Week 12 was a dud for me. Yeah, the Jets won, Plax was a hero and Sanchez had some time to throw. Even Shonn Green garnered some yards. But my fantasy team, one that has been slumping for quite a while now while still managing to win, could put together only one decent effort, that coming from our own Dustin Keller at tight end.
I had expected tough going this week as my premier running back, Fred Jackson was injured, only to be replaced by CJ Spiller in Buffalo. Other players I counted on earlier in the season, such as Miles Austin and Julio Jones, have been likewise hurt, but not badly enough to hit the injured reserve list; just badly enough to take up room on my roster.
My two remaining big guns play tonight, Drew Brees and Hakeem Nicks. But they’ll need a heap of production, even for them. No, it’s not a good day for Crabs. One thing I’ve had all season long though is luck. The one-point wins, the 3-point wins, the remarkable performances put up by the most unlikely players (or team defenses) in the least likely situations.
If tonight’s battle between the Giants and Saints unfolds the way I think it might, which is to say, a shootout between Eli and Mr. Brees, my chances become pretty good. In that kind of battle, Drew could put up 300 yards easily and 3 or 4 TD’s while Hakeem Nicks could see a 100-yard day and a touchdown. Maybe the Saints D will double on Victor Cruz. That would be a welcome change.
While I wait for all that to unfold, I can only try not to tear my hair out thinking about the ridiculously conservative approaches that teams take with their best players. Julio Jones for example has been out for weeks with a hammy but his status was changed to probable for Week 12. Julio must’ve been down by the school yard because he didn’t see even one friggin’ minute on the field. He and I got to watch as his replacement, one Harry Douglas, got his catches and a touchdown. Meanwhile, Sidney Rice, ordinarily Seattle’s first receiving option, hurt his “widdle” head quite early and that was the end of his day on the field.
Football can be an infuriating game. Just ask the Chicago Bears who saw an injury to their QB, Jay Cutler, seriously hurt their chances at a playoff spot. Ask the Houston Texans. They lost Matt Schaub the starter and Matt Leinart the backup in successive weeks. They managed to win though. The Bears were not so lucky.
In last night’s game we had to watch the Chiefs and their backup QB, one Tyler Palko, try to compete with the Steelers and Ben Roethlisberger. They did acquire Kyle Orton, a serviceable or better QB who had the misfortune of preceding Tim Tebow in the early-season depth chart. Tebow won again yesterday in what has come to be the Broncos trademark fashion, lots of defense and lots of Tebow.
Compare and contrast Tebow to Ndamokung Suh or Stevie Johnson, the thug and the dipstick. It’s amazing to me how pleased with themselves some of these players are. Then they’re sorry afterwards. Suh especially deserves everything he might get in terms of penalties or suspensions. What irked me totally was his denial at first that he had done anything wrong (after stomping on an exposed leg). The next thing you know he’s apologizing. Stevie Johnson demonstrated his lack of brains and any class whatsoever by doing his Plaxico Burress impersonation in the end zone. He was later sorry too.
Even though I really don’t anyone who wears his religion on his sleeve (and tries to rub a little on your sleeve too), coming from Tebow, he seems so sincere that his continual religious references don’t really have any negative effect on me. He’s a big, strong, fast gentleman, maybe the only one in the NFL. I’ll take his behavior over some of these other meatballs anytime.
Meanwhile, the NBA lockout is over (or soon will be). Thank God this Holiday season that we won’t have to hear about the legal wranglings that would have been part and parcel of a continuation of the lockout.
I’m looking forward too to a reduced season as I had always thought that 82 games were too many. When the NFL season starts winding down and the playoff participants become all too clear, a little Knicks and Nets action will be just what the doctor ordered.
Rutgers failed to win the game they needed to advance to a BCS Bowl. Color me sad.
In my favorite sport, baseball (by an increasingly large margin) hot stove action has been really slow. We don’t know where Reyes is going if anywhere and the same goes for Pujols. The biggest signing though was sadly the Phillies signing of Papelbon, Boston’s terrific closer. Now the Phils seem to really have everything. And I wouldn’t be surprised if they go after Reyes too. Their shortstop is getting (and playing) a little long in the tooth.
The Philadelphia Eagles, erstwhile dream team, looked pretty dreadful against the Patriots Sunday. But it wasn’t Vince Young’s fault. He threw for 400 yards with just the one pick and yet the Birds weren’t really in the game after the first quarter. They didn’t play defense that you’d notice. Apparently the Pats are better than the Giants, who only managed to score ten points against them in their latest outing.
In any event Eagles head coach Andy Reid might be in a little trouble. All those weapons they acquired in free agency aren’t having much of an effect. Michael Vick, Vince Young, and all those offensive weapons couldn’t do much against the Pats, at least from a scoring standpoint, and the whole team seems to be playing lifeless ball.
Let’s hope the Giants fare better tonight against the Saints. Let’s have a good old-fashioned shootout.
Showing posts with label Brees. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brees. Show all posts
Monday, November 28, 2011
Thursday, September 1, 2011
A Good Draft, a Bad Irene
Imagine if you never had to see Mike Pelfrey pitch again……in your entire lifetime….Pelfrey-free….aahh.
But this won’t be about the Mets. After all, what can anybody really say? Just, please God, don’t make me watch any more Mets wheel-plays. And the latest highlight of the Mets fortunes was Jason Bay’s arm-less lunge for home plate with his arms pinned to the ground under his body.
The Mets won that one so Jason gets a pass, but it was the most ridiculous slide I’ve ever seen.
Enough said about the Mets. Even if David Wright had a really nice night and Tejada made the tough play he had to make to close the game out. It was like old times. Reyes was back smiling and Wright was playin’ energized and Duda came through with a nicely- measured swing to win it. I could really get used to watching baseball like that.
I just watched a replay of the Jets-Giants exhibition game from Monday night. I thought it was bad the first time around. It was worse in Round 2. The Giants, who lost 17-3 to their Green rivals, looked ordinary at best. The Jets were just a little more impressive.
If it seemed to you that Eli Manning had no clue as to where his receivers might be going, join the club. If it seemed to you as if nobody ever came open for him, you’re not alone.
The Jets actually looked better defensively to me than they were last year. The offense needs a little work right now but that could be said of a number of teams. They can still run the ball, especially if Shonn Green stays healthy. Once again, their only fly in the ointment might be New England. The Pats will be a huge fly to swallow.
But most people here are just getting over the wrath of Irene, the raging waters, the dump from the sky. Trees down, power lines down, rivers swelling, politicians swaggering, and Weather-Channel scaring the life out of you every step of the way, but especially before the event . Irene was a big fat girl wagging her fatt butt all the way up the Jersey coast.
But I stood ready for her, pump ready for the onslaught. Around 2 PM on Saturday, the pumping began. But its little 1/6 HP heart couldn’t keep the waters below the 18” retaining wall between the garage and house proper, could it? Well, it pumped its little brains out for about 27 hours straight and saved our butts from a watery ending.
The power held up for me. There’ll be a generator in my future. The worst wind I got was as Irene was dragging her disgusting ass out of here. She was worn out by then, all that torrential rain for all that time having dragged the venom out of her. Her home invasion was finally over by mid-afternoon Sunday.
I’m thinking about giving my pump a name.
But right before the deluge, that would be Saturday morning, we had our fantasy draft. That was fun. Once again, I tested my QB-first strategy with a guy everybody seems to have forgotten about, Drew Brees. He had no running game last year at all and still managed to have himself a nice year.
But it’s all about risk. The first pick should offer the highest risk-reward. If running backs get hurt waaay more often than QB’s, how can you pick a RB first? There were four who loomed over the rest of the ball-carriers, Arian Foster, Adrian Peterson, Chris Johnson and, arguably, Rrrray Rrrrrice. In our new world of two-back systems, you could throw a blanket around many of the rest.
I should point out too that passing TD’s count as much as running TD’s in our league and QB’s fantasy scores vs. RB scores are always a lot higher overall.
Then there is the matter of variability, week to week adherence to a standard. Drew Brees is like a machine. The opponent doesn’t matter that much, he’ll score against Green Bay and Buffalo too. He won’t be a target like Vick or slide around a lot like Rodgers or have a Manning neck or a Brady benching in Week 13.
He’ll just be cruisin’ this year, handin’ the rock to Mark Ingram, making the play-action go. And there’ll be the same guys on the other end, Colston and Meachem and Henderson and Mohr. His line is good, his coach is smart and they like to score points….every week.
I could have had RB Jamaal Charles, as things turned out. He was one of the four leading the pack and perhaps my favorite among those. But will all of those four guys finish the season? Would Jamaal Charles have been the odd man out?
Anyway, my second pick was 21 overall and I still didn’t particularly like any of the running backs there so why not grab a top wideout? And if you could get yourself a Giant at the same time, why wouldn’t Hakeem Nicks be the logical choice? Then at 28 overall, there was Jersey-boy Miles Austin edging out DeSean Jackson and the possibly resurgent JET Shonn Greene. I see lots of catches in my future.
A lot of nice players disappeared from the board before my next pick. Fearing a run on tight ends, I jumped on Jermichael Finley, Rodgers’s favorite target most Green Bay days. I could finally select a running back so I jumped on Knowshon Moreno of the Broncos, who does a little bit of everything pretty much all by himself in Denver.
I may have actually taken a risk with Julio Jones, Atlanta’s multi-pick alleged wonder, but I still wasn’t sold on any particular RB. I did get a nice reliable guy in Fred Jackson of Buffalo, who got them his thousand yards last year and seems to be the star in lowly Buffalo. And, um, circle the wagons.
And Detroit will be my defense. Good Luck.
But this won’t be about the Mets. After all, what can anybody really say? Just, please God, don’t make me watch any more Mets wheel-plays. And the latest highlight of the Mets fortunes was Jason Bay’s arm-less lunge for home plate with his arms pinned to the ground under his body.
The Mets won that one so Jason gets a pass, but it was the most ridiculous slide I’ve ever seen.
Enough said about the Mets. Even if David Wright had a really nice night and Tejada made the tough play he had to make to close the game out. It was like old times. Reyes was back smiling and Wright was playin’ energized and Duda came through with a nicely- measured swing to win it. I could really get used to watching baseball like that.
I just watched a replay of the Jets-Giants exhibition game from Monday night. I thought it was bad the first time around. It was worse in Round 2. The Giants, who lost 17-3 to their Green rivals, looked ordinary at best. The Jets were just a little more impressive.
If it seemed to you that Eli Manning had no clue as to where his receivers might be going, join the club. If it seemed to you as if nobody ever came open for him, you’re not alone.
The Jets actually looked better defensively to me than they were last year. The offense needs a little work right now but that could be said of a number of teams. They can still run the ball, especially if Shonn Green stays healthy. Once again, their only fly in the ointment might be New England. The Pats will be a huge fly to swallow.
But most people here are just getting over the wrath of Irene, the raging waters, the dump from the sky. Trees down, power lines down, rivers swelling, politicians swaggering, and Weather-Channel scaring the life out of you every step of the way, but especially before the event . Irene was a big fat girl wagging her fatt butt all the way up the Jersey coast.
But I stood ready for her, pump ready for the onslaught. Around 2 PM on Saturday, the pumping began. But its little 1/6 HP heart couldn’t keep the waters below the 18” retaining wall between the garage and house proper, could it? Well, it pumped its little brains out for about 27 hours straight and saved our butts from a watery ending.
The power held up for me. There’ll be a generator in my future. The worst wind I got was as Irene was dragging her disgusting ass out of here. She was worn out by then, all that torrential rain for all that time having dragged the venom out of her. Her home invasion was finally over by mid-afternoon Sunday.
I’m thinking about giving my pump a name.
But right before the deluge, that would be Saturday morning, we had our fantasy draft. That was fun. Once again, I tested my QB-first strategy with a guy everybody seems to have forgotten about, Drew Brees. He had no running game last year at all and still managed to have himself a nice year.
But it’s all about risk. The first pick should offer the highest risk-reward. If running backs get hurt waaay more often than QB’s, how can you pick a RB first? There were four who loomed over the rest of the ball-carriers, Arian Foster, Adrian Peterson, Chris Johnson and, arguably, Rrrray Rrrrrice. In our new world of two-back systems, you could throw a blanket around many of the rest.
I should point out too that passing TD’s count as much as running TD’s in our league and QB’s fantasy scores vs. RB scores are always a lot higher overall.
Then there is the matter of variability, week to week adherence to a standard. Drew Brees is like a machine. The opponent doesn’t matter that much, he’ll score against Green Bay and Buffalo too. He won’t be a target like Vick or slide around a lot like Rodgers or have a Manning neck or a Brady benching in Week 13.
He’ll just be cruisin’ this year, handin’ the rock to Mark Ingram, making the play-action go. And there’ll be the same guys on the other end, Colston and Meachem and Henderson and Mohr. His line is good, his coach is smart and they like to score points….every week.
I could have had RB Jamaal Charles, as things turned out. He was one of the four leading the pack and perhaps my favorite among those. But will all of those four guys finish the season? Would Jamaal Charles have been the odd man out?
Anyway, my second pick was 21 overall and I still didn’t particularly like any of the running backs there so why not grab a top wideout? And if you could get yourself a Giant at the same time, why wouldn’t Hakeem Nicks be the logical choice? Then at 28 overall, there was Jersey-boy Miles Austin edging out DeSean Jackson and the possibly resurgent JET Shonn Greene. I see lots of catches in my future.
A lot of nice players disappeared from the board before my next pick. Fearing a run on tight ends, I jumped on Jermichael Finley, Rodgers’s favorite target most Green Bay days. I could finally select a running back so I jumped on Knowshon Moreno of the Broncos, who does a little bit of everything pretty much all by himself in Denver.
I may have actually taken a risk with Julio Jones, Atlanta’s multi-pick alleged wonder, but I still wasn’t sold on any particular RB. I did get a nice reliable guy in Fred Jackson of Buffalo, who got them his thousand yards last year and seems to be the star in lowly Buffalo. And, um, circle the wagons.
And Detroit will be my defense. Good Luck.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Fantastic Reflections and EARTHQUAKE!
A beautiful day is this Tuesday August 23rd, a great day for running in the park or getting some outside chores done. But while I should be getting my butt moving on to other things right now, I just can’t. My mind is chock full right now of reflections, on the baseball season just past for sure but also on the upcoming NFL season.
But I haven’t been thinking at all about the actual seasons. After all, the Mets have been decimated once again and the playoff teams are virtually set in stone with one or two exceptions. The only questions left are whether the Yanks or Red Sox will get past the Rangers and, if they do, will either of them get past the Phillies in the World Series?
Looking ahead to the NFL actual seasons, it’ll be business as usual, it seems, as the Pats and Jets and Colts and Packers and Steelers, you know, the usual suspects, look to be the strongest teams for 2011-2012. I’ve not included the Giants as they seem to have too many weaknesses right now, not the least of which may be the two yahoos running things. (yeah, I know, they won the big one 3 or 4 years ago but you’ll notice that some of their key clutch players from that almost magical season are gone now).
So, if not the actual seasons, what can I be reflecting upon? Why, the fantasy seasons of course!
In fantasy baseball, my Crabs contingent is sumthin’ like 16½ games ahead of its closest competition with just two week left to the regular fantasy season. And, while it’s possible I could really get blown out in these last two weeks, it’s highly unlikely. Even with losing Brian Wilson and Jimmy Rollins to the DL in this last week, I’m thinking their replacements will still get me to the finish line in fair shape.
I like to think my brilliant baseball draft strategy back in late March is the reason I’m so far ahead but, more realistically, my success can be attributed to just two guys, they being Robinson Cano, my number 1 draft choice, but most especially Curtis Granderson. my number 13 choice. As David Wright was my number two choice and is having by far his worst season ever, I must eat humble pie on my draft strategy and admit I’ve been lucky.
But I’m left to reflect upon the true greatness of this Granderson fellow. This guy just hasn’t quit being humility personified this entire season. Despite his prodigious numbers, currently at 114 runs scored and 98 ribbies, Curtis, when asked, will focus on his measly .281 batting average and his 131 strikeouts.
Curtis won’t mention that he has stolen 24 bases. He won’t dwell on the fact that he plays a stellar centerfield. He attributes his huge lead in the runs scored department to Cano and Teixeira, who drove him in more often than not. But to me, his most endearing attribute is his unfailing propensity for picking up foul balls around the plate and handing the ball to the catcher!
I mean, who does that? Only one guy. Curtis Granderson.
And only one guy gets an inside the park home run on his drive to the top of the right-center field fence the other day. Only one guy runs full-speed out of the box until he sees it go over the fence, only one guy turns it up a notch when he sees the coach’s go sign, and only one guy makes a beautiful slide into the plate, fatigue be damned. His name is Curtis Granderson.
I know Jose Bautista’s been great and Adrian Gonzalez too, but they haven’t been, and can’t be, Curtis Granderson. Curtis Granderson is, as Nick Swisher said the other day, blowing the doors off. I’m rooting like crazy for him to somehow, some way, keep up his almost feverish intensity throughout the rest of the season. There are 39 games left. I don’t want to jinx him…..but whoa!!
Meanwhile, Cano has been, well, Cano. After a pretty ho-hum start for him, he seems to have turned it up after the break. His August numbers have been unbelievable, to date standing at a cool .351 BA and he’s driven in 19 in as many games. He’s slugging .649 for a ridiculous August OPS of 1.035.
I’ve been a real Yankee-hater but it’d be impossible to hate these guys, not just Granderson and Cano but also Teixeira and Jeter and you can throw Swisher in there too. I’m hoping Arod’s return won’t screw things up, but Grandy’s batted second, third, fourth, eighth….and it hasn’t affected him one bit. Lefty on the mound? No problem…..unaffected, that’s the essence of Granderson.
Speaking of “unaffected”, I was anything but unaffected by a friggin’ EARTHQUAKE that just shook my entire house. I thought my body was spasming at first, then started walking to the door and thought I was having some kind of heart attack as I felt dizzy and shaky. Holy crap!!
Back on point though, I’ve already been worrying about my number 4 position in my fantasy football draft coming up this Saturday. What I’m expecting is that Arian Foster and Adrian Peterson will be gone, as will QB Aaron Rodgers, based on my previous experience with the same group. That would leave me only Chris Johnson and Ray Rice of the “elite” backs and I just can’t get excited over either of them.
Of course, there will be elite QB’s still on the board, all but Rodgers in fact. But Peyton Manning is hurt, Tom Brady winds up almost every year taking a seat during the fantasy playoffs and Michael friggin’ Vick is the closest human thing to a target for every fast huge hard-hitting defenseman looking to make a name for himself.
That would leave me Drew Brees, a guy who helped me to a 2nd place finish last year. I guess I can live with that.
But I haven’t been thinking at all about the actual seasons. After all, the Mets have been decimated once again and the playoff teams are virtually set in stone with one or two exceptions. The only questions left are whether the Yanks or Red Sox will get past the Rangers and, if they do, will either of them get past the Phillies in the World Series?
Looking ahead to the NFL actual seasons, it’ll be business as usual, it seems, as the Pats and Jets and Colts and Packers and Steelers, you know, the usual suspects, look to be the strongest teams for 2011-2012. I’ve not included the Giants as they seem to have too many weaknesses right now, not the least of which may be the two yahoos running things. (yeah, I know, they won the big one 3 or 4 years ago but you’ll notice that some of their key clutch players from that almost magical season are gone now).
So, if not the actual seasons, what can I be reflecting upon? Why, the fantasy seasons of course!
In fantasy baseball, my Crabs contingent is sumthin’ like 16½ games ahead of its closest competition with just two week left to the regular fantasy season. And, while it’s possible I could really get blown out in these last two weeks, it’s highly unlikely. Even with losing Brian Wilson and Jimmy Rollins to the DL in this last week, I’m thinking their replacements will still get me to the finish line in fair shape.
I like to think my brilliant baseball draft strategy back in late March is the reason I’m so far ahead but, more realistically, my success can be attributed to just two guys, they being Robinson Cano, my number 1 draft choice, but most especially Curtis Granderson. my number 13 choice. As David Wright was my number two choice and is having by far his worst season ever, I must eat humble pie on my draft strategy and admit I’ve been lucky.
But I’m left to reflect upon the true greatness of this Granderson fellow. This guy just hasn’t quit being humility personified this entire season. Despite his prodigious numbers, currently at 114 runs scored and 98 ribbies, Curtis, when asked, will focus on his measly .281 batting average and his 131 strikeouts.
Curtis won’t mention that he has stolen 24 bases. He won’t dwell on the fact that he plays a stellar centerfield. He attributes his huge lead in the runs scored department to Cano and Teixeira, who drove him in more often than not. But to me, his most endearing attribute is his unfailing propensity for picking up foul balls around the plate and handing the ball to the catcher!
I mean, who does that? Only one guy. Curtis Granderson.
And only one guy gets an inside the park home run on his drive to the top of the right-center field fence the other day. Only one guy runs full-speed out of the box until he sees it go over the fence, only one guy turns it up a notch when he sees the coach’s go sign, and only one guy makes a beautiful slide into the plate, fatigue be damned. His name is Curtis Granderson.
I know Jose Bautista’s been great and Adrian Gonzalez too, but they haven’t been, and can’t be, Curtis Granderson. Curtis Granderson is, as Nick Swisher said the other day, blowing the doors off. I’m rooting like crazy for him to somehow, some way, keep up his almost feverish intensity throughout the rest of the season. There are 39 games left. I don’t want to jinx him…..but whoa!!
Meanwhile, Cano has been, well, Cano. After a pretty ho-hum start for him, he seems to have turned it up after the break. His August numbers have been unbelievable, to date standing at a cool .351 BA and he’s driven in 19 in as many games. He’s slugging .649 for a ridiculous August OPS of 1.035.
I’ve been a real Yankee-hater but it’d be impossible to hate these guys, not just Granderson and Cano but also Teixeira and Jeter and you can throw Swisher in there too. I’m hoping Arod’s return won’t screw things up, but Grandy’s batted second, third, fourth, eighth….and it hasn’t affected him one bit. Lefty on the mound? No problem…..unaffected, that’s the essence of Granderson.
Speaking of “unaffected”, I was anything but unaffected by a friggin’ EARTHQUAKE that just shook my entire house. I thought my body was spasming at first, then started walking to the door and thought I was having some kind of heart attack as I felt dizzy and shaky. Holy crap!!
Back on point though, I’ve already been worrying about my number 4 position in my fantasy football draft coming up this Saturday. What I’m expecting is that Arian Foster and Adrian Peterson will be gone, as will QB Aaron Rodgers, based on my previous experience with the same group. That would leave me only Chris Johnson and Ray Rice of the “elite” backs and I just can’t get excited over either of them.
Of course, there will be elite QB’s still on the board, all but Rodgers in fact. But Peyton Manning is hurt, Tom Brady winds up almost every year taking a seat during the fantasy playoffs and Michael friggin’ Vick is the closest human thing to a target for every fast huge hard-hitting defenseman looking to make a name for himself.
That would leave me Drew Brees, a guy who helped me to a 2nd place finish last year. I guess I can live with that.
Monday, February 1, 2010
That Fickle Finger of Fate
I know it’s finally Super Bowl week because I’m actually watching the Saints de-plane at Miami International. Oooh Boyy! There’s Jeremy Shockey and Reggie Bush…woohoo! And there’s the fabulous Benson family. And I can look forward to more hours hearing about Katrina.
Well, in at least one respect, it’s good. At least one team has shown up. That indicates there indeed will be a game…eventually. But it won’t be before a zillion interviews and about 5 zillion clichés. And I can only hope that wild and crazy guy, Colts head coach Jim Caldwell, will kinda keep to himself this week.
This game, when it’s finally played, will hinge on Dwight Freeney’s leg hinge, his sprained ankle. When you think of offense, you think Peyton Manning. When you think of defense, you think of Dwight Freeney. If Freeney, whose main asset is speed, is hampered by an ankle sprain, he becomes just another guy who takes up a lot of space.
The Colts have been the best team in football this season. I really don’t think there can be any question about that. Manning is the real fly in the ointment for opponents. That fact was characterized most perfectly against New England, whose coach of coaches Bill Belichick elected to go for a fourth and one in his own territory with the time winding down rather than have to watch Manning drive the length of the field to beat him. Of course it didn’t work, Belichick’s Pats had to give Manning the ball about 40 yards closer to the endzone than they would have otherwise, and it was all over but the shouting (speaking of clichés).
The Saints had been undefeated too. But with each successive win, they won less convincingly. They did it with unlikely interceptions and forced fumbles and it seemed every win was an act of God. Yes, they had Drew Brees and Marques Colston, Shockey and Meacham, but they also had unlikely heroes almost all the time, guys like Devery Henderson and Pierre Thomas.
But what ultimately stopped the Saints was defensive injuries, in the secondary and defensive line. It seemed those turnovers just weren’t coming anymore, putting more pressure on the offense to outscore the opponent. And it just didn’t happen those last three games of the season.
The Colts had a very different ending to their regular season. They just gave it up, their perfect record, their chance at NFL history, their opportunity to put a lid on Don Shula and those Miami Dolphins of yesteryear, Csonka and Mercury Morris and Jim Kiick, and that feared 53 defense. They gave it up to avoid injuries for the playoffs.
So, as luck would have it, the fickle finger of fate landed on Dwight Freeney’s foot in the playoffs. Those 13 ½ sacks he had in the regular season would be meaningless. He came out of that Jets win with either a bad ankle sprain or some kind of ligament injuty, take your pick, but either one is pretty bad for a guy who depends on speed for his game.
The Colts were awesome in the playoffs though. They looked anxious to prove a point in thrashing the one-dimensional offenses of both the Ravens and the Jets, even though the Jets surprised them early with a passing game they really hadn’t shown all season.
While the Colts had it easy, the Saints had to face Arizona and Minnesota. There would be no Joe Flacco or Mark Sanchez barking out signals on the other side of the line from that opportunistic Saints defense. They had to face Kurt Warner and Brett Favre, two sure future Hall of Famers. But they came out on top, absolutely pulverizing Warner and the Cards while just squeaking by the much tougher and more versatile Vikings.
While it could be argued that the Vikings gave the game away, Childress and then Favre having found imaginative ways to throw the game away in the final minute, the Saints had to deal with the best running back in the NFL, Adrian Peterson, and their craftiest quarterback, who they may have forced into retirement.
The Vikings had a fearsome defense too. The Vikes had everything. The Vikes held the Saints offense to one of their lowest outputs of the season. But they couldn’t win the game. They fumbled the ball time after time and kept giving the Saints life when things looked the darkest for the black and gold. That fickle finger kept pointing at Peterson and Berrian and, in the final analysis, pointed straight at Childress and Favre.
If the Colts weren’t the best team in the NFL, the Vikings were. But they couldn’t beat the Saints. That same fickle finger made all those Saints injuries go away. It seemed to poke the ball out of Vikings’ hands and, down the stretch, that finger maybe even stuck itself through Favre’s ear right into his cerebrum.
And now Freeney’s hurt. While the injury could be just a ruse, I don’t think the Colts’ braintrust is that imaginative. There is no Belichick to mislead, confound and confusticate, just earnest Jim Caldwell and his hard-working band of real football players, which is still saying a lot, Freeney or not.
Without Freeney, Brees will have time to find all those receivers down the field, and pass defense was never the strength of the Colts, not this year anyway. The Saints could score early and often, putting enormous pressure on Manning, a master of pressure situations if there ever was one.
But when will enough become too much for Manning? He has already complained of being tired, after the Jets game, when the New Yorkers had taken that early lead that Manning had to take back. And he was brilliant, finding Pierre Garcon and Austin Collie and that elusive tight end of theirs.
It’s still early but even the great Manning may have trouble scoring at will against pesky veteran defenders who always seem to come up with the ball.
Well, in at least one respect, it’s good. At least one team has shown up. That indicates there indeed will be a game…eventually. But it won’t be before a zillion interviews and about 5 zillion clichés. And I can only hope that wild and crazy guy, Colts head coach Jim Caldwell, will kinda keep to himself this week.
This game, when it’s finally played, will hinge on Dwight Freeney’s leg hinge, his sprained ankle. When you think of offense, you think Peyton Manning. When you think of defense, you think of Dwight Freeney. If Freeney, whose main asset is speed, is hampered by an ankle sprain, he becomes just another guy who takes up a lot of space.
The Colts have been the best team in football this season. I really don’t think there can be any question about that. Manning is the real fly in the ointment for opponents. That fact was characterized most perfectly against New England, whose coach of coaches Bill Belichick elected to go for a fourth and one in his own territory with the time winding down rather than have to watch Manning drive the length of the field to beat him. Of course it didn’t work, Belichick’s Pats had to give Manning the ball about 40 yards closer to the endzone than they would have otherwise, and it was all over but the shouting (speaking of clichés).
The Saints had been undefeated too. But with each successive win, they won less convincingly. They did it with unlikely interceptions and forced fumbles and it seemed every win was an act of God. Yes, they had Drew Brees and Marques Colston, Shockey and Meacham, but they also had unlikely heroes almost all the time, guys like Devery Henderson and Pierre Thomas.
But what ultimately stopped the Saints was defensive injuries, in the secondary and defensive line. It seemed those turnovers just weren’t coming anymore, putting more pressure on the offense to outscore the opponent. And it just didn’t happen those last three games of the season.
The Colts had a very different ending to their regular season. They just gave it up, their perfect record, their chance at NFL history, their opportunity to put a lid on Don Shula and those Miami Dolphins of yesteryear, Csonka and Mercury Morris and Jim Kiick, and that feared 53 defense. They gave it up to avoid injuries for the playoffs.
So, as luck would have it, the fickle finger of fate landed on Dwight Freeney’s foot in the playoffs. Those 13 ½ sacks he had in the regular season would be meaningless. He came out of that Jets win with either a bad ankle sprain or some kind of ligament injuty, take your pick, but either one is pretty bad for a guy who depends on speed for his game.
The Colts were awesome in the playoffs though. They looked anxious to prove a point in thrashing the one-dimensional offenses of both the Ravens and the Jets, even though the Jets surprised them early with a passing game they really hadn’t shown all season.
While the Colts had it easy, the Saints had to face Arizona and Minnesota. There would be no Joe Flacco or Mark Sanchez barking out signals on the other side of the line from that opportunistic Saints defense. They had to face Kurt Warner and Brett Favre, two sure future Hall of Famers. But they came out on top, absolutely pulverizing Warner and the Cards while just squeaking by the much tougher and more versatile Vikings.
While it could be argued that the Vikings gave the game away, Childress and then Favre having found imaginative ways to throw the game away in the final minute, the Saints had to deal with the best running back in the NFL, Adrian Peterson, and their craftiest quarterback, who they may have forced into retirement.
The Vikings had a fearsome defense too. The Vikes had everything. The Vikes held the Saints offense to one of their lowest outputs of the season. But they couldn’t win the game. They fumbled the ball time after time and kept giving the Saints life when things looked the darkest for the black and gold. That fickle finger kept pointing at Peterson and Berrian and, in the final analysis, pointed straight at Childress and Favre.
If the Colts weren’t the best team in the NFL, the Vikings were. But they couldn’t beat the Saints. That same fickle finger made all those Saints injuries go away. It seemed to poke the ball out of Vikings’ hands and, down the stretch, that finger maybe even stuck itself through Favre’s ear right into his cerebrum.
And now Freeney’s hurt. While the injury could be just a ruse, I don’t think the Colts’ braintrust is that imaginative. There is no Belichick to mislead, confound and confusticate, just earnest Jim Caldwell and his hard-working band of real football players, which is still saying a lot, Freeney or not.
Without Freeney, Brees will have time to find all those receivers down the field, and pass defense was never the strength of the Colts, not this year anyway. The Saints could score early and often, putting enormous pressure on Manning, a master of pressure situations if there ever was one.
But when will enough become too much for Manning? He has already complained of being tired, after the Jets game, when the New Yorkers had taken that early lead that Manning had to take back. And he was brilliant, finding Pierre Garcon and Austin Collie and that elusive tight end of theirs.
It’s still early but even the great Manning may have trouble scoring at will against pesky veteran defenders who always seem to come up with the ball.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Ridiculous to Absurd to Tawdry
Well, those Divisional Championships came out more or less as I had expected, in result if not in content. The Jets lost but didn’t really stay as close as I had thought. The Vikings, although they lost, did manage to cover the 3 ½ point spread.
That the way the Jets lost it was really painful is beside the point. I’d never have expected either a 45-yarder out of the wildcat or an 80-yard Sanchez to Edwards bomb. Neither did the Colts, for sure. I hadn’t expected a Jets lead at all, at any point in the game. But then I didn’t expect the Jets secondary to look like the Giants for long stretches.
Jets fans are filled with hope now for next year, and everywhere it seems there is already talk of how great Sanchez will be next year. Although I’d have to agree that he’ll be better, I don’t think he’ll ever be much better than he was down the stretch this year. He looked good and played about as well as a quarterback could play….including yesterday. He’s got great feet, a good brain, and an accurate arm.
Remember Dwight Gooden? He was absolutely great early on, and everybody drooled about how much better he’d become. It never happened. Drugs happened. Same thing with Strawberry. My only point with this is to be happy with what you have. Don’t expect much more. If every Jet had played like Mark Sanchez yesterday, they’d have come out on top.
The same optimism is being shown for the Jets in general….how a pass rusher would obviate the need to blitz so much, how another cover guy like Revis would shore up that unit, how a healthy Kris Chambers would solidify the run defense, how another wide-out would provide some better targets for the rookie.
Well, the game is football. Anybody can get hurt and they usually do. Shonn Greene is a perfect example. Joe Namath is another. He was way better as a young QB than he was later on as his knees got taken out in Detroit, I think it was. Then he became rather stationary.
I’m just saying that what makes Sanchez so exciting is his feet, which are attached to his legs, and he already sports a brace on one knee. I’m certainly not wishing him ill but unless he has the luck of Brett Favre or Fran Tarkenton, or even Peyton Manning for that matter, he really can’t be much better than he was in the playoffs this season. He could certainly get more opportunities to shine. That wouldn’t be hard, but I won’t count on him getting much better in absolute terms. He’s been great.
When I heard that Lito Sheppard wasn’t starting yesterday, I cringed. I gave up hope that the Jets could win. The Colts had Lowery for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Pierre friggin’ Garcon made him look very bad. I can’t stomach corners who don’t look for the ball. That’s Lowery. I know the Jets were concerned about Sheppard against Manning, but give me a break….Lowery’s better?
The Saints-Vikings game was just ridiculous. The Vikings were better in every respect except for the turnovers. But you really can’t say that…turnovers are the biggest part of the game. So now we get to see the Saints play the Colts in the Super Bowl, the second-best NFC team for sure.
The only solace I can take from this game is that Favre got hit about a million times and looked bad in the game, especially down the stretch. I loved his cross-the-field INT to put an end to the regulation game. And I loved seeing him talk about retirement again…and his allusion to talking it over with his family. When you’ve already gone from ridiculous to absurd, what’s left…tawdry?
Let’s look at the game itself and Favre’s part in it. Favre blew a hand-off to Peterson from the ten-yard line that would have just about destroyed the Saints after Reggie Bush’s fumbled punt. Favre must’ve sensed Adrian may have scored on the play, meaning somebody besides him may have become the star. As it was, Peterson got three scores. Favre’s 2nd INT, as I’ve mentioned, closed any chance Minnesota may have had in regulation to win the game. His first INT was also in New Orleans territory just outside their 30-yard line. His QB rating for the day was 70.
Brad Childress deserved no better fate either as he managed to get too many men on the field at the critical juncture of the game, when the Vikings were in field goal range, only to be pushed out again, shortly followed by Favre’s INT. Furthermore, he never was able to control Favre.
New Orleans took the day and nobody was ever happier for that result than I was. But they didn’t do much against that great purple defense. They did take advantage of every opportunity though, or so it seemed. They won the turnover battle; they gave Brees time to throw; they played better than the Vikings on special teams overall, and they definitely held together as a team, something the Vikings can only wish for this Monday.
The Colts are currently 4 ½ point favorites to beat the Saints in the Bowl and I suspect that spread will only increase, especially if people start really analyzing these games. The Colts have everything, although you may say they have no running game. I think they elect to have no running game. They run only well enough to enable Manning’s play action passes. They have a terrific offensive line, a very good defensive line, and fast linebackers and secondary. All those assets are in addition to some very fine wide receivers, Reggie Wayne, Austin Collie and Pierre Garcon. The Colts are very similar to the Vikings in that they have all that versatility.
What the Colts don’t have, though, is personality. And, if I see any more colorless quotes from that coach of theirs…..UGH!!
That the way the Jets lost it was really painful is beside the point. I’d never have expected either a 45-yarder out of the wildcat or an 80-yard Sanchez to Edwards bomb. Neither did the Colts, for sure. I hadn’t expected a Jets lead at all, at any point in the game. But then I didn’t expect the Jets secondary to look like the Giants for long stretches.
Jets fans are filled with hope now for next year, and everywhere it seems there is already talk of how great Sanchez will be next year. Although I’d have to agree that he’ll be better, I don’t think he’ll ever be much better than he was down the stretch this year. He looked good and played about as well as a quarterback could play….including yesterday. He’s got great feet, a good brain, and an accurate arm.
Remember Dwight Gooden? He was absolutely great early on, and everybody drooled about how much better he’d become. It never happened. Drugs happened. Same thing with Strawberry. My only point with this is to be happy with what you have. Don’t expect much more. If every Jet had played like Mark Sanchez yesterday, they’d have come out on top.
The same optimism is being shown for the Jets in general….how a pass rusher would obviate the need to blitz so much, how another cover guy like Revis would shore up that unit, how a healthy Kris Chambers would solidify the run defense, how another wide-out would provide some better targets for the rookie.
Well, the game is football. Anybody can get hurt and they usually do. Shonn Greene is a perfect example. Joe Namath is another. He was way better as a young QB than he was later on as his knees got taken out in Detroit, I think it was. Then he became rather stationary.
I’m just saying that what makes Sanchez so exciting is his feet, which are attached to his legs, and he already sports a brace on one knee. I’m certainly not wishing him ill but unless he has the luck of Brett Favre or Fran Tarkenton, or even Peyton Manning for that matter, he really can’t be much better than he was in the playoffs this season. He could certainly get more opportunities to shine. That wouldn’t be hard, but I won’t count on him getting much better in absolute terms. He’s been great.
When I heard that Lito Sheppard wasn’t starting yesterday, I cringed. I gave up hope that the Jets could win. The Colts had Lowery for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Pierre friggin’ Garcon made him look very bad. I can’t stomach corners who don’t look for the ball. That’s Lowery. I know the Jets were concerned about Sheppard against Manning, but give me a break….Lowery’s better?
The Saints-Vikings game was just ridiculous. The Vikings were better in every respect except for the turnovers. But you really can’t say that…turnovers are the biggest part of the game. So now we get to see the Saints play the Colts in the Super Bowl, the second-best NFC team for sure.
The only solace I can take from this game is that Favre got hit about a million times and looked bad in the game, especially down the stretch. I loved his cross-the-field INT to put an end to the regulation game. And I loved seeing him talk about retirement again…and his allusion to talking it over with his family. When you’ve already gone from ridiculous to absurd, what’s left…tawdry?
Let’s look at the game itself and Favre’s part in it. Favre blew a hand-off to Peterson from the ten-yard line that would have just about destroyed the Saints after Reggie Bush’s fumbled punt. Favre must’ve sensed Adrian may have scored on the play, meaning somebody besides him may have become the star. As it was, Peterson got three scores. Favre’s 2nd INT, as I’ve mentioned, closed any chance Minnesota may have had in regulation to win the game. His first INT was also in New Orleans territory just outside their 30-yard line. His QB rating for the day was 70.
Brad Childress deserved no better fate either as he managed to get too many men on the field at the critical juncture of the game, when the Vikings were in field goal range, only to be pushed out again, shortly followed by Favre’s INT. Furthermore, he never was able to control Favre.
New Orleans took the day and nobody was ever happier for that result than I was. But they didn’t do much against that great purple defense. They did take advantage of every opportunity though, or so it seemed. They won the turnover battle; they gave Brees time to throw; they played better than the Vikings on special teams overall, and they definitely held together as a team, something the Vikings can only wish for this Monday.
The Colts are currently 4 ½ point favorites to beat the Saints in the Bowl and I suspect that spread will only increase, especially if people start really analyzing these games. The Colts have everything, although you may say they have no running game. I think they elect to have no running game. They run only well enough to enable Manning’s play action passes. They have a terrific offensive line, a very good defensive line, and fast linebackers and secondary. All those assets are in addition to some very fine wide receivers, Reggie Wayne, Austin Collie and Pierre Garcon. The Colts are very similar to the Vikings in that they have all that versatility.
What the Colts don’t have, though, is personality. And, if I see any more colorless quotes from that coach of theirs…..UGH!!
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
The Worst and Best of 2009
I think I’m going to be sick. Tiger Woods has been named Athlete of the Decade by AP. What timing, huh?
I don’t even care whether he is or not but it seems the AP is trying to get in the good graces of Tiger, amidst all the well-deserved media (and universal) criticism. If not for his good graces, the award was given to make sure he’d return to the game so that AP writers would have something to write about, as if there’re no other good candidates for a little more press.
I’m not a moralist but Tiger has lived a despicable existence for a married man, not because he fooled around but because he fooled around and took almost no pains to disguise the fact. It was okay with Woods to embarrass his wife and his kid…..over and over again.
So spare me if I spit on your award, AP. I’m happy not to be a part of it.
Speaking of despicable human beings, Bret Favre was hailed in a recent Newark Star-Ledger article that boosted him for MVP, as if there were no other candidates, as if there were nobody performing better, not Peyton Manning, not Drew Brees or Philip Rivers, to name just a few.
The writer in question also seemed to think all the criticism was unfounded, a theory that just doesn’t wash.
Let me say it one more time. Favre ruined the Jets season last year by playing hurt. He hid his arm injury to keep his consecutive games record alive. He didn’t care what he did to the Jets season. That he had a perfectly willing Jets management to assist him in that regard isn’t really the point. The man needed an arm operation LAST YEAR, not in the off-season so that he could come back totally healthy with his rocket arm working perfectly well for his old team’s biggest rival.
Favre certainly has been great this year. And he was pretty great for a lot of years. And maybe he would be a viable candidate for NFL MVP this year. But he cheated the Jets and the Jets fans. He took a playoffs season away from them. That’s my problem with Favre. The fact that he never met a camera or microphone he didn’t like has nothing to do with it.
Let’s see….who else can I pick on? Oh, I know, how about Serena Williams, the latest quasi-star to get a break from the U.S. press and the powers that be in tennis.
She deserved a suspension for her ugly emotional display (and arguably, assault upon the lineswoman) at the U.S. Open. She got a fine instead. She now has the green light to ruin everybody’s good time at another major tennis event. Along the way, we can listen to her whine that the whole ugly matter should be put to rest.
She not only ruined the Open, she also robbed the winner, Kim Clijsters of Belgium, of her victory on the court, a hard-fought and decisive victory, one for which Williams had no ready excuse. She hadn’t launched her crippled act. She hadn’t tapped into the trainers-session delays she had used in several important past matches to demoralize opponents who had finer tennis skills but couldn’t match her for gamesmanship and rules-twisting.
There is still some good in the world though. As this is the Christmas season, let me now focus on some positively good people, some people who aren’t just talented but who always seem to personify hard work and class.
How about Mark Teixeira? Teixeira did nothing but good things for the Yankees in 2009, earning every bit of his money and hustling all along the way. I’ll always remember his scoring from first base with the winning run against the Mets on a fly ball that 99.5 % of the time gets caught. But since it was Luis Castillo, the ball wasn’t caught. Teixeira stole one for his Yankees, not with his considerable talent but with his remarkable hustle.
How about Eli Manning? All Eli does is try to win. He can’t quite manage the fine sense of humor his brother has always had. And he doesn’t have his brother’s accuracy to be perfectly honest.
Eli just had exactly the confident but humble demeanor his team needed in 2007, one that he still brought to the table this year and last, no matter that he was robbed first of his wide-outs and then of his defense. You never hear a word of complaint from Eli, although I suspect his receivers hear about their route-running from time to time.
How about Drew Brees? Here’s a true man of stature who lacks only height, a guy who has been “dissed” throughout his lifetime by football experts, a guy who kept Philip Rivers on the bench in San Diego, where he started his pro career, for two full years, a guy who should have won the Heisman in 2000 but lost to the taller Chris Weinke from Florida State (but did finish ahead of LaDainian Tomlinson and a fella named Michael Vick).
When Brees was eligible for free agency in 2006, the Chargers elected to let him go with nary an unkind word from Mr. Brees, to the Saints, who Brees lead to their first NFC Championship Game in his first year.
Ever since his acquisition, Brees has been top notch offensively, starting every game for the Saints and gaining over 4400 yards in his first two years before topping the 5000 yard mark in 2008. This year, Brees is once again among the NFC leaders in yardage and touchdowns, this despite the fact that the Saints are running more than ever in their quest for that elusive Super Bowl victory.
Unlike Peyton and Brady, though, Brees throws to everyone ,usually making sure every wide-out gets his touchdown each game, making household names of Marques Colston, Robert Meachem and Devery Henderson.
He’s the best of 2009 and King of Bacchus too!
I don’t even care whether he is or not but it seems the AP is trying to get in the good graces of Tiger, amidst all the well-deserved media (and universal) criticism. If not for his good graces, the award was given to make sure he’d return to the game so that AP writers would have something to write about, as if there’re no other good candidates for a little more press.
I’m not a moralist but Tiger has lived a despicable existence for a married man, not because he fooled around but because he fooled around and took almost no pains to disguise the fact. It was okay with Woods to embarrass his wife and his kid…..over and over again.
So spare me if I spit on your award, AP. I’m happy not to be a part of it.
Speaking of despicable human beings, Bret Favre was hailed in a recent Newark Star-Ledger article that boosted him for MVP, as if there were no other candidates, as if there were nobody performing better, not Peyton Manning, not Drew Brees or Philip Rivers, to name just a few.
The writer in question also seemed to think all the criticism was unfounded, a theory that just doesn’t wash.
Let me say it one more time. Favre ruined the Jets season last year by playing hurt. He hid his arm injury to keep his consecutive games record alive. He didn’t care what he did to the Jets season. That he had a perfectly willing Jets management to assist him in that regard isn’t really the point. The man needed an arm operation LAST YEAR, not in the off-season so that he could come back totally healthy with his rocket arm working perfectly well for his old team’s biggest rival.
Favre certainly has been great this year. And he was pretty great for a lot of years. And maybe he would be a viable candidate for NFL MVP this year. But he cheated the Jets and the Jets fans. He took a playoffs season away from them. That’s my problem with Favre. The fact that he never met a camera or microphone he didn’t like has nothing to do with it.
Let’s see….who else can I pick on? Oh, I know, how about Serena Williams, the latest quasi-star to get a break from the U.S. press and the powers that be in tennis.
She deserved a suspension for her ugly emotional display (and arguably, assault upon the lineswoman) at the U.S. Open. She got a fine instead. She now has the green light to ruin everybody’s good time at another major tennis event. Along the way, we can listen to her whine that the whole ugly matter should be put to rest.
She not only ruined the Open, she also robbed the winner, Kim Clijsters of Belgium, of her victory on the court, a hard-fought and decisive victory, one for which Williams had no ready excuse. She hadn’t launched her crippled act. She hadn’t tapped into the trainers-session delays she had used in several important past matches to demoralize opponents who had finer tennis skills but couldn’t match her for gamesmanship and rules-twisting.
There is still some good in the world though. As this is the Christmas season, let me now focus on some positively good people, some people who aren’t just talented but who always seem to personify hard work and class.
How about Mark Teixeira? Teixeira did nothing but good things for the Yankees in 2009, earning every bit of his money and hustling all along the way. I’ll always remember his scoring from first base with the winning run against the Mets on a fly ball that 99.5 % of the time gets caught. But since it was Luis Castillo, the ball wasn’t caught. Teixeira stole one for his Yankees, not with his considerable talent but with his remarkable hustle.
How about Eli Manning? All Eli does is try to win. He can’t quite manage the fine sense of humor his brother has always had. And he doesn’t have his brother’s accuracy to be perfectly honest.
Eli just had exactly the confident but humble demeanor his team needed in 2007, one that he still brought to the table this year and last, no matter that he was robbed first of his wide-outs and then of his defense. You never hear a word of complaint from Eli, although I suspect his receivers hear about their route-running from time to time.
How about Drew Brees? Here’s a true man of stature who lacks only height, a guy who has been “dissed” throughout his lifetime by football experts, a guy who kept Philip Rivers on the bench in San Diego, where he started his pro career, for two full years, a guy who should have won the Heisman in 2000 but lost to the taller Chris Weinke from Florida State (but did finish ahead of LaDainian Tomlinson and a fella named Michael Vick).
When Brees was eligible for free agency in 2006, the Chargers elected to let him go with nary an unkind word from Mr. Brees, to the Saints, who Brees lead to their first NFC Championship Game in his first year.
Ever since his acquisition, Brees has been top notch offensively, starting every game for the Saints and gaining over 4400 yards in his first two years before topping the 5000 yard mark in 2008. This year, Brees is once again among the NFC leaders in yardage and touchdowns, this despite the fact that the Saints are running more than ever in their quest for that elusive Super Bowl victory.
Unlike Peyton and Brady, though, Brees throws to everyone ,usually making sure every wide-out gets his touchdown each game, making household names of Marques Colston, Robert Meachem and Devery Henderson.
He’s the best of 2009 and King of Bacchus too!
Friday, December 4, 2009
Week 13 Picks and Go Saints
Week 12 was once again a winner for me as my weekly record was 8-4-1, bringing my cumulative record against the spread to a very healthy 71-50-1. While I can’t expect this good luck to continue, I can be hopeful that this streak goes one more week.
Actually, my best bets weren’t that great (2-1-1) so I didn’t win the ten bucks as I did last week. You wouldn’t think picking 4 absolute locks would be that difficult but, in this very fluky NFL, it’s proven to be a real poser.
My Week 12 best bets were Washington over Philadelphia getting a whopping 9 points, Cleveland over the Bengals getting 14, Arizona getting 3 vs the Titans (the tie), and Miami over the Bills by 3 (the loser). Terrell Owens made a monkey of me and the Fish in that one. The Bills sure didn’t repeat their fine performance Thursday night against our Jets.
Once again, this winning streak can’t continue so consider that as you bet. There are once again some big injuries and uncertainties. Kurt Warner’s status last week wasn’t solidified until Sunday morning.
Anyway, here’s the Week 13 picks:
Favorite Spread Underdog 4 Best My Pick Reason
Den 4 ½ KCY Den Teams going opposite ways
PIT 14 ½ Oak PIT Raiders give up easy
JAC PK Tex Tex Just can’t pick Jags
IND 6 ½ Ten Ten Titans on a roll, will cover
Phi 5 ½ ATL * Phi This could get ugly
CIN 13 ½ Det Det Bengals won’t win big
Saints 9 ½ WAS WAS Brees will handoff a lot
CAR 6 ½ Bucs * CAR They’re all on notice in Carolina
CHI 9 Stl CHI Bears will take advantage
Chargers 13 ½ CLE CLE Browns cover on SD defense
SEA Pk 49ers 49ers Always on the Niners
Vikes 3 ARI Vikes Who’s better? The Vikes
Boyz 2 ½ NYG * Boyz G-Men just seem beaten already
Pats 4 MIA * Pats Pats embarrassed, win big
The best bets for Week 13:
Eagles – Really unimpressed by Falcons defense combined with Eagles recent narrow victories make me believe McNabb will just score early, late and quite often, DeSean or no DeSean, Westbrook or not.
Panthers – Delhomme’s benching will energize Carolina. Peppers will make himself a problem for Tampa Bay’s linemen. Biggest factor is that everybody from the coach to the special teams knows they’re expendable.
Cowboys – I really hate picking the Boyz but this is a game I truly feel the Giants have already conceded. Everybody’s hurt and now Osi is benched? Doesn’t look good for the G-Men. CC Brown may even play, omigosh, that’s really scary.
Patriots –Just as surely as the Saints kicked their butts last week, you know the Pats will come back loaded for bear, or fish. Dolphins just need other weapons besides Ricky, who will get some yards but not so many scores.
On other fronts, let me just put my two cents in for the “powers that be” in women’s tennis. Their heavy fine ($82,500) of Serena Williams was more than I would have expected but less than what she deserved. I’m really tired of hearing both sisters talk about “moving on”. I’m not ready to move on yet. I may never be.
On Tiger’s situation, I just want to voice my surprise that, amid all this speculation about how many girlfriends he’s had, nobody has speculated about what club Elin used to break the windows in the caddy! C’mon people, this is GOLF. When you watch a match, all you hear is what club they’re selecting. (My guess is a low iron, probably a 3).
I’m a little concerned about my Mets. What the heck are they doing? Blanco? With so many needs all over the place, I wouldn’t have expected the first move to be a totally nebulous one….cryptic even. Let’s see…the Braves pick up Billy Wagner and Takashi Saito and we get friggin’ Blanco, who hits way less than Omir Santos, the incumbent.
Yeah, it’s great that Johan Santana recommended him, he’s supposed to be good with pitchers, blah blah blah, but who’s running this team anyway? Oh, and we let Placido Polanco go on to the Phils. I guess we’ll be hoping Luis Castillo still has one more good year. Good luck. Good grief!
Meanwhile, I actually heard a Mets fan call in to complain about Matt Holliday’s lack of range in left field. Gimme a break. Yeah, let’s go all out for Endy Chavez, he’s got LOTS of range.
On the basketball front, which I’ve been studiously ignoring so far, I see Allen Iverson has landed with the Sixers. Good for Allen, good for the Sixers and good for the league. It’s hard to keep LeBron out of the news, not to mention Kobe, but I hope they won’t make him practice. PRACTICE?
Meanwhile, the glow is only now fading from the Saints’ pulverizing of the Pats on Monday Night Football, for all the world to see. I foresaw something like it in last Friday’s column, speculating that the Saints had the pure motivation on their side. Drew Brees and company, Colston, Meachem, Moore, Shockey, et al really gave it to them.
But it was the defense that really came up big, and to see McAllister and Mike McKenzie play the way they did, after just having had joined the team, was fantastic. Kudos to all the Saints, Pierre Thomas too. This is a team you have to root for to go all the way.
Back to the Giants, as they are playing this weekend, I wish I had something nice to say. I’ve been picking on defensive coordinator Sheridan all year and I still suspect he is the biggest problem of a whole slew of them.
Let me end this by wishing all you fantasy players good luck in Week 13 that in most leagues is the final week of the regular season. I need a win and another Brees and Saints week.
Actually, my best bets weren’t that great (2-1-1) so I didn’t win the ten bucks as I did last week. You wouldn’t think picking 4 absolute locks would be that difficult but, in this very fluky NFL, it’s proven to be a real poser.
My Week 12 best bets were Washington over Philadelphia getting a whopping 9 points, Cleveland over the Bengals getting 14, Arizona getting 3 vs the Titans (the tie), and Miami over the Bills by 3 (the loser). Terrell Owens made a monkey of me and the Fish in that one. The Bills sure didn’t repeat their fine performance Thursday night against our Jets.
Once again, this winning streak can’t continue so consider that as you bet. There are once again some big injuries and uncertainties. Kurt Warner’s status last week wasn’t solidified until Sunday morning.
Anyway, here’s the Week 13 picks:
Favorite Spread Underdog 4 Best My Pick Reason
Den 4 ½ KCY Den Teams going opposite ways
PIT 14 ½ Oak PIT Raiders give up easy
JAC PK Tex Tex Just can’t pick Jags
IND 6 ½ Ten Ten Titans on a roll, will cover
Phi 5 ½ ATL * Phi This could get ugly
CIN 13 ½ Det Det Bengals won’t win big
Saints 9 ½ WAS WAS Brees will handoff a lot
CAR 6 ½ Bucs * CAR They’re all on notice in Carolina
CHI 9 Stl CHI Bears will take advantage
Chargers 13 ½ CLE CLE Browns cover on SD defense
SEA Pk 49ers 49ers Always on the Niners
Vikes 3 ARI Vikes Who’s better? The Vikes
Boyz 2 ½ NYG * Boyz G-Men just seem beaten already
Pats 4 MIA * Pats Pats embarrassed, win big
The best bets for Week 13:
Eagles – Really unimpressed by Falcons defense combined with Eagles recent narrow victories make me believe McNabb will just score early, late and quite often, DeSean or no DeSean, Westbrook or not.
Panthers – Delhomme’s benching will energize Carolina. Peppers will make himself a problem for Tampa Bay’s linemen. Biggest factor is that everybody from the coach to the special teams knows they’re expendable.
Cowboys – I really hate picking the Boyz but this is a game I truly feel the Giants have already conceded. Everybody’s hurt and now Osi is benched? Doesn’t look good for the G-Men. CC Brown may even play, omigosh, that’s really scary.
Patriots –Just as surely as the Saints kicked their butts last week, you know the Pats will come back loaded for bear, or fish. Dolphins just need other weapons besides Ricky, who will get some yards but not so many scores.
On other fronts, let me just put my two cents in for the “powers that be” in women’s tennis. Their heavy fine ($82,500) of Serena Williams was more than I would have expected but less than what she deserved. I’m really tired of hearing both sisters talk about “moving on”. I’m not ready to move on yet. I may never be.
On Tiger’s situation, I just want to voice my surprise that, amid all this speculation about how many girlfriends he’s had, nobody has speculated about what club Elin used to break the windows in the caddy! C’mon people, this is GOLF. When you watch a match, all you hear is what club they’re selecting. (My guess is a low iron, probably a 3).
I’m a little concerned about my Mets. What the heck are they doing? Blanco? With so many needs all over the place, I wouldn’t have expected the first move to be a totally nebulous one….cryptic even. Let’s see…the Braves pick up Billy Wagner and Takashi Saito and we get friggin’ Blanco, who hits way less than Omir Santos, the incumbent.
Yeah, it’s great that Johan Santana recommended him, he’s supposed to be good with pitchers, blah blah blah, but who’s running this team anyway? Oh, and we let Placido Polanco go on to the Phils. I guess we’ll be hoping Luis Castillo still has one more good year. Good luck. Good grief!
Meanwhile, I actually heard a Mets fan call in to complain about Matt Holliday’s lack of range in left field. Gimme a break. Yeah, let’s go all out for Endy Chavez, he’s got LOTS of range.
On the basketball front, which I’ve been studiously ignoring so far, I see Allen Iverson has landed with the Sixers. Good for Allen, good for the Sixers and good for the league. It’s hard to keep LeBron out of the news, not to mention Kobe, but I hope they won’t make him practice. PRACTICE?
Meanwhile, the glow is only now fading from the Saints’ pulverizing of the Pats on Monday Night Football, for all the world to see. I foresaw something like it in last Friday’s column, speculating that the Saints had the pure motivation on their side. Drew Brees and company, Colston, Meachem, Moore, Shockey, et al really gave it to them.
But it was the defense that really came up big, and to see McAllister and Mike McKenzie play the way they did, after just having had joined the team, was fantastic. Kudos to all the Saints, Pierre Thomas too. This is a team you have to root for to go all the way.
Back to the Giants, as they are playing this weekend, I wish I had something nice to say. I’ve been picking on defensive coordinator Sheridan all year and I still suspect he is the biggest problem of a whole slew of them.
Let me end this by wishing all you fantasy players good luck in Week 13 that in most leagues is the final week of the regular season. I need a win and another Brees and Saints week.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Who's the Fantasy Number 1 ?
Drew Brees? Peyton Manning? Tom Brady? Aaron Rodgers? All week, and even longer), these names and others keep buzzing by my head. Yesterday, while fixing the roof and cleaning the gutters, the question was all-consuming, who should be by number 1 overall pick in our 2009 Squander Fantasy Football League?
Now, some of you are probably asking yourself why I’m focusing on quarterbacks. What about the consensus #1 pick, Adrian Peterson, the great Minnesota running back? There are some great runners out there, and aren’t you concerned about the shortage of running backs, the traditional approach of fantasy pundits for the last ten years or so?
Well, first you have to understand that, while most fantasy leagues award passing TD’s with just 4 points, which tends to equalize a quarterback’s value with running backs and receivers, Squander Football insists on awarding a TD with 6 points; a touchdown is a touchdown, right?
Well, I’m ok with that notion, what the hell, we can come to grips with anything, this league doesn’t have any duffers, these guys have been doing this for years and years. The commissioner, my brother John, was an old Strat player and, many times you could find him happily playing it down the basement when he was maybe 6 years old.
John disagrees, by the way, with my theory that this points system should humongously skew the draft towards qb’s. The deciding factors should be scarcity at individual spots and point increments between the leaders and those following.
He maintains that the overall points difference between Drew Brees, the top fantasy scorer last year, and the rest of the qb’s, doesn’t exceed that of the top running back, Peterson, from the rest of the running backs. And that may even be so, I won’t be listing the stats here, too boring, but what happens when you list the all the available players and sort by total fantasy points?
Of the first 15 players of all types last year, a running back doesn’t appear until number 9 on the list. And it isn’t Peterson, it’s DeAngelo Williams, the Carolina RB back that tore up the league last year. Of the next 6 spots, 4 more are qb’s before you get to 15, Adrian Peterson’s rank. The points differential between Drew Brees and Adrian Peterson was 361-233 or a whopping 128 points. Even spread out over 16 weeks, that’s a little more than a TD per week. The top back scored 272 points, still 89 less or about 5 points per week.
In a snake draft as in Squander, the number 1 picker’s next pick doesn’t occur until pick 24. So, taking a qb, I’d get 360 for Brees and then be faced with selections worth 210 points. That gives me 360 plus 210 or 570 points. Taking a running back first, I’d get 270 for the back and then probably the 10th or 11th best qb, currently Eli Manning, at 231 points. That’s basically 500 points overall. So I pick up 70 points overall by taking a QB first. I don’t think there’s any two ways about it.
And furthermore, I’d have Brees and either a top wide receiver or a middling running back versus having Peterson and Eli Manning. While I really like Eli, he can’t be a top fantasy qb playing for Coughlin and the Giants, a shame really, but there you have it. Imagine Brees and a top receiver, maybe even a Larry Fitzgerald or Randy Moss. Or, I’d have Brees and a middling running back, say a Ryan Grant or Ronnie Brown.
It doesn’t really matter, running back or wide receiver, as I also get pick 25 in a snake draft. So the real choice is how to combine the picks for maximum advantage. My next pick wouldn’t occur until pick 49 (and then 50), at which point the talent is significantly thinned. A quick look at the list shows players such as Roy Williams and Larry Johnson there, not too shabby.
But the significant thing is that statistical edge going into the third round if I take a qb first; it doesn’t even have to be Brees, it could be Philip Rivers or Adam Rodgers who both scored about 335 fantasy points on the season, still way ahead of the top-rated running back at 270.
There are flaws to this approach, of course, the biggest one being the fact that what happened last year will not necessarily happen this year. Statistically, it makes more sense to look at career performances among the qb’s, which of course would add to the luster of guys like Brady, who was hurt last year, and Peyton Manning, the only Manning in town, so to speak, when you’re talking fantasy.
Then there is aesthetics, the art of the game and my enjoyment of the season. There is also the fun of the draft itself to keep in mind. I’d get a kick out of surprising the numbers 2 through 5 pickers, and maybe even a psychological advantage. For example, I could take Brady and really discomfit Snake Eyes, picking at number 2.
There is embarrassment to consider too, but I don’t really care about that so much. Last year, for example, I took Tony Romo with the number 1, an unconventional choice that drew some jeers but I was never really sorry, this despite Romo’s missing of a few weeks and then returning at only about 70%. Romo is a lot of fun to watch and you never know what starlet he’ll be bringing to the stadium.
And, speaking of last year, though I lost every game Romo didn’t start (backup Delhomme was truly horrible), I made the playoffs and won at least once in the playoffs, even though I needed a savvy running back pickup to muddle through.
But running backs will be a secondary consideration. There are too many good ones, too many split backfields and the wildcat too. The quarterback stirs the drink in Squander.
Now, some of you are probably asking yourself why I’m focusing on quarterbacks. What about the consensus #1 pick, Adrian Peterson, the great Minnesota running back? There are some great runners out there, and aren’t you concerned about the shortage of running backs, the traditional approach of fantasy pundits for the last ten years or so?
Well, first you have to understand that, while most fantasy leagues award passing TD’s with just 4 points, which tends to equalize a quarterback’s value with running backs and receivers, Squander Football insists on awarding a TD with 6 points; a touchdown is a touchdown, right?
Well, I’m ok with that notion, what the hell, we can come to grips with anything, this league doesn’t have any duffers, these guys have been doing this for years and years. The commissioner, my brother John, was an old Strat player and, many times you could find him happily playing it down the basement when he was maybe 6 years old.
John disagrees, by the way, with my theory that this points system should humongously skew the draft towards qb’s. The deciding factors should be scarcity at individual spots and point increments between the leaders and those following.
He maintains that the overall points difference between Drew Brees, the top fantasy scorer last year, and the rest of the qb’s, doesn’t exceed that of the top running back, Peterson, from the rest of the running backs. And that may even be so, I won’t be listing the stats here, too boring, but what happens when you list the all the available players and sort by total fantasy points?
Of the first 15 players of all types last year, a running back doesn’t appear until number 9 on the list. And it isn’t Peterson, it’s DeAngelo Williams, the Carolina RB back that tore up the league last year. Of the next 6 spots, 4 more are qb’s before you get to 15, Adrian Peterson’s rank. The points differential between Drew Brees and Adrian Peterson was 361-233 or a whopping 128 points. Even spread out over 16 weeks, that’s a little more than a TD per week. The top back scored 272 points, still 89 less or about 5 points per week.
In a snake draft as in Squander, the number 1 picker’s next pick doesn’t occur until pick 24. So, taking a qb, I’d get 360 for Brees and then be faced with selections worth 210 points. That gives me 360 plus 210 or 570 points. Taking a running back first, I’d get 270 for the back and then probably the 10th or 11th best qb, currently Eli Manning, at 231 points. That’s basically 500 points overall. So I pick up 70 points overall by taking a QB first. I don’t think there’s any two ways about it.
And furthermore, I’d have Brees and either a top wide receiver or a middling running back versus having Peterson and Eli Manning. While I really like Eli, he can’t be a top fantasy qb playing for Coughlin and the Giants, a shame really, but there you have it. Imagine Brees and a top receiver, maybe even a Larry Fitzgerald or Randy Moss. Or, I’d have Brees and a middling running back, say a Ryan Grant or Ronnie Brown.
It doesn’t really matter, running back or wide receiver, as I also get pick 25 in a snake draft. So the real choice is how to combine the picks for maximum advantage. My next pick wouldn’t occur until pick 49 (and then 50), at which point the talent is significantly thinned. A quick look at the list shows players such as Roy Williams and Larry Johnson there, not too shabby.
But the significant thing is that statistical edge going into the third round if I take a qb first; it doesn’t even have to be Brees, it could be Philip Rivers or Adam Rodgers who both scored about 335 fantasy points on the season, still way ahead of the top-rated running back at 270.
There are flaws to this approach, of course, the biggest one being the fact that what happened last year will not necessarily happen this year. Statistically, it makes more sense to look at career performances among the qb’s, which of course would add to the luster of guys like Brady, who was hurt last year, and Peyton Manning, the only Manning in town, so to speak, when you’re talking fantasy.
Then there is aesthetics, the art of the game and my enjoyment of the season. There is also the fun of the draft itself to keep in mind. I’d get a kick out of surprising the numbers 2 through 5 pickers, and maybe even a psychological advantage. For example, I could take Brady and really discomfit Snake Eyes, picking at number 2.
There is embarrassment to consider too, but I don’t really care about that so much. Last year, for example, I took Tony Romo with the number 1, an unconventional choice that drew some jeers but I was never really sorry, this despite Romo’s missing of a few weeks and then returning at only about 70%. Romo is a lot of fun to watch and you never know what starlet he’ll be bringing to the stadium.
And, speaking of last year, though I lost every game Romo didn’t start (backup Delhomme was truly horrible), I made the playoffs and won at least once in the playoffs, even though I needed a savvy running back pickup to muddle through.
But running backs will be a secondary consideration. There are too many good ones, too many split backfields and the wildcat too. The quarterback stirs the drink in Squander.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
A Fantasy League Night Before Christmas...
‘Twas the week before Finals, and all through the league
All done was the fighting and petty intrigue
The two teams remaining had only to care
‘bout filling in rosters and how they would fare.
TeamNYSE and BigSwim had made their own bed
Mustangs and Cowboys and Cudas saw red
And Gjets looked perfect, ‘fore taking a nap
At a critical juncture, his team took a slap.
When Sunday dawned, their brains were a scatter
Their reason was fed by robust fecal matter
More often than not, runners-up they would crash
For all of their druthers looked bad in a flash.
But two teams were blessed and their lineups would flow
And the fluster of Sundays they wouldn’t know
With most of their thundering guys on a tear
They never would stray – their choices were clear
They had no Donald Driver, their players were slick
Whoever they’d plug in would quite often click
Not McNabb’s Eagles, their coursers they came
Their rosters they flouted, had no change of name.
Now Romo! now Colston ! they ne’er needed fixin’
And Crosby, the Packer, he sure got his kicks in
To young Braylon and Gates, mighty Klondikes would call
Now dash away, dash away, dash away all!
He believed in his lineup, no waivers he’d fly
When he’d meet with an obstacle, just give a sigh
So up in the standings, his coursers they flew
On game day made noises that always rang true.
When ramsy was tinkerin’, he stayed aloof
Most of Scoops signings, he knew were a goof
While Fu’s and Crab’s rosters were turning around
The Northmen stayed firm, his few moves they were sound.
No fly-by-night wonder on his roster he’d put
Had to jump like a reindeer or be fleet of foot.
One team started slowly but wound up on track
The pickup of Graham soon fueled his attack
Snake Eyes ne’er wrinkled, he needed no hurry
LT over everyone soon he would scurry.
Norv Turner’s dumb game plans, soon they would go
And the rock went to LT, so everyone’d know
A lump in their windpipe, a kick in the teeth
As LaDainian circled the field like a wreath.
Brees finished the race though N’Awlins was jelly
And T.O. would triumph, T Glenn he did spell thee
Lendale chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf
Of his second round pick, he’d soon prove himself.
To think the Snake Eyes would end up in the red
Was before he placed Johnson in Santana’s stead.
Yahoo says the Klondikes will sure have to work
But Brees will find Eagles D real hard to shirk
On Raiders defenders, Fred Taylor will close
And Braylon ‘gainst Bengals could smell like a rose
And Romo will play tough ‘cause Jessica’s fickle
And she could end up scratching some other tickle
But she won’t be to blame, should good Tony lose sight
Of T.O. and Witten, say Big D GOOD NIGHT !!
All done was the fighting and petty intrigue
The two teams remaining had only to care
‘bout filling in rosters and how they would fare.
TeamNYSE and BigSwim had made their own bed
Mustangs and Cowboys and Cudas saw red
And Gjets looked perfect, ‘fore taking a nap
At a critical juncture, his team took a slap.
When Sunday dawned, their brains were a scatter
Their reason was fed by robust fecal matter
More often than not, runners-up they would crash
For all of their druthers looked bad in a flash.
But two teams were blessed and their lineups would flow
And the fluster of Sundays they wouldn’t know
With most of their thundering guys on a tear
They never would stray – their choices were clear
They had no Donald Driver, their players were slick
Whoever they’d plug in would quite often click
Not McNabb’s Eagles, their coursers they came
Their rosters they flouted, had no change of name.
Now Romo! now Colston ! they ne’er needed fixin’
And Crosby, the Packer, he sure got his kicks in
To young Braylon and Gates, mighty Klondikes would call
Now dash away, dash away, dash away all!
He believed in his lineup, no waivers he’d fly
When he’d meet with an obstacle, just give a sigh
So up in the standings, his coursers they flew
On game day made noises that always rang true.
When ramsy was tinkerin’, he stayed aloof
Most of Scoops signings, he knew were a goof
While Fu’s and Crab’s rosters were turning around
The Northmen stayed firm, his few moves they were sound.
No fly-by-night wonder on his roster he’d put
Had to jump like a reindeer or be fleet of foot.
One team started slowly but wound up on track
The pickup of Graham soon fueled his attack
Snake Eyes ne’er wrinkled, he needed no hurry
LT over everyone soon he would scurry.
Norv Turner’s dumb game plans, soon they would go
And the rock went to LT, so everyone’d know
A lump in their windpipe, a kick in the teeth
As LaDainian circled the field like a wreath.
Brees finished the race though N’Awlins was jelly
And T.O. would triumph, T Glenn he did spell thee
Lendale chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf
Of his second round pick, he’d soon prove himself.
To think the Snake Eyes would end up in the red
Was before he placed Johnson in Santana’s stead.
Yahoo says the Klondikes will sure have to work
But Brees will find Eagles D real hard to shirk
On Raiders defenders, Fred Taylor will close
And Braylon ‘gainst Bengals could smell like a rose
And Romo will play tough ‘cause Jessica’s fickle
And she could end up scratching some other tickle
But she won’t be to blame, should good Tony lose sight
Of T.O. and Witten, say Big D GOOD NIGHT !!
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