by Jason Jones
Every real football fan lives and dies with almost every possession; offensive or defensive. With some exception, this season is no different. If for only one season, 2007 will be revered as the season that redefined the word parity. Naturally, we could not get through a season without a couple of favorites on cruise control by week 11. Logically, we could never get through a season without eventually looking back and saying, “Yep, coulda seen that one coming”. We will illustrate that as we move through the current rankings (note: MNF has not been played, thus two teams will have a lower win/loss total). The bold print identifies a better record than expected while italics identifies a worse record than expected.
TIER ONE:
1___New England Patriots__10-0_411 Pts Scored_____157 Pts Allowed
2___Dallas Cowboys_______9-1_324 Pts Scored_____218 Pts Allowed
3___Green Bay Packers_____9-1_259 Pts Scored_____159 Pts Allowed
4___Indianapolis Colts______8-2_278 Pts Scored_____159 Pts Allowed
TIER TWO:
5___Pittsburgh Steelers_____7-3_269 Pts Scored_____145 Pts Allowed
6___Jacksonville Jaguars____7-3_207 Pts Scored_____181 Pts Allowed
7___NY Giants___________7-3_236 Pts Scored_____200 Pts Allowed
TIER THREE:
8___Cleveland Browns______6-4_288 Pts- Scored_____294 Pts Allowed
9___Detroit Lions__________6-4_231 Pts Scored_____232 Pts Allowed
10__Seattle Seahawks_______6-4_221 Pts Scored_____164 Pts Allowed
11__Tampa Bay Buccaneers___6-4_195 Pts Scored_____151 Pts Allowed
12__Tennessee Titans_______6-3_178 Pts Scored_____152 Pts Allowed
TIER FOUR:
13__San Diego Chargers______5-5_229 Pts Scored_____209 Pts Allowed
14__Houston Texans________5-5_226 Pts Scored_____236 Pts Allowed
15__Arizona Cardinals_______5-5_223 Pts Scored_____222 Pts Allowed
16__Philadelphia Eagles______5-5_206 Pts Scored_____187 Pts Allowed
17__Washington Redskins_____5-5_200 Pts Scored_____221 Pts Allowed
18__Buffalo Bills____________5-5_153 Pts Scored_____222 Pts Allowed
TIER FIVE:
19__Denver Broncos_________4-5_153 Pts Scored_____238 Pts Allowed
20__New Orleans Saints______4-6_212 Pts Scored_____246 Pts Allowed
21__Minnesota Vikings_______4-6_195 Pts Scored_____210 Pts Allowed
22__Chicago Bears__________4-6_184 Pts Scored_____217 Pts Allowed
23__Baltimore Ravens_______4-6_168 Pts Scored_____211 Pts Allowed
24__Carolina Panthers_______4-6_167 Pts Scored_____212 Pts Allowed
25__Kansas City Chiefs_______4-6_145 Pts Scored_____186 Pts Allowed
TIER SIX:
26__Cincinnati Bengals_______3-7_246 Pts Scored_____286 Pts Allowed
27__Atlanta Falcons_________3-7_142 Pts Scored_____213 Pts Allowed
28__Oakland Raiders________2-8_180 Pts Scored_____223 Pts Allowed
29__NY Jets______________2-8_178 Pts Scored_____244 Pts Allowed
30__St. Louis Rams_________2-8_149 Pts Scored_____257 Pts Allowed
31__San Francisco 49ers______2-8_113 Pts Scored_____223 Pts Allowed
TIER SEVEN:
32__Miami Dolphins_________0-10_183 Pts Scored_____274 Pts Allowed
The previous was determined by record first then team +/-. Naturally, this is not how things would look if the regular season ended today. Divisions and placement would not permit it. So as we’ve already done by record, let’s see what the playoff landscape would look like if the season were only 10 games long. (And no crying and/or excuses from Mercury Morris, PLEASE!!!)
AFC Playoff Rankings
1_____New England Patriots______1st Rd Bye
2_____Indianapolis Colts_________1st Rd Bye
3_____Pittsburgh Steelers_________vs CLE
4_____San Diego Chargers________vs JAX
5_____Jacksonville Jaguars________vs SD
6_____Cleveland Browns_________vs PIT
NFC Playoff Rankings
1_____Dallas Cowboys__________1st Rd Bye
2_____Green Bay Packers________1st Rd Bye
3_____Seattle Seahawks__________vs DET
4_____Tampa Bay Buccaneers_____vs NYG
5_____New York Giants__________vs TB
6_____Detroit Lions_____________vs SEA
Clearly the AFC is a stronger conference, the Western Conference from the NBA, if you will. Most of the NFL watching world would have put NE and IND straight through to the AFC championship game, which with the exception of one hiccup by Indy, seems logically on track. With the underwhelming play of the Cincinnati Bengals and Baltimore Ravens, it seems pretty straight forward to see the Pittsburgh Steelers at the top spot in the AFC North and third overall in record. Now clearly, San Diego is only here because every division MUST be represented. Maybe its because LaDanian Tomlinson has donned a new face mask that looks like something out of a Predator movie, or maybe if A.J. Smith would have listened to the advice from FantasyDraftHelp.com and drafted a top flight WR and not a #2, then its possible there place in this ranking could’ve been better. Jacksonville is that one team that you find in every season, often that team is consistently Jacksonville, who makes it into the playoffs and no one really knows why. C’mon, I know Defense wins championships, but how many Baltimore Ravens circa 2000 can we stomach? The Cleveland Browns are probably the most intriguing addition to this piece. Due to the fact they are my team we will revisit them later. Clearly the anti-Jaguar team of the AFC. With the exception of NE, Cleveland on an average day this season can keep pace with any AFC team on offense. However, they couldn’t keep the Little Giants (starring Rick Moranis and Ed O’Neil) from looking like Jim Brown and Walter Payton running behind the 1990’s Cowboy offensive line.
The NFC is not so gleaming with intrigue. The Dallas Cowboys are exactly what we say in week 1 and 2. What a difference a season without Bill Parcells will do to a team morale and performance. Maybe there was something to Julius Jones’ comments following Parcells departure from the team in the off season. The Packers may be the biggest surprise in all of the NFL this season. Apparently, there IS an NBA moniker that applies to an NFL team…”Never underestimate the impact of one elite player to a teams win total” (Kobe-Lakers, Lebron-Cavs, Garnett-Timberwolves). You can add Brett “Fah-vuh-ruh” Favre. No running game, a bunch of marginal to lame WR’s and a young and quickly developing defense. Not exactly a recipe for a title, but nine wins is nice, regardless. Seattle and Tampa Bay are in the Chargers category. Someone from each division must be represented. Tampa and Seattle are middle of the road teams. Tampa is a former power with an old defense and no legitimate offensive studs (at least the ones that make it through the duration of a season). Seattle is a team on the brink of rebuilding. Alexander has seen his best days, Hasselback is good, the stellar offensive line has been depleted, the WR core is a collection of # 2 and 3 receivers, and the defense is better than average. The Giants have improved themselves in record without changing much of the roster. The 32nd ranked pass defense is improved, but only because Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora and the Giants pass rush won’t give a quarterback more than two seconds flat to throw. The Detroit Lions are the Browns of the AFC, a team perpetually in the cellar of the league since their previous golden age ended…ages ago. For Cleveland it was the mid to late 1980’s, for the Lions it was any season with Barry Sanders. Both have enjoyed an offensive explosion. Offensively, Detroit has always had the potential to be scary, defense not so much. The defense is ranked in the top 5 currently. Maybe now, they have the right combination of WR’s and can draft a different position in the first round. Or maybe, it has everything to do with Jon Kitna proclaiming they would win AT LEAST TEN GAMES.
As in many of my entries, a lot of numbers and facts to turn and focus on a smaller detail. Now if you are reading this and are a Patriot, Colts, or Cowboy fan then you won’t be able to relate the rest of this entry. If you are a fan of a team who is doing well this year and generally do, then you have been reading for no other reason than to re-affirm what you already know. For the rest of us, parody in the NFL means the flat line moment is still far away. As a fan of a team who almost never enjoys success as the average non regional fan would describe it, it is AMAZING to be note worthy. Leading off SportsCenter, being in top plays, having more than one player worthy of a Pro Bowl selection, and of course having more wins than losses are all reasons to be happy. If I just described your team then the rest of this is for you. Is a .500 season reason enough to dance in the streets and proclaim a good season? Are you excited if your team “has not been mathematically eliminated from the playoffs” by week 9? Are moral victories the only measuring stick once you realized no one fears your team? Is your team almost always 3 or 4 years away? Does the ball always seem to bounce in the other teams favor? Do you find yourself sitting through 55 minutes of 2+ minute highlights of all of the other team’s performance only to get a box score of your team in the waning seconds of the show? Does it ever feel like your team is IN the league but not PART OF the league? If so, then you understand my enthusiasm for this concept of parity. I have no idea what Patriots fans, Cowboys fans, Chargers fans, Colts fans, Steelers fans, Rams fans, Packers fans, or 49ers fans feel like today. Whether their team has done well or not so well this season, I have no clue what they are going through. I once heard a caller to a St. Louis radio show comment on how, “if things continue on this path, we might not get to another Super Bowl for a decade. Do you realize it’s almost been 10 years since we were in a Super Bowl?” I’m sorry I do not know how that feels. That guy probably committed suicide. I bet his wife left him and his sons grew up a little fruity because his team hasn’t been there in almost 10 years. That must be an unreasonable way to live. Maybe this will help ease the sorrows of a person like that. The last time my team made it to a Championship game, my mother was 7 years away from a driver’s license. Oh and here’s the kicker, it was so long ago it wasn’t even called the Super Bowl. So, I’m sorry if I don’t cry a river for New England, Dallas, San Francisco, or Pittsburgh when they finish a season without hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.
This season has been all about Parity. Look, I am in no way, shape, or form a Patriot fan. Before the season started, I had been quoted numerous times as saying, “the commissioner might as well have the trophy engraved to the Patriots before we even get started”. My only hope for them is to go undefeated and consequently shut Mercury Morris and the other demonic ’72 Miami Dolphins the F@#K up. The Colts are a nice franchise, like the face of the team Peyton Manning; the Colts just don’t rub me the wrong way. They win, it’s a good thing, I don’t root for them and I don’t root against them. I hated Dallas in the 90’s, but now they are just nice to watch. F@#K Pittsburgh. Maybe some day, Eli will throw from somewhere other than Peyton’s shadow. For those teams nothing is really all that crazy. For those teams the mean is within their grasp, whether they need to regress or progress to the mean, they are close. Even Green Bay, who is having a phenomenal turnaround from the previous two or three seasons, is not that far removed from elite status. The teams I am truly talking to are the Lions, Bills and Browns. The teams whose players and fans alike are in unchartered waters. The teams who are supposed to be a few years away. The teams who, if a player guaranteed double digit wins, said player would be laughed at relentlessly. The key here is whether the league is truly becoming more and more balanced and parity-filled or if this is just one of those adorations of Sports Law, either way we need to enjoy it. All of my friends and family, who are not avid sports fans, know on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday whether or not my favorite team won or lost. Let’s just say this year has only really provided me with 2 or 3 bad Mondays. This is what sports fans wish for each and every snap. People who are fans of prolific winners may ask why do follow a team that is that bad? This is what the correct answer of that question is. Familiarity breeds contentment. I guarantee, if there were a way to measure this, that a Lion/Bills/Browns fan would enjoy a Super Bowl champion exponentially more so than that of a team who has been there recently. That is no exaggeration….EXPONENTIALLY. I once asked an Eagle fan, if your team went 11-5 in the regular season and locked up a first round bye, what would it be like in the streets of Philadelphia? His response was if two strangers passed wearing Eagles gear they might give the man head nod. At the most, there might be an extended sports segment on the local news. When he inquired what would happen in the city of my team had the same win/loss result occurred, I responded…From non fans to die-hard’s, it would be pandemonium. People would mortgage their homes for playoff tickets. The entire month of December would probably be declared a holiday by the mayor. People wearing the team’s colors would get in free to any place that charges admission. No doubt, there would be car fires, streakers, dancing in the streets, anarchy, and random good deeds by strangers from Carnegie to Lakeside and all the way up and down E. 9th St. That’s the difference.
If you own a Sports Illustrated special hard-bound commemorative issue with your favorite team raising the Lombardi trophy. If you were old enough to drink that last time your team was crowned champion. If you get upset when your team doesn’t win 10+ games, then you go on and enjoy your team’s playoff run. Continue enjoying it as much as winning a hand during a friendly game of poker on boy’s night. If things continue on and teams like the Patriots and Steelers or Cowboys and Packers end up losing during the playoffs you may just be privileged enough to see what a true celebration looks like. I wish a first or second seed team would overlook a wild card team this season. I wish a mother!@#$er would. As much of a travesty it may be for the Super Bowl to not consist of the Patriots v. Cowboys, a Browns v. Lions Super Bowl would be a spectacle of the likes none of us have ever seen. The game could be played in Lawrence, Kansas in the middle of a dust storm and it would still probably be most intense, courageous, and memorable Super Bowl of all time to date. The NFL is the best professional sports league there is, partially due to the parity we’ve been discussing. Partially due to the devotion of its fans or maybe it’s something else completely. Maybe it’s because an old placekicker can hold up an entire city on his shoulders following the most twisted finish to a game ever. Maybe it's watching a rookie running back break an all-time, single-game record. It could be any combination of things. All I know is that as it nears a quarter to 4 am on a Monday morning, and I finish my last adult beverage of the day (and following morning) I have one thing to say. If you are a player, owner, coach, or even fan of the kind of team I have been speaking of…..I SALUTE YOU.
One final thought. A guideline for sanity as it pertains to me, personally. When you are a fan of team deemed not to be “not worth mentioning”, you deal with one shot after another. One disappointment after another. One depressing loss after another. There is only so much a person can take. I always tell myself and others who feel similar to the way I do for their respective team, every bad play, every wrong call, every turnover, every bad thing that happens to contribute to bad play and/or losses…tuck that away. Log it into your memory. Acknowledge it and never forget it. When the pendulum swings back in your favor, and it eventually has to do just that, then and only then will it be worth the wait. Regardless of what happens after this day, the parity of the NFL has reached more teams/fans than it has in quite some time. No longer is parity only between the elite and consistently good teams. Finally, the guys who always seem to be on the outside looking in are forcing their way into the exclusive club with the velvet ropes. And the view is glorious. If your team is in the hunt, enjoy it. Just understand one thing, no matter how you think you feel, there is somebody somewhere who wants it more than you. So cherish the ride.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Saturday, November 17, 2007
OSU/Michigan liveblogging wrapup
By Rick Morris
On the day that Lloyd Carr probably coached his last game in the OSU/Michigan series, the day had a certain old-school, Woody-and-Bo feel to it.
A year after the two teams met in the most hyped and consequential version of college football's greatest rivalry and exceeded the expectations with one of the greatest games ever, the next edition had a bit less at stake and the game had far less excitement. But the outcome remained the same as Ohio State defeated Michigan 14-3 in what might be Carr's final game at the Big House. If Carr does end up walking off into the sunset, this rivalry will be a tremendous reason why as the nearly unprecedented dominance they achieved over the Buckeyes in the John Cooper era has given way to a 1-6 record against the Scarlet and Gray since Jim Tressel took the helm.
A year ago, the #1 Buckeyes turned back #2 Michigan, 42-39, in an absolute classic to advance to the BCS Title Game and relegate the Wolverines to the Rose Bowl. Today, for two teams on the outside looking in regarding the national title picture, the Rose Bowl was the prize at stake and OSU will play there for the first time since 1997, barring a continuation of the extreme set of dominoes falling at the top of the polls in this crazy year.
Michigan's talented trio on offense of quarterback Chad Henne, running back Mike Hart and offensive tackle Jake Long passed up NFL riches a year ago to return for their senior season and to help the 2007 graduating class to avoid an indignity that Michigan had not suffered in decades: losing four in a row to Ohio State. But they were unsuccessful, owing in large part to Henne and Hart having to play through injuries.
In a game that always features so many playmakers for both teams on both sides of the ball, very few of them stepped up today. The two who did the most were both Buckeyes: Chris Wells with 220 yards and 2 touchdowns on 39 carries and Vernon Gholston serving as a constant presence in the Michigan backfield and coming away with three sacks.
Just as Tressel assumed the head coaching job in Columbus in 2001 in what looked to be a hopeless situation, so too does Carr's likely replacement face a disheartening picture in terms of moving back towards parity in the rivalry. Michigan returned a solid veteran core from 2006, the Buckeyes did not, the game was in Ann Arbor and they blew this chance. Even with some early departures to the NFL, Ohio State will still be more experienced than Michigan next year and the game will be at the Horseshoe, dealing the Wolverines a tough hand in terms of avoiding a half-decade without victory in the series.
On the day that Lloyd Carr probably coached his last game in the OSU/Michigan series, the day had a certain old-school, Woody-and-Bo feel to it.
A year after the two teams met in the most hyped and consequential version of college football's greatest rivalry and exceeded the expectations with one of the greatest games ever, the next edition had a bit less at stake and the game had far less excitement. But the outcome remained the same as Ohio State defeated Michigan 14-3 in what might be Carr's final game at the Big House. If Carr does end up walking off into the sunset, this rivalry will be a tremendous reason why as the nearly unprecedented dominance they achieved over the Buckeyes in the John Cooper era has given way to a 1-6 record against the Scarlet and Gray since Jim Tressel took the helm.
A year ago, the #1 Buckeyes turned back #2 Michigan, 42-39, in an absolute classic to advance to the BCS Title Game and relegate the Wolverines to the Rose Bowl. Today, for two teams on the outside looking in regarding the national title picture, the Rose Bowl was the prize at stake and OSU will play there for the first time since 1997, barring a continuation of the extreme set of dominoes falling at the top of the polls in this crazy year.
Michigan's talented trio on offense of quarterback Chad Henne, running back Mike Hart and offensive tackle Jake Long passed up NFL riches a year ago to return for their senior season and to help the 2007 graduating class to avoid an indignity that Michigan had not suffered in decades: losing four in a row to Ohio State. But they were unsuccessful, owing in large part to Henne and Hart having to play through injuries.
In a game that always features so many playmakers for both teams on both sides of the ball, very few of them stepped up today. The two who did the most were both Buckeyes: Chris Wells with 220 yards and 2 touchdowns on 39 carries and Vernon Gholston serving as a constant presence in the Michigan backfield and coming away with three sacks.
Just as Tressel assumed the head coaching job in Columbus in 2001 in what looked to be a hopeless situation, so too does Carr's likely replacement face a disheartening picture in terms of moving back towards parity in the rivalry. Michigan returned a solid veteran core from 2006, the Buckeyes did not, the game was in Ann Arbor and they blew this chance. Even with some early departures to the NFL, Ohio State will still be more experienced than Michigan next year and the game will be at the Horseshoe, dealing the Wolverines a tough hand in terms of avoiding a half-decade without victory in the series.
OSU/Michigan liveblogging third installment
By Rick Morris
Continuing the parallels with the Wisconsin game of two weeks ago, Ohio State had a lot of success in the third quarter running Beanie Wells right at, over and around the defense. Right after a 65-yard Ray Small punt return touchdown was called back, Wells rumbled in from 62 to provide the signature big play the game had been missing and put his team up 14-3. That remains the current score.
Chad Henne left due to the deteriorating nature of his injuries, but has returned to the sidelines. Mike Hart has still had no impact outside of the team's field goal drive in the first quarter, with 43 yards on 16 carries. Wells, who ripped off a long touchdown run as a backup in last year's game, has in his second Ohio State/Michigan game already surpassed Hart's accomplishments in the rivalry, having put up 169 yards on 25 carries to go with his two touchdowns. Brandon Saine has been in the game, tallying 18 yards on 8 carries, but regrettably is still not being used on screen passes.
The talented wide receivers on both teams haven't done anything, in part due to the weather and the quarterbacks' difficulties in battling it.
Just as Michigan was starting to get some momentum in the early fourth quarter off of a long punt return, Jim Tressel appealed the call on the field and won it as the replay judge ruled that the ball should be spotted 12 yards back. Henne returned for an anticlimactic three-and-out that ABC commentator Kirk Herbstreit correctly said would remind nobody of Willis Reed's heroics. Ray Small just recovered a punt he muffed deep in his own territory and the Buckeyes will now continue running the clock down, leading 14-3.
Continuing the parallels with the Wisconsin game of two weeks ago, Ohio State had a lot of success in the third quarter running Beanie Wells right at, over and around the defense. Right after a 65-yard Ray Small punt return touchdown was called back, Wells rumbled in from 62 to provide the signature big play the game had been missing and put his team up 14-3. That remains the current score.
Chad Henne left due to the deteriorating nature of his injuries, but has returned to the sidelines. Mike Hart has still had no impact outside of the team's field goal drive in the first quarter, with 43 yards on 16 carries. Wells, who ripped off a long touchdown run as a backup in last year's game, has in his second Ohio State/Michigan game already surpassed Hart's accomplishments in the rivalry, having put up 169 yards on 25 carries to go with his two touchdowns. Brandon Saine has been in the game, tallying 18 yards on 8 carries, but regrettably is still not being used on screen passes.
The talented wide receivers on both teams haven't done anything, in part due to the weather and the quarterbacks' difficulties in battling it.
Just as Michigan was starting to get some momentum in the early fourth quarter off of a long punt return, Jim Tressel appealed the call on the field and won it as the replay judge ruled that the ball should be spotted 12 yards back. Henne returned for an anticlimactic three-and-out that ABC commentator Kirk Herbstreit correctly said would remind nobody of Willis Reed's heroics. Ray Small just recovered a punt he muffed deep in his own territory and the Buckeyes will now continue running the clock down, leading 14-3.
OSU/Michigan liveblogging second installment
By Rick Morris
Ohio State just dodged a huge bullet right before halftime. Todd Boeckman, who is inexplicably not wearing gloves in the freezing drizzle of Ann Arbor and who is throwing wobbling ducks left and right, airmailed one to the Michigan secondary during an implementation of the "wishy-washy, sorta-two-minute offense." A 48-yard K.C. Lopata field goal attempt missed, leaving Ohio State on top 7-3 at halftime.
Earlier, the Bucks took the lead with an 8-play, 44-yard TD drive culminating in a Beanie Wells 1-year touchdown run. They executed a nice blend of rushing and short passing on that drive.
The trend mentioned in the previous post of settling into a ball-control game continues. The Ohio State defense has risen up on a number of occasions, first by holding Michigan to a field goal in the first quarter when they were on a drive with a lot of momentum, then by keeping the Wolverines from advancing late in the first half when they took over on a punt return at midfield, then by forcing the Maize and Blue to attempt a long field goal attempt after the interception at the end of the half. Michigan had taken over at the 50 on that punt attempt because of a previous Zoltan Mesko punt to the Ohio State 4. The Buckeyes ran three plays right into the line and punted from their own end zone, setting up the field position that Michigan could not exploit.
Unlike last year's epic battle, this has been a game of almost no big plays, almost no turnovers, very little controversy to this point and not much to identify it so far as a huge rivalry game except the nonstop mouth and gesturing of Mike Hart. At 42 yards on 11 carries and no impact aside from Michigan's field goal drive in the first quarter, he hasn't yet earned the right to his irritating actions today.
Ohio State just dodged a huge bullet right before halftime. Todd Boeckman, who is inexplicably not wearing gloves in the freezing drizzle of Ann Arbor and who is throwing wobbling ducks left and right, airmailed one to the Michigan secondary during an implementation of the "wishy-washy, sorta-two-minute offense." A 48-yard K.C. Lopata field goal attempt missed, leaving Ohio State on top 7-3 at halftime.
Earlier, the Bucks took the lead with an 8-play, 44-yard TD drive culminating in a Beanie Wells 1-year touchdown run. They executed a nice blend of rushing and short passing on that drive.
The trend mentioned in the previous post of settling into a ball-control game continues. The Ohio State defense has risen up on a number of occasions, first by holding Michigan to a field goal in the first quarter when they were on a drive with a lot of momentum, then by keeping the Wolverines from advancing late in the first half when they took over on a punt return at midfield, then by forcing the Maize and Blue to attempt a long field goal attempt after the interception at the end of the half. Michigan had taken over at the 50 on that punt attempt because of a previous Zoltan Mesko punt to the Ohio State 4. The Buckeyes ran three plays right into the line and punted from their own end zone, setting up the field position that Michigan could not exploit.
Unlike last year's epic battle, this has been a game of almost no big plays, almost no turnovers, very little controversy to this point and not much to identify it so far as a huge rivalry game except the nonstop mouth and gesturing of Mike Hart. At 42 yards on 11 carries and no impact aside from Michigan's field goal drive in the first quarter, he hasn't yet earned the right to his irritating actions today.
OSU/Michigan liveblogging first installment
By Rick Morris
Through the first quarter, the game has resembled the field position battle that made up the first half of the OSU/Wisconsin clash two weeks ago. The slick turf has caused some difficulties thus far but no turnovers.
Blogger: The FDH Lounge Multimedia Magazine - Edit Post "OSU/Michigan liveblogging first installment"
Michigan used the no-huddle offense to great effect on a 12-play, 49-yard drive to gain the game's only points on a field goal. The OSU defense kicked in to prevent a touchdown, with star defensive lineman Vernon Gholston's sack playing a key role. Pass protection has been an issue for Michigan, somewhat neutralizing the weather-related struggles of the Buckeyes to date. In the early second quarter, Ohio State will take over in Michigan territory after a punt, trailing 3-0.
Through the first quarter, the game has resembled the field position battle that made up the first half of the OSU/Wisconsin clash two weeks ago. The slick turf has caused some difficulties thus far but no turnovers.
Blogger: The FDH Lounge Multimedia Magazine - Edit Post "OSU/Michigan liveblogging first installment"
Michigan used the no-huddle offense to great effect on a 12-play, 49-yard drive to gain the game's only points on a field goal. The OSU defense kicked in to prevent a touchdown, with star defensive lineman Vernon Gholston's sack playing a key role. Pass protection has been an issue for Michigan, somewhat neutralizing the weather-related struggles of the Buckeyes to date. In the early second quarter, Ohio State will take over in Michigan territory after a punt, trailing 3-0.
OSU/Michigan liveblogging pregame
By Rick Morris
We will have liveblogging coverage of the Big Game today in Ann Arbor. Here's the keys to the game for each team:
For Ohio State:
^ Avoid turnovers. The best hope for the underdog in this game is to replicate the damaging turnovers Illinois inflicted on Ohio State last week.
^ Work Brandon Saine into the offense. For all the talk about spicing up the game with Ted Ginn Jr. prototype Ray Small, screen passes to Saine would work even better because they would be so out of character for the Buckeyes. My FDH partner Jason Jones has been screaming for this element all year long, rightfully so.
^ Get Malcolm Jenkins back playing at the level of his potential. He's had a tough November and is facing a hot Mario Manningham, perhaps the best wide receiver in the country. If he has a "Shawn Springs circa 1996 moment" against the Wolverines, his team may not survive.
For Michigan:
^ Have "healthy quality" play from Chad Henne and Mike Hart. If these two play up to the level they did last year, Michigan could well win. Last year, both offenses achieved near-perfect balance, keeping the defenses on their heels the whole way. Ohio State is likely to play a well-balanced offensive game; Michigan must do the same.
^ Channel the emotion of what's likely to be Lloyd Carr's last OSU/Michigan game. 20 years ago, a less talented Buckeye team went into Ann Arbor and shocked their archrivals in Earle Bruce's last game at the helm. Today, a lesser team on paper (especially defense) looks to do the same.
The prediction? With a Rose Bowl berth at stake, an Ohio State team that has been better prepared and usually more talented since 2001 does what it did last year -- match a raised level of play from Michigan and prevail on ability. The Buckeyes go to Pasadena with a 26-20 win.
We will have liveblogging coverage of the Big Game today in Ann Arbor. Here's the keys to the game for each team:
For Ohio State:
^ Avoid turnovers. The best hope for the underdog in this game is to replicate the damaging turnovers Illinois inflicted on Ohio State last week.
^ Work Brandon Saine into the offense. For all the talk about spicing up the game with Ted Ginn Jr. prototype Ray Small, screen passes to Saine would work even better because they would be so out of character for the Buckeyes. My FDH partner Jason Jones has been screaming for this element all year long, rightfully so.
^ Get Malcolm Jenkins back playing at the level of his potential. He's had a tough November and is facing a hot Mario Manningham, perhaps the best wide receiver in the country. If he has a "Shawn Springs circa 1996 moment" against the Wolverines, his team may not survive.
For Michigan:
^ Have "healthy quality" play from Chad Henne and Mike Hart. If these two play up to the level they did last year, Michigan could well win. Last year, both offenses achieved near-perfect balance, keeping the defenses on their heels the whole way. Ohio State is likely to play a well-balanced offensive game; Michigan must do the same.
^ Channel the emotion of what's likely to be Lloyd Carr's last OSU/Michigan game. 20 years ago, a less talented Buckeye team went into Ann Arbor and shocked their archrivals in Earle Bruce's last game at the helm. Today, a lesser team on paper (especially defense) looks to do the same.
The prediction? With a Rose Bowl berth at stake, an Ohio State team that has been better prepared and usually more talented since 2001 does what it did last year -- match a raised level of play from Michigan and prevail on ability. The Buckeyes go to Pasadena with a 26-20 win.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
The myth of CC Sabathia
By Rick Morris
Since the Cy Young Award is based purely on the regular season, it's defensible for the baseball writers to have given the American League honors to CC Sabathia. While I probably would have voted for Josh Beckett, it seems to me a very close call that could have gone either way.
But for the Sabathia homers who claim that he has grown up into an automatic shut-down ace and that the postseason represented an aberration from the level he has reached -- think again.
In response to the inane talking points about CC not winning 20 games SOLELY because of the admittedly poor run support he received, recently on SportsTalkNetwork.com, I cited from memory numerous examples of Sabathia having coughed up leads and costing the team games. Because I don't like to go purely on anecdotal evidence, I went to the trouble of substantiating these examples, courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.
^ July 29: He gives up a 1-0 lead to Minnesota, team loses 4-1.
^ August 8: He gives up a 1-0 lead to Chicago, team loses 6-4.
^ August 14: He gives up a 2-0 first-inning lead to Detroit, team loses 6-2.
^ August 19: He gives up a 2-1 lead to Tampa Bay, team loses 4-3.
And all of these examples were within a month! It should be noted that none of the opposing lineups bore any resemblance to the '27 Yankees, either.
Now, not every ace wins every game. But pitchers with the assassin mentality win these games more often than not. Look no further than the same pitching staff. You'd have to manually disembowel Fausto Carmona to affect him mentally, and even then he'd keep coming back at you!
Just keep this in mind when CC's record gets whitewashed by the usual apologists in Cleveland.
Since the Cy Young Award is based purely on the regular season, it's defensible for the baseball writers to have given the American League honors to CC Sabathia. While I probably would have voted for Josh Beckett, it seems to me a very close call that could have gone either way.
But for the Sabathia homers who claim that he has grown up into an automatic shut-down ace and that the postseason represented an aberration from the level he has reached -- think again.
In response to the inane talking points about CC not winning 20 games SOLELY because of the admittedly poor run support he received, recently on SportsTalkNetwork.com, I cited from memory numerous examples of Sabathia having coughed up leads and costing the team games. Because I don't like to go purely on anecdotal evidence, I went to the trouble of substantiating these examples, courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.
^ July 29: He gives up a 1-0 lead to Minnesota, team loses 4-1.
^ August 8: He gives up a 1-0 lead to Chicago, team loses 6-4.
^ August 14: He gives up a 2-0 first-inning lead to Detroit, team loses 6-2.
^ August 19: He gives up a 2-1 lead to Tampa Bay, team loses 4-3.
And all of these examples were within a month! It should be noted that none of the opposing lineups bore any resemblance to the '27 Yankees, either.
Now, not every ace wins every game. But pitchers with the assassin mentality win these games more often than not. Look no further than the same pitching staff. You'd have to manually disembowel Fausto Carmona to affect him mentally, and even then he'd keep coming back at you!
Just keep this in mind when CC's record gets whitewashed by the usual apologists in Cleveland.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Expansion and player supply in sports
By Rick Morris
In a recent conversation with FDH analyst Jon Adams, we spoke of the likelihood that the NFL would expand in the coming years rather than relocating an existing team to meet their goal of placing a franchise back in Los Angeles. I mentioned that I could see this happening in tandem with an expansion of the schedule, as NFL commissioner Roger Goodell seems to have successfully floated the trial balloon of a 17th game played overseas by every team. Jon rightfully expressed displeasure at the notion of a move to 34 teams accompanying a 17-week schedule, since we can already see how the league's talent base was watered down noticeably by expansion in 1999 and 2002.
Goodell, a sharp operator, is probably pushing the league's global presence at least in part because the league does not have a strong enough global presence long-term to staff the number of teams they want to have. But they are putting the cart before the horse a bit if they intend to expand the league also in the next decade.
Expansion in other sports was initially accompanied by cries that it had come too soon and too dramatically -- and would later trigger calls for contraction. But as the talent pool caught up to the number of jobs available, equilibrium returned in these situations.
In baseball, the 1960s triggered a wave of expansion that continued into 1977, then resumed in 1993 and 1998. While it used to be fashionable to speak of how the game had become watered down, this talking point has become muted, even in terms of pitching. The international expansion of the game has brought players from all corners of Latin America, the Pacific Rim and even a few other corners of the world. Besides, baseball historians from groups such as SABR have disabused thinking people of the notion that players such as Babe Ruth had it harder because they faced only a handful of teams and therefore, the "best of the best on a daily basis." None of those teams included players of color and as such, the greatest players in the world were subdivided into three groups that played against only themselves: the American League, the National League and the Negro Leagues (except for the AL and NL in the All-Star Game and the World Series). But the overall talent level of top players wasn't much different back then if we think beyond Major League Baseball and take the top Negro League teams into consideration. As such, any advantages Babe Ruth may have had in not having to face 13 other AL pitching staffs were negated by not having to face Negro League hurlers.
The winter sports of basketball and hockey likewise faced troubling questions when they expanded rapidly from the late 1980s onward. Both clearly moved far beyond the pool of worthy talent available when they placed franchises far and wide and the NHL in particular faced much criticism for their "Sunbelt Strategy" of putting down roots in sunny markets completely unaccustomed to their product. But those complaints have quieted in recent years, as both have benefited from a global talent pool now available to them. Even traditional hockey fans in Canada inclined to believe that the game was never better and tighter than it was when there were only half as many teams must admit that the lack of players available back then from Iron Curtain countries worked against the advancement of the sport. And in the NBA, the international players have led the charge back towards fundamentals and away from the disturbing drift towards "streetball" and in so doing, have pushed it in the right direction. Proving that a blind squirrel really does find an acorn now and again, ESPN columnist and mighty self-parody Bill Simmons opines this week that the NBA talent level is at its highest point since the early 1990s -- and he's right.
Now, the NFL truly is the biggest and the baddest of the American sports leagues. It seems truly bulletproof in terms of continued viability at this level. But Goodell should ponder the lessons of other sports before deciding to bump the league up to 34 teams. Continued overseas games, while aggravating to many jingoistic, chest-thumping, Neanderthal football fans, are a necessary evil in terms of developing a global talent base. The 17th game on the schedule may prove unavoidable with this being the case. Because football takes such a back seat to soccer internationally (inexplicably, I might add!), the product must be exposed at a micro level to people all over the world so that the league can cultivate young fans who aspire to play on Sundays. While the NHL, NBA and MLB trail the NFL in popularity and clout, at least they can truthfully state that their leagues are fully stocked with players who deserve to be there, thanks to the integration of top talent all over the world. The NFL won't be able to say the same, much less consider further expansion as a viable consideration, until they begin to feature talent from Asia, Europe, Africa and all areas of the world.
In a recent conversation with FDH analyst Jon Adams, we spoke of the likelihood that the NFL would expand in the coming years rather than relocating an existing team to meet their goal of placing a franchise back in Los Angeles. I mentioned that I could see this happening in tandem with an expansion of the schedule, as NFL commissioner Roger Goodell seems to have successfully floated the trial balloon of a 17th game played overseas by every team. Jon rightfully expressed displeasure at the notion of a move to 34 teams accompanying a 17-week schedule, since we can already see how the league's talent base was watered down noticeably by expansion in 1999 and 2002.
Goodell, a sharp operator, is probably pushing the league's global presence at least in part because the league does not have a strong enough global presence long-term to staff the number of teams they want to have. But they are putting the cart before the horse a bit if they intend to expand the league also in the next decade.
Expansion in other sports was initially accompanied by cries that it had come too soon and too dramatically -- and would later trigger calls for contraction. But as the talent pool caught up to the number of jobs available, equilibrium returned in these situations.
In baseball, the 1960s triggered a wave of expansion that continued into 1977, then resumed in 1993 and 1998. While it used to be fashionable to speak of how the game had become watered down, this talking point has become muted, even in terms of pitching. The international expansion of the game has brought players from all corners of Latin America, the Pacific Rim and even a few other corners of the world. Besides, baseball historians from groups such as SABR have disabused thinking people of the notion that players such as Babe Ruth had it harder because they faced only a handful of teams and therefore, the "best of the best on a daily basis." None of those teams included players of color and as such, the greatest players in the world were subdivided into three groups that played against only themselves: the American League, the National League and the Negro Leagues (except for the AL and NL in the All-Star Game and the World Series). But the overall talent level of top players wasn't much different back then if we think beyond Major League Baseball and take the top Negro League teams into consideration. As such, any advantages Babe Ruth may have had in not having to face 13 other AL pitching staffs were negated by not having to face Negro League hurlers.
The winter sports of basketball and hockey likewise faced troubling questions when they expanded rapidly from the late 1980s onward. Both clearly moved far beyond the pool of worthy talent available when they placed franchises far and wide and the NHL in particular faced much criticism for their "Sunbelt Strategy" of putting down roots in sunny markets completely unaccustomed to their product. But those complaints have quieted in recent years, as both have benefited from a global talent pool now available to them. Even traditional hockey fans in Canada inclined to believe that the game was never better and tighter than it was when there were only half as many teams must admit that the lack of players available back then from Iron Curtain countries worked against the advancement of the sport. And in the NBA, the international players have led the charge back towards fundamentals and away from the disturbing drift towards "streetball" and in so doing, have pushed it in the right direction. Proving that a blind squirrel really does find an acorn now and again, ESPN columnist and mighty self-parody Bill Simmons opines this week that the NBA talent level is at its highest point since the early 1990s -- and he's right.
Now, the NFL truly is the biggest and the baddest of the American sports leagues. It seems truly bulletproof in terms of continued viability at this level. But Goodell should ponder the lessons of other sports before deciding to bump the league up to 34 teams. Continued overseas games, while aggravating to many jingoistic, chest-thumping, Neanderthal football fans, are a necessary evil in terms of developing a global talent base. The 17th game on the schedule may prove unavoidable with this being the case. Because football takes such a back seat to soccer internationally (inexplicably, I might add!), the product must be exposed at a micro level to people all over the world so that the league can cultivate young fans who aspire to play on Sundays. While the NHL, NBA and MLB trail the NFL in popularity and clout, at least they can truthfully state that their leagues are fully stocked with players who deserve to be there, thanks to the integration of top talent all over the world. The NFL won't be able to say the same, much less consider further expansion as a viable consideration, until they begin to feature talent from Asia, Europe, Africa and all areas of the world.
A Hamas boy band?????
By Rick Morris
Just when you thought you'd seen everything ...
although, come to think of it, swap out lyrics about bombing Jewish mothers and children for stanzas about shooting immigrant storekeepers and it's no different from gangsta rap.
Just when you thought you'd seen everything ...
although, come to think of it, swap out lyrics about bombing Jewish mothers and children for stanzas about shooting immigrant storekeepers and it's no different from gangsta rap.
And I thought I'D go far to prove a point!
By Rick Morris
What's the most extreme thing you've ever done to prove a point? For somebody as stubborn and determined as myself, the process of self-examination on that score could prove a bit unsettling! But fortunately for all of us, there's always somebody ready to come along and make all of our various neuroses a bit more palatable. Such as the gentlemen who DELIBERATELY SHOT HIMSELF WITH A FREAKING NAIL GUN!
What I can't believe most of all is that he did it for free! After all, with "extreme" pro wrestling promotions like Combat Zone catering to the "faces of death" crowd, he could have made some nice blood money for doing it in the ring.
He's hardcore! He's hardcore!
What's the most extreme thing you've ever done to prove a point? For somebody as stubborn and determined as myself, the process of self-examination on that score could prove a bit unsettling! But fortunately for all of us, there's always somebody ready to come along and make all of our various neuroses a bit more palatable. Such as the gentlemen who DELIBERATELY SHOT HIMSELF WITH A FREAKING NAIL GUN!
What I can't believe most of all is that he did it for free! After all, with "extreme" pro wrestling promotions like Combat Zone catering to the "faces of death" crowd, he could have made some nice blood money for doing it in the ring.
He's hardcore! He's hardcore!
Government stealing from us again
By Rick Morris
While Texas Congressman Ron Paul attracts the lion's share of attention for his presidential campaign because of his quasi-isolationist foreign policy positions, it must be remembered that he is also tapping effectively into the public's inherent distrust of politicians of both parties who treat our hard-earned money as their own private treasury. His libertarian positions, although extreme, serve as a pure and refreshing counterpoint to the rampant corruption of both political parties in D.C.
Witness the latest outrages chronicled at EarmarkWatch.org, a new and outstanding website dedicated to shining the light of truth on blatant wastes of federal cash coming out of the swamp on the Potomac. The latest porky delight to be exposed? A handout to a Washington-state glove company inserted into the federal budget by congressmen of both parties from, you guessed it, Washington state! Interestingly, one of the offenders was Jim McDermott, a far-left nutcase who probably doesn't think that anyone in the military deserves a warm pair of gloves or anything else decent in life -- but hey, if there's a chance to placate a potential contributor back home ...
This great new site will have a ton of user-generated content, meaning that it is dependent on citizens to utilize their tools to unearth corrupt earmarks in federal legislation. May I suggest right now that the website owners reserve copious server solely for the excreble Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia? This braying jackass, who is probably the biggest pork abuser in the history of the federal government, proudly waves around a copy of the Constitution wherever he goes while somehow remaining ignorant of the Tenth Amendment: The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. Apparently Bobby Byrd bought his copy of the Constitution at the same place he got his white sheets.
While Texas Congressman Ron Paul attracts the lion's share of attention for his presidential campaign because of his quasi-isolationist foreign policy positions, it must be remembered that he is also tapping effectively into the public's inherent distrust of politicians of both parties who treat our hard-earned money as their own private treasury. His libertarian positions, although extreme, serve as a pure and refreshing counterpoint to the rampant corruption of both political parties in D.C.
Witness the latest outrages chronicled at EarmarkWatch.org, a new and outstanding website dedicated to shining the light of truth on blatant wastes of federal cash coming out of the swamp on the Potomac. The latest porky delight to be exposed? A handout to a Washington-state glove company inserted into the federal budget by congressmen of both parties from, you guessed it, Washington state! Interestingly, one of the offenders was Jim McDermott, a far-left nutcase who probably doesn't think that anyone in the military deserves a warm pair of gloves or anything else decent in life -- but hey, if there's a chance to placate a potential contributor back home ...
This great new site will have a ton of user-generated content, meaning that it is dependent on citizens to utilize their tools to unearth corrupt earmarks in federal legislation. May I suggest right now that the website owners reserve copious server solely for the excreble Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia? This braying jackass, who is probably the biggest pork abuser in the history of the federal government, proudly waves around a copy of the Constitution wherever he goes while somehow remaining ignorant of the Tenth Amendment: The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. Apparently Bobby Byrd bought his copy of the Constitution at the same place he got his white sheets.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Power rankings for NFL Week 11
By Rick Morris
MUTANT FREAK SUPER-TEAMS
1. New England
2. Indianapolis (barely clinging to a spot on this tier after Sunday night)
CERTAIN PLAYOFF TEAMS
3. Dallas
4. Green Bay
5. Pittsburgh
6. New York Giants (only losses on the season are to teams on this tier)
ONLY OTHER TEAMS IN POSITION TO MAKE THE PLAYOFFS
7. Tennessee
8. Jacksonville
9. San Diego
10. Seattle
11. Detroit
12. Cleveland (should be a lock -- amazingly easy schedule the rest of the way even though they have the league's worst defense)
13. New Orleans
14. Washington
15. Tampa Bay (imagine how good they'd be without half of their roster in Intensive Care)
16. Buffalo (they're doing it with smoke and mirrors but still winning)
PLAYOFF PRETENDERS
17. Baltimore (with the washed-up McNair and the brutal remaining schedule, they are done)
18. Chicago
19. Carolina (a fraud team -- even if they had a QB, they'd still have no heart)
20. Houston
21. Arizona
22. Philadelphia
23. Denver
24. Kansas City (bad time to switch to Croyle -- not that there's ever a good time to go to him!)
THE DREGS
25. Minnesota (horrible without Peterson)
26. Cincinnati
27. Atlanta
28. San Francisco
29. New York Jets
30. Oakland
31. St. Louis
32. Miami
MUTANT FREAK SUPER-TEAMS
1. New England
2. Indianapolis (barely clinging to a spot on this tier after Sunday night)
CERTAIN PLAYOFF TEAMS
3. Dallas
4. Green Bay
5. Pittsburgh
6. New York Giants (only losses on the season are to teams on this tier)
ONLY OTHER TEAMS IN POSITION TO MAKE THE PLAYOFFS
7. Tennessee
8. Jacksonville
9. San Diego
10. Seattle
11. Detroit
12. Cleveland (should be a lock -- amazingly easy schedule the rest of the way even though they have the league's worst defense)
13. New Orleans
14. Washington
15. Tampa Bay (imagine how good they'd be without half of their roster in Intensive Care)
16. Buffalo (they're doing it with smoke and mirrors but still winning)
PLAYOFF PRETENDERS
17. Baltimore (with the washed-up McNair and the brutal remaining schedule, they are done)
18. Chicago
19. Carolina (a fraud team -- even if they had a QB, they'd still have no heart)
20. Houston
21. Arizona
22. Philadelphia
23. Denver
24. Kansas City (bad time to switch to Croyle -- not that there's ever a good time to go to him!)
THE DREGS
25. Minnesota (horrible without Peterson)
26. Cincinnati
27. Atlanta
28. San Francisco
29. New York Jets
30. Oakland
31. St. Louis
32. Miami
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