The turkey is about to go in the oven after appearing in a few NFL games this week. The playoffs are right around the corner, and some teams took a seat at the table for the stretch run, others squandered opportunities and some may have put themselves out to pasture.
The Saints and Colts remain at the head of the table, with the Vikings eyeballing a big chair. And if it hasn’t hit you in the face yet, the Lions, Raiders and Chiefs took a seat at the grown-ups table this week after spending most of the season at the “kiddies table.” Or maybe it was the short bus? In any event, they all won in the same week. At the same time, the Skins and Browns came within a point. Only the Bucs choked on a bone.
So pull up a chair and enjoy this week’s main course. There is plenty to go around, and may you and your families get the bigger share of the wishbone this week.
Many thanks to the GBU contributors (Team Ugly): Any, Arj, Ben, GFC, Hannah, Stig, and Ward. And many thanks to you for taking a helping.
The Good
Arizona – The Cardinals were good enough in the first half, building a 21-3 lead against the hapless Rams, that they were able to coast to a 21-13 victory. Kurt Warner was on target until he was knocked from the game late in the first, completing 15 of 19 for 203 yards and a couple of scores. Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin demonstrated why they are the best WR tandem in the NFC (and perhaps the entire league). The defense had no answer for Steven Jackson, though they were able to keep him out of the end zone until the 4th quarter. This game was closer than it should have been for a team aspiring to return to the SB (and really is a marginal candidate for “Good” status), but Arizona did what rightful division leaders do – win divisional games on the road.
Detroit – They don’t get to be in the “Good” part of this column much so they need to be mentioned when they win what turned out to be the best game of the week. Even though the win came over the Browns, it came in a last second, high-scoring fashion. Both Detroit and Cleveland played great on offense but on defense, not so much. Cleveland, at one point, was up 24-3 in a game that featured 75 points and 912 yards of combined offense. The two young QB’s, Quinn and Stafford combined for 9 passing TD’s. Matt Stafford showed guts by re-entering the game after injury and throwing the winning TD with a bum shoulder. Detroit earns the Good for persevering to take the game, thanks to a pass interference penalty on a Hail Mary as time expired and scored on the next play, combined with the extra point to win the game in dramatic fashion. The Lions have something to smile about this week.
Green Bay – This game wasn’t as close as the 30-24 score as the Pack outgained the 49ers by 200 yards. The score was kept closer by a late comeback that ended up being too little, too late. With the win, the Pack keep themselves in the playoff hunt.
Minnesota – In particular, Brett Favre aka America. He had pretty much a perfect performance over a beat up Seahawks squad. Not much else to say about this one except for the Vikings did what a good team does and destroyed a bad team. The stat lines weren’t even close as the Vikings held Seattle to 4 rushing yards, while Favre threw 4 TD passes in an easy 35-9 victory. It was the next best thing to scrimmaging on Sunday of a bye week for the Vikings. As a result, the Vikes rolled and set themselves up very well to grab a playoff bye.
San Diego – Facing a huge test in Denver, the Chargers looked like, well, the Chargers in November. Almost uncharacteristically, they rolled to 203 yards on the ground in 43 carries. That patience led to nearly a 16 minute possession time advantage. Rivers did the rest to lead to a 32-3 pounding of the Broncos. The defense gave up only 3 points once the Broncos entered the red zone, keeping the balance in the Chargers favor in a competitive first half. This was a big road win to give the Chargers the edge in the AFCW against the now fading Broncos.
Tennessee – The title of this column is the Good, not the Great. At times the Titans still look disjointed, but they have much more continuity on offense than during their six opening losses. Vince Young apparently used his time on the sidelines to mature. He is now a threat to throw the ball even when running out of the pocket. Defensively, the Titans have gelled some. The result this week was an important win within the division at Houston.
The Bad
Chicago – The Bears continue to struggle and failed to take advantage of a vulnerable Eagles team who turned the ball over 3 times. Their woes are placing any playoff hopes in the setting sun.
Cincinnati – We’ve been singing their praises all year and with a chance to put the ultimate strangle hold on the AFCN, the Bengals bungled the game in Oakland on Sunday. After giving up a late TD to tie the game, the Bengals fumbled the ensuing kickoff to set up Janikowski’s winning FG. Just like that, the Bungles have, at least temporarily, returned to form.
Houston – In losing to the resurgent Titans, the Texans may have just lost their chance for making the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. They have a rough slate of games coming up including Indy, @ Jax, and NE. With 5 losses already, they are in big trouble in vying for an AFC wild card spot.
Pittsburgh – The Steelers blew a golden opportunity to get within a half game of first place in the AFCN (taking the head-head tiebreaker into consideration), but stumbled on their own feet vs. the Kansas City Chiefs. The Steelers outgained the Chiefs 515- 282 but turned the ball over 3 times to once for the Chiefs, gave up another kick return for a TD, and blew a 10 point half time lead. This is the eight consecutive game the Steelers have given up a KR, PR, Int, or Fumble recovery for a TD and 4th KR of the season. To add injury to insult, the Steelers lost backup QB Charlie Batch again after only a few plays and Ben Roethlisberger suffered a knee to the head with concussion-like symptoms. The Steeelers are a different team without Polamalu. If he is out for an extended period of time, they may miss out on the playoffs.
San Francisco – This Jekyll-and-Hyde team gets added to the Bad category due to their inconsistency. The Jaguars might be the most inconsistent team game to game, but the 49ers are inconsistent from half to half. Coach Mike Singletary said it himself, “Either we’re digging ourselves a hole early in the game and it’s too much to overcome or we’re getting ahead and we’re finding ourselves too comfortable with a lead.” Either way, it’s resulting in a team that has lost 5 of its last 6 games after a promising start. Still, there are some bright spots for this team. Michael Crabtree is showing that he can definitely play in the NFL, scoring his first NFL TD, and if he continues to demonstrate improvement, he might be able to silence his critics and even eliminate the animosity his holdout generated among 49ers fans. So for SF, this game wasn’t all “Bad,” but it is another lackluster start supplemented by “too little, too late” just to tease Niners fans with what might have been (and what might still be, if SF can manage to put together a complete game).
The Ugly
Denver – Call the vet for the Broncos, it may be time to put them down. After a mystifying 6-0 start, they have de-evolved to what we thought they were. This game was much the same as the season. They drove into the red zone on their opening drive, one of four ventures into scoring territory, only to turn the ball over. The other three trips weren’t much better, including another turnover, a FG and losing the ball on downs. The defense wore down, spending 38-plus minutes on the field and became a minor impediment to the Chargers by game’s end. It wasn’t a home loss to San Diego that made this Ugly. It was the fact that Denver was barely a factor in the first half and not at all in in the second.
New York Jets – Ouch. Given the 31-14 beat down they received at the hands of New England this weekend, one hopes that Rex Ryan and crew might learn that preening in the off-season and boasting in September are a good way to look silly in November. The Patriots owned the clock in this game, controlling the ball for almost 40 minutes.
Message to Mark Sanchez: the Pats don’t need any help winning games. They do just fine on their own. Mark “The Sanchize” Sanchez showed all the hallmarks of a rookie with happy feet Sunday, completing just 8 of 21 passes for 136 yards and four interceptions.
Patriots’ cornerback Leigh Bodden had stats that would make you think he was a Jets wide receiver, as he caught three Sanchez passes for 60 yards and a TD. The Jets could only manage one sustained drive all day, when Sanchez found Jerrico Cotchery with a 29-yard TD in the 3rd quarter.
Seattle – Finally, an NFC West team that can fully justify its placement in the GBU. It’s tempting to suggest that any time Seattle goes on the road against a non-divisional opponent, they’re going to end up here, but this was no default Ugly game. Brett Favre shredded the Seahawks defense so badly that he set personal records and was able to take a seat with ample time remaining in the game. If there’s any moral victory to be had by the Seahawks, it’s that they held Adrian Peterson under 100 yards rushing. The offense, as we have come to expect from Seattle the last couple of years, was beyond terrible. Seattle set a franchise-low record with 4 yards rushing. So much for the zone blocking scheme working for the Seahawks this season. Jim Mora looks completely lost as HC, and while injuries can be blamed for some of the team’s issues, last year’s Seahawks faced the same problems, but always seemed to keep games close, fighting tooth and nail for Holmgren in his final season. The big question for this team now is how they handle the upcoming offseason. The offense needs to be overhauled, and many fans are asking whether Mora and the GM Ruskell are capable of actually succeeding at that task.
Honorable Mention
Miami – Needing a win to keep pace with New England, Tony Sparano’s boys answered the call versus the Panthers, who once again were ill-served by the game plan of their head Coach John Fox. In spite of quarterback Jake Delhomme’s numerous poor performances this year, and the obvious improvement in Carolina’s fortunes when their offense relies on the ground instead of Delhomme’s arm, Fox went with an attack that called for Delhomme to throw the ball 42 times. That less then half of those throws landed in the hands of Panther receivers should come as no surprise.
However, this game was nearly under the “good” column, because Sparano’s game plan was the polar opposite of Fox’s. Rickey Williams was the workhorse back for Miami, gaining 122 yards and 2 TD’s on the ground, and pulling in 2 passes for 19 yards and a third TD for good measure. Chad Henne once again turned in a solid performance, managing the offense with cool-headed efficiency. Miami is 5-2 in games Henne has started, and though he hasn’t been spectacular, he has almost always played within himself and is still growing into his position. Credit should be given to Coach Sparano, who doesn’t ask for more than his quarterback is ready to handle, and the confidence Henne is gaining each week could serve Miami well in future seasons.
Overall the production, and defense isn’t nearly enough to warrant a team Good, but the offensive unit does deserve some sort of nod this week for holding their own under extreme duress. They had already been drifting toward anemic ever since Cobbs went down, hamstringing the Wildcat, but with Brown out, and an already thin offensive line dropping 4, including the in-game loss of the starting center and his backup, one might have expected calamity for the Phins. However they did not allow a sack, commit a turnover, nor commit an egregious number of penalties you might expect from a hastily slapped together unit. Despite numerous O-line personnel shuffles (including the reinsertion of mildly injured players when there was no alternate) they were still able to effectively run block throughout the night, Which allowed Ricky to earn a game ball and a half.
Individual Honors
Brett Favre – Completing 22 of 25 passes for 213 yards and 4 TDs wins a cookie here. A rather large cookie.
Steven Jackson deserves a bit of recognition. He went over 100 yards for the 4th straight game and now has over 1000 for the season, with 6 games to go. His performance on such a moribund team should be noted.
Brady Quinn – Sure, it was against the Lions, but he threw almost a year’s worth of TD’s (4) and no interceptions. Add the 21 for 33 effort and 304 yards and you have something worth noting.
Phillip Rivers – Not gaudy numbers, but incredibly efficient at 17 of 22 for 145 yards and a TD. His effort complimented a 200-plus yard rushing attack quite well and helped produce a big road win in Denver.
Matt Stafford – Sure, it was against the Browns, but 26 of 43, 422 yards, 5, count them, 5 TDs and 2 picks. Not bad at all.
Ricky Williams – Simply see the Miami Honorable Mention. He was the workhorse in this win.
Vince Young also deserves a tip of the glass. His improvement on the stat sheet since last year’s debacle is noticeable, but is only a symptom of a bigger gain. Many players would have spun down the commode after going from savior to junk pile. Young seems to have used the lost year to mature: potentially personally and as a QB. He still is a threat to run, but actually wants to pass, often using his legs to buy time for his receivers to get some space. In other words, he looks more like McNabb than Vick. That is a good thing, and something some athletic QBs never learn.
And Dishonors
John “Faux” Fox – Run the ball, you imbecile. It is half of the formula required for success in Carolina. You should know this, since that has not changed in at least four years. It is the only part of the formula the offense needs to concern itself with. Offensively, you have two rules:
1)Run the ball
2)Don’t forget rule number one
Yet, you continue to overlook rule number one. We hear Notre Dame is looking for a coach.
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Week 11 – The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
November 29, 2009 - 5:14 pm · 0 comments
by Zack Kelberman
in Community Commentary, Weekly Segments
The Saints and Colts remain at the head of the table, with the Vikings eyeballing a big chair. And if it hasn’t hit you in the face yet, the Lions, Raiders and Chiefs took a seat at the grown-ups table this week after spending most of the season at the “kiddies table.” Or maybe it was the short bus? In any event, they all won in the same week. At the same time, the Skins and Browns came within a point. Only the Bucs choked on a bone.
So pull up a chair and enjoy this week’s main course. There is plenty to go around, and may you and your families get the bigger share of the wishbone this week.
Many thanks to the GBU contributors (Team Ugly): Any, Arj, Ben, GFC, Hannah, Stig, and Ward. And many thanks to you for taking a helping.
The Good
Arizona – The Cardinals were good enough in the first half, building a 21-3 lead against the hapless Rams, that they were able to coast to a 21-13 victory. Kurt Warner was on target until he was knocked from the game late in the first, completing 15 of 19 for 203 yards and a couple of scores. Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin demonstrated why they are the best WR tandem in the NFC (and perhaps the entire league). The defense had no answer for Steven Jackson, though they were able to keep him out of the end zone until the 4th quarter. This game was closer than it should have been for a team aspiring to return to the SB (and really is a marginal candidate for “Good” status), but Arizona did what rightful division leaders do – win divisional games on the road.
Detroit – They don’t get to be in the “Good” part of this column much so they need to be mentioned when they win what turned out to be the best game of the week. Even though the win came over the Browns, it came in a last second, high-scoring fashion. Both Detroit and Cleveland played great on offense but on defense, not so much. Cleveland, at one point, was up 24-3 in a game that featured 75 points and 912 yards of combined offense. The two young QB’s, Quinn and Stafford combined for 9 passing TD’s. Matt Stafford showed guts by re-entering the game after injury and throwing the winning TD with a bum shoulder. Detroit earns the Good for persevering to take the game, thanks to a pass interference penalty on a Hail Mary as time expired and scored on the next play, combined with the extra point to win the game in dramatic fashion. The Lions have something to smile about this week.
Green Bay – This game wasn’t as close as the 30-24 score as the Pack outgained the 49ers by 200 yards. The score was kept closer by a late comeback that ended up being too little, too late. With the win, the Pack keep themselves in the playoff hunt.
Minnesota – In particular, Brett Favre aka America. He had pretty much a perfect performance over a beat up Seahawks squad. Not much else to say about this one except for the Vikings did what a good team does and destroyed a bad team. The stat lines weren’t even close as the Vikings held Seattle to 4 rushing yards, while Favre threw 4 TD passes in an easy 35-9 victory. It was the next best thing to scrimmaging on Sunday of a bye week for the Vikings. As a result, the Vikes rolled and set themselves up very well to grab a playoff bye.
San Diego – Facing a huge test in Denver, the Chargers looked like, well, the Chargers in November. Almost uncharacteristically, they rolled to 203 yards on the ground in 43 carries. That patience led to nearly a 16 minute possession time advantage. Rivers did the rest to lead to a 32-3 pounding of the Broncos. The defense gave up only 3 points once the Broncos entered the red zone, keeping the balance in the Chargers favor in a competitive first half. This was a big road win to give the Chargers the edge in the AFCW against the now fading Broncos.
Tennessee – The title of this column is the Good, not the Great. At times the Titans still look disjointed, but they have much more continuity on offense than during their six opening losses. Vince Young apparently used his time on the sidelines to mature. He is now a threat to throw the ball even when running out of the pocket. Defensively, the Titans have gelled some. The result this week was an important win within the division at Houston.
The Bad
Chicago – The Bears continue to struggle and failed to take advantage of a vulnerable Eagles team who turned the ball over 3 times. Their woes are placing any playoff hopes in the setting sun.
Cincinnati – We’ve been singing their praises all year and with a chance to put the ultimate strangle hold on the AFCN, the Bengals bungled the game in Oakland on Sunday. After giving up a late TD to tie the game, the Bengals fumbled the ensuing kickoff to set up Janikowski’s winning FG. Just like that, the Bungles have, at least temporarily, returned to form.
Houston – In losing to the resurgent Titans, the Texans may have just lost their chance for making the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. They have a rough slate of games coming up including Indy, @ Jax, and NE. With 5 losses already, they are in big trouble in vying for an AFC wild card spot.
Pittsburgh – The Steelers blew a golden opportunity to get within a half game of first place in the AFCN (taking the head-head tiebreaker into consideration), but stumbled on their own feet vs. the Kansas City Chiefs. The Steelers outgained the Chiefs 515- 282 but turned the ball over 3 times to once for the Chiefs, gave up another kick return for a TD, and blew a 10 point half time lead. This is the eight consecutive game the Steelers have given up a KR, PR, Int, or Fumble recovery for a TD and 4th KR of the season. To add injury to insult, the Steelers lost backup QB Charlie Batch again after only a few plays and Ben Roethlisberger suffered a knee to the head with concussion-like symptoms. The Steeelers are a different team without Polamalu. If he is out for an extended period of time, they may miss out on the playoffs.
San Francisco – This Jekyll-and-Hyde team gets added to the Bad category due to their inconsistency. The Jaguars might be the most inconsistent team game to game, but the 49ers are inconsistent from half to half. Coach Mike Singletary said it himself, “Either we’re digging ourselves a hole early in the game and it’s too much to overcome or we’re getting ahead and we’re finding ourselves too comfortable with a lead.” Either way, it’s resulting in a team that has lost 5 of its last 6 games after a promising start. Still, there are some bright spots for this team. Michael Crabtree is showing that he can definitely play in the NFL, scoring his first NFL TD, and if he continues to demonstrate improvement, he might be able to silence his critics and even eliminate the animosity his holdout generated among 49ers fans. So for SF, this game wasn’t all “Bad,” but it is another lackluster start supplemented by “too little, too late” just to tease Niners fans with what might have been (and what might still be, if SF can manage to put together a complete game).
The Ugly
Denver – Call the vet for the Broncos, it may be time to put them down. After a mystifying 6-0 start, they have de-evolved to what we thought they were. This game was much the same as the season. They drove into the red zone on their opening drive, one of four ventures into scoring territory, only to turn the ball over. The other three trips weren’t much better, including another turnover, a FG and losing the ball on downs. The defense wore down, spending 38-plus minutes on the field and became a minor impediment to the Chargers by game’s end. It wasn’t a home loss to San Diego that made this Ugly. It was the fact that Denver was barely a factor in the first half and not at all in in the second.
New York Jets – Ouch. Given the 31-14 beat down they received at the hands of New England this weekend, one hopes that Rex Ryan and crew might learn that preening in the off-season and boasting in September are a good way to look silly in November. The Patriots owned the clock in this game, controlling the ball for almost 40 minutes.
Message to Mark Sanchez: the Pats don’t need any help winning games. They do just fine on their own. Mark “The Sanchize” Sanchez showed all the hallmarks of a rookie with happy feet Sunday, completing just 8 of 21 passes for 136 yards and four interceptions.
Patriots’ cornerback Leigh Bodden had stats that would make you think he was a Jets wide receiver, as he caught three Sanchez passes for 60 yards and a TD. The Jets could only manage one sustained drive all day, when Sanchez found Jerrico Cotchery with a 29-yard TD in the 3rd quarter.
Seattle – Finally, an NFC West team that can fully justify its placement in the GBU. It’s tempting to suggest that any time Seattle goes on the road against a non-divisional opponent, they’re going to end up here, but this was no default Ugly game. Brett Favre shredded the Seahawks defense so badly that he set personal records and was able to take a seat with ample time remaining in the game. If there’s any moral victory to be had by the Seahawks, it’s that they held Adrian Peterson under 100 yards rushing. The offense, as we have come to expect from Seattle the last couple of years, was beyond terrible. Seattle set a franchise-low record with 4 yards rushing. So much for the zone blocking scheme working for the Seahawks this season. Jim Mora looks completely lost as HC, and while injuries can be blamed for some of the team’s issues, last year’s Seahawks faced the same problems, but always seemed to keep games close, fighting tooth and nail for Holmgren in his final season. The big question for this team now is how they handle the upcoming offseason. The offense needs to be overhauled, and many fans are asking whether Mora and the GM Ruskell are capable of actually succeeding at that task.
Honorable Mention
Miami – Needing a win to keep pace with New England, Tony Sparano’s boys answered the call versus the Panthers, who once again were ill-served by the game plan of their head Coach John Fox. In spite of quarterback Jake Delhomme’s numerous poor performances this year, and the obvious improvement in Carolina’s fortunes when their offense relies on the ground instead of Delhomme’s arm, Fox went with an attack that called for Delhomme to throw the ball 42 times. That less then half of those throws landed in the hands of Panther receivers should come as no surprise.
However, this game was nearly under the “good” column, because Sparano’s game plan was the polar opposite of Fox’s. Rickey Williams was the workhorse back for Miami, gaining 122 yards and 2 TD’s on the ground, and pulling in 2 passes for 19 yards and a third TD for good measure. Chad Henne once again turned in a solid performance, managing the offense with cool-headed efficiency. Miami is 5-2 in games Henne has started, and though he hasn’t been spectacular, he has almost always played within himself and is still growing into his position. Credit should be given to Coach Sparano, who doesn’t ask for more than his quarterback is ready to handle, and the confidence Henne is gaining each week could serve Miami well in future seasons.
Overall the production, and defense isn’t nearly enough to warrant a team Good, but the offensive unit does deserve some sort of nod this week for holding their own under extreme duress. They had already been drifting toward anemic ever since Cobbs went down, hamstringing the Wildcat, but with Brown out, and an already thin offensive line dropping 4, including the in-game loss of the starting center and his backup, one might have expected calamity for the Phins. However they did not allow a sack, commit a turnover, nor commit an egregious number of penalties you might expect from a hastily slapped together unit. Despite numerous O-line personnel shuffles (including the reinsertion of mildly injured players when there was no alternate) they were still able to effectively run block throughout the night, Which allowed Ricky to earn a game ball and a half.
Individual Honors
Brett Favre – Completing 22 of 25 passes for 213 yards and 4 TDs wins a cookie here. A rather large cookie.
Steven Jackson deserves a bit of recognition. He went over 100 yards for the 4th straight game and now has over 1000 for the season, with 6 games to go. His performance on such a moribund team should be noted.
Brady Quinn – Sure, it was against the Lions, but he threw almost a year’s worth of TD’s (4) and no interceptions. Add the 21 for 33 effort and 304 yards and you have something worth noting.
Phillip Rivers – Not gaudy numbers, but incredibly efficient at 17 of 22 for 145 yards and a TD. His effort complimented a 200-plus yard rushing attack quite well and helped produce a big road win in Denver.
Matt Stafford – Sure, it was against the Browns, but 26 of 43, 422 yards, 5, count them, 5 TDs and 2 picks. Not bad at all.
Ricky Williams – Simply see the Miami Honorable Mention. He was the workhorse in this win.
Vince Young also deserves a tip of the glass. His improvement on the stat sheet since last year’s debacle is noticeable, but is only a symptom of a bigger gain. Many players would have spun down the commode after going from savior to junk pile. Young seems to have used the lost year to mature: potentially personally and as a QB. He still is a threat to run, but actually wants to pass, often using his legs to buy time for his receivers to get some space. In other words, he looks more like McNabb than Vick. That is a good thing, and something some athletic QBs never learn.
And Dishonors
John “Faux” Fox – Run the ball, you imbecile. It is half of the formula required for success in Carolina. You should know this, since that has not changed in at least four years. It is the only part of the formula the offense needs to concern itself with. Offensively, you have two rules:
1)Run the ball
2)Don’t forget rule number one
Yet, you continue to overlook rule number one. We hear Notre Dame is looking for a coach.
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Tagged as: afc, gbu, nfc, nfl, week 11