5 COLLEGE COACHES OUT, 5 THINGS I KNOW ABOUT THE NFL & TONIGHT'S PLAY
It's Monday & there are 5 college coaches fired with one more coming soon. Charlie Weis was canned at Notre Dame this afternoon. His replacement is thought to be Cincinnati's Brian Kelly. I still think Jon Gruden could be the surprise choice. The other 4 vacancies aren't nearly as glamorous, Virginia, Marshall, Louisville & UNLV. The word out of Lawrence is that until the investigation of Mark Mangino's behavior, both on & off the field, is completed, a decision on his future as the Jayhawk coach is up in the air. B.S., he's gone, this is just an HR formality in an effort to pay him less in a contract buyout. With all of this negative testimony from current & former players, how can he go on a recruiting trip into someone's home, look those parent's in the eye & convince them he's the man to look out for their son? Make no mistake about it, he's gone.
Here's five things I know about the NFL:
1. The defending champs are in real danger of not making the playoffs. Last night's overtime loss in Baltimore wasn't the crippling loss the press is making it out to be. Last week's O.T. loss in Kansas City was bad, being swept by the Bengals was the worst. Without Polamalu & Roethlesberger, did you really believe they would win last night? When they got into the 4th quarter & were ahead, I thought they had a chance. But once again, their defense let them down. With Polamalu in the lineup, the Steelers are 4-0, without him, they are 2-5. Coincidence? I think not. Ray Rice shredded this defense in the 4th quarter & the overtime. Pittsburgh plays Oakland & Cleveland the next 2 games. After that, Polamalu is expected to return for the Green Bay game. Then a rematch with the Ravens & a trip to Miami close the season. It's possible for them to win out, but both Big Ben & Polamalu must be in the lineup for them to get there.
2. The Tennessee Titans should have put the hook on QB Kerry Collins sooner. Since Vince Young took over at QB, the Titans are 5-0. His stint sitting on the bench, watching Collins prepare & getting his head on straight, has done wonders for this very talented Titan. He looks like a different quarterback, he looks like a seasoned NFL signal caller. Having the ultra-fast, iltra-shifty Chris Johnson to hand off to sure makes a QB's liofe easier. This young man is having a phenominal season. He has a legitimate shot at 2,000 yards. He's the first NFL player to have 3 touchdown runs of 85-yards or more in a career. Johnson has an 85, 89 & 91 yard touchdown runs this season. First round draft pick WR Kenny Britt has matured quickly & his 4th down touchdown catch with no time left yesterday culminated a 99-yard drive in 2:37. Johnson said when they were 0-6, "no problem, we have the talent & the coaching to win out, 10-0." Well they're halfway there with Indy this weekend in the oil can. They also have San Diego in Nashville later on, Seattle, Miami & St. Louis complete the schedule. If they beat Indy in Indy, they might just do it. Winning breeds confidence & the Titans believe in Young, Johnson & a revitalized defense.
3. As much as I respect what Brett Favre, Drew Brees & Chris Johnson have accomplished so far, I can't see any way Peyton Manningisn't the league's MVP. Take him off the Colts & they aren't a .500 team. The Vikes were a playoff team before Favre & the Saints could be competitive without Brees, but not the Colts. Regardless of stats, Manning is having his greatest season as the Colts' team leader.
4. Gary Kubiak has had more than a fair shot, he needs to go. The Texans lose games the same way year after year. QB gets sacked, he fumbles, he throws untimely picks, they give up 2-3 scores in a 1-2 minute window in nearly every game they lose. They surrender leads game after game. The team doesn't draft quality offensive linemen. They have good enough talent everywhere wlse to win, the coaching has failed them & for that, Kubiak should be out the door at season's end.
5. In my estimation, the Minnesota Vikings have the best roster in the entire league. They always had superior talent on defense, had a great scheme & players who played within that scheme with tremendous production. They have a great offensive line. Rookie RT Phillip Loadholt has performed very well & was the missing piece to the puzzle. Adrian Peterson has some of his thunder stolen by Chris Johnson, but he's still a franchise running back that can carry the load. Getting Brett Favre & then having Favre play lights out. His 69.3% completion ratio, his 24 touchdown passes against just 3 interceptions & a passer rating of 112.1 is truly "lights out" quarterback play. Who would have thought he would have his best statistical season after he turned 40. As any Green Bay receiver will tell you, run your routes, don't give up on your route & stay alive if your QB starts running around, he'll see you. It's no coincidence that WR Sidney Rice is having his best season by far. Rice is 2nd in the league in yardage with 964 & average at 17.2. Favre also spreads it around, Rookie Percy Harvin has 60 catches, Bernard Berrian has 38, TE Visanthe Shiancoe has 38 & 8TD's & 3rd down back, Chester Taylor, has 33 receptions. Favre makes an average receiving corp exceptional, just look at the reciver's production while he was in Green Bay. Who was Donald Driver coming out of college? Who was Antonio Freeman coming out of Va. Tech? Who was Donald Lee coming out of Mississippi State? Favre makes his receivers better, provided they work hard & obviously this group believes in him. The Vikes play in Arizona Sunday & still have Cincinnati & the Giants on the schedule, but I think worst case scenario, they win 13 games & get the number 2 seed. They certainly could exceed that & if they get home field advantage, this Viking team could easily be in the Super Bowl. Before the season started, I tabbed Minnesota to be a wildcard team with Green Bay winning the North. I had my doubts about Favre's durability, but he's stayed healthy & has played with a confindence & reserve I've never seen.
Yesterday was a 1 win, 2 loss day, still leaving me a winner for the weekend. I like the Saints tonight for a small play & I like the over as well if the line & total checkout. I won't know for another 2 hours but it looks to be Saints -3 & over 56 1/2.
One more thing, contrary to popular belief, I am not a sore loser, I take losing with class, humility & I give the other guy/team/city credit for winning & offer my congratulations. That's the honest truth. But I am not a good winner, I'll gloat a little, I'll poke the loser with a stick until I get a whiny response. So I offer this in honor of the Mizzou victory in the Border War showdown Saturday.
Here's five things I know about the NFL:
1. The defending champs are in real danger of not making the playoffs. Last night's overtime loss in Baltimore wasn't the crippling loss the press is making it out to be. Last week's O.T. loss in Kansas City was bad, being swept by the Bengals was the worst. Without Polamalu & Roethlesberger, did you really believe they would win last night? When they got into the 4th quarter & were ahead, I thought they had a chance. But once again, their defense let them down. With Polamalu in the lineup, the Steelers are 4-0, without him, they are 2-5. Coincidence? I think not. Ray Rice shredded this defense in the 4th quarter & the overtime. Pittsburgh plays Oakland & Cleveland the next 2 games. After that, Polamalu is expected to return for the Green Bay game. Then a rematch with the Ravens & a trip to Miami close the season. It's possible for them to win out, but both Big Ben & Polamalu must be in the lineup for them to get there.
2. The Tennessee Titans should have put the hook on QB Kerry Collins sooner. Since Vince Young took over at QB, the Titans are 5-0. His stint sitting on the bench, watching Collins prepare & getting his head on straight, has done wonders for this very talented Titan. He looks like a different quarterback, he looks like a seasoned NFL signal caller. Having the ultra-fast, iltra-shifty Chris Johnson to hand off to sure makes a QB's liofe easier. This young man is having a phenominal season. He has a legitimate shot at 2,000 yards. He's the first NFL player to have 3 touchdown runs of 85-yards or more in a career. Johnson has an 85, 89 & 91 yard touchdown runs this season. First round draft pick WR Kenny Britt has matured quickly & his 4th down touchdown catch with no time left yesterday culminated a 99-yard drive in 2:37. Johnson said when they were 0-6, "no problem, we have the talent & the coaching to win out, 10-0." Well they're halfway there with Indy this weekend in the oil can. They also have San Diego in Nashville later on, Seattle, Miami & St. Louis complete the schedule. If they beat Indy in Indy, they might just do it. Winning breeds confidence & the Titans believe in Young, Johnson & a revitalized defense.
3. As much as I respect what Brett Favre, Drew Brees & Chris Johnson have accomplished so far, I can't see any way Peyton Manningisn't the league's MVP. Take him off the Colts & they aren't a .500 team. The Vikes were a playoff team before Favre & the Saints could be competitive without Brees, but not the Colts. Regardless of stats, Manning is having his greatest season as the Colts' team leader.
4. Gary Kubiak has had more than a fair shot, he needs to go. The Texans lose games the same way year after year. QB gets sacked, he fumbles, he throws untimely picks, they give up 2-3 scores in a 1-2 minute window in nearly every game they lose. They surrender leads game after game. The team doesn't draft quality offensive linemen. They have good enough talent everywhere wlse to win, the coaching has failed them & for that, Kubiak should be out the door at season's end.
5. In my estimation, the Minnesota Vikings have the best roster in the entire league. They always had superior talent on defense, had a great scheme & players who played within that scheme with tremendous production. They have a great offensive line. Rookie RT Phillip Loadholt has performed very well & was the missing piece to the puzzle. Adrian Peterson has some of his thunder stolen by Chris Johnson, but he's still a franchise running back that can carry the load. Getting Brett Favre & then having Favre play lights out. His 69.3% completion ratio, his 24 touchdown passes against just 3 interceptions & a passer rating of 112.1 is truly "lights out" quarterback play. Who would have thought he would have his best statistical season after he turned 40. As any Green Bay receiver will tell you, run your routes, don't give up on your route & stay alive if your QB starts running around, he'll see you. It's no coincidence that WR Sidney Rice is having his best season by far. Rice is 2nd in the league in yardage with 964 & average at 17.2. Favre also spreads it around, Rookie Percy Harvin has 60 catches, Bernard Berrian has 38, TE Visanthe Shiancoe has 38 & 8TD's & 3rd down back, Chester Taylor, has 33 receptions. Favre makes an average receiving corp exceptional, just look at the reciver's production while he was in Green Bay. Who was Donald Driver coming out of college? Who was Antonio Freeman coming out of Va. Tech? Who was Donald Lee coming out of Mississippi State? Favre makes his receivers better, provided they work hard & obviously this group believes in him. The Vikes play in Arizona Sunday & still have Cincinnati & the Giants on the schedule, but I think worst case scenario, they win 13 games & get the number 2 seed. They certainly could exceed that & if they get home field advantage, this Viking team could easily be in the Super Bowl. Before the season started, I tabbed Minnesota to be a wildcard team with Green Bay winning the North. I had my doubts about Favre's durability, but he's stayed healthy & has played with a confindence & reserve I've never seen.
Yesterday was a 1 win, 2 loss day, still leaving me a winner for the weekend. I like the Saints tonight for a small play & I like the over as well if the line & total checkout. I won't know for another 2 hours but it looks to be Saints -3 & over 56 1/2.
One more thing, contrary to popular belief, I am not a sore loser, I take losing with class, humility & I give the other guy/team/city credit for winning & offer my congratulations. That's the honest truth. But I am not a good winner, I'll gloat a little, I'll poke the loser with a stick until I get a whiny response. So I offer this in honor of the Mizzou victory in the Border War showdown Saturday.
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