Tag Archives: Broncos

The Andrew Preview: NFL Week Ten

Posted on November 13, 2010 by Andrew Bloom

Your Top Stories

The Steelers take on the Patriots in a match up of two of the best teams in the AFC.

1. In a move where the only surprise was the timing,  Jerry Jones fired Dallas Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips, and named Offensive Coordinator Jason Garrett as interim head coach of the team.  The news came Monday after the Cowboys were embarrassed in a 45-7 loss to the Green Bay Packers in the nationally televised Sunday Night game. The loss dropped Dallas’ record to a pitiful 1-7. This is the first time that Jerry Jones has made a coaching change mid-season, but the Cowboys owner, who bought the team in 1989, said that he had been in “denial” about how bad the squad had become. Phillips’ final record as the Cowboys’ head coach is 34-22, with a 1-2 record in the post season. He released a statement thanking the fans and the organization for all of their support. When asked for comment, new coach Jason Garrett said, “Wade is no longer the coach. I am the coach and what we’re going to do going forward (is) get ready to . . . give ourselves a chance to beat the Giants on Sunday.”

2. Broncos Linebacker and leading tackler D.J. Williams has been charged with driving under the influence. Williams was stopped on Friday at 2:40 A.M. for driving without headlights on, when he was arrested for DUI and ordered to appear in court on December 13th. This is the second time Willaims has faced such a charge. In September of 2005, Williams plead guilty to drunk driving, receiving a sentence of twenty-four hours community service. Williams will likely face a suspension from NFL Commssioner Roger Goodell. By comparison, Goodell handed down a four-game suspension to Chargers Wide Receiver Vincent Jackson for his DUI arrests. When reached for comment, Denver coach Josh McDaniels said, “We’re certainly disappointed and don’t condone that behavior from any of our players or anybody within our organization.”

3. It’s high school all over again, as the NFL is cracking down on the dress code. Noted NFL showman and provocateur Chad Ochocinco received a twenty-thousand dollar fine from the league for violating its uniform policy. Ochocinco had on gold cleats when the Bengals took the field against the Steelers in Week Nine, in violation of the league’s on-field dress code. This is his second fine of the season, after having lost twenty-five thousand dollars for violating the league’s social media policy by tweeting before a game. Jets linebacker Bart Scott was also fined twenty-thousand dollars for violating the uniform policy, though his offense was far less ostentatious. Scott was cited for not having his chin strap on at all times, in a violation more directed toward ensuring safety than maintaining professionalism.

2008 Detroit Lions Memorial Winless Teams

Buffalo Bills

For the third time in as many weeks, the Bills have ended the game three points away from their first victory, but have found themselves unable to seal the deal. Buffalo fell to Chicago, 22-19, for their eighth loss of the season. The Bills have one of their best chances to get that first win of the year this week when they take on the two-win Detroit Lions at home.

Head of the Pack

Your statistical leaders in:

Passing

1. Phillip Rivers (San Diego) –2944 yards.
2. Drew Brees (New Orleans) – 2587 yards
3. Kyle Orton (Denver) –2510 yards

With no one falling out of the top three.

Rushing

1. Arian Foster (Houston) – 864 yards
2. Adrian Peterson (Minnesota) – 857 yards
3. Ahmad Bradshaw (NY Giants) –765 yards

With Chris Johnson falling out of the top three.

Receiving

1. Roddy White (Atlanta) – 934 yards
2. Brandon Lloyd (Denver) – 878 yards
3. Terrell Owens (Cincinnati) – 770 yards

With Reggie Wayne falling out of the top three.

Sacks

1. Clay Matthews (Green Bay) – 11.0
2. Cameron Wake (Miami) – 9.0
T-3. Tamba Hall (Kansas City) – 8.0
T-3. Osi Umenyiora (NY Giants) – 8.0
T-3. John Abraham (Atlanta) – 8.0
T-3. DeMarcus Ware (Dallas) – 8.0

With no one falling out of the increasingly inaccurately named top three thanks to a four-way tie for third place.

Three Big Match Ups

1. Tennessee at Miami, 1 P.M. EST on CBS – For the second time in a about a month, there’s intrigue and interest in what impact Randy Moss will make with his new team. The Titans are also facing the question of whether Vince Young or Kerry Collins will be starting, and moreover, who will be taking the bulk of the snaps in the game regardless of who starts it? The Titans report that Young is a game time decision this week, as fans are excited about the prospect of a “three-headed monster” with Young behind center, Chris Johnson running the ball, and Moss going downfield. Tennessee has won three of its last four games, but lost to the resurgent Chargers going into their bye week. Every win matters in the AFC South where the Titans are tied with the Colts for first place in the division at 5-3, but with the Texans and the Jaguars each only a game out of first place. For their part, the Dolphins have been hot and cold this season, never stringing together more than two wins in a row, but never losing more than two games in a row either. To add to the peculiarity, each of Miami’s four wins has come on the road, meaning that nine weeks into the season, the Fins will be looking for their first home win despite being a competitive team. Still, with Chad Pennington expected to start for the first time since early 2009 (and so excited at the prospect that he’s rapping) expect Miami to come out roaring and attempt to not only get their first victory in front of the home crowd, but to gain ground in the highly competitive AFC East.

2. New England at Pittsburgh, 8:20 P.M. EST on NBC – This game has my vote for being the likely AFC Championship preview. The Patriots have been nigh unstoppable this season. They’ve played their share of close games, but have continue to manage to eke out the win, even over other league leaders like Baltimore. The offense has looked stellar despite numerous changes at receiver, and when they entered week nine with the best record in football, many thought that no one could stop the New England juggernaut. Then along came….The Cleveland Browns? That’s right, the 2-5 Browns did not just beat the Patriots, they routed them to the tune of 34-14. Expect the Pats to come out with a chip on their shoulders, eager to prove that least week was an aberration against the class of the AFC. The Steelers are in much the same boat, having won three of their last four games after the return of Ben Roethlisberger and standing tall at the top of the AFC North. Pittsburgh is looking good, but is still in search of a win over a major player in the playoff race since Big Ben has come back behind center. The Steelers are still smarting from a loss to the defending Superbowl Champion New Orleans Saints on Halloween night, and will look to show they can still hang with the best with a victory over the Patriots.

3. Philadelphia at Washington, Monday 8:30 P.M. EST on ESPN – Donovan McNabb doesn’t know the two-minute drill. He’s out of shape. He didn’t give the Redskins as good a chance to win as…Rex Grossman. These are the reasons that Mike Shanahan has given for his controversial benching of McNabb in the last two minutes of Washington’s loss to Detroit. What’s more, the Redskins’ bye week has given our nation’s capital plenty of time to mull over these ever-changing justifications, given us even more intrigue when McNabb takes on his old team for a second time. As usual, the NFC East race is increasingly competitive, and to both stay in the thick of things and put this unpleasantness behind them, 4-4 Redskins badly need this win. The same goes for the Eagles, as the return of Michael Vick coming out of the bye helped give Philly a tight, but signature victory over the Indianapolis Colts in Week Nine. Despite their injury issues, the Eagles have won three of their last four, and are only one game behind the New York Giants in the division. Vick currently holds the league’s highest passer rating at 105.3 and in the last year of his contract, he’s looking to show not just the Redskins or the Eagles, but the entire league, that he still has what it takes to lead a team in the NFL. Expect a great game between two division rivals who both really need this victory to keep up in the chase for the postseason.

Posted in Sports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Andrew Preview: NFL Week Five

Posted on October 6, 2010 by Andrew Bloom

Your Top Stories

The Patriots traded Moss to the Vikings for a third round draft pick.

1. The New England Patriots have traded receiver Randy Moss to the Minnesota Vikings, the for a third round pick. Minnesota drafted Moss out of college nearly twelve years ago. The outspoken reciever had expressed his dissatisfaction with the lack of a new contract with the Pats, saying, “When you have done so much and put so much work in, it kind of feels like I am not wanted.” In Monday night’s game against the Dolphins, Moss had zero catches, a first for him as a Patriot, despite New England scoring forty-one points. Rumor has it that Moss had been angling for a trade since Week One. Favre had apparently sought out Moss as a target for some time. Many source described the Packers’ failure to acquire the receiver for two years in a row, despite Brett’s overwhelming insistence, as a very sore spot between the veteran QB and the Green Bay organization. The addition of Moss will give the Vikings the deep thread receiver they have been lacking since Sidney Rice underwent hip surgery. The Vikings had sought to make a deal with disgruntled Chargers receiver Vincent Jackson, but negotiations fell through. Reportedly, the Vikings and Moss have not yet discussed a new contract. Minnesota and New England are scheduled to play each other in a mere three weeks time.

2. In other trade news, the Buffalo Bills sent RB Marshawn Lynch to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for two undisclosed draft picks. This will leave the running game in Buffalo to backup Fred Jackson and first round draft pick C.J. Spiller. For its part, Seattle hopes the addition of Lynch will add a spark to its running game, which has been sorely lacking through the first quarter of the season. In order to make room for Lynch, the Seahawks cut Julius Jones, who had been their leading rusher the past two years. Jones had restructured his contract to take a pay cut this season, but still had only been given the ball a dozen times and gained minimal yardage. He was inactive this past Sunday against the Rams. Lynch will join Seattle’s other running back, Justin Forsett. The two were teammates and friends at Cal, with Lynch having even been a groomsman at Forsett’s wedding earlier this year.

3. The Miami Dolphins fired Special Teams coordinator John Bonamego this week after the team’s miserable failure to perform against the Patriots on Monday Night. The special teams play was particularly weak, including two blocked kicks, both of which led to touchdowns on the ensuing Patriot drives and a 103-yard kickoff return. The Dolphins also had a punt blocked against the Jets the week prior. Special Teams assistant Darren Rizzi will replace Bonamego as coordinator. Head coach Tony Sparano called the move a “hard decision” adding, “Nobody works harder than him at what he does.” The Dolphin currently rank last in the NFL in both punting and kickoff coverage.

Undefeated Teams

Kansas City Chiefs

Last season it took us until Week Fifteen until we had only one undefeated team left. This season, it only took us until Week Four. The 1972 Dolphins may be popping the champagne early this year as the Chiefs, with thirteen more games left to play and a 3-0 record, are the last undefeated team in the NFL. The Bears lost to the Giants and the Steelers lost to the Ravens, whittling us down to only one team in the NFL without a loss.

2008 Detroit Lions Memorial Winless Teams

Buffalo Bills
Carolina Panthers
Detroit Lions
San Francisco 49ers

Only one team made it out of the cellar this week as the Browns upset the Bengals to earn their first win. The Bills, Lions, and 49ers are all playing teams at .500 this week, and will hope to avoid to 2008 Lions’ fate.

Three Big Match Ups

1. Kansas City and Indianapolis, 1 P.M. EST on CBS – Who in the world would have guessed that the last undefeated in the league would be the Kansas City Chiefs? Matt Cassel’s group has scored wins in close games against the division rivals Chargers, as well as the Browns, and then pulled off a big, three-touchdown victory over the 49ers. As the sole remaining team without a loss, and bye week to rest up, expect Kansas City to come out looking to prove their mettle this week. They’ll play the team that went the longest without a loss last season. The Colts have gone a meager 2-2 in the first four weeks of the season, and have only shown flashes of the dominating team that made it to the Superbowl last year. After back-to-back resounding wins over New York and Denver, Indy lost a heartbreaker in final seconds in Jacksonville, giving them their second loss in the division. Still, the Colts are in the thick of the AFC South race, only one game back from Texans, and joining the glut of NFL teams at .500. Expect them to come out firing and remind the Chiefs why Indianapolis spent so much of last season undefeated.

2. Denver at Baltimore, 1 P.M. EST on CBS – The Broncos have been playing tight, but solid games these past few weeks. Kyle Orton appears to have come into his own this season, making last year’s Cutler-Orton trade seem a bit more even that initially thought. With a close win in a hard-fought game against Tennessee, the ponies have a tough pair of games ahead, with the Jets waiting in the wings after Denver finishes with Baltimore. Still, the Broncos showed a lot of toughness last week and will assuredly give the Ravens a run for their money. Baltimore, on the other hand, has looked stellar through the first four weeks of the season. Each of its games has been close, with the margin of victory never being greater than a touchdown. Still, with two division wins already, the Ravens are sitting pretty in the AFC North. Last week, they handed the vaunted Steelers their first loss in an exciting 17-14 showdown. The renewed Baltimore D will look to stop the Denver offense in its tracks and extend the Ravens’ dominance by another week.

3. NY Jets at Minnesota, Monday, 8:30 P.M. EST on ESPN – This one just got a little more interesting. The Jets keep making this list because they continue to play quality games against quality opponents. For all of Rex Ryan’s bluster, the Jets have so far managed to back it up, winning three of their first four games of the season and sweeping the rest of their division thus far. Despite an initial shakiness, Mark Sanchez is playing like a franchise quarterback, and he’ll have a new target this week with the return of Santonio Holmes. However, he won’t be the only one with a new star to throw to, as Randy Moss will suit up in the purple and gold for the first time since he was traded to Oakland in 2005. Moss will be playing in his second consecutive Monday night game. The Vikings looked to be in freefall, starting 0-2 until they got their first win of the season against the Lions. Now, with the addition of Moss and a bye week to rest and prepare, Minnesota looks like a much tougher game, especially at home. Expect Brett Favre to utilize his new weapon early and often in a match up that just became much more intriguing.

Posted in Sports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment