for a better game after last week’s dip against Dallas. But never underestimate the motivation a tragedy can bring to a team. Whose heart doesn’t go out to Matt Bryant? If you weren’t cheering for him, you’re not human.
I thought it was kinda curious that Aaron Rodgers is giving out his own medical reports, though. He really is trying to fill Favre’s shoes, at least in establishing a personal relationship with the media. He’s not trying to break Favre’s ironman record though. So right now, the Pack is 2-2 and the Jets are 2-2. Ted Thompson and Eric Mangini are in a dead heat.
NYJ-ARI
Once again, alien Curt Warner has been replaced by human Curt Warner. You know, the one whose fumbles and picks got him kicked out of two other cities. Let’s face facts about Warner. He’s still capable of streaks, and when he’s hot, he can light it up. But he’s not a 16 game QB, and hasn’t been for 5 years now. Matt Leinart better start preparing for action. On the other side, who woulda thunk Broadway Brett would have his best game ever in a Bretts uniform? We all expected the Bretts to win, but come on now. I loved the deep ball on fourth and one though. Something told me they’d challenge the field on that one.
On a more serious note, what the hell was going on with the hit on Anquan Boldin? I’m stunned (and thrilled) that Boldin is able to move today. The way Boldin fell made me think of Jack Tatum’s kill shot on Darryl Stingley. It’s going to take more than piddly fines to stop the headhunting in the NFL these days. It takes coaching. Coaches need to require and reinforce sound fundamentals. Tackling is a simple job: 1. Hit 2. Wrap 3. Drive. The rule is, hit what you see. With the size, speed and force of players increasing every year, coaches must take a firm stance on this or the ambulance is going to be heading to the morgue instead of the ER very soon.
CAR-ATL
This may have the only game in betting history where no one took the underdog. There are better days ahead for the Falcons, but this was not going to be one. And don’t wonder why John Fox is splitting time between his backs. It’s a two back league now, and Fox wants Stewart when the weather gets cold. With Mushin Muhammad and
I’m interested to see how Jake Delhomme’s arm holds up for a full season, but thus far he looks no worse for wear. It’s kind of amazing how far sports medicine has come when you think that both Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana were wrecked by the same injury.
NO-SF
Drew Brees is a premier NFL QB. He’s putting up huge numbers throwing to guys who couldn’t be identified in a police lineup. JT O’Sully, he’s just hoping to become an answer to a trivia question; not just the one about who threw two picks in the end zone Sunday, either. I don’t even know who else SF has at QB, but Mike Nolan is kidding himself if he thinks he’s got a legitimate starter in JT. NO is starting to play well, the Deuce got his motor running today.
SD-OAK
By the way, Philip Rivers is good. Right now, all the hype is on Jay Cutler, and Cutler deserves a lot of it. But is any QB capable of lighting it up better than Rivers right now? Rivers does in one quarter what is a huge game for most QB’s, and he did it again yesterday.
Still, it wouldn’t have happened if Raiders hadn’t left the door wide open for the Chargers. Ever since Jar-Jar Russell ascended from the swamps of Naboo (LSU) to play QB for the Faders, FG’s are the order of the day in Oakland. Russell did have a “KStew special” TD pass yesterday. That’s when you hit a guy in the seam for about 12 yards and he breaks lose for the remaining 40. The bad news is that the silver and black invested huge money in marginal position players so it’s likely that they can’t afford a decent backup while someone teaches Russell how to play QB.
DEN-KC Who didn’t see this coming? Even the best offense has a subpar game. Even the worst D shows up for work, now and then. Denver always struggles in KC. Larry Johnson was way overdue for a big game . . . . . I would have paid a few dollars to hear Herman Edwards open the press conference by saying “We played to win the game”.
But it’s one week folks, Denver will be back. KC will not. Bill Cowher is watching closely from the CBS studio every Sunday. Of course he’s keeping his eye on the Browns too.
CIN-CLE
These two teams played yesterday.
JAX-HOU
The good news for Jax; David Garrard had a sound game yesterday. The bad news; it was versus the Houston Houstonians, or is it the Texas Texans? I have to paraphrase the great John Madden speaking of his legendary man crush Brett Favre; “David Garrard is David Garrard”. Garrard did what he does best yesterday, protected the ball, made a few key running plays and beat a below average team. Wayne Weaver invested a king’s ransom in a guy whose best effort gets a phenomenal rushing attack and dominant defense one week into the postseason.
Then again, HOU invested a #### of cash in a guy whose legacy was being the best QB on ATL’s roster. Looking back, Mike Vick didn’t set a high bar over which to jump. After Schaub’s brilliant performance against NE a few years back, I have to admit that I was sold on him. It’s clear now that his team mates are not sold on him. HOU is a much better team with Sage Rosenfels under center. That’s right, the Houstonians best QB is an herb.
PHI-CHI
The Bears could have been 3-0. But no one even gave that a second thought after the Eagles blitzed 17 guys on every play in a win against the Steelers. McNabb was back and the Eagles were #2 to the preseason NFL Champion Cowboys. A funny thing happened last night. An Eagles offense that managed only 13 points against the Steelers (despite the Steelers D being on the field most of the game), managed only 20 against The Bears. The offensively challenged Munchkins of the Midway made the necessary adjustments to expose Jimmy Johnson’s send ‘em till they stop ‘em High School game plan. Give Johnson his due. He saw a Steelers OL that hadn’t played together very long, and wasn’t competent at pass blocking and exploited it. But golly Jim, it’s the NFL. Gimmicks and gambles do not a season make. As for McNabb, he’s hurt again. Westbrook, hurt again. Buckhalter, hurt again.
PIT-BAL Mike Greenberg (ESPN’s Mike & Mike) says the Steelers will wrap the AFCN in November. From his lips to Pittsburgh’s ears. What I’ve seen is that Mike Tomlin is showing an odd combination of inexperience and wisdom. His inexperience shows in games where the Steelers get punched in the mouth (see Philly 15-6) and can’t recover. His wisdom shows when he drafts skill players when position players are also needed. Tomlin is a big-picture, long-haul guy, without doubt. That said, I question his assistant choices. The whole 52 Okie, ZB scheme played out years ago, yet Tomlin allows #### LeBeau to continue the schemes that beat bad teams, against good teams. On offense, Bruce Arians is showing the same skill that got him fired at perennial college football powerhouse, Temple. At least Arians needs to get better quick, or the big picture will have Big Ben in a Big Body-cast.
The Ravens are an enigma. Actually, they’re an enigma, wrapped in a conundrum, sheathed in a mystery. They’re a shell of the defense they were in the early part of the decade, but they still manage to play like there’s blood in the water. They still haven’t fielded a legitimate #1 WR this decade. They have a rookie QB who didn’t even know he’d be starting until a few days before the regular season. Yet they look hard to beat. Tonight’s game is impossible to call.
So I took some heat for saying the Moss move was overrated. Evidently, the NFL held the SB yesterday and the Pats won the Trophy with Randy Moss taking home MVP honors.
Get a grip folks.
I understand that anytime one voices opinions, many will disagree. But some of the responses were kinda silly. I guess the ether made some forget that the mere possibility exists that the Jets simply aren't that good (like I said) and the Pats (and Moss) simply had a great game.
Not like it's a sixteen game season with 15 games left and then the post season, huh?
But you geniuses are right. Randy Moss turned back time and erased a history of being a team cancer, no one will expose the facts that NE can't run the ball, and every QB in the NFL has the same 3-yard pop-gun as Pennington. The Pats LB's are all 25 again, the Jets WR's are a juggernaut, Richard Seymour means nothing to the Pats D, and of course one game "does a season make".
What I can't understand is how the Steelers thumped the Browns yesterday and didn't at least win a Division title? I mean they won by 27, and the Pats only won by 24.
How do you think the Indianapolis Colts feel? They whipped the Aints by 31, and didn't even get a WC birth.
So for all those "bold" geniuses who had the nerve to put themselves out on a limb and offer an opinion after the fact . . . . .
I come to bury Cowher, not to praise him. Just kidding. But pardon me if I stop short of Thomas Hart Benton's credo that "when the good Lord puts his hands on a man, sir, I take mine off sir". It's hard to be objective when you grow up as spoiled as I did.
In 1969 the Steelers picked a plum fruit off the Paul Brown tree, (a tree that included Bill Walsh and Don Shula by the way) in Chuck Noll. Noll immediately set expectations that seemed impossibly high for the NFL's biggest losers, and his Steelers sooon went about exceeeding them. Few Steeler fans can ever forget Noll's response when asked if he planned to restore the Steelers to "respectability". Few fans of the "Team of The Century" will ever forget what Noll's crew accomplished in the short span of six years that was their heyday. And few stopped to think that for all his accomplishments, Noll could never hope to achieve the success that his mentor achieved. Paul Brown, after all, won 9 Championships in ten years with his Browns. It's no wonder Noll had high expectations.
That was why it pleased me that Cowher was at least realistic enough to admit, during his resignation PC, that he never came close to achieveing what Noll did. Bill Walsh came close to achieving what Noll did (it took him a good deal longer) but stopped at 3 trophies. Bill Belichick still has a postseason or two for #4 and Jimmy Johnson would have won 4 had he stayed around long enough to collect the third SB ring he earned (but handed to Switzer) and a fourth that would have ensured a greater legacy.
Granted, Cowher had a better regular season record than Noll. But when you measure the first fifteen years of Noll versus the first fifteen from Cowher, the difference is an infinittessimal .619 for Noll, to .625 for Cowher. Few bother to consider the fact that Noll coached against consistently compettitve Houston, Cleveland and Cincy teams, whereas Cowher began his career just as those teams collapsed.into the weakest AFCC/AFCN ever. When you consider the competitive conditions under which Cowher coached versus those of Noll, his AFCC home game disasters and .500 SB record, Cowher certainly did little to match the achievements of his predecessor.
But give the Devil his due, Cowher had the wisdom to leave the game (for however long) on his own terms, unlike Noll who got run out of town on a rail. At least it appears that way for Cowher. (I still believe Art Jr. gave him a more than gentle push out the door.) Cowher did, like some new coaches who have the good fortune to inherit a decent team, inject new energy and excitement to his team. And for six of his first eight seasons took the team into January, which became his achilles heel. Cowher didn't have a Bradshaw though, or a Lambert or a Greene or a Stallworth either. He was saddled with a coward (O'Donnell) a #### (Stewart) a bully/wife beater (Lloyd) and a guy named Yancey. Of course we tend to forget that Cowher, like Noll, choose the players.
So while many will say that the dividing line between Noll and Cowher was the talent of the players, I believe it was the heart of the coaches. Because as much as the Hall of Fame players made Noll, Noll made the HOF players. The difference between Noll and Cowher was the simplest, most basic charcteristic, trust. Noll taught and trained his players to execute and then trusted them enough to put the ball in their hands come Sunday. He required them to produce under pressure or cut them loose. Cowher thought he could win the game from the sidelines with gimmick defense and gutless offense. Cowher's systems never required the players to win the games, just not to lose them, which works well until the second season comes around. Is it any wonder that Noll's guys raised their game in January? Is it any wonder that Cowher's guys didn't excel in January?
Yet Cowher managed to delude himself for years and years, losing big game after big game, even citing the magic of home playoff games as his fondest memory. I guess he forgot how those home playoff games ended.
But that all changed with the arrival of Ben Roethlisberger. Fortunate enough not to meet NE in the playoffs and despite Cowher's best efforts to have his hand picked "not ready for postseason players" flush SB XL down the toilet, Roethlisberger would not be denied, and Cowher got his ticket to respectability.
But this years 8-8 finish cemented what I already knew. The team is Roethlisberger's now. Cowher had little to do with the SB season, and couldn't rescue the Steelers when Roethlisberger came back googy headed this fall.
Cowher knows it too. Sometimes, the best thing a man can do is accept his limitations. Cowher is not used to being anything less than top dog of the franchise, and has no clue how to handle players with star power, players that trust themselves to have the ball when it's all on the line. Give choker Bill credit, he saw the writing on the wall and humbly excused himself, like he should have five years ago.
Those who saw his PC said Cowher left much more humble 49 year old than the arrogant 34 year old who took Chuck Noll's headphone. How could he not be? Fortunate enough to work for ownership that, were it any other, would have fired him at least twice, blessed with the most supportive (if not delusional) fans in the USA, and finally gifted with a SB Trophy he achieved as an observer, Cowher gets to stand alongside Noll in Pittsburgh Steeler history (and made millions in the process).
The reality of Cowher's career is simple, just as is Noll's. Noll fell not far from the Paul Brown tree, and carried postseason excellence with him to steel town, Cowher fell from the Schottenheimer tree and carried bullheadedness and January collapse to Pittsburgh.
The Steeler franchise will likely never be as good as it was in Noll's first decade, but it can certainly surpass the achievements of Cowher's first ten years or his entire tenure.
That's the measure of Bill Cowher, he invokes a good deal more memories of Marty Schottenheimer than of the legendary Chuck Noll.
Can you stand the upside-downness of Mike Chick's NC vote on Jim Mora Jr. ? I can't. It's downright insane when players start offering opinions on whether a coach should return next season. I suppose that the future of the NFL will be filled with loser QB's weighing in head on coaching decisions. That is as long as bufoons like Arthur Blank are the future team owners.
Even more ridiculous was Ron Mexico's statement that he had a great season. But no, that wasn't enough, he had to take it a step further and blame everyone else around him for his inability to become an NFL QB. Nice work, Mexico. You're one new HC away from being the next Kordell Stewart. Stewart, more and more looks like Mexico's daddy for teaching him how to weigh in on coaching, but Stew didn't have the tug with Dan Rooney so he got a coordinator fired (Ray Sherman). Then, when the new coordinator was too effective to blame, Stewie deservedly got himself exiled to the Bears, and eventually became an emergency punter in Baltimore.
For Mora's sake, I hope he gets fired. I secretly wish he ends up in Pittsburgh. Who wants to coach a team with a numbskull for an owner who has financially cemented a loser/quitter at QB? Blank can delude himself that the problem is anything but Chick. But the fact is, it gets worse from here as long as #7 is taking off after his first read is covered and pitching junk the minute he faces a decent defense. Besides, if the players are choosing the coaches, then you don't have coaches. Note to Jim, take the money and run.
Next on the "mobile" QB hit parade is Kordell V Young in TN. The scoreboard makes it look much closer, but the NE game serves notice of what TN fans can expect in the future. The secret of Young's success has been, just like Kordell's, a running game that disguises his deficiencies. So Young puts up decent stats, makes the team look competitive with his sandlot moves and gives you a close game until it matters. Sure, he had yet another electrifying TD run to make it interesting. But the Pats D clamped down and made VY or KY or whatever they call him throw the ball. The result, a game losing INT. End 0f drea, end of story.
The measure of Young's career will be made with what he does with the information from that NE game. Will he stick to the idiotic notion that QB's win games with their legs or will he defy his intuition and find a way to play QB and get the ball to his team mates? My guess, if his wonderlic score is any indication, is the former. Another "Korkie" teasing (TN) fans into thinking they can win out until they face a decent defense that forces him to play the position he hasn't learned.
Whay mystifies me more than anything though, is the goo####ance Young has cooked up to delight (himself) the fans. Does he have any idea how #### he looks with all those stupid machinations? You'd think he'd spend his spare time learning the playbook instead of preparing to follow Emmitt Smith on Dancing with the stars.
With the regular season finale just a few days away, and the second season coming in 2007, it's time to review the 2006 NFL Campaign for its noteworthy occurrences and non-occurrences. So, in no particlular order . . . . .
The Cowboys are back, but not if you ask them or their owner. Jerry Jones, Terrell Owens and Terry Glenn have taken their place as the three unwise men, using soundbites to potentially demolish a playoff bound team before it even takes the field in January. Note to the malcontents; your team is slumping. ####ing and moaning is not the cure.
On a side note, Dallas gets two bonuses this season; a postseason dance or two and the end of Drew Bledsoe. Be doubly thankful Dallas fans, you have as good as shot as anyone in the NFC to make the SB and Beldsoe is simply not a winner. the personnel pieces are now in place for some good years ahead. Especially if Parcells leaves and takes Owens with him.
The good news is that the Chargers have been playing all season like they're on a mission to avengeJanuary 2003's disgrace. The bad news is that they can't win playoff games during the regular season.
Am I the only one who sees Philip Rivers hitting the wall like Ben Roethlisberger did in 2004? Am I the only one who thinks you have a better shot at the lotto than betting on Marty Schottenheimer to take a team to the big game?
If I was a betting man I'd bet the Chargers meet the Ravens in the AFCC, Marty has a Martyball relapse, Nate Kaeding misses 7 Figs, and McNair pulls it out with a late FG drive, 9-6.
Speaking of the Ravens, I knew what Steve McNair meant to the team. Two guaranteed wins over Pittsburgh. McNair owns the Steelers, and now the Ravens do too. I still remember the joy in my heart when the Titans Neil O'Donnell relieved an injured McNair in the 2002 playoffs against my Steelers. Then I remember my absolute despair when McNair came back onto the field.
The Jets, while they may be this year's pretenders, will probably be next year's contenders. What amazes me is that Eric Mangini is planning an open competition at QB next year. I've never been a fan of rag-armed QB's, and Pennington is just a step ahead of the Steve Walsh's and Ken Dorsey's of the game, but come on now. The guy has been spectacular.
Five division titles in six years means that the Patriots do have the answers. Was letting Deion Branch and that other guy go a problem? Yes. Was it a mistake, No. If NE has proven anything, its that overpaying second tier stars is the wrong answer to long term success. That's Cowher's formula, and the Steelers, although they have a Trophy, have been out more as much as they've been in the last six years. Not to mention that NE has three trophies.
Why is Andy Reid so happy these days. Because the Eagles finally get to play a QB who fits the offense. I knew two things when McNabb got hurt; one was that Reid would choose Garcia over Feeley and the other was that the Eagles would suddenly start playing better. It won't happen, because Jeffrey Lurie is like so many owners who don't get the game, but the Iggles would be much better off unloading McNabb and his huge cap burden. The team has lost confidence in a QB that doesn't fit the scheme and can't deliver in the clutch.
The Saints actually have come marching in. Not just because they have Drew Brees, but because they have the guy that Jerry Jones should have been smart enough to keep in Dallas. Can NO get to the SB? Yes. Will they? It's all in the draw. NO often plays up or down to the level of its competition, so anything's possible.
The Story of the year has to be the Bears. Proving yet again, that you can have a great defense but a garbage QB kills you. No, I'm not saying that Grossman's garbage, quite the reverse. Look at what the Bears were without him. Grossman is the answer in Chicago, but Lovie Smith needs to live with him through his growing pains. Switching to a proven loser like Griese won't help anyone.
In GB the Brett Favre magic is back. The great one has vaulted a bumbling bunch of have-nots to darn near mediocrity. Even the new HC says he'd like to have Favre back. He should be careful what he wishes for, because if Favre has proven one thing, it's not a question of if he'll kill you, it's when.
And what would the "be careful what you wish for" mantra be without Ron Mexico singlehandedly dismantling the Falcons. You wished for him, Arthur Blank, and you got him. The ####'s latest attempt to misdirect his failure as a QB featured a lament about how a team has to esatblish either the run or the pass. Hilarious, Ron. I guess you haven't seen the figures on how teams can only win in January if they do both. What will Blank do after he fires Mora and Vick keeps the team at .500 forever. What will Vick do when he plays/cries himslef out of the NFL like Kordell Stewart did? Vick at RB, you say? I don't think so. Have an NFL defense actually expecting Vick to carry the ball once it's handed to him, and he'll be crushed to pieces in no time.
Speaking of Vince Young in Tennessee. Here's another guy with Kordell written all over him. Forget the streak, forget the college record. Young is winning games by abandoning the passing game and taking to his feet. He's unquestionably rookie of this year, but next year, teams will begin forcing him to throw the ball. Then we'll see who he is.
The Steelers followed one of the ugliest ever SB wins with a self-possesed, careening, train wreck of a season. No doubt this was because: they were just the hottest team and were not the best team last year, they came into this season thinking they were able to flip the greatness switch, when they weren't great last year, and their coach played the role of Brett Favre while favre was trying his hand at being a football player for a change.
Many will blame Ben Roethlisberger, and true, he did suck. But Roethlisberger wasn't Hines Ward getting numerous taunting penalties, Santonio Holmes fumbling over half of his kick returns away, Joey Porter playing invisble except for the occasional threats on officials or unsportsmanlike conducts, and he sure wasn't the swinging gate we know as Jeff Hartings, Kendall Simmons, Marvel Smith and Max Starks. Unless the Steelers draft and sign about ten new starters, Baltimore has little to worry about next year, because . .
The Bengals have a problem. It's not a QB problem, not a receiver problem, not a coaching problem and based on recent events, not a defensive probelm. The Bengals have a heart probelm. This is what you get when 8 starters are facing jail at one point or another. Marvin needs a new conduct policy. Until then, he won't know which team to expect on Sunday.
The Broncos probably have the answer at QB, now. I haven't seen the likes of Cutler's arm since Bradshaw. Now that the kid is getting the stars out of his eyes, he seems to be headed for a good long run. And other than watching Ron Mexico sel####estruct, what could be better than knowing that the verdict is finally in on Jake Plummer?
Parting Shots
I think the Drew Brees story is great, but how do you vote against LaDanian Tomlinson as MVP? Not only is the guy a record shatterer, he made Philip Rivers storybook season possible, and carried the team to the NFL's best record.
I know I'm betting against the Chargers because of Schottenheimer, but if last year taught us anything, any career choke-dog can get lucky once.
The Jaguars will be shopping for a QB and Byron Leftwich will be looking for a job. Wouldn't it be soemthing if Jake Plummer ended up in JAX and Leftwich continued the streak of retreads to sign in Oakland?
So Ray Lewis didn't make the pro bowl. Finally. True, the Pro Bowl voting is a 10 on the unintentional comedy scale, but at least they got this one right. I used to say that Lewis was the 2nd best LB on the Raves back when they had Edge Hartwell. Lewis not only isn't among the three best LB's in the AFC, he's not even among the three best LB's on the Ravens.
Well, at least the Colts are disintegrating. Maybe now Peyton Manning will only be featured in 65% of all NFL pregame shows.
So Bill Cowher chided Pittsburgh media for not having asked him "the question" directly. That's almost as hilarious as it is delusional. Here's what's not hilarious: A Super Bowl champion (that slipped into the playoffs at the last second with some help), showing up for its title defense either on cruise control or completely out of control depending on which game you were watching in 2006.
Even I can't tell whether Cowher is posturing for a huge deal or retirement. Because at least some of his behavior suggests that he's working an angle here. But what I can tell is that this is the worst job of handling a team he's done since 1998, or 1999 or 2000 or 2003 . . . . While the announcers keep piling on the hype about Cowher's greatness, they don't mention that he's missed the playoffs in five (5) of the last nine (9) seasons, after opening with six consecutive winning campaigns. Keep in mind that if the Steelers don't spoil Cincy's year next Sunday it's 6 out of 10 losers.
Angle or no angle, Cowher is handling this situation in a way that can only be seen (objectively) as selfish and disrespectful to the franchise. Not just because it's been a huge distraction to the team, but because it prevents the Steelers from securing a successor from within or searching for one outside the organization. I vote for an outsider, by the way, because I'm not confident that even Russ Grimm will sack ZBmaster Richard LeBeau and his tired, easily exposed defense, and I'm pretty sure Cowher's hand picked favorite, Ken Whisenhunt will deliver more of the same Cowheresque feasting off of cellar dwellers. I'm also not a staunch believer that good assistants automatically make great coaches.
Worse yet, the distraction is plain-as-day visible when you watch the inamtes running the asylum in Pittsburgh this year. With all the game changing penalties and turnovers it's a miracle (actually a gift from the cellar dwellers) that this team isn't 2-13 instead of 7-8. Cowher's desperation response? To bench the Steelers best athlete, Ike Taylor, when the season was for all intents and purposes, over. Well, he needed a scapegoat, but how a coach benches a CB for two bad games, when his punt returner fumbles 60% of his chances all season long is beyond me. But while the action is beyond reason it comes as no surprise.
Cowher will, when he leaves Pittsburgh, leave the franchise with some serious talent issues. Perhaps the key to understanding the true Cower legacy is undestanding how well he's done since truly grasping the organizational reigns. It's no secret that Cowher prospered early from Chuck Noll's last few drafts, and his five year honeymoon showed it. But this is what Cowher will leave Pittsburgh after his glorious 15 year run:
OL: Once considered a strength, it now features a one legged Center who gets punished week in and week out. A ridiculously overpaid, part time LT (in position only) a swinging gate at RG (weakened by diabetes at a position you simply can't play with diabetes) a RT that can not pass block, and one aging pro-bowler LG.
TE: They don't know how good this guy will be, because they don't throw to him.
WR: A slow aging, overpaid #1, (crack-smoking if he thinks he's a real #1), possession receiver. A #2, FA castoff who can't get open, a reach of a rookie #3 who shows great ability except for holding onto the football, a #4 who only drops TD passes and a #5 . . . . .I'm not sure they have a #5.
RB: A superstar talent, a castoff and one of Cowher's trusted vets on IR.
QB: A 3rd year rookie, who has completely lost his confidence and whose team has lost confidence in him. a #2 journeyman who can't go two games without getting hurt.
DL: A Pro Bowl NT, a (should be Pro Bowl) DE and a serviceable DE.
LB: Long the pride of the organization, Pitt now fields a loser OLB who used to get rich off of cellar dwellers, but now only makes headlines by making sound bites, threatening refs or spitting in opponents faces, a part-time, injury prone OLB, an aging, beaten up OLB at ILB, and a weak, slow, technically deficient piker at the other ILB.
DB: The most talented position on the team, unfortunately, only two talented players start while two sit. The unit features a LB at SS who deserves pro-bowl status (at LB) but still can't cover the pass, a journeyman FS who was willingly let go by THE REDSKINS, an undersized journeyman CB and a developing talent at the other Corner.
But this is what Cowher gives you. His ability to deny the truth in personnel is as powerful as his ability to kid himself into thinking that "pulling a Favre" doesn't hurt the team. Cowher, nothing more than a hanger-on in his player days, has regularly eschewed talented players for his trusted vets (who you an trust noty to show up in big games) and "gamers"." Gamers" being the slow, undersized, talent poor, hangers-on who get beaten up and exposed every sunday by NFL starter caliber athletes. Remember, this is the guy who kept Gregg Lloyd over Chad Brown, resigned Dwayne Washington and Chad Scott to huge extensions and even started the unforgettable Lee Flowers for a few seasons. Just for the record, Larry Foote is this year's Lee Flowers.
Cowher, just like his team, has also bought into the hype that his defenses are tough and confuse other teams. The Ravens, especially, and numerous others have shown how tough and confusing the tired, slow ZB game is not. Even the best athletes at DB can't disguise The ZB's weakness when the LB's are getting beaten up like punching bags. Cowher continues to think that his 1992 offense is still good enough to win as well. I guess he hasn't noticed that the combination of slow developing sit routes and the absence of pass blocking has turned his once fearless QB into a terrified tackling dummy.
But maybe the fact that Cowher wasn't extended last Summer is due to more than his salary demands or his choosing. Maybe Art Jr. isn't the same wimpy decision make Dan Rooney was. Maybe Art wanted to see if Cowher was more the guy who had finally broken the Schottenheimer curse, or the coach that had a 50% chance of even making the playoff in his last decade of work. I don't know.
What I do know is this:
Cowher's already unnecessarily, egregioulsy inflated ego must have grown two skull sizes after Roethlisberger defied Cowher's #### coaching into a SB Trophy.
Cowher had to have been looking for record payday, and the Steelers don't do record paydays. This is an organization that prefers to overpay 2nd level stars rather than superstars.
When you're staying, you say, "I'm staying". Not another word.
And when you're leaving, but doing the right thing for the franchise, you say "I'm staying" and don't even breathe a hint about leaving until after the season.
Cowher has played this card like the clueless, 2nd rate talent he is. The organization will need a few seasons to recover from his defunct playbook, his hand-picked pikers, and his talk big, play small mentality.
So why not start now? The possibility exists that the reason Cowher's gaming the press is because the Steelers already know what needs to be done.
Down by 10, with a few minutes to go in the most critical game of their season, The Falcons QB decided that the breathtaking pain of a pulled hamstring was too much to bear, and took his spot on the sidelines. Isn't it just like Vick to make sure that Schaub wouldn't see (for a real drive) the field until the game was essentially decided. Even though the great Ron Mexico later said he felt the pull in the 3rd quarter. Of course ATL was still in the game then.
This is yet another in the serious of exceedingly classless acts by the "most exciting player in the game", Mike Chick. I thought he had peaked with the Olympian style "double handed flip-off", but that almost pales in comparison to a QB quitting on his team because it doesn't believe he can pull the game out.
The stats will say Chick had another great game (another great loss), in large part due to ATL's ability to capitalize on the Boys' miscues. What the stats won't show is that a host of former greats questioned Vick's sitdown aloud, even Deion (I never met a black QB I didn't root for) Sanders. Just shows that given enough time and enough rope, every #### will hang himself .
Is it me, or does it look like the Saints are beginning to play up or down to the level of their competition? One week they lose to a Steelers crew on life support, next they lose to a Cincy team that should change it's colors to white with black pinstripes, then they crush ATL, SF and Dallas, and then get handled by the Redskins. Trap game? The trap was made out of the Redskins. Great teams beat the teams they're supposed to beat. I don't see NO going deep into January, unless they get a first round bye. A bye should get them one PO win by accident.
In Pittsburgh, where missing the playoffs one out of every three years is becoming commonplace, the team and FO refuses to admit the HC's status is an issue. It's an issue, a huge one at that. Right now, part time -players and Cowher's trusted vets like Joey Porter must be messing their drawers thinking about a new HC next year. Why?. For the same reason #### LeBeau's face masker on Anthony Clark, after a ridiculous showboat this sunday, was long overdue. Cowher runs his team like a country club administrator, but for the occasional scapegoat assistant or player (see "Taylor, Ike") Cowher is probably the least demanding coach in the NFL. How many other coaches would keep playing a KR/PR who fumbled more than half out ten consecutive chances? How many other coaches would keep starting huff and puff disappearing acts like Joey Porter every week? Is is an issue? Cowher's trusted vets are terrified.
Besides, Cowher has his trophy. As hard as he tried to go home without the Lombardi last year, (by turtling his offense, playing prevent against one of the NFL's best offenses for the 2nd half, and then plunging choke-dog Bettis into the line for a career typifying fumble, Big Ben simply wouldn't go home empty handed). So Cowher has his trophy. And he rewarded the franchise with the least ready to perform, least disciplined, least motivated Steeler team I have ever seen. After watching his team sleepwalk through weeks 1-12, even he must know he doesn't have it, never had it, and never will have it.
That in mind, here are the top ten reasons the Steelers will probably (I'm a sap, I know) not repeat:
10. OL is older, weaker and slower than ever. A diabetic guard and a one-legged center equals a jail break every week.
9. Any legitimate NFL QB can put up big numbers on Cowher's Okie ZB defense. The middle is always open. If you've just met your TE during the National anthem, you''ll still drop 330 and three TD's on him.
8. Fundamentals, schmundamentals! 14 games in, the #1 pick and PR/KR still only fields 50% of his chances witout a turnover. Sadly, the kid is a huge talent, but don;t they have anyone to show him how o field a kick?
7. The Old Gray LB's just ain't what they used to be . . . . . James Farrior has lost a step, Joey Porter is too used to half-steppin' and having the occasional big game against a doormat, Clark Haggans just can't beat anyone with technique or size, and I still can't figure how Larry Foote is doing anything but washing LeBeau's car.
6. Steve McNair in the AFCN means another 1-2 divisional losses per year. McNair owns the Steelers. Probably because he loves throwing to his TE.
5. We missed the Bus. Just kidding. Losing Bettis happened four years ago. The guy hadn't managed a full season in God knows how long, and his playoff performances against NE were the stuff that nightmares were made of. The problem is that the fat, lazy Steeler OL is used to blocking for a one and done slob like Bettis. They still aren't/can't hold their blocks long enough for Parker. Still Parker does well, but I can't help but wonder what he'd do in a stretch style scheme.
4. Our best WR is older and slower and wasn't that great in the first place. Sure the faithful celebrate Ward because he's a lunchpail guy, but there's a reason he averages about 25% fewer yards per catch than stud wideouts. When your #1 is actually just a good #2, you have problems.
3. 15 years and not a damn play changed . . . . It's true, but for a few adjustments, they do the same stuff now that they did in 1992. It gets embarassing when mushheads like Dan Dierdorf can see a formation and say, "they like to go to Ward over the middle on this one". Then they go to ward over the middle or the DB who also knows the play for a takeback.
2. Roethlisberger began to recover his trength, timing and football sense around week 10. Which would have been okay if he hadn't been starting in week 2.
1. Cowher simply thought the "bullseye rule" didn't apply to his Champions. Before he even noticed, the season was over.
In Chicago, they're 12-2 and playing in Chicago this January. For those of you who didn't anticipate Grossman snapping out of his slump; shame on you. A healthy Grossman means a healthy Bears team for a good long time, and Chicago is going to have little in the way of NFCN competition for a while, unless GB, Minnesota or Detroit signs Matt Schaub. As much as I'm amazed at the press's ability to forget that Grossman almost carried the team through its first 10 games, I'm amazed at their inability to remember the many failings of Ron Mexico.
But that's the press for you. They hate to admit when they're wrong, unless they think someone might notice.
Oh and Terrell Owens spit on D'Angelo Hall. Who cares? Have you ever seen two more classless individuals?
So we're all supposed to take the spin to heart and believe that Jim Mora Jr. was just kidding for about 20 minutes on the radio this week. He was merely practicing his "Orson Welles-War of the Worlds" shtick, when he said he'd show up at the U of Washington, hat in hand, if the job came open. Mora is, after all, perfectly happy in the ATL. Happy with an underachieving team, happy with an injury riddled, over-paid defense, happy with a meddling owner who wouldn't know a screen pass from a screen door if he didn't own Home Depot, but has taken it upon himself to sit in on press conferences, and happy playing his second or third best QB while the guy who should be starting bides his time until free agency. Yeah, the spin doctors have a great argument. Why wouldn't Mora want to stay in Atlanta and wait to get fired while the coach killing, overpaid, under-brained, thug-life, malcontent, project QB singlehandedly destroys the franchise?
Make no mistake about it, Mora is an intelligent guy. He knows better than to do or say anything publicly, without a purpose. I''m sure that all the spin in the world won't remove the memory of that Seattle interview from the minds ot the U of W hierachy. You can't, as they say, un-ring the bell. I'd even make a small wager he was sending a less than subtle message to Arthur Blank as well.
I applaud Mora's candor, even though I find the damage control a bit nauseating. While it is generally pretty uncool to stump for a new job while you coach an NFL team, I'd have let the statement stand on it's own. In light of the fact that his his mutli-millionaire stuperstar QB had wished out loud to have the legendary choker, Dan Reeves back, that is.
You can count the times I've ever agreed with his ####-whiny father, JM Sr. on one hand. But almost I've never agreed more with a talking head than when Pop labeled Vick a coach killer. Almost, because allegiance to Vick means allegiance to something bigger than coachicide, blowing that much money on the NFL's Forrest Gump is downright franchisicide. Of course when you build a mint like the Home Depot, that kind of acccomplishment typically comes with an ego. So even if Blank knows he made a crushing mistake, he's going to burn through at least one fall guy before he admits it.
So JM Jr. knows that when the Dirty Birds either back into the playoffs (for a one and done), or don't make the playoffs this this year, there's at least an 85% chance he's a dead man walking. Because, screen pass or screen door notwithstanding, there's one thing guys like Blank do know, ROI. Blank hasn't been burning a fortune to buy mediocrity. Even if that's exactly what his spending spree has earned him.
So I don't blame Mora for hanging out the big, "job wanted" sign, I applaud him for his business sense. By now, he's in the head of every GM or College Athletic Director even thinking about making a move, so he got what he wanted, publicity. Forget about the negative press of auditioning for a job when you already have one, it happens in every other line of work. Who one earth wants to be saddled with the orders to hand a borderline #### the keys to the franchise every Sunday while a real QB rots away on the bench. Mora must be keeping the Rolaids people in business watching that #### get worse at his job every year and knowing he's helpless to start a QB at QB.
Of course there's a legion of lemmings perfectly willing to believe that Mora was just playing a running gag for 20 minutes. They're probably the same folks who haven't yet gotten the joke about Mike Vick being a QB.
At least at U of W, Mora could pick his own poison.
And it goes a litlle somethin' like this . . . . . .
GM: 'Look, if he was that great, Tampa wouldn't have let him go in the first place."
JI: "He can't be any worse than the last crybaby, and at least he's, well you know."
GM: He's what? Do you mean . . . . . ?
JI: "All I'm saying is that we've been getting heat ever since we left Baltimore at the witching hour. Think of the PR."
GM; "Right. We're off the hook, then. Do it."
Hiring Tony Dungy after he was ceremoniously released by Tampa was a no-brainer for the Indianapolis Colts, and it has paid huge dividends. In his tenure at Indy, Dungy has taken a contender that couldn't get it done in January and transformed them into a contender that can't get it done in January. It's kind of like replacing Marv Levy with Marty Schottenheimer. Oh except for one thing.
You don't get "####" points for hiring a white guy. As a matter of fact, you need permission to hire a white guy. You have to take the appropriate "token" measures to interview all the black guys available first. If you don't believe me, ask Matt Millen.
So this year, when Denny Green, Art Shell and maybe even Romeo Crennel get fired, I suggest that those two or three franchises just save themselves some time and merely trade coaches rather than fire them. Because the NFL has made it clear that it has a responsibility to diversity. Forget the fact that diversity is a misnomer, because there are no Latino interview requirements, no Asian or Indian requirements and of course I can't remember the last Aleutian Head Coach. So let's call a #### a ####. The NFL has an african american coaching requirement. That's why idiots like Green and Shell get recycled, and franchises stay buried in the scrap heap.
But then again, "affirmative action" in parlance, is a misnomer. In its essence, affirmative means positive, or in favor of, not restorative or retributive. So what the NFL and the rest of society has done is create programs that are in favor of action. That's good to know, because if you're going to take action, you ought be in favor of it.
Of course affirmative action, in parlance, often means hiring less qualified candidates because they are black. The NFL doesn't have a monoply on this idiotic practice, though. It's pervaded most every aspect of employment, even journalism. One good thing about AA, though; at least it explains why journalistic jokes like Stuart Scott and Stephen A. Smith have jobs. Otherwise, you'd have an easier time explaining why quantum physics and quantum mechanics don't live together in the same scientific house. Kind of juxtaposing my laughter when Chad Johnson clowns Scott with his "Boo No" response to Scott's TD celebration against the sadness I feel watching Smith do his two bit impression of the late, great Ralph Wiley.
It's good to know, though, that Denny Green and Art Shell are finally getting some bank after having been freed from slavery a few years back. What's that you say? They weren't slaves? Their parents weren't slaves? Their Grandparents? Well, at least their great grandparents. . . . . .
So hold on a minute, we're making stupid decisions to atone for the Great Grandparents of American History? That's just dumb.
Mark me down as being affirmative against any action that chooses lower quality over higher quality. Is anyone going to tell me that the Cards wouldn't be better off with Pete Carroll or Kirk Ferentz, or a clamshell at HC? Is anyone going to tell me that the Raiders wouldn't have the same or better record if they just taped headphones to a bag of concrete and saved themselves a few bucks.
That's not to say there aren't some mushheaded white coaches in the NFL. I could name half a dozen guys who have me scratching my head every week. But they didn't get hired because of a mush head quota. But it's time to stop junking the machinery with bad parts because of mistakes made 3 lifetimes ago. Enough is enough.
Aside from that, unless the NFL immediately institutes Indian, Asian and Aleutian HC interview requirements, they really ought to call this stupid practice by it's right name; "Capitulation to One Special Interest Group Action".
And I haven't even brought the Jews into this. Don't we owe them all the way back to the days of Moses? Rex Grossman and Josh Miller should be screaming for their rights.
It's getting downright silly. Some of the headlines I read make me chuckle, others just make me laugh out loud. Here are some examples:
Falcons Vick Still a Mystery
They're kidding right. What's the mystery? He sucks.
The guy is a RB trying to play QB. There's no mystery there. Get over it. A two game tease and the apoligists were ready to call him Jonnny U on roller skates. Six years in he's got a 75 QB rating. Those are sub-Maddox line numbers.
On the other hand, he averages 7.2 yards a rush. Hmmmm.
Favre hurts elbow nerve, status unclear
Here's Favre's status. He's an underachieving whiner who hasn't won anything in a decade, loses more games than he wins and still holds his franchise hostage every spring.
I don't wish serious injury on Favre, or anyone for that matter. But a little sit down would at least give GB a chance to see what, if anything, they have in Aaron Rodgers without a media circus or a John Madden Coronary, whichever comes first.
Brees throws for 510 yards . . . . . . and loses to Bengals
There must be a sliding scale for QB passing yardage and victories. I don;t know where it tips, but I'm guessing 272 yards. Even though I'm unsure of the tipping point (thank you Malcolm) I am sure that 510 yards passing usually means bad things, man. If you're throwing that much, it means you're not catching up.
Cowboys hand Colts their first loss
Shocker, huh? As if this one didn't have upset written all over it. Parcells team is playing for its life and Dungy's crew is probably thinking "its better to lose in November than in January. In this NFL, with a 16 game schedule, it's almost impossible to imagine a team going undefeated. Does this mean the Boys are better than Indy? No.
By the way, the legendary Bill Parcells is 30-28 as coach of the Cowboys. He really adds weight (but doesn't he always) to my theory that recycled coaches are never quite what they were the first time "round.
What would shock me is if Peyton Manning broke out the "protection problems" excuse this early in the year.
Big Ben's Heroics help Steelers Escape Cleveland
Even down ten with less than five minutes to go, I knew Pittsburgh would win. Why? Bill Cowher's SB is playing the Browns, he never forgave them for cutting his medicore #### lose, as a player and as a coach. Besides, the Steelers always get rich off of cellar dwellars and Cleveland is, well, Cleveland.
And this was the same magic Roethlisberger was pulling out of his #### all of last season and the year before. Critics who have been calling Roethlisberger a "game manager" evidently never saw his early comeback wins against DAL and JAX. Roethlisberger, when his brain is properly situated, is an extraordinary comeback QB.
It was also probably the week BB should have returned to starting after the accident, the appendicitis and the concussion.
Losman, Price lift Bills to Stunning win Over Texans
I repeat, stunning. If I had read, "man flips switch, light comes on" that would be more stunning than any team beating the Texans. Maybe the Texans were stunned, but the rest of America knows this is business as usual.
Patriots Snap Skid
Would someone please wake the media ans tell them that:
A) It isn't 1995
B) Brett Favre sucks
C) Lambeau Field is every bit as threatening as Reliant Stadium these days
On a more serious note:
I'm sad to see Donovan McNabb get hurt, again. He's been knocked out 3 out of the last 4 seasons and may be saddled with "injury prone" added to his resume. This makes things even more difficult for the Eagles in that no team relies more on its QB than Philly. On the plus side, Garcia is well fitted to the offense and the team won't have to scale back the playbook unless Garcia gets hurt (only a 75% chance of that) or they want to throw a pass of more than 7 yards.
Trent Green made a triumphant, if not spectacular return to the Chiefs. It's nice to see a team err on the side of protecting a QB's brain. It was clear that Green had fully recovered from the vicious bell ringing he received early on.
Speaking of vicious shots, the NFL could and should make a good case to review about 6 or 8 shots that Cleveland took on Roethlisberger this weekend after the ball was released. The roughing rule is pretty simple and the Browns broke that rule in every imaginable fashion (short of taking off BB's helmet and punching him with brass knuckles). He took the 2nd biggest beating since Moonpie in the Houston-Tokyo Rollerball game. It's a good thing they didn't wrap an arm aorund his ankle like Aaron Smith did to Drew Brees last week. That would have been roughing.
Hey everybody, lay the hell off of Rex Grossman. Here's why:
The Bears are 9-1
Grossman throws the sweetest deep ball in the NFL this side of Carson Palmer.
The guy is essentially 3 games into his sophmore season.
He could throw six picks and get sacked 11 times in a quarter and still not be rattled.
What were the Bears last year without Grossman?
Last but not least:
I have to sidle up next to my padnuh, TB and call for some change in NFL coaching. Specifically, QB'ing for many teams has risen to the level where QB"s not only could, but should be calling their own plays. Watching Pittsburgh do nothing for 3.5 quarters and then score three TD's from the no huddle was just another example of why the best play callers are often the ones who execute the plays.
Sure it's not for everyone, but is there any doubt in anyone's mind that Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Chad Pennington, Trent Green and quite a few others could call as good a game or better than their OC's? And wouldn't it be a great way to teach and train younger QB's to get a feel for the game? At the very least, we'd waste fewer stupid time outs because a QB isn't allowed to check down.
Bradshaw speaks often of how his recivers would tell him that they could break loose on a given play, and he didn't always call it right away but "saved it for when he needed it". Great play calling is an art, and Bradshaw always seemed to call the "big-play" play in the big games. Why, because he was connected to the game on every level, rather than being an administrator. I think that many NFL teams would be well served by at least gving their QB's the chance to reconnect to the game. Contracry to the opinion of many coaches, the games are not won on the sidelines.
Raiders QB Andrew Walter apologized for his criticism of the staff and Warren Sapp said that things are looking up in the locker room. The rumor is that the team is finally beginning to buy into Art Shell’s program. That’s great news for anyone but Raider fans who remember what Shell’s program did for the franchise last time. Sometimes, a Coach stays unemployed for a long time because he should be unemployed for a long time.
Unless you’re an NBA team, scoring 41 means you have a superb shot at winning a game. Leave it to the Bengals to cast some doubt on that idea. But it’s not just the fact that the Bengals scored 41 and lost, it was the way they lost that should have fans upset. The Bengals not only blew a 21 point lead, they let their opponent score 42 points in one half. I knew the Bengals were undeserving of the pre-season hype they were getting, but that 2nd half shocked me. It might be the worst defensive half in the history of the NFL.
I have to hand it to Steve McNair. The guy moves like he needs a wheelchair between plays, but somehow manages just enough of whatever he needs when the whistle blows. McNair’s September Song with the Ravens adds new depth to the adage “he’s not pretty”, yet they’re and un-pretty 7-2. Everyone’s just waiting for s second half collapse that isn’t coming. McNair has to be comeback player of the year.
Props to Jimmy Johnson for echoing what I’ve said about Mike Vick for two years now. Vick is simply never going to be a top-flight QB. He’s a phenomenal athlete but a mediocre QB at best. The Falcons share in the blame too, for overpaying an unproven QB and then remaking an NFL offense into a sandlot scheme to “take advantage of his special skills”. This is franchisicide. There are 32 teams and a 16 game schedule, with so many possibilities from that mix, designing any component of an NFL team to fit one player is downright stupid. Vick will continue to run hot and cold until Jim Mora gets fired. Then he’ll run hot and cold until he gets benched.
Philip Rivers can’t do what Mike Vick does, yet somehow the guy is playing like an MVP in an offense that was designed before he came to the team. What’s scary is that he still isn’t finding Antonio Gates with regularity. I was amazed by the workman like look in Rivers’ eyes when things looked terrible in Cincy. Watching him on first and goal before the Bolts first TD told me all I needed to know about the guy. I’m not Crowning him yet, because the postseason is a different environment altogether. But Rivers is everything you could dream of in a first year starter.
The Eagles are back or maybe they’re not. Putting a whipping on the Deadskins isn’t exactly the measuring stick for excellence these days. I want to say that Donte Stallworth is the difference, but then again I thought Steve Smith was the difference in Carolina. Maybe someday coaches will learn that putting a guy with a howitzer into the dink and dunk extravaganza that is the left coast offense isn’t exactly the wisest personnel move. I can’t help but think that the Eagles would have already won at least one SB with a healthy Chad Pennington at QB and that McNabb might have less lofty stats but would actually have a chance to win something with a running attack and a vertical passing game. At this point I’m beginning to feel sorry for McNabb instead of just despising his chokester ways. I’ve never seen a QB who has been asked to do more than McNabb, and who is less emotionally equipped to do it.
And while we’re at it, let’s talk about this West Coast offense a little bit. Haven’t we had enough of this BS? Sure, it looks great on paper, and the 49’ers ran it to perfection (because Bill Walsh was coaching them, and they ran the ball too, but who else does anything but put up stats with it? What amazes me is how awful the QB’s who run the WC must actually be nowadays. When you consider that DB’s only have to look at a receiver sideways to get an IC or PI call, and the NFL sunk to a new low this weekend when Aaron Smith got a roughing call for touching a QB’s leg, 65% completion rates should be as common as chocolate chip cookies. Imagine what a truly accurate passer like Kenny Anderson would be doing in today’s NFL. If Anderson completed less than 85% of his passes in the WC, I’d eat a Bengal’s helmet, stripes and all. Sonny Jurgensen would be throwing passes underhand, behind his back and complete 75%.
I guess the WC is a lot like a Bill Cowher Defense, a lot of show and some nice stats until crunch time. The good teams realize that all you have to do to beat Kowher’s Keystone Kops is spread it out and throw under the soft zones required to cover for the slow developing goofball blitzes. Before you know it, and it’s another Home Field Playoff massacre. Don’t tell me about the SB last year, we all know which side of the team carr
