Not Again!
Just 3 weeks after the Buccaneers dreadful blowout against the Falcons, Lovie Smith must have been thinking “Not Again!” Joe Flacco got off to 4 TD passes in the 1st quarter, 5 in the first 17 minutes of regulation. By halftime they were up 38-0, though they had already put the Cruise Control on at the beginning of the 2nd quarter. It wasn’t as bad as going down 56-0 against the Falcons, but to have 2 awful blowouts in 3 weeks is horrible.
Effect of New Overtime Rules:
In 2012 the new overtime rules were put into place, where a TD wins the game but a FG gives the other team a chance to match it. And yes, every older football fan remembers how cheap it was to have the coin toss pretty much decide the game, so I’m giving the new rule an overall thumbs up.
However, we’ve had an interesting side-effect on this new rule; an increase in ties (ugh, that’s worse than kissing your sister). Take a look at this crazy stat! From 1990-2011, there were only 4 ties in those 22 seasons. There has now been 3 ties in the last 3 years with the new rule change. The reason why is due to the FG aspect of the rule. The Bengals had the ball for 6 minutes and banged home a FG. The Panthers then had the ball for 6 minutes themselves with an equal result. All of a sudden, the Bengals only had 2 minutes of regulation to avoid a tie. Yes, I hear all of you saying “they missed the FG.” But that alone is almost asking for ties to happen! NEW RULE PROPOSITION: They should say that if both teams score in OT, then it’s sudden death with no game clock.
I feel like the purpose for having a tie is to avoid 6 hour games where teams can’t score (ala some NHL games, or the Steelers Dolphins 3-0 hurricane game). But if teams have proven they can score (twice), then give them a chance to play it out. Better yet, just switch it to College rules.
Stat of the Week:
Geno Smith had 11 yards rushing on Sunday, and was the leading rusher for the Jets.
Stat of the Week #2:
Sunday had the highest score for a tie game in NFL history.
Stat of the Week #3:
The Giants were shutout, after scoring at least 30 points in each of their last 3 games
Stat of the Week #4:
DeMarco Murray is on pace for 2092 yards, and 424 carries. Both would be NFL records for running backs
Stat of the Week #5:
Both the Panthers and Bengals are winning their division despite the tie. In fact, the past 5 tie games have had at least 1 playoff team involved.
Most Talked About Stat of the Week #6:
DeMarco Murray is the only RB other than Jim Brown to start a season with 6 straight 100 yard games
Stolen Stat of the Week #7:
Despite the Rams notable defensive line, they have only 1 sack on the year. And it’s an NFL record to go the first 6 games with only 1 sack.
Stay Classy Philadelphia:
Eagles fans are notorious for being the most brutal in the league (along with Oakland). They once booed Santa Clause, and the old Veterans Stadium had a jail on-site for police to throw rowdy fans in. One Phillies fan even intentionally threw up on an 11 year old girl and a cop…Anywho, they gained my respect on Sunday Night though. Seeing Victor Cruz go down with a season ending injury, the Eagles cheered for him, a division rival player who has torched them in the past. My new-found respect was short lived however, with the story that came out after the game. Apparently a drunken woman Eagles’ fan stole the prosthetic leg of a homeless Vietnam Vet. This is one of those cases where you read the headline and just have to start laughing. They sure make them different over there.
Quote of the Week:
“I looked and said Aww, that broad took ma dang leg” Vietnam Vet
Quote of the Week #2:
They’re in a real danger of tying this game” FMQB with the Panthers down by 3 with 6 minutes left in OT.
Quote of the Week #3:
“The Fake Spike? Yeah that was kind of free-styling it right there” Aaron Rodgers
The Fake-Fake-Spike
The final drive of the Packers vs Dolphins game on Sunday will go down as a classic. Sixty yards in 2 minutes, needing a TD to win it with no timeouts. With 11 seconds left, Rodgers “fake spiked” the ball, and threw to a rookie receiver, who didn’t know it was coming to him, with no timeouts. That’s gutsy! Somebody made a good point regarding the play. Rodgers didn’t actually fake-spike the ball, he technically caught the defense sleeping and just threw it to his receiver, and his offensive line didn’t move. Ironically, if you watch the Dan Marino play, he didn’t fake the spike either.
Read-Option:
The past couple years have shown Kaepernick and Cam Newton excelling at the read option play, where they fake to the running back, and decide whether to keep it themselves or hand it off. I only caught the OT period, but Cam worked that play to perfection and he kept it 4 of the 5 times he ran that play, and racked up 39 yards in those 4 plays. Newton overall was the leading rusher for his team and had 6.3 yards per carry.
Thursday Night Recap:
Finally, I can talk about a Thursday night game! CBS is on a streak of 2 good games, and only has 1 game left this season. How many executives within that company are upset with the billions of dollars they spent for 5 crappy games. It was one of those games where I noticed a couple oddities. First, it seemed like the Jets kicker couldn’t get a touchback to save his life and Danny Amendola actually had the opportunity to return every kickoff he got, which made me miss that play. Second, Tom Brady had a very strange release last night where it seemed like he would throw it straight up in the air in a weird loft. He hit his mark a few times, but more often than not the ball was so high that it went out of the camera’s view. The Jets looked solid, and it took them 44 minutes before they even needed to punt the ball.
We’re Going Streaking!!!
- After starting 1-2, the Packers have won 3 in a row…we’re relaxed now
- Dallas has won 5 in a row, and are still in 2nd place in the division
- San Francisco started 1-2, have won 3 in a row, and are in 2nd place in their division
- New England has won 3 in a row since the dreadful KC game
- Indianapolis started the season 0-2 and have won 4 straight
- San Diego and Dallas have the longest winning streaks with 5 in a row
Not Invincible:
Every team is going to lose a game unless you’re the ‘72 Dolphins. But there is a real hush in the air when discussing the Seahawks losses, almost like it’s a surprise that they show signs of weakness. I’m not sure I’ve ever experienced this, even with undefeated teams late in previous seasons. But it seems like the formula for success is a killer offensive line/running game, or complete clock domination. The Cowboys were down by 10 in the one environment you can’t go down by 10, and yet still managed to pull off a victory. Very impressive, and I think seeing 2 losses hung on the champions have the rest of the league slightly relieved.
Quick Hits:
- The Browns have somewhat surprised in going 3-2, but have a legit shot at winning their next 3 games (Jax, Oak, and TB). Can you imagine the frenzy if they start 6-2!
- Seattle is in 3rd place in their division
- Both the Colts and Patriots were in last place in their division after 2 games, and are now at least a game up in their division.
Non-NFL rant of the Week:
Still wondering about the title of this week’s FMQB huh? Well here’s where it comes in. Trying to be as politically correct as possible, is Jameis Winston a frickin’ numbskull?!?! I attributed the first couple incidents he had as being young and naïve, but now I’m convinced he’s just an idiot. They guy is a Heisman Trophy winner, “was” the leading candidate for the #1 draft pick which comes with a HUGE payday, and yet his off-field incidents are piling up faster than a bed full of autographed items. With how strict the NFL is on personal conduct nowadays, I would be shocked if a team risks a first round draft pick on the guy (can’t wait to see his Wonderlic score). So far he has a sexual assault case that won’t go away, got in a BB gun fight on campus, shoplifted from Burger King, shoplifted crab legs, was disciplined for shouting an obscenity at school, and now under investigation for selling autographs. You know what, I don’t think he got paid for his autograph anymore, otherwise he could have afforded those crab legs…
Stat of the Week #8:
On the Wikipedia page for Jameis Winston, there are more paragraphs (5) in the “Controversies” section than the “College Career” section (3).
Games of the Week:
Broncos vs 49ers: We have a legitimate shot at watching Peyton break the all-time TD record on national television
Bengals vs Colts: Could very easily be a shootout and/or playoff preview
Panthers vs Packers: 2 marquis quarterbacks fighting to remain in 1st place in their division
