Following an exciting first round, we break down the favorite picks, most pleasant and biggest surprises, most under-appreciated pick, worst move and more.
Peyton Manning, Mario Williams, Mike Wallace and Carl Nicks headline an intriguing free agent class that can shift the balance of power this offseason.
The Eagles seemingly came out of nowhere to sign Nnamdi Asomugha as they eye a trip to the Super Bowl.
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$.01-- Congrats to the Packers for winning the Super Bowl in a pretty compelling game. I thought Aaron Rodgers was a very deserving MVP. His strike to Greg Jennings on 3rd and 10 with 6 minutes to go is the signature play that every great performance needs, an absolute perfect throw at the tipping point of the game. Rodgers had his strangely typical mid-game lull up to that point, but he blew through those doldrums and won the game for the Packers.
They desperately needed that play, because Pittsburgh was the better team for the final 30 minutes of the game. But Green Bay?s playmakers made more plays, and that?s why they won. I find that the central theme I?m taking away from this season?s playoffs: playmakers making plays. Green Bay got those big plays from Rodgers, Nick Collins, Clay Matthews (his forced fumble salvaged an otherwise ineffective game where the Steelers ran right at him to great success), Tramon Williams, Greg Jennings, B.J. Raji (invisible in the Super Bowl) et al more than any other team could summon up the big plays. The Steelers rallied in this game by making the big plays of their own, which was by and large how they vanquished the Ravens and Jets to get there.
A few random thoughts that I?m going to try and translate from my notes, which were scribbled upon by my 2-year old daughter:
-- The Steelers didn?t miss Maurkice Pouncey at all. So much for that overblown story line?
-- Both offensive lines played arguably their best games of the season. Aaron Rodgers got hit a lot but it didn?t really feel like he was all that bothered by pressure. Chad Clifton did a great job on James Harrison.
-- Troy Polamalu often blurs the line between instincts and guessing, and he got caught guessing a whole lot in the Super Bowl. Bad time for a bad game, and he most certainly had a bad game. I thought that Green Bay?s offensive plan helped foster that by essentially abandoning the run and making him play in coverage--not his strong suit--all night.
-- Walt Anderson?s officiating crew did an excellent job. They ignored some holding calls but it was consistent throughout the game, akin to a baseball ump giving the high strike.
-- I don?t understand why Packers fans almost universally loathe A.J. Hawk. Once again he played the kind of positionally sound game that allows Dom Capers to free-wheel around him. Take his bedrock presence out of the middle and all those blitzes and high-risk coverage schemes don?t work nearly as well. Plus, Hawk is their best run defending LB by a country mile.
-- Pittsburgh?s 2-point conversion using the old-school pitch-option was a stroke of brilliance. Most defenders haven?t seen that play since high school, and probably have never faced it from that formation.
-- All those drops by Packers wideouts very nearly cost them the game. Finding a more reliable possession receiver has to be of paramount value this offseason for GM Ted Thompson.
-- I like how the Packers didn?t alter their defensive game plan despite losing Woodson and Shields. Dom Capers kept the continuity, which is invaluable for the other starters. He counted on his reserves to rise up to the task, a bold leap of faith that not every coach would make. They weren?t infallible but were reasonable enough facsimiles to get the job done without throwing out the game plan.
$.02-- The ads, or why about half the women in this country actually pay attention to the Super Bowl. That percentage is probably a little higher this year with no Tom Brady factor.
My favorites:
I liked the Hyundai commercial with the ?frozen in time? technology very much. Seeing the dude carrying a record player talking to a guy using a 70s-era cell phone the size (and weight) of a large brick was an excellent representation of their theme. I?m not in the market for a Hyundai but I appreciate their subtle, creative shot at Toyota.
The Doritos bombardment in the first quarter left me largely unsatisfied, except for the obsessed office worker sucking the fingers?and the pants. My 5-year old son was watching and I couldn?t help but think he missed the joke because that?s pretty much normal behavior for him. I?ve seen him suck peach juice out of a linen table cloth, after all.
I?m apparently one of the few that liked the Audi ad with the upper-crust prison breakout. Then again, I?ve wanted an Audi A8 for a long time now. To all the people who thought it was too class-based and demeaning to the working class: Audi isn?t selling the $78K A8 to the working class who might not appreciate it. Bonus points for unearthing Kenny G.
I very much liked the Eminem Chrysler ad. Made me proud to own a Pacifica.
But the best was the VW ad featuring the little boy in Darth Vader garb. As someone who still tries to harness the power of the force to get the remote control when it?s out of reach (everyone does that, right?!), I loved it! Too bad I can?t contort my 6?5? frame into the driver?s seat of the advertised car.
The misses:
The Pepsi Max ad where the punchline is a black couple fleeing the scene after the woman assaults a white woman with a soda can was wildly inappropriate. I know it?s intended in god fun, but reinforcing negative racial stereotypes while the entire world is watching is a regrettable oversight at best. Four different African-American friends of mine felt compelled to complain about it on Facebook. Oops doesn?t begin to do justice here.
Budweiser struck out with the cowboy-turning-Elton John sing-along. Elton John is one of my favorite musical acts from the 70s, and I?ve heard Tiny Dancer probably 500 times. I couldn?t begin to sing all the words, so when a saloon full of 19th century cowpokes starts blaring it out in perfect tune, well that?s just injudicious. I felt the same way about it in Almost Famous, too.
I found the Richard Lewis/Roseanne Snickers ad a big swing and miss. Who really remembers Richard Lewis, a B-level comedian in his prime some 20 years ago? It was funny seeing Abe Vigoda getting sacked in a football game, but flattening Roseanne with a tree is sadistic overkill.
$.03-- The Super Bowl in North Texas as a total experience was a major flop. Jerry Jones? worst nightmare couldn?t have envisioned what all went wrong. DFW airport was plagued with closures all week; all flights were grounded for a total of 32 hours between Tuesday and Thursday, with many flights in delayed for hours. The snow, wind, and ice absolutely ruined the planned events--all outside and scattered about the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, which spans over 50 miles. The weather was worse than it was in Detroit for Super Bowl XL, and the worldwide media covering the events made sure everyone knew it. Repeatedly.
Jerry can?t control the weather, and that?s more rotten luck than poor planning. But to have over 900 ticket-holding fans turned away because the $1 billion+ brand spanking new stadium wasn?t up to standards to protect their seats is asinine. Snow in Dallas is uncommon but not an anomaly. The inability of the stadium design to adequately handle moderate snowfall is a sick joke. Further, the inability to get an entire section of the stadium ready for patrons three days later is freaking inexcusable. If I drove the 1500 miles from Green Bay to Dallas, paid over $900 apiece for seats nearly 300 yards away from the field to begin with, shelled out $150 a night to stay at a Motel 6 30 miles away, and then the NFL tells me I can?t attend because Jerry?s Palace in Dallas (err, Arlington) couldn?t handle 4-6? of snow?!? I probably would have been watching the game from a holding cell instead of the catacombs of the stadium. I hope those people sue for exorbitant amounts.
There were problems beyond the weather as well. Christina Aguilera forgot the words to the national anthem. At least she sang well, unlike Fergie?s throaty yelling that made my wife, an avowed Black Eyed Peas fan, cringe several times. Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, normally a fine blend of informative and smarmy, dropped the ball with the analysis and pertinent information several times. It took them five plays to realize Flozell Adams was missing, and they didn?t get replays for Ben Roethlisberger?s feet sliding, Donald Driver?s knee injury, or the Tramon Williams penalty until well after the fact. At another point they carried on extensively about Adams?on a penalty on Ramon Foster, which was never shown in replays. It was probably their worst performance, an effort that was not up to Super Bowl standards from a duo I normally enjoy very much.
$.04-- I try to make the Pro Football Hall of Fame induction weekend every year, but this year there?s no way I?m missing it. Not when the inductees include two of the most loquacious, entertaining NFL personalities of the Super Bowl era in Shannon Sharpe and Deion Sanders.
This year?s class is a stellar one. Aside from Sharpe and Sanders, arguably the best-ever players at their respective positions, Marshall Faulk, Richard Dent, Chris Hanburger, Ed Sabol, and Les Richter make this a very deserving and well-received class. It?s an especially fresh group, one that younger fans can say they know. This has been a glaring weakness in the past few years. Most of the recent classes have features one prominent first-ballot member with a bunch of guys that most people under age 40 struggle to identify their names. Faulk, Sanders, and Sharpe all played into the 2000?s, and Dent has remained visible thanks to the never-ceasing legend of the 85 Bears defense. And who doesn?t know and recognize the impact and tremendous work of Sabol?s NFL Films? I like the acknowledgement of recent greatness, and I think it will make a raucous, energetic August weekend in Canton.
$.05-- I spent the middle of the week chilling in San Antonio for the NFLPA Texas vs. the Nation game practices. Chilling is an understatement; the wind chill was 3 when I arrived at Heroes Stadium on Wednesday morning, and it wasn?t much better Thursday morning. I was only there for three practices, and quite honestly I spent much of that time trying to simultaneously stay warm and figure out whom exactly I was watching. As one of the few in attendance that shunned the creature comforts of the press box, I salute my fellow polar bears, most notably Russ Lande of the Sporting News, who was the only guy not huddled against the brick walls trying to stay out of the wind. Most of the players are late-round picks, if they will be drafted at all in April, but there were a few players that stood out:
Kenrick Ellis, DT, Hampton--he?s an active widebody in the Jamal Williams/Pat Williams mold, capable of anchoring as a 0-technique in a 30 front or playing the gaps as a 1-technique in a 4-3 scheme. The thing that stands out immediately is his leg drive; when he gets engaged he can overpower anyone, often dramatically, by keeping his feet moving and pushing with his gigantic legs. Ellis had some issues finding the ball, but he continually dominated his assignments on just about every rep I watched. On the field alone he?s a 2nd rounder without question, but Ellis has quite a bit of baggage that could weigh him down. He showed more here than the similar talented-but-troubled Marvin Austin did in Orlando for Shrine Game practice.
Rob Housler, TE, Florida Atlantic--you would think that a guy from Florida Atlantic would have major issues with the cold, but on the frigid tundra Wednesday he was the only guy who could reliably catch the ball. Housler is an impressive target with strong hands, though I would have liked to see more wiggle in his hips and feet and more knee bend in his run blocking. He should make a solid #2 TE for a long NFL career.
Roberto Davis, DE, Northwest Missouri State--the D-II stud showed unblockable quickness in practice, and it translated to the game itself, where he was Defensive MVP. He?s undersized at just 247 pounds, but he showed very good balance, fluid athleticism, and strong enough instincts that he merits middle-round consideration as a 3-4 OLB. His first step off the snap is as good as any outside rusher in this draft, and he knows how to finish. He stood out in their D-II title game against Grand Valley State in 2009 but has clearly worked on his craft. His teammate Ryan Jones was the best corner in San Antonio too and is worthy of 4th-5th round status and will be one of my draft sleepers.
Ray Dominguez, G, Arkansas--if you?re looking for a brute-force run blocker a la Chris Kemoeatu, Dominguez is your guy. He consistently turned the shoulders of his defender and drove them out of the hole with strong base leverage and a powerful, albeit slow-handed, punch. Dominguez showed good ability to locate targets in space for a big man, and at 340 pounds he?s one big hombre. Reminds me of San Diego?s Louis Vasquez, just not quite as flexible. He was inconsistent for the Razorbacks and is not an asset in pass protection, which limits his draft value to the later rounds, but he had a very strong week in San Antonio.
Taylor Potts, QB, Texas Tech--he?s the only QB there that should even be considered as a draft pick, and he proved his mettle in the game with several impressive throws that earned him the Offensive MVP. He measured in bigger than expected at 6?4?, and he demonstrated solid footwork and a slightly more compact release than he had in Lubbock. His accuracy was far and away the best of the lot in the cold, though he was a half-count late in delivering the ball a couple of times. He merits 6th-7th round consideration and could be a nice find for a team with a strong offensive line that can mask his iffy pocket awareness and heavy-footed gait.
Keep watching for positional Big Boards, starting late this week!
