 Wysłany: Sob 2:09, 16 Paź 2010 Temat postu: 7. Kansas City |
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| For the bottom line on the 2010 NFL season thus far, let's turn to the coach of the United Football League's Sacramento Mountain Lions.
"They are who we thought they were,'' Dennis Green said on Oct. 26, 2006 to describe the Chicago Bears after Green's Arizona Cardinals blew a 20-point lead despite holding the Bears, a Super Bowl team that season, without an offensive touchdown. In 2010,football uniforms, with Green coaching a team quarterbacked by Daunte Culpepper, whom he drafted for the Vikings in 1999, his phrase has been turned on its head. Very few teams are who we thought they were. Consider: there are no unbeaten teams five weeks into the season for the first time since 1970. Some folks lament it; the NFL loves it. As of now ... What we thought about a dozen teams, some as recently as a week or two ago and what's changed about them ... and probably will change again after just five games of a 16-game season. 1. Dallas (1-3) We Thought They Were: "The most talented team in football,'' ready to become the first to play a Super Bowl in its home stadium. Just look at the receivers: Dez Bryant is an instant threat as a rookie; Roy Williams is starting to use his talent and Miles Austin ... well, Miles Austin is a threat every time he touches the ball, a tribute to Bill Parcells' contacts at the Jersey Shore who tipped him off about the kid that played for Monmouth. Fitting that he caught nine passes for 166 yards on the weekend that Bruce Springsteen's "The Promise'' debuted on HBO. They Are: A mess as they prepare to play Minnesota in a game that could end the season of the loser. Twelve penalties for 133 yards in that home loss to Tennessee, including one for an illegal demonstration on offensive tackle Marc Colombo after the tying TD. (OK, it's a stupid rule, but the officials who called it had to know that Jeff Fisher is co-chairman of the competition committee that recommended it) In any case, it forced the Cowboys to kick off from the 15, meaning Marc Mariani could start his 73-yard return 15 yards closer to the goal line. Now Dallas is last in a division with three teams at 3-2. OK, maybe Jerry gets the last laugh and he wins his last 12. But Jerry is the problem -- he venerates his players, so that gets passed down to Wade Phillips and to Tony Romo, who is starting to look like a QB that fantasy players love but one who will never win a title. (And, a mea culpa: I listed Wade as the sixth-best coach this season for trying to make something of this mess. He's not.) 2. Minnesota (1-3) We Thought They Were: The team that came within a penalty and an interception of going to the Super Bowl last season. They Are: Not what they were a year ago. Brett Favre isn't and the defense isn't. The receiving corps had to add Randy Moss, whose knowledge of the system right now is: "go out for a pass.'' He did that a bunch of times against the Jets Monday night and caught a TD and it might have worked if: Percy Harvin hadn't fallen down, Favre hadn't overthrown a wide-open Harvin on a play that could have turned the game, or Favre hadn't forced the ball that Drew Coleman ended up returning for the clinching touchdown. Yes, Brett is showing each and every one of his 41 years. Yes, he feels the pressure of the allegations against him. But there are others to blame. Jared Allen has just one sack and the team has just five, or 17 less than the league-leading Titans. The Moss trade was a panic move and the situation is not helped by a desperate and often-clueless coach -- Brad Childress burned a valuable time out because he hadn't decided whether to go for one or two after the Vikings cut New York's lead to 15-13. He went for two after wasting the TO and it was the wrong call -- it left the Vikings two scores behind late instead of one. 3. San Diego (2-3) We Thought They Were: The second most talented team in football, dropping from No. 1 because of the Vincent Jackson and Marcus McNeill holdouts. They Are: A team that on Sunday had two punts blocked (one for a safety and one for a TD), fumbled twice inside the Oakland 5, had all-world tight end Antonio Gates called for holding to take them out of position for a winning field goal, then had a fumble returned for a touchdown. This after 13 straight wins over the Raiders,throwback jerseys, who played most of the final three quarters with Jason Campbell,football jerseys, benched in the second game, at quarterback for the injured Bruce Gradkowski. OK, they started 2-3 last season and won their final eleven games to win the AFC West. And Brandyn Dombrowski, McNeill's replacement, was beaten twice for sacks and called once for holding. McNeill is finally coming back. Maybe they'll win eleven again. Or not. 4. New Orleans (3-2) We Thought They Were: The Super Bowl champions -- with a legitimate shot to win two in a row. They Are: The Super Bowl champions -- a game behind Atlanta (legitimate) and Tampa Bay (young) in the NFC South with plenty of time to catch them. The Saints are now a target for every team they play and have been unable to match last season's offensive production. A year ago, they were averaging 38.4 points per game at this point in the season. Now it's at 19.8. Drew Brees threw three interceptions in Arizona on Sunday. He misses Reggie Bush, but more than that, it's a Super Bowl letdown. 5. New York Jets (4-1) We Thought They Were: a young team on its way up. They Thought They Were: a Super Bowl champion. They Are: Right now, closer to what they thought than what we thought. Attribute that to the resurgence of LaDainian Tomlinson and the rapid growth of Mark Sanchez. But it's a long season, so let's not anoint anyone yet -- Sanchez looked like a young and inexperienced QB again in the second half against the Vikings. And ... they're very weak at the critical owner position although Woody Johnson at least has had enough sense to let Rex Ryan and Mike Tannenbaum run the football operation. 6. Houston (3-2) We Thought They Were: a team on the rise, especially after the 34-24 opening week win over the Colts and a 17-point comeback win in Washington. A very fashionable team that might play a Super Bowl in Texas if the more fashionable team from that state failed to make it. They Are: The same old up-and-down Texans, unable to maintain a consistent level. Held to 24 yards rushing in a 34-10 loss to the Giants at home after entering the game leading the league at 172 per game. (Gary Kubiak said he stopped running when they got down 21-0). The secondary is the worst in the NFL statistically and Arian Foster looked more like an undrafted free agent who spent most of his rookie season on the practice squad last week than a guy who led the league in rushing after four games. 7. Kansas City (3-1) We Thought They Were: A young team on its way up. They Are: A young team on its way up with a shot at winning the AFC West if San Diego continues to stumble. One reason: both the old and new regimes used their high picks well, although Dwayne Bowe's drops didn't help them in Indy Sunday and Todd Haley's game-opening onsides kick was a reach. Come to think of it, they are a lot like LSU -- and why not? Bowe, Glenn Dorsey and Tyson Jackson are all former Tigers. 8. New York Giants (3-2) We Thought They Were: Done. OK, two weeks ago, they were considered done. Old-school coach Tom Coughlin looked terminally perplexed and his message seemed worn out (cue Tiki Barber). They Are: An example of how the 15-minute news cycle encourages snap judgments too early. Two weeks later, they look like the team that upset the Patriots in the Super Bowl three seasons ago, right down to a re-energized defense by a new coordinator, Perry Fewell. They've allowed just 83 yards rushing in two games, lead the league in both total defense and passing defense and have the best young receiving trio they've ever had: Hakeem Nicks, Steve Smith and Mario Manningham. Warning: Eli Manning (eight interceptions) goes into vapor lock occasionally and the special teams are pretty bad. Note on Fewell: he went 3-4 as Buffalo's interim coach last season and got a token (Rooney rule?) interview for the permanent job. Instead the Bills hired Chan Gailey, and at 0-5, are probably the NFL's worst team. That falls into the "sometimes you don't realize what you have when you have it'' category. 9. Arizona (3-2) We Thought They Were: A team that would go 6-10 at best without Kurt Warner and the loss in free agency of Karlos Dansby and Antrel Rolle, both of whom have been standouts for the Dolphins and Giants. They Are: Leading the NFC West, which they might win even if they do go 6-10. Warner's heir apparent, Matt Leinart, was dumped and undrafted rookie Max Hall is now the starting QB, which is scary in itself, Despite the winning record they've been outscored 138-88, which suggests ... Conclusion: Ken Whisenhunt is a very good coach, something we sort of knew already. 10. San Francisco (0-5) We Thought They Were: The successor to the Cardinals in the NFC West, a team some enthusiasts had at 13-3. (Uh ... the way things look, nobody will be 13-3 this season.) They Are: A mess ... one whose owner, Jed York, still believes will win the division. Thanks Jed. Mike Singletary got in the face of Alex Smith after Smith made a dumb play that cost a TD against the Eagles. So Alex almost rallied the 49ers to a win. Singletary is good at revving up the emotion, just as he did as a Hall of Fame linebacker for the Bears 25 years ago. But he also may be an example of why star players don't make good coaches. 11. St. Louis (2-3) We Thought They Were: Building with Sam Bradford, the No. 1 pick in the draft, at QB. Then we thought they might be NFC West champions by default after winning two straight, giving them four wins in the last three seasons. They Are: Building with Sam Bradford at QB. Rams 6, Detroit 44 suggests they're not ready yet. 12. Indianapolis (3-2) We Thought They Were: A Super Bowl contender, as usual. They Are: A Super bowl contender, as usual, even though they won't start with eight or nine or 14 straight wins. Two division losses mean the Colts will have to scramble, but any team with Peyton Manning is going to the playoffs. Yeah, they miss Bob Sanders, but he's out most seasons anyway. They may miss Melvin Bullitt, Sanders' replacement, even more. Are the 3-1 Chiefs for real? FanHouse TV LeCharles Bentley says they're definitely a team to keep an eye on, in this episode of NFL Two-a-Days: |
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