The Good Arizona – After failing to score in 3 shots from the Ram 1 and later yielding an 80-yard TD pass in the first quarter, the Cards got down to business and outscored their hosts 34-6 the rest of the way. The defense started the onslaught by returning an interception for a TD and setting the offense up inside the Ram 25. The offense contributed with over 500 yards, a couple of 80+ yard drives and holding the ball for over 38 and a half minutes. A Good performance despite a shaky start.
Atlanta – The Falcons rolled into Oakland and ran up 30 first downs, 453 yards, over 45 minutes of possession time and 252 yards on the ground. Top that off by allowing 3 first downs and 77 yards. Never mind that the Raiders were auditioning for most inept team in the NFL, this sort of domination on the road is remarkable. It’s better than remarkable, it’s Good!
Baltimore – Winning by 10 in Cleveland does not necessarily rank as good. Winning that same game after being down 27-13 and scoring the final 24 points is impressive. For the Ravens, doing so while racking up 429 yards with almost 200 on the ground is a departure from tradition, and worthy of being called Good.
Cincinnati – Sooner or later it had to happen. The Bengals, a semi-permanent member of the Ugly, played a good game at home against the Jags. They jumped to 21-3 lead in the first three quarters and then hung on to win by a missed two-point conversion late. That might not be Good for a lot of teams, but it is when you start at 0-8. In the process, they held the Jags to under 300 yards of offense and 68 on the ground. Meanwhile, they actually gained 312 yards of offense in the same game. A Good game considering their past exploits.
Miami – A lackluster offensive performance (a mere 341 yards against the Broncos “defense”) was bolstered by a solid defensive effort, holding the Broncos to under 320 yards. Add three interceptions, only 14 yards rushing allowed and 36 and a half minutes of possession time and you have a Good performance resulting in a road win.
New York Giants – Good teams put things away when they have a chance, and the Giants went a long way to putting away the Cowboys hopes of a division title with this game. A crushing running game combined with the usual hard-nosed defense yielded a win bigger than the scoreboard indicated.
New York Jets – This was a tough call. Were the Jets Good or the Bills Bad? Truth is there was some of both. The Jet opportunistic defense lands them here. They forced a fumble on a sack to set up a first quarter field goal, then returned an interception 92 yards when it looked like the Bills were going to build on a 1 point lead. On the next possession they stopped the Bills on 4th and 1 from the Jet 8. Arguably about a 20-point turnaround from which the Bills never really recovered, giving the Jets a valuable road win and a slot here.
Philadelphia – All it took was giving up a 90 yard TD pass on their first defensive play to awaken the Eagles. From that point on, they racked up over 410 yards of offense, only gave up 143, only 57 more in the air, and outscored the Seahawks 26-0 in Seattle. McNabb threw for almost 350 yards as the Eagles held the ball for over 37 minutes. A Good performance after a rude awakening.
Pittsburgh – Defense still wins and the Steelers have defense. They slowed the early bleeding from a failed onside kick to start the game and a turnover near their own 30 and yielded no first downs and two FGs. The offense eventually showed some life and the special teams blocked a punt leading to the first half’s only TD. Even with the Ben knocked out, the Steelers rattled off 23 straight points. The defense sealed the deal with 7 sacks and a 4th and goal stop on the 1 yard line. If not for the early buffoonery this could have been a shutout. A Good blue collar performance for a road win against what was a 6-2 team.
Tennessee – I would not normally give an undefeated team kudos for a 3-point OT win against a 4-4 opponent, but coming off a short week against decent team coming off a bye and logging a win is Good. Good enough to take the Titans to 8-0.
The Bad Buffalo – Other than a home loss against a divisional rival, what makes this loss Bad is that the Bills could have come close to tightening the screws early. They never recovered from gifting the Jets a field goal with a fumble, turning their own scoring drive into a Jets 92 yard interception return on the last play of the first quarter and then being stopped on 4th and 1 inside the Jet 10 on their next drive. That stretch was conceivably a 20 point turnaround, cementing a place in the Bad.
Chicago – Sure, they won at home against one of the contenders for “worst of the worst.” That did not get them on the Bad. The injury to Orton is their ticket to the Bad since it reintroduces the possibility of having Grossman lead the offense, at least in the short term. That is Bad.
Denver – Three interceptions led to 13 Dolphin points (including 7 on a return). The Broncs were lucky to not be completely out of the game by halftime. The offense did not sustain a drive in the first half and scored their lone points in the half after a 95 yard kickoff return gave them a 5-yard field to attack. Give the Dolphins defense credit, but the Broncs are an offense-only team. Given that, a terrible offensive first half, 14 yards rushing and about 23 and a half minutes of possession time yield a Bad performance.
Washington – When you take possession twice inside a good opponent’s 40 in the opening four minutes and walk away with no first downs and two field goals it lays the foundation for a Bad performance. The defense kept it close until it wore down spending most of the third quarter on the field. The offense largely served to honor the rule requiring 11 men on the field with the Steeler defense. A Bad home performance yielding a home loss against a quality opponent.
The Ugly Dallas – Dallas is worse off than just Romo licking his wounds. The Cowboy defense looked bewildered and awed by the Giants offense while giving up 200 yards on the ground. The offense was inept against the Giant defense, to the tune of 11 first down and 183 yards, 75 on their only scoring drive. They showed no heart in a loss that could haunt them when the beans are counted after the season. An Ugly performance in an important game.
Oakland – 3 first downs and 77 yards? That is an unimpressive quarter in the NFL yet it was the Raiders total for 60 minutes against the Falcons. Couple that with 14:55 possession time and 7 penalties. They had almost as many yards in penalties (55) as they had in offense. At halftime they were without a first down and had -2 yards of offense. Has an NFL ever had negative yardage in a half? This may have been the Ugliest performance in history, and it was served up in front of Raider Nation.
Seattle – There’s not much that needs to be said. The Seahawks basically disappeared after their first offensive play. That play netted them 90 yards and a 7-0 lead, but by the time the dust settled they were on the short end of a 26-7 pounding. A Bad way to treat the home fans.
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The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly, Week 9
by BG on November 4, 2008
in Community Commentary, Weekly Segments
The Good
Arizona – After failing to score in 3 shots from the Ram 1 and later yielding an 80-yard TD pass in the first quarter, the Cards got down to business and outscored their hosts 34-6 the rest of the way. The defense started the onslaught by returning an interception for a TD and setting the offense up inside the Ram 25. The offense contributed with over 500 yards, a couple of 80+ yard drives and holding the ball for over 38 and a half minutes. A Good performance despite a shaky start.
Atlanta – The Falcons rolled into Oakland and ran up 30 first downs, 453 yards, over 45 minutes of possession time and 252 yards on the ground. Top that off by allowing 3 first downs and 77 yards. Never mind that the Raiders were auditioning for most inept team in the NFL, this sort of domination on the road is remarkable. It’s better than remarkable, it’s Good!
Baltimore – Winning by 10 in Cleveland does not necessarily rank as good. Winning that same game after being down 27-13 and scoring the final 24 points is impressive. For the Ravens, doing so while racking up 429 yards with almost 200 on the ground is a departure from tradition, and worthy of being called Good.
Cincinnati – Sooner or later it had to happen. The Bengals, a semi-permanent member of the Ugly, played a good game at home against the Jags. They jumped to 21-3 lead in the first three quarters and then hung on to win by a missed two-point conversion late. That might not be Good for a lot of teams, but it is when you start at 0-8. In the process, they held the Jags to under 300 yards of offense and 68 on the ground. Meanwhile, they actually gained 312 yards of offense in the same game. A Good game considering their past exploits.
Miami – A lackluster offensive performance (a mere 341 yards against the Broncos “defense”) was bolstered by a solid defensive effort, holding the Broncos to under 320 yards. Add three interceptions, only 14 yards rushing allowed and 36 and a half minutes of possession time and you have a Good performance resulting in a road win.
New York Giants – Good teams put things away when they have a chance, and the Giants went a long way to putting away the Cowboys hopes of a division title with this game. A crushing running game combined with the usual hard-nosed defense yielded a win bigger than the scoreboard indicated.
New York Jets – This was a tough call. Were the Jets Good or the Bills Bad? Truth is there was some of both. The Jet opportunistic defense lands them here. They forced a fumble on a sack to set up a first quarter field goal, then returned an interception 92 yards when it looked like the Bills were going to build on a 1 point lead. On the next possession they stopped the Bills on 4th and 1 from the Jet 8. Arguably about a 20-point turnaround from which the Bills never really recovered, giving the Jets a valuable road win and a slot here.
Philadelphia – All it took was giving up a 90 yard TD pass on their first defensive play to awaken the Eagles. From that point on, they racked up over 410 yards of offense, only gave up 143, only 57 more in the air, and outscored the Seahawks 26-0 in Seattle. McNabb threw for almost 350 yards as the Eagles held the ball for over 37 minutes. A Good performance after a rude awakening.
Pittsburgh – Defense still wins and the Steelers have defense. They slowed the early bleeding from a failed onside kick to start the game and a turnover near their own 30 and yielded no first downs and two FGs. The offense eventually showed some life and the special teams blocked a punt leading to the first half’s only TD. Even with the Ben knocked out, the Steelers rattled off 23 straight points. The defense sealed the deal with 7 sacks and a 4th and goal stop on the 1 yard line. If not for the early buffoonery this could have been a shutout. A Good blue collar performance for a road win against what was a 6-2 team.
Tennessee – I would not normally give an undefeated team kudos for a 3-point OT win against a 4-4 opponent, but coming off a short week against decent team coming off a bye and logging a win is Good. Good enough to take the Titans to 8-0.
The Bad
Buffalo – Other than a home loss against a divisional rival, what makes this loss Bad is that the Bills could have come close to tightening the screws early. They never recovered from gifting the Jets a field goal with a fumble, turning their own scoring drive into a Jets 92 yard interception return on the last play of the first quarter and then being stopped on 4th and 1 inside the Jet 10 on their next drive. That stretch was conceivably a 20 point turnaround, cementing a place in the Bad.
Chicago – Sure, they won at home against one of the contenders for “worst of the worst.” That did not get them on the Bad. The injury to Orton is their ticket to the Bad since it reintroduces the possibility of having Grossman lead the offense, at least in the short term. That is Bad.
Denver – Three interceptions led to 13 Dolphin points (including 7 on a return). The Broncs were lucky to not be completely out of the game by halftime. The offense did not sustain a drive in the first half and scored their lone points in the half after a 95 yard kickoff return gave them a 5-yard field to attack. Give the Dolphins defense credit, but the Broncs are an offense-only team. Given that, a terrible offensive first half, 14 yards rushing and about 23 and a half minutes of possession time yield a Bad performance.
Washington – When you take possession twice inside a good opponent’s 40 in the opening four minutes and walk away with no first downs and two field goals it lays the foundation for a Bad performance. The defense kept it close until it wore down spending most of the third quarter on the field. The offense largely served to honor the rule requiring 11 men on the field with the Steeler defense. A Bad home performance yielding a home loss against a quality opponent.
The Ugly
Dallas – Dallas is worse off than just Romo licking his wounds. The Cowboy defense looked bewildered and awed by the Giants offense while giving up 200 yards on the ground. The offense was inept against the Giant defense, to the tune of 11 first down and 183 yards, 75 on their only scoring drive. They showed no heart in a loss that could haunt them when the beans are counted after the season. An Ugly performance in an important game.
Oakland – 3 first downs and 77 yards? That is an unimpressive quarter in the NFL yet it was the Raiders total for 60 minutes against the Falcons. Couple that with 14:55 possession time and 7 penalties. They had almost as many yards in penalties (55) as they had in offense. At halftime they were without a first down and had -2 yards of offense. Has an NFL ever had negative yardage in a half? This may have been the Ugliest performance in history, and it was served up in front of Raider Nation.
Seattle – There’s not much that needs to be said. The Seahawks basically disappeared after their first offensive play. That play netted them 90 yards and a 7-0 lead, but by the time the dust settled they were on the short end of a 26-7 pounding. A Bad way to treat the home fans.