OREGON WINS BUT MAY HAVE LOST BIG, JETS TALK MORE TRASH & RAMS CIRCLING THE DRAIN
The Oregon Ducks trailed 15-14 at half tonight in their conference tilt with Cal. But they came out smokin' in the third quarter & scored 28 unanswered 2nd half points to defeat Cal 43-15. Heisman candidate, Oregon running back LaMichael James, was having a career night, 30 carries for 239-yards & a TD when he suffered a hideous injury near the Cal goal line. The replay was especially repugnant as it showed his forearm bending a way it's not anatomically structured to bend. He was in terrible pain before it was immobilized in an air cast. To the untrained eye, I'd say compound fracture or total dislocation. Either way, he will miss some or all of the remaining games on Oregon's schedule. The worst possible injury to this Duck team.
On Wednesday, Eagles defensive end Jason Babin was fined $15,000 for his hit to the head of San Francisco quarterback Alex Smith. Babin was livid & took to Twitter to express his anger "Attn: guy at the NFL that decides who & how much players get fined, if you want to protect quarterbacks, get better linemen." On Thursday, the Niners right tackle who job it was to keep Babin off his QB, Anthony Davis, was fined by the league for 2 leg whips. He'll be missing $25,000 out of his next game check for committing 2 really dirty plays.
In quarterback news, Pittsburgh's Ben Rothlisberger returned to full practice. In Miami, Chad Henne does have a separated left(non-throwing) shoulder that will require surgery. He will be placed on I.R. The Dolphins brought back former QB Sage Rosenfels to backup Matt Moore.
The Jets are talkin' trash big time before their game with the Patriots this Sunday. They're repeating the strategy that was used leading up to their divisional playoff game in Foxboro, won by the Jets. Both cornerbacks, Darrelle Reavis & Dominique Rogers-Cromartie have challenged Tom Brady to throw at them. It's a given Reavis will take Wes Welker one-on-one all over the field. That will leave DRC on one of the Patriot tight ends. That will be the interesting matchup in my book. This is a huge game for the Jets, lose & they'll fall 2 games behind the Pats & possibly the Bills. Center Nick Mangold had a full week of practice, but so did 3 new England defenders who didn't make the trip out to Oakland. I like the Pats in the rematch.
The high hopes I had for the St. Louis Rams have faded as they begin circling the drain. Three games behind the Forty-Niners & facing a tougher schedule after their bye week, the NFC West race could be essentially over in a couple of weeks. With their top-3 cornerbacks out for the season & a disappointing pass rush, St. Louis has struggled mightily to stop opposing passers. On offense, QB Sam Bradford has been banged, bashed & beaten week after week. The Ram offensive line is easily the underachieving champs in the NFC. LT Roger Saffold surrendered 3 sacks all last season. On Sunday vs. Washington, he gave up 4. RT Jason Smith hasn't lived up to his potential either. Add the numerous dropped passes to the formula & it's easy to see why the Rams are 0-4, staring down the barrel of 0-7 as they play at Green Bay, at Dallas & the Saints in St Louis right after the bye. Their schedule's 2nd half is dramatically easier, but it may not matter by week nine.
On Wednesday, Eagles defensive end Jason Babin was fined $15,000 for his hit to the head of San Francisco quarterback Alex Smith. Babin was livid & took to Twitter to express his anger "Attn: guy at the NFL that decides who & how much players get fined, if you want to protect quarterbacks, get better linemen." On Thursday, the Niners right tackle who job it was to keep Babin off his QB, Anthony Davis, was fined by the league for 2 leg whips. He'll be missing $25,000 out of his next game check for committing 2 really dirty plays.
In quarterback news, Pittsburgh's Ben Rothlisberger returned to full practice. In Miami, Chad Henne does have a separated left(non-throwing) shoulder that will require surgery. He will be placed on I.R. The Dolphins brought back former QB Sage Rosenfels to backup Matt Moore.
The Jets are talkin' trash big time before their game with the Patriots this Sunday. They're repeating the strategy that was used leading up to their divisional playoff game in Foxboro, won by the Jets. Both cornerbacks, Darrelle Reavis & Dominique Rogers-Cromartie have challenged Tom Brady to throw at them. It's a given Reavis will take Wes Welker one-on-one all over the field. That will leave DRC on one of the Patriot tight ends. That will be the interesting matchup in my book. This is a huge game for the Jets, lose & they'll fall 2 games behind the Pats & possibly the Bills. Center Nick Mangold had a full week of practice, but so did 3 new England defenders who didn't make the trip out to Oakland. I like the Pats in the rematch.
The high hopes I had for the St. Louis Rams have faded as they begin circling the drain. Three games behind the Forty-Niners & facing a tougher schedule after their bye week, the NFC West race could be essentially over in a couple of weeks. With their top-3 cornerbacks out for the season & a disappointing pass rush, St. Louis has struggled mightily to stop opposing passers. On offense, QB Sam Bradford has been banged, bashed & beaten week after week. The Ram offensive line is easily the underachieving champs in the NFC. LT Roger Saffold surrendered 3 sacks all last season. On Sunday vs. Washington, he gave up 4. RT Jason Smith hasn't lived up to his potential either. Add the numerous dropped passes to the formula & it's easy to see why the Rams are 0-4, staring down the barrel of 0-7 as they play at Green Bay, at Dallas & the Saints in St Louis right after the bye. Their schedule's 2nd half is dramatically easier, but it may not matter by week nine.
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