2010 NFL Holdout Watchlist – Updated as of September 1 by Lloyd Vance

Even as the regular season approaches, Holdouts are still going on in the NFL (pictured Patriots OG Logan Mankins)

The NFL opener on September 9^th – Minnesota Vikings at New Orleans Saints — will be here before we know it.  But there are still holdout situations that are on the NFL’s front page: New York Jets vs. Pro Bowl CB Darrelle Revis, the San Diego Chargers vs. (OT Marcus McNeill and WR Vincent Jackson), and the New England Patriots vs. OG Logan Mankins.

2010 Holdout Watchlist (updated as of September 1st)

New York Jets CB Darrelle Revis (Agents Neil Schwartz and Jonathan Feinsod) – Incredibly the NY Jets and their star corner remain on the outs.  Revis, who is currently slated to make $1 million in the 4th year of his 6-year rookie contract, remaining in the Aliquippa, PA area as he holds out.  Even though NY Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum has refused to talk about Revis getting a Nnamdi Asomugha type contract — signed a 3-year, $45.3 million extension in ’09 – there is a possibility that the win-now J-E-T-S’ hands are tied as there is no way they can win the Super Bowl without Revis.  As the season gets closer, the former Pitt star definitely is starting to get some leverage.  The interesting part of this equation is that the NY Jets have recently opened their checkbook to OT D’Brickashaw Ferguson and center Nick Mangold, so you have to think Revis is next.  With the season creeping closer and Rex Ryan continues his whining on HBO’s Hard Knocks, this has to end soon…right??   Even though both sides have issued a “gag” order on public disclosure of negotiations, I am hearing that Revis wants a deal in the neighborhood of 10 years, $160M and $30M guaranteed.  Unfortunately for Revis Island, the NY Jets are said to be offering something more like 10 years, $122M.  We will see who blinks first in this one, but this is getting too long – over 30 Days – and the NY Jets desperately need their star corner to cover Ravens Pro Bowl receiver Anquan Boldin in their opener.

Chargers OT Marcus McNeill (Agent Jimmy Sexton) – This holdout maybe turning in McNeil’s favor as veteran OT Tra Thomas recently retired and OG Tyronne Green (6’2, 309) doesn’t seem to up to being an NFL left tackle.  McNeil’s representatives and Chargers GM AJ Smith have been in contact a lot recently and I am predicting this one will end before the regular season.  Even though McNeil had his offer reduced on June 15^th to 1-year, $600,000 dollars, expect Smith to be working off of the New York Jets extension for D’Brickashaw Ferguson — six-year, $60 million extension, which included $34.8 million.  As the season approaches both Smith and QB Philip Rivers want their star quarterback’s blindside protected.

New England Patriots OG Logan Mankins (Agent Frank Bauer) – While everyone is talking about Revis and McNeil on a daily basis, the NFL’s ugliest holdout could quite possibly be in New England.  It has been reported that Mankins and the Patriots have not talked since early in the summer and that the Pro Bowl guard is ready to stay home for the entire season.  The 28-year old still has not signed his restricted free agent tender offer of 1-year, $1.54 million (down from $3.268 million after June 15th) and don’t expect any revelations anytime soon.  Mankins wants a deal similar to Saints’ OG Jahri Evans — recently extended with the terms 7-years, $56.7M w/ $19M in year 1).  Even with Nick Kaczur on I/R, the Patriots decided to trade for former Falcon Quinn “Facebook” Ojinaka rather than deal their former Pro Bowl offensive guard.

 Chargers WR Vincent Jackson (Agents Neil Schwartz and Jonathan Feinsod) – Much like McNeill, Jackson seems intent on making Smith’s life miserable.  Vincent also still has not signed his restricted free agent tender – now reduced to $600,000 — June 15 reduction.  The former Pro Bowl receiver is coming off a big year — 68 catches for 1,167 yards and 9 TDs – and still  hopes to get a Brandon Marshall-type deal (four-year deal worth $47.5 million with $24 million guaranteed).  There have been whispers that Jackson will be traded soon (Seahawks??) or report with the stipulation that he can leave in 2011.  Also complicating matters is Vincent’s pending 3-game NFL suspension.   Already the Chargers seem content to move on with receivers Malcolm Floyd, Antonio Gates, Vincent Jackson, Leegudu Nanee and Craig Davis.  So far, only the Seattle Seahawks have been given permission to talk to Jackson about a possible trade.  Maybe receiver-starved teams the Redskins, Browns, Vikings, and Bears may soon be entering the fray.

Chiefs safety Jarrad Page (Agent John Page, his brother) – This restricted free agent still has not signed his 1-year tender offer — 1-YR, $1.759M – and continues to “holding out”.  The NFL’s quietest holdout has gone on since mini-camp, but I expect to eventually see Page back on the field.  He may very well be traded out of KC (to Detroit???) by no-nonsense GM Scott Pioli.  Recently in an email to Pro Football Talk, Page’s representation called the Chiefs” organization, “Vindictive“… and you know that is really going to help further harmony in negotiations.

Other “resolved” possible Holdouts

Chargers LB Shawne Merriman  (Signed his Restricted F/A Tender of 1-yr, $3.269M on August 13^th and then hurt his Achilles in practice)

SF 49ers NT Aubrayo Franklin (Finally signed his “franchise player” deal – 1-year, $7,003,000 dollars at the end of August and reported)

Redskins DT Albert Haynesworth (Reported – Finally seems to be buying into Mike Shanahan’s system, but the $100 Million Dollar Man still sulks occasionally and what was up with his whole muscle disease story)

Vikings WR Sidney Rice (Reported — Has a hurt hip that required surgery (8 weeks) and will make $550,000 in ’10)

Titans RB Chris Johnson (received $2M escalator payment early and reported)

Cardinals DT Darnell Dockett (reported — Rosenhaus and Dockett will have to wait until ’11)

Saints OT Jermon Bushrod (Signed his Restricted F/A Tender and reported)

Ravens OT Jared Gaither (Signed Restricted F/A Tender and reported, but has a back injury)

Redskins OT Jammal Brown (Traded to the Redskins from Saints, signed his 1-year tender and reported)

Redskins LB Rocky McIntosh (Signed Restricted F/A Tender and reported)

Titans TE Bo Scaife (Signed his Restricted F/A Tender and reported)

Ravens QB Troy Smith (Signed his Restricted F/A Tender and reported)

St. Louis Rams FS O.J. Atogwe (Re-Signed with the Rams and reported)

Cleveland Browns LB D’Qwell Jackson (Signed his Restricted F/A Tender and reported)

Denver Broncos DE/OLB Elvis Dumervil (Received a six-year, $61.5 million extension and reported, torn pectoral after signing)

NY Jets LB David Harris (reported and might get an extension soon)

Eagles WR DeSean Jackson (reported)

Jaguars CB Rashean Mathis (reported)

Browns safety Abe Elam (Signed his Restricted F/A Tender and reported)

NY Jets center Nick Mangold (reported – Received a huge extension on August 23^rd with terms 7 years with a maximum of $55 M)

Texans WR Andre Johnson (reported and received a two-year, $23.5 million extension with $13 million guaranteed on August 6^th)

Cowboys WR Patrick Crayton (reported — Not much leverage and is fighting for a roster spot)

Browns LB Matt Roth (Signed his Restricted F/A Tender and reported)

Giants DE Osi Umenyiora (Reported)

Browns K Phil Dawson (Reported)

Redskins FS Laron Landry (reported)

Chiefs G Brian Waters (reported)

Cowboys DL Marcus Spears (Signed his Restricted F/A Tender and reported)

Colts WR Reggie Wayne (Reported)

Colts QB Peyton Manning (Reported and will probably get an extension before last year of contract runs out)

Colts DE Robert Mathis (Reported)

Patriots QB Tom Brady (Reported and will probably get an extension before last year of contract runs out)

Steelers LB LaMarr Woodley (Reported — Steelers have said no extensions in ’10)

Bills RB Marshawn Lynch (Reported)

Vikings DE Ray Edwards (Signed his Restricted F/A Tender and reported)

SF 49ers OLB Manny Lawson (Reported)

Buccaneers LB Barrett Ruud (Reported)

Panthers CB Richard Marshall (Signed his Restricted F/A Tender and reported)

 SF 49ers OLB Kentwan Balmer (reported – was traded to Seattle for a 6^th Rd pick in ’11)

 

Lloyd Vance is a Sr. NFL Writer for Taking It to the House and Sports Journey Network , who is also an award-winning member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA)

Patriots – Saints: The Battle of the Bayou Preview by Lloyd Vance

WR Julian Edleman and the New Patriots travel to New Orleans to face-off against the undefeated Saints on Monday Night Football

Patriots – Saints: The Battle of the Bayou Preview

ESPN Monday Night Football, 8:30 EST

Broadcasting team: Ron Jaworski, Mike Tirico, John Gruden, and Suzy Kolber (sideline reporter)

Week 12 of the 2009 NFL Season has been one of the best for the league that always seems leave their fans wanting more, but without a doubt the Monday Night Football Match-up between the undefeated New Orleans Saints (10-0, the best start in franchise history) and the New England Patriots (7-3) is the cherry on top.  The Super Dome will be rocking as the “New Kids on the Block” (Saints) will take on the “Old Heads” (Patriots) to see who will be “King of the Hill” on the NFL’s playground. 

After many had thought they had seen the precursor to the NFL playoffs in “Super Bowl XLIII ½” where the undefeated Indianapolis Colts led by MVP-candidate Peyton Manning came back to post an amazing 35-34 win over the Patriots, no one thought there could be a better game.  Well, I am not sure if the game that people are calling, “The Battle of the Bayou” or Super Bowl XLIII ¾ will live-up to the inordinate amount of hype generated, but you have to admit this is a fascinating match-up that will have the nation’s attention. Sure a match-up of the undefeated Saints versus the undefeated Colts probably would have created more buzz, but this pairing is just as good, in my opinion.

Even though these two teams’ histories are vastly different — the Saints have never been to the Super Bowl while the Patriots have been to seven Super Bowls, producing three wins all this decade — there is a mutual amount of respect on both sides of the field as two of Bill Parcells’ former disciples will square-off.  Both teams have an embarrassment of offensive weapons and defensively they both can provide pressure that often leads to capitalizing on turnovers and taking them to the house.  Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who throws compliments to upcoming opponents like manhole covers, recently said of the Saints, “I don’t think there’s any better team in football than the New Orleans Saints.  They have no weaknesses that I can see.”  Of the upcoming Monday Night Football showdown, Saints QB Drew Brees (218-320, 2746 yards, 22 TDs and 9 INTs) said, “It’s going to take our best game to beat the Patriots. “We know the type of team they are.  We know the type of team they’ve been for the last decade.  They’re a dynasty.  Obviously, that’s one of the organizations we try to emulate.  We’re trying to be a contender year-in and year-out and we’ve got to take advantage of these opportunities.”

New Orleans head coach Sean Payton was just as complimentary when talking about the Patriots saying, “We know it’s a good team that we’re playing this week.  New England has been a successful franchise and is one of those organizations that has found the right formula.  When you play a team like this, you observe from afar the things that they are able to do and how that relates to winning games.”  Any talk of this Monday Night thriller has to start and end with the two quarterbacks leading their teams and as an old beer commercial used to say, “It doesn’t get any better than this”.  In the year of the quarterback around the NFL, probably the only passers playing better at this point in the season are Manning and Vikings QB Brett Favre, but that is saying something as both those veterans are shooting for their 4^th NFL MVP award.  Payton in talking about Brady and Brees said, “Both of these quarterbacks are accurate”.  The currently undefeated head coach added, “They’re good decision-makers and can decide quickly where they want to go with the ball based on the looks they’re getting.  Those are certainly traits you see with both of them.” Brees is second in the NFL with a 105.8 passer rating while Patriots QB Tom Brady is not far behind with a rating of 100.4, which is good enough for fifth in the NFL.  In the touchdowns department, Brees also has a slight lead as he leads the league with 22 touchdown passes with Brady again not being far behind 20 (ranks 4th in the NFL in this category). 

Like any great heavyweight fight, now that the pleasantries have been dispensed by both sides, let’s break this game down.  First off fans should expect a ton of scoring as this is a match-up of the

 NFL’s No. 1 and 2 offenses — the Saints average a league leading 420.5 yards per game and the Patriots are next with an average of 416.1 ypg, which is first in the AFC — playing on the Super Dome’s fast track.  The Saints have redefined the term “high-octane” this season with an incredible 369 points scored through 10 games including producing over 40 points four times.  Many are comparing New Orleans to 500+ point plus scoring squads the 1999 St. Louis Rams (529 points scored and Super Bowl champs), 1998 Minnesota Vikings (556 points scored and a record of 15-1), and lastly the 2007 New Patriots (NFL record 589 points score and 16-0 AFC Champs) who will have several members from that offense still playing for them on Monday. 

For the Saints offensively, Brees spreads the ball around to former Pro Bowl receiver Marques Colston (44 receptions for 687 yards, 15.6 ypc, and 6 TDs), scatback Reggie Bush, breakout player of the year candidate WR Robert Meachem, RB Pierre Thomas, speedster WR Devrey Henderson and many others (hard to believe former NY Giants’ Pro Bowl TE Jeremy Shockey is an afterthought on the Saints roster) so at times it seems there is no stopping New Orleans.  They have outscored opponents 369-204 so far this season and an amazing 18 players have scored touchdowns this season.  Every week seems to be a track meet for the Saints whether home or away even though at times they have sputtered out of the gate a couple of times – average winning margin of 16.5 points.  The closest any team has come to beating them were the St. Louis Rams, who lost 28-23, but it wasn’t even as close as the score would indicate.

The Saints offense hasn’t been the team’s only story for 2009 as new defensive coordinator Gregg Williams has returned some teeth to a defense that allowed 393 points (24.6/g) in 2008.  Williams aggressive unit has generated seven touchdowns and produced a league-high 29 takeaways including 20 INTs.  The Saints defense starts upfront with pass rushers DE Will Smith (8.5 sacks) and DE Charles Grant providing pressure on quarterbacks that has helped MLB Jonathan Vilma, safety Darren Sharper (7 INTs, returning 3 for touchdowns), CB Tracy Porter, and others make the most of their turnover opportunities – Saints are 3rd in the NFL with a +10 turnover ratio.  However even though the Saints have been stellar at getting turnovers, some teams have been able to move the ball on them at times this season – allowed 204 points (20.4/g), which ranks them 15th in the NFL.  Also injuries could be a factor for the Saints’ defense as Porter is listed as “doubtful” with CB Randall Gay (hamstring), CB Jabari Greer (groin), DE Bobby McCray (knee/back), and Vilma (knee) listed as “questionable” for the game.

Not to be outdone the Patriots’ offense is also are one of the NFL’s best at passing the football this season.  The Pats’ offense is also dangerous and the scary part is that QB Tom Brady (261-393, 3049 yards, 20 TDs, and 6 INTs) seems to have finally put his devastating 2008 knee injury behind  — remember his NFL record 6 TD performance in the a 59-0 blowout of Tennessee Titans in Week 6.  Brady will also spread the ball around, but watch for his big play threat WR Randy Moss (63 receptions for 925 yards, 14.7 ypc, and  8 TDs with a long of 71 yards),  his multi-purpose chain mover RB Kevin Faulk (39 rushes for 192 yards and 29 catches for 252 yards w/ 1 TD) and his security blanket WR Wes Welker (79 catches for 854 yards, 10.8 ypc, and 4 TDs plus coming off a career-high 15 catch performance last week) to be much involved in the Patriots game plan.  Last week against the Jets, Welker and Moss combined for 20 catches in a 31-14 win which gave the pair 142 combined receptions through 10 games to surpass an NFL record that was set earlier in the day by Colts Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark.  If the Patriots are smart, they will try to establish their running game (Faulk, Laurence Maroney, and Sammy Morris) against the Saints fast defensive line to wear them down.  The Saints are getting DT Sedrick Ellis back from a knee sprain, but controlling the clock will be key for the Patriots to take the air out of the ball to keep Brees’ offensive weaponry on the sidelines.  The Patriots’ offensive line also will need to step up too in this game as, at times this season, the unit has struggled with speed rushers.

On defense, the Patriots – ranked 3rd in the AFC with 296.7 points allowed per game – are no slouches in the turnover department either as they lead the AFC with a +12 ratio.  But they will surely need to have big games from improving FS Brandon McGowan (good cover guy TEs), cover corner Leigh Bodden (5 INTs including three last week against the Jets), and pass rusher Tully Banta-Cain (5 sacks) to keep Brees foot off the gas.  There is no doubt the Patriots still do have some playmakers on the defensive side, but you have to wonder if the defections of DL Richard Seymour (traded to the Raiders), SS Rodney Harrison (retirement to NBC), LB Tedy Bruschi (retirement to ESPN) and others have caused their unit to be questioned.  We all know head coach Belichick had questions of the unit in their much-publicized Week 9’s loss in Indy.  Protecting a slim 6-point lead, the 3-time Super Bowl winning head coach chose to go for it on 4^th down deep in his own territory rather than punt and let his defense have a chance at stopping Peyton Manning and Colts offense.  As the whole world knows, the Patriots did not convert the infamous play and now many people around NFL circles are wondering if their defense is championship caliber.

LV’s Pick:  These two teams have met 11 times with the Patriots holding a dominating 8-3 edge including winning their last 3 meetings.  The last time was in November of 2005 as the Patriots won 24-17 in Foxborough.  As many are predicting, I believe this game will be a high scoring affair.  But in the end, I believe the team that can establish the run and limit turnovers will be the winner.  Lately the Saints have been a little careless with the football and the Patriots have a strong veteran group that knows how to capitalize on mistakes and win close games.  Plus the Pats are 5-0 all-time at Superdome including a Super Bowl win.  Also with the Colts staying undefeated this week, the chances are pretty strong that the Saints will lose – there has never been two 11-0 teams in NFL history.  New England wins late as Brady hits Moss for a game-winning touchdown.   – Patriots win 31-28

 

Lloyd Vance is a Sr. NFL Writer for Taking It to the House and an award-winning member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA)

Belichick’s Gamble May Haunt the Patriots by Lloyd Vance

 

The Colts’ improbable 35-34 win over the Patriots was a great game.  But all everyone will be talking about Monday was Patriots head coach Bill Belichick’s incorrect decision to go for it on 4th down deep in his own territory

Super Bowl XLIII ½ is over as the New England Patriots (6-3) and Indianapolis Colts (9-0) met for the 7^th time this decade in a game that will immediately be called an “Instant Classic”.  The game came down to the last seconds with the two teams combining for 69 points and 884 combined net yards.  But this game will be remembered most for one play that very well may have ended the dynasty of the team that has dominated this decade in the NFL.  New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick with the situation of a 4^th-and-2 at his own 28-yard line and the Patriots clinging to a 34-28 lead with 2:08 left on the clock, decided to go for it. 

That’s right from very deep in his own side of the field, coach “Arrogant” decided that his defense was not good enough to stop Colts QB Peyton Manning from scoring a touchdown from about 70 to 80 yards away after an “obvious” punt.  But Belichick being Belichick looked across the field and figured that Colts rookie head coach Jim Caldwell’s crew didn’t have the “brass” to stop his superstar quarterback Tom Brady from gaining the 2 yards that would seal the game. 

Well Belichick… you now look like the 2009 reincarnation of former Cowboys head coach Barry Switzer after gambling and losing.  On the crucial play, Brady threw to RB Kevin Faulk and the Colts defense stopped him short from converting the first down.  Manning (28-44, 327 yards, 4 TDs, and 2 INTs) then quickly hit WR Reggie Wayne with a 1-yard touchdown strike with 13 seconds on the clock for the game winning score. 

The score ended up 35-34 as the Colts came back from a 17-point deficit for the most improbable of victories. Caldwell came across the field for a hearty congratulations and a warm handshake, but all he got was a quick slap on the hand from Belichick, “The Great”.  Belichick then ran off the field, but he will never be able to outrun making a foolish arrogant decision that showed that the New England Patriots are no longer the same team that has won 3 Super Titles this decade.

After the game, former Colts head coach and current NBC football analyst Tony Dungy said, “In that situation…You have to punt the football”.  I totally agree coach and I know in hindsight, Belichick does too.

 

Lloyd Vance is a Sr. NFL Writer for Taking It to the House and an award-winning member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA)

Moss’ big play saves the day for the Patriots by Lloyd Vance

Patriots WR Randy Moss showed that he has plenty of fight left in him as his stiff-arm touchdown against the Dolphins was a huge play

Think back to Week 5 of the 2009 NFL Season.  The New England Patriots appeared to be on the ropes with murmuring of their dynasty possibly ending after a tough 20-17 road loss to former Belichick apprentice Josh McDaniels’ Denver Broncos.  The loss was gut-wrenching for an organization that has spent the better part of this decade dominating while winning three Super Bowls and producing the NFL’s only 16-0 regular season.

Two players seemed to take the brunt of public criticism worse than others for the Patriots much-publicized Broncos’ loss and 3-2 record at the time, quarterback Tom Brady and receiver Randy Moss.  Brady was said to be bothered by his slow recovery from a devastating 2008 knee injury and some outright questioned if Moss was finished as an elite NFL receiver.  In the Week 5 loss to Denver, Moss was shadowed throughout the game by former Pro Bowl corner Champ Bailey and was limited to 1 catch for 36 yards and no touchdowns. 

Some analysts were even saying that the best way to control Moss was to be physical with him at the line of scrimmage and that he no longer had the ability to beat a jam.  Moss’ numbers up until that point were inconsistent showing 30 catches for 367 yards and only 1 touchdown.   It was the one touchdown that caused many to say Moss had lost a step.  However the 12-year veteran and Patriots have taken off since the loss to the Broncos.  The Pats have rattled off three straight wins over the Titans, Buccaneers, and Dolphins to take back the lead in the AFC East division.

While Moss has significantly turned up the heat in his game over the Patriots’ 3-game winning streak.  Of course some have said his best efforts were against the lowly Titans (8 receptions for 129 yards, 16.1 ypc, and 3 TDs) and Bucs (5 receptions for 69 yards, 13.8 ypc, and 0 TDs) were no huge feat considering that both teams were winless at the time of the Patriots’ wins over them.  But the 32-old receiver showed this past week against the defensive Miami Dolphins that his game is far from being finished.

In a game that was tight throughout, Moss (six receptions for 147 yards, 24.5 ypc, and 1 TD) had two big plays for the Patriots. He hauled in a 36-yard reception to set up RB Laurence Maroney’s 1-yard touchdown run in the first quarter and also later in the 3^rd quarter, he turned in the play of the game.  After Dolphins Wildcat Ronnie Brown threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Joey Haynos to give the Dolphins a 17-16 lead, it was Moss who rose to the occasion. 

The Patriots defense and crowd were looking a little deflated when the Patriots offense took the field deep in their own territory.  After two plays, the Patriots faced third and 1 from their 29-yard line.  Perfectly as Moss sprinted across the field on a crossing pattern, Brady hit his favorite target in stride.  Dolphins rookie a cornerback Vontae Davis -– admitted that he had grown-up watching Moss with the Vikings — was not far behind and attempted to take on Moss high, but it was the veteran that had a lesson for the youngster. 

Moss using a “Walter Payton-esque” right stiff-arm sent the young rookie flailing to the turf and sprinted all the way to the endzone for an electrifying 71-yard touchdown catch and run.  Brady after the game said of the play and Moss’ effort, “It’s always nice for a quarterback when you see the back of No. 81 sprinting down the field once he gets by them, there’s not too many guys that can catch him.’’

The huge play lifted the Patriots (6-2) to an eventual win and served notice that they are ready for their big Week 10 showdown in Indy against the undefeated Colts.  By all accounts Moss also looks like he maybe on his way to another Pro Bowl with quality numbers 49 catches, 712 yards, 14.5 ypc, and 5 TDs.  Of Moss’ huge play on Sunday, Patriots O-lineman Logan Mankins said, “That has to be pretty deflating…That’s like getting stabbed in the heart’’.

Davis, who had an interception earlier in the game said of the future Hall of Famer, “That’s Randy Moss. He’s going to make his plays and I just tried to limit him the best I can.’’  Even though Moss has shown that he is a long way from being done, his career numbers (892 receptions for 13,913 yards, 15.6 ypc, and 140 TDs) are unbelievable.  We will see if Moss can continue his ride toward Canton, but right now he is playing at a “Jerry Rice” type level and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.

Lloyd Vance is a Sr. NFL Writer for Taking It to the House and an award-winning member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA)

2009 NFL Season – Week 9 Preview by Lloyd Vance

All eyes will be on Lincoln Financial Field in Philly in Week 9 as QB Tony Romo lead the Dallas Cowboys against the Philadelphia Eagles on NBC Sunday Night Football

The second half of the 2009 NFL Season is here and now the “real” fun begins as teams confirm their status as a “Contender” or “Pretender”.  Many people around the NFL, including yours truly, are excited about the second half of the season kicking off as almost all bye weeks are over (Week 9 — Buffalo, Cleveland, Oakland, St. Louis, Minnesota, NY Jets and Week 10 — NY Giants, Houston).  And the games each week have a heightened level of significance in terms of teams jockeying for division titles and the league’s coveted 12 playoff berths.  Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis said of starting the second half of the 2009 season, “It’s a new season, we have a nine-game schedule and we open with Baltimore.”

The NFL as usual is parity-laden this time of the year as there are 15 teams above .500 and 12 teams below the .500 mark.  But there is still a lot of sorting out left to do with the group of 12 teams currently residing in the league’s “Any Given Sunday” middle with records ranging from 5-3 to 3-4 (Texans (5-3), Giants (5-3), Jets (4-4), Ravens (4-3), Chargers (4-3), Falcons (4-3), Bears (4-3), Cardinals (4-3), Niners (3-4), Dolphins (3-4),  Panthers (3-4), and Jaguars (3-4).  In the coming weeks, the Stuck in the Middle” teams will either join the playoff hunt or fall back which always is the fun part of the third quarter of the NFL season.  But nothing in the NFL is predictable and there is a lot most football to be played.  Since 1990, when the current 12-team playoff format was adopted, 47 teams (20.6 percent of the 228 playoff clubs) have advanced to the postseason after starting the season with a .500 or worse record after eight games. 

Even the NFL’s two undefeated teams, the New Orleans Saints (7-0) and Indianapolis Colts (7-0), know that nothing is guaranteed in today’s NFL and that they better put away any thoughts of catching the 1972 undefeated Miami Dolphins and concentrate on their opponents for this week – both have tough divisional battles Saints-Panthers and Colts-Texans.  The Colts are 7-0 for the fourth time in the past five seasons, but they begin a stretch that will see them play teams that are a combined 19-11 (.633) over the next four games.  Colts receiver Reggie Wayne said of his team’s record and where they currently stand, “We know that 7-0 guarantees us nothing, we’ve gotten farther than this in the past and came out with nothing.  We just want to stay dialed in and continue to win games.”

The factor that everyone hopes will lead to being in the playoff hunt come late December is “adjustments”.  The NFL is a copycat league where teams can catch-up quickly and adjustments are the only way to stay ahead of the pack and combat falling behind.  With only eight more weeks of action after this week, it is time for the “good” coaches to make the adjustments necessary to get their teams back on track or keeping them at the top.  Remember early season results are important (don’t want to get too far behind), but good coaches realize that they want their team peaking in the championship months of November and December. 

The halfway point of the season also seems like a good time to start talking about the NFL’s 8 divisional races.  Entering Week 9, seven teams that did not win their division in 2008 either were at the top or tied for first place in their division.  If this pattern holds true, the 2009 season will break the NFL record for new division winners since realignment in 2002 (Six new division winners in 2003 and 2008).

Here’s the current division breakdown:

NFC East — 2008 Champion was the NY Giants and this season the Eagles and Cowboys have a ½ game lead over the Giants.

NFC West– 2008 Champion was the Arizona Cardinals and this season the Cardinals have a 1-game lead over the Giants.

NFC South– 2008 Champion was the Carolina Panthers and this season the New Orleans Saints have a 3-game lead over the Falcons.

NFC North– 2008 Champion was the Minnesota Vikings and this season the Vikings have a 2 ½ game lead over the Packers and Bears

AFC East– 2008 Champion was the Miami Dolphins and this season the New England Patriots have a 1 ½ game lead over the New Jets.

AFC West– 2008 Champion was the San Diego Chargers and this season the Denver Broncos have a 2-game lead over the Chargers.

AFC South– 2008 Champion was the Tennessee Titans and this season the Indianapolis Colts have a 1 ½ game lead over the Houston Texans.

AFC North– 2008 Champion was the Pittsburgh Steelers and this season the Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers have a 1-game lead over the Baltimore Ravens.

Some of the more compelling storylines that we will be following in the NFL’s second half include:

• Can either the New Orleans Saints or Indianapolis Colts go undefeated for the entire 2009 season
• Can the Vikings and veteran quarterback Brett Favre  continue their magic carpet ride into the playoffs
• Are the Patriots and Steelers truly back after producing winning streaks going into their recent bye weeks?
• Could it be possible that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will not win a game in 2009 and match the 2008 Detroit Lions (0-16)
• Which coach currently on the hot seat (Browns Eric Mangini, Redskins Jim Zorn, Raiders Tom Cable, Bills Dick Jauron, Panthers John Fox and others) will be the first one issued their pink slip

After so many weeks containing five or more blowouts, let’s hope that Week 9’s many great match-ups live up to their hype.

Baltimore Ravens at Cincinnati Bengals – The Ravens (4-3) will visit the Bengals (4-3) in a matchup between two fighting to be near the top of the AFC North.  The Ravens are looking for revenge from a Week 5 home loss to the Bengals so don’t expect many pleasantries.  To make matters worse, Bengals receiver Chad Ochocinco sent the Ravens secondary and linebackers some gift baskets of deodorant sticks in anticipation of this week’s game (i.e. No. 85 is saying the Ravens’ D stinks).  Ochocinco better be careful as the Ravens showed last week against the Broncos (30-7 victory) that they mean business after a much-needed bye. 

Indianapolis Colts at Houston Texans – In what looks like a primo AFC South battle, the Texans –- have won three games in a row — will look to get to a 6-3 record for the first time their franchise’s history and get some respect around the NFL.  Quite frankly, this game could make or break the Texans’ season as they try to make the jump from a perennial 8-8 squad to being a playoff contender.  However the task of beating the Colts is daunting one as Indianapolis has now won 16 consecutive regular season games and can tie the 1933-34 Chicago Bears for the third-longest streak in NFL history with a win this Sunday.  Of this Sunday’s matchup Colts QB Peyton Manning said, “We’re heading into the teeth of our schedule”.  Manning will also be shooting for two decade milestones and NFL firsts in the game — 19 passing yards from 40,000 passing yards and 4 TDs from 300 touchdown passes.  Also watch for Colts DE Dwight Freeney who has recorded a sack in 7 consecutive games this season — needs one sack on to tie teammate Robert Mathis’ start of season record (8) from 2005.

San Diego Chargers at New York Giants – Remember the 2004 NFL Draft…well I know the Chargers and Giants do.  In April of 2004, the Giants and Chargers swapped quarterbacks Eli Manning (foot) and Philip Rivers in a trade that will forever link the two young passers.  Rivers and the Chargers are looking to continue their recent found winning ways.  While Manning’s team is trying to end an ugly 3-game losing streak that has saw them slip from 5-0 start to second place in the NFL East.  I am sure the Chargers will attack a beleaguered Giants’ secondary that allowed four plays over 40 yards or more last week against the Eagles. The will need to get pressure from their D-line (when DE Justin Tuck records a sack, the Giants are 15-3) and hope for the healthy return of DL Chris Canty, CB Aaron Ross and LB Michael Boley or could be a long day.  The G-Men will need to keep an eye on Chargers TE Antonio Gates who has an NFL leading 53 TDs since 2002.  The Giants have won five straight vs. the AFC — including Super Bowl XLII – but this is a tough assignment.

Pittsburgh Steelers at Denver Broncos – In the AFC’s marquee match-up of the week, the defending champion Steelers, coming off a bye, will look to extend their winning streak to five consecutive games against the upstart Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football.  The entire country will be watching as these two division leaders clash at INVESCO Field.  One thing is for certain, expect some serious defense in this game as the Broncos are rated No.1 in the NFL in terms of yardage allowed (266.7) and have allowed an average of just 13.7 points per game.  The Steelers are not far behind with an average of 291 yards allowed and only 23.8 points per game.  Pittsburgh defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau said of his unit, “I think we have the potential to be a very, very good defense.”  The Broncos will try to protect quarterback Kyle Orton by running their backs Knowshon Moreno and Correll Buckhalter.  While the Steelers may allow QB Ben Roethlisberger to go no-huddle which gave the Broncos fits in their first loss of the season last week in Baltimore.  Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels said of the match-up after losing first time last week, “You can find out just as much about your team through the adversity of a loss as you can through six wins, now we’ve got to get ready to play against a really good team in Pittsburgh.”

Lloyd’s Leftovers for Week 9

Riggo has a mouthful for the Redskins front office — John Riggins, a hall of fame and former Super Bowl MVP for Washington Redskins, took his battle with Redskins owner Daniel Snyder to the big stage.  Appearing on Showtime’s “Inside the NFL”, the talkative former NFL workhorse back let Snyder have it with both guns blazing.  Getting quite personal, Riggins said of the Redskins management, “I’ve been asked this question a lot, when they say do you have an ax to grind…Maybe that’s the case. But truthfully I do have an ax to grind and I just realized I have been a little bit disingenuous. But this is a bad guy that owns this team. I’ll just tell you that upfront. Bad Guy! And if the commissioner is worried about potential new owners and saying some of these guys shouldn’t apply, he might want to police his own inside guys.”  Somehow I don’t see this little tiff going away anytime soon.

Titans’ running back pulls out his crystal ball – Titans RB Chris Johnson feeling real good about his team’s first victory last week over the Jacksonville Jaguars predicted that the Titans (1-6) could run the table to end the season.  Johnson said, “We really believe like we can, like we started off 10-0 last year”.  Fresh off a franchise record 228-yard game against the Jags, Johnson added “Before we played Jacksonville, we sat down and was like we really feel like we can go 10-0 in these last 10 games”.  I will let you decide about Tennessee’s chances and here is the rest of the Titans’ schedule: at 49ers, vs. Bills, at Texans, vs. Cardinals, at Colts, vs. Rams, vs. Dolphins, vs. Chargers, at Seahawks.

The Wildcat returns to it’s NFL birthplace – I know the Patriots haven’t forgotten, but it was in Week 3 of the 2008 season that the Dolphins unleashed the much-talked about ‘Wildcat’ formation on the NFL.  Heady Dolphins offensive coordinator Dan Henning and his quarterbacks coach David Lee surprised the Patriots and the entire NFL by running a form of single-wing in a 38-13 road upset in Foxborough.  The ‘Phins churned out 216 rushing yards and RB Ronnie Brown (17 rushes for 117 yards and 4 TD’s) was spectacular to say the least as a part-time quarterback.  The former Auburn star set a Dolphins franchise record by running for four touchdowns and even threw a perfect left-handed 19-yard touchdown pass to Anthony Fassano.  The win stopped the Patriots’ 21-game regular season consecutive win streak and the NFL has never been the same with almost every team in league looking to run a version of the “Wildcat”.  In Week 9, look for the Patriots to load the box with their safeties (Brandon Merriweather and Brandon McGowan) in an attempt to stop the Dolphins vaunted running game (153.4 yards per game) and of course the Wildcat formation.

Sustained Success — The 2008 Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers have 99 wins since the start of the 2000 season.  With a victory in Denver on Monday night, the Steelers can become the third team this decade with 100 regular-season wins, joining the Indianapolis Colts (108) and New England Patriots (107).  The Philadelphia Eagles are not far behind from the 100-win mark for this decade as they have 97 wins.  The Colts and Patriots also are within striking distance of the all-time win mark for a decade held by the San Francisco 49ers of the 1990s (113).

Colts hit hard by the injury bug — If the Indianapolis Colts are going to improve upon their current 16-game winning streak and undefeated start (7-0), they will need to find some gems on their depth chart.  This season injuries have ravaged the Colts and this week was no different as CB Kelvin Hayden (knee – 4 weeks), CB Marlin Jackson (ACL – season), and safety Bob Sanders (elbow – season) were lost for significant amounts of time.  Some bigger names listed as either “Out” or “Questionable” are Cardinals WR Anquan Boldin (ankle), Falcons WR Roddy White (knee), Chargers C Nick Hardwick (ankle), Lions WR Calvin Johnson (knee), Donald Driver (stinger), Eagles LB Chris Gocong (quad, hamstring), Patriots RB Sammy Morris (knee), Bears WR Devin Hester (ankle), Ravens DT Haloti Ngata (ankle), Panthers WR Muhsin Muhammed (knee), Eagles WR Kevin Curtis (knee), Bucs WR Antonio Bryant (knee), Colts K Adam Vinatieri (right knee), Patriots DE Jarvis Green (knee), Dolphins LB Channing Crowder (shoulder) and Redskins P Hunter Smith (right groin).

Big Plays are prevalent in the NFL this season — There have been 81 touchdowns of at least 50 yards scored this season.  That is the most through the first eight weeks of a season since 1970.  The previous high was 80 touchdowns of 50+ yards scored in 1998.

Veteran is a good luck charm — New England has won 24 consecutive regular season games with recently re-signed veteran LB Junior Seau on their roster.

NFL Week 9 – Featured Game

Dallas Cowboys (5-2) at Philadelphia Eagles (5-2), 8:00 PM ET (NBC)

 Broadcast Team: Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth, and Andrea Kremer (Field reporter)

NBC’s Sunday Night Football will be alive as one of the biggest rivalries in the NFL will be showcased this week.  To die-hard Eagles fans there are only really two games a year that really matter and both of them are against the hated Dallas Cowboys. To make things even more interesting, this year’s first battle between these two bitter rivals is for first place in the NFC East. NBC football analyst Tony Dungy said of the match-up, “Philadelphia and Dallas are playing great in all three phases it’s setting up a big showdown game – with first place in the NFC East on the line – on Sunday night.”  Both the Cowboys enter the game riding win streaks — Cowboys have won three consecutive games and the Eagles have a two game winning streak themselves.   The last time these two teams met in Week 17 of the 2008 season, the Eagles trounced the Cowboys 44-6 at Lincoln Financial Field to knock Dallas from the playoff race.

Expect there to be plenty of offensive fireworks as both teams have several big play threats – Cowboys ranked 2nd in NFL with an average of 411.1 yards per game and the Eagles are not far behind averaging 344.4 yards.  The Cowboys have been led by quarterback Tony Romo (won 12 consecutive November starts) and emerging receiver Miles Austin (26 catches for 563 yards, 21.7 ypc average and 6 TDs) have scored 101 points (33.7 per game) throughout the 2009 season, but especially during their recent 3-game winning streak.  Romo surely will be looking to hit his favorite target TE Jason Witten (37 receptions for 348 yards, and 1 TD) over the middle as tight ends from the Bucs’ Kellen Winslow to the Raiders’ Zach Miller have torched the Eagles in coverage.  It will be up new Eagles MLB Will Witherspoon and FS Sean Jones to keep Witten in check or it maybe a long day for Sean McDermott’s defense.  Also watch for the Cowboys to run the football with their three-headed backfield (Tashard Choice, Felix Jones, and Marion Barber) to slowdown the Eagles blitz-happy defense (23 sacks).  Conversely the Eagles have gone from a methodical team that moved the chain with short secure passes to a unit that is a quick strike big play team –four touchdowns of 40 yards or more in Week 8 win over the Giants. 

Last week, the Eagles scored 40 points in a 23-point victory over the New York Giants, which was the team’s largest margin of victory over the Giants since 1996.  In Philadelphia’s five wins this season, the team has averaged 34.4 points per game.  The Eagles offense will look for returning RB Brian Westbrook (concussion) to help quarterback Donovan McNabb (80-133, 1008 yards, 9 TDs, 1 INT, and a 103.2 rating) and emerging young players RB LeSean McCoy, WR Jeremy Maclin and TE Brent Celek.  However any offensive talk for the Eagles will start and end with number one threat WR/PR DeSean Jackson (will be shadowed by Cowboys former Pro Bowl corner Terrence Newman).  The former 2nd rounder from Cal has scored six touchdowns of at least 50 yards this year, becoming just the second player in NFL history – Pro Football Hall of Famer Elroy “Crazy Legs” Hirsch (1951) – to score six 50-yard touchdowns in the first seven games of a season. Jackson said of his feat, “I’ve just been put in some great positions to score long touchdowns”.  The charismatic and borderline cocky playmaker added, “Whatever we need to do to make it work, that’s what we’re going to do.  I want to keep winning, keep making plays and hopefully make it to the Super Bowl.”

On defense, the Eagles are ranked 10th against the pass and 12th against the run, but they are always looking for the turnover.  The Eagles are third in the NFL with 14 INTs plus they currently sport a +12 turnover ratio (2nd in the NFL).   Pressure from the Eagles’ D-line led by former Pro Bowl pass rusher Trent Cole (6.5 sacks) has led to Pro Bowl corner Asante Samuel (5 INTs) making big plays.  The Cowboys defense also is predicated on pressure (LB DeMarcus Ware – 5 sacks in ’09) which has helped them stop the run (ranked 13th in the NFL), but also has left Dallas susceptible to big plays in their secondary.  Other than Newman, the other members in Dallas’ secondary have had a lot of problems in coverage, especially safeties Gerald Sensabaugh and Ken Hamlin. 

As always injuries will be a big part of this game as the Cowboys’ injury list includes: CB Allen Rossum (hamstring – out), RB Marion Barber (thumb), DT Jay Ratliff (knee), S Gerald Sensabaugh (thumb), and LB DeMarcus Ware (foot).  Conversely the Eagles will be missing WR Kevin Curtis (knee) and most likely LB Chris Gocong (quadricep, hamstring) with other players on their injury list like DE Victor Abiamiri (knee), DT Brodrick Bunkley (knee), DE Chris Clemons (shoulder, elbow), G Nick Cole (knee), S Macho Harris (ankle), DE Darren Howard (ankle), and CB Dimitri Patterson (quadricep, hand).

LV’s Pick: – Watch for special teams in this game as Cowboys returnman Patrick Crayton  has been playing very well of late — had an 82-yard punt return touchdown last week to become the 2nd Cowboy with punt return for a touchdown in consecutive games (“Bullet” Bob Hayes in 1968).  And Eagles kicker David Akers’ leg is looking stronger than ever (61 points – 3rd in NFC and 13-16 FGs).  In picking this game there are some trends to keep in mind. Since 2004, each team has won four games in this series.  But lately the Eagles have been on top, winning four of the past six meetings and 14 of the last 20 games in this series. Even though the Cowboys ead the overall series, (55-44 including the playoffs), expect the Eagles and McNabb (won 11 of last 16 starts against Dallas) to rise to the occasion of playing on National TV – Eagles 31, Cowboys 28

NFL Week 9  

SUN, November 8 

Washington at Atlanta 1:00 PM (FOX)

Arizona at Chicago 1:00 PM (FOX)  

Baltimore at Cincinnati 1:00 PM (CBS)  

Houston at Indianapolis 1:00 PM (CBS)  

Miami at New England 1:00 PM (CBS)  

Green Bay at Tampa Bay 1:00 PM (FOX)  

Kansas City at Jacksonville 1:00 PM (CBS)

Detroit at Seattle 4:05 PM (FOX) 

Carolina at New Orleans 4:05 PM (FOX) 

San Diego at NY Giants 4:15 PM (CBS)  

Tennessee at San Francisco 4:15 PM (CBS)  

Dallas at Philadelphia 8:20 PM (NBC)

MON, November 9 

Pittsburgh at Denver 8:30 PM (ESPN)

Bye: Buffalo, Cleveland, Oakland, St. Louis, Minnesota, NY Jets 

Lloyd Vance is a Sr. NFL Writer for Taking It to the House and an award-winning member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA)

2009 NFL Season – Week 5 Preview by Lloyd Vance

 

In one of Week 5’s bestgames, it will be “The Hoody” vs. “Hoody Jr” as Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels leads his young team against his old boss Bill Belichick and the Patriots

Week 5 of the 2009 NFL Season is upon us and around the league many trends are starting to form.  The most important trend of them all is that “Separation” has definitely begun amongst the NFL’s 32 teams.  After an exciting first quarter of the season has been completed, five undefeated teams are looking towards the playoffs (Giants, Saints, Vikings, Broncos, and Colts) and five winless teams are  planning for the 2010 NFL Draft already (Bucs, Rams, Chiefs, Browns, and Titans).  Between these two groups are twenty-two teams stuck in the parity middle of the NFL, trying to figure out if they are “Contenders” or “Pretenders” before November and December hit. 

But remember there is still a lot of time left on the NFL calendar and much more work to do for teams around the league.  “We know we’ve won four games but four games will never qualify us for the playoffs or win our division,” said Denver Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels.  Pretty much every team that has at least one win still has a chance to climb into the playoff hunt.  We already know that in modern NFL history that only one team, the 1992 San Diego Chargers, climbed from a 0-4 start to make the playoffs.  But history has shown that a losing record at this point in the season does not negate a team’s chances of making the playoffs.  Since the current playoff system (12 teams) was instituted in 1990, 22 teams have rebounded from a losing record through a season’s first four weeks to qualify for the postseason. Four of those clubs advanced to their conference championship games, including the 2001 New England Patriots (1-3) who also just happened to win Super Bowl XXXVI.

In looking at this week’s games there is clearly not many marquee match-ups.  Especially with front line teams the Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers, New Orleans Saints, and San Diego Chargers on a bye.  Five games have over 8 point favorites (Eagles-Bucs, Vikings-Rams, Steelers-Lions, Raiders-Giants, and Cowboys-Chiefs).  The week’s best games include two divisional battles in the Bengals-Ravens (see Preview) and the Jets-Dolphins on Monday Night Football.  But the big enchilada this week is the match-up that I like to call, “Young Belichick vs. Old Belichick”.  The New England Patriots will travel to Denver to face a red-hot Broncos team led by former Patriots offensive coordinator and Belichick want-to-be Josh McDaniels (worked on the Patriots staff for 8 years).  The young protégé coach has mimicked his mentor right down to a sometimes icy relationship with players and the media plus of course the cutoff hoody. McDaniels said, “We’re not going to make more of this game than what it is…It’s the fifth game of the year.  It’ll be a great challenge to play against one of the best franchises in this league.”

The Patriots were thought to have been on their way down after an embarrassing loss to the trash-talking NY Jets.  But something strange happened on their way to the bottom of the AFC East, where the Buffalo Bills dwell, the Patriots led by the familiar duo of Belichick and comeback kid quarterback Tom Brady woke-up.  The Patriots knocked off upstarts the Falcons and Ravens in successive weeks and now they are also looking to knock the Broncos from the ranks of the unbeaten.  If the Broncos are smart, they better try to figure out how to stop Brady from hitting his favorite receiver Randy Moss (scored his first touchdown of 2009 versus the Ravens).  The game will give a true gauge of whether the Broncos are a contender or just plain lucky at this point in the season. 

Against the Bengals in Week 1 it took Brandon Stokely’s “Tremendous Tip” to win and last week it was receiver Brandon Marshall to the rescue.  However as much as everyone has talked about the key breaks that the Broncos have received offensively, it is their defense that is the true story.  Led by new defensive coordinator Mike Nolan, the Broncos’ defense looks nothing like the group that routinely gave-up 400 total yards and had a per game average of over 20 points.  Nolan has instilled his fiery attitude into a group that has over five new starters.  Some players stepping forward for Nolan is veteran safety Brian Dawkins – came over from the Eagles in free agency and has been a tackling machine – and undersized defensive end Elvis Dummervil, who leads the NFL in sacks with eight through four games.  Through four games, the Broncos’ defense has yielded 26 points (6.5 per game).It should be a great match-up and fans can probably even  expect a warm handshake, for a change, between Belichick and his opposing head coach.

Before we got to our featured game for this week, let’s grab some Lloyd’s Leftovers.

Big week for NFL primetime games on television – The Packers-Vikings game on ESPN Monday night drew the largest audience in cable history with 21.8 million viewers.   The FOX doubleheader game (mostly Cowboys-Broncos) was the week’s most-watched show with 22.0 million viewers. And the NBC Sunday night Chargers-Steelers game ranked third with 18.4 million viewers.  

LeBron still runs Cleveland and don’t you forget it – After an alleged incident between former Browns WR Braylon Edwards and a LeBron James’ crony, apparently Browns head Eric Mangini had seen enough.  Edwards was traded to the NY Jets for WR Chansi Stuckey, LB Jason Trusnick and a pair of draft picks.  The former 3rd overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft never lived up to his “Diva” status and other than a breakout year in 2007 (16 TDs in a Pro Bowl year), Edwards has seemed to care more about being a future actor than football player.  Injuries and drops have plagued Edwards throughout his Browns career and hopefully Jets no-nonsense head coach Rex Ryan will break him of his bad habits. In 62 career games, Edwards has 238 receptions, 3,697 yards and 28 TDs.  Look for the Browns to give more time to young wide receivers Brian Robiskie and Mohamed Massaquoi.

40 is the new 30 – Fresh off his magical win over his old team last week, Minnesota Vikings QB Brett Favre (85-125, 68%, 837 yards, 8 TDs, and 1 INT) will celebrate his 40th birthday on Saturday, October 10.  On Sunday when the Vikings play the St. Louis Rams, Favre will become the 12th 40-year-old quarterback to start an NFL game in the Super Bowl era (since 1966).  Only four quarterbacks have started at least 5 games after their 40th birthday since 1966 (Warren Moon, Len Dawson, Vinny Testaverde, and Doug Flutie).

Viva NFL — The NFL’s celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month will culminate in a series of special events surrounding the Jets at Dolphins Monday Night Football game on Monday, October 12, on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, and on the radio via Univision Radio.  Telecast will have a customized version of Hank Williams Jr.’s opening video featuring Grammy award-winning singer Gloria Estefan and including lyrics in Spanish.  Grammy award-winning singer Marc Anthony will highlight gameday activities by performing the national anthem.  Also Land Shark Stadium will have several activities inside and outside of the stadium.

NFL Week 5- Featured Game

CINCINNATI BENGALS (3-1) AT BALTIMORE RAVENS (3-1), 1:00 PM ET (CBS)

Broadcast Team: Gus Johnson and Steve Tasker

I will call this one, “The Battle for Hard Knocks Supremacy”.  The Ravens were the series original team back in 2001 and the Bengals appeared in this year’s version.  It didn’t seem that long ago that the AFC North division was the sole stomping grounds of the 2008 Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers.  But the times seem to be changing as the Steelers are surprisingly now looking up at both the Bengals and Ravens.  The stage is set in the Charm City as the two organizations that have some ties, including current Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis used to be the defensive coordinator for the Ravens back during their Super Bowl run in 2000, will meet to see who is the AFC North driver’s seat.

To make things even more exciting for Sunday, Bengals WR Chad Ochocinco (17 catches for 258 yards, 15.2 ypc, and 3 TDs) has spent the past few days taunting Ravens defensive backs Dominique Foxworth and Fabian Washington via Twitter. Ochocinco tweeted to Washington, “Tell Vivica Foxworth he better just sit this game out!!!”  Wrong move No. 85 as the Baltimore Ravens aren’t happy over their treatment in New England last week.  In Week 4, the Patriots handed the Ravens a 27-21 loss, which was their first of the season.  Then there is also the little matter of the Ravens perceiving that the officials “jobbed” them on some personal foul penalties – season-high 9 penalties.  After the game, the Ravens players could not hold their tongues.   “Without totally going off the wall here, it is embarrassing to the game” linebacker Ray Lewis said.

The match-up that I am most interested in is the Ravens stellar defense (allowed only an average of 291 total yards per game) led by Lewis, safety Ed Reed and OLB/DE Terrell Suggs against the Bengals offensive playmakers led by QB Carson Palmer.  The former first overall pick from the 2004 NFL Draft has won six of his first eight starts against the Ravens.  Palmer was on a roll against the Ravens until last year when he had one of his worst performances against them last year.  In the 17-10 season-opening loss in Baltimore, Palmer threw for numbers: 9-24, 94 yards and 1 INT.  Palmer will try to get the ball to Ochocinco, RB Cedric Benson (84 rushes for 367 yards, 4.4 ypr, and 2 TDs) and big play receiver Chris Henry.  The Ravens pass rush can bring pressure from a variety of players and head coach John Harbaugh’s D is always looking for turnovers (+2, tied for 3rd in the AFC) that often time turn into points.

The crazy thing about the 2009 season is that the Ravens are not known for their attacking defense as their offense is piling up yards like crazy – averaging 413.5  yards (3rd in the NFL).  After a rookie season where he was more of a caretaker, 2nd-year starter Joe Flacco has become a Mad Bomber.  In his first four games this season, Flacco has completed 95 of 151 passes for 1,103 yards with eight TDs and three interceptions, which is a major improvement his rookie season.  The young quarterback from the University of Delaware will have help though from his running tandem of Ray Rice (49 rushes for 295 yards, 6.0 ypr, and 1 TD) and rebounding veteran Willis McGahee (leads the NFL with 7 TDs).  The Ravens also be counting more big plays from veteran receiver Derrick Mason (19 rec, 284 yards, 14.9 ypc, and 2 TDs).  The Bengals will be counting on DE Antwan Odom (8 sacks) to get pressure on Flacco so that rookie of the year candidate LB Rey Maualuga and their secondary led by Leon Hall and James Joseph can make plays.

In terms of injuries, the Bengals will probably be without DT Tank Johnson (foot), S Chinedum Ndukwe (hamstring), and S Kyries Hebert (hip).  The Ravens will more than be without OT Jared Gaither (head/neck), but the good news is that the big former Maryland O-lineman is making a big recovery after being taken off the field on a backboard against the Patriots.

LV’s Pick:  The last time these two met, the Ravens ran up and down the field as they pulled off a 34-3 win last November.  Ravens head coach John Harbaugh has a 2-0 record and I believe that he will continue to stay undefeated against the Bengals.  Marvin Lewis’ team is coming off a skin-of-their-teeth win over the hapless Browns, while Ravens are fighting mad.  There will probably be more offense in this game than most people expect, but I still believe the Ravens will get a key turnover, possibly for a touchdown – Ravens 24, Bengals 20

Week 5

SUN, OCT 11 

Cleveland at Buffalo 1:00 PM (CBS) 

Pittsburgh at Detroit 1:00 PM (CBS)

Dallas at Kansas City 1:00 PM (FOX)  

Minnesota at St. Louis 1:00 PM (FOX)  

Oakland at NY Giants 1:00 PM (CBS) 

Tampa Bay at Philadelphia 1:00 PM (FOX)  

Washington at Carolina 1:00 PM (FOX) 

Cincinnati at Baltimore 1:00 PM (CBS)  

Atlanta at San Francisco 4:05 PM (FOX)   

Jacksonville at Seattle 4:15 PM (CBS)

Houston at Arizona 4:15 PM (CBS) 

New England at Denver 4:15 PM (CBS)  

Indianapolis at Tennessee 8:20 PM (NBC)

MON, OCT 12 

NY Jets at Miami 8:30 PM (ESPN)

Bye: Chicago, Green Bay, New Orleans, San Diego

 

Lloyd Vance is a Sr. NFL Writer for Taking It to the House and an award -winning member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA)

The NFL needs to stop protecting Patriots QB Tom Brady by Lloyd Vance

The Ravens defenders including Big DT Haloti Ngata were rightfully perturbed over some “iffy” roughing the passer calls that benefited Pats’ QB Tom Brady

Let’s think way back to Week 1 of the 2008 NFL Season. Kansas City Chiefs safety Benard Pollard lunged at “Captain America” Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and knocked the NFL’s biggest prize out for the season with a knee injury. As we all know, the hit didn’t end the Patriots season as everyone seemed to predict. The Patriots picked themselves up and posted an 11-5 season without Tom Terrific. However NFL owners in their infinite wisdom decided at the NFL Owner’s Meetings last spring that more needed to be done to protect the NFL’s greatest commodities, “Golden Boy” quarterbacks.

Thus “The Brady Rule” was born, where defenders who are knocked to the ground can no longer lunge into quarterbacks if the play is still going on. Of course the owners didn’t bother to ask defensive players or the quarterbacks themselves about needing such a rule. As soon as the rule was on the books, you knew there would be a game situation that highlighted the ambiguity (at the referees discretion) and overall ridiculousness of the ‘Brady Rule’. It had to be fate as the Patriots-Ravens game this past Sunday was the model for the misinterpretation of the rule that basically makes NFL quarterbacks into China dolls and of course Tom Brady was the “victim”.

In the Patriots 27-21 win over the Ravens, the NFL officiating crew led by referee Ron Winter called two ridiculous personal fouls against the Ravens that of course extended Patriots’ scoring drives. The first came on a crucial third-and-9 play in the first quarter and the ball at the Baltimore 37. Ravens DT Haloti Ngata was hit with a “roughing the passer” on a play where he was clearly trying to deflect Brady’s pass as it was being thrown. Ngata’s left arm as it was coming down barely grazed Brady’s facemask and of course Tommy “the actor” – BTW: Did you see his work on HBO’s Entourage earlier this season — went down like he was hit by a Mike Tyson haymaker.

The second instance of roughing the passer against the Ravens was the most agregious and occurred with 5:16 left in the first half and the ball at the Baltimore’s 43-yard line. On a second-and-11 play, Ravens OLB Terrell Suggs beat his man and applied pressure to Brady as he threw a pass. Suggs fighting through a block went low, but clearly tried to avoid contact with Brady’s knees. But Winter’s crew threw the flag citing the “Brady Rule”. Brady even motioned to an official to throw the flag even though Suggs was nowhere near his knee.

The two calls amplified the NFL’s continuing “sissy-fication” of the game and further fueled the debate that the league cares more about their million-dollar passers than any other position.   After the game, the Ravens players could not hold their tongues. “Without totally going off the wall here, it is embarrassing to the game,” linebacker Ray Lewis said. “Brady is good enough to make his own plays, let him make the play. When you have two great teams that are going at it, let them go at it. Both of their touchdown drives had personal fouls that kept drives alive. Did that win or lose the game? No, but it got them 14 points.”

I could not agree more with the Ravens as the NFL that I grew up watching in the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s was a league where a quarterback put his shoulder pads and helmet on like everyone else, so he was rightfully fair game. In a paradox, retired passers that I have talked to cannot believe the level of  “compassion” that today’s quarterbacks are afforded. Recently on HBO’s Joe Buck Show, Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway said that it irked him that quarterback are treated with kid gloves today and that he could have probably played another couple years under these rules.

As former Eagles head coach Buddy Ryan used to say, “They should just put flags on the quarterbacks and get it over with”. C’mon let the defensive guys play hard…can anyone tell me if the same kind of measures are taken on chop blocks and zone blocking knee diving blocks. I also saw where during this same weekend that a different set of NFL officials did nothing when Oakland Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell suffered the exact hit used to write the “Brady Rule” in his team’s loss to the Texans. Maybe there are two NFL rulebooks, one for Brady and one for everyone else.

Have fun explaining away these two calls head of officiating Mike Pereira! On NBC’s Sunday Night Football, Brady’s former teammate Rodney Harrison jokingly told Brady, “Take off the skirt and put on a pair of pants”.