The Ravens let one slip away in Foxboro and other NFL thoughts

(1) Has anyone noticed what is going on in Foxboro? The model franchise in the NFL has bounced back from a terrible loss to the New York Jets with two impressive victories over up-and-coming teams from the AFC and NFC. Are we to believe that the Patriots are back? Personally, I’m not ready to crown the New England because they haven’t proven anything on the road yet and, except for the Falcons game, they have been outplayed for most of their other three games. First of all, they did not deserve to beat the Bills, but they did. Secondly, they were completely dominated by the Jets defense in their only road game of the season so far. Finally, the Patriots were very fortunate that the Ravens made so many mistakes that they made the Oakland Raiders look disciplined in comparison.


The Ravens’ day started bad and it got progressively worse. On the opening kickoff, the Ravens fumbled away the football, which led to a quick Stephen Gostkowski field goal. It was the only time that a turnover cost Baltimore points as Joe Flacco threw a killer interception at the end of the first half that would have meant at least three points for the Ravens. In addition to the turnovers, the Ravens shot themselves in the foot repeatedly as they racked up nine huge penalties for 85 yards. No penalties were worse than two roughing the passer penalties, one on Terrell Suggs and one on Haloti Ngata, which kept two different New England drives going, which ultimately ended in touchdowns. The Ngata penalty was even more back-breaking because the Ravens had forced the Patriots to punt until the yellow flags started to fly.

The onslaught of penalties was contributing factors to the Ravens’ inability to keep momentum on their side, but their vaunted defense did not help in this area either. On two different occasions, the Ravens had seemingly seized control of the game only to watch helplessly as Tom Brady and the Patriots snatched the momentum right back. Following a strip-sack by Suggs and a fumble recovery for a touchdown by Dwan Edwards, the Ravens closed to 17-14 and they looked like they were poised to surge past New England. Instead, Brady calmly led the Patriots on a six play, 79 yard touchdown drive, where he completed 4 out 4 attempts for 73 yards and the touchdown. The second false momentum shift occurred when the Ravens scored a touchdown to cut the Patriots lead to 24-21 early in the 4th quarter. Once again, the Ravens defense was unable to get off the field as New England marched 59 yards on 15 gut-wrenching plays culminating in another Gostkowski field goal.

Nevertheless, the Ravens still had multiple opportunities to win the game, including two possessions in the 4th quarter where they were unable to convert on 4th down. The first opportunity came on their second to last possession as they faced 4th and 1 from their own 45-yard line. They tried to run Willis McGahee and he was completely stuffed by Ty Warren. The Ravens were whining about the spot after the game, but they sounded like they were crying over spilled milk. If you can’t convert on a 4th and 1, then you don’t deserve to win the game. The other opportunity came on their last possession of the game. They were facing 4th and four on the Patriots’ 14-yard line and were unable to convert as Flacco’s perfect pass bounced off the chest of Mark Clayton. Good football teams have to make the simple plays on a consistent basis and Clayton failed miserably when he was needed the most.

Ultimately, I think the Patriots are a good team but I’m not ready to anoint them the second coming until they beat a good team on the road. In addition, I want to see them actually win because they were the better team instead of their opponents shooting themselves in the foot.

(2) I think it is time for the NFL to do something completely unprecedented. Roger Goodell and his hench men need to initiate a hostile takeover of the Oakland Raiders. The Raiders are an embarrassment to the City of Oakland and to the National Football League. It is one thing to be terrible on the field, but it is another to have the most dysfunctional front office in the NFL and a revolving door at head coach. The Raiders are no closer to being competitive than they were four or five years ago. Since their Super Bowl appearance following the 2002 season, the Raiders are a combined 25-75 with no more than five victories in any individual season.

In order to achieve such an awful record, the Raiders have been terrible on both sides of the ball. They are currently the worst offense in the NFL and they have been better than the 20th ranked offense on only one occasion (2004 – finished 17th in the NFL). As you can imagine, things have not been much better on defense. Except for a blip on the radar in 2006 when they finished 3rd in total defense despite a 2-14 record, the Raiders have not finished higher than 22nd in total defense. The most shocking element of all their futility over the years is that they have regularly drafted in the top of the first round and they have not been able to unearth a game-changing offensive or defensive talent yet. The jury is still out on whether or not Darrious Heyward-Bey or Darren McFadden will be dynamic offensive performers, but it is becoming increasingly clear that JaMarcus Russell will never live up to his first round billing and might never become a consistent NFL quarterback. He is currently the lowest rated passer in the NFL and has only thrown one touchdown through four games. For his career, he is barely a 50% passer and he has as many touchdowns as interceptions.

The Raiders have tried to make up for their poor draft history by throwing ridiculous contracts at their own marginal free agents and cast-offs from other teams. They awarded a $50.5 million contract to Tommy Kelly even though no one else wanted him at that price. They traded 2nd and 5th round picks for DeAngelo Hall, who was a known clubhouse cancer, and gave him a $70 million contract. Hall ended up playing only eight games for the franchise and earned $8 million for his efforts. The ultimate folly might have been giving Javon Walker a six-year, $55 million contract in March 2008. Since joining the Raiders, Walker has missed 11 of 20 possible games and has only 15 catches.

Things have gotten even more absurd in 2009. The Raiders recently tried to bar television analyst Rich Gannon from the stadium after Gannon publicly criticized the organization. The Raiders relented only after the NFL told them that they had to allow Gannon into the facility to fulfill his color analyst duties. In addition, their head coach might get arrested for allegedly breaking the jaw of one of his assistants. According to Yahoo! Sports, the Napa police have completed their investigation and have forwarded the case file to the district attorney’s office. I can’t think of another franchise where this could happen.

The Raiders are no longer committed to excellence; they are committed to disorder and mediocrity. The once proud franchise will never regain its luster as long as the corpse, better known as Al Davis, controls the team. Since we all know that he will retain control until he is dead and gone, the NFL has to step in before the situation gets even more disturbing.

(3) The Redskins are the worst 2-2 team in the NFL. They have been awful in losses to the New York Giants and the Detroit Lions and they have been lackluster in their wins over the Rams and Buccaneers. You don’t have to look very deep to see how terrible they have been this season. They have not scored more than 17 points in any game despite the fact that their opponents are a combined 5-11 on the season. Their two victories are against two teams that are both winless and they were the unlucky team that broke the Lions’ 19-game losing streak. This past Sunday, if they have been playing any other team than the lowly Buccaneers, they would have been blown out in the first half. The only reason the Skins won this game was that they were facing an inexperienced quarterback surrounded by inexperienced teammates.

On offense, the Skins have struggled in a variety of different areas. Their biggest area of concern is their inability to convert third down situations. Through the first four games of the season, Washington is only converting 35% of these situations, which has led to them losing the time of possession battle in three out of the four games. As a result, their defense has stayed out on the field too long, which has not really hurt them yet but could become a bigger issue when the opponents improve. In addition to their third down struggles, the Skins have been inconsistent in the red zone, which includes going 0-5 inside the 20-yard line against the St. Louis Rams. Their inability to convert on third down and in the red zone is the result of an inconsistent running game. With a nicked up Clinton Portis leading the way, the Skins are 19th in the NFL in rushing. As the season progresses, they are going to need to find a way to improve their running game because they can’t expect to win consistently by converting only 35% on third down.

In the end, I think the Skins are going to struggle mightily all season long. They get the defeated Panthers and Chiefs in the next two weeks, but then their schedule turns brutal. After the next two cupcakes, the Skins have to face Philadelphia (home), Atlanta (road), Denver (home), Dallas (road), Philadelphia (road), New Orleans (home), Oakland (road), New York Giants (home), Dallas (home) and San Diego (road). This is the kind of schedule that might get Jim Zorn a pink slip at the end of the season.

(4) The Tony Romo Experience continues to go sideways in Big D despite the public displays of affection of owner Jerry Jones. Is Jones convinced that Romo is the right guy or does he not have any choice in the matter? Keep in mind that it was Jones that awarded Romo with a huge extension back in 2007 that is scheduled to pay him $7 million this season. Is Jones capable of cutting ties with Romo and admitting he made a mistake? He may have to come to grips with reality because the case against Romo is growing by the day. After a great opening day performance against the Bucs, Romo has been shockingly bad over the last three weeks. He has been at his worst against the better competition, throwing four interceptions and completing only 54% of his passes against the Giants and Broncos.

It is clear to everyone that follows the NFL that Romo is not equipped mentally to step up when the stakes are high. He can put up ridiculous fantasy numbers when nothing is at stake, but when the pressure is amplified Romo plays like he has two hands around his throat. Since becoming the full-time starter in week seven of the 2006 season, Romo has lost three out of the last four games on two different occasions. The most notable slide was last season when Romo’s poor play dragged the entire team into the toilet and out of the playoffs. He had six interceptions down the stretch and barely completed 50% of his attempts in three of the four games. In addition to his poor regular season performance, Romo has been unable to lift the team to victory in either of his playoff appearances. In 2006, Romo played okay against Seattle but famously was unable to control a field goal snap that cost the Cowboys the ballgame. Romo and the Cowboys tried to blame the gaffe on the football but it was an early example of his nerves getting the best of him. In 2007, the Cowboys had the best record in the NFC and allowed the visiting Giants to win in the divisional round on their way to a Super Bowl triumph. Romo was a big reason why the Giants were able to escape with a win. Romo completed exactly 50% of his passes for just over 200 yards and one touchdown. Dallas needed Romo to play like an All-Pro and he didn’t even come close.

Personally, I can’t see Jerry Jones canning his beloved quarterback in the off-season. I think it is much more likely that Wade Phillips, Jason Garrett, or both get fired before Romo gets his walking papers.

(5) The Seahawks’ season is at a crossroad. They can’t afford to lose to the Jaguars but they might not have the necessary troops to make it happen. It was clear from watching the game this past Sunday that the Hawks, as they are currently constituted, are no match for the efficient, fast, ball-hawking Colts. In my opinion, the Hawks did not even belong on the same field as Indianapolis. They are two teams going in opposite directions. The Colts have the best player in the NFL and several game-changers on a defensive line that is built to rush the quarterback. First of all, Peyton Manning is the one and only MVP candidate right now. On Sunday, after throwing for 353 yards, Manning became only the 3rd player since 1970 to start the season with four straight 300-yard games (Kurt Warner & Steve Young). He was nearly flawless in the first half completing 17 of 20 attempts for 220 yards and two touchdowns. He was more human in the second half, not because of anything that the Hawks did, but because the Colts took their feet off the pedal a little. Manning and his teammates knew that the Hawks had no chance of mounting a serious comeback, so they didn’t feel like straining themselves too much.

On defense, Dwight Freeney and his compadres on the defensive line harassed Seneca Wallace all game long. Freeney wasn’t even supposed to play, but he had enough energy to register a sack and cause a fumble. In addition to Freeney, Robert Mathis terrorized the Seahawks’ offensive line and contributed three sacks and four other QB pressures. The Colts sacked Wallace five times in total and had him running for his life most of the game. The Hawks offensive line played poorly, but how much can you ask for when the unit is already banged up and then you lose your starting guard, Rob Sims, to an injury during the game. Until the offensive line gets some measure of health, it is going to be tough for the quarterback or the running game to get much rhythm.

In addition, the Hawks did not do themselves any favors. They had several costly penalties and two huge turnovers that stopped their progress all game long. Trailing 7-0 early in the 2nd quarter, the Hawks had a holding penalty that negated a 16-yard completion to John Carlson and an illegal forward pass penalty that eliminated a huge play to T.J. Houshmandzadeh. Both penalties were killers because instead of being inside the 15-yard line of the Colts the Hawks had to punt. Once John Ryan boomed the punt, the game kind of got out of control and the Hawks never recovered.

Even though the offense struggled mightily, I put a lot of the blame for this loss on the shoulders of the defense. When is this defense going to show up and play to the level of their talent? The only time that Peyton Manning touched the ground was when he was tying his shoes. The Colts equipment manager doesn’t even have to wash Peyton’s jersey for the next game. The entire NFL knows that the only way to beat Peyton is to put pressure on him and hit him a few times. The Hawks decided to use silence and hand signals in an attempt to confuse Manning instead of using the blueprint created by the New England Patriots, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the San Diego Chargers. The Colts were extremely efficient again as they needed only 63 plays to rack up 431 yards of total offense. They converted over 60% of their third down opportunities and averaged nearly nine yards per pass. The Hawks defense was absolutely no match for Manning and the Colts.

Where do the Hawks go from here? First of all, they need to find a way to beat the Jaguars at Qwest Field on Sunday. Another loss and the season is probably over and done with. Secondly, our key guys have to get healthy. We may never see Walter Jones in uniform again, but we have to get Matt Hasselbeck, Marcus Trufant, Leroy Hill and the other injured players back as soon as possible. In the end, I’m not sure it matters much what happens because they are already effectively three games out of first place and their schedule does not get any easier.