Josh McDaniels 1 Jay Cutler 0

Yes, it was just one game. And yes, Josh McDaniels’ team played the Cincinnati Bungels while Jay Cutler played the much-improved Green Bay Packers. But, the standings in the newspapers will still have one win next to the Denver Broncos and one loss next to the Chicago Bears.

Much hype and publicity went into Jay Cutler’s first game as a Bear (mostly generated by him). The media dubbed him as the greatest quarterback to wear a Bears uniform since Jim McMahon, and already people are bringing up “first time” stats, as in this is the first time a Bears quarterback made the Pro Bowl since (blank) and the first time a Bears quarterback threw for 300 yards since (blank).

Instead, Jay Cutler showed not only his ineffectiveness by throwing four interceptions, but also his immaturity whenever a defender would merely touch him he would shove him back.

People seem to forget that although Cutler has put up good numbers, he has never led his team to a winning record, let alone a playoff appearance. So when push comes to shove, and it will with him literally, he might put up the points, but won’t be able to lead the final drive.

It got to the point where Al Michaels reported that a Bears fan in attendance wearing a Jay Cutler jersey had turned the shirt backwards.

Now everybody has a bad game every once in awhile. But some of them have the personality to make you forget about them and wait to see what they can do next week. Cutler definitely does not have one of those.

Meanwhile, Kyle Orton, supposedly the Achilles heel to the team, but one who has actually led a team to the playoffs, led his team on a game winning last minute drive.

Now maybe Orton will be someone who holds the team back…but not yesterday.

And yes, Cutler would’ve beaten the Bungels had he been in a Denver uniform…but he wasn’t.

On the Bears first possession, it seemed Cutler might be colorblind since it seemed he was just throwing the ball right to the Packers defense. The first two were dropped, but not the third pass thrown in a row in the direction of a Green Bay player.

The Bears defense kept them in the game and the team found itself up by two points (thanks to a safety on a sack) in the final minutes. But after an Aaron Rodgers touchdown pass to put them ahead, it was down to Jay Cutler to show just how great he was and how wrong Josh McDaniels was…unfortunately the wrong thing about hype is you start mentioning it before the person actually accomplishes it.

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NY Jets Look Sharp in Opener against Houston

This game had quite a few story lines for the New York Jets…all of them finishing with happy endings.

Rex Ryan and his coaching staff deserve to be applauded for how they orchestrated the game. The offensive adjustments were solid and defensively they brought an aggressive game plan, which is needed when facing a prolific offense.

It was a great first win for the first time head coach.

The most talked about story line was Mark Sanchez, the rookie QB on the road for his first career start. A lot of doubters expected Sanchez to perform poorly and after the first quarter, I was kind of nudging that way myself. He had a few shaky moments when the pressure was on.

The commentators, Jim Nantz and Phil Simms, definitely weren’t among the doubters, though. On a replay of one of Sanchez’s “shaky moments”, they commented on how tight of a spiral he throws while under pressure, but video on my plasma showed a hardly rushed, wobbly toss into pretty loose coverage.

I think he just needed to get his feet wet because every pass after that was tight. Pressure hardly bothered him. Reading coverage and judging defenders was not his strong suit, as he had a couple almost picks and then the Texans only points of the game, a pick-six. 

Hopefully he’ll improve in that area, but every other aspect of his play was great. Especially, his third down play. The Jets were 10-18 on third down, and were 8-10 in the first half. And this was without a running game in the first half.

Football experts also doubted the Jets’ wide receivers. Jerricho Cotchery and Dustin Keller played like two of the best at their positions, finding soft spots, beating man coverage, making tough catches, and getting plenty of YAC for first downs. Chansi Stuckey also showed up big with the touchdown reception, where he got wide open deep. The definition of scat-back, Leon Washington, caught and ran well also. David Clowney and Brad Smith didn’t record any receptions, but other teams will see them more if they try to double Keller or Cotchery.

The Jets’ defense should be the main discussion following the game. They smothered the Texans’ offense. Steve Slaton had no where to run and Matt Schaub had no time to throw.  My MVP of the game would have to be David Harris. He was a terror all over the field. Bart Scott and the other linebackers were solid as well, but Harris was in every tackle. He had six solo tackles, five assists, and a sack.  

As for the rest of the defense, the Jets made big tackles to stop third down conversions, swarming the ball carrier. They played extremely well missing Calvin Pace and Shaun Ellis, two starters on suspension. The run defense was a big part of that, which all starts with the defensive line. They took up blockers to free up the linebackers, who hit Slaton repeatedly for losses and short gains.

Pass defense also starts with the D-Line. The Texans underestimated how big of a force Kris Jenkins can be. He tossed the Houston center around like a rag doll and hurried Schaub on several occasions. It was just fun to watch him club the guy and then bull rush the QB. The Jets also blitzed very well to pressure Schaub, using overloads and stunts. A lot of credit for this win should go to the Jets’ defense which held the Texans to 48 plays for 38 yards rushing and 145 yards passing with only 11 first downs and no points.

Story line four goes back to OTA’s when the Jets running backs, Thomas Jones and Leon Washington both held out because they are in the final year of their contracts, which are not very lucrative and would like to get paid with extensions. Both warranted it from last season, but the Jets held firm and both guys showed up to training camp with the gloves on to prove their worth. 

Sunday was a rough start for both backs. Neither could find any running room early in the game. Jones had 12 rushes for 14 yards at one point.

Washington found running room after the Jets unveiled their Wildcat formation, which they dub Seminole due to Washington being from Florida State. He almost put his second Seminole run in for six, getting pulled down inches from the goal line.

Jones powered the ball in the end zone on the next play. Late in the game, Jones got his legs under him, found some crushing blocks from RG Brandon Moore and FB Tony Richardson, and began to put up some yards. He took one run 39 yards to the end zone for his second score. A couple of big runs made his rushing stats look a lot better, but those that watched the game know that he played pretty poorly with two fumbles (one credited to Sanchez due to a hand off exchange, but after the replay, I believe Jones was to blame as he tried to take the ball with his hands). 

Regardless, the finish of the game had Washington and Jones plugging away, burning clock, and eating up first downs to put the game away. 

Another happy ending.

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Detroit Lions Going Through Growing Pains

Ouch.

That about sums up the Detroit Lions’ first real game of the 2009 season against the New Orleans Saints.

Matthew Stafford made his debut, and it was, how shall we say, underwhelming? Sixteen for 37 for 205 yards and three interceptions.

It wasn’t that Stafford was throwing bad-looking passes. They were tight spirals that just happened to end up in New Orleans Saints’ arms.

Stafford’s accuracy will be criticized for a long time until he starts hitting passes like the great looking hook-up with Calvin Johnson on a regular basis.

And just what did we all expect to have happen? All those who were in favor of starting Stafford, let me be the first to tell you, there will be more games like this until Stafford gets it.

But the 45-27 trouncing did have some bright spots:

* The aforementioned 64-yard completion to Calvin Johnson;

* Jason Hanson back and going a perfect 3-for-3 on his field goals, including a 47-yarder;

* Louis Delmas recovering a fumble and returning it 65 yards for a touchdown;

* And Stafford was sacked only once.

But where was the running game? Where was the offensive line that showed such promise in the preseason? Where was the defense?

Ah yes, the defense—an area that was largely ignored in the 2009 draft as the Lions decided to focus on offense.

No sacks on Drew Brees, which is not really surprising as he was only sacked 13 times last year, but cripes, I don’t think they laid a hand on him the whole game.

The secondary was literally abused by Brees, most notably Eric King, who was in for the injured Phillip Buchanon. Granted, he is a backup, but to say that he was lit up is an understatement.

Allowing Brees to throw six touchdown passes indicates two very real and ongoing issues that are impeding the Lions from moving forward:

1. No pass rush—Despite upgrading the linebackers with Julian Peterson and Larry Foote, it made little difference. The Saints’ offensive line had their way with the Lions’ front four, and Brees had all kinds of time to find his receivers…and find them he did by going 26-of-34, 358 yards, six touchdowns, and one interception.

2. Weak secondary—With no pass rush to force bad or hurried throws, the secondary is exposed for what it is: weak.

There are many other areas, such as no run defense. Reggie Bush was held to seven yards, but Mike Bell rumbled for 143 yards.

But let’s be clear. I doubt that even if Daunte Culpepper had started this game, the outcome would not have been any different. Oh, the Lions might not have lost by as much, but they still would have lost.

I know I had predicted the Lions winning between six to eight games this year…but now I’m not so sure. They won’t go winless; at least I hope not.

The Lions are in a steep learning curve, and I believe Jim Schwartz, Scott Linehan, and Gunther Cunningham are the right coaches to get the Lions in the right direction.

I’m also pretty sure that due to this performance, the Lions are going to be doing wind sprints until they fall over.

But I’m not as worried about the offense as I am the defense. The Lions did score 27 points, and most of the time, that’s going to win you some games.

But giving up 515 yards, 28 first downs, and six touchdown passes won’t get you a seat at the Super Bowl unless you are buying a ticket.

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NFL Week One Recap: Part Two

BRONCOS 12, BENGALS 7

BRONCOS

If it wasn’t for a lucky—but still skillful—play by Brandon Stokely this game would be viewed as a disappointment. Instead, Kyle Orton’s ok-but-not-fantastic 243 yards and a touchdown looks much brighter and the Broncos might feel better about a game where they could not get their rhythm going.

Correll Buckhalter was the most effective back, but Coach McDaniels seemed determined to get rookie Knowshon Moreno a bunch of work. Both got eight carries but Moreno could only accumulate 19 yards to Buckhalter’s 46. Orton moved the ball around a lot, but no receiver stood out.

Brando Marshall only saw four catches, Eddie Royal had just two and overall there were many drops from Orton’s targets. The Broncos may have run, but their offense looks shaky at best.

BENGALS

Carson Palmer had a good yardage total (247) but his two interceptions showed some of the rust he accumulated from so much time on the I/R. Chad Ochocinco was back to normal form with five catches for 89 yards but Chris Henry—who Palmer had gushed over all Summer—was almost nonexistent with his expected targets going to second year wide receiver Andre Caldwell who had six catches for 54 yards.

Veteran Laveranues Coles had several drops and was a non-factor. Cedric Benson continues to play well for the Bengals (76 and one TD) and might have some nice fantasy value this season. Overall though, not the start anyone hoped for with Palmer and Ochocinco finally healthy.

JETS 24, TEXANS 7

JETS

Mark Sanchez looked calm and cool in the pocket as he threw far more than many expected and totaled 272 yards and a touchdown in his Jets debut. His one interception proved he has a ways to go—he made a bad decision and threw right into the arms of Safety John Busing.

Still, a nice performance. Dustin Keller had a very nice game with four catches for 94 yards and Jerricho Cotchery caught six balls for 90.

Chansi Stuckey was the recipient of Sanchez’s first touchdown and also had 64 yards on the day. Despite the 107 yards and two touchdowns, Thomas Jones looked horrible for most of the game. He looked bad in preseason and until he broke loose for a pair of long runs (one for a touchdown) his yards per carry was weak.

True to Rex Ryan’s word, Leon Washington got a lot of carries—15 in total—gaining 60 yards on the ground to go with his 24 through the air.

TEXANS

The Jets defense spent most of  the day in the Texans’ backfield and that made things difficult for quarterback Matt Schaub. If Schaub can’t get some protection, he’s going to get hurt again. He was only sacked once, but spent a lot of time picking himself up off the turf.

The entire offense was out of sync, as the Jets defense threw multiple looks at them and they had no answers. Andre Johnson had a quiet game—just four catches for 35 yards—and was shadowed effectively most of the day by Jets corner back Darrelle Revis.

Running back Steve Slaton found no room to run on the ground and got just 17 yards, salvaging the day a little with three catches for 35 yards.

VIKINGS 34, BROWNS 20

VIKINGS

Are you convinced Adrian Peterson is a stud now? That he’s the engine for this offense and should have been the No. 1 pick in every fantasy draft? Sure, the 198 total yards and three touchdowns came against a pretty bad Cleveland team. It doesn’t lesson the fact that he’s a man amongst boys.

Watch him as he dismisses Browns defenders when he rips off a 64 yards touchdown run (the 57 second mark is the best spot).

It’s his team and will continue to be so. Newly un-retired quarterback Brett Favre looked like a man who had skipped Training Camp, missing Sidney Rice in the end zone and generally not on the same page with his receivers. This happened with the Jets last season and will last another three to five weeks.

Rookie wide receiver Percy Harvin was the only real story in the receiving corps, as he had a nice touchdown from Favre and carried the ball twice for 22 yards to add to his 36 receiving yards. Bernard Berrian was there but might as well been invisible and Rice only got 17 yards on a pair of catches.

BROWNS

Brady Quinn looked serviceable in his performance, throwing for 205 yards, one touchdown and one pick. Tight End Robert Royal was his favorite target, gaining 60 yards and a touchdown on four catches.

Jamal Lewis held the starting job for another week and totaled 57 yards on the ground, though surprisingly added 47 yards on a trio of receptions. Will this keep up? If Quinn keeps having to check down, it might, and Lewis may have some value yet.

49ers 20, CARDINALS 16

49ers

Shaun Hill wasn’t very pretty but got the job done with a 18/31, 209 and one touchdown effort. As he did often in the preseason, he found Vernon Davis often, helping the newly minted team captain to a five catch, 40 yard day. Veteran Isaac Bruce had a huge 50-yard catch on his way to a four catch, 74-yard day.

Josh Morgan started out hot but ended up with just three catches for 38 yards. All three got more targets than catches, but at times Hill just wasn’t quite on point with his throws. Still, that will come with time, and the day was encouraging.

Frank Gore couldn’t get much going on the ground, which is a huge concern for a team which purports to run the ball 60 percent of the time. Gore supplemented his 30 yards on 22 carries with another 18 on three receptions. Gore did score twice, once on the ground and once through the air.

CARDINALS

While Kurt Warner was able to throw for 288 yards, he struggled often and threw a pair of picks as well as a touchdown. The 49ers defensive line did an outstanding job of disguising their defensive schemes and Warner seemed to have a hard time adjusting.

Larry Fitzgerald contributed to the cause with 71 yards and a touchdown, while Anquan Boldin only had two catches for 19 yards.

With Steve Breaston out, Jerheme Urban caught five balls for 74 yards. Warner did have a 100 yard receiver but it wasn’t any of the usual suspects—instead it was running back Tim Hightower who caught 12 passes for 121 yards. Hightower and rookie Chris Wells both struggled on the ground and neither ran the ball more than eight times, with Wells gaining 29 to Hightower’s 15.

GIANTS 23, REDSKINS 17

GIANTS

Eli Manning and the Giants offense allowed the Redskins to hang around far too long and were unable to finish them off until Steve Smith recovered an on-side kick with 1:30 left to play.

Manning played well, totaling 256 yards and a touchdown with his favorite and most reliable target being the aforementioned Smith, who hauled in six catches for 80 yards.

Brandon Jacobs was never really get any traction on the ground, gaining just 46 yards over the course of 16 carries. No. 2 back Ahmad Bradshaw had a little more luck, totalling 60 yards on 12 carries. Bradshaw added 11 receiving yards and Jacobs compiled 17 himself through the air.

Unfortunately, the two biggest stories for the Giants were injuries. Third stringer Danny Ware was injured on the opening kick-off, sustaining  a dislocated elbow while rookie wide receiver Hakeem Nicks left in the fourth quarter with what turned out to be a sprained ankle.

They dodged a bullet with Nicks, as the initial injury looked far worse than the two to three weeks he should be out. The extent of Ware’s absence is currently unknown and as of Monday morning he is out indefinitely.

REDSKINS

The Redskins were in the game a long time, but were unable to do much until the end of the game. Quarterback Jason Campbell was inconsistent, connecting with tight end Chris Cooley for a touchdown at one point and finding Giants corner back Corey Webster for an interception another. The run game was also average at best.

Clinton Portis earned every yard of his 62 yards, finding it extremely tough to gather any momentum against a tough Giants run defense.

Antwaan Randel El had the best game of the Washington wide receivers, catching seven balls for 98 yards. As mentioned, Cooley got the touchdown and added 68 yards to that. No other wide receiver had more than a pair of catches as the offense never got going on a consistent basis.

SEAHAWKS 28, RAMS 0

SEAHAWKS

Seattle came out firing against the hapless Rams but were far from perfect. Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck’s 279 yards and trio of touchdowns were solid, but he also turned the ball over twice. Nate Burleson had seven catches for 75 yards and a touchdown, but also fumbled the ball twice, losing it once.

Still, the bright spots were dazzling. Second year tight end John Carlson had six catches for 95 yards and two touchdowns while running back Julius Jones carried the ball 19 times for 117 yards and his own touchdown.

Newly acquired receiver TJ Houshmandzadeh had a solid day, gaining 48 yards on six catches and should be a bigger part of the offense as the season progresses.

RAMS

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Packers-Bears: Green Bay Gets Picky in Jay Cutler’s Chicago Debut

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Broncos 12, Bengals 7: Denver Broncos Defense Leads Way in Crazy Win

The Denver Broncos are 1-0.

How sweet does that sound Broncos fans?

After the longest verbal beating I can remember, the Denver Broncos proved their skeptics wrong on Sunday, and they did it with an unexpected strength: their defense.

In fact, the Broncos’ defense was so on point that the home team Bengals only reached the red zone twice in the entire game, and did not score a point for 59 minutes, 19 seconds (as Henry Gula earlier pointed out).

The new-look Broncos defense forced three turnovers, seven punts, and sacked Carson Palmer three times.  Steelers fans and Giants fans may laugh that the Broncos are proud of those statistics, but one must realize that this kind of defensive performance is not commonplace for the Broncos over the last three years.

In addition to the great play of the defense, the Broncos had stellar play from their special teams, namely Matt Prater who made both of his field goals from 48 and 50 yards.

The low spot of the game for the Broncos was the abysmal play of their offense, which was only able to get 10 first downs the entire game.

While those who did not watch the game will blame the ineptitude of the offense on quarterback Kyle Orton, anyone who actually saw the game knows that the offensive struggles came from an inability to effectively run the ball and a large amount of dropped passes.

This was a very boring game to watch until the last two drives of the game if you were an unbiased third party. Neither team scored a touchdown until late in the fourth quarter, but the scoring was totally worth the wait.

After a long drive by the Bengals culminated in a one yard touchdown run by Cedric Benson, the Broncos defied incredible odds.

Trailing 7-6, the game clock read 0:20 and Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels realized that the time remaining should be nearly doubled because of a failed challenge attempt by the Bengals with 41 seconds remaining. The ensuing touchdown play only took three seconds off the clock, and McDaniels’ pleading paid off.

The game clock was reset to 0:38 and that proved to be absolutely crucial for the Broncos.

After a pass by Orton that was nearly intercepted by Jonathan Joseph, he heaved up a pass to Brandon Marshall that was tipped in the air by Leon Hall and subsequently caught by fellow Bronco Brandon Stokley who ran 87 yards for the game-winning touchdown.

The game-winning drive took 27 seconds off the clock, so it was huge that Denver got the clock reset to 0:38 before the game resumed.

A crazy finish, and one for the ages to be sure.  Broncos fans will remember this one for a long time, and unfortunately, so will Bengals fans. 

Kyle Orton did about as expected with his stat line which saw him complete 17-of-28 passes for 243 yards, a touchdown, a 100.7 QB rating, and most importantly:  no interceptions.

Orton effectively managed the game, and the Broncos did not make any mistakes, and it is even more impressive that he did it all with a dislocated pointer finger on his throwing hand.

The Broncos were absolutely shut down in the running game, partly because they did not run it very much, and had a lot of trouble with dropped passes.  In fact, every Broncos receiver had a dropped pass today except for Daniel Graham.

Defensively, there is a lot to talk about for the Broncos. 

The team finished the game with three sacks from Andra Davis, Mario Haggan, and Darrell Reid, all of whom are from the linebacker position.

Denver also forced three turnovers, two interceptions from Wesley Woodyard and Tony Scheffler, and a botched field goal attempt by Cincinnati.

This game has to be looked at as somewhat of a reality check for the Broncos who will host Cleveland in week two. They did some great things defensively, but the defense can only hold so much weight on its shoulders. Eventually, the offense is going to need to be able to score points on a more consistent basis, and eventually means by next week. 

Cincinnati’s defense looked vastly improved from what we have seen in recent years, and they were very stingy against the pass. Their defensive backfield is very solid, and they were able to get three sacks on one of the best pass protecting defensive lines in the NFL.

Granted, Kyle Orton’s indecision and inability to get rid of the ball at times were the cause of those sacks, it is still an impressive feat by the Bengals.

A lot of the offensive struggles can be attributed to a pure lack of chemistry, as the team welcomed for the first time at the same time a group that included Knowshon Moreno, Brandon Marshall, and Russ Hochstein as irregulars.

The Broncos should come out more aggressive offensively against the Browns next week who were absolutely crushed by the Minnesota Vikings 34-20. Adrian Peterson had his way with the Cleveland run defense, and the Broncos need to take advantage with their new group of backs.

This was one of the best finishes to a game the NFL will see all season long, and it helps that the Broncos got win number one off their chests, and if the defense continues to play like they did today, there will be many more wins to come. 

It also helps that the only people who thought Denver would win this game were fans of the team, and even some of them were skeptical because of the loss of quarterback Jay Cutler.

By the way, Cutler threw four interceptions in his Chicago Bears debut against Green Bay, and the Bears lost 21-15. I know it is only the first game of the season, but Kyle Orton and the Broncos are heading home winners, and the Bears are staring Pittsburgh in the face at 0-1.

Somewhere Josh McDaniels is smiling, and he should be.

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Colts’ Week One: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The Indianapolis Colts got a gritty win over the Jaguars, despite losing the turnover battle two to zero.  There was a lot more good in this game than bad or ugly from the Colts’ perspective, even though the score was a lot closer than the team would have preferred.  Division games are never easy, but with this victory the team gets a head start and begin the year on top of the AFC South.

The Good

The team defense looked vastly improved from last season, even though the Colts were without their best defensive tackle, Ed Johnson, and arguably their best overall defensive player, Bob Sanders.

The team gave up 228 yards of total offense to the Jaguars, and held bowling-ball running back Maurice Jones-Drew under 100 yards rushing for what seems like the first time in franchise history. 

David Garrard was under heavy pressure from both the Colts’ front four and Larry Coyer’s aggressive blitzes. The Jaguars’ QB completed only half of his passes for a meager 114 yards.

The Colts proved very capable of getting the opposing offense off the field on third downs, as the Jaguars converted only six of 15 attempts. 

Marlin Jackson, who played exclusively as the nickle corner, might just have to stay there all year as Jerraud Powers turned in a spectacular rookie performance with two passes defensed that helped get the ball back in Peyton Manning’s hands.

Team tackling was much better than it was during the preseason, and gap integretiy was nearly flawless as the team only allowed one running play, a 26-yard off-tackle scamper by Jones-Drew, to break into the secondary.  The most notable missed tackles were both on the same play, when Garrard eluded both Dwight Freeney and Daniel Muir, but at least those two missed tackles were in the backfield.

Obviously, the team would like to force more turnovers. They forced none against Jacksonville. It is promising, though, that the Colts’ linebackers and defensive linemen led the team in tackles rather than the team’s safeties.

In addition to the excellent play on defense, the Colts’ special teams played well, specifically containing returns and pinning the Jaguars deep on punts.  Rookie punter Pat McAfee had two punts for 88 yards, both of which put the Jaguars behind their own 20 yard line and one of which was downed on the one yard line.

The Bad

When the Colts failed to convert a key third down late in the fourth quarter, the team had to count on their running game to make a yard on fourth down to seal the win, and the running game couldn’t get it.

The Colts did a lot in the offseason to try and improve their rushing attack in order to have a more balanced offense, but in the first game of the season they were only able to muster up 71 yards on the ground.

The team did get a goal-line touchdown from Joseph Addai, utilizing defensive tackle Eric Foster as a fullback.  Also, Donald Brown looked very dynamic rushing the ball, and he was able to convert a critical third down on a run play. 

But the offensive line is not getting enough of a push to really be counted on in critical situations.

The team needs to find a way to convert short-yardage situations on the ground, and if they can’t do that with their goal-line package, maybe they should try spreading out the defense with a thee-receiver set and running the ball.

The did use a shotgun package with both Donald Brown and Joseph Addai in the backfield, and they gained good yardage on a short pass over the middle to Brown.  This formation might be useful for draw plays as well, and could help the Colts in critical short-yardage situations.

The Ugly

Anthony Gonzalez suffered an inexplicable injury all alone on the right side of the formation without any contact from a player.  It appeared that he took a misstep in the turf and hyper-extended his knee.  He was unable walk off the field under his own power.

We don’t know his status yet, but if Gonzalez tore an ACL or suffered any season ending injury, it could really hamper the Colts’ offense this year.  The team was counting on his experience in the system to help them replace Marvin Harrison, but now they might have to rely on Pierre Garcon and rookie Austin Collie.

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The New England Patriots: Will Their Roster Gambles Pay Off? Part 1: QBs

The New England Patriots are no strangers to quarterback controversies.

They had to weather one in 2001 when Drew Bledsoe returned from the chest injury that had sidelined him; in his absence, a young second-year quarterback named Tom Brady started winning games. Head coach Bill Belichick, of course, chose Brady, and the rest is history.

They faced another one—at least in the minds of fans—in 2006, when the Patriots had one backup for Brady: Matt Cassel. He was a second-year quarterback who had never started a game since high school, and he was Brady’s only backup.

That controversy, of course, erupted in full force in the fall of 2008 when Brady was lost for the season in Week 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs. Despite many calls in the media to bring in a veteran to take the reins, Belichick stuck by his backup quarterback.

Cassel more than repaid Belichick’s faith; while Cassel may never have Brady’s skill as a passer, by season’s end the Patriots were responding to Cassel as field general just as they did with Brady.

After Brady’s injury, the Patriots finished the season with three quarterbacks: Matt Cassel, Kevin O’Connell, and Matt Gutierrez.

Cassel, of course, was traded to Kansas City in the offseason. Gutierrez was waived in the 2009 preseason when the Patriots signed Andrew Walter, who had been released by Oakland.

At that point, though, things got interesting.

The Patriots cut O’Connell in a surprising move, just a week before the season started. Then the Pats cut Walter, who didn’t even get a chance to play in the last preseason game.

Thus, the Patriots started the 2009 season with just two quarterbacks on the roster: Brady, a former Michigan Wolverine, and undrafted rookie free agent Brian Hoyer (pictured above), a former Michigan State Spartan.

(The Patriots also signed another quarterback, Isaiah Stanback, to the practice squad, but the Dallas Cowboys spent much of the last two seasons trying to convert him into a wide receiver. Similarly, the Patriots have a quarterback, Julian Edelman, that they drafted this year; now they’re trying to convert him to a wide receiver in the Wes Welker mold. Neither, however, would be what fans would consider a “veteran” quarterback.)

Bill Belichick, for whatever reason, has decided that, at least in the short term, it makes sense for him to carry just two quarterbacks on the 53-man roster. This decision carries three main risks.

First, the NFL incentivizes carrying a third quarterback. A team carrying two QBs on their 45-man roster can dress a third quarterback who can enter the game if the first two QBs get hurt, or at any point in the fourth quarter.

By eschewing a third quarterback, the Patriots lose this advantage, and must deactivate eight players, instead of seven.

Second, should the Patriots be planning to sign a veteran quarterback, they run the risk of Brady getting injured first. If (God forbid, Patriots fans must be thinking) that should happen, then they would lose much of the leverage they might currently have, either in terms of what it would cost them to trade for a backup, or how much they might have to pay a street free agent, such as an AJ Feeley or a Jeff Garcia.

Rumors on cutdown day had the Patriots trading for Feeley, but that did not materialize, perhaps for the same reason that the Patriots might have decided to wait to sign a third quarterback: Veterans who are on the roster for games in Week 1 have their salaries fully guaranteed, while those signed after the first game do not. (For this reason, it’s possible the Patriots might re-sign Walter, if Walter is willing to return.)

Third, the Patriots expect to make a run in the playoffs every year. If they do as well as they hope, they will fall under the Final Eight Plan, which, as I’ve written about before, will restrict their ability to sign free agents. So, if they don’t sign one this season, it may be difficult for them to sign one next year.

All in all, it’s difficult to gauge what the Patriots are planning. Clearly, either Hoyer must be further along in his development than even Brady and Cassel were as rookies, or Belichick is willing to roll the dice that Brady won’t get injured in the next few weeks. Although it is reminiscent of the situation in 2006, at least Cassel had the benefit of a full year in the Patriots system, rather than a single offseason.

In Hoyer’s defense, he had much more time as a starter in college than Cassel did.

What do you think about the Patriots’ gamble? Will it last beyond Week 1? If not, who do you think the Patriots will bring in?

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Giants Show Great Balance and Strong Defense in 23-17 Win Over Redskins

Week One of the 2009 NFL season finally came for the Giants fans.

All the talk of missing Plaxico Burress finally left when Sunday’s game ended with the Redskins because the Giants balanced offense showed Burress will not be needed.

The Giants took the opening kickoff and moved the ball effectively down the field on the Redskins defense. The Giants running attack of Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw got decent chunks of yards and kept the Redskins defenders moving back.

Eli Manning found some new targets to throw to, including Mario Manningham and Hakeem Nicks.

The Giants still need to work on their short-game situation on third and one and fourth and one, as Jacobs and Bradshaw each got stopped, but an easy 28-yard Lawrence Tynes field goal made it 3-0.

In the second quarter, Manning found Manningham on a screen pass and he made the Redskins tacklers look foolish by juking and moving and scored on a 30-yard touchdown pass to make it 10-0.

Even the defense was getting in on the action. Jason Campbell’s pass to Santana Moss was intercepted by Corey Webster, and Webster was falling out of bounds, he was able to keep his toes in bounds to make the play, a play which will make the ESPN highlight reel because it was a great pick.

Campbell also felt the Giants dreaded pass rush, having Osi Umenyiora sack Campbell, strip the ball away from him and Umenyiora picks it up and ran it back for a 37-yard touchdown run, making the score 17-0 Giants.

Before the end of the first half, the Redskins attempted a short field goal, but faked with punter Hunter Smith and he ran it into the endzone for a Washington touchdown, making it 17-7.

In the second half, the Giants defense put a ton of pressure on Campbell. Justin Tuck recorded 1.5 sacks on Campbell and Clinton Portis was hardly a factor in the game, rushing for 62 yards on 16 carries. If you take away the 34-yard run made by Portis in the first quarter, Portis had 15 carries for 28 yards, so the Giants shut down Portis very well.

Santana Moss also was not a factor in the game, catching two passes for six yards and no touchdowns.

Tynes had two more field goals in the game and Campbell had a garbage-time 17 yard touchdown pass to Chris Cooley with the Giants defense in prevent in the last two minutes of the game and the Giants won the game 23-17.

The Giants running combo combined for over 100 yards; Bradshaw with 60 yards on 12 carries and Jacobs with 46 yards on 16 carries.

Manning was able to spread the ball around to seven different receivers and used Steve Smith and Kevin Boss very well in the game, plus Manningham. Nicks made two catches for 18 yards, but left with a sprained ankle and his status for Week Two is unknown.

Overall, it was a good win for the Giants opening up, but a lot can be done to improve. Their defense really made Campbell feel uncomfortable all day and they put pressure on Portis and Moss.

The Giants must improve on the short-yardage situations as they had to kick a field goal from failing on a third and one and turned the ball over on a fourth and one. If the Giants had done better, the score wouldn’t have been as close and the Giants would have blown out the Redskins.

The Redskins new defensive tackle, Albert Haynesworth, was hardly a factor in the game and the Giants offensive line kept him out of the picture most of the game. He had four tackles, but no sacks and never put any pressure on the line.

In fact, Washington only got to Manning once in the game, so an outstanding job by the Giants offensive line in this game as well.

With the Giants traveling to Texas to play the Cowboys on Sunday Night Football in Week Two, the Giants must make the proper adjustments needed on offense in order to play more effective and score more points against the Cowboys.

However, the major positive was the Giants defense and how strong they played. They didn’t look like they missed a beat under new defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan, who got a Gatorade shower from his unit after the game, and with the return of Umenyiora and strong play from Chris Canty and Rocky Bernard, the defense looked very good.

It’s hard to tell anything from Week One, but the Giants started out their 2009 season on a very positive note with a good home win against an NFC East opponent.

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Kansas City Chiefs: Resilient Losers Begin to Form a Winning Identity

Commentators had very little positive to say about the Kansas City Chiefs prior to their matchup with the Baltimore Ravens, but after a hard fought game, which the Chiefs were in until the end, people may have to rethink what to expect of this team.

Despite losing to Baltimore 38-24, Kansas City established some identity as a resilient team with grit and a competitive drive. 

Many believe that coaches in the NFL must take a “hands off” approach as professional athletes are defiant in regards to being teachable.  Head coach Todd Haley has been criticized at times for his hard-nosed approach to coaching, but he has molded a unit that will remain competitive despite lacking depth and extensive talent. 

How does a team with limited talent win games?  The answer: discipline, eliminating mistakes and big plays on special teams.  Week One saw all three of these things happen for Kansas City.

The Chiefs had only three penalties for 15 yards and didn’t commit a turnover against a ball-hawking, physical defense in the Ravens. 

With some apprehension regarding a rookie kicker in Ryan Succop and punter Dustin Colquit coming off of injury, the kicking game appears to be a strong point for Kansas City.  Succop hit a 53-yard field goal in a windy stadium. Despite shanking one punt Colquit averaged almost 50 yards per punt, including pushing the Ravens offense inside their own 20 twice. 

The special teams’ performance was topped with a blocked punt by safety Jon McGraw who also recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchdown and Kansas City’s first points of the season.

A few other things jump out from the Chiefs’ first game:

1)      Todd Haley was not nearly as pass-happy as many expected.  Kansas City’s offense looked like it was still under the regime of former head coach Herm Edwards as they consistently ran the ball on first down in the first three quarters.  When the playbook opened up in the fourth quarter, the Chiefs finally found success with a scoring drive that went 80 yards, primarily through the air. They threw on every first down and the drive preceding had a 50-yard pass that set up Succop’s long field goal. 

2)      Backup quarterback Brodie Croyle played well.  Croyle complete 16 of 24 throws for 177 yards and two touchdowns with no turnovers.  He did face pressure as he was sacked three times on limited pass attempts, but this was an uplifting performance for fans who watched the offense struggle all preseason.  In the highly unfortunate circumstance that starter Matt Cassel underperforms, Croyle is a suitable alternative.

3)      Veteran additions made an immediate impact.  Safety Mike Brown and outside line backer Mike Vrabel were two of the team’s three leading tacklers and were involved in a number of key plays.  In addition to the statistics, both bring a leadership quality and an attitude that contributes to playmaking.

The Chiefs will benefit greatly from the return of injured cornerback Brandon Flowers as his replacement, Maurice Leggett, was picked on all day by Ravens’ quarterback Joe Flacco. 

Leggett did defend the deep ball well, twice breaking up potential big gains with excellent one-on-one coverage, but he gave receivers a huge cushion all game. All that, along with a lack of a consistent pass rush, allowed Flacco his first NFL game with over 300 yards passing.          

Most importantly, viewers of this game saw a team carving an identity common to winning programs.  Despite a dormant first-half offense, this team found a way to stay in the game.  Great teams win games even when the victory isn’t pretty.  Eight of Kansas City’s losses a year ago were by seven points or less. 

Haley is instilling a mentality that will cause a few more of those games to fall the way of the Chiefs.  

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