Four Raiders On Semifinalist List For The Hall Of Fame

Despite their recent slump, I have always had an infatuation with the mystique and history of the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders.

To me, the Raiders are the greatest team of all time, not because of their three Super Bowls, but at how dominant they are at every position of the game.

They have Hall of Famers at nearly every position from secondary to linebacker to defensive line on defense.

And on offense, they have Hall of Fame busts at tight end, receiver, quarterback, guard, center, tackle, and running back.

With so many dominant players in their storied history, it’s remarkable that there may be a few more on the way now.

The Hall of Fame announced its semifinalist list a few days ago and out of 25 names, four were lifetime members of the Raiders.

Lester Hayes was the 1980 Defensive Player of the Year and a talented cornerback with the team, winning two Super Bowls with them in the 80s.

He was a five-time Pro Bowler and a first-team All-Pro once. He picked off 39 passes over his career and was the reason that stick’em (a glue-like substance put on gloves to help get a better grip on the football) was outlawed.

Ray Guy is, to me, the most dominant punter of his era, if not all time. His powerful kicks would have five-second hang times and few return men ever had a chance to run with the ball.

Guy had only three punts blocked and never had a return taken back for a touchdown in his 14-year career. The seven-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro, was so dominant the NCAA’s annual award for best punter is named after him.

Tim Brown is third on the all-time receiving list behind Jerry Rice (also a candidate) and Isaac Bruce. Brown caught 1,094 balls for 14,934 yards and 100 touchdowns. In his 17-year career, he had over a 1,000 yards nine times.

He was also a brilliant return man, scoring on three punts and one kickoff. His combined total yards from scrimmage, rushing, receiving, returning punts and kicks, add up to 19,679 yards.

That’s more than 11 miles in total offense.

Last, but certainly not least, is Cliff Branch. He was to me, the most dangerous guy that team had during the 70s. John Madden remembers how Branch would say to him, “Coach, I can beat my guy deep.” He even said it sometimes during the anthem, and Madden said, “Cliff, we haven’t even played a down yet. How do you know who your guy is?”

He was just so fast. I remember reading an interview of Mel Renfro, Hall of Fame cornerback for the Dallas Cowboys and he said, if I remember correctly, “The guy could outright fly”

When you think about Branch, he was such a dangerous weapon, and he was on all three Super Bowl teams for the Raiders. He was such a consistent target.

He only had 501 catches, less than half of Tim Brown’s, but he had 8,685 yards. If you double the catches and numbers, he had more yards receiving than Tim Brown with 92 fewer catches.

A four-time Pro Bowler, and a three-time first-team All-Pro with 67 touchdowns and a 99-yard reception over a 14-year career with the Raiders.

Out of all these guys, I would like to see Cliff Branch in the Hall of Fame above the rest. He is one of my all-time favorite Raiders.

All four of these men have a chance to go to the Hall of Fame this year for the Silver and Black.

Let’s hope the Hall of Fame recognizes at least one.

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Week 13 NFL Predictions: Playoffs Loom Large On Teams Game Plans

Denver must now give chase to San Diego in the AFC West as the Chargers will win against Kansas City in Week 12 and keep a one-game lead.

In Week 13, the Broncos play Kansas City in Arrowhead Stadium and should win this one to run their record to 8-4.

The Jets have Buffalo and should win this one, even though it’s on the road. New York still has little chance to make the playoffs unless Mark Sanchez suddenly matures one season early, and takes them on a run starting this week.

The Jets will beat Buffalo, but after that, no one knows.

Philadelphia travels to Atlanta and needs a win, but so do the Falcons. Matt Ryan and his offense should outscore Philadelphia for a close home victory.

Indianapolis, on autopilot to the playoffs, has Tennessee in the friendly confines at home in Indiana. We have to take the best team in the AFC to this point, and give the Colts the nod on this one.

Houston takes on Jacksonville in Florida and should nail this road win becoming one step closer to the first playoff game in franchise history. Houston must keep winning now, and hope the chips fall right for the Texans.

Cincinnati will handle Detroit at home and remain a good solid 9-3 for the season. The Steelers sitting Ben Roethlisberger last week, basically said, here’s the division Bengals, take it.

Tampa Bay will have their only real shot at another win this season, against the Carolina Panthers on the road. I would almost take the Bucs in this one, but I think not.

Carolina wins this one at home.

The Steelers will have Roelthlisberger back hopefully, and handle the Raiders, to keep their playoff hopes alive.

New England is in Miami, and should handle the reduced wildcat without Ronnie Brown.

The Patriots are trying to get a high seed for the playoffs at this point, and will play hard up until at least Week 15, then maybe rest some key players.

The Bears may finally win one as they host the Rams. I will take the Bears to get it done.

New Orleans, on cruise control to the NFC Championship Game, will beat Washington on the road easily.

San Diego will take Cleveland on the road easily as well to keep the division lead.

The 49ers have Seattle on a trip north, and should handle the Seahawks to keep very faint playoff hopes alive. These hopes are very faint, like barely a pulse.

Dallas has a big test with the Giants in the Meadowlands. I would take Dallas in this one, except it’s time for the big fold-o by the Cowboys going down the stretch.

I will take the Giants at home, who have something to prove still, while Dallas will be complacent it seems in this one.

The Vikings travel to the desert and take on Arizona. This season, the Vikings added some Favre guy for the trip west. Advantage, Vikings.

On Monday, the Ravens travel to Green Bay and take on the surging Packers. This should be a pretty good one. Green Bay, at home as of late, seems like a good pick.

The Ravens are fighting for the playoffs and so are the Packers. This is like a mini-playoff game to make the playoffs. Take the Packers in this one.

Thomas [NFL Mikee] Moreland.

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The Washington Redskins and the Philadelphia Eagles Look to Ground Each Other

The Washington Redskins face the Philadelphia Eagles in a NFC East contest on a chilly day at Lincoln Financial Field. The best that can be said for the Redskins is that they can win.

Not that anyone expects them to. The Redskins are 10 point underdogs to the Eagles. But Washington’s effort against the Cowboys stokes the dying embers of hope that something good can emerge from the season.

The best chance for Washington to win this game is old fashioned football. Run the ball. Stop the run.

The absence of Clinton Portis and Brian Westbrook change the dynamics of the contest. Both were the leading scorers for their team. Both Westbrook and Portis scored 12 touchdowns in 2007. That’s three touchdowns for every four games they played.

No back on either team is close to that performance this season. Eagles’ receiver DeSean Jackson and tight end Brent Celek are on a pace for eight touchdowns each.

Jackson, who was judged too short to play for the Redskins, already gashed Washington for a 67 yard touchdown run and a 57 yard touchdown reception. Stopping Jackson means keeping him off the field.

The Redskin defense is the best in football against the pass, but not so good against the run. The Detroit Lions beat the Skins’ 25th ranked run defense on the ground.

The Redskins have to stop Eagle rookie LeSean McCoy. If McCoy is not as versatile at Westbrook, he’s more of a mystery to Washington.

Washington’s throws its midget, Portis-clones at the Eagles’ ninth-ranked rushing defense. 

Neither Rock Cartwright, Quinton Ganther, nor Marcus Mason are as tall as Clinton Portis (5 ft. 11 in.). Maybe they can hide behind the line until they break through it. 

Rock is as rugged as his name. Ganther may be a reliable blocker. Mason can gash for big yards on occasion. All offer the same advantage as LeSean McCoy. They are a mystery to the Eagles.

Washington’s travails are a blessing for Jim Zorn, though he might not see it that way.

The knock about his play-calling is a typical misdiagnosis by the Redskin front office. Bill Belichick makes controversial fourth down calls. John Harbaugh was scored on cable TV this morning for mishandling timeouts in the Ravens loss to the Colts last Sunday.

No coach calls a perfect game. It wasn’t Zorn’s play-calling that led to a 3-7 record.

The Redskins were not prepared for the season. That says something about head coaching leadership. Why is that a blessing? Because Zorn is learning now that it’s that head coaching management, ah, stuff, that must occupy most of his time.

That’s an expensive lesson learned on Daniel Snyder’s money. Zorn will apply that lesson for some other team in three years or so. Snyder won’t get the benefit of Zorn’s experience. 

Typical.

 

 

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Do Da Dirty Bird: Previewing Week 12, Falcons v. Bucs

There are a few reasons that my team should win this game.

• We’re coming home—thank goodness—to the Dome, where we’re unbeaten this year.
• We played a decent game last week, showing a good amount of moxie, despite the end result.
• And, of course, we’re facing friggin’ Tampa Bay.

Shortly before starting this article, I came to the realization that it might be easiest to just analyze the one game the Bucs have won—Week Nine, at home against Green Bay—and then show how the Falcons could not possibly come up short in the ways the Pack did.

But that’d be too easy, and the few DDDB readers out there know my personality by this time: total perfectionist. So I’ll break it down as I normally do, but let me remind you all to keep the comparison with the TB-GB game in mind this afternoon.

Because, in all honesty, that is the only game in which the Bucs did enough things right to matter at all.

 

Tampa Bay Rush Offense v. Atlanta Rush Defense

There can be just one reason a guy like Cadillac Williams has yet to top 100 yards in a single game this season, and that’s a piss-poor line. I have watched him since the very beginning of his Auburn days, and this is a feature NFL back, I guarantee you.

Besides that, the acquisition of Derrick Ward should mean more here. But no, these two studs combined have not clocked 700 yards on the campaign, making me even more certain where to point the finger.

Looking at these guys Tampa puts in the trenches, it’s neither inexperience nor old age that is holding them back. It’s clearly either playcalling or straight-up ability, as all have played between three and seven years in the league.

This just isn’t a bunch that can create holes or pull a back through, and they struggle with stopping penetration on runs, too. Not that we have guys who make too many tackles behind the line these days (looking at you, Jamaal Anderson), but after we held the Giants to 88 on the ground last week at their place, I ask anyone to tell me that the Falcons can’t make a tackle within five yards of the handoff against this bunch.

The Bucs are, in general, an awful offense, ranked 29th overall in the league. More on the air game in a sec, but keep in mind that this is actually the better half of their production, and it’s still barely getting to the century mark per game (100.9 yards average).

A Sunday ago, we Atlantans enjoyed a return to form for both Curtis Lofton and Mike Peterson, our real defensive keys (sorry, John Abraham). It was encouraging, especially on the road. They could only get in trouble today if they are looking ahead too much at the Eagles matchup in a week.

 

Atlanta Rush Offense v. Tampa Bay Rush Defense

A completely healthy Falcons team (I know, such a thing is hard to imagine) would be licking their chops at the prospect of facing this last-ranked rush defense. As is, I’d say we’re still probably looking forward to ramming it down the Bucs’ throats, considering how Jason Snelling looked last week against a stalwart N.Y. front.

The latest on Michael Turner is that he’s expected to play, but that doesn’t mean a whole lot to me, personally. I have to expect that a guy still rated “questionable” is at best at 75 percent, so I’d rather keep our third-stringer out there than risk the main man.

Of course, Jerious Norwood is also apparently feeling much better, and I’m not going to pretend that having three bodies is worse than the one we did last week. Throw in that that one had never before started a game, and the ground should serve us well.

Few things would please me more than for us to just eat up clock, giving our defense a veritable bye week.

We won’t be facing much pressure; the Bucs rely far too much on Barrett Ruud (86 tackles to second-place-on-the-team Sabby Piscitelli’s 59). The fact that the man’s only at “probable” certainly doesn’t help the case, either.

Tampa has forced just four fumbles and given up 12 rushing TD, 14 runs of 20 or more yards, and 84 first downs on the ground. Their 168.9 yards allowed per game means they’re granting almost 100 yards more than league-leader Pittsburgh, and the 4.9-per-attempt is tied for the worst in the L.

Stoppage is just an ugly topic down by the Bay.

 

Tampa Bay Pass Offense v. Atlanta Pass Defense

One can at least say this for the Bucs’ air game: Things are more interesting since the rookie took over.

Meanwhile, one can at least say this for the Falcons’ air defense: Things are always interesting.

Whether or not you think Josh Freeman is “ever going to succeed at the next level,” he’s starting there right now. He’s been no rookie sensation like a certain someone I know and love, but consider that he’ll take over the Tampa lead for passing yards this week after getting serious burn in just four games, and I’m not ready to pass a verdict yet.

His ratio (five TD to five INT) is far from great, but he’s shown better mobility than the guy on the roster who’s got a better one (Byron Leftwich with four-to-three). It’s that mobility that’s the key to why he’s been getting the nod, after all, and it’s what’s led him to fourth in rushing yards on the club and a 6.9-per average when he scrambles.

I’ve quit pretending that Atlanta can produce a consistent pass rush, as Abe is at least playing like he’s past his prime (if he isn’t) and Kroy Biermann can’t be put in on every down for the liability he presents in the ground game. But I tell you what, I’ll take my chances with Freeman’s 51-percent completion rate.

Dude has questionable accuracy even when not pressured.

It won’t help that both Antonio Bryant and Kellen Winslow are a little shook up. Then again, against a secondary that let Eli Manning throw for over 380 yards last week (and more telling, let four different guys rack up more than 60 yards receiving, including Mario Manningham’s 126), you don’t really need health.

Just a pulse might be enough against the inconsistent Brent Grimes. I beg you, pray tell: How do you look so good one second only to suck the next?

Overall, you know I’m giving us the edge, though. Not even we can make a 61.1 passer rating across the Buccaneer QB corps look elite.

 

Atlanta Pass Offense v. Tampa Bay Pass Defense

At least you didn’t throw a pick last week, Matty Ice. I might really have cried had you managed that. Please let this be a sign of good things to come.

Though, of course, as I say that, it’s time to dig back up something I mentioned at the outset – the Tampa-Green Bay game. It was in that contest that the strength of the Bay secondary came out, and Aaron Rodgers threw three picks. Returns of 35 or more yards (including one for six) did the Packers in.

And so, all the more important to keep the ball on the ground. Aqib Talib and Tanard Jackson will be all too happy to wrestle us from the warm embrace of victory.

Still, don’t be fooled by the unit’s 13th-overall rating, or at least not entirely. See a group that’s given up the third-most passing TD in the league and allows the fourth-most yards per pass attempt for what they really are: prone to the big play.

The occasional big play is all we’ll need as long as the ground game does what it should be able to do. Now you see why I was stressing the run attack.

I was hoping for more Tony Gonzalez last week, and I got it; maybe they’ll listen again as I request that he gets a break here. We’ll need Roddy White down the sideline for the now-and-again bomb to keep the Buc defense honest, but Gonzo should take a breather while the mid-range game is handled by the tailbacks.

Good for us that four of our last six are at home, where Ryan seems not just comfortable, but All-Pro. How he got so harried against the Panthers a fortnight ago I’m trying not to think about; instead, I’m picturing a confidence-boosting crushing of Tampa’s defensive backfield.

 

Prediction : Falcons 34, Buccaneers 13

The Giants game was a heartbreaker for us. I won’t get into how we could have won had Jason Elam been a bit more accurate, though I will thank administration for exploring Brandon Coutu as an option.

We shouldn’t be worried, especially now that we’re back in friendly confines, but it’s important to keep in mind that our destiny is “in our hands.” Winning out is a long shot, but getting five of the remaining six would certainly help.

Tripping over Tampa, either today or in a few weeks, would spell certain doom. We must use this as a week to get our minds right and learn as much as possible about the Bucs so that we can earn a rare road win in late December.

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Washington Redskins Money Sits Against Philadelphia Eagles

Courtesy of a @RickMaese Tweet , we discover that Albert Haynesworth, Clinton Portis, and DeAngelo Hall are all out against the Philadelphia Eagles today. Translation, the Redskins’ biggest signees are all inactive, thus rendering any hope for a close game useless and non-gratifying.

Fortunately, these are all legitimate injuries; none of the “my hamstring-I got migraines-turf toe” variety. And that means that no one has really given up on making this season respectable for Washington fans.

Sadly, it doesn’t matter much if they players don’t want to conceded the inevitable. Everybody’s waiting on Charlie Weis to come to Washington anyway.

 

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NFL Odds Week 12: Carolina Panthers vs. New York Jets

NFL Picks: Carolina Panthers vs. New York Jets NFL Odds Week 12 : Two teams with identical 4-6 records and plenty of question marks will square off on Sunday afternoon, as the Carolina Panthers [+3½] visit the sports betting odds favorite New York Jets [-3½]. This inter-conference matchup has a scheduled opening kickoff slated for 1:05 PM ET live from Giants Stadium in the Meadowlands on FOX.

According to NFL Picks specialists and NFL Odds makers, the OVER/UNDER for this Carolina Panthers vs. New York Jets Week 12 contest has been calculated and set at a combined total of 41½ points scored.

For the visiting Panthers, their follow-up to last season’s playoff appearance has been a total disaster. Injuries and poor play have put Carolina behind the 8-ball, as its postseason hopes are all but gone for the defending AFC South champs. Are the Panthers suffering from the hangover loss to the Cardinals in the divisional playoffs?

It seems almost like an eternity ago that Carolina went 12-4 less than a year ago. The Panthers began their season by dropping their first three games. With a perfect 8-0 home record last regular season , Carolina crawled to a 4-5 mark before losing to Miami and failing to reach the .500 mark.

But even as bad as everything seems right now, with their chances of repeating as division champs now gone, Carolina is amazingly still within two games of a wild card spot. Easier said than done when they have New England, Minnesota, New York (Giants) and let’s not forget the unbeaten New Orleans Saints remaining on the schedule.

“I’m sure outside of that (team meeting) room, there will be a lot of people that don’t give us a chance,” Panthers head coach John Fox said. “Until the math says it, we’ll feel like we have a chance.”

For first-year head coach, Rex Ryan and his Jets, inconsistency has defined their NFL Picks season thus far. After a perfect start in which quarterback Mark Sanchez made the college-to-pro transition look like cake, the rookie has hit the famous “wall.”

But even with the Jets slumping with a 1-6 record and despite Sanchez’s four interceptions and a lost fumble in last week’s loss to New England, coach Ryan is sticking with his young gun. The first-year Trojan has now thrown 6 TDs and 14 INTs.

“I just think that he’s not going to get better unless he gets out and plays,” Ryan said. “It’s clearly not just Mark’s fault. There’s a reason he was named the starter , that I thought he gave us the best opportunity to win, and I still feel that.”

According to Ryan, one of the biggest adjustments from now to the end of the season will be his involvement in the offensive playcalling. Up to this point, offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer and special teams to Mike Westhoff have been exclusively in charged of running things.

This week, Ryan stated that this is all about to change. “I need to be more of the game manager than probably what I even realized before,” he said. “There’s been some people here that have been critical of that, and it’s probably more accurate than I wanted to believe.”

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The Schottey Six: NFL Teams To Benefit Most In An Uncapped 2010

NFL fans are worried about an uncapped league.

Baseball salaries are ridiculous! Just think about how the NFL—a much more lucrative league—could inflate those numbers!

In terms of basic revenue, team worth, etc. if Alex Rodriguez is worth $27 million a year, Peyton Manning is worth twice that. The Yankees are, by far, the most valuable MLB team but hardly turn a profit (comparatively) with their payroll.

A team like the Dallas Cowboys, Washington Redskins, or New England Patriots could double or even triple their payroll and still out earn the Boys from the Bronx.

Which teams will benefit most from an uncapped NFL? Check out The Schottey Six!

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Buffalo Bills Fans Patience Runs Thin in Wait for Messiah This Holiday Season

I would venture that a higher percentage of the population of Buffalo, NY actively follows their professional sports teams than any major league city in North America. This is especially true of Buffalo’s women, who may be more knowledgeable and fanatical about football and hockey than any women in the world.

Perhaps this is because Buffalo isn’t just a place, it’s a state of mind, a religion, a cultural overlay that works like ethnicity even though it isn’t exactly. It isn’t but it is.
 
Being Buffalonian is like being Jewish in a way. Being Buffalonian outside of Buffalo is like being Jewish in Tehran.
 
And therein lies the bulk of my experience. The ex-pat. The diaspora. If there is a Jewish bar in Tehran, I can imagine the comraderie there. Pretty much like what you’d find at the Nickel Bar in Tampa or the Buffalo bars in a hundred other cities that get less snow. It’s instant kinship.

Run into someone with a Bills or Sabres cap or jacket—in the airport, on the beach, in some other city’s stadium when the Buffalo teams are not even playing—and it’s always the same. It’s like meeting the twin you never knew you had. All you have to do is say, “Wide Right,” or “In the Crease” and you’ll keep buying each other drinks until you both need a designated driver. 

I wear my throwback logo Bills cap because it reminds me of the Kemp-Dubenion era when the Bills were the class of the AFL. But not just because of that.
 
The old grazing buffalo is pure (as opposed to the flashy, charging one with speedlines). I wish they’d go back to the old uni’s permanently, like the Jets did. That retro look fits Buffalo, in the way Buffalo is eternally retro, always was retro before retro was retro, sort of iconic in a way that’s both quaint and a little musty. Of course, the speeding Buffalo reminds us of the K-gun. Like I said, I like the retro look.
 
Back when those were our uniforms, we had dreams of making the Super Bowl without the accompanying nightmares, without the creeping, nagging suspicion that the Bills may have morphed into the Cubs of the NFL. God, must we wait a 101 years?
 
And the Sabres seem equally cursed. From Kate Smith, the Aud in the fog, to a non-goal in the crease, things don’t go better in the HSBC (Arena) any more than they do in the Ralph (Ralph Wilson Stadium).

I’ve spent all this time talking sports, mainly, but it isn’t really about sports at all. Sports are the metaphor, the religious rite. It’s what makes the Buffalo sort-of-but-not-but-sort-of ethnicity so similar to being Jewish. We are bonded not only by our common roots, but to the ritual. Watching the Bills or the Sabres is like going to Temple for Yom Kippur. We have this common ritual of atonement.
 
Atonement for what? In a way, for being Buffalonians!

We’re like Rodney. We don’t get no respect. Our homeland is often reviled as Cleveland’s ugly stepsister. Queen City? Not unless it’s Drag Queen. And we’ve done a lot of this to ourselves. Especially in the past.

Buffalonians who’re old enough, remember Stan Roberts (who is Jewish) on WKBW Radio giving the weather report on “Lake D-reeeear-y.”

Like the Jews, we’ve wandered in the wilderness for generations awaiting deliverance. We await the coming Messiah, having endured many false prophets. We thought it would be O.J., then Kelly and company, then Dominick Hasek for the Sabres. We thought the second coming of the Mighty Marv might finally lead the Bills, with us, to the promised land.

People who have not lived elsewhere for an extended period of time might not be aware of this—that once one leaves Buffalo, one realizes that there is something unique about the experience of growing up here, being from here, and then going elsewhere, that is not the same as if we were from someplace like Miami or Denver or Columbus, for instance. It may be similar coming from certain other Rustbelt towns.

Cleveland, for instance. I’m not sure. But the point is that there is a sense in which being Buffalonian has more meaning than where someone lives or lived once, or grew up.

And I say this from a theological and a theologian’s perspective.

In the theological sense, being Jewish is being a people who have experienced/endured a common history, whose identity is in a significant sense tied to a geographical location who were once slaves, delivered together from bondage, wandering in exile, and finally taking possession of the promised land, thinking they had finally arrived, that it was the end of history, only to learn that history repeats itself.

And still, repeating.

So, like the Jews we wander. We hope. We have our hopes dashed. We hope again. And we go to Temple. The Ralph. The HSBC. We fast. We sacrifice. We sob. We celebrate.
 
We wait. We celebrate. We curse! But we do it together. As one. We are the chosen people. We still don’t know what exactly we’re chosen for, but we’re chosen.

Waiting is part of it, most of it really. Waiting ’til next year. Waiting for the next good quarterback. Waiting for the next good coach.

At least now the coaching question appears due for an answer. We’ve got half the answer. Dick Jauron is gone. So until his replacement is named we have that almost giddy hope, that kid before Christmas hope that one of the biggest wishes on our list will be fulfilled.

But if we’re using the Jewish metaphor we have to change the Christmas imagery to Chanukah. And if you think about it, that actually works better. Chanukah’s all about the miracle of the lights. It’s about a small amount of oil burning night after night, vanquishing the cold, overwhelming the darkness, without being used up. It’s about eight consecutive nights of surprise.

It may not be coincidental, then, that there are eight unattached coaches who have ascended the mountain and brought back the tablets, who have parted the waters and led their people to the other side: Dungy, Cowher, Holmgren, Shanahan, Billick, Gruden, Johnson, and Gibbs. With that many available, who as head coaches have won it all, the Buffalo fans will accept nothing less.

“Ride a painted pony, let the spinning (spinnaker) spin.”

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Browns-Bengals: Can Brady Quinn Light Up the Field Again?

As head coach Eric Mangini continues his “please don’t fire me” press tour across the America, let’s hope he’s saved some time to assess what went right with Brady Quinn last week in Detroit.

 

Quinn posted a 21-33 performance with four touchdowns, a 133.1 passer rating, and had no turnovers last week. Most of the production was in the first quarter, but let’s not quibble over details.

 

A lot of people, including myself, were quick to call for offensive coordinator Brian Daboll’s head this year as the offense continued to find new rock bottoms in which to sink to.

 

That hasn’t changed.

 

That being said, I hope Daboll has turned a corner and is finally starting to figure this job out because Mangini doesn’t look at all ready to fire him.

 

Going into Cincinnati, keeping the no-huddle offense seems to be a no-brainer. Quinn is a smart quarterback, even if you want to complain about certain physical characteristics, Quinn does better when you let him play football without restriction.

 

One characteristic of a no-huddle offense is the quick reads the defense has to make at the line since the ball is moving so fast. Quinn is smart enough to capitalize on defenses who don’t adapt fast enough.

 

While Quinn’s first stint as starter this year was not successful, in hindsight, it looks like Quinn was never given the “vote of confidence” from Mangini and that he was playing scared.

 

Daboll’s lack of creativity combined with the short leash Quinn was obviously on combined for 10 horrible quarters. Mangini appears to have learned from that mistake.

 

Speaking of Mangini, between his national interviews last week, and an actual local interview with the Cleveland Plain Dealer , it is possible Mangini finally looked in the mirror and realized his NFL career may be over if he doesn’t start analyzing and changing things about himself.

 

Mangini always talks about getting players to hold themselves accountable for their actions and growing and improving as a result, yet it’s been painfully obvious he does none of that himself, other than token gestures that prove nothing.

 

All of his interviews seem to carry the same message, that being: Please don’t fire me, new Cleveland Browns Football Czar. I can get better if you give me a chance.

 

Anyway, I’ve found his sudden friendliness with the media interesting given the surrounding circumstances he finds himself in. Back to the game.

 

The Bengals have been a much better team this year, and everyone, including myself, is trying to figure out what the underlying reason is for the sudden change.

 

Granted, Carson Palmer is having one of his best seasons and the Bengals defense is giving up fewer points, but it’s such a drastic swing from last year that it’s hard to pinpoint “one” reason for the turnaround.

 

The Browns have had a grand total of one good week on offense, and their defense failed them last week when even a mediocre performance would’ve guaranteed a victory.

 

If Palmer is firing on all cylinders again, and Chad Ochocinco stays Chad Ochocinco, it could be a very long afternoon for Rob Ryan and the Browns.

 

But last week proved anything can happen on any given Sunday. So I’m quashing the cynic in me and predicting another very entertaining game. The Browns played the Bengals very close and lost in overtime in their last matchup this season.

 

Look for Quinn to have another productive day and for the defense to try and climb out of the cellar. It’s going to be another high-scoring affair with the Browns squeaking out their second win of the season to the delight of Steelers fans everywhere.

 

Browns 30, Bengals 27.

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Patriots-Saints: One Massive Breakdown To End Them All…

Never have I seen a game with such little importance in the playoff picture be billed with such heavy hype.

It’s been billed by some as a potential Super Bowl preview, while others see it as a game with the makings for an offensive shootout. Others still think the defensive minds of Bill Belichick and Gregg Williams will dictate the outcome of the game.

Talk about a logjam of story lines, this one is chock-full of them. Ironically, the Saints will need to go through the only team to finish a season 16-0 if they want to accomplish the same feat.

So let’s break down every section of both teams to get a better idea of what may occur this Monday night, starting with the forgotten boys of this battle:

 

The Defenses

New England : 16.4 points per game (second ), 187.3 pass yards allowed per game (sixth ), 109.4 rush yards allowed per game (14th )

New Orleans : 20.4 points per game (13th ), 214.9 pass yards allowed per game (15th ), 115.7 rush yards allowed per game (20th )

New England’s defense allows the second-least points in the league, but New Orleans scores the most points in the league.

One would figure that the advantage would clearly lie with New Orleans in this one, and they might be right. The Patriots have only sacked the quarterback 18 times this season, and the Saints’ offensive line has been one of the best in football by only allowing 13 sacks on Drew Brees.

It will be up to New England ’s secondary to keep their receivers blanketed, but we all know how that battle usually works out, especially with a field general at quarterback. A cornerback can’t cover a receiver all day, and the Patriots haven’t generated a legitimate pass rush this season.

The Patriots’ secondary has proven to be no group of slouches, however, intercepting 13 passes this season. With the bevy of talent the Saints have backed up at receiver, I’d expect to see more of the same from Drew Brees—a spread attack that will test the depth of New England ’s secondary.

The Saints’ defense, however, is a different story. They rank first in the league with 20 interceptions, and have generated 24 sacks on the quarterback. Though their overall performance hasn’t been as stellar as New England ’s (as noted above), they’ve had a penchant for big plays.

Big plays don’t always win big games, though.

New England ’s defense has been more fundamentally sound all season, and though they’ve still given their fans migraines on third down, they’ve certainly done better about stopping opponents from scoring.

Needless to say, both defenses will be tested in what should be a high-scoring affair.

Advantage: New England

 

The Offenses

New England : 29 points per game (third), 302.3 pass yards per game ( second), 113.8 rush yards per game (16th )

New Orleans : 36.9 points per game (first), 266.2 pass yards per game (sixth), 154.3 rush yards per game (fifth)

One might be surprised to know that New England has outgained New Orleans through the air by almost 400 yards. The Patriots have also thrown 84 more passes than the Saints.

As the old adage goes, there are as many paths to the top of the mountain as there are people climbing it. These two offenses have achieved very similar success in very different ways. While the Saints have enjoyed their success by spreading the ball around to their plethora of options at receiver and running back, the Patriots have heavily utilized their all-stars in putting up their breathtaking numbers.

Randy Moss and Wes Welker are both having monster seasons, even by their standards; Welker’s league-leading 79 receptions and Moss’ near-1,000 yards put both players on pace to record their best totals in those categories in each of their careers.

Marques Colston has made some sensational snags, and is putting up respectable numbers compared to his other seasons.

The surprise of New Orleans’ offense has been Devery Henderson, who has 521 receiving yards. The Saints have been highly successful spreading the ball around; they have four receivers with over 300 yards on the season, while New England only has three of those.

Moss and Welker account for over 57 percent of New England ’s total receiving yards. The closest any New Orleans tandem comes to that number in the Saints’ aerial attack is 44 percent, by Colston and Henderson.

With all the hype around New Orleans’ passing attack, one might also be surprised to learn that New Orleans’ rushing attack is ranked higher than their aerial assault, and has 40 more rushing yards per game than the Pats. The Saints have also run the ball 40 more times than the Patriots.

New Orleans has outgained New England by 305 yards on the ground , and averages 4.8 yards per rush; New England falls .3 shy of the league average, as they gain 4.0 yards per carry.

Both teams love to utilize receiving options out of the backfield; Reggie Bush has almost as many yards receiving as he has rushing, and Kevin Faulk (not surprisingly) has 60 more receiving yards than rushing yards.

The Saints feature the recently popular two-back system, with Pierre Thomas and Mike Bell both at over 500 yards rushing on the season.

The Patriots, due to injury, have relied less on their running game than in the past (which is saying a lot). Laurence Maroney is the teams leading rusher with 455 yards and six touchdown runs.

Due to more flexibility, and also the crowd noise in the Superdome , I have to give the advantage to the Saints. They’ve done more, albeit against less talent, than New England has, and have done it consistently through this season.

Advantage: New Orleans

 

The Coaching

Bill Belichick: 145-89, 15-4 in the playoffs

Sean Payton: 35-23, 1-1 in the playoffs

Although this isn’t a playoff game, I think it’s important to note the playoff records of these coaches. Bill Belichick has far more experience than Sean Payton when it comes to big games (though that didn’t seem to bother Colts’ first-year coach Jim Caldwell in Week 10). With this being a potential Super Bowl matchup, the pressure is on for both teams.

Payton is held in high regard as an offensive wizard. He uses smoke and mirrors, trickery, and a wide variety of tools to create an offense that works like magic.

Belichick, on the other hand, is revered as a (evil) genius. His defensive schemes have remained effective throughout his tenure as head coach, and his players often reflect his own mentality—wily individuals with a knack for making the smart play, reading and reacting.

If offensive mastermind Sean Payton can out-think Belichick’s defensive genius, it could be a long day for the Patriots’ defense.

Belichick is rarely outsmarted by an opposing coach, though. He is definitely more big-game-tested than his opponent. I’d say the pressure is on Payton to produce a game plan effective enough to defeat the Patriots.

Advantage: New England

 

The quarterbacks

Tom Brady: 66.4 completion percentage, 3,049 yards, 20 touchdowns, 6 interceptions, 100.4 quarterback rating

Drew Brees: 68.1 completion percentage, 2,746 yards, 22 touchdowns, 9 interceptions, 105.8 quarterback rating

Matchups between two of football’s elite quarterbacks don’t happen very often, especially in non-conference games. This game has promise to be a shootout, as mentioned before.

I can’t really say it much better than Gil Brandt already did , but maybe I can shed more light on this epic discussion.

Although these two quarterbacks are incredibly comparable this season, statistically speaking, their styles are almost black-and-white different.

Brees has had his success carving up defenses by utilizing his multiple threats at receiver. His athleticism and ability to spread the ball around have been key to New Orleans’ change of fortunes this season.

Brady has done what any quarterback would: make use of his most lethal weapons. His presence in the pocket has made up for his lack of athleticism, as he has an innate ability to feel the pressure and to evade it.

The defenses of both teams will have their hands full, trying to confuse two quarterbacks who have seen virtually everything. Brady has good days and bad days against blitz-heavy defenses like the Saints. The Patriots, on the other hand , are masters of disguising their coverages and blitzers , showing blitz to make a quarterback think he has no time in the pocket, or faking a three-man rush and bringing the heat.

Since these two quarterbacks are so evenly matched, in the end , I give the advantage to the quarterback who doesn’t have to deal with crowd noise. Brady has played well in the Superdome in the past, though, so don’t be surprised if both quarterbacks have a great game.

Advantage: New Orleans

 

Overview

The Saints know they will be getting the best New England has to offer; the Patriots have a huge chip on their shoulder and a big point to prove after the crushing loss to the Colts, the “other” biggest game of the year.

Plus, they have a chance to deliver a crushing loss to the currently-undefeated Saints, and do to them what the Giants waited until the Super Bowl to do to New England in 2007.

Bill Belichick loves to turn off the opposing team’s biggest playmaker . With that being Drew Brees, who is having an MVP season, it will be no small feat to simply shut him down.

To shut him down isn’t necessarily to shut down the entire New Orleans’ offense, though; as stated above, the Saints have been even more successful running the ball than passing. Shutting down Drew Brees forces the Saints to become one-dimensional, though, and the Patriots have been highly successful against the run.

I think time of possession could play a huge factor in this game; either quarterback will have a field day in the second half if the opposing defense is tuckered out from too much time on the field.

In the end , I believe this game will come down to the final possession. Call me a homer if you want, but I’m going with New England in this game.

Brady and Belichick have a ton of experience in big games, and the fact that they haven’t gotten it done in those big games this season is just more indication to me that they’ll get it done this time around. They’re due to have that big game where their execution is near-perfect and where they hang on for the full 60 minutes of football.

I can make one safe assumption: whichever team wins, they’ll start with “New.”

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