Head Nods and Shakes of Week 1 of the NFL Seaon

Here are my head “nods” and “shakes” for the first week of the NFL and also this past Thursday night game between the Packers and Bears.

NODS:

RGIII

He went 19 of 26 passes attempted for 320 yards and 2 touchdowns, and NO turnovers against the Saints in the Superdome.  I saw his highlights, no bad plays, and he was extremely accurate, he lead the Redskins to 40 points as well.  I am very impressed with him, the 88 yard TD pass to Garcon impressed me too because he stood strong and took the hit after he let the ball go.

New York Jets

They played lights out, they harassed Fitzpatrick all game long, he threw 3 interceptions and C.J. Spiller fumbled which was recovered by the Jets.  The Jets defense has already shown improvement, however the Bills was just awful and I don’t want to put the Jets on a pedestal just yet, but this team’s defense could easily be a top 3 defense this season. 

Sanchez looked sharp as well, he looked stronger and more accurate, something I have been critical of, but I think he is in store for a much improved season.

New England Patriots

They actually were able to run the ball very well, they ran for a total of 162 yards on 35 carries, which is an average of 4.6 yards per rush.  They gained a total of 25 first downs, and 13 were by running, this is great for team that has struggled to run since Corey Dillon, who is known to CBS analyst on the NFL Today show as the “Biggest robbery since the Louisiana Purchase” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shannon_Sharpe).  Stevan Ridley accounted for 125 yards on 21 carries and 1 touchdown.

Peyton Manning

Looked like the old Peyton we have all come to love and know, and he threw his 400^th career touchdown pass as well.  He did this in his first game since January of 2011 and this was against a tough defense as well.

Baltimore Ravens

Joe Flacco 21 of 29 for 299 yards and 2 touchdowns, he ran the no huddle so well, and the defense played very well as well.  Now if they can keep this going instead of falling on their faces after big games like they have in the past they will be lethal.

SHAKES:

Jay Cutler

Telling the Packers “good luck” before the game about his receivers, then he goes out and throws four interceptions, and gets mouthy and physical with an offensive linemen on national T.V.  Yes Jay because you are perfect and throwing four interceptions isn’t bad…..

Buffalo Bills

4 turnovers, 3 picks by Fitzpatrick and a fumble lost by C.J. Spiller, they were atrocious on offense; Fitzpatrick made to many late decisions and turned the ball over.  Just awful on the Bills part, their defense was no better either.

Michael Vick

Stop trying to be a “hero”, you tossed 4 picks against the Browns and won at the end of the game with a TD pass, that is great, but 4 picks aren’t.  Step it up and don’t try to force throws, if the Browns were actually good on offense you and your team would not have won, that is all.

Brandon Weeden

Being sacked by the American Flag before the game, yes this actually happened, and I laughed.

(See it for yourself http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oodhSa9rxgk)

Best and Worst of the 2012 NFL Season

With the 2012 season starting this Wednesday I put together a list of what I think will the best and worst this 2012 NFL season team and player wise.

Best Team: Green Bay Packers, they were angry with their loss last year to the Giants after posting a league best 15-1 record.  Aaron Rodgers got back to work with his team, they have so many weapons, and now have a running back with Cedric Benson, this team has a lot of potential, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them win Super Bowl.

Worst Team: Miami Dolphins, they have cut and traded players such as Chad Johnson, Brandon Marshall, and Vonte Davis, who could have been a really big help.  This team is lacking any sort of offensive fire power, and they are playing in a tough division, and looking at their schedule it does not look good for them.

Best Offense: New Orleans Saints: Drew Brees is always putting up monster numbers and they have a running game now with many different types of running backs to help grind out the yards on the ground.

Worst Offense: Cleveland Browns, what is there to like about this offense?  They play in the hardest division in the NFL, and they have no weapons aside from Trent Richardson, but I don’t think he can even help them his first year.

Best Running Offense: Kansas City Chiefs, even though I love the 49ers running backs, I think this team has powerful 1-2 punch with Jamal Charles and Peyton Hillis.  Jamal will be the speed back with power, while Peyton will be the power runner, I see him getting a fair amount of touchdowns this year.

Worst Running Offense: Detroit Lions, according to ESPN, they ranked 29^th last year, but looking at the teams below them they haven’t made improvement unlike the other teams that ranked lower than them.  I don’t see this being an issue because their air attack will be a great one.

Best Passing Offense: New England Patriots, they added Brandon Llyod to the attack that already includes Welker, Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez, this team has a chance to break some records.

Worst Passing Offense: Cleveland Browns, I think the team name speaks for itself, but for those who want to know why, they have no weapons in the passing game.  They have a rookie QB and they play in a division with three of the best defenses in the league. 

Best QB: Aaron Rodgers, his name alone speaks for itself, but he will keep on improving and getting better, he can throw the ball on a dime, he can run, he is a do it all QB.

Worst QB: Brandon Weeden, he plays on the Browns, that is all that needs to be said.

Best Defense: The San Francisco 49ers, this team had an elite defense last year, I only expect it to get better and help carry this team into the playoffs.

Worst Defense: Green Bay Packers, they were bad last year, allowed to many points.  The Patriots were a close second for me when it came to this, but the reason why I selected Green Bay is because last season, at least all the way up to the super bowl the Patriots got stops in the big moments.

Note: I know I said the Browns were just plain awful, but the Dolphins will be the worst team, they are a mess right now, unlike the Browns who even though will not a good team.  The Browns at least are building for the future.

The 2012 Jets and Their Outcome

The New York Jets struggled this preseason on the offensive side of the ball, neither Sanchez or Tebow could take the Jets to a touchdown drive, which is worrisome for a team that has had high aspirations every year since Rex Ryan took over in the 2009 season.   The third string QB took the Jets into the end zone for the Jets only preseason touchdown in the final game, where no starters were in.

While it is only preseason, it is not good that the starting QB could not get the ball into the end zone and also it is not good that Tebow who is supposed to help run the ball could not get the Jets a touchdown.   Tebow was only working with the second and third string players, and did not run one single play, either as QB or the wildcat with the first team offense, which I found rather strange, but still he did not look that sharp and that should be of concern.

As for Sanchez he looked great, he was accurate with the ball, his receivers just could not hold on and the offensive line struggled to help him stay up right.

Looking over what I saw in the preseason I brain stormed and looked at their schedule, and from what I have gathered this team will be lucky to win more than eight games this season.  They should be able to beat the Rams and Cardinals with ease, as well as the Jaguars, but some of their other games are suspect, outside of the two games against the Dolphins that is.  Another game they should win is against the Colts, so add those numbers up and that is six games, which isn’t enough in any division to make the playoffs, especially the AFC East.

Reasons why they will not win more than eight games and miss the playoffs are: Poor depth at the receiving and tight end positions, poor offensive line play and lack of a running game.

I have been on the record before being harsh on Sanchez, and also stating that Tebow will help the running game, but I have changed my views a little bit.  Sanchez looked very good this preseason, his accuracy has improved as well as his arm strength, but that will not be enough to carry this team to a playoff berth, he needs to work all the reps with the first team.  That however will be an issue, because according to multiple ESPN reports and reports from the NFL website Tim Tebow has been practicing with the first team.  This is an issue for a team that needs to work on its receiving and QB to WR chemistry, Tebow cannot do that.  Tebow was brought in to run the wild cat, and maybe the spread option as well, but he cannot throw the ball, and he is supposed to be used twenty snaps a game, and in the red zone, which causes and issue. 

In my mind the wild cat is a fad that came and went, Tebow does not have the speed of a running back or receiver to be able to run outside and be a wild cat player, and he cannot throw the ball well unless it is a deep pass.  So all teams have to do is contain him to the perimiters and stop him from running, if he moves to his left he is good when throwing on the run, but if he moves to his right he isn’t as good.  All defenses have to do is force him to his right and take away his deep option(s) and that will create havoc for both him and the Jets offense.

Sanchez can’t complete passes because his receivers cannot hold onto the ball, nor can their offensive line block properly.  I heard him on ESPN saying that the Jets were saving their good stuff for the regular season.  My question is: what stuff?  Rex keeps saying how the Jets are keeping the wildcat a “secret”, that mixed with Sanchez’s ridiculous statement on “saving the good stuff” is just sad. 

I have to agree with Joe Namath, who recently stated: “I’m concerned with how the Jets are trying to build a team and win a championship,” Namath said. “They seem more interested in the headlines.” (Source: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/08/29/joe-namath-jets-seem-more-interested-in-headlines-than-winning/).  Rex has always been talking his teams up, saying such things as “no one wants to play us right now” (2009 season when they won their way into the playoffs), and then 2010 and 2011 seasons when he guaranteed a super bowl win.  Now the Jets have Tebow, who is so popular that ESPN’s Skip Bayless compares so many players to him and his struggles.  ESPN itself has been covering Tebow so much that I think I know his whole life story, and when he showers, eats and brushes his teeth.  There would be no other reason aside to help out with the running game to bring Tebow in, and also put pressure on Sanchez to improve his game. 

The Jets are dysfunctional, and I don’t see them being good this year and probably not even the year after at this rate.

My final take on the Jets: 7-9 Record, Tebow takes over week 5 or 6 as the starter, the team rides a run game and squeaks out wins against some of the NFLs worst teams.

I know I said Tebow wasn’t a threat to Sanchez in my last blog on the Jets, but frankly I see that differently now, Rex wants ground and pound and a solid defense, Tebow is the guy to run that offense, not Mark.