Weekend Media Gaffe
- Did CBS really need to have "Steelers will clinch AFC North with a win and a Cleveland loss" on their bottom of the screen crawl when the Patriots were up 21 on Pittsburgh late in the 4th quarter and while Cleveland had their foot on the Jets' throat?
Annoying Media Trend in Week 14
- I fully understand the Patriots were extra motivated to embarrass Steelers safety Anthony Smith this Sunday. But Smith's guarantee was blown out of proportion to the point that analysts were openly insinuating that this was the reason New England played so well and was able to beat up on the Steelers. How about the fact that the Pats are coming off of consecutive lackluster weeks, are playing for the right to be considered the best team ever AND have an extraordinarily heated rivalry with Pittsburgh. Just a thought.
My Narrowly Scoped NFL recap is usually centered around the 2 local markets - Giants and Jetropolitans- and the Patriots since any team with hopes to win the Lombardi Trophy is going to have to figure out a way to knock them off. Access to the New England games has been surprisingly convenient in most weeks since they've played on national television with such frequency, with Week 14 being one of the few exceptions.
So what did I learn about these 3 teams in week 14 that didn't already know? A superficial analysis would start with these observations:
1. The Giants continue to compile victories, but unconvincingly and against mediocre opponent.
2. The Jets showed again why they aren't quite ready to win in the NFL.
3. The Patriots demonstrated their clear-cut superiority over the rest of the NFL.
4. The Giants continue to win in spite of their quarterback.
5. Thanks to Anthony Smith, the Patriots offense really exploded!
Now I'll indulge the surface level observations by extricating on each above statement, while providing what I also felt were the important things learned about these teams, but did not necessarily make it into the headlines. And as far as observation #5 is concerned - I have already explained my feelings on that topic. I mean if Anthony Smith didn't make that guarantee New England probably would have played conservatively and tried to eke out a close game in the waining minutes of regulation.
Addressing Points 1 & 4:
I promise you - I am not trying be a hater by bringing up the fact that the Giants have not beaten a single team in 2007 that currently possesses a winning a record. Nor do I have a vendetta against Eli Manning, the Giants defensive secondary, nor the rest of the Giants defense for that matter, though I'm more than aware that it appears that I do. I point out their fatal flaws each week because the goal for the G-men this year is to win, or at least make it to the Super Bowl. The objective is not to make it to the first round of the playoffs, they've done that already. They didn't give the Chargers a king's ransom for Eli Manning to never have the opportunity to represent the NFC in February. The Giants are for the most part a veteran squad and the window each team has to legitimately contend for a title, especially in the salary cap era, is a small one. That's why I put this team under a microscope seemingly every week - even in victory - because I'm trying to figure out whether or not they can ever get their act together as a unit for an extended period of time, and make a serious run at the Lombardi Trophy.
Quick Sidenote: I still find it hilarious that Citizen Watches actually has a commercial in which they say Eli Manning is unstoppable. It was already an incredibly disillusioned belief OR just a poorly researched statement by Citizen to begin with, but I love how they continue to run the ad even after Manning's performance against the Vikings.
Anyways, a passionate/optimistic Giants fan would probably make the following argument in the face of their naysayers or on the message board on this very website:
We're 9-4 overall with a more than impressive 6-1 record on the road. On any given Sunday we have the most dominant pass rush in the NFL - Strahan has been playing lights out for what seems like 2 straight months, Umenyiora is in the mix for the league lead in sacks, and Justin Tuck has proven to be a force as well. Offensively, we have 3 running backs with unique skill sets - any of which can rush for 100 yards in a given game. We also have an excellent blend of pass catchers: Burress is one of the top 'home run' threats in the NFC, Toomer as uncanny connection with his quarterback and is top notch possession receiver, and Shockey from the tight end position is an extremely difficult match up for both safeties and linebackers and is menacing after the catch. Say what you want about Eli Manning, he's admittedly a good but not great quarterback BUT he has the magic touch when we need a game-winning 4th quarter drive - and not a lot of QB's in this league have that ability.
My response would be that there is a lot of truth to that argument. I like the fact that the Giants can be truly disruptive on defense because of their potential of a dominant pass rush. I like their blend of offensive talent. I like that in the face of tremendous adversity and hardship, Eli Manning can still lead his team to a win via 4th quarter comeback.
But remember; We're talking about making it to the Super Bowl. I understand the Giants can only beat who is on their schedule, so I am not attempting to discredit their 9 wins through 13 games.
But does a potential Super Bowl representative, or even an NFC Championship game representative usually find a way to win impressively and show their true potential against mediocre competition? Yes. Would a potential Super Bowl representative usually have at least one signature victory during the regular season? With the exception of the 1972 Dolphins, Yes. If the Giants were truly a potential Super Bowl representatives would they have found a way to beat at least ONE of the following 3 NFC opponents on their home field - Cowboys, Packers, or Vikings? YES. Should you be impressed that I can spell Umenyiora without looking? YES.
The one rhetorical question the Giants do have in their favor:
Do Super Bowl contenders ever employ a starting quarterback with self-destructive tendencies? As a matter of a fact, YES - Rex Grossman started in the Super Bowl just last year!
There is hope for Eli Manning after all.
Addressing Point #2
The Jets showed again why they aren't quite ready to win in the NFL.
The Browns showed again whey they are the Cardiac Kids.
No need for me to go crazy with analysis about a 3-10 team, though I'm tempted to considering that my Jets paraphernalia is second in quantity only to my Mets paraphernalia as far as sports related bedroom adorning paraphernalia is concerned. We'll save the key strokes about the Jets for when its time to write a 2008 NFL draft preview.
This past weekend's game in a nutshell for me is that Kellen Clemens just doesn't have enough command of the offense yet to sustain drives that are long enough for touchdowns. I still love his potential - both in his raw physical ability and mental approach to the game, though I would be fibbing if I said he's impressed me much the last 3 weeks. AND I still think Coach Mangini and/or Offensive Coordinator Schottenheimer call way too many pass plays that involve fade routes and jump ball scenarios.
But before I chastise Mangini about his 4th quarter clock management, here's what I like about the Jets going forward.
- Even with a 3-9 record going into Sunday's game against the Browns, the Jets played with passion and a sense of purpose - a product of good coaching, good team character, and an overall belief in the coach's system. For example: Lavarneus Coles, who's ankle was visibly ailing him Sunday, who's suffered numerous nagging injuries and a concussion this season, could have easily sat this game out. Maybe he should have. He couldn't even jump over a phone book against the Browns in attempts to catch a few of those aforementioned jump balls, but he was still out there battling the entire game. And did you see Brad Smith put his body on the line to recover that onside kick at the end of the game?
- Rookie CB Darelle Revis - Sure, he's been smoked by both Terrell Owens and Braylon Edwards for touchdowns in 2 of the last 3 weeks. But our franchise cornerback has played very well this season and he's getting invaluable experience, week in and week out, competing against the NFL's elite for four quarters every sunday.
- List of the game's best safeties (random order): Troy Polamalu, Ed "I can barely" Reed, Bob Sanders, KERRY RHODES. The latter was a B-E-A-S-T in coverage and against the run this Sunday. And our rookie linebacker "Just" David Harris isn't looking to shabby either - The "Just" nickname is based on the film Mystic River and it's pivotal character "Just" Ray Harris, in case you were wondering.
Anyway, by the time I publish this NFL entry it will be around 1:30 am Wednesday morning. What can I say about Eric Mangini's end of game management against the Browns that hasn't already been said? It was bad, illogical, asinine. But I'm not going to lose sleep over it, the Jets are 3-10. SO instead...
{Paste as promised, acerbic chastising of Coach Eric Mangini here}
Addressing Points 3 & 5:
I actually want to talk about the Steelers first.
1) The Steelers reconfirmed that their woes on the road this season were not a fluke.
2) The Pittsburgh defense allowed Tom Brady to complete 6 straight passes on one drive to Wes Welker. I was "watching" this game on ESPN.com's gamecast, which basically just tells what happened on the previous play. As a veteran user of the gamecast function, mostly for fantasy sports purposes, I must say this was the single most memorable experience I have using it.
3) In an earlier column I talked about hubris, or excessive pride that ultimately leads to one's downfall, in connection to the Patriots pass game. I acutally got this hubriscent feel from Coach Mike Tomlin against the Patriots, mind you that I didn't actually see this game and that I just made up the word hubriscent. Tomlin LOVES the power run game that has been the cornerstone of the Steelers franchise for decades. Loves it. Loves talking about it. He's known for pre-game quotes such as We're gonna have some beautiful 3 yard runs today! The only person that loves a smash mouth run attack more than Tomlin is ESPN's Meryl Hodge - a former Steeler.
Everybody, including myself thought the Pittsburgh power running attack would be the key to them giving the Patriots a run for their money, especially in the December weather. And they did run the ball very effectively Sunday afternoon (5.7 yards per carry). The problems is that Tomlin stuck with the ground attack even as the Patriots began to improve their lead by more than a touchdown, even when it was evident in the 3rd quarter that they needed to turn the game into a track meet and hope to have the ball last.
In other words, the Steelers ran the ball the same exact amount of times they passed the ball in a game in which they lost by 21 points!!! For the record that's 32 rushes and 32 pass attempts. Ben Roethlisberger is arguably the 3rd or 4th best quarterback in the NFL. There was nearly no wind in Foxboro on Sunday. Tom Brady threw for 399 yards and completed 70% of his passes. How does a quarterback only throw for 187 yards in an entire game in which his team lost by 3 touchdowns. When the Dolphins lost to the Patriots by 21 points Cleon Freaking Lemon threw for 236 yards! Not only did the Steelers not call enough pass plays BUT they apparently didn't call passes very far down the field either.
Patriots Perspective
- The defense showed up in a big way on Sunday. Very impressive. There's a chance the Pats can get picked off in the playoffs if there defense performs the way it did against Philly and Baltimore.
- Fourth wide receiver Jabbar Gaffney had a huge impact for the 2nd game in a row. The thing to remember about Gaffney - He was one of Brady's go-to-guys in the playoffs last year along with Reche Caldwell, and he got the job done. You know things are good when your 4th wide receiver has playoff experience as a # 1 option.
- The one thing that amazes me most about the Patriots is the trust the coaching staff has in Tom Brady. With the absence of a consistent run game, Brady is asked to throw the ball in clock milking downs late in games, where every other team hands the ball off to a tailback. ONE mistake, ONE pick-6 in the other direction, and the Patriots could have more than one loss this year. Remember, they were losing to the Cowboys, Colts, Eagles, and Ravens in the 2nd half. An ill-timed interception for a touchdown in any of those games changes their win-loss record.
- Maybe the Patriots got lucky that there was no wind on Sunday.
Random Observation I'm Surprised Nobody Mentioned...
Do you remember the last time somebody threw for 399 yards in a game? Think hard... Brett Favre threw for 399 yards against the Raiders on Monday Night Football, the night after his father passed away.
Sign of the Apocalypse
I made a run to the supermarket on Sunday and the cashier ringing me up was watching his cell phone with a keen eye to keep track of the score of the Cowboys game. I asked him "Cowboys fan?" and he replied "Not really, just a big TO fan!" The cashier was 18 years old and African-American. In the 5 years TOPS this kid has been able to watch football and understand what's actually happening, he has seen Owens make disparaging homophobic comments to Jeff Garcia, get thrown off the Eagles for utterly dividing their locker room, have all types of issues with the Cowboys, and live up to his billing as the biggest narcissist/self promoter in the sport. How does one become a "big TO fan" without actually being a fan of the team he plays for? The scary thing is, with the current sports climate the way it is - This kid's decision to be exclusively a TO fan didn't surprise me at all. I think I can write 100 pages on this topic.
A Few Random Football Thoughts ...
- I can't help but wonder that if on Mike Vick's rap sheet under "aliases" it lists Ron Mexico. Yes, there's a story behind this one too. Google it, that's what its there for.
- It was nice to see so many Falcons players support Mike Vick with all types of pre-game acknowledgements of their fallen former teammate on Monday Night. Apparently, they share the belief with their former QB that it is OKAY to kill numerous dogs with your bare hands in some of the most brutal ways imaginable.
- Even after being drubbed by the Bills, I'm sticking with my prediction that the Dolphins will defeat the Ravens and go 1-15. Either that, or finish 16 games behind the Patriots in the AFC East.
- What if the Patriots really do draft Darren McFadden?
- I really hope the Vikes make the playoffs. Its must be a nice luxury when their blue chip running back Adrian Peterson rushed for only 3 yards on 14 attempts Sunday and the guy behind him on the depth chart rushes for 12.6 yards...... Per Carry!
I'm an Idiot Because...
- I tried to convince myself that Carolina vs Jacksonville would play out like a rivalry game. BLOWOUT.
I'm a Genius Because...
- My "contrarian" pick of the Vikings to cover 9.5 on the road.
- My it's difficult to get the emotional level up after playing a tough game with nothing to so for it theory for both the Eagles and the Ravens.
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