PACKER-EAGLE RECAP, WEIS-HALEY ALLEGATIONS & MY BCS PREVIEW
My other Super Bowl pick, Baltimore was my AFC team, the Green Bay Packers, is alive & well. The Pack went into Philadelphia & defeated the Michael Vick-led Eagles 21-16. So the Divisional Round of the playoffs is set, two rematches in the AFC, Baltimore vs. Pittsburgh & NY Jets vs. New England & we'll see Seattle play in Chicago & the Packers travel to Atlanta.
An important thing happened for the Packers yesterday, they found a running game. Props to my man John Cooney over at Fantasy Football Mastermind who told me a little over a month ago when the Packers activated James Starks from their practice squad. Starks had been on Green Bay's PUP list thru week six & then was moved onto the practice squad. So nobody had seen much of Starks, he had but 29 carries in the 3 games in which he had been on the active roster. When John told me Starks was being activated long about week 12, I told him I didn't even know he was with Green Bay. John was very high on Starks, apparently for good reason. I remember Starks playing at Buffalo playing for Turner Gill's MAC champions. If Starks can come close to his 123-yards on 23 carries he gained yesterday against the Eagles, the Packers could very well fulfill my belief in them.
Aaron Rodgers was superb again, the Pack was 8 of 13 on 3rd down, which was a back-breaker for Philly. They held Michael Vick to 33-yards rushing & put a lot of pressure on him when he wanted to throw. They held the Eagle wideouts, Jeremy Maclin & DeSean Jackson, to just 5 receptions & no touchdowns. Tight end Brent Celek was held to 2 catches & RB LeSean McCoy averaged less than 4-yards per carry, only 46-yards total. The Packers have a great defense, it's the best defense in the NFC, it's Pittsburgh/Baltimore good.
So a couple of Todd Haley's major detractors, FOXSports.com's Jason Whitlock & Bob Fescoe of 610 Sports in Kansas City, are reporting Haley called the 2nd half offensive plays in yesterday's loss to Baltimore. I said yesterday right after the game Kansas City's offense hasn't played worth a crap since Haley yanked Matt Cassel out of the Tennessee game. I said when Charlie Weis announced he was leaving for Florida it wasn't because he wanted to go back to the college ranks, it was because he & Haley couldn't ever get on the same wavelength. I think Haley is the same screaming wildman we grew tired off last season, he just hasn't had to go crazy as often because his 2 new coordinators had things under control. All Haley was left with was calling bizarre 4th down plays all season. His move to sign & start Kevin Curtis while de-activating Chris Chambers was bewildering.
I got a ton of email regarding yesterday's loss, Haley's future, Cassel's future & who K.C. would look for in the draft. I will answer all of these this week. If you have any comments or questions regarding the Chiefs, send 'em in to rich@richsfootballreport.com.
Tonight will decide the mythical national championship with the BCS title game on ESPN. So who's it going to be? Here are some of my thoughts:
Auburn will be the 4th different SEC team to play in the BCS Title game. The previous four, Florida(twice), LSU & Alabama all won.
Oregon's fast-break offense averages 79 plays per game. They try to snap the ball at least every 20-seconds. Watch the play clock & you'll see they snap the ball quicker than anyone in NCAA history. It's very difficult to substitute or change defensive packages against the Ducks.
Auburn offensive line is probably 30-pounds bigger that Oregon's defensive line. They will try to wear down their opponents. They've been a second half team all season. Cam Newton just lines up behind these behemoths & they run the ball.
Auburn has one of the best defensive lines in the nation led by All-American Nick Fairley. He routinely blows up plays in the backfield with penetration but can also rush the passer. The D-Line must disrupt the quarterback, their defensive backfield is the weakest part of this Auburn team.
Cam Newton is a great running quarterback, the 6' 6" 255-pound Heisman winner is a superior playmaker. Unfortunately, he is not a great passer, he can get the ball downfield, but fitting it into tight spaces on 3rd down isn't his thing.
Oregon is the best in the land returning punts, a staggering 18.3 average per return. Cliff Harris brought 3 back for touchdowns.
Oregon's fast-break offense has worn out teams in the 2nd half. The Ducks outscored their opponents 277-77 in the second half this season. That's scary.
Oregon is faster on both sides of the ball, Auburn is bigger, stronger. Can Duck speed beat Tiger power? I think it can Oregon 38 Auburn 35
Enjoy the game!
An important thing happened for the Packers yesterday, they found a running game. Props to my man John Cooney over at Fantasy Football Mastermind who told me a little over a month ago when the Packers activated James Starks from their practice squad. Starks had been on Green Bay's PUP list thru week six & then was moved onto the practice squad. So nobody had seen much of Starks, he had but 29 carries in the 3 games in which he had been on the active roster. When John told me Starks was being activated long about week 12, I told him I didn't even know he was with Green Bay. John was very high on Starks, apparently for good reason. I remember Starks playing at Buffalo playing for Turner Gill's MAC champions. If Starks can come close to his 123-yards on 23 carries he gained yesterday against the Eagles, the Packers could very well fulfill my belief in them.
Aaron Rodgers was superb again, the Pack was 8 of 13 on 3rd down, which was a back-breaker for Philly. They held Michael Vick to 33-yards rushing & put a lot of pressure on him when he wanted to throw. They held the Eagle wideouts, Jeremy Maclin & DeSean Jackson, to just 5 receptions & no touchdowns. Tight end Brent Celek was held to 2 catches & RB LeSean McCoy averaged less than 4-yards per carry, only 46-yards total. The Packers have a great defense, it's the best defense in the NFC, it's Pittsburgh/Baltimore good.
So a couple of Todd Haley's major detractors, FOXSports.com's Jason Whitlock & Bob Fescoe of 610 Sports in Kansas City, are reporting Haley called the 2nd half offensive plays in yesterday's loss to Baltimore. I said yesterday right after the game Kansas City's offense hasn't played worth a crap since Haley yanked Matt Cassel out of the Tennessee game. I said when Charlie Weis announced he was leaving for Florida it wasn't because he wanted to go back to the college ranks, it was because he & Haley couldn't ever get on the same wavelength. I think Haley is the same screaming wildman we grew tired off last season, he just hasn't had to go crazy as often because his 2 new coordinators had things under control. All Haley was left with was calling bizarre 4th down plays all season. His move to sign & start Kevin Curtis while de-activating Chris Chambers was bewildering.
I got a ton of email regarding yesterday's loss, Haley's future, Cassel's future & who K.C. would look for in the draft. I will answer all of these this week. If you have any comments or questions regarding the Chiefs, send 'em in to rich@richsfootballreport.com.
Tonight will decide the mythical national championship with the BCS title game on ESPN. So who's it going to be? Here are some of my thoughts:
Auburn will be the 4th different SEC team to play in the BCS Title game. The previous four, Florida(twice), LSU & Alabama all won.
Oregon's fast-break offense averages 79 plays per game. They try to snap the ball at least every 20-seconds. Watch the play clock & you'll see they snap the ball quicker than anyone in NCAA history. It's very difficult to substitute or change defensive packages against the Ducks.
Auburn offensive line is probably 30-pounds bigger that Oregon's defensive line. They will try to wear down their opponents. They've been a second half team all season. Cam Newton just lines up behind these behemoths & they run the ball.
Auburn has one of the best defensive lines in the nation led by All-American Nick Fairley. He routinely blows up plays in the backfield with penetration but can also rush the passer. The D-Line must disrupt the quarterback, their defensive backfield is the weakest part of this Auburn team.
Cam Newton is a great running quarterback, the 6' 6" 255-pound Heisman winner is a superior playmaker. Unfortunately, he is not a great passer, he can get the ball downfield, but fitting it into tight spaces on 3rd down isn't his thing.
Oregon is the best in the land returning punts, a staggering 18.3 average per return. Cliff Harris brought 3 back for touchdowns.
Oregon's fast-break offense has worn out teams in the 2nd half. The Ducks outscored their opponents 277-77 in the second half this season. That's scary.
Oregon is faster on both sides of the ball, Auburn is bigger, stronger. Can Duck speed beat Tiger power? I think it can Oregon 38 Auburn 35
Enjoy the game!
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