MAJOR MIZZOU NEWS, A FEW SUNDAY LEFTOVERS & YOUR MAIL
First things first, Mizzou defensive end Aldon Smith sustained a broken fibula in Saturday night's game with San Diego State. Smith is easily the best defender, he was an all-Big-12 first team performer last season with 11.5 sacks. The fracture to the non-weight bearing bone should cost Smith 3-4 weeks. The Tigers play Miami of Ohio this weekend & then have a bye week before they play Colorado in Columbia. The following week, October 16th, the Tigers travel to College Station to play A&M, that's the game Smith will focus on for his return.
I omitted two topics in last night's Sunday recap, the 2-0 Steelers & Michael Vick, don't know why, I'm going to claim fatigue. I am a geezer after all.
The Steelers 2-0 start is remarkable considering they don't have their starting quarterback, Ben Rothlesberger. Their defense has played lights out, better than any defense in the league. They held Atlanta & Tennessee to a total of 104 yards rushing & 20 points. They also created 8 turnovers in these two games. James Harrison(20 tackles, 3 sacks & 2 TFL), Lawrence Timmons(24 tackles, 3 TFL), Lamar Woodley(13 tackles, 3 sacks & 2 TFL) & the great Troy Polamalu(13 tackles, 2 int & 5 TFL) have led an incredible defensive surge against two playoff-caliber teams. The Pittsburgh offense has scored only one touchdown, a 50-yard run by Rashard Mendenhall in overtime last week. The Steelers travel to 2-0 Tampa Bay & then get their first AFC North opponent, the Baltimore Ravens. If they can emerge 3-1 from Rothlisberger's suspension, I make them the team to beat in that division.
Do the Philadelphia Eagles have a quarterback controversy? The Philly papers say it's so, but does one game, against the Detroit Lions, mean Michael Vick is ready to lead the Eagles to the playoffs? I say a game & a half isn't a fair test. He looked great against the Packers last week, but Green Bay had a big lead & hadn't game planned for Vick. Vick played very well in yesterday's win at Detroit. Here's the bottom line as I see it. The Eagles traded Donovan McNabb within the NFC East to Washington so Kevin Kolb could start. He gets one half of football & he's out? He's the QB who went thru two-a-days as your starter & after one half of football, he out? He was replaced by Vick because of injury, not because he was being benched. I think Kolb gets at least 3 starts when he's ready to return from his concussion hiatus, otherwise, everything you did in the off-season goes for naught.
One note on the Chiefs' 2-0 record, in both games they scored on a return, a punt in week one, an interception yesterday. It has been shown over the past 30-years, when you score a touchdown on a return, your chance of winning the game is nearly doubled.
Champ Bailey left the Denver locker room yesterday on crutches with a heavily wrapped ankle. bet he plays Sunday when Peyton Manning comes calling. Andre Goodman, the Broncos other starting CB, left the game with an unknown leg injury.
Former head of NFL officials, Mike Pereira, noted last night the Ravens' claims of bad calls were correct. Ray Lewis was flagged for a leg whip on Cincy QB Carson Palmer. I thought at the time it was a bad call, he was blocked into Palmer, Pereira agreed. later Terrell Suggs was penalized for roughing the passer & Pereira said it was also an incorrect call. The addition of Pereira to the FOXSports team is one of the better acquisitions in recent memory. Instead of protecting game officials as an NFL spokesman, he can be brutally honest. Isn't that refreshing?
Two quarterback changes have already been announced. Buffalo's Chan Gailey said this morning Ryan Fitzpatrick will replace the struggling Trent Edwards. He wants to "find a fresh spark." I like Chan a lot but his team is easily the worst in the entire league. I don't see any hope for a "spark." John Fox said this morning Jimmy Clausen will start for the Panthers this Sunday. Matt Moore has been miserable so far & Fox, in his last season of his contract, has pulled the plug. The former Notre Dame QB will get an extreme test, the Panthers play Cincinnati on Sunday & the Saints the following week. Good luck to ya.
Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis will "miss at least one game" with a strained hamstring. He left the game yesterday & the Jets' defense actually played better without him. I have no idea how that happened, he's one of the top-5 defenders in the league.
To KCKrissy, thanks for reading, our guy Bernard Pollard did make a big play in yesterday's overtime win vs. Washington. He blocked a 4th quarter 29-yard field goal attempt that would have put the Redskins up by 10 with about 6-minutes to play. Pollard also had 6 tackles & 1 TFL(tackle for loss).
To JohnA, thanks for reading, yes, your man Josh Freeman is playing well right now & yes he's playing better than Matt Cassel. Freeman has impressed me with his decision making & his ability to get the ball out on time. If he continues to improve & develop, he can be an upper echelon quarterback, but not one of the elites. At least that's the way I see his ability. It will have a lot to do with the coaching he receives & the way his offensive coordinators gameplan. Freeman has looked great so far, but let's see how he fares Sunday when the Pittsburgh Steelers come calling.
To Raidersrule, thanks for reading, but if you are truly a Raiders fan, how is it you're coming to me for a review of how your team is doing? You're not watching them yourself? Sorry, I have to give Raiders' fans the bizness whenever I get the chance. But let's answer your questions, Jason Veldheer did not play center yesterday. He rotated at left tackle. His performance in their opening game at Tennessee was mixed. He didn't look bad in pass blocking, but he got no movement in the run game, he was consistently out-leveraged by the Titan DT's. He's just a rookie, so be patient. Darren McFadden's 145 yards yesterday were just his second 100+ yard performance in his 3-year career. yes, he can be a force, but will he? I have serious doubts about the long term viability of McFadden in this offense.
To MLP68, thanks for reading, but your contention I don't give the PAC-10 a fair shake is ludicrous. I said just last week Stanford's Andrew Luck is the best quarterback in college football. I recognized Oregon's huge blowout wins, albeit against door mat competition. Yes, I have railed against USC, their program was an embarrassment to the PAC-10, Mike Garrett had to go. The Reggie Bush mess marred the reputation of the entire conference. Let's be realistic about the PAC-10, USC, UCLA & the Washingtons are experiencing down seasons. Cal got tattooed by a middle of the road Nevada team. Arizona State threw away what could have been a big win at Wisconsin while Arizona got a statement win vs. Iowa. It wasn't pretty, but they won. Oregon State lost to TCU & they'll probably lose this weekend at Boise State. That leaves Oregon in the mix for the national title & I think they'll be in it till the end. That being said, the PAC-10 is no better or no worse than any of the power BCS conferences right now.
To BudGrant, thanks for reading, you're right, your team should be in full blown panic mode. But don't think for a minute getting Vincent Jackson from the Chargers will fix anything. The Vikes two biggest problems right now is 1. Brett Favre looks old for the first time in his illustrious career. His mechanics look slower than last year, his arm doesn't have the zip in it as we've seen in years past. This is most definitely his last season. I think they should have left him in Hattiesburg. 2. The right side of your offensive line can't consistently protect Favre. Too much leakage play after play. 3. The "Williams Wall" looks less then formidable against the run, New Orleans moved them around & so did Miami yesterday. By trading a 2nd round draft pick & more for Jackson, what exactly do you get? A receiver who will be suspended for 4 weeks. Sidney Rice will be back in 6 weeks, who would you rather have? Jackson is one screwup away from being suspended for a full season. Now they took that chance with Jared Allen, but how many times are you willing to gamble like this? Jackson will also require a new contract, something other veteran Viking contributors have been waiting for since last season. Does Jackson get his money before the guys who've been there all along? Does Ben Leber & Chad Greenway deserve to get their new contracts? Yes they do, but if you bring Jackson in, you run the risk of pissing off two-thirds of your linebacking corp. I don't see this as a realistic alternative, especially when drafting a quarterback should definitely be a priority next off-season. I think you're team might be done already, sorry, but that's how I see it.
I omitted two topics in last night's Sunday recap, the 2-0 Steelers & Michael Vick, don't know why, I'm going to claim fatigue. I am a geezer after all.
The Steelers 2-0 start is remarkable considering they don't have their starting quarterback, Ben Rothlesberger. Their defense has played lights out, better than any defense in the league. They held Atlanta & Tennessee to a total of 104 yards rushing & 20 points. They also created 8 turnovers in these two games. James Harrison(20 tackles, 3 sacks & 2 TFL), Lawrence Timmons(24 tackles, 3 TFL), Lamar Woodley(13 tackles, 3 sacks & 2 TFL) & the great Troy Polamalu(13 tackles, 2 int & 5 TFL) have led an incredible defensive surge against two playoff-caliber teams. The Pittsburgh offense has scored only one touchdown, a 50-yard run by Rashard Mendenhall in overtime last week. The Steelers travel to 2-0 Tampa Bay & then get their first AFC North opponent, the Baltimore Ravens. If they can emerge 3-1 from Rothlisberger's suspension, I make them the team to beat in that division.
Do the Philadelphia Eagles have a quarterback controversy? The Philly papers say it's so, but does one game, against the Detroit Lions, mean Michael Vick is ready to lead the Eagles to the playoffs? I say a game & a half isn't a fair test. He looked great against the Packers last week, but Green Bay had a big lead & hadn't game planned for Vick. Vick played very well in yesterday's win at Detroit. Here's the bottom line as I see it. The Eagles traded Donovan McNabb within the NFC East to Washington so Kevin Kolb could start. He gets one half of football & he's out? He's the QB who went thru two-a-days as your starter & after one half of football, he out? He was replaced by Vick because of injury, not because he was being benched. I think Kolb gets at least 3 starts when he's ready to return from his concussion hiatus, otherwise, everything you did in the off-season goes for naught.
One note on the Chiefs' 2-0 record, in both games they scored on a return, a punt in week one, an interception yesterday. It has been shown over the past 30-years, when you score a touchdown on a return, your chance of winning the game is nearly doubled.
Champ Bailey left the Denver locker room yesterday on crutches with a heavily wrapped ankle. bet he plays Sunday when Peyton Manning comes calling. Andre Goodman, the Broncos other starting CB, left the game with an unknown leg injury.
Former head of NFL officials, Mike Pereira, noted last night the Ravens' claims of bad calls were correct. Ray Lewis was flagged for a leg whip on Cincy QB Carson Palmer. I thought at the time it was a bad call, he was blocked into Palmer, Pereira agreed. later Terrell Suggs was penalized for roughing the passer & Pereira said it was also an incorrect call. The addition of Pereira to the FOXSports team is one of the better acquisitions in recent memory. Instead of protecting game officials as an NFL spokesman, he can be brutally honest. Isn't that refreshing?
Two quarterback changes have already been announced. Buffalo's Chan Gailey said this morning Ryan Fitzpatrick will replace the struggling Trent Edwards. He wants to "find a fresh spark." I like Chan a lot but his team is easily the worst in the entire league. I don't see any hope for a "spark." John Fox said this morning Jimmy Clausen will start for the Panthers this Sunday. Matt Moore has been miserable so far & Fox, in his last season of his contract, has pulled the plug. The former Notre Dame QB will get an extreme test, the Panthers play Cincinnati on Sunday & the Saints the following week. Good luck to ya.
Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis will "miss at least one game" with a strained hamstring. He left the game yesterday & the Jets' defense actually played better without him. I have no idea how that happened, he's one of the top-5 defenders in the league.
To KCKrissy, thanks for reading, our guy Bernard Pollard did make a big play in yesterday's overtime win vs. Washington. He blocked a 4th quarter 29-yard field goal attempt that would have put the Redskins up by 10 with about 6-minutes to play. Pollard also had 6 tackles & 1 TFL(tackle for loss).
To JohnA, thanks for reading, yes, your man Josh Freeman is playing well right now & yes he's playing better than Matt Cassel. Freeman has impressed me with his decision making & his ability to get the ball out on time. If he continues to improve & develop, he can be an upper echelon quarterback, but not one of the elites. At least that's the way I see his ability. It will have a lot to do with the coaching he receives & the way his offensive coordinators gameplan. Freeman has looked great so far, but let's see how he fares Sunday when the Pittsburgh Steelers come calling.
To Raidersrule, thanks for reading, but if you are truly a Raiders fan, how is it you're coming to me for a review of how your team is doing? You're not watching them yourself? Sorry, I have to give Raiders' fans the bizness whenever I get the chance. But let's answer your questions, Jason Veldheer did not play center yesterday. He rotated at left tackle. His performance in their opening game at Tennessee was mixed. He didn't look bad in pass blocking, but he got no movement in the run game, he was consistently out-leveraged by the Titan DT's. He's just a rookie, so be patient. Darren McFadden's 145 yards yesterday were just his second 100+ yard performance in his 3-year career. yes, he can be a force, but will he? I have serious doubts about the long term viability of McFadden in this offense.
To MLP68, thanks for reading, but your contention I don't give the PAC-10 a fair shake is ludicrous. I said just last week Stanford's Andrew Luck is the best quarterback in college football. I recognized Oregon's huge blowout wins, albeit against door mat competition. Yes, I have railed against USC, their program was an embarrassment to the PAC-10, Mike Garrett had to go. The Reggie Bush mess marred the reputation of the entire conference. Let's be realistic about the PAC-10, USC, UCLA & the Washingtons are experiencing down seasons. Cal got tattooed by a middle of the road Nevada team. Arizona State threw away what could have been a big win at Wisconsin while Arizona got a statement win vs. Iowa. It wasn't pretty, but they won. Oregon State lost to TCU & they'll probably lose this weekend at Boise State. That leaves Oregon in the mix for the national title & I think they'll be in it till the end. That being said, the PAC-10 is no better or no worse than any of the power BCS conferences right now.
To BudGrant, thanks for reading, you're right, your team should be in full blown panic mode. But don't think for a minute getting Vincent Jackson from the Chargers will fix anything. The Vikes two biggest problems right now is 1. Brett Favre looks old for the first time in his illustrious career. His mechanics look slower than last year, his arm doesn't have the zip in it as we've seen in years past. This is most definitely his last season. I think they should have left him in Hattiesburg. 2. The right side of your offensive line can't consistently protect Favre. Too much leakage play after play. 3. The "Williams Wall" looks less then formidable against the run, New Orleans moved them around & so did Miami yesterday. By trading a 2nd round draft pick & more for Jackson, what exactly do you get? A receiver who will be suspended for 4 weeks. Sidney Rice will be back in 6 weeks, who would you rather have? Jackson is one screwup away from being suspended for a full season. Now they took that chance with Jared Allen, but how many times are you willing to gamble like this? Jackson will also require a new contract, something other veteran Viking contributors have been waiting for since last season. Does Jackson get his money before the guys who've been there all along? Does Ben Leber & Chad Greenway deserve to get their new contracts? Yes they do, but if you bring Jackson in, you run the risk of pissing off two-thirds of your linebacking corp. I don't see this as a realistic alternative, especially when drafting a quarterback should definitely be a priority next off-season. I think you're team might be done already, sorry, but that's how I see it.
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