It’s amazing how many bad challenges head coaches still make in the NFL each and every Sunday. Coaches have the benefit of seeing the replay in most stadiums, they get advice from coaches who have seen the replays on television in the booth, yet they still make terrible decisions. I understand there will be times when you have to make a rash decision because the opposing team has the ball and they are rushing to run the next play so they have to go with their gut, but when they have the ball, which gives them the extra time they need to make the correct decision, yet still blow it, it’s just infuriating. In the Dallas/Philadelphia game on Sunday night, Eagles head coach Andy Reid twice challenged a ruling of where a ball was spotted. Yeah, they were both big calls that would’ve moved the chains for Philadelphia, but they were both calls that were 50/50 bets at best. Trying to get an official to move the spot of a ball a few inches is just a rare thing. Giving up your last two timeouts was a big gamble that came back to haunt Reid when the Eagles couldn’t stop the clock when Dallas had the ball with just under five minutes remaining. Dallas was able to run out the clock with two first downs and the game was over. If Reid had those timeouts, the Eagles may have at least gotten the ball back with a chance to win the game.
While I’m on a rant about coaches, can they learn not to go for the two point conversion until it’s the fourth quarter? I might even suggest that they kick the extra point until there is less than 10 minutes left in the game. How many times do you see a team miss the two point conversion and it comes back to haunt them later. Perfect scenario that seems to happen every week. Team is down by eleven points with a few minutes left in the third quarter, they score a touchdown. They are now down by five. They go for two to cut it down to a field goal. If they get it, great, but if they don’t, there is still 17-18 minutes left in the game and if the other team were to kick a field goal, then you’re down by eight and you need a touchdown and a two point conversion, where if you would’ve kicked the extra point before, you would only be down by a touchdown. When you’re down to your last possession or if you’re down by multiple touchdowns, then I understand going for two, other than that, kick the extra point.
How many fantasy owners are starting to panic about Texans running back Steve Slaton? Ryan Moats did the bulk of the rushing with 16 carries, to only six for Slaton. The good news is that Slaton did have a rushing touchdown, and Moats did fumble one of those carries. Slaton was benched for not being able to hold onto the ball, if Moats can’t hold onto the ball either, then it would stand to reason that Slaton would get his job back.
The Giants should be thankful they have a bye in Week 10. Usually you don’t want to go into your bye off of a loss because you don’t want to spend two weeks thinking about that loss, but the Giants have lost five straight and need the time to just get away from football and clear their heads. Coach Tom Coughlin has taken a beating for playing conservative with a first down at the Chargers four yard line and up by three points with just a few minutes remaining on Sunday. He didn’t want to take a chance of a turnover and figured even a field would put them up by six, forcing the Chargers to go the entire field with just two minutes left in the game to defeat the Giants. Seems to me if he would’ve had quarterback Eli Manning throw the ball and it was picked off everyone would’ve been yelling at him for that also. So his decision didn’t work, San Diego was able to march down the field and win the game, it happens, and it has kept happening to the Giants during their four game losing streak.
I’m not sure anyone is going to beat New Orleans this season. They only have three games remaining against teams with a .500 record or better. They play New England and Dallas at home, and Atlanta on the road. They have already defeated Atlanta once, and I’m not sure anyone can beat them in that dome. Just too many offensive weapons. They have a three headed monster in the running game, and a passing game that is second to none. You just have to pick your poison and hope for the best. Their defense may not be great, it may not even be good, but it doesn’t have to be. The defense knows they don’t have to be perfect, they can give up points and still win. This allows them to be very opportunistic; they can take chances and go for the big play. It’s worked out perfectly so far for them.
Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford is looking more and more like he is not ready to be a starting quarterback in the NFL. Stafford was 22-42 on Sunday versus Seattle. Yeah, those numbers look great, but he also threw five picks in the game and looked totally out of whack through most of the game. Stafford and wide receiver Calvin Johnson certainly haven’t been on the same page for most of the season. Still there is nothing to really worry about here, expecting a rookie quarterback to be an all-pro in his first season is rare. Not everyone is a Matt Ryan or Joe Flacco.
The Titans are now 2-0 with Vince Young at the controls. Who saw this coming? Once again his numbers weren’t all that great as he was 12-19 for 172 yards, but the Titans are responding to him, and he is not making the big mistake. Perhaps the Titans have their quarterback of the future after all. Speaking of teams that might’ve found their QB of the future, Tampa Bay rookie quarterback Josh Freeman led the Bucs to their first win of the season versus the Packers on Sunday. Once again his numbers weren’t great, 14-31 for 205 yards, 3TD, 1INT, but like Young in Tennessee the team responded to him.
That’s two straight games the Broncos have lost now. Is the bloom coming off the rose? They now only have a one game lead over the Chargers in the AFC West, and they will play each other once again in a few weeks. The Broncos were one of the big surprise teams in the first half of the season as most pundits thought they would be closer to 2-6 rather than 6-2. Their seems to be some cracks in the damn as teams are starting to realize that the Broncos don’t have the big play ability to score quickly. The Ravens and Steelers have been able to move the ball against the Broncos defense with a power running game. One has to wonder if the Broncos are starting to get tired as the season progresses.
The Chiefs did what they thought they had to do when they released running back Larry Johnson on Monday. Monday was the day that his suspension ended and most thought that KC would just deactivate him for the remainder of the season, but they decided to just get rid of him instead. So the question now is, will Johnson find a home for what’s left of the season? One has to think that some team will take a chance on him. Johnson would like to sign with Pittsburgh, but the Steelers already have Rashard Mendenhall, Willie Parker, and Mewelde Moore. Doesn’t seem to be much of a fit there. New England was thought to be a landing place as head coach Bill Belichick might want a veteran RB ala Corey Dillon, but Sammy Morris is due to return to the lineup in Week 11. Do they really want another back in what is an extremely muddled backfield? How about the Redskins? They might need someone to replace the recently concussed Clinton Portis. What I’m trying to say is that someone will take a chance on him.
Cardinals wide receiver Anquan Boldin had a fit when he found out he was deactivated for the game against Chicago on Sunday. The Cards felt that a week off to rest his ankle was the best way to get Boldin healthy, but Boldin felt that he was good enough to start. This may just be another episode of a diva WR, or it could be another reason why the Cardinals look to deal Boldin this offseason.
