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-- Houston continues on their quest to lose every important player to injury and still remain in first place in the AFC. After losing Mario Williams, Danieal Manning and Matt Schaub, plus lengthy absences from Arian Foster and Andre Johnson, the Texans have now lost backup QB Matt Leinart for the season with a broken collarbone. Leinart was less than two quarters into relieving Schaub before his injury and looked good. Now, the Texans will be forced to go with rookie TJ Yates, a 5th round pick from North Carolina.
Yates held his own in his first foray into NFL action, looking more confident and accurate than first-round rookie Blaine Gabbert, who got yanked in favor of Luke McCown late in the game. The Texans coaching staff is very high on Yates and has been from the moment they drafted him. A handful of teammates and media pundits quietly disclosed after Schaub was hurt that they felt more confident in Yates than Leinart, and Gary Kubiak has told anyone who asks about Yates that he is a future starter.
That future has now arrived, much sooner than Kubiak wanted or expected. Because the Texans have an excellent offensive line and arguably the top running back in the league in Foster, plus a very capable backup in Ben Tate, Yates won't be forced to win games on his own. The defense continues to thrive even without their top pass rusher and top safety, as Brian Cushing has reemerged as a Pro Bowl talent and Connor Barwin broke out with 4 sacks and 3 QB hits against the woeful Jaguars. If Yates can simply manage the game--which is not a negative quality--the Texans can still win the AFC South.
I think he can. I flipped back to my scouting report on Yates, which included a 10-minute talk with Yates at the Texas Vs. the Nation All-Star game in the freezing cold. He has loads of experience, starting for four years at North Carolina under former NFL coach Butch Davis in a pro-friendly system. One of the reasons Houston drafted him is that the offense is very similar, so Yates should be very comfortable with the playbook, reads, and calls. Good-not-great arm that he compensates for by putting exceptional touch on the ball. Decent mechanics, over-the-top release is clean. Good pocket presence, doesn't get flustered or make panicked throws. Has some running ability but prefers to slide around and make the throw. I criticized him for wanting to check down, but when I talked to him he told me he was under strict orders to do so. Butch Davis wanted him to manage the game, and he did that. And that's all the Texans will ask him to do. I am pretty confident he can guide this team to its first-ever playoff berth. Winning once they get there is much more of a longshot, however.
$.02-- Green Bay stayed perfect in the first game of the long weekend, an outcome that is almost incidental to the big story coming out of Detroit. Ndamukong Suh proved the biggest turkey with his well-deserved ejection for stomping on Evan Dietrich-Smith. Suh's ridiculous act and completely delusional comments lamely trying to explain it away after the game merit a suspension, perhaps as many as two games. Based on his history and growing reputation as a dirty player, I feel Roger Goodell has little recourse but suspension. Fines and stern warnings apparently are not enough to rein in Suh, and the rest of the Lions could stand the impact as well.
After reflecting on the game for a while, one thing became crystal clear: this game came down to coaching. Mike McCarthy has crafted an unbeaten team not because the Packers have superior talent, but because he focuses that talent and keeps it both stimulated and improving. The Packers coaches do a phenomenal job at player development, but they also instill strong football principles and winning approaches to the game. They play smart and don't often get taken off their game even when not playing at their best. That mental toughness makes them a very dangerous champion with the ability to repeat.
Jim Schwartz has engineered the Lions on a different track. I respect Schwartz for realizing that Detroit needed a change of culture, but now that he has successfully forged that identity, it is abundantly clear that's all he's got in the coaching bag. Schwartz is a combative, demonstrative hothead that often reacts to game situations with little discipline or restraint. That has rubbed off on his team, which continually commits asinine penalties. Just as troubling is that the Lions are making the same mistakes in Week 12 that they did in Week 2, and Week 12 of last year as well. There are no corrective actions taken, no apparent coaching ability to teach or draw the line between intensity and thuggery.
In many ways they remind me of another Detroit team, the Bad Boys Pistons of yesteryear. Except it's the post-title Bad Boys, the ones that kept winning about 50 games a year and getting bounced early in the playoffs and not the more disciplined, precision toughness that won NBA titles. There is too much talent on Detroit's roster to need to resort to "dirty" play, to being the belligerent drunk in the middle of a football game. If Jim Schwartz cannot fix that right quick, he deserves to be fired. This unnecessary outlaw overzealousness is holding the Lions back from being a team that can compete with the Packers and Saints of the world.
$.03-- Tim Tebow keeps winning, and Norv Turner keeps losing. God's favorite quarterback tormented the soon-to-be-ex San Diego coach with a rousing overtime victory that will only continue to grow the legend of Tebow.
I didn't get into this game until late, so I missed the perfunctory portion of the game where Tebow stinks as a quarterback but somehow manages to keep the Broncos within striking distance. The Denver defense did their part, harassing Philip Rivers to a passing performance that looked like, well, Tim Tebow. Then it was Tebow Time, and He delivered.
Here's the thing with Tebow, and it stood out starkly in contrast to Rivers in this game: he inspires those around him to raise their games. The Chargers play as if they couldn't care less about Rivers or winning for him, but the Broncos go out of their way to help Tebow triumph. When things matter most, Tebow is at his best and Rivers is at his worst. The Broncos played inspired defense in the fourth quarter and overtime, and picked up some divine assistance with a pair of missed field goals. That was enough to enable another Tebow miraculous comeback victory, and it all but condemns the Chargers to a coaching change and a major overhaul.
This San Diego team is now in serious trouble. They've lost six in a row to plummet to last place in the weak AFC West. Injuries have scuttled what was a very good offensive line, but the fall of Philip Rivers has been stunning. This is a quarterback that was widely mentioned in the same breath as Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers coming into the season, atop the tier of elite QBs just behind Brady and Manning. That seems completely laughable now, and you have to wonder if Rivers can ever recapture the magic that put him in that conversation. Granted he is under much more pressure and has not gotten a lot of help from his receivers, but he keeps missing open targets and making terrible decisions with the football. It will cost Norv Turner his job and it should cost GM AJ Smith his job as well.
$.04-- Oakland beat Chicago, and the game ball goes to Shane Lechler. The Raiders punter did what seemingly no one else has ever been able to do, completely take away the phenomenal Bears special teams advantage. Lechler boomed an 80-yarder that flew over a bewildered Devin Hester and completely flipped the field position. That punt very nearly died at the 2. Later in the fourth quarter with the Raiders precariously clinging to a 25-20 lead, Lechler unloaded a masterful 50-yarder under heavy duress that Hester could not field. The ball went out at the Chicago four yard line, pinning the Bears down in a hole and feeling so small.
The Raiders beat the Bears at their own game, just as Chicago played a style that would make Al Davis smile. Superlative special teams and a strong running game carried the day for Oakland, while the Bears aired the ball out down the field far beyond any reasonable explanation with a backup QB, largely ignoring their talented runner Matt Forte. Lechler and kicker Sebastian Janikowski were both great, and they largely neutered the Bears excellent return game. For Chicago to win with Caleb Hanie as their quarterback, the Bears need big plays from the return game and the defense to carry the day. Oakland stared down the return game, unleashing the best punter in NFL history and arguably the best long-range kicker in NFL history.
That was enough to allow Caleb Hanie to lose the game for Chicago, with a big assist from Offensive Coordinator Mike Martz. The Raiders quickly picked up that Martz was going to prove a point that he believed in Hanie, letting him throw the ball down the field early and often. Carson Palmer was not great but didn't give the game away for Oakland, whereas the Bears stubbornly refused to acquiesce to common football sense. Oakland and Chicago are both 7-4 but heading in decidedly opposite directions; the Raiders are coalescing around their veteran replacement QB and look tough to beat as the AFC West leaders, while the Bears flail wildly with a greenhorn replacement QB as they tenuously cling to a NFC Wild Card.
$.05-- Should TJ Yates not be able to steer the Texans ship adequately, the Tennessee Titans are quietly lurking in the rear view mirror. They might be the most anonymous 6-5 team in NFL history. Go ahead--without looking it up, name their top receiver or any starting defensive front seven player. I bet it took a few seconds for even the most fervent NFL fans outside of Nashville if you got it at all. Yet this team is in far better position to make the playoffs than the Jets. I bet you won't hear that anywhere else either.
Chris Johnson's Sunday performance provides even more optimism. CJ2K finally looked like the 2,000 yard rusher, slashing through good holes with lightning speed and authoritative running. He also flashed the open-field moves against the Buccaneers that made him a favorite of Madden players everywhere. Getting that kind of play from Johnson brings a dual threat to Matt Hasselbeck and the rest of the offense, which made just enough plays to beat Tampa in a very sloppy overall game. The biggest play of the game came from Pro Bowl return man Marc Mariani, running a gadget play lateral to rookie Tommie Campbell to get the Titans on the board and suck the momentum away from the visiting Bucs. The defense forced five turnovers, taking advantage of the ongoing inexplicable regression of Josh Freeman and the fumblitis of Legarrette Blount.
That is what makes Tennessee scary; they know how to win ugly games. Hasselbeck had a rotten game, save a handful of clutch 3rd down conversions and a clinching TD throw to Damian Williams. But they manufactured other ways to win, something they've done at other times this year as well. Their remaining schedule is very favorable for Tennessee to pile up some wins. Next week is at the collapsing Bills, which should put the Titans at 7-5. After a visit from New Orleans, the Titans are well-positioned to run the table: at winless Indy, home for 3-win Jacksonville, and the finale at Houston, which could be in "save it for the playoffs" mode. Ten wins is the minimum to get into the playoffs in the AFC, and though the Bengals hold the head-to-head tiebreaker with the Titans for that second Wild Card spot, I wouldn't count out Tennessee as the best of the current glut of 6-win teams that includes the Jets and Broncos. If any of those teams can nudge ahead of the Bengals or Ravens, it's the Titans. And that finale in Houston could be for the AFC South title.
$.06-- Carolina beat Indianapolis, all but locking up the #1 overall pick for the Colts without doing too much to damage the Panthers own high first round pick. This was a dog of a game between two lousy teams that both need a lot of help, and you might wonder why I spend a cent on it ahead of some other more meaningful games.
Andrew Luck is the reason. He will be the Colts QB next season as that #1 overall pick, just as Cam Newton was this year for the Panthers. As the #1 overall pick as a quarterback, expectations will be through the roof. Luck is almost universally touted as the best, most can't-miss prospect since Peyton Manning, but I have a hard time seeing him being superior to Cam Newton as both a rookie and as a long-term NFL signal caller.
That is not an indictment of Luck's talent, which I think will allow him to be an above-average NFL quarterback for many years. But the more I watch Luck, the more I think he lacks the dynamic presence that Newton has in spades. Luck is the Scottie Pippen to Newton's Michael Jordan. It's a very fine but tangible distinction. And given the supporting casts in place on these two teams, Newton is in much better shape for the next couple of years than Luck will be to prove me wrong here.
$.07-- The Patriots finally put Eagles fans out of their misery, emphatically quashing whatever hope remained with a complete devastation of the Philadelphia defense in a 38-20 romp that was not as close as the score might indicate. Tom Brady sliced, diced, and chopped apart an overmatched Eagles back seven for 361 yards and three touchdowns almost without breaking a sweat. On most dropbacks, Brady had a buffet of open receivers to choose from, feasting on blown coverages and missed assignments.
The Philly fans booed early and often, resorting to chants of "Fire Andy" Reid by the end of the game. I would argue that it's not on Reid that Michael Vick was out and Nnamdi Asomugha was clearly inhibited with a knee ailment, but Reid didn't help his cause on a couple of fronts. Lesean McCoy is arguably the most explosive running back in the game, and he started this contest off with a 2-yard touchdown run that put the Eagles on top early. After that, McCoy completely disappeared from the offense, save a 22-yard scamper in the second quarter. Outside of those two runs, McCoy logged eight carries for seven yards against one of the worst run defenses in the league. Instead, Reid chose to let Vince Young throw 48 times. Even when the game was still an actual game, Reid found it a better idea to let Vince Young chuck the ball all over the field than give the ball to McCoy and let the offensive line pound on the vulnerable Patriots defensive front.
This game is a great illustration of why Vince Young is fool's gold. Some bean counting personnel exec is going to see the 400 yards passing and think, "Wow, this guy deserves millions to turn our offense around". But anyone who watched this game and understands football at a rudimentary level saw how badly Young played and how he continually missed opportunities. The same is true of Desean Jackson, another guy who will have some statistical guru look at his numbers and back a truck of cash into his driveway next summer, then wonder why his team keeps piling up losses. The Eagles are loaded with players like that, and Andy Reid will pay for it with his job.
$.08--5 NFL Quickies:
1. The Lions placed running back Jahvid Best on injured reserve, more than a month after suffering a nasty concussion. You might remember Best suffered another major concussion in his final year at Cal, when he leapt over a defender and landed on his head. I understand there are people around Best urging him to retire and not risk lasting brain damage. The Lions fan in me hopes he can come back, but I've seen too many NFL veterans go through life punch-drunk and unable to handle facets of everyday life that most take for granted because of playing through concussions. I hope Best listens to those with his best interests at heart and calls it a career.
2. One of my proudest parental moments came Sunday evening. While I'm watching the highlight show following the late afternoon games, my son Layne joined me. We watched the Jets/Bills summary, and at the end my 6-year-old declares "Wow Dad, I bet Rex Ryan is happy about that". My first grader knew that I call Mark Sanchez "The Sanchize" and that Rex Ryan is the Jets coach without any prompting. He also recognized Dan Patrick and correctly predicted that the Broncos would block the overtime field goal, which they did even though the play was negated by a time out. That's my boy!
3. As much as Ndamukong Suh deserves scorn and suspension for his dirty play, Seattle safety Kam Chancellor is right there with him. Chancellor was fined just last week for a vicious hit on Rams TE Lance Kendricks, a week after being fined for doing the same to Ravens WR Anquan Boldin. This week the second-year player from Virginia Tech went helmet-to-helmet with Ethnic Slurs WR Santana Moss, and it sure looked deliberate. If Suh gets suspended as he should, Chancellor deserves equal punishment.
4. Dwayne Bowe ought to be ashamed of himself for his pathetic lack of effort on Kansas City's death gasp play. Bowe calls for the ball to be thrown high and inside, Tyler Palko does so and Bowe doesn't even reach for the ball. His cowardice makes me wish someone would be allowed to hit him anyways. Pittsburgh played their worst game since the opener and still survived thanks to Bowe. I'm pretty sure Mike Ditka would have killed him right there on the sideline if he was the coach.
5. Stevie Johnson--did God make you drop those two critical passes on the final drive, the ones that allowed the Jets to hold on and beat your sorry team? Actually, I do blame a higher power for Johnson's decidedly un-clutch performance. The negative karma Johnson brought up on himself for his pathetic touchdown celebration earlier in the game paid itself back quickly. I appreciate the classy, mature response by Plaxico.
$.09--College/Draft Quickies:
-- If there was any question about LSU being the best team in the country, they quashed it with a resounding 41-17 pounding of #3 Arkansas. After trailing 14-0, LSU turned its game up to another level. That is a level that no other team in the nation can handle. They beat three teams in the top 10 of the BCS, two of those on the road. If they somehow lose to Georgia in the SEC title game, there is no way the Tigers shouldn't still be in the BCS title game ahead of Alabama. Remember, that ‘Bama team they beat in Tuscaloosa. They had their shot. Next...
-- While the rest of the country watched Alabama slam Auburn or Oregon get uncivil with Oregon State, I watched Virginia Tech blow away Virginia to wrap up their division in the ACC. This was the Hokies pinnacle game, definitely the best they have played all season long. UVA's strength is their defense and running game, but Frank Beamer's team made them look bad. A win next week over Clemson, the only team to beat them, would put Virginia Tech in position to claim the #2 spot in the final polls if they win their bowl game. Not bad for a team that will be better next year.
-- I've been studying and breaking down the tight ends for the next draft, and I'm feeling better about the potential class all the time. Clemson's Dwayne Allen and Stanford's Colby Fleener both made spectacular plays on Saturday that translate well to the next level. Allen reminds me of Jermichael Finley, a tremendous athlete that is more oversized wideout than tight end, but also someone that improves at route running and blocking with more experience. Fleener has a lot of Rob Gronkowski to him, potentially.
-- The D-I team in the state of Ohio with the most wins is...Ohio University. That's right, my beloved alma mater takes a 9-3 record into the MAC title game against Northern Illinois. The Bobcats went 7-35-2 in my first five years in Athens, including a 20-game winless streak where the average margin of defeat was over 27 points per game. Frank Solich has crafted a physical defense that swarms to the ball, led by Nebraska native Noah Keller, who deserves a 6th or 7th round draft look. Solich also finally found himself a QB that can throw the forward pass in Tyler Tettleton, from Norman OK. There are several Bobcats from Virginia and the DC/Philadelphia corridor, recruiting areas that were off the map during my time in Athens.
-- If the Urban Meyer-to-Ohio State talk is legit, and there is every reason to believe it is, the Luke Fickell era ended with the first loss to Michigan since 2003. It was the Buckeyes best offensive showing of the season, highlighting the importance of Devier Posey as a game-changing wideout and how badly they missed him during his suspensions. Braxton Miller offers promise for immediate dividends for Meyer, but he must develop touch and patience. There is no reason that Meyer cannot replicate what Brady Hoke has just done in his first year at Michigan, likely making a BCS bowl with an exciting offense keyed by a running back with an arm playing QB.
-- Kansas fired Turner Gill after two miserable seasons. Gill was a hot commodity after leading Buffalo to the MAC title game, but he could not field a team at Kansas that would be competitive even in the MAC, let alone the Big 12. Blame the program and not Gill, who deserves another shot to rebuild his reputation at a school that actually cares about fielding a competitive football team.
-- Illinois finally put Ron Zook out of his misery, firing the coach after the team lost its last six games to follow up a 6-0 start. Florida fans everywhere can only smile warmly. Maybe the Illini should look at Turner Gill...
$.10-- The NBA lockout finally came to an end, just in time to salvage an abbreviated season that starts on Christmas Day. After lots of bitter acrimony and doomsday speak, cooler heads prevailed.
I'm actually a big fan of a shorter, more compact season. 66 games between Christmas and the very end of April is better than 82 between late October and mid-April. Playing five games in seven nights shouldn't be too much of a challenge, provided the schedule makers are able to read a map. Hopefully this eliminates the ridiculous stretches like the Cavs had a few years ago when they played Monday in Toronto, Tuesday in Cleveland, Thursday in Miami, and Friday in New Jersey. I like the sense of urgency and putting more of a reliance on having functional depth.
But I think the NBA missed a golden opportunity here to do what they really needed. Contracting two teams should have been a given and not a quickly discarded negotiating chit. New Orleans has proven time and again that it is incapable of supporting a viable NBA franchise. It's a team currently under league control that cannot find an owner willing to keep the franchise in New Orleans. Their arena situation is poor, and they rank near the bottom in ancillary revenue. They were the poster child for why many other owners were crying foul, and they should have been whacked. And because it makes no sense to have an odd number of teams, the league could easily have contracted another franchise hemorrhaging cash on a yearly basis. The Charlotte Bobcats, a team nobody really clamored for after the Hornets fled for New Orleans after years of mismanagement and a half-full (if they were lucky) arena, would not be missed after a year or two.
Heck, I would strongly consider contracting my beloved Cleveland Cavaliers. The bump in prominence that team got from Lebron is going to wane quickly. Then it will be back to the days where my Dad and I could count the number of people sitting in the upper bowl on our four hands. One of the last pre-LeBron game I attended in Cleveland, I sat in Section 133, the corner section behind the basket beyond the visitor bench. I got the $35 tickets free. My brother and I were the only people in our row, the rows immediately above and below us were completely empty, and this was against the defending East champion Nets. Those days are coming back to Cleveland very soon, and owner Dan Gilbert will be losing millions. Remember, he bought in high. It would break my heart to see the Cavaliers go away, but the plain fact is that the NBA is not viable in that market. Just as the NHL blew their chance to eliminate superfluous teams in Miami and Long Island, the NBA leadership failed to address one of the biggest reasons why they locked the players out in the first place. The league had a chance to remedy that but chickened out on the contraction front.
