MID SEASON REPORT CARD

MID SEASON REPORT CARD

   It’s Time to take a breather here at mid season and see where everyone is shaping up.  This is my take on the teams thus far:

 

A+

Kansas City Chiefs

  The Chiefs have an amazing season going and they have surprised everyone so far.  The defense is fantastic and Andy Reid has stopped any questions about his coaching after 8 weeks.

A

Denver Broncos

  The best QB in the league and they will have a chance to heal next week with the bye.  They are poised for the second half run.

Seattle Seahawks

  Have slipped by on a couple of games but with that defense they can afford to have an offensive let down once in awhile. 

New Orleans Saints

  My pick for the NFC to go all the way.  The offense is playing lights out and the defense has only choked once this year.  Who do you cover when Brees is the QB.  He is so good.

A-

San Francisco 49rs

  They have started to run the ball better and are hitting their stride.  A tough team when they start clicking. 

B

Cincinnati Bengals

  I did not expect them to be making a run but they are on a 4 game win streak and playing lights out. Just ask the Jets how good they are since they just humiliated them.

Indianapolis Colts

   They have beat some tough teams this year i.e. San Francisco and Denver but the road ahead is going to be tough when you lose a Reggie Wayne for the season. 

B-

New England Patriots

 They get this grade on the record only.  They have not played up to the standard that they have created and the Saints win was a total gift.

Green Bay Packers

  They are on a 4 game win streak and Lacy is running hard.  The receiver core is beat up right now so the next few weeks may determine the season for them.

C+

 Detroit Lions

  They have been a little up and down but are winning games and utilizing the best receiver in the game the way you should. 

Carolina Panthers

  They are playing solid defense and Cam is doing the rest.  They are winners of 3 in a row and playing stout football right now.

C

New York Jets

  They get the grade because no one expected them to even win 4 games this year.  Geno is playing okay but not great yet.  They need to figure out their running game.

San Diego Chargers

  They have really surprised a lot of people this year.  I would never have thought that Philip Rivers could pull it back together.  The lack of a running game will be the downfall in the end.

C-

Dallas Cowboys

  The only division leader ranked pretty low.  They are the champs are snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.  They have huge talent but never perform to that level.  The defense is like cheese cloth.

Arizona Cardinals

  They have played better as of late and just when you write them off they have a big game.  A hard read to see which team is going to show up each week.

Chicago Bears

  They started the season so strong but with the injury to Cutler they could be in a tailspin if he doesn’t return soon.

D+

Tennessee Titans

  The Titans have played through some injuries and now have Jake Locker coming back.  They were playing pretty good at the start of the season so let’s see if they can get that form back. 

Miami Dolphins

  The up and down Dolphins need to get a consistent running game and find a back they can ride.  They paid huge money for receivers in the off season but can’t seem to get them the ball either.

Oakland Raiders

  I would have never guessed that Pryor would be able to carry the load for them.  They have won as many games right now as I expected them to win the whole season.  It’s time to move on from McFadden.  He just cannot stay healthy. 

D

 Buffalo Bills

  The Bills are just getting by and Fred Jackson of all people is carrying them.  He is still producing and every fantasy player in the country is livid at picking CJ Spiller so high in the draft. 

St. Louis Rams

  I feel bad for the Rams.  They have a great coach and play hard defense.  Losing Sam Bradford is going to mean a high pick next year.

Baltimore Ravens

  Talk about underachieving.  They may one of the only Superbowl champs that do not make the playoffs the following year.  At least Flacco has a pile of money to rest his head on at night. 

Cleveland Browns

  This team has so many issues and pretty much gave up on their season a month ago when they traded Richardson the Indy. 

Philadelphia Eagles

  They had so much promise when the opening game happened.  The offense is still a work in progress and defenses are not getting winded anymore.  They have to go back to ensure McCoy touches the ball 30 times a game. 

D-

Washington Redskins

  I know they are better than this and I am sure they will play like it when they play the Cowboys again.  Tons of talent but they can’t bring it together.  RGIII is limping again as well.

Atlanta Falcons

  They have been one of the biggest shockers of the year.  Julio is now gone for the year as well as their hopes.

Houston Texans

  I am not sure who should be their Quaterback but I don’t think he is currently on the team.  Injuries everywhere and a lot of season left to play.

Pittsburgh Steelers

  Flashes of great play and they have done a good job lately in the secondary.  Some things are working but a lot of things are broken as well.

F

New York Giants

  They have won two in a row but only because they have been playing scrub teams.  Eli has already thrown more interceptions then last year and half the season is left.  Love it.

Minnesota Vikings

  This team’s play calling is so ridiculous.  It’s hard to even watch.  You have the best running back in the league and you are letting Josh Freeman throw the ball 50+ times.  They might start him again is how crazy things are in Minnesota. 

F-

 Tampa Bay Buccaneers

  They now have more billboards around town to fire the coach then they do to promote the team. With Doug Martin hurt it does not look to get any easier here.  Vincent Jackson seems to be earning his money though.

Jacksonville Jaguars

  I cannot see anything that is working on this team.  A sad offense and poor defense.  Teddy Bridgewater better get a real estate agent so he can get settled in quick.

Hope you enjoyed it.
 

<a href=https://plus.google.com/u/0/113767520997320629701#113767520997320629701/about rel=author”>Todd Scartozzi</a>

Top games this weekend

My top games this weekend

There were a few key matchups this weekend that I thought were intriguing.  Don’t get me wrong, there were a lot of good games and some breakout performances.  I have plenty of games that would be easy to hand pick items from, but these three games really stood out to me.  Here they are:

 

Texas Longhorns              36

Oklahoma Sooners          20

Talk about unexpected.  Mack Brown may have just saved his job with the gutsy performance the Longhorns put in this weekend at the Red River Shootout.

Brown has had many big wins in his career, but this win, due to the timing, has to be one of his most cherished.   All week every media outlet in the country was calling for Mack to be replaced as the Texas football coach.  A role he has had since 1998.  Not so fast everyone!

Texas came into this game as a two touchdown underdog, and proceeded to give Oklahoma a Texas sized thrashing.  The Longhorns started this game strong and never looked back.  Texas dominated both offensively and defensively, a team that has owned them in recent years.  The Sooners came into this game ranked #10 in the country, but they sure did not look ready to play.  Texas QB, Case McCoy, had some nice deep throws and did a nice job of just managing the game.  The shocker for me was Mack Brown realizing that he has some talented backs on his team, and gave the Sooners big helping of Johnathan Gray and Malcolm Brown.  This has been sorely missed this season and it seemed to take the wind out of the Sooners.  Big plays on defense, offense, and special teams were a welcome change for Brown, who was under fire to step aside and let someone else take over one of the most coveted jobs in sports.  The “Eyes of Texas” were upon him this Saturday and I for one enjoyed him raising the Golden Hat in triumph.  Nice job Mack!

 

New England Patriots       30

New Orleans Saints           27

I had been waiting for this game since the season schedules came out, and what a great game to watch.  In the weeks leading up to this game, I thought the Pats really had no chance.  They had been scraping by and not really in sync.  The Saints have been hitting on all cylinders, and were one of only three unbeaten teams left in the league.  This game was a back and forth battle.  If I showed you the box score for this game without the score, you would be hard pressed to pick who won this game.  Virtually every item was so close that this game could have gone either way.  New England did an effective job of running the ball for once, and Steven Ridley came out of nowhere to rush for 96 yds and 2 touchdowns.  This was a surprise since he has done nothing YTD, and every fantasy player most likely had him sitting on their bench, like I did.  Leading at halftime 17-7 the Pats went cold in the 3^rd quarter, and the comeback was on for the Saints. They cut the lead to 3 points going into the 4^th and had the momentum to close out New England.  The Saints get behind the defense and score the go ahead touchdown with 5 min remaining.  How do the Pats let that happen?  Shocking, really!

Tom Brady is going to lead them to victory....  Not so fast.  His first pass is intercepted and the Saints are going crazy.  Fans start leaving and the cameras are all on Rob Ryan while he celebrates. The Saints then make the critical error of giving Tom Brady one more chance with 1.03 on the clock.  All they had to do was get one first down and they win. He overcomes dropped pass after dropped pass to lead New England down the field and hits Kenbrell Tompkins with 5 seconds left for the go ahead score.  You cannot give Brady three chances and expect a different outcome.  I feel like these two teams may meet again this year, and I like the Saints to win that game.  Look for them both in the Superbowl.

Dallas Cowboys                         31

Washington Redskins              16

It never seems to matter what the records are coming into this game or how well the Cowboys might be playing at the time.  The Redskins always seem to play Dallas tough.  Coming off of a bye week, and RGIII looking like the QB of last year to start this game had me scared.  Who would have expected special teams to carry the load?  Dwayne Harris took over this game and Tony Romo had the best seat in the house for the biggest plays of the game.  The Cowboys then lose DeMarco Murray, and Ware to injury, and put a scare into everyone.  As luck would have it RGIII reverted to the QB that has played most of this year much differently than last year.  High balls, missed opportunities, and a lack luster running game that allowed the Cowboys to pin their ears back and put on a pass rush that has been lacking in the past weeks.  Three sacks and a costly fumble put the game away and leave the Cowboys tied for first.  At the end of the day, I am not sure the Cowboys win this game without the heroics of Dwayne Harris.  They didn’t look great, but boy it’s nice to see the Redskins look bad. 

 

Note:  I am not sure if you saw Bob Costas at halftime and the speech he gave on the Redskins name, but it was compelling and he makes some great points to consider. Here is the link if you missed it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FT9wy5xoMcI



<a href=https://plus.google.com/u/0/113767520997320629701#113767520997320629701/about rel=author”>Todd Scartozzi</a>

Week 5 NFL Wrap Up

It was a great week of football.  Some wild rides and some surprising turn outs.  Two more unbeaten teams fell this week with the Patriots losing to the Browns, and the Seahawks losing to the Colts.  The Giants continued to lose which was fantastic to watch, and Tom Coughlin is even redder faced than usual this time of year.  Hard to admit here but I picked the Saints to win the Superbowl back in July, and as painful as it is to watch them get to 5-0, I think that Sean Payton is just an incredible coach and the difference for them this year.  Here is my wrap of the games this week:

Houston (2-3)	0	0	3	0	3
San Francisco (3-2)	14	7	3	10	34

 Houston was completely out classed in this game, and looked horrible in all facets of the game.  Schaub’s first pass went for a touchdown.  Too bad it was to the wrong team.  If you give SF three turnovers, then you better be prepared for the thrashing that Houston received Sunday.

New Orleans (5-0)	6	14	3	3	26
Chicago (3-2)	0	7	3	8	18

The score of this game seems much closer than how it played out.  The Saints had control of this game early on, and never really looked too concerned with the Bears. Brees was precise and efficient going 29-35 and 288yrds. Pierre Thomas looked great back in his hometown, and his burst of speed on the screen play was surprising.  Everyone keeps making a big deal of Rob Ryan and his defense.  That is not what controlled this game.  Time of possession did.  The Saints had the ball for 12 minutes more than the Bears did.  That is why they are 5-0.

New England (4-1)	0	3	0	3	6
Cincinnati (3-2)	0	3	3	7	13

This game was tough to watch.  Slow, boring and sloppy.  It was sloppy way before the rain came too.  Danny Amendola should have sat out if he was not ready to play.  I had to kick my shoe off to count how many dropped balls he had.  Tom Brady’s touchdown streak came to an end at 52, and it seems like he had no shot at getting one either.  Both teams looked bad in this snoozer, but the Bengals did out play the Pats and got the win.

Detroit (3-2)	0	3	0	6	9
Green Bay (2-2)	3	3	10	6	22

What a difference one person can make sometimes.  Calvin Johnson was inactive for this game and so was the offense for the Lions.  Crosby did most of the scoring for the Pack, and he seems to be back on track after a horrible year in 2012.  This game will be better the next time they play assuming Megatron is back.

 

Seattle (4-1)	12	7	9	0	28
Indianapolis (4-1)	7	10	6	11	34

This game was great to watch.  It is amazing how far Andrew Luck has brought the Colts in one year.  They have now beaten the 49rs and Seattle.  Impressive considering very few people can name more than a few players on their team.  The Seahawks were flying to the ball in the first half and seemed to be in control, but the 4^th quarter domination by Indy was the story.  11 unanswered points down the stretch had Pete Carroll looking up at the sky for help at the end of game. 

Baltimore (3-2)	3	3	10	10	26
Miami (3-2)	3	10	0	10	23

Speaking of luck!  The Ravens pull out another win that they did not play well enough to earn.  The lack of rushing game for Miami put the pressure on Tannehill to carry the load. He did not do a bad job of it.  Going 21-40 for 307yds and putting your team in a position to tie with 33 seconds left.  Darn kickers.  He missed one that he should have had. Boom Ravens win!

Philadelphia (2-3)	3	16	3	14	36
NY Giants (0-5)	7	0	14	0	21

I am not sure if Philly is good or the Giants are just that bad.  Vick was killing them with his legs, but not his arm.  Just a matter of time before he got hurt again running almost every time he dropped back.  Foles on the other hand was an effective passer, and kept the Eagles on track.  I do love the Giants losing again, but I do not want them to get the first pick in the draft either. 

Kansas City (5-0)	7	6	0	13	26
Tennessee (3-2)	0	0	10	7	17

The Titan’s were trying to become the first team in the Superbowl era to go 5 games without a turnover.  Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. This game was split in two.  In the first half the Chiefs dominated Tennessee and Fitzpatrick who started for Locker did not look good.  Tennessee started to get things together in the second half, and made this a pretty good game until KC woke up late in the 4^th quarter to put the game away.  

Jacksonville (0-5)	10	0	3	7	20
St. Louis (2-3)	7	17	0	10	34

My first thought with this game is why even play the game.  It was great to see Blackman come back from suspension and have an impact right away.  He caught 5 passes for 136yds.  It was a great way to return to the field.  I still don’t get the Jags at the end of the day.  They have 1^st and goal at the two and let Gabbert throw the ball every time.  If that is how you want your season to go then just keep calling stupid plays and you will lose every game the same way.  Maybe they are going for the first pick.  If you are going to let Gabbert try and win your games for you, then why not bring in Tebow?  You can at least fill your seats!

Carolina (1-3)	3	3	0	0	6
Arizona (3-2)	0	3	9	10	22

This was a surprise game for me.  I did not expect the Cardinals to get their act together at all.  They have looked inept on offense all season and managed to put a solid performance together against Carolina. They dominated the entire second half and the defense looked like they were a different team.  The biggest surprise for me is that Carolina had 2 weeks to prepare for this game, and played like that.  It’s time to look at what is going on with the coaching.

Denver (5-0)	7	21	10	13	51
Dallas (2-3)	14	6	13	15	48

This was on heck of a game.  Back and forth the entire game and for 57 minutes Romo held it together.  You really can’t blame the loss on him.  He threw for 506 yds.  The most yards by any Cowboy ever.  It did show a lot of other teams that if the Broncos don’t fix their defense, then they are not going to finish this thing.  The Cowboys defense is not much better and Monte may need to be held more accountable at this point.  When 4 of the 5 teams you’ve played have passed for over 400 yds, then you have a problem to address.  This was a tough loss, but what a great game to watch. 

San Diego (2-3)	0	0	3	14	17
Oakland (2-3)	14	3	7	3	27

Was I surprised by this score and result?  YES!  Did I watch this game?  NO!  Way too late for me. 

Monday Night

NY Jets (3-2)	3	14	3	10	30
Atlanta (1-4)	0	7	7	14	28

Shocked would not even be close to describing the outcome of this game.  The Jets defense of old was back and making plays.  A blocked punt and a goal line stance that actually game Atlanta 5 chances was a major deciding factor.  I do have to mention the play of Geno Smith.  He was on target with 16-20 passes.  Not a ton of yds at 199, but he made them count.  I hope Sanchez enjoyed NYC, because he will be leaving soon.  The Jets are starting to believe in themselves and actually playing much better than anyone expected.  Big win!

<a href=https://plus.google.com/u/0/113767520997320629701#113767520997320629701/about rel=author”>Todd Scartozzi</a>