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Sunday, February 10, 2008 |
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Friday, February 01, 2008 |
Superbowl Matchup and Predictions
In direct rebuttal to PeteAbe's similar post
Coaches: Tom Coughlin’s changed attitude has been all the talk this season. Bill Belichick plays juvenile games with the NFL injury report and has yet to prove he could have gone undefeated without the benefit of breaking the rules. However, the referees will have his back as always.
Last meeting: The Giants were up by 12 points on the vaunted Patriots in the 4th quarter. Yes, they scored a touchdown on special teams. Should we just discount special teams? Is that not a part of the game? This would be like saying that defense doesn’t count in baseball. It’s a part of the game. The Giants were rolling until Sean O’Hara got hurt, then two muffed snaps and poor blocking caused the offense to shut down. One could easily make the case that if O’Hara remains healthy, the Giants score another touchdown.
The quarterbacks: Tom Brady is great in his execution. There is no denying that. Part of it has to do with the system, of course, but Brady’s got the record for TDs in a season. Montana comparisons are silly, of course, because the game has changed greatly since the Montana days.. back then 35 TDs was considered a great year. Eli Manning was Alex Rodriguez earlier in the season. The media liked to put all of the blame for anything that went wrong with the Giants on him, and he hadn’t won in the postseason. He became the easy target, and back page whipping boy. He was “too robotic” and “didn’t show enough emotion.” Manning’s numbers suffered in the end of the Patriots game once backup guard Gary Ruegamer was forced into duty.
Key matchup: Giants C Sean O’Hara vs. Patriots NT Vince Wilfork. If O’Hara can handle Wilfork without having to constantly double-team him (and avoid getting his eyes gouged) it will free up guards Chris Snee and Rich Seubert to handle the Pats linebackers Junior Seau and Tedy Bruschi. Both Bruschi and Seau are “downhill” linebackers who love to dart in and attempt to stuff the run. Freeing up the guards will open up more lanes in the soft middle of the Patriots defense for Manning to hit receivers like Kevin Boss and Steve Smith on crossing patterns, as well as open up holes for running backs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw. The Pats safeties will also be forced to fill the middle and open up single coverage on Buress and Toomer. All of this centers around O’Hara’s ability to contain Wilfork.
How the Patriots can lose: Brady gets hurried, hit, and sacked.
How the Giants can lose: Inability to establish the run.
Intangibles: The Patriots have been making “fake funny news stories” for their resident cheerleaders in Bristol all week. Brady’s been to New York to visit his famous girlfriend (no word if they got margaritas) and despite what the Patriots will say, has a hurt ankle. Should the Giants hit him early and often, they can take away his plant foot and force the Patriots to become a run-only one-dimensional offense.
If you hear this guy's name a lot, the Patriots should win: Randy Moss. If Moss is getting lots of catches, the Giants aren't executing on defense and are in big trouble.
If you hear this guy's name a lot, the Giants should win: Brandon Jacobs. If the Giants' big back is getting a lot of carries, New York isn't concerned about quick scores and is controlling the clock and able to move the ball down the field. This also would mean the play-action pass - a major Manning weapon - is in play.
Biggest Patriots question mark: How good is that ankle, Tom?
Biggest Giants question mark: How are the nagging injuries, Plaxico?
Final score: This Super Bowl reminds me of the 2001 World Series. The Patriots are the Yankees. They’re a powerful, seemingly flawless team facing a scrappy bunch of underdogs. This is the game to cement their dynasty, as they’ve recently won three world championships. Like the Diamondbacks, the Giants have done well to get as far as they did. When it all comes down to one game, anything can happen. Giants 28, Patriots 24.Labels: nfl, predictions
posted by Mr. Faded Glory @ 3:45 PM
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Tuesday, January 29, 2008 |
Magical. Storybook. Willing it. Carrying them. Gutsy. Veteran. Grizzled.
These are all adjectives used to explain why Brett Favre will lead his Packers to victory in a decisive way on Sunday.
Unfortunately, none of them have to do with playing a game of football.
Sportswriters, you fail again.
(Giants 28, Packers 20)Labels: nfl
posted by Mr. Faded Glory @ 4:08 PM
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Monday, December 17, 2007 |
In the NFL, Steroid Use is Accepted
I've written before about how fans embrace NFL players caught cheating like Shawne Merriman, who got caught with steroids, suspended for four games, and then named to the Pro Bowl.
Jayson Stark has an interesting look at the cases of Andy Pettitte and Rodney Harrison:
Player A is a long-time star for a team that has won multiple titles. Great guy. Beloved by fans and teammates alike. Then finds himself connected with an HGH story he can't escape.
So he admits it. Admits he bought it. Admits he took it. Admits he did that over a long period of time, during which his team won championships and he was an All-Star. Admits he "sent the wrong message" to kids and to the public. Admits he's "very, very embarrassed."
But Player A also says he wants to make it clear he never used steroids. And the only reason he used HGH was because he was hurt and wanted to get back on the field to help his team.
OK, now let's move on to Player B -- another terrific player for teams that did nothing but win. Another likeable guy. Fan favorite. Clubhouse favorite. Then looks up one day and hears his name all over TV and radio, linked to HGH use.
So Player B takes some time to think about how he should react, then confesses. Confesses by saying he was injured at the time. Confesses by saying he felt an obligation to get back and help his team. Confesses by saying he'd heard a lot of talk about the healing properties of HGH, so he tried it briefly, then stopped.
It didn't feel right. It wasn't the kind of player or person he was, or is. So he stopped. And ohbytheway, he never used steroids, either, despite what people have been saying about him.
Two stories that couldn't be more identical, right?
But Player B wakes up the next morning to find a headline that says: "PLEASE SPARE US."
Player A, on the other hand, is greeted by headlines like this one: "DON'T SINGLE OUT (PLAYER A)."
Hmmmm. What's up with that?
Two indistinguishable stories. Two very different reactions. Why is that, anyway?
Well, you probably figured out that Player B is Pettitte, a fellow who plays baseball for a living.
Player A, on the other hand, is New England Patriots safety Rodney Harrison, a guy who plays in that Teflon National Football League, in which all those chiseled bodies are clearly on the up and up.
Where's the outrage over Rodney Harrison, huh? We've been waiting for it to show up in some form, any form, for weeks now. We're still waiting. We'll probably wait a lifetime.
The media loves giving NFL guys a pass. It's hypocrasy. Where's the outrage? Harrison has been a better NFL player than Pettitte has been a MLB player, and won (another) Superbowl last year and is playing on an undefeated team.
But hey, he plays football, give the guy a break.Labels: andy pettitte, dirty stinking cheaters, mitchell report, nfl, rodney harrison, shawne merriman
posted by Mr. Faded Glory @ 2:13 PM
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Wednesday, August 22, 2007 |
Filling in on "The Herd"
Maybe it's the show and not the host that makes people say really dumb things. This morning Doug Gottleib was filling in for Colin Cowherd on the latter's generally unlistenable "The Herd" on ESPN Radio. About 8:30 AM PST, Gottlieb made the following statement:
"Jumptheshark.com. I'm not usually one to promote a website. It's about how certain shows hit a moment and then go downhill, like in Happy Days when Fonzie jumped that shark on the motorcycle. I surf the internet. I am reckless when I surf the 'net. But I'm not a recluse. Those are the only words I know that begin with r-e-c-k."
Obviously the ability to spell isn't a requirement to be a radio host, but Gottlieb shouldn't advertise that fact.
The best part is that this was all an into to how we'll see whether or not the Colts have "jumped the shark" in their most important pre-season game against the Saints. He goes on to talk for about five minutes about how the last preseason game in the NFL is the only one that really matters, and we'll see in the Colts final tune up how they can handle the run with McAllister and Bush on the field and how important it is that they show something positive to build on before the game counts and so on.
Five minutes later after another segment, Gottlieb then admits "his mistake" and mentions how the Colts open the regular season against New Orleans. In fact it is the first NFL game on the season, and broadcast in prime time on NBC.
Dont worry Colin, your show is in capable hands while you're gone. It's like you never left.Labels: bad spelling, colin cowherd, doug gottlieb, espn, nfl
posted by Mr. Faded Glory @ 10:00 AM
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