8-8. The win loss record of the Philadelphia Eagles last year. 4. The number of seasons that Andy Reid has posted a .500 record or lower in his 14 year career as Eagles head coach. 1. The number of opportunities left for both Reid and Vick.
So far for Eagles fans they can at least say we're doing better than last year. However, a 3-4 record after week eight isn't quite what we were hoping for after last years debacle. Sure, we were going to fix the problems at defensive coordinator. It was Juan Castillo's first year last year and he had to adjust without an offseason and a plethora of new players. Cut him some slack. The first four games looked good for the Eagles and Juan Castillo's job. They were holding teams in check and giving Mike Vick a chance to win games even though he could've cost them the game single handedly (more on that later). Two one point victories and a two point victory over the defending Super Bowl Champion New York Giants should be something to be proud of.
Then came the next few weeks. Reid and company came out strong against the Pittsburgh Steelers driving down on the first possession of the game to set up a score. However, Vick had other thoughts on his mind and fumbled away a sure score on the one yard line. It's alright. He's had his turnover struggles the first four games and we are 3-1. We'll overcome this one too right? Wrong. The Eagles lose on a last second field goal by Shaun Suisham and they drop a heartbreaker to the cross state rival Steelers. The deciding points in that game come from the Vick fumble, and the 6:32 drive that Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers orchestrated on the last possession of the game. 3-2
Next up the Detroit Lions. Should be a good game. The Lions struggled early on but they're starting to get the hang of it. Eagles start off strong and for three quarters completely shut down All-Pro wide receiver Calvin Johnson. Ten minutes of the fourth quarter go by and the Eagles hold a ten point lead. Then the Juan Castillo of last year shows up. He inexplicably begins to change the defense that quarterback Matthew Stafford has yet to figure out. He puts Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie on Calvin Johnson even though Nnamdi Asomougha has been shutting him down all game. Calvin Johnson proves to be vital in the last five minutes scoring a touchdown to bring the game within three with less than three minutes to go. Then like clockwork the Eagles defense fails again giving up the game tying field goal as time expires. Overtime comes Eagles get the ball. Good right? Wrong. Vick gets sacked twice leading to 4th and 30. Eagles punt. Akeem Jordan forces a fumble on the play! Good right? Wrong again. Somehow Jordan manages to land directly on top of the ball, only needing to wrap his arms around the pigskin and does not come away with it. Lions drive into field goal range and kick the game winning field goal. 3-3 heading into the bye week.
Bye week comes and great news out of Philadelphia, Andy Reid admits he was wrong and finally fires defensive coordinator Juan Castillo. Something Philly fans have been calling for since week five of the 2011 season. Coming into town is the undefeated Atlanta Falcons. Spoiler alert, they remain undefeated. Andy Reid was previously unbeaten as a head coach when coming out of the bye week at an impressive 13-0. The Falcons came and made that 13-1 in a pretty decisive 30-17 victory. Falcons QB Matt Ryan could do no wrong and Asomougha looked like a lost puppy when Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones ran right past him for a 63 yard touchdown. The only good that came from this game is Vick did not turn the ball over once, something he had not done since the 19-17 victory over the New York Giants in week four.
The Eagles have a tough test coming up in the New Orleans Saints whose offensive fire power lead by Drew Brees will test the secondary. Replacement defensive coordinator Todd Bowles will have to find a way to shut down this high powered offense and find a way to spark this Philly defense. Suggestion? Give Asomougha help over the top. He's a step slower than he once was and he's not the player that the Eagles signed to a 60 million dollar contract. To succeed, they will just have to accept that fact. No more excuses.
Now for the optimistic part of this blog post. The Eagles remaining schedule has a combined record of 27-39. That means they have the third easiest remaining schedule. Eagles head coach Andy Reid has the second best record in the second half of the season since he has been the coach of the Eagles. He is tied with the Steelers and is only behind the Patriots. They also have their remaining 5 divisional match ups in the second half of the season. Last year the Eagles lost one divisional matchup game, that was to the Giants in the third game of the season. That is the only time in the last nine games that the Giants have beaten the Eagles. Both games they play against the Cowboys will be during Tony Romo's choke time. That is good because the Cowboys entire game plan for this year has been to go out and build a team similar matchup wise to the Eagles. However, the way they have played so far it would seem they still have a ways to go to contend with Philly. In a do or die situation now for Reid it is time for him to get his team focused, and get ready to make a deep playoff run.
Oh, and one more interesting statistic? The team that won the Eagles home opener for the past 3 years and the last 4 of 5 has gone on to win the Super Bowl. The Eagles beat the Ravens 24-23 in their home opener this year. Fly Eagles fly.
Friday, November 2, 2012
Long Absences...Just Like the NHL
Sorry about the delay blogheads but I'm finally back and tonight I will be revealing the blog that I've been doing some in depth research on. But, more on that later. Right now more negotiation talks have commenced and more negotiation talks have failed leading to the canceling of more than a quarter of the NHL season. It would appear Mr. Bettman is not a fan of my blog and has decided to leave the NHL to its impending doom. While the NHL and NHLPA are getting closer in negotiations, they are still not seeing eye to eye.
If this deal is going to get done it is going to come down to one thing. Respect. The biggest issue in the whole negotiation process is that the NHL does not respect their players and that is a major issue. NHL players are, on average, the lowest paid athletes in the major professional sports. The average pay for an NHL player isn't even minimum wage of an NFL player. Which, if you ask me, is quite ironic. It could be argued that hockey is the toughest sport to play. Imagine playing a sport in which you have knives strapped to your feet chasing a tiny little rubber puck around with sticks on the hardest playing surface in athletic competition. Did I forget to mention you are skating at speeds of upwards of 35 miles per hour while everyone on the ice wants to kill you? Do that for 60 minutes of game play and then throw in an entire NBA season's worth of games. That's more than 5 times the amount of games that NFL players play. I think that Mr. Bettman should give his players a little more than 48 percent of the revenue. And considering how violent of a sport this actually is, he should probably take a look into better health benefits as well. Without the players Mr. Bettman, you don't have a product. Without a product, you can forget about the 52 percent of revenue you're supposed to make.
Let's get a deal done. Let's get it done soon.
If this deal is going to get done it is going to come down to one thing. Respect. The biggest issue in the whole negotiation process is that the NHL does not respect their players and that is a major issue. NHL players are, on average, the lowest paid athletes in the major professional sports. The average pay for an NHL player isn't even minimum wage of an NFL player. Which, if you ask me, is quite ironic. It could be argued that hockey is the toughest sport to play. Imagine playing a sport in which you have knives strapped to your feet chasing a tiny little rubber puck around with sticks on the hardest playing surface in athletic competition. Did I forget to mention you are skating at speeds of upwards of 35 miles per hour while everyone on the ice wants to kill you? Do that for 60 minutes of game play and then throw in an entire NBA season's worth of games. That's more than 5 times the amount of games that NFL players play. I think that Mr. Bettman should give his players a little more than 48 percent of the revenue. And considering how violent of a sport this actually is, he should probably take a look into better health benefits as well. Without the players Mr. Bettman, you don't have a product. Without a product, you can forget about the 52 percent of revenue you're supposed to make.
Let's get a deal done. Let's get it done soon.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Officially Locked-Out
It's official. There may not be any hockey again this year because Gary Bettman, the NHL Commissioner, and the Players Association can't find any way to work out a deal. This will be the second work stoppage in the NHL in the past eight years and the fourth work stoppage altogether. While the NHL isn't the only sports organization to deal with a lockout, the NBA and NFL both had work stoppages last year, it certainly seems the NHL is the organization that is the most prone to locking their players out of the league.
This lockout needs to end, and it needs to end now. As I mentioned in a previous blog the NHL is the fifth most marketable sports organization as it recently fell behind Major League Soccer. With continued lockouts happening we may see a substantial amount of fans dropping watching hockey similar to what happened after the NHL lockout of 2004. With such a great loss of fans and marketability already on the decline we may see a complete loss of the NHL. Personally, that would be devastating. It may also be devastating to the fans out on the west coast who may have just discovered hockey for the first time since Wayne Gretzky played in Los Angeles. The LA Kings won the Stanley cup last year which could've been huge to the expansion of the NHL. With so many bandwagon fans jumping on board with the Kings, a ton of money could have possibly been thrown into the west coast market. However that's pretty tough to do considering there may not be any hockey this year.
So come on Mr. Gambling Man, quit betting on the future of the NHL. Unless you're letting it all ride on its impending doom.
This lockout needs to end, and it needs to end now. As I mentioned in a previous blog the NHL is the fifth most marketable sports organization as it recently fell behind Major League Soccer. With continued lockouts happening we may see a substantial amount of fans dropping watching hockey similar to what happened after the NHL lockout of 2004. With such a great loss of fans and marketability already on the decline we may see a complete loss of the NHL. Personally, that would be devastating. It may also be devastating to the fans out on the west coast who may have just discovered hockey for the first time since Wayne Gretzky played in Los Angeles. The LA Kings won the Stanley cup last year which could've been huge to the expansion of the NHL. With so many bandwagon fans jumping on board with the Kings, a ton of money could have possibly been thrown into the west coast market. However that's pretty tough to do considering there may not be any hockey this year.
So come on Mr. Gambling Man, quit betting on the future of the NHL. Unless you're letting it all ride on its impending doom.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Week
With week one of the NFL season closed out and my predictions set with a losing record right now, it would appear it is time for me to redeem myself just a bit. Week two of the NFL season has already built up a lot of hype with a bunch of must win games already and some games that will just be plain fun to watch. So, let's jump in and see what we have to look forward to here in week two.
The first game we have is tonight between hated division rivals the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers. Aaron Rodgers and the Pack attack had a rough game last week losing to the San Fransisco 49ers. This is a tough start for the Packers facing off against a team that made it to the NFC Championship last year then having to play a much improved Bears team. Jay Cutler and the Bears showed last week against Luck and the Colts that they are going to be a force to be reckoned with throughout the year putting up 41 points in a blowout victory. I think this is going to be a close game with a lot of scoring on an exciting game to watch to kick off the week. Jay Cutler and the Bears prove a point that they are the team to beat this year in the NFC North as they stun Aaron Rodgers 37-31.
We have to wait a few days for the next game though as we move on to Sunday where most of the action will be taking place. The first of the 1 o'clock games we have taking place will be the Buffalo Bills and the Kansas City Chiefs. The Bills need to show they aren't that bad of a team after getting shellacked by Mark Sanchez and the Jets. They'll need to have better play from Ryan Fitzpatrick after losing running back Fred Jackson to another injury. Luckily CJ Spiller showed the talent the Bills have been expecting since they drafted him. The Chiefs also need a big win after giving up 40 points to a very talented Atlanta team. This will also be a close game but without all the scoring. I feel the Chiefs will take this one 20-14.
Next up we have the Baltimore Ravens and Philadelphia Eagles in one of the premier games to watch this week. The Eagles struggled last week against a Cleveland team that Peter King (sports writer for Sports Illustrated) and I both have going 1-15. Michael Vick struggled even though he threw for over 300 yards and 2 TD's, he also threw 4 interceptions, a number he can't have happen again if he wants to win this week. The Ravens on the other hand looked very impressive in a game I was sure they would be upset in. A 44-13 victory over one of the up and coming teams in the NFL the Cincinatti Bengals was exactly what the Ravens needed. They were lead by their impressive defensive play and the breakout performance of quarterback Joe Flacco. The no huddle offense of the Ravens may give the Eagles defense some fits this week but I still see the Eagles pulling this victory out as Vick corrects his struggles from last week. Eagles win 31-27.
Looking ahead to another 1 o'clock game we have the battle of Ohio as the Cincinatti Bengals take on the Cleveland Browns. As I mentioned before I don't have the Browns winning many games this season. This is another loss for them as Andy Dalton and company lead the Bengals to a win and even out their season at 1-1 while the Browns drop to 0-2. Bengals take it 31-10.
Next game on the schedule would be the hometown Indianapolis Colts and Andrew Luck taking on the Minnesota Vikings and Adrian Peterson. Adrian Peterson showed last week he isn't suffering many ill effects from his torn ACL from last season as he scored 2 touchdowns in last week's victory over the Jaguars. He will be taking on a Colts defense who is notorious for not stopping the run. Lucky for Luck, he will be taking on a Vikings pass defense who has been one of the worst in the league in recent memory. I thoroughly believe Luck shows he is the player the Colts drafted out of Stanford this week as he puts up big numbers in a victory over the Vikings. Colts win 31-28.
On to the sixth game of the week we have the Oakland Raiders taking on the Miami Dolphins. Ryan Tannehill had a disastrous start to his career throwing 3 interceptions in a loss to the Houston Texans. While we have the Raiders trying to bounce back from a tough loss to the San Diego Chargers in a game that should've been won by the Raiders. The lack of a long snapper last week really hurt the Raiders as they dropped their first game of the year. Don't expect those same problems to pose a threat though as the Raiders take this one easily 31-14.
Next game we have to look forward to is the Arizona Cardinals and the New England Patriots. I don't really think I need to spend that much time on this game as the Pats take this game pretty easily 41-10. Kolb is terrible, the Patriots defense can stop the run, and Tom Brady will continue being Tom Brady.
Next up we have a game that could be a pretty interesting one. The Tampa Bay Buccanneers upset rookie sensation Cam Newton last week in a 16-10 victory and look to upset Eli Manning and the Giants. I fully believe that the Buc's will take this game as Eli shows why his brother Peyton got all the talent in the regular season whereas he got the postseason talent. A much improved Tampa team takes this game 21-20 in a shocker as Eli and the Giants drop to 0-2.
For the last 1 o'clock game we have some division rivals taking the field against each other as the Houston Texans face off against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars are one of my favorite teams to root for as I look to find that underdog story that could make a great book to read or film to watch however the Texans are just too good on both sides of the ball. The Texans and Matt Schaub will continue their newfound dominance of the AFC South as they win this game 31-17.
We move on to the first afternoon game on Sunday and we find ourselves watching Robert Griffin the Third taking on the team that traded the rights to draft him in the St. Louis Rams. The Redskins looked impressive in their first year with the rookie quarterback as they took down Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints 40-32. The Rams also looked to be a team much improved however as they gave the Lions a run for their money. I think this game will be a closer game than people are expecting and the Rams come close to pulling this one out. Unfortunately, the Redskins rally behind RGIII and pull out the win 31-28.
On to a game that should be a blowout if both teams played like they did last week, the Dallas Cowboys take on the Seattle Seahawks. Seattle didn't look terrible behind new quarterback Russell Wilson, but they didn't look as stellar as the Cowboys did either. Tony Romo showed everyone it isn't December yet as he pulled out one of the better performances of his career so far against the defending Super Bowl Champions. I think the Cowboys can take this game home if Romo can play up to his abilities 27-10, Cowboys win.
Looking on to the surprising New York Jets and the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Jets looked like the team Head Coach Rex Ryan was talking about last season when he promised a Super Bowl to the city of New York. In his defense New York did get a Super Bowl, just not from the Jets. Mark Sanchez looked like an entirely new quarterback as he revitalized the Jets. The Steelers looked pretty average against the Denver Broncos and Peyton Manning and they'll need a much better performance this week especially if Sanchez comes to play like he did last week. I think the Steelers rebound from last week and win this game 24-20.
Next up it is the Tennessee Titans taking on the San Diego Chargers. Kenny Britt will play a huge factor in this game as he has served his one game suspension for his eighth arrest in three years and he is my X-factor in this game. If Britt plays well the Titans win this game easily 31-17. If he doesn't play well the Titans lose 20-13. I see him playing well though so predict that first score.
The Sunday night game should be a fun one to watch on NBC as we have Matthew Stafford and the Detroit Lions taking on the San Fransisco 49ers. The 49ers looked excellent last week against the best quarterback in the game Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers. Even with Calvin Johnson and the high powered offense the Lions have, I don't see them giving this 49ers defense a challenge as the Niners take this one easily 28-10.
Finally we move on to Monday Night Football as the Peyton Manning led Denver Broncos take on Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons. Matt Ryan played great last week with a 40-24 victory over the Chiefs but this Denver Secondary might give him some aggravation as they are one of the better defenses in the league. Peyton looked like the Peyton all Colts fans know and love last week against the Steelers so expect this game to be a high flying, high scoring game on Monday Night Football. I'm going to take the Falcons in this one though as they have too many weapons on the offensive side of the ball to lose, 41-38 final score.
Hopefully this week treats me better than the 6-9 record I posted last week.
The first game we have is tonight between hated division rivals the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers. Aaron Rodgers and the Pack attack had a rough game last week losing to the San Fransisco 49ers. This is a tough start for the Packers facing off against a team that made it to the NFC Championship last year then having to play a much improved Bears team. Jay Cutler and the Bears showed last week against Luck and the Colts that they are going to be a force to be reckoned with throughout the year putting up 41 points in a blowout victory. I think this is going to be a close game with a lot of scoring on an exciting game to watch to kick off the week. Jay Cutler and the Bears prove a point that they are the team to beat this year in the NFC North as they stun Aaron Rodgers 37-31.
We have to wait a few days for the next game though as we move on to Sunday where most of the action will be taking place. The first of the 1 o'clock games we have taking place will be the Buffalo Bills and the Kansas City Chiefs. The Bills need to show they aren't that bad of a team after getting shellacked by Mark Sanchez and the Jets. They'll need to have better play from Ryan Fitzpatrick after losing running back Fred Jackson to another injury. Luckily CJ Spiller showed the talent the Bills have been expecting since they drafted him. The Chiefs also need a big win after giving up 40 points to a very talented Atlanta team. This will also be a close game but without all the scoring. I feel the Chiefs will take this one 20-14.
Next up we have the Baltimore Ravens and Philadelphia Eagles in one of the premier games to watch this week. The Eagles struggled last week against a Cleveland team that Peter King (sports writer for Sports Illustrated) and I both have going 1-15. Michael Vick struggled even though he threw for over 300 yards and 2 TD's, he also threw 4 interceptions, a number he can't have happen again if he wants to win this week. The Ravens on the other hand looked very impressive in a game I was sure they would be upset in. A 44-13 victory over one of the up and coming teams in the NFL the Cincinatti Bengals was exactly what the Ravens needed. They were lead by their impressive defensive play and the breakout performance of quarterback Joe Flacco. The no huddle offense of the Ravens may give the Eagles defense some fits this week but I still see the Eagles pulling this victory out as Vick corrects his struggles from last week. Eagles win 31-27.
Looking ahead to another 1 o'clock game we have the battle of Ohio as the Cincinatti Bengals take on the Cleveland Browns. As I mentioned before I don't have the Browns winning many games this season. This is another loss for them as Andy Dalton and company lead the Bengals to a win and even out their season at 1-1 while the Browns drop to 0-2. Bengals take it 31-10.
Next game on the schedule would be the hometown Indianapolis Colts and Andrew Luck taking on the Minnesota Vikings and Adrian Peterson. Adrian Peterson showed last week he isn't suffering many ill effects from his torn ACL from last season as he scored 2 touchdowns in last week's victory over the Jaguars. He will be taking on a Colts defense who is notorious for not stopping the run. Lucky for Luck, he will be taking on a Vikings pass defense who has been one of the worst in the league in recent memory. I thoroughly believe Luck shows he is the player the Colts drafted out of Stanford this week as he puts up big numbers in a victory over the Vikings. Colts win 31-28.
On to the sixth game of the week we have the Oakland Raiders taking on the Miami Dolphins. Ryan Tannehill had a disastrous start to his career throwing 3 interceptions in a loss to the Houston Texans. While we have the Raiders trying to bounce back from a tough loss to the San Diego Chargers in a game that should've been won by the Raiders. The lack of a long snapper last week really hurt the Raiders as they dropped their first game of the year. Don't expect those same problems to pose a threat though as the Raiders take this one easily 31-14.
Next game we have to look forward to is the Arizona Cardinals and the New England Patriots. I don't really think I need to spend that much time on this game as the Pats take this game pretty easily 41-10. Kolb is terrible, the Patriots defense can stop the run, and Tom Brady will continue being Tom Brady.
Next up we have a game that could be a pretty interesting one. The Tampa Bay Buccanneers upset rookie sensation Cam Newton last week in a 16-10 victory and look to upset Eli Manning and the Giants. I fully believe that the Buc's will take this game as Eli shows why his brother Peyton got all the talent in the regular season whereas he got the postseason talent. A much improved Tampa team takes this game 21-20 in a shocker as Eli and the Giants drop to 0-2.
For the last 1 o'clock game we have some division rivals taking the field against each other as the Houston Texans face off against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars are one of my favorite teams to root for as I look to find that underdog story that could make a great book to read or film to watch however the Texans are just too good on both sides of the ball. The Texans and Matt Schaub will continue their newfound dominance of the AFC South as they win this game 31-17.
We move on to the first afternoon game on Sunday and we find ourselves watching Robert Griffin the Third taking on the team that traded the rights to draft him in the St. Louis Rams. The Redskins looked impressive in their first year with the rookie quarterback as they took down Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints 40-32. The Rams also looked to be a team much improved however as they gave the Lions a run for their money. I think this game will be a closer game than people are expecting and the Rams come close to pulling this one out. Unfortunately, the Redskins rally behind RGIII and pull out the win 31-28.
On to a game that should be a blowout if both teams played like they did last week, the Dallas Cowboys take on the Seattle Seahawks. Seattle didn't look terrible behind new quarterback Russell Wilson, but they didn't look as stellar as the Cowboys did either. Tony Romo showed everyone it isn't December yet as he pulled out one of the better performances of his career so far against the defending Super Bowl Champions. I think the Cowboys can take this game home if Romo can play up to his abilities 27-10, Cowboys win.
Looking on to the surprising New York Jets and the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Jets looked like the team Head Coach Rex Ryan was talking about last season when he promised a Super Bowl to the city of New York. In his defense New York did get a Super Bowl, just not from the Jets. Mark Sanchez looked like an entirely new quarterback as he revitalized the Jets. The Steelers looked pretty average against the Denver Broncos and Peyton Manning and they'll need a much better performance this week especially if Sanchez comes to play like he did last week. I think the Steelers rebound from last week and win this game 24-20.
Next up it is the Tennessee Titans taking on the San Diego Chargers. Kenny Britt will play a huge factor in this game as he has served his one game suspension for his eighth arrest in three years and he is my X-factor in this game. If Britt plays well the Titans win this game easily 31-17. If he doesn't play well the Titans lose 20-13. I see him playing well though so predict that first score.
The Sunday night game should be a fun one to watch on NBC as we have Matthew Stafford and the Detroit Lions taking on the San Fransisco 49ers. The 49ers looked excellent last week against the best quarterback in the game Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers. Even with Calvin Johnson and the high powered offense the Lions have, I don't see them giving this 49ers defense a challenge as the Niners take this one easily 28-10.
Finally we move on to Monday Night Football as the Peyton Manning led Denver Broncos take on Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons. Matt Ryan played great last week with a 40-24 victory over the Chiefs but this Denver Secondary might give him some aggravation as they are one of the better defenses in the league. Peyton looked like the Peyton all Colts fans know and love last week against the Steelers so expect this game to be a high flying, high scoring game on Monday Night Football. I'm going to take the Falcons in this one though as they have too many weapons on the offensive side of the ball to lose, 41-38 final score.
Hopefully this week treats me better than the 6-9 record I posted last week.
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Week One down
The first week of the NFL season has come to a close and as always there have been a lot of surprises and a lot of good games. I didn't start the year off very well as my predictions weren't exactly that close bringing my record after week one to 6-9.
My biggest surprise of last week: The New York Jets. Mark Sanchez looked like a completely different quarterback as he destroyed the Bills defense. If he can keep up that level of play look for the Jets to be a playoff contender at the end of the year.
My biggest disappointment from last week: Mike Vick. The 32 year old quarterback threw 4 interceptions, including a pick six (the Browns only touchdown), as he just looked terrible. Vick will need to play much better next week as the Eagles face a tough opponent in the Baltimore Ravens.
My biggest upset of the week: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeating the Carolina Panthers. The Bucs defense looked spectacular as they had Cam Newton confused for most of the game. Newton still managed to throw for over 300 yards but only was able to put 10 points up on the board. Josh Freeman looked like the quarterback from two years ago and Tampa fans get a win they so desperately needed if they were looking to be contenders this year.
Hopefully next week my predictions will be a little closer than last week.
My biggest surprise of last week: The New York Jets. Mark Sanchez looked like a completely different quarterback as he destroyed the Bills defense. If he can keep up that level of play look for the Jets to be a playoff contender at the end of the year.
My biggest disappointment from last week: Mike Vick. The 32 year old quarterback threw 4 interceptions, including a pick six (the Browns only touchdown), as he just looked terrible. Vick will need to play much better next week as the Eagles face a tough opponent in the Baltimore Ravens.
My biggest upset of the week: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeating the Carolina Panthers. The Bucs defense looked spectacular as they had Cam Newton confused for most of the game. Newton still managed to throw for over 300 yards but only was able to put 10 points up on the board. Josh Freeman looked like the quarterback from two years ago and Tampa fans get a win they so desperately needed if they were looking to be contenders this year.
Hopefully next week my predictions will be a little closer than last week.
We Are.
We are. One for five on field goal tries. We are. A missed extra point away from our first win. We are. On a four year post season ban for something the players have no control over. We are. Still here.
After the sanctions from the NCAA were handed out to the Pennsylvania State University in wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal, many players had the option to transfer out to other football powerhouses without penalty. The big names that come to mind that transferred are All-Big 10 running back Silas Redd who was poised for another big year this year and now after the loss to Virginia, kicker Anothony Fera. Redd decided it would be best for him to transfer to a school who just got off of their post season ban, the University of Southern California, where his addition makes them one of the most feared college football programs this year.
Instead of focusing on the negatives what really matters is the positives. The Penn State community is rallying around this team like never before. There have been over 250 million dollars in donations made from alumni and fans which is the 2nd highest amount made in donations since the Joe Paterno era. One of the biggest positives to take out of this whole mess is the character and loyalty of the players who made the decision to remain a Penn State Nittany Lion for life. The players who made that decision to remain loyal will always have a special place in Penn State history.
While this team may not be one of the greatest teams in Penn State history they will always be my favorite team to pass through Penn State because of all the adversity they have overcome and have done so with very high class. We are Penn State. We are never quitting.
After the sanctions from the NCAA were handed out to the Pennsylvania State University in wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal, many players had the option to transfer out to other football powerhouses without penalty. The big names that come to mind that transferred are All-Big 10 running back Silas Redd who was poised for another big year this year and now after the loss to Virginia, kicker Anothony Fera. Redd decided it would be best for him to transfer to a school who just got off of their post season ban, the University of Southern California, where his addition makes them one of the most feared college football programs this year.
Instead of focusing on the negatives what really matters is the positives. The Penn State community is rallying around this team like never before. There have been over 250 million dollars in donations made from alumni and fans which is the 2nd highest amount made in donations since the Joe Paterno era. One of the biggest positives to take out of this whole mess is the character and loyalty of the players who made the decision to remain a Penn State Nittany Lion for life. The players who made that decision to remain loyal will always have a special place in Penn State history.
While this team may not be one of the greatest teams in Penn State history they will always be my favorite team to pass through Penn State because of all the adversity they have overcome and have done so with very high class. We are Penn State. We are never quitting.
Thursday, September 6, 2012
Great Start to the Year
With a final score of 24-17 the Dallas Cowboys started their year of right and I have not started my blog off right. I knew I shouldn't have picked Eli Manning to win because it seems every year he plays on opening night he doesn't win. Remember all those times he played the Wednesday night game against his big brother Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts? Same result as last night, Eli loses.
Now back to the victors, the Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys played one great game last night as we saw the first 300 yard passing performance of the year with Tony Romo throwing for 307 yards completing 22 of his 29 passes with 3 touchdowns and 1 interception. The biggest surprise of the night though was not that he outperformed Eli Manning by quite a bit, but by the breakout of Cowboys wide receiver Kevin Ogletree. Ogletree had 8 receptions for 114 yards and 2 touchdowns. Not bad for a guy who no one knew he was until last night. Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray didn't have himself a bad game either rushing for 131 yards on 20 carries. As a whole unit the Cowboys looked pretty solid last night as even their defense allowed only 17 points with 7 of those coming in the last 3 minutes of the game when it was basically already decided. The Cowboys next matchup is September 16th against the Seattle Seahawks at 4:05 p.m.
The Giants on the other hand? Well they just looked average. Eli didn't have himself a terrible game, but he didn't exactly have a game that he was used to. While he didn't throw any interceptions he only threw for 1 touchdown which as I mentioned came within the last 3 minutes of the game after it was basically decided. He barely broke over 200 yards also which might not have been a problem if the Giants rushing game could have been more of a factor throughout. Ahmad Bradshaw carried the ball 17 times for 78 yards and a touchdown while rookie running back David Wilson had 2 carries for 4 yards and a fumble. The Giants are going to need more production from the rookie if they plan on making a run like last year. While the Giants defense managed a turnover with the interception of Romo their highly touted defensive line was held in check throughout much of the game. High profile player Jason Pierre-Paul was held without a sack which is a rarity as he is one of the big playmakers on that defense. The Giants next matchup will be against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers September 16th at 1 p.m.
With game one in the books I am 0 for 1 on my predictions but I expect that to turn around once Sunday comes.
Now back to the victors, the Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys played one great game last night as we saw the first 300 yard passing performance of the year with Tony Romo throwing for 307 yards completing 22 of his 29 passes with 3 touchdowns and 1 interception. The biggest surprise of the night though was not that he outperformed Eli Manning by quite a bit, but by the breakout of Cowboys wide receiver Kevin Ogletree. Ogletree had 8 receptions for 114 yards and 2 touchdowns. Not bad for a guy who no one knew he was until last night. Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray didn't have himself a bad game either rushing for 131 yards on 20 carries. As a whole unit the Cowboys looked pretty solid last night as even their defense allowed only 17 points with 7 of those coming in the last 3 minutes of the game when it was basically already decided. The Cowboys next matchup is September 16th against the Seattle Seahawks at 4:05 p.m.
The Giants on the other hand? Well they just looked average. Eli didn't have himself a terrible game, but he didn't exactly have a game that he was used to. While he didn't throw any interceptions he only threw for 1 touchdown which as I mentioned came within the last 3 minutes of the game after it was basically decided. He barely broke over 200 yards also which might not have been a problem if the Giants rushing game could have been more of a factor throughout. Ahmad Bradshaw carried the ball 17 times for 78 yards and a touchdown while rookie running back David Wilson had 2 carries for 4 yards and a fumble. The Giants are going to need more production from the rookie if they plan on making a run like last year. While the Giants defense managed a turnover with the interception of Romo their highly touted defensive line was held in check throughout much of the game. High profile player Jason Pierre-Paul was held without a sack which is a rarity as he is one of the big playmakers on that defense. The Giants next matchup will be against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers September 16th at 1 p.m.
With game one in the books I am 0 for 1 on my predictions but I expect that to turn around once Sunday comes.
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