(1) It is not fun when you expect so much from a football game and it doesn’t deliver. I was so amped up to see the Saints battle the Cardinals, but the actual game was a gigantic disappointment. I wanted to see a pinball game so bad, but it turned into a woodshed beating. The worst part about it was that this game was just the beginning of another horrible weekend of NFL playoff football. The Saints have nothing to apologize for because they certainly delivered a huge amount of thrills for the Who Dat nation crammed into the Superdome and watching on television around the United States. The game started ominously for New Orleans as the Cardinals ripped off a 70-yard touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage, but the Saints answered with a touchdown of their own and soon blew the doors off the Cardinals. The Saints were clearly the more rested team. This game was a great example of why teams kill themselves during the regular season to earn one of the two top seeds in each conference. Bye week teams usually win because they get an opportunity to recharge their batteries and nurse players with nagging injuries back to full strength. This performance will also add fuel to the fire in the debate regarding playing vs. resting when a team clinches all that they can clinch during the regular season. In my opinion, the way that the Saints killed Arizona has nothing to do with waving the white flag in week 17 against the Carolina Panthers. New Orleans won this game so easily because they had a bye week not because they chose to rest their stars during the last week of the season.
It also didn’t hurt that the Cardinals were their own worst enemy and suffered a few debilitating injuries during the game. First of all, the margin for error during the playoffs is razor thin and the Cardinals committed way too many mistakes to overcome them. They converted only one third down opportunity the entire game, which contributed to their meager first down total and less than ideal time of possession. As a result, Arizona just kept giving the ball back to the Saints, which we all know is a recipe for disaster. In addition, the Cardinals turned the ball over twice, which fueled the scoreboard explosion for New Orleans. The first turnover came when the score was tied 7-7 midway through the first quarter. The Cardinals were trying to build on the momentum created by Tim Hightower’s touchdown run on their first play from scrimmage, but Jerheme Urban fumbled the ball back to New Orleans after making a nice catch. Instead of keeping the pressure on the Saints, Arizona allowed New Orleans to take control of the game. The second turnover was especially damning because Kurt Warner got his clock cleaned while attempting to make the tackle on Will Smith, who had intercepted the ball at the line of scrimmage. Warner had to be escorted to the locker room for further evaluation and played unevenly the rest of the way. Matt Leinart had to finish the first half and Warner ceded control of the huddle when the game was finally out of reach. No one can tell me that Warner was completely healthy after halftime. It probably wouldn’t have made a difference in the final score, but Arizona had no chance to win this game with a less-than-100% Kurt Warner or Matt Leinart at the controls. The bigger injuries were the ones suffered by Antrel Rolle and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. When these two guys left the game, it was the equivalent of blood being in the water when a bunch of sharks are swimming nearby. The Saints are a tough offense to beat when a team has its full complement of defenders, but the task turned into an alpine expedition in the Himalayas when the Cardinals lost two of their starters in the secondary.
In the end, the Saints were not only the more rested team but the better team. For the first time since undressing the Patriots on Monday night, New Orleans looked like the team that started the season undefeated through 13 games. They were deadly efficient on offense. They racked up 27 first downs thanks to a balanced offensive attack that produced 248 yards passing and 171 yards rushing. During their 13-0 start, the Saints were the most balanced team in the league and they returned to that formula very successfully. They gave up no sacks and finished tremendously in the red zone, where they scored on all three visits. They were very opportunistic on defense. Both of their turnovers set-up short fields for their offense, which was like giving an Olympic sprinter a 20 meter head start against a bunch of 12-year olds. They only sacked Kurt Warner one time, but they took their shots when the opportunity afforded itself including the vicious hit that was administered after the Smith interception. They regularly got off the field on third down and held the Cardinals’ wonderful array of pass-catchers completely in check. The Saints deserve the opportunity to host the NFC Championship game. Hopefully, their match-up with the Vikings can deliver on some of the promise that their game with Arizona held in my mind.
(2) I have only one word to describe the Ravens-Colts game: snooze-fest. This game had to be the most boring game of the 2010 playoffs. I would rather watch the replay of the Jets’ 24-14 win over the Bengals in the wild card round 100 times before watching the replay of this game. If this match-up was a boxing fight, it would have been a hug-fest that ended in a decision. If I’m a Colts’ fan, I’m ecstatic that Indianapolis won their first game after a bye week in the Peyton Manning era, but I would be looking for a partial refund because the game lacked anything remotely resembling entertainment value. I’ve seen cricket games and staring matches that have had more excitement than what happened in Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday night. I bet the executives at CBS wished that they could go back in time and switch the Jets-Chargers game to primetime. This game will forever go down as the No-Doze Bowl. Frankly, have the Colts & Ravens ever played an exciting game? The dud they played this week followed the train wreck that they played earlier in the season when the Colts overcame three turnovers because the Ravens couldn’t finish in the red zone. Let’s not forget the “instant classic” that they played back in 2007 during the Colts’ run to the Super Bowl. I’m voting that the NFL doesn’t let these two teams play ever again.
I’d rather not spend too much time talking about this game, but I do want to touch on the three reasons why the Colts are advancing and the Ravens are cleaning out their lockers. The biggest reason is the Indianapolis has Peyton Manning and the Ravens don’t. As I said last week, I believed that Manning would make a handful of big plays against the tough Ravens defense and that is exactly what he did. On the opening drive of the game, Manning went 4-6 and led the Colts to a field goal. In the second quarter, otherwise known as when all the action happened, Manning led a 14-play touchdown drive, where he was 8-9, and an eight-play touchdown drive, where he was 5-9. He finished both drives with touchdown passes and the second drive took only 83 seconds and covered 64 yards to end the half. Manning essentially ended the Ravens’ season with a 14-point flurry in the second quarter. He proved once again why he is the best closer that the NFL has to offer. The second reason for the Colts’ victory is that the Ravens had to rely on Joe Flacco whose ineffective play finally caught up with Baltimore. Flacco had less than 200 yards, two interceptions and a passer rating less than 50. The Colts gave Flacco chance after chance to beat them, but he failed every single time. Flacco was especially putrid on third down, where he went only 4-13 for 74 yards and one interception. Flacco might be better than 50% of the quarterbacks in the NFL, but he is not ready to lead the Ravens to the Promised Land. The final reason that the Colts won this game is that their defense played lights out. They short-circuited the Ravens’ game plan by taking away the running game and putting the outcome on the shoulders of Joe Flacco. As a result, the Ravens only managed 87 yards rushing and Flacco collapsed under the pressure of having to carry his team to victory. The Colts defense forced three turnovers in the second half and would have registered a shutout if Antoine Bethea had secured a sure pick-six at the end of the Ravens’ field goal drive. Nevertheless, the Colts still allowed the fewest points in the postseason since the 1971 Divisional playoffs. The Colts played so well on defense that it made the 17-3 halftime lead look like 45-3. In the end, the Colts have a great chance to make a return trip to Miami because they have the incomparable Peyton Manning and an aggressive defense on their side.
(3) Did the Dallas Cowboys even make the trip to the Twin Cities for their Divisional Round match-up with the Minnesota Vikings? Based on the final score, the Vikings couldn’t have beaten the streaking Cowboys that badly, could they? Maybe the Oklahoma State Cowboys showed up instead and got their lunches handed to them by the Purple People Eaters. I guess we would have been able to explain what happened in the Metrodome if it had been the amateurs showing up instead of the professionals from Big D. This outcome was the most shocking of the entire weekend. It wasn’t shocking that the Cowboys lost the game, but I was astounded by the way they lost the game. How is it possible that you exorcise your December and playoff demons, but lay a gigantic egg with a chance to reach the NFC Championship game? The Vikings won so easily because their defensive line completely destroyed the offensive line of the Cowboys. I thought it was going to be DeMarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer who were going to display their superior speed and be the difference in the game. Instead, it was Ray Edwards, Jared Allen and the rest of the Vikings front seven that caused havoc all day long. My first inclination is to rip into Tony Romo for choking yet again on a big stage, but I cannot place the blame on him for this one. There is not a quarterback on the planet that can function successfully when they are being constantly pressured by the opposing defense. Edwards and the boys got to Romo six times, hit him on numerous other occasions and kept him on the run all game long. As a result, Romo was ineffective with only 198 yards passing and three turnovers all by himself. Romo never had a chance to win this game. The Vikings demonstrated a gear that the Dallas offensive line was unable to match. The day started out badly for Romo when he fumbled the ball away on the first drive, but things progressively got worse and all hell broke loose when Flozell Adams left the game due to injury. The Vikings defense played like they were possessed by the ghosts of Carl Eller, Allan Page, Jim Marshall and Gary Larsen. The result for the Cowboys was only 248 total yards, three out 15 conversions on third or fourth down attempts and three momentum-killing turnovers.
Conversely, the Minnesota offense was extremely efficient behind another huge performance from Brett Favre. The Vikings, led by Favre, only had 16 first downs but they still produced 34 points. They ran the ball adequately, but Favre connected with Sidney Rice for three touchdowns and later threw a fourth touchdown to Visanthe Shiancoe, which established a playoff career high for Favre. Honestly, the overall stats for both teams don’t look that much different, but the Vikings certainly did more with less. Minnesota started four drives in Dallas territory and produced 13 points. Meanwhile, the Cowboys never had better starting position than their own 43-yard line. The Cowboys spent the entire afternoon trying to go the length of the field and were extremely unsuccessful. On the other hand, the Vikings mixed some good field position together with a handful of explosive plays to blow the Cowboys right out of the Metrodome. The tone of the day was established by the defense, but Favre sealed the deal with his turn-back-the-clock performance. It got so bad for the Cowboys at the end that they resorted to complaining about an eff you touchdown that the Vikings added on late in the fourth quarter. The Cowboys were upset that Minnesota still had their starters in the game when they eschewed a field goal and went for a meaningless touchdown to stretch the margin to 27 points. It was probably unsportsmanlike to run up the score, but shouldn’t the Cowboys be mad at themselves for allowing the Vikings the opportunity to embarrass them? If you are so pissed off that Minnesota still has their starters in the game, then why don’t you try to take someone’s head off. I can see complaining about running up the score in college, high school and Pop Warner football, but NFL players should know how to handle themselves after getting their collective asses kicked.
(4) Once again, the best game of the weekend happened last when the New York Jets shocked the football world by upsetting the San Diego Chargers on the road. What do we make of the Cinderella Jets? It was a mild surprise when they dominated the Bengals last week behind a stellar defensive effort and a balanced offensive effort, but I was totally shocked to see them escape Southern California with a victory. This game was the perfect example of what happens when you allow a heavy underdog to hang around. Just imagine what the Jets were thinking at halftime after they had played a horrendous first half but only trailed the high-flying Chargers by a score of 7-0. Honestly, I felt like the Jets had them right where they wanted them. It was almost like a tiger stalking his prey because the Jets seemed to be biding their time and waiting for the perfect moment to strike. The momentum started to shift in New York’s favor when Brad Smith returned the opening kickoff of the second half 36 yards to set-up his offense with tremendous starting field position. The Jets got their first three points of the afternoon after driving 32 yards behind five running plays from Thomas Jones and a short completion to Dustin Keller. On the exterior, the field goal drive seemed innocuous, but it must have meant the world to the New York sideline because it was the first positive move they had made on offense the entire game. This baby step got the ball rolling for the Jets because they intercepted Phillip Rivers twice in the third quarter, including the second interception that set-up Mark Sanchez and the offense with a first-and-10 at the Chargers’ 16-yard line. Sanchez took advantage of the tremendous field position by finishing the short drive with a touchdown pass to Dustin Keller. The Jets had their first lead of the game and the upset was beginning to take shape. Subsequently, New York finished off the Chargers with a 53-yard touchdown scamper by emerging star Shonn Greene. This run was impressive not because of its length but because of the way that Greene steam-rolled Eric Weddle before going untouched to the end zone. This play served as the exclamation point for the Jets’ victory.
Outside of Greene’s game-clinching play, the Jets offense was no better than mediocre. Let’s be honest, if the Chargers had played a little closer to the level they played at during their 11-game win streak, they would have won this game going away. Fortunately, for the Jets, their defense made sure that the Chargers would face another long off-season. The Jets played like a number one defense. They pressured Rivers all day long and sacked him twice. His first interception was the result of trying to attack the best cornerback in the NFL. His second interception was so poorly thrown that it appeared that Rivers was trying to get the ball out of his hands as quickly as possible to avoid getting hit again. The pass looked like it was intended for Jim Leonhard. Rivers was so jumpy late in the game because the Jets had got after him for most of the previous 2.5 quarters. Rivers threw for nearly 300 yards, but those have to be some of the most meaningless passing yards that I have ever seen. Overall, the Chargers were unable to move the ball consistently because the Jets shut down their running game and forced nine failed third down attempts out of 13 opportunities. Make no mistake about it, the Jets defense won this game and they better hope they can replicate the effort in Lucas Oil Stadium next week. The other major reason that the Jets escaped with a victory is that Nate Kaeding produced one of the biggest choke jobs in NFL history. Kaeding had only missed three field goals all season, but he missed three in this game. I can’t fault him for missing the 57-yard attempt prior to halftime, but he missed a 36-yard field goal in the first quarter and a 40-yard field goal in the fourth quarter. The complexion of this game would have been radically different had Kaeding connected on both of his chip shot attempts. His third miss was so bad because it appeared that Kaeding was trying to push the ball through the uprights rather than smoothly kicking it. The pressure of the moment and his earlier failures got to him. This is the same guy who was the most accurate field goal kicker in NFL history (87.2%). Since opening day of the 2007 season, Kaeding had made 69 straight field goals of 40 yards or less. In the span of 21 minutes against the Jets, he missed two from that distance. I don’t want to take too much away from the Jets, but they certainly benefited from the perfect storm.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
The Jets run their way to a wild card victory and other NFL playoff thoughts
(1) Last week, I read an article that argued that the tried and true approach for winning playoff football, strong running game and strong defense, had gone the way of the dinosaurs. The author argued that the NFL had become a passing league, so a team like the New York Jets, who lived by the running game and were severely limited in the passing game, would never be successful. I guess the Jets didn’t get the memo because they won their wild card match-up by running the football and playing stellar defense. Rookie Shonn Greene led the way with 135 yards and a touchdown as the Jets ran the football 41 times overall. Greene’s total was tied for the third highest by a rookie in his postseason debut since the merger. It was also tied for the second highest single-game total in Jets postseason history. The running game also produced the first big play of the day for the Jets as Greene took a misdirection pitch from Mark Sanchez 39 yards for a touchdown. The Bengals were so out of position on the play that Greene didn’t have to make any moves to get into the end zone. The play swung the momentum to New York, which allowed them to build a 21-7 lead before holding off a mild comeback by Cincinnati. The running game also took all of the pressure off of Sanchez, who played like he had earlier in the season when he was the toast of the NFL and was given the moniker “The Sanchize.” Sanchez finished the game 12 out of 15 for 182 yards and a game-changing 45-yard touchdown connection with Dustin Keller. Actually, Sanchez’s performance against the Bengals was the second highest completion percentage in a postseason debut in which the QB attempted at least 15 passes. Sanchez looked the part of a grizzled veteran, while his childhood hero, Carson Palmer, looked like the deer in the headlights rookie. I can’t blame Palmer too much for freezing up on the big stage because the Jets defense is as unpredictable as they come. Coach Rex Ryan loves to dial up pressure from a plethora of angles in an attempt to thoroughly confuse the opposing signal-caller, which was achieved with perfection against Palmer. He looked out of sorts all day long as the Jets berated him with pressure so oppressive that he could barely complete 50% of his attempts. New York only sacked Palmer three times, but they regularly collapsed the pocket, which completely disconnected the Bengals’ passing game. It certainly didn’t help that Chad Ochocinco disappeared for the second game in a row after being erased by Darrelle Revis. It got so bad for Ochocinco that Rodney Harrison joked at halftime that Chad should pay someone to kidnap Revis. As a result, Palmer was left to attack the New York defense with Laveranues Coles, Andre Caldwell and Quan Cosby. Those three guys don’t exactly strike fear into any opponent. It also didn’t help that Shayne Graham missed two field goals, which would have made the end of the game much more interesting. In the end, the game played out like so many before it. The team that ran the football, played the best defense and limited their mistakes won the game.
The reward for the Jets is a cross-country flight to play the hottest team in the NFL. It will be interesting to see if the well-rested Chargers can flip the switch and beat a team that is imposing their will on their opponents. The Jets have won games this season when they have kept the score close by running the football and playing stout defense. If they can find a way to make this happen in sunny San Diego, then they will have a great chance to steal a win on the road. They have to keep contact with the Chargers because the Jets have no chance to go score-for-score with the dynamic offense led by Phillip Rivers. I like the Chargers to win this game for three reasons. First of all, I don’t think that the Jets will be able to match-up against the basketball players masquerading as NFL wide receivers that play for San Diego. All of the primary pass catchers for San Diego, including tight end Antonio Gates, are 6-4 or taller. They present the biggest mismatch problems in the NFL. I respect Darrelle Revis a great deal, but I think he is going to be challenged immensely by the height and physical approach of Vincent Jackson. Let’s not forget that Malcolm Floyd has emerged as a great complement to Jackson and I don’t think that the Jets have anyone that can contain Gates. Secondly, I think that Shawn Merriman and company are going to get after Sanchez in a way that the Bengals were unable to accomplish. The Bengals didn’t generate nearly enough pressure to force Sanchez into one of his signature rookie moments. As a result, Sanchez happily handed the ball off to Greene and Thomas Jones and gleefully made a couple big plays in the passing game. The Chargers will not allow him to get comfortable, which will lead to two or more turnovers from The Sanchize. Finally, I think that the Chargers have the superior special teams. Darren Sproles is more than capable of making huge plays in the return game and I feel that Nate Kaeding is one of the best kickers in the NFL. If Jay Feely has to pull double duty again, then I fully expect one special teams’ mistake to allow San Diego to make a big play. The Jets have the cards stacked against them, but if they can impose their style on the game then I think their chances to win will improve dramatically. However, any change to the ideal script is going to lead to a playoff loss.
(2) The Dallas Cowboys have picked a fine time to become the juggernaut that everyone has always believed they would become. After exorcizing their December demons, the Cowboys threw another monkey off their backs by earning their first playoff victory since 1996. The only thing that made it sweeter was that it came at the expense of their hated NFC East rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles. I’m guessing that the next time that the Eagles have to play Dallas will be too soon for football fans in eastern Pennsylvania. The Eagles steam-rolled the rest of the NFL, but they had no answers for the boys with the blue star on their helmets. Frankly, they did not resemble a playoff team at all when they played Dallas, especially the last two weeks. Following their shutout of the Eagles last week, the Cowboys took all off the suspense out this match-up on the strength of a 27-point outburst in the second quarter. Tony Romo threw two touchdowns during the quarter and the rout was on. Despite the fact that the game was plagued by penalties (23 penalties for 228 yards), this game looked like a work of art on the level of a Picasso for Dallas fans. The Cowboys dominated the time of possession behind 198 yards rushing, a mistake-free performance from Romo and 27 first downs. Their defense sacked Donovan McNabb four times and forced four turnovers. The Eagles were never able to get their running game going and McNabb was nearly as awful as Carson Palmer. As a result of their defensive domination, the Cowboys offense regularly had short fields, which resulted in four scoring drives of 55 yards or less. Outside of a 76-yard laser beam from Mike Vick to Jeremy Maclin, the Cowboys were once again able to completely disarm the big play offense of the Eagles. The Cowboys defense saved their best for DeSean Jackson, who got a Twitter post full of humble pie from a Dallas defense that was hell-bent on preventing him from getting loose for any game-changing plays. Jackson was targeted seven times by McNabb, but was only able to snare three catches. The Cowboys are a bad match-up for the Eagles. On offense, they maul the smallish Eagles defense with their three-headed rushing attack and a series of quick hitting pass plays to Miles Austin, Patrick Crayton and Roy Williams. On defense, they have the pass rushers to discombobulate McNabb and the speed on the outside to run with Jackson and Maclin. After finally shaking their playoff label of being chokers and underachievers, the Cowboys can focus on the Minnesota Vikings with clear minds.
I think that the game against Minnesota is the most interesting game of the divisional round. I believe that these two teams are carbon copies of each other. They both have quarterbacks with reputations of being gun-slingers. Both quarterbacks are masters at buying time with their feet or by doing a pirouette or by ducking under a defender. They both have multi-faceted running games predicated on the play of their offensive lines. The Vikings have the better running back in Adrian Peterson, but the Cowboys counter with depth that most teams only dream about. Both of their offensive lines are big and nasty. They both have strong defenses led by their defensive lines. The Cowboys have DeMarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer and the Vikings have Jared Allen and the Williams brothers. Let’s not forget that the Cowboys have an emerging star at defensive tackle in Jay Ratliff. Despite the fact that these teams are so similar, I think that Dallas is going to get it done. They are playing better football then the Vikings and they are playing with a high level of confidence after ending their December nightmares and dispatching their playoff disappointments. I was tempted to go with the Vikings due to their home field advantage, but I think that the Cowboys will start fast and take the Metrodome crowd out of the game. Ultimately, I think the outcome is going to be close, but Dallas holds off the Vikings to advance to their first NFC championship game since the early 90’s.
(3) Have you ever been around an old dog? They are a step too slow, they can barely see and they have lost control of their bladder. They still might have flashes of their old brilliance, but everyone knows that the end is near. The finality of the situation is made even more apparent when you see the old dog playing with the family’s new puppy. The puppy is running circles around the older one and the older one just gets more and more frustrated because he can’t keep up. I was reminded of this kind of situation while watching the New England-Baltimore game. The Patriots played the role of the battered and bruised old dogs, while the Ravens ran circles around them with youthful canine exuberance. This game was basically over before it even started. The Patriots entered the game without their sparkplug, Wes Welker, and the Ravens made sure that no one else on the roster was going to provide the spark either. Baltimore’s Ray Rice hit an 83-yard touchdown run, the second longest rushing TD in playoff history, on the first play from scrimmage and the Ravens never looked back. Baltimore took advantage of three Tom Brady first quarter turnovers to score 24 points and the rout was on. The Ravens’ explosion in the opening stanza was the second most points scored in the opening quarter in playoff history. The big, early lead meant that the Ravens could rely on Rice, Willis McGahee and Le’Ron McClain, who outran and overpowered the Patriots to the tune of 234 yards rushing on an astonishing 52 carries. The Patriots rushing defense was so porous that the Ravens only attempted 10 passes the entire game. If I would have told you that Joe Flacco would only have 34 yards passing in the game, you would have told me that the Patriots won the game in a rout. That, my friends, is why they play the game. Despite entering the game as slight underdogs, the Ravens were the aggressors and, therefore, the better team. They harassed Brady to the point that he committed four turnovers and submitted the worst passer rating of his playoff career. Brady was so shook up by the experience that he started making mistakes that a rookie would make like the inexplicable interception that he threw into the middle of the field after getting pressured out of the pocket. Quarterbacks learn at an early age to never throw the ball against your body back to the middle of the field, but Brady failed the remedial lesson nevertheless. In the end, the Ravens snapped the Patriots’ home playoff win streak at 11 games, handing New England its first home playoff loss since 1978. The reward for possibly putting the final nail into New England’s coffin is an all-expenses paid trip to Lucas Oil Stadium to battle the number one seed Indianapolis Colts.
The Ravens should be very familiar with the Colts and very motivated to get their revenge after losing 17-15 to Indianapolis earlier in the year. The Ravens lost the game because they couldn’t finish drives, going 0-4 in the red zone and settling for five Billy Cundiff field goals. The Colts did everything to hand the game to Baltimore, but they were able to overcome three turnovers thanks to Peyton Manning’s 41st game-winning drive of his career. For Baltimore to beat the Colts this time around, they need a repeat performance from their defense and another big day from their running attack. More importantly, they have to get something from Joe Flacco. If Flacco throws up another stink bomb like he did against the Patriots, the Ravens are heading home for the winter. I believe that Flacco has to play about 70% as well as Manning because he has a better running game and a defense that is playing at a high level. Nevertheless, I like the Colts to advance to the AFC Championship game. First and foremost, I give them the edge because they have home field advantage. Lucas Oil is going to be rocking and I fully expect Flacco to have a couple brain fart moments due to the noise and pressure. More importantly, I like the Colts because they have the best closer in the game. Manning is not only the newly minted MVP, but he is also the greatest clutch performer in the NFL. With Manning at the controls, the Colts always have a chance. Manning’s mere presence gives the Colts a little more room for error. In the end, I think that Manning makes at least four or five big plays, the Colts get enough out of their running game and Flacco folds a bit under the pressure, which all leads to an Indianapolis victory.
(4) Thank goodness for the Packers and Cardinals lighting up the scoreboard because the rest of the wild card weekend was about as boring as a piece of white bread. Two of the other games were over early and the Jets-Bengals game was never as competitive as the score may have suggested. Fortunately, the Packers staged an epic comeback and nearly escaped the desert with the first playoff victory of Aaron Rodgers’ career. Even in defeat, Rodgers ended a marvelous season on a high note and continued to demonstrate the wisdom of Ted Thompson when he chose Rodgers over Favre two summers ago. Rodgers set the Packers single-game postseason record with 422 yards, which carried Green Bay to its highest playoff point total in franchise history. The most amazing part is that the previous record holder for most single-game passing yards in Green Bay history was not Brett Favre. Lynn Dickey actually set the record back in 1983 when he torched the Dallas Cowboys for 332 yards passing. Rodgers was not the only quarterback that was dealing in this game. Kurt Warner ensured that this would not be his last game in a Cardinals uniform by throwing more touchdowns (5) than incompletions (4). Warner actually joined Daryle Lamonica as the only players to have a pair of playoff games with at least five passing touchdowns. If the rumors of Warner’s impending retirement are true, then he has definitely left a lasting memory for Cardinals fans. The other thing that I liked from the Cardinals is how their third and fourth wide receivers stepped their games up in the absence of Anquan Boldin. Steve Breaston led the way with 125 yards, which included a number of acrobatic catches. In addition, little known Early Doucet made sure that Arizona would move on by catching two touchdown passes and doing his best Boldin impersonation. If Boldin is still unavailable in the divisional round, then you have to think that the Cardinals will be all right after what Breaston and Doucet did against the Packers.
It was fitting, in a game that would become the highest scoring playoff game in NFL history, that a defensive player would make the play of the game. After getting the football first in overtime and getting called for a holding penalty that would set them back 10 yards, the Packers snapped the football on what would become the last play of the game. The Cardinals, as they had done on numerous occasions during the game, sent Michael Adams off the edge in an attempt to force Rodgers into a mistake. Rodgers did not see Adams coming, fumbled the ball on impact and inadvertently kicked the ball into the waiting hands of Karlos Dansby, who waltzed into the end zone with the game-clinching touchdown. It was ironic that the Packers lost the game because Rodgers held onto the football way too long just as he did on a regular basis earlier in the season. It is important to give Arizona credit for forcing the issue in overtime and making the play to win the game. Nevertheless, I think that the zebras deserve a little credit as well after they effectively swallowed their whistles in a critical two-play sequence to end the game. On second-and-10 from the Green Bay 20-yard line, Rodgers completed a 14-yard pass that was called back due to a holding penalty on the offensive line. As Rodgers released the football, he suffered a clear helmet-to-helmet hit from one of the Arizona defensive linemen that went uncalled. I don’t know if the personal foul would have trumped the holding call, but, at the very least, it would have been off-setting penalties and the down would have been replayed. Instead, Green Bay faced a second-and-20. After hitting James Jones for another 14-yard completion, the Packers faced a third-and-six. On the last play of the game, Adams clearly grasped Rodgers’ facemask as he stripped the football. Unfortunately, the refs didn’t see this penalty as well. It will be a tough pill to swallow for Green Bay, but I still think that Arizona deserved to win the game even if it came with a slight assist from the guys in the striped shirts.
Arizona now gets the chance to knock off the top seeded New Orleans Saints. I’m hoping for another shootout. Maybe they can score a combined 100 points this time. I think the biggest key to the game is if the Saints can start fast. Will they need a quarter to get acclimated to playing football again? New Orleans played so poorly down the stretch that I honestly don’t know what to expect. They could come out like a house on fire or they could get completely steam-rolled. Neither result would surprise me in the least. Honestly, I think that this match-up is the biggest toss-up of the divisional round. I think that we are going to see a high-scoring affair and the last team with the football will win the game. The Saints should get a boost from their fanatical fans and the Cardinals should play well early because they have not had an extended break like New Orleans. When the adrenaline wears off and execution takes over, I believe that both offenses will make their fair share of plays against overrated defenses and the scoreboard will light up like the Fourth of July. In the end, I like the Cardinals for two reasons. First of all, they have a super-clutch quarterback, playing at high-level that wants to make his NFL farewell memorable. Warner also needs some more big moments to improve his case for induction into the Hall of Fame. I think that the quarterback match-up is fairly even, but Warner makes a couple more big plays and leaves the Superdome with a victory. The other reason that I like the Cardinals is because they seem to have developed a knack for winning playoff games. I counted them out three times last season and they nearly won the Super Bowl. I didn’t really think they were going to beat the Packers last week, but they made me eat crow once again. Basically, I’m tired of picking against them. Ultimately, I think that they use their experience from the last two seasons to get to consecutive NFC Championship games.
(5) Before I start talking about the Seahawks, can someone please queue up the Barnum & Bailey theme music? Also, I need someone one to tell me when did we start to make personnel moves like the Cleveland Browns or the Oakland Raiders? I feel like I’m in some kind of bizarro world, where one of the best run franchises of the last decade start to make decisions by throwing darts at the wall. I fully expect to see Bob Whitsitt come striding through the door to reclaim his job as President/General Manager. What the hell is going at the VMAC? First of all, we run Mike Holmgren out of town despite some evidence that he had changed his mind about walking away from being the head coach. The Steve Hutchinson situation might have started the decline of the Seahawks, but the decision to part ways with a Hall of Fame coach greatly accelerated the journey to mediocrity. Secondly, we endured another lost season, where the injuries piled up once again, the coach seem to lose the locker room and several receivers took to the airwaves to bad mouth fans, coaches and local radio personalities. Third, our general manager decided to take his ball and go home when the Hawks refused to grant him a contract extension despite the fact that the season still had five weeks remaining. As a result, the head coach had to field questions that would have been better posed to the man running the football operation. I think it is ridiculous that Ruskell decided to run for the hills instead of finishing the season. Fourth, the Hawks pull a hatchet job on Jim Mora five days after the season despite the fact that he only got one season with less than a full complement of talent. Let’s not forget that the Hawks also made Mora hold his final press conference of the season even though Todd Leiwicke was secretly negotiating with Mora’s ultimate successor. I don’t have a huge problem with their decision to fire Mora, but I do have a problem with how the whole situation went down. I think it was classless of the Hawks to allow Mora to believe he was returning for his second season and then pull the rug from beneath him two days later. If they planned to fire him, then they should have handed out the pink slip on the Monday following the end of the season like every other franchise does. I don’t know if Mora would have ultimately been successful in Seattle, but I do know that he got a raw deal from the Seahawks. Finally, the Hawks awkwardly hired Pete Carroll from USC despite the fact that they didn’t have a general manager and several high-profile, former head coaches were still on the market. Listen, I don’t know if Bill Cowher or Jon Gruden or John Fox were going to come to Seattle, but don’t you at least have to inquire. Why the rush to hire Carroll? Who else wanted him? He would have been just as available in two weeks as he was right now. For some reason, Leiwicke and Paul Allen became enamored with Carroll and set out to hire him at all costs. The most awkward part about the whole deal was how, in my opinion, the Hawks completely thumbed their nose at the Rooney Rule. They apparently reached out to Tony Dungy and Ron Rivera, but they only “complied” with the rule after holding the biggest sham interview in the history of sham interviews. Did poor Leslie Frazier really think he had a shot? How did this qualify as a legitimate interview of a minority candidate? I know that there was no ink on the paper, but everyone from Adam Schefter to Danny O’Neill was reporting that a deal with Carroll was imminent. I know that the Rooney Rule does not mandate the hiring of minority candidates, but how does a meaningless interview with a candidate with no real shot advance the situation for minority coaches? I’m not only mad about the Carroll hire, but I’m also pissed off that my hometown team with basically say eff you to such an important rule. I don’t even want to get started on the topic of the Hawks hiring a head coach without having hired a general manager. Why do we have to do things ass backwards when this is perhaps the most important moment in the history of the franchise? We are either going to get on the path to recovery or we are going to set ourselves back half a decade.
The biggest reason that I hate this move is that college coaches, outside of Jimmy Johnson, have been colossal failures in the NFL. In the last two decades, 10 NFL owners have hired a coach from a major college program to be the head coach of an NFL team. Out of those 10 hires, only one, Johnson, won a playoff game. Only one, Johnson, had a winning career record. This list includes Nick Saban, Bobby Petrino, Steve Spurrier, Lane Kiffin and Butch Davis among others. I want to give Carroll the benefit of the doubt, but the numbers keep hitting me in my face and calling me stupid. The other reason that I hate this move is that it appears that the Hawks have latched onto Carroll like a teenager who marries his high school sweetheart because she was the first girl to allow him past first base. There are so many other fish in the sea, but the Hawks only had eyes for the shiny one with the oversized personality. They could have taken a run at the Cowhers, Grudens and Foxes of the world. They could have taken a run at the hot coordinators like Frazier, Rivera or Brian Schottenheimer. They could have tried to find an under the radar kind of guy like John Harbaugh. Unfortunately, they fell hard for a guy who belongs in college. I’m not drinking any of the kool aid until he gets us back to the playoffs. Until then, he will be on a short leash with me. The funniest part about the whole situation is that Leiwicke thinks we should all be impressed that they hired Carroll. In his press conference, Leiwicke made it a point to stress that we got a guy that so many teams have wanted in the past. The key to his statement was the past. No one, other than the Seahawks, wanted him now. If the Huskies had hired Carroll, I would have been doing back flips down my street. Instead, I have to worry not only about the future of the franchise, but I have to worry about the Trojans poaching Steve Sarkisian. I really do not like the Hawks right now.
The reward for the Jets is a cross-country flight to play the hottest team in the NFL. It will be interesting to see if the well-rested Chargers can flip the switch and beat a team that is imposing their will on their opponents. The Jets have won games this season when they have kept the score close by running the football and playing stout defense. If they can find a way to make this happen in sunny San Diego, then they will have a great chance to steal a win on the road. They have to keep contact with the Chargers because the Jets have no chance to go score-for-score with the dynamic offense led by Phillip Rivers. I like the Chargers to win this game for three reasons. First of all, I don’t think that the Jets will be able to match-up against the basketball players masquerading as NFL wide receivers that play for San Diego. All of the primary pass catchers for San Diego, including tight end Antonio Gates, are 6-4 or taller. They present the biggest mismatch problems in the NFL. I respect Darrelle Revis a great deal, but I think he is going to be challenged immensely by the height and physical approach of Vincent Jackson. Let’s not forget that Malcolm Floyd has emerged as a great complement to Jackson and I don’t think that the Jets have anyone that can contain Gates. Secondly, I think that Shawn Merriman and company are going to get after Sanchez in a way that the Bengals were unable to accomplish. The Bengals didn’t generate nearly enough pressure to force Sanchez into one of his signature rookie moments. As a result, Sanchez happily handed the ball off to Greene and Thomas Jones and gleefully made a couple big plays in the passing game. The Chargers will not allow him to get comfortable, which will lead to two or more turnovers from The Sanchize. Finally, I think that the Chargers have the superior special teams. Darren Sproles is more than capable of making huge plays in the return game and I feel that Nate Kaeding is one of the best kickers in the NFL. If Jay Feely has to pull double duty again, then I fully expect one special teams’ mistake to allow San Diego to make a big play. The Jets have the cards stacked against them, but if they can impose their style on the game then I think their chances to win will improve dramatically. However, any change to the ideal script is going to lead to a playoff loss.
(2) The Dallas Cowboys have picked a fine time to become the juggernaut that everyone has always believed they would become. After exorcizing their December demons, the Cowboys threw another monkey off their backs by earning their first playoff victory since 1996. The only thing that made it sweeter was that it came at the expense of their hated NFC East rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles. I’m guessing that the next time that the Eagles have to play Dallas will be too soon for football fans in eastern Pennsylvania. The Eagles steam-rolled the rest of the NFL, but they had no answers for the boys with the blue star on their helmets. Frankly, they did not resemble a playoff team at all when they played Dallas, especially the last two weeks. Following their shutout of the Eagles last week, the Cowboys took all off the suspense out this match-up on the strength of a 27-point outburst in the second quarter. Tony Romo threw two touchdowns during the quarter and the rout was on. Despite the fact that the game was plagued by penalties (23 penalties for 228 yards), this game looked like a work of art on the level of a Picasso for Dallas fans. The Cowboys dominated the time of possession behind 198 yards rushing, a mistake-free performance from Romo and 27 first downs. Their defense sacked Donovan McNabb four times and forced four turnovers. The Eagles were never able to get their running game going and McNabb was nearly as awful as Carson Palmer. As a result of their defensive domination, the Cowboys offense regularly had short fields, which resulted in four scoring drives of 55 yards or less. Outside of a 76-yard laser beam from Mike Vick to Jeremy Maclin, the Cowboys were once again able to completely disarm the big play offense of the Eagles. The Cowboys defense saved their best for DeSean Jackson, who got a Twitter post full of humble pie from a Dallas defense that was hell-bent on preventing him from getting loose for any game-changing plays. Jackson was targeted seven times by McNabb, but was only able to snare three catches. The Cowboys are a bad match-up for the Eagles. On offense, they maul the smallish Eagles defense with their three-headed rushing attack and a series of quick hitting pass plays to Miles Austin, Patrick Crayton and Roy Williams. On defense, they have the pass rushers to discombobulate McNabb and the speed on the outside to run with Jackson and Maclin. After finally shaking their playoff label of being chokers and underachievers, the Cowboys can focus on the Minnesota Vikings with clear minds.
I think that the game against Minnesota is the most interesting game of the divisional round. I believe that these two teams are carbon copies of each other. They both have quarterbacks with reputations of being gun-slingers. Both quarterbacks are masters at buying time with their feet or by doing a pirouette or by ducking under a defender. They both have multi-faceted running games predicated on the play of their offensive lines. The Vikings have the better running back in Adrian Peterson, but the Cowboys counter with depth that most teams only dream about. Both of their offensive lines are big and nasty. They both have strong defenses led by their defensive lines. The Cowboys have DeMarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer and the Vikings have Jared Allen and the Williams brothers. Let’s not forget that the Cowboys have an emerging star at defensive tackle in Jay Ratliff. Despite the fact that these teams are so similar, I think that Dallas is going to get it done. They are playing better football then the Vikings and they are playing with a high level of confidence after ending their December nightmares and dispatching their playoff disappointments. I was tempted to go with the Vikings due to their home field advantage, but I think that the Cowboys will start fast and take the Metrodome crowd out of the game. Ultimately, I think the outcome is going to be close, but Dallas holds off the Vikings to advance to their first NFC championship game since the early 90’s.
(3) Have you ever been around an old dog? They are a step too slow, they can barely see and they have lost control of their bladder. They still might have flashes of their old brilliance, but everyone knows that the end is near. The finality of the situation is made even more apparent when you see the old dog playing with the family’s new puppy. The puppy is running circles around the older one and the older one just gets more and more frustrated because he can’t keep up. I was reminded of this kind of situation while watching the New England-Baltimore game. The Patriots played the role of the battered and bruised old dogs, while the Ravens ran circles around them with youthful canine exuberance. This game was basically over before it even started. The Patriots entered the game without their sparkplug, Wes Welker, and the Ravens made sure that no one else on the roster was going to provide the spark either. Baltimore’s Ray Rice hit an 83-yard touchdown run, the second longest rushing TD in playoff history, on the first play from scrimmage and the Ravens never looked back. Baltimore took advantage of three Tom Brady first quarter turnovers to score 24 points and the rout was on. The Ravens’ explosion in the opening stanza was the second most points scored in the opening quarter in playoff history. The big, early lead meant that the Ravens could rely on Rice, Willis McGahee and Le’Ron McClain, who outran and overpowered the Patriots to the tune of 234 yards rushing on an astonishing 52 carries. The Patriots rushing defense was so porous that the Ravens only attempted 10 passes the entire game. If I would have told you that Joe Flacco would only have 34 yards passing in the game, you would have told me that the Patriots won the game in a rout. That, my friends, is why they play the game. Despite entering the game as slight underdogs, the Ravens were the aggressors and, therefore, the better team. They harassed Brady to the point that he committed four turnovers and submitted the worst passer rating of his playoff career. Brady was so shook up by the experience that he started making mistakes that a rookie would make like the inexplicable interception that he threw into the middle of the field after getting pressured out of the pocket. Quarterbacks learn at an early age to never throw the ball against your body back to the middle of the field, but Brady failed the remedial lesson nevertheless. In the end, the Ravens snapped the Patriots’ home playoff win streak at 11 games, handing New England its first home playoff loss since 1978. The reward for possibly putting the final nail into New England’s coffin is an all-expenses paid trip to Lucas Oil Stadium to battle the number one seed Indianapolis Colts.
The Ravens should be very familiar with the Colts and very motivated to get their revenge after losing 17-15 to Indianapolis earlier in the year. The Ravens lost the game because they couldn’t finish drives, going 0-4 in the red zone and settling for five Billy Cundiff field goals. The Colts did everything to hand the game to Baltimore, but they were able to overcome three turnovers thanks to Peyton Manning’s 41st game-winning drive of his career. For Baltimore to beat the Colts this time around, they need a repeat performance from their defense and another big day from their running attack. More importantly, they have to get something from Joe Flacco. If Flacco throws up another stink bomb like he did against the Patriots, the Ravens are heading home for the winter. I believe that Flacco has to play about 70% as well as Manning because he has a better running game and a defense that is playing at a high level. Nevertheless, I like the Colts to advance to the AFC Championship game. First and foremost, I give them the edge because they have home field advantage. Lucas Oil is going to be rocking and I fully expect Flacco to have a couple brain fart moments due to the noise and pressure. More importantly, I like the Colts because they have the best closer in the game. Manning is not only the newly minted MVP, but he is also the greatest clutch performer in the NFL. With Manning at the controls, the Colts always have a chance. Manning’s mere presence gives the Colts a little more room for error. In the end, I think that Manning makes at least four or five big plays, the Colts get enough out of their running game and Flacco folds a bit under the pressure, which all leads to an Indianapolis victory.
(4) Thank goodness for the Packers and Cardinals lighting up the scoreboard because the rest of the wild card weekend was about as boring as a piece of white bread. Two of the other games were over early and the Jets-Bengals game was never as competitive as the score may have suggested. Fortunately, the Packers staged an epic comeback and nearly escaped the desert with the first playoff victory of Aaron Rodgers’ career. Even in defeat, Rodgers ended a marvelous season on a high note and continued to demonstrate the wisdom of Ted Thompson when he chose Rodgers over Favre two summers ago. Rodgers set the Packers single-game postseason record with 422 yards, which carried Green Bay to its highest playoff point total in franchise history. The most amazing part is that the previous record holder for most single-game passing yards in Green Bay history was not Brett Favre. Lynn Dickey actually set the record back in 1983 when he torched the Dallas Cowboys for 332 yards passing. Rodgers was not the only quarterback that was dealing in this game. Kurt Warner ensured that this would not be his last game in a Cardinals uniform by throwing more touchdowns (5) than incompletions (4). Warner actually joined Daryle Lamonica as the only players to have a pair of playoff games with at least five passing touchdowns. If the rumors of Warner’s impending retirement are true, then he has definitely left a lasting memory for Cardinals fans. The other thing that I liked from the Cardinals is how their third and fourth wide receivers stepped their games up in the absence of Anquan Boldin. Steve Breaston led the way with 125 yards, which included a number of acrobatic catches. In addition, little known Early Doucet made sure that Arizona would move on by catching two touchdown passes and doing his best Boldin impersonation. If Boldin is still unavailable in the divisional round, then you have to think that the Cardinals will be all right after what Breaston and Doucet did against the Packers.
It was fitting, in a game that would become the highest scoring playoff game in NFL history, that a defensive player would make the play of the game. After getting the football first in overtime and getting called for a holding penalty that would set them back 10 yards, the Packers snapped the football on what would become the last play of the game. The Cardinals, as they had done on numerous occasions during the game, sent Michael Adams off the edge in an attempt to force Rodgers into a mistake. Rodgers did not see Adams coming, fumbled the ball on impact and inadvertently kicked the ball into the waiting hands of Karlos Dansby, who waltzed into the end zone with the game-clinching touchdown. It was ironic that the Packers lost the game because Rodgers held onto the football way too long just as he did on a regular basis earlier in the season. It is important to give Arizona credit for forcing the issue in overtime and making the play to win the game. Nevertheless, I think that the zebras deserve a little credit as well after they effectively swallowed their whistles in a critical two-play sequence to end the game. On second-and-10 from the Green Bay 20-yard line, Rodgers completed a 14-yard pass that was called back due to a holding penalty on the offensive line. As Rodgers released the football, he suffered a clear helmet-to-helmet hit from one of the Arizona defensive linemen that went uncalled. I don’t know if the personal foul would have trumped the holding call, but, at the very least, it would have been off-setting penalties and the down would have been replayed. Instead, Green Bay faced a second-and-20. After hitting James Jones for another 14-yard completion, the Packers faced a third-and-six. On the last play of the game, Adams clearly grasped Rodgers’ facemask as he stripped the football. Unfortunately, the refs didn’t see this penalty as well. It will be a tough pill to swallow for Green Bay, but I still think that Arizona deserved to win the game even if it came with a slight assist from the guys in the striped shirts.
Arizona now gets the chance to knock off the top seeded New Orleans Saints. I’m hoping for another shootout. Maybe they can score a combined 100 points this time. I think the biggest key to the game is if the Saints can start fast. Will they need a quarter to get acclimated to playing football again? New Orleans played so poorly down the stretch that I honestly don’t know what to expect. They could come out like a house on fire or they could get completely steam-rolled. Neither result would surprise me in the least. Honestly, I think that this match-up is the biggest toss-up of the divisional round. I think that we are going to see a high-scoring affair and the last team with the football will win the game. The Saints should get a boost from their fanatical fans and the Cardinals should play well early because they have not had an extended break like New Orleans. When the adrenaline wears off and execution takes over, I believe that both offenses will make their fair share of plays against overrated defenses and the scoreboard will light up like the Fourth of July. In the end, I like the Cardinals for two reasons. First of all, they have a super-clutch quarterback, playing at high-level that wants to make his NFL farewell memorable. Warner also needs some more big moments to improve his case for induction into the Hall of Fame. I think that the quarterback match-up is fairly even, but Warner makes a couple more big plays and leaves the Superdome with a victory. The other reason that I like the Cardinals is because they seem to have developed a knack for winning playoff games. I counted them out three times last season and they nearly won the Super Bowl. I didn’t really think they were going to beat the Packers last week, but they made me eat crow once again. Basically, I’m tired of picking against them. Ultimately, I think that they use their experience from the last two seasons to get to consecutive NFC Championship games.
(5) Before I start talking about the Seahawks, can someone please queue up the Barnum & Bailey theme music? Also, I need someone one to tell me when did we start to make personnel moves like the Cleveland Browns or the Oakland Raiders? I feel like I’m in some kind of bizarro world, where one of the best run franchises of the last decade start to make decisions by throwing darts at the wall. I fully expect to see Bob Whitsitt come striding through the door to reclaim his job as President/General Manager. What the hell is going at the VMAC? First of all, we run Mike Holmgren out of town despite some evidence that he had changed his mind about walking away from being the head coach. The Steve Hutchinson situation might have started the decline of the Seahawks, but the decision to part ways with a Hall of Fame coach greatly accelerated the journey to mediocrity. Secondly, we endured another lost season, where the injuries piled up once again, the coach seem to lose the locker room and several receivers took to the airwaves to bad mouth fans, coaches and local radio personalities. Third, our general manager decided to take his ball and go home when the Hawks refused to grant him a contract extension despite the fact that the season still had five weeks remaining. As a result, the head coach had to field questions that would have been better posed to the man running the football operation. I think it is ridiculous that Ruskell decided to run for the hills instead of finishing the season. Fourth, the Hawks pull a hatchet job on Jim Mora five days after the season despite the fact that he only got one season with less than a full complement of talent. Let’s not forget that the Hawks also made Mora hold his final press conference of the season even though Todd Leiwicke was secretly negotiating with Mora’s ultimate successor. I don’t have a huge problem with their decision to fire Mora, but I do have a problem with how the whole situation went down. I think it was classless of the Hawks to allow Mora to believe he was returning for his second season and then pull the rug from beneath him two days later. If they planned to fire him, then they should have handed out the pink slip on the Monday following the end of the season like every other franchise does. I don’t know if Mora would have ultimately been successful in Seattle, but I do know that he got a raw deal from the Seahawks. Finally, the Hawks awkwardly hired Pete Carroll from USC despite the fact that they didn’t have a general manager and several high-profile, former head coaches were still on the market. Listen, I don’t know if Bill Cowher or Jon Gruden or John Fox were going to come to Seattle, but don’t you at least have to inquire. Why the rush to hire Carroll? Who else wanted him? He would have been just as available in two weeks as he was right now. For some reason, Leiwicke and Paul Allen became enamored with Carroll and set out to hire him at all costs. The most awkward part about the whole deal was how, in my opinion, the Hawks completely thumbed their nose at the Rooney Rule. They apparently reached out to Tony Dungy and Ron Rivera, but they only “complied” with the rule after holding the biggest sham interview in the history of sham interviews. Did poor Leslie Frazier really think he had a shot? How did this qualify as a legitimate interview of a minority candidate? I know that there was no ink on the paper, but everyone from Adam Schefter to Danny O’Neill was reporting that a deal with Carroll was imminent. I know that the Rooney Rule does not mandate the hiring of minority candidates, but how does a meaningless interview with a candidate with no real shot advance the situation for minority coaches? I’m not only mad about the Carroll hire, but I’m also pissed off that my hometown team with basically say eff you to such an important rule. I don’t even want to get started on the topic of the Hawks hiring a head coach without having hired a general manager. Why do we have to do things ass backwards when this is perhaps the most important moment in the history of the franchise? We are either going to get on the path to recovery or we are going to set ourselves back half a decade.
The biggest reason that I hate this move is that college coaches, outside of Jimmy Johnson, have been colossal failures in the NFL. In the last two decades, 10 NFL owners have hired a coach from a major college program to be the head coach of an NFL team. Out of those 10 hires, only one, Johnson, won a playoff game. Only one, Johnson, had a winning career record. This list includes Nick Saban, Bobby Petrino, Steve Spurrier, Lane Kiffin and Butch Davis among others. I want to give Carroll the benefit of the doubt, but the numbers keep hitting me in my face and calling me stupid. The other reason that I hate this move is that it appears that the Hawks have latched onto Carroll like a teenager who marries his high school sweetheart because she was the first girl to allow him past first base. There are so many other fish in the sea, but the Hawks only had eyes for the shiny one with the oversized personality. They could have taken a run at the Cowhers, Grudens and Foxes of the world. They could have taken a run at the hot coordinators like Frazier, Rivera or Brian Schottenheimer. They could have tried to find an under the radar kind of guy like John Harbaugh. Unfortunately, they fell hard for a guy who belongs in college. I’m not drinking any of the kool aid until he gets us back to the playoffs. Until then, he will be on a short leash with me. The funniest part about the whole situation is that Leiwicke thinks we should all be impressed that they hired Carroll. In his press conference, Leiwicke made it a point to stress that we got a guy that so many teams have wanted in the past. The key to his statement was the past. No one, other than the Seahawks, wanted him now. If the Huskies had hired Carroll, I would have been doing back flips down my street. Instead, I have to worry not only about the future of the franchise, but I have to worry about the Trojans poaching Steve Sarkisian. I really do not like the Hawks right now.
The Cowboys are the beast of the East and other NFL thoughts
(1) The most impressive victory of the last weekend of regular season football had to be the 24-0 beat down administered by the Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys are erasing their reputation for being chokers in big games right before our very eyes. They have now won three consecutive games in December/January and have the look of a team that is peaking at exactly the right moment. In the last three weeks, they have won two showdowns and one trap game, which enabled them to steal the NFC East division title and the number three seed in the NFC playoffs. Their reward is another meeting with divisional rival Philadelphia. I’m pretty sure that Dallas is licking their chops to get another crack at the Eagles after what they did to them on Sunday. The Cowboys put on a clinic against Philadelphia in a game that many folks anticipated would be the best game of the day. Instead, Dallas held the Eagles to only 228 total yards and posted back-to-back shutouts for the first time in team history. It was the first time that the Eagles had been shutout since week 13 of the 2005 season and it was especially surprising to see Philadelphia go scoreless when you consider how explosive they have been on offense this season. The Cowboys were hitting on all cylinders as they sacked Donovan McNabb four times, held the Eagles to a mere 37 yards rushing and made sure that McNabb would not hurt them from the pocket holding him to only 223 yards passing. On offense, Dallas completely dominated with 474 total yards and more than 40 minutes of time of possession. The Cowboys basically cruised to victory after 17 points in the first half. The Eagles missed a 52-yard field goal following their first drive of the second half and didn’t get any closer than the Dallas 43-yard line the rest of the game. The Cowboys have been the hottest team down the stretch led by the heady play of the much-maligned Tony Romo and the devastating play from their defense. I fully expected the Cowboys to cave at some point during their last three games, but they seem to be maturing as a football team. Since I have criticized the Cowboys for so long, I feel that it is only fair to give credit where credit is due. The good times are finally rolling in Big D. They finished with a winning record after December 1st for the first time since 1996 and ended a nine-game losing streak in season finales. Romo finished with the most attempts, completions and passing yards every by a Cowboys quarterback and Dallas established a new standard for yards in a single season. Finally, their back-to-back shutouts hadn’t been done in the NFL since 2000 and it was only the third time in Dallas history that they had posted two shutouts in a single year. With everything seemingly going their way, perhaps the Cowboys can finally win a playoff game for the first time since 1996.
(2) The most devastating event of the day has to be the severe knee injury suffered by Wes Welker. Short of the Patriots losing Tom Brady or the Colts losing Peyton Manning, I can’t think of a more crippling injury than Welker’s for a team on the way to the playoffs. Welker is not only Brady’s security blanket, but he is the spark plug for New England. He is their toughest player and he sets the tone for the rest of the team. He has a relationship with Brady that is unparalleled among any other quarterback-wide receiver tandem in the NFL. He is the substance to the flash provided by Randy Moss. He also happens to have more receptions over the last three seasons than any other player and his NFL-high 123 receptions this season are tied with Herman Moore for the second most in NFL history. When Welker went down in a heap, it was clear from the beginning that he had suffered a significant injury. He was helped off the field and his emotional response on the sideline left little doubt that he had experienced a catastrophic injury to his knee. After the game, sources close to the team were releasing information that Welker had suffered a tear of his ACL and MCL. His season is most definitely over and now the Patriots are left to look for answers as they prepare to host the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. Julian Edelman had a career-high 10 receptions in the game, but, let’s be honest, Edelman is nowhere near the caliber of player that Welker is. With Welker out for the season, you can be sure that the Ravens, as well as any other future opponents, will happily let Edelman and Sam Aiken get single coverage while they ensure that Randy Moss does not beat them. The Patriots needed Moss and Welker to have a chance to make some noise in the playoffs. Now, New England better hope that their defense plays very well against the Ravens and creates some favorable scoring opportunities for the offense.
The big question that will be debated in light of Welker’s injury will be whether or not he should have been playing at all. I’m sure at least a few armchair quarterbacks are going to criticize Bill Belichick for playing Welker, as well as many other regulars, with so little at stake. I, for one, applaud Belichick’s decision to uphold the integrity of the game by playing his starters and ensuring that Houston had to “earn” the victory. In referring to the Indianapolis decision to pull their starters last week, I heard one of the talking heads say that you can’t play football scared. The Colts play the game scared of injury, which is why they have never been rewarded for resting their players at the end of the season. The Patriots don’t seem to have this “philosophy” and they always seem to be pretty sharp when playoff time comes around. New England got burned this time, but there is nothing you can do about a freak injury. Welker was not getting hit; he was merely making a cut that he probably has made a million times in his football life. Non-contact injuries like the one suffered by Welker can happen while taking a shower or walking down the stairs or practicing during the week. These words won’t make any Patriots’ fan any happier, but I hope that they appreciate the type of coach that they have. He has too big of an ego and he tends to be too curmudgeonly for his own good, but he does not fear being criticized, which frees him to take risks that other coaches would never take. There are a lot of things that I don’t personally like about Belichick, but his confidence and aggression on the field are things that I appreciate. For his sake, let’s hope that Edelman aka Mini-Welker can replicate his performance against the Texans in the wild card round.
(3) The most curious coaching decision of the day has to be Sean Payton’s decision to not play Drew Brees not even one second against the Carolina Panthers. Did Payton truly believe that the Saints were playing so well down the stretch that he could afford to rest Brees the entire game? It appears that Payton has quickly forgotten that the Saints have not played a good game since dismantling the New England Patriots back on November 30th. Since that game, the Saints needed a miracle to beat the Redskins, struggled with the Falcons and have lost three straight games to end the season after their 13-0 start. After not scoring less than 24 points all season, New Orleans has not scored more than 17 points in four weeks. Instead of trying to create some momentum for the playoffs, the Saints decided to feed their back-ups to the wolves, which did as much good as not showing up for the game at all. After his performance against the mediocre Panthers defense, does anyone still think that Mark Brunell should be on an NFL roster? Brunell completed 15 of 29 passes for a mere 102 yards and looked like he belonged in an old timer’s game. It also didn’t help the Saints that Jeremy Shockey never set foot on the field or that Reggie Bush was limited to five carries or that most of their defensive starters spent the second half holding their helmets on the sideline. Once again, an NFL team decided to play the game scared and they will probably pay the price come playoff time. The Saints have been listless for the entire month of December and I don’t think that turning Week 17 into a glorified preseason game is going to help them flip the switch in two weeks. In fact, the Saints became the first top seed in NFL history to finish a season on a three-game losing streak. Neither Brees nor Payton thought it was worth the risk to play the starters in this game, but I definitely disagree with them. We will see in two weeks who is right.
While we are on the topic of teams that have taken the last few weeks off, can I get on my soapbox one more time regarding the Indianapolis Colts? Actually, I really need to take Bill Polian to task for his asinine comments about a perfect season and their subsequent behavior in the season finale. On the NFL Network a couple of days ago, Polian told Rich Eisen that the Colts did not feel that a perfect season was a historic achievement. At the same time, Polian said that winning more games than any team in a decade and winning the most consecutive regular season games are “historical milestones that were worth going out there and risking everything for.” Is Polian smoking crack or something? While I would agree that winning more games than any team in a decade or winning the most consecutive regular season games are worthy milestones, there is no way that they trump a perfect season. Does anyone know or care about which team won the most games in the 1990’s or the 1980’s? Of course, we all know that the 1972 Miami Dolphins are the only team to complete an entire season undefeated. For God’s sake, people that were not born until the 90’s know that the Dolphins are the only team to achieve perfection. It is a topic that comes up each and every season in the NFL. How can Polian say with a straight face that perfection is not a historic achievement? I think someone should rush him to the hospital because he must have hit his head recently. Polian’s comments become even more ridiculous after you consider the Colts’ curious decisions on Sunday. Despite the fact that the game had no meaning for the team, the Colts risked injury to allow Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark to pursue the personal goal of 100 catches. It doesn’t really send a good message to your fans when you brush off a historic team goal, but, at the same time, you allow your players to pursue individual goals. As successful as the Colts have been this decade, I think they have completely missed the boat regarding their handling of these late season situations. I will not be surprised if the Colts, and for that matter the Saints, get bounced early in the playoffs.
(4) The biggest flop of the day has to be the blowout loss suffered by the playoff-contending Denver Broncos against the three-win Kansas City Chiefs. Actually, the Broncos were the biggest flops of the 2009 season. It wasn’t that long ago that the Broncos were 6-0 and sitting on top of the NFL world. Their coach was being hailed as a genius, their defense looked like the second coming of the Orange Crush and their maligned quarterback looked like he was gaining redemption in the Mile High City. Unfortunately, McDaniels’ first season in Denver ended the same way Mike Shanahan’s last one did: with a late season flop and an embarrassing blowout that wasted a strong start and kept the Broncos out of the playoffs. Last year, they were blown out by the San Diego Chargers with a playoff berth on the line and this year they were destroyed by Kansas City, who got their first victory in nine tries at Invesco Field. The Broncos lost eight out of 10 games after their sizzling start and failed to win a home divisional game for the first time in their history. They also joined the 1978 Redskins and the 2003 Vikings as the only teams since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger to miss the playoffs after a 6-0 start.
There are so many reasons for the Broncos’ failure to make the playoffs. None is bigger than the collapse of their defense. After giving up 20+ points just once during their undefeated start, Denver’s defense gave up 20+ points eight times in their final 10 games. It seemed pretty clear that the Broncos lost steam on the defensive side of the ball. We can also point to unrest in the locker room to explain why the Broncos finished the season on the outside looking in. Coach McDaniels’ made it clear from the beginning that it was his way or the highway, which he proved when he shipped Jay Cutler and his insolent attitude to the Chicago Bears. He further showed who the boss was when he refused to give in to Brandon Marshall’s attempts to get traded as well. McDaniels’ explosive relationship with Marshall came to a head once again when he publicly questioned the extent of Marshall’s hamstring injury. The MRI showed no sign of damage, but Marshall continued to complain about discomfort, which led McDaniels to insinuate that the player was embellishing the injury. As a result, McDaniels deactivated Marshall for the biggest game of the Broncos’ season. McDaniels also chose to leave Tony Scheffler in street clothes for disciplinary reasons. We all know that Marshall and Scheffler were not going to be able to help the Broncos tackle Jamaal Charles or stop Kyle Orton from throwing two back-breaking pick sixes to Derek Johnson, but it certainly didn’t help Denver’s cause to have this kind of turmoil leading up to the game. It will be interesting to see where the Broncos go from here. Has Marshall played his last game in Denver? Do they realize the Orton is merely a caretaker and not a franchise quarterback? Regardless of their next move, owner Pat Bowlen must understand that they have a ways to go to catch the cream of the crop in the NFC West, the San Diego Chargers.
(5) I have to commend the Seahawks for playing their most spirited game since they beat the San Francisco 49ers five weeks ago. It was clear that the prospect of Chris Johnson surpassing 2,000 yards rushing or possibly breaking Eric Dickerson’s NFL single-season rushing record woke up the Seahawks’ defense. For most of the afternoon, they made Johnson work for every yard that he gained. They hit him hard and hit him often. There were at least two or three hits from Will Herring that stand out. The only time that Johnson really shook free was a 66-yard touchdown run that was called back on a sketchy holding penalty on Ahmard Hall. If that play had stood, then Johnson would have had a tremendous opportunity to break Dickerson’s record. Instead, Johnson had to settle for becoming the sixth man to surpass the mythical 2,000 yard barrier and breaking Marshall Faulk’s NFL record for total yards from scrimmage in a single season (2,509 yards). Johnson also registered his 11th straight 100-yard game, which tied the second longest streak in NFL history. Despite the fact that he reached a number of milestones, I thought that the Seahawks defense played extremely well against Johnson. His longest run was only 12 yards and the Hawks made him feel every yard that he gained. I was actually kind of proud of the Hawks defense. They only gave up one scoring drive longer than 50 yards. They only allowed 17 points and seven of those points came after the Titans were set-up at the Hawks’ 28-yard line after John Ryan inexplicably dropped a snap that hit him directly in the hands. The Hawks only allowed 304 total yards, played pretty well on third down and forced two turnovers. All in all, it was one of their better performances of the season.
Unfortunately, the offense could not uphold their part of the bargain. If only the Hawks could score points as well as they mouth off on the radio. The Hawks actually ran the ball very well, but they couldn’t sustain drives because they were awful on third down (four conversions in 13 opportunities) and Matt Hasselbeck submitted another mediocre performance. I’m not really sure what to do with Hasselbeck. As the only quarterback in franchise history to deliver a Super Bowl appearance, Hasselbeck has earned some leeway with the fans. It doesn’t hurt that he is a stand-up guy off the field and a warrior on the field. He is definitely playing hurt, but in the NFL you can’t complain about an injury if you are trying to play through it. Deep in my heart, I still think that he can be a productive NFL quarterback, but the Hawks have to get him a better offensive line and more playmakers. The Hawks need to identify who the keepers are along the front-line and get rid of the rest the bums. They also need to find more explosive options at wide receiver and running back. It is imperative that the Hawks find someone like Chris Johnson or DeSean Jackson to instill fear in their opponents. It will be up to the new General Manager to find this talent. Let’s not forget that the Hawks need plenty of help on defense as well. Can we find a Brian Orakpo or Elvis Dumervil in the draft? Can we find more physical cornerbacks like Johnathan Joseph or Leon Hall to match-up against the imposing wide receivers in the NFC West? Can our linebackers stay healthy and play to their potential? The Hawks have so much work to do that it almost seems impossible that we can accomplish it all in one off-season. Nonetheless, the Miami Dolphins have given us a recent example that the NFL system allows teams to go from the outhouse to the penthouse relatively quickly. I hope that 2010 brings more success for Seattle because I don’t think I can take another losing season.
(2) The most devastating event of the day has to be the severe knee injury suffered by Wes Welker. Short of the Patriots losing Tom Brady or the Colts losing Peyton Manning, I can’t think of a more crippling injury than Welker’s for a team on the way to the playoffs. Welker is not only Brady’s security blanket, but he is the spark plug for New England. He is their toughest player and he sets the tone for the rest of the team. He has a relationship with Brady that is unparalleled among any other quarterback-wide receiver tandem in the NFL. He is the substance to the flash provided by Randy Moss. He also happens to have more receptions over the last three seasons than any other player and his NFL-high 123 receptions this season are tied with Herman Moore for the second most in NFL history. When Welker went down in a heap, it was clear from the beginning that he had suffered a significant injury. He was helped off the field and his emotional response on the sideline left little doubt that he had experienced a catastrophic injury to his knee. After the game, sources close to the team were releasing information that Welker had suffered a tear of his ACL and MCL. His season is most definitely over and now the Patriots are left to look for answers as they prepare to host the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. Julian Edelman had a career-high 10 receptions in the game, but, let’s be honest, Edelman is nowhere near the caliber of player that Welker is. With Welker out for the season, you can be sure that the Ravens, as well as any other future opponents, will happily let Edelman and Sam Aiken get single coverage while they ensure that Randy Moss does not beat them. The Patriots needed Moss and Welker to have a chance to make some noise in the playoffs. Now, New England better hope that their defense plays very well against the Ravens and creates some favorable scoring opportunities for the offense.
The big question that will be debated in light of Welker’s injury will be whether or not he should have been playing at all. I’m sure at least a few armchair quarterbacks are going to criticize Bill Belichick for playing Welker, as well as many other regulars, with so little at stake. I, for one, applaud Belichick’s decision to uphold the integrity of the game by playing his starters and ensuring that Houston had to “earn” the victory. In referring to the Indianapolis decision to pull their starters last week, I heard one of the talking heads say that you can’t play football scared. The Colts play the game scared of injury, which is why they have never been rewarded for resting their players at the end of the season. The Patriots don’t seem to have this “philosophy” and they always seem to be pretty sharp when playoff time comes around. New England got burned this time, but there is nothing you can do about a freak injury. Welker was not getting hit; he was merely making a cut that he probably has made a million times in his football life. Non-contact injuries like the one suffered by Welker can happen while taking a shower or walking down the stairs or practicing during the week. These words won’t make any Patriots’ fan any happier, but I hope that they appreciate the type of coach that they have. He has too big of an ego and he tends to be too curmudgeonly for his own good, but he does not fear being criticized, which frees him to take risks that other coaches would never take. There are a lot of things that I don’t personally like about Belichick, but his confidence and aggression on the field are things that I appreciate. For his sake, let’s hope that Edelman aka Mini-Welker can replicate his performance against the Texans in the wild card round.
(3) The most curious coaching decision of the day has to be Sean Payton’s decision to not play Drew Brees not even one second against the Carolina Panthers. Did Payton truly believe that the Saints were playing so well down the stretch that he could afford to rest Brees the entire game? It appears that Payton has quickly forgotten that the Saints have not played a good game since dismantling the New England Patriots back on November 30th. Since that game, the Saints needed a miracle to beat the Redskins, struggled with the Falcons and have lost three straight games to end the season after their 13-0 start. After not scoring less than 24 points all season, New Orleans has not scored more than 17 points in four weeks. Instead of trying to create some momentum for the playoffs, the Saints decided to feed their back-ups to the wolves, which did as much good as not showing up for the game at all. After his performance against the mediocre Panthers defense, does anyone still think that Mark Brunell should be on an NFL roster? Brunell completed 15 of 29 passes for a mere 102 yards and looked like he belonged in an old timer’s game. It also didn’t help the Saints that Jeremy Shockey never set foot on the field or that Reggie Bush was limited to five carries or that most of their defensive starters spent the second half holding their helmets on the sideline. Once again, an NFL team decided to play the game scared and they will probably pay the price come playoff time. The Saints have been listless for the entire month of December and I don’t think that turning Week 17 into a glorified preseason game is going to help them flip the switch in two weeks. In fact, the Saints became the first top seed in NFL history to finish a season on a three-game losing streak. Neither Brees nor Payton thought it was worth the risk to play the starters in this game, but I definitely disagree with them. We will see in two weeks who is right.
While we are on the topic of teams that have taken the last few weeks off, can I get on my soapbox one more time regarding the Indianapolis Colts? Actually, I really need to take Bill Polian to task for his asinine comments about a perfect season and their subsequent behavior in the season finale. On the NFL Network a couple of days ago, Polian told Rich Eisen that the Colts did not feel that a perfect season was a historic achievement. At the same time, Polian said that winning more games than any team in a decade and winning the most consecutive regular season games are “historical milestones that were worth going out there and risking everything for.” Is Polian smoking crack or something? While I would agree that winning more games than any team in a decade or winning the most consecutive regular season games are worthy milestones, there is no way that they trump a perfect season. Does anyone know or care about which team won the most games in the 1990’s or the 1980’s? Of course, we all know that the 1972 Miami Dolphins are the only team to complete an entire season undefeated. For God’s sake, people that were not born until the 90’s know that the Dolphins are the only team to achieve perfection. It is a topic that comes up each and every season in the NFL. How can Polian say with a straight face that perfection is not a historic achievement? I think someone should rush him to the hospital because he must have hit his head recently. Polian’s comments become even more ridiculous after you consider the Colts’ curious decisions on Sunday. Despite the fact that the game had no meaning for the team, the Colts risked injury to allow Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark to pursue the personal goal of 100 catches. It doesn’t really send a good message to your fans when you brush off a historic team goal, but, at the same time, you allow your players to pursue individual goals. As successful as the Colts have been this decade, I think they have completely missed the boat regarding their handling of these late season situations. I will not be surprised if the Colts, and for that matter the Saints, get bounced early in the playoffs.
(4) The biggest flop of the day has to be the blowout loss suffered by the playoff-contending Denver Broncos against the three-win Kansas City Chiefs. Actually, the Broncos were the biggest flops of the 2009 season. It wasn’t that long ago that the Broncos were 6-0 and sitting on top of the NFL world. Their coach was being hailed as a genius, their defense looked like the second coming of the Orange Crush and their maligned quarterback looked like he was gaining redemption in the Mile High City. Unfortunately, McDaniels’ first season in Denver ended the same way Mike Shanahan’s last one did: with a late season flop and an embarrassing blowout that wasted a strong start and kept the Broncos out of the playoffs. Last year, they were blown out by the San Diego Chargers with a playoff berth on the line and this year they were destroyed by Kansas City, who got their first victory in nine tries at Invesco Field. The Broncos lost eight out of 10 games after their sizzling start and failed to win a home divisional game for the first time in their history. They also joined the 1978 Redskins and the 2003 Vikings as the only teams since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger to miss the playoffs after a 6-0 start.
There are so many reasons for the Broncos’ failure to make the playoffs. None is bigger than the collapse of their defense. After giving up 20+ points just once during their undefeated start, Denver’s defense gave up 20+ points eight times in their final 10 games. It seemed pretty clear that the Broncos lost steam on the defensive side of the ball. We can also point to unrest in the locker room to explain why the Broncos finished the season on the outside looking in. Coach McDaniels’ made it clear from the beginning that it was his way or the highway, which he proved when he shipped Jay Cutler and his insolent attitude to the Chicago Bears. He further showed who the boss was when he refused to give in to Brandon Marshall’s attempts to get traded as well. McDaniels’ explosive relationship with Marshall came to a head once again when he publicly questioned the extent of Marshall’s hamstring injury. The MRI showed no sign of damage, but Marshall continued to complain about discomfort, which led McDaniels to insinuate that the player was embellishing the injury. As a result, McDaniels deactivated Marshall for the biggest game of the Broncos’ season. McDaniels also chose to leave Tony Scheffler in street clothes for disciplinary reasons. We all know that Marshall and Scheffler were not going to be able to help the Broncos tackle Jamaal Charles or stop Kyle Orton from throwing two back-breaking pick sixes to Derek Johnson, but it certainly didn’t help Denver’s cause to have this kind of turmoil leading up to the game. It will be interesting to see where the Broncos go from here. Has Marshall played his last game in Denver? Do they realize the Orton is merely a caretaker and not a franchise quarterback? Regardless of their next move, owner Pat Bowlen must understand that they have a ways to go to catch the cream of the crop in the NFC West, the San Diego Chargers.
(5) I have to commend the Seahawks for playing their most spirited game since they beat the San Francisco 49ers five weeks ago. It was clear that the prospect of Chris Johnson surpassing 2,000 yards rushing or possibly breaking Eric Dickerson’s NFL single-season rushing record woke up the Seahawks’ defense. For most of the afternoon, they made Johnson work for every yard that he gained. They hit him hard and hit him often. There were at least two or three hits from Will Herring that stand out. The only time that Johnson really shook free was a 66-yard touchdown run that was called back on a sketchy holding penalty on Ahmard Hall. If that play had stood, then Johnson would have had a tremendous opportunity to break Dickerson’s record. Instead, Johnson had to settle for becoming the sixth man to surpass the mythical 2,000 yard barrier and breaking Marshall Faulk’s NFL record for total yards from scrimmage in a single season (2,509 yards). Johnson also registered his 11th straight 100-yard game, which tied the second longest streak in NFL history. Despite the fact that he reached a number of milestones, I thought that the Seahawks defense played extremely well against Johnson. His longest run was only 12 yards and the Hawks made him feel every yard that he gained. I was actually kind of proud of the Hawks defense. They only gave up one scoring drive longer than 50 yards. They only allowed 17 points and seven of those points came after the Titans were set-up at the Hawks’ 28-yard line after John Ryan inexplicably dropped a snap that hit him directly in the hands. The Hawks only allowed 304 total yards, played pretty well on third down and forced two turnovers. All in all, it was one of their better performances of the season.
Unfortunately, the offense could not uphold their part of the bargain. If only the Hawks could score points as well as they mouth off on the radio. The Hawks actually ran the ball very well, but they couldn’t sustain drives because they were awful on third down (four conversions in 13 opportunities) and Matt Hasselbeck submitted another mediocre performance. I’m not really sure what to do with Hasselbeck. As the only quarterback in franchise history to deliver a Super Bowl appearance, Hasselbeck has earned some leeway with the fans. It doesn’t hurt that he is a stand-up guy off the field and a warrior on the field. He is definitely playing hurt, but in the NFL you can’t complain about an injury if you are trying to play through it. Deep in my heart, I still think that he can be a productive NFL quarterback, but the Hawks have to get him a better offensive line and more playmakers. The Hawks need to identify who the keepers are along the front-line and get rid of the rest the bums. They also need to find more explosive options at wide receiver and running back. It is imperative that the Hawks find someone like Chris Johnson or DeSean Jackson to instill fear in their opponents. It will be up to the new General Manager to find this talent. Let’s not forget that the Hawks need plenty of help on defense as well. Can we find a Brian Orakpo or Elvis Dumervil in the draft? Can we find more physical cornerbacks like Johnathan Joseph or Leon Hall to match-up against the imposing wide receivers in the NFC West? Can our linebackers stay healthy and play to their potential? The Hawks have so much work to do that it almost seems impossible that we can accomplish it all in one off-season. Nonetheless, the Miami Dolphins have given us a recent example that the NFL system allows teams to go from the outhouse to the penthouse relatively quickly. I hope that 2010 brings more success for Seattle because I don’t think I can take another losing season.
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