Bounty-gate punishment should be bountiful for Gregg Williams and NFL players

Last week the NFL exposed a bonus performance system that Gregg Williams used while he was the defensive coordinator for the New Orleans Saints that breaks the league’s rules.  In the system, players received cash for not only performance, but also bounty payments for injuring players. 

The NFL’s investigation which originally began in 2010 discovered that Saints players received $1,500 for a "knockout" hit and $1,000 for a "cart-off" hit, with payouts doubling or tripling during the team's three playoff appearances in 2009, 2010 and 2011.   Knockout hits refer to a player being knocked out cold.  As you can probably guess, a cart-off hit is an injury that leads the player to being taken out of the game.

This was the case for former Detroit Lions running back James Stewart.  Former Buffalo Bills safety, Coy Wire, ended Stewart’s career with a hit and was rewarded for it.   Stewart was just 31 and coming off of season in which he rushed for more than 1,000 yards when he stopped playing because of the injury.

Wire said, "I shattered James Stewart's shoulder, and he never played again. I was showered with praise for that. It's a shame that's how it was. Now I see how wrong that was."  Wire played for Williams from 2001 – 2003 when he was the Bills’ head coach.  He says that the environment was one of malicious intent.

Williams was summoned to the league’s headquarters in New York for a meeting today.  He will discuss the allegations with NFL security officials and general counsel, Jeff Pash.  He has already admitted that the bounty system existed in New Orleans and acknowledged that it was wrong.  The meeting will address whether he used a similar system at other teams he coached including the Buffalo Bills and Washington Redskins.  It is anticipated that Williams’ discipline will be severe and unprecedented.

I am disgusted by the bounty system.  I understand the physicality of the game and the competitive war mentality that these players have developed.  It has been engrained in them since they were little boys playing Pop Warner football.  A friend of mine shared that he remembers his little league team giving an award to the player who had the “hit of the week.”  What little boy would not want to receive that praise in front of his peers?  I get motivating players to perform at the best of their ability.  However, to coach or play this game with the cruel intention to injure another player and end his career is unconscionable.

Williams should not be the only person punished.  Players should be punished for their participation in funding these bounty payments.  They have damaged their counterpart’s careers and lives.  Their actions make a mockery of everything that the NFL and NFLPA are doing to increase safety, decrease injuries and protect THEM!

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and DeMaurice Smith the executive director of the NFLPA need to send a strong message that this type of behavior will not be tolerated in professional football.

Ciao!

Heels & Helmets®

Destination: Super Bowl XLVI

The NFL 2011 Season is finally here!  The preseason is over.  Now every down counts.  Each inch is crucial.  It’s time to back up all of the trash talking.  All eyes are focused on Indianapolis, Indiana, the host of Super Bowl XLVI.  Who will get there?  Who will hoist up The Lombardi Trophy?

The AFC has their usual team leaders who will contend for the conference championship.  New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens and New York Jets will all make the playoffs again.  The Indianapolis Colts is not on this list because I think Colts QB, Peyton Manning’s neck injury will cause their offense to suffer.  I think that the Jets will make it back to the AFC Championship for the third year in a row and win it this time.  The offense will start slow.  QB, Mark Sanchez still has Santonio Holmes, but the other receivers are older and new to the team.  Once wide receivers Plaxico Burress (34 years old) and Derrick Mason (37 years old) get comfortable, their experience will help the offense.  The star unit is the defense.  The Jets returned 10 of their starters on defense.  These players know the defense and what needs to be done to take down Tom Brady (Patriots QB) and Ben Roethlisberger (Steelers QB).  Last year Jets cornerback, Darrelle Revis was only productive half of the season.  This year he prepared with his team during training camp and will start the season healthy.

The NFC is going to be really competitive.  The last two Super Bowl winners came from this conference.   The Green Bay Packers and the New Orleans Saints were the champions in 2011 and 2010 respectively.  Both of these teams will compete for the NFC Championship, but I think that the Philadelphia Eagles will win the conference title.  The Eagles are good on both sides of the ball.  The offense is led by QB Michael Vick.  Everyone is concerned about the Eagles offensive line.  It is an issue because Vick needs to be protected to stay healthy, but I don’t think that it will stop him from having a great season.  On defense, the Eagles have the best secondary, not just in the conference, but the NFL.  Eagles cornerbacks, Nnamdi Asomugha, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Asante Samuel will throw a wrench in every team’s passing game.

I picked teams with powerful defenses to go to the Super Bowl.  The Jets have continuity and the Eagles have talent and speed.   I am predicting the Eagles to win Super Bowl XLVI.  This isn’t because of the dream team chatter.  Here are three reasons why.

1.     Defense was a problem for the Eagles last year and they clearly solved it. 

2.     Michael Vick is not only back; he is focused.  After the first preseason game, he commented, "I went back and looked at film by myself in the offseason and a majority of the time last year Brent was open and I failed to throw to him because I was focused on DeSean and Jeremy."  

3.     The Eagles swooped in out of nowhere and signed Asomugha.  They have some other tricks up their sleeves.

The season kicks off this Thursday at 8:30 pm when the Green Bay Packers host the New Orleans Saints.  Some people think that this is a preview of the NFC Championship game.  I think we will see one of the teams that will face Philadelphia in that game.

Ciao! 

Heels & Helmets

NFL’s sacrifice for Lent

The NFL and its club owners decided to give up professional football for Lent.  The NFL and the NFLPA did not reach an agreement and stopped negotiations on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).  That means that right now football is dead. 

I am not fretting about it yet because we still have five months before the start of the pre-season.  However, if the players and owners do not resolve their issues soon and have a new contract, the season will not be the same.  Since the NFLPA has decertified and the NFL locked out the players, the teams and players cannot communicate.

Everything is on hold.  No free agency.  No conditioning.  No Organized Team Activities (OTA).  The only scheduled professional football event that will take place this spring if the lockout continues is the NFL Draft. 

If the labor negotiations are prolonged, the training and preparation that teams and players usually do during the off-season will not happen.  This will have a huge impact on teams, especially for clubs that have young players in skilled positions.   Teams such as the Cleveland Browns, Denver Broncos, Detroit Lions and St. Louis Rams will not be able to work with their young quarterbacks.

Cleveland’s Colt McCoy and St. Louis’ Sam Bradford need to work with their coaches to be effective in their starting roles.  In Denver, Tim Tebow, will need more than informal workouts on his own to develop into being a starter.  Detroit’s Matthew Stafford has two years of experience leading the Lions, but he recently had shoulder surgery.  Rehabilitating privately is not the same as doing it with the team’s staff and equipment.  This will certainly have an effect on the team’s offensive plans.

Let’s hope that the sacrifice ends at Holy Saturday and the resurrection of professional football happens before the 2011 NFL Draft.  On second thought, it can happen sooner.  I don’t think that the “football gods” will be upset with the NFL for breaking Lent.  I think that they will be pleased to see the owners’ selfless act of forgoing an EXTRA $1 billion dollars to give the fans what they want.  After all, they are the people who made them billionaires.

Ciao!

 Heels & Helmets®

Free me from CBA talk, PLEASE!

For the last few weeks, professional football fans have been held hostage digitally by the news on the progress of the mediation between the NFL and NFLPA.

Free me!

Nothing has changed.  The owners still want more money and regular season games.  The players still want to see the books.   Well, I guess I should not say “nothing” because the sides are talking now (A LOT) and they did not for months.  This still is not enough to warrant the hostage.

Free me!

The hostage wouldn’t be so bad if both parties were not sworn to secrecy.  At least we would have some insight on the progress, the tension in the room, and the perspective from each side.  I am not asking for cameras, but a fiery remark from Jerry Jones would be satisfying.  Instead we have mundane “updates” telling us the same thing.  I can’t take it anymore.

I’M BREAKING OUT!!!

Now that the CBA analysis is behind me, I will get to where our focus should be in March.  College “Pro Days.”  These are workouts at colleges that NFL personnel attend to continue their evaluation of players to prepare for the upcoming draft.  It is similar to the Combine, but not as vigorous.  Plus, players who were not invited to the Combine have a chance to make an impression on NFL Scouts.

Tomorrow, a couple of top quarterbacks will participate in their schools’ Pro Day.  Cam NewtonRyan Mallett (Arkansas) both will display their talent at their university.  Ryan did well at the Combine and demonstrated that he has a strong arm and is accurate.  This is an opportunity for him to build on that performance and show he can throw at the professional level.  Cam on the other hand was disappointing at the Combine.  Auburn’s Pro Day gives him chance to improve on passing drills and exhibit that he can handle the NFL. (Auburn) and

Check out when your school is having its Pro Day.

It feels sooo good to be liberated! 

Ciao!

Heels & Helmets®

Combine is here, but no one knows if the NFL season will happen this fall

The NFL combine is starting this week.  College players lucky enough to receive an invitation will be in Indianapolis for a four-day intense interview starting on Wednesday.  Usually, at this time, all of the talk is about how the players will perform at the Combine.   This year things are a little different because the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the NFL and NFLPA (NFL Players Association) is expiring next week at the end of the day on March 3.  As a result, the negotiation on a new deal is overshadowing the Combine and leaving a lot of fans wondering if the NFL season will actually happen this fall.

The NFL led by its Commissioner, Roger Goodell and the NFLPA headed by Executive Director, DeMaurice Smith spent the entire weekend in federally mediated negotiations.  Since Friday, representatives from both sides were in a room for at least six hours negotiating in front of George Cohen, Director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service in Washington, DC.  Surprisingly, everyone has adhered to Cohen’s request that no one comment publicly on the negotiations.  So, we do not have any information on the outcome of the negotiations. 

Here are some important points on the negotiation as I see it.

1. Perception that players get a bigger piece of the profit than owners is inaccurate.  60% of revenue is after owners get their money for operating expenses ($1B); so players are not getting more money than the owners now.  Both sides get about 50%.

2. Owners want to increase their expense credit to $2B and give the players less money.
3. NFL and its owners claim a decrease in profits, but won't share evidence to support this.  However, we know sponsorship is up and they were able to secure higher media deals.  With higher prices, Super Bowls ads for this year's game were completely sold out last October.  That’s three months prior to the game!  Plus, there is more ad time.  Ads during the Super Bowl have increased from 40 minutes to over 48 minutes.  The NFL is making money.
4. Players contracts are not guaranteed.  They make money only when they play.  Amount of pay during an injury depends on several factors including how many games were played prior to the injury.

5. Owners want to add two more games to the regular season while the players take a decrease in pay and increase their chances of injury.

The element that confuses me the most is that the NFL will not show financial information to validate their claim that profits are down.  In a special letter to ESPN.com, Greg Aiello, the NFL's Senior Vice President of Public Relations, wrote: “NFL players have an extremely favorable revenue-sharing deal and full access to all information on revenue and a great deal of information on costs, including the largest cost, which is for players.”

A “great deal”?  I think that this is very telling.  Why not share the entire story?

Let me explain it this way.  If I told my mortgage company that I needed to modify my loan because of financial hardship, they would require ALL of my financial information and expenses to make a decision.  A “great deal” would not be enough to even get my request considered.

This leads me to a deeper issue that I don’t think a lot of people observe and discuss.  The NFL and its club owners do not regard the players as equal business partners.  Their actions toward them illustrate a superior attitude.  They feel as if they don’t have to prove anything.  Players should just believe what they say simply because they said it.  In any other business negotiation, the partner would show the evidence of their claims and move forward with the negotiations.  No one makes a good business decision without ALL of the facts. 

Smith is law man, not a football man like his predecessor Gene Upshaw.  He does not know football, but he does know the law and how to negotiate.  With a background in litigation, he wants the best for his members and that is not just money.  With less than two years on the job, he is still new to sports; but he is not going to be bullied.  It’s a good thing for players that he isn’t afraid to stand up to “the shield” and demand facts to make a sound decision.

In short, it appears to me that the NFL is asking the players to work more for less money.  So, I propose this question that I feel is at the crux of this negotiation: 

Would you be willing to work more hours for less money while your partner reports record sales?

Ciao!

Heels & Helmets®

NFL Playoffs and BCS Champs is all Newton

Wild-Card weekend provided us the expected and unexpected.  Here is a recap of what happened in the first round of the NFL Playoffs.

NFC

In the first playoff game of the season, Seattle Seahawks shocked the defending Super Bowl champion, New Orleans Saints and won 41 -36.  They are the first team with a losing record (7-9) to win a playoff game.  The biggest play of the game was Marshawn Lynch’s 67-yard run for a touchdown.  Kudos to Pete Carroll for leading the Seahawks to victory in his first year back in the NFL, but I still think that the game should not have been in Qwest Field.  I am not making excuses for the Saints’ performance.  However, playing well during the regular season should be rewarded with a home game during the regular season.  A team that didn’t even win half of its regular season games should not be at home during the playoffs.  (Really, they should not have been in the playoffs, but I’ll save that for another time.)  In Qwest, opponents average over 2 false starts, thanks to the “12^th Man.”  We call it home-field advantage for a reason.  Nevertheless, the Seattle Seahawks will go to the “Windy City” to play the Chicago Bears.

In Philadelphia, Michael Vick could not get the Eagles pass the Green Bay Packers.  Aaron Rodgers threw three touchdown passes to lead the Packers to a 21 – 16 win.  Charles Woodson and the rest of the Packers defense did a good job containing Vick.  While his last play was an interception, the 2011 NFC Pro Bowl starter still managed 292 passing yards and 33 rushing yards.  People will remember the last play of the game, but what killed the Eagles in this game was special teams.  (I always say these special men will make or break you.)  Philadelphia missed two field goals.  Had they just made those, the game would have gone to overtime.  Who knows what would have happened.  Now the Packers are going to the Georgia Dome to meet NFC Leader, Atlanta Falcons.

AFC

I expected the New York Jets to beat the Indianapolis Colts but thought the story would be about the quarterbacks – Peyton Manning (Colts) and Mark Sanchez (Jets).  It was not.  The game came down to special teams and the kickers.  Adam Vinatieri made a 50-yard field goal, his longest kick since 2008, with 53 seconds left.  The Colts thought it was over.  However, 50 seconds later, Nick Folk kicked a 32-yard field goal for the Jets.  Game over.  The Jets are on their way to Foxborough to meet the league’s best, Belichick’s New England Patriots for the third time this season.

No surprise in Arrowhead Stadium.  The Baltimore Ravens – Kansas City Chiefs game was not worth watching.  The playoff experienced Ravens dominated a youthful Chiefs team.  Baltimore’s defense led by Ray Lewis was on fire.  They forced five turnovers, got three sacks and limited the Chiefs to just one touchdown.  The offense looked good as well.  They scored passing and running to get the win, 30 – 7.  The Ravens will play their arch rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers next week in Heinz Field.

So we’re on to the NFL Divisional Playoff Round…

Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers - Saturday, Jan. 15, 4:30 PM ET NBC

This is going to be a blood bath between division (AFC North) rivals.  Both teams are known for their old school, hard-hitting defenses.  At their last meeting, the Steelers won (narrowly), but quarterback Ben Roethlisberger left the game with a broken nose.  These guys don’t play that push-you-out-of-bounds stuff, they tackle!  I see Ray Lewis’ adrenaline still pumping and the Baltimore defense continuing its roll from yesterday to end the Steelers’ season.

Green Bay Packers at Atlanta Falcons - Saturday, Jan. 15, 8:00 PM ET FOX

Green Bay loss to Atlanta in November by just a field goal.  Green Bay ended the season with two tough games to guarantee a playoff spot.  They are focused.  The Falcons have been resting.  On Saturday, I think Green Bay will return to the Georgia Dome with a hungry offense and an angry, experienced defense to avenge their previous visit.

Seattle Seahawks at Chicago Bears - Sunday, Jan. 16, 1:00 PM ET FOX

Seattle is feeling confident.  They just upset the defending Super Bowl champs and they beat the Bears 23 - 20 during the regular season in Chicago.  Impressive win on Saturday, but I think that their season ends this weekend.  Chicago has improved since that close game in September.  Most notably is the running game.  Matt Forte ran for at least 91 yards in five of the Bears' final six games.

New York Jets at New England Patriots - Sunday, Jan. 16, 4:30 PM ET NBC

This is a contest between the top two teams in the AFC East.  Their last game again looked more like a pro team scrimmaging a college team.  Tom Brady massacred the Jets 45 – 3 on “Monday Night Football.”  It will not be easy for the Jets to travel and beat a well-rested, well-coached Patriot team.  BUT, the Jets are going to do it.  Mark Sanchez will step up, the defense will realize that it does not need to blitz on every play (deep threat Randy Moss hasn’t been a Patriot since September) and this good team will find a way to win.

College Football Championship Game

Tonight college football’s champion will be determined in warm Arizona.  Auburn Tigers will play Oregon Ducks in the Tostito’s BCS Championship Game.   This game will be “Nothing but Newton.”  Cameron “Cam” Newton.  This is Auburn’s extraordinary quarterback who won the Heisman Trophy this year.  

Oregon went undefeated, but they are in the PAC 10 and only played ONE team in the top 15.  Meanwhile Auburn dominated the extremely competitive SEC and beat FOUR teams in the top 15.  The SEC is the best right now in football.  Their bowl record this year proves that.  I’m a Big Ten girl so it pains me to make this acknowledgement, but I give credit when it is due.

Auburn will be champs and here are three quick reasons why:

1.     Oregon has not seen anything close to what they will experience tonight since their meeting with Ohio State in the Rose Bowl .  They couldn’t do anything with Terrelle Pryor and will not be able stop Cam Newton.

2.     Auburn ranks third in the nation in third-down conversions.  Why?  Cam Newton will scramble and make big plays with his feet.

3.     Oregon ranks seventh in the nation in turnover margin.  When they turnover to tonight they will be giving the ball back to Cam Newton.  I think you know what will happen.

Tostito’s BCS Championship Game kicks-off tonight at 8:30 pm on ESPN.

Ciao! 

Heels & Helmets®

Happy New Year!

A new year is here and the NFL playoffs are set!   The teams from the NFC are Atlanta Falcons, Chicago Bears, Seattle Seahawks, Philadelphia Eagles, New Orleans Saints and Green Bay Packers.  The AFC contenders are New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, Indianapolis Colts, Kansas City Chiefs, New York Jets and Baltimore Ravens.  Playoff action begins on Saturday, January 8, 2011.  See the entire 2010 postseason schedule.

I picked the Jets to win the Super Bowl.  Not because I’m from New York.  Not because green and white are my favorite colors.  Not because of their fancy new stadium.  Not because they were featured on HBO’s “Hard Knocks.” 

I picked the Jets because I saw them balancing youth and experience and building on the accomplishments from the 2009 season. They made it to the AFC Championship game last year with rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez, so they were just one win away from Super Bowl XLIV.  During the offseason, they retained their starters and strengthened their offense with veterans Braylon Edwards, Santonio Holmes and L.T. (LaDainian Tomlinson).  They ended on a bad note only winning two out of their last five games, but they are in the playoffs.  Yes, I am sticking to my word.  The Jets are going to Dallas

In reflecting on the regular season, here are my top seven moments, events and surprises from the 2010 season.

#7 – Batman and Robin just an old cartoon.  T.O. (Terrell Owens) joining Chad Ochocinco in Cincinnati was supposed to frighten defenses across the league.  The claimed “dynamic duo” only combined for 13 touchdowns the entire season and the Bengals only won four games.

6# - Steelers quarterback drama.  Pittsburgh starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was suspended for 4 games at the beginning of the 2010 season for violating the league’s personal conduct policy.  First the concern was who would replace him.  Then the concern was where would the team be when Big Ben returned.  Both ended up non-issues.  They won the AFC North with the second best record in the conference and are resting the first weekend of playoff action.

#5 – Tripping to victory.  New York Jets Head Strength and Conditioning Coach Sal Alosi was fined $25,000 after he was videotaped tripping Miami Dolphins rookie Nolan Carroll.  The investigation revealed that he had instructed inactive players to line up along the sideline to position themselves to impede gunners on the opposing team.  As a result, he was suspended indefinitely.  The NFL also fined the Jets franchise $100,000.  Sometimes you are grateful to have “big brother” watching.

#4 – Great coaching puts New England on top.  After losing to the Jets early in the season, the Patriots did not seem like the leader in the AFC.  It really looked like their season was going to suffer when they sent wide receiver Randy Moss to Minnesota.  Head coach Bill Belichick did not let the critics get to him or his players.  He couldn’t replace Randy Moss and did not try to.  Instead he got the job done by having Tom Brady go with shorter passes to tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez.  The Patriots have the best record in the league and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.  No one is missing Randy Moss in New England.

#3 – Fading Favre.  Not so surprising that Brett Favre isn’t the quarterback that he used to be.  The man is 41.  He has been in the pocket taking hits for 20 seasons.  After last season it is unfortunate that the future hall of famer was forced out of the game and literally ran away after his last game.  He says that he knows “It’s time.”  I hope that he does.

#2 – The soaring Eagles.  Last spring it seemed really crazy that Philadelphia traded quarterback Donovan McNabb to a division rival.  McNabb was benched in his new home (Washington Redskins) and the Eagles are in the playoffs after winning the NFC East, but not because of Kevin Kolb the guy that was supposed to be their starting quarterback.

#1 – Michael Vick is back!  Michael was supposed to just back up Kolb this season.  He got his chance to start in the NFL again after three seasons and has not looked back.  Four months later he is voted the NFC starting quarterback for the 2011 Pro Bowl and a NFL MVP contender.

Ciao! 

Heels & Helmets®

Christmas weekend in the NFL

While Santa and his elves were making final preparations, packing up the sleigh, and blitzing around the globe to deliver gifts to good boys and girls, teams in the NFL were blocking, passing and blitzing to make this a Christmas to remember.  Some of them got nice gifts and others were left with a lump of coal.

NFL Week 16: The Gifts…

The New England Patriots blew out Buffalo 34 -3 and secured home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.  So, the AFC playoffs will go through Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.  Tom Brady continued to demonstrate why he is the highest paid player in the NFL.  He extended the NFL record to 8 consecutive games with two or more touchdown passes and no interceptions.  He has now thrown 319 passes without any interceptions.

The Lions went down to sunny Miami and won.  They came back from a deficit of 10 points and beat the Dolphins 34 – 27 on the road.  The victory gave the Lions their third win a row – something that they have not had since 2007.  Motown should be singing and dancing this holiday season.

At Soldier Field, Chicago got a quick 10-point lead against the New York Jets.  After a scoreless first quarter, the Jets’ offense came alive, scoring 24 points in the second quarter.  The lead did not last long.  After halftime, the Bears returned and took the lead again.  The Jets fought back but a Mark Sanchez interception sealed Chicago’s 38 – 34 victory.  The Jets still secured a playoff spot.  Thanks to a nice gift from the Washington Redskins.  Their victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars confirmed a Wild-Card playoff spot for the Jets.

The Baltimore Ravens, Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles also secured playoff spots over Christmas Weekend.

NFL Week 16: Lumps of Coal…

While Philadelphia is going to the playoffs because they clinched the NFC East division title, Mother Nature is not being nice to the Eagles.  Due to a blizzard in Philadelphia, they did not play the Minnesota Vikings yesterday.  The game will be played on Tuesday night.  This means that the Eagles will play three games in just 12 days. 

The New York Giants had six turnovers in their loss to the Green Bay Packers.  The defense allowed four touchdown passes from Aaron Rodgers who just returned after suffering a concussion.  The Giants will have to put playoffs on their wish list for next Christmas.

San Francisco 49ers Head Coach Mike Singletary was fired last night.  After two disappointing seasons, the organization relieved him of his duties with just one game left to go.  I think that was more like a ton of coal.

Are you ready for some football?

Tonight MNF heads south to the Georgia Dome for its finale.  It is a divisional rivalry game between the New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons.  Atlanta beat New Orleans earlier this year, so they are looking to win the series.  They are already in the playoffs, but they have not clinched the NFC South title.  At 12 – 2, with two games left, they could end the season tied with the Saints who are 10 – 4.  This is what makes this game a “must watch.”  A Saints victory would put them just one game behind the Falcons with the same conference record.  A Falcon victory tonight, would guarantee them the NFC South title and home-field advantage for the NFC playoffs.  Atlanta has not lost at home in over a year.  The Saints demonstrated that they could not handle a strong running game last week when Baltimore’s Ray Rice ran all over them.  Atlanta has someone stronger, running back Michael Turner.  He is ranked #5 this year in the league with over 1,250 rushing yards.  Two good teams, but the Saints defense will not be able to stop Atlanta passing and running.  I’m going with Atlanta tonight.

MNF kicks off at 8:30 pm on ESPN.  This week we are doing a special game watching party to support the Muskegon Rescue Mission.  Join us this week as we tackle homelessness in West Michigan the only way we know how – with fashion and football!

Ciao! 

Heels & Helmets®

Only in the NFL

The unexpected happens in the NFL, especially in December.  Teams headed to the playoffs lose to horrible teams.  Rookies step up.  Good teams look vulnerable.  It all makes the end of the season very interesting.   Yesterday was filled with some great matchups!  

Favorites from NFL Week 15

Detroit Lions got their fourth win of this season and their first win on the road since 2007.  With a record of 3 – 10, the Lions went down to Florida and beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a playoff contender, 23 – 20 in overtime.  They did this with their third string quarterback, Drew Stanton.  Lions fan should be excited about where they will be next year with a healthy Matthew Stafford.

New York Jets bounced back after losing two games in a row and beat the Pittsburgh Steelers, 22 -17.  Pittsburgh attempted a come back, but it was unsuccessful.  After being humiliated by the New England Patriots and Miami Heat, the Jets got their first win in December and held on to the Wild-Card playoff spot.

Baltimore Ravens beat the New Orleans Saints, 30 -24 at home.  The defending Super Bowl champs had not lost a game since October.   Baltimore’s offense and defense was on point.  Ray Rice led the offense with 153 rushing yards and two touchdowns, while the defense limited the Saints to just 27 rushing yards.  Both teams are fighting to keep a Wild-Card playoff spot.

Redskins fans had been boasting a better record and a victory over their division rival, Dallas Cowboys.  All of that is over now.  While the Redskins experimented with benching quarterback, Donovan McNabb for Rex Grossman, the Cowboys are ending strong.  Dallas led the entire game.  Washington fought back but missed a field goal to tie the game.  Dallas won, 33 – 30.  The Cowboys and Redskins are tied for third place in the NFC East at 5-9.

While Pittsburgh, New Orleans and Washington failed at coming back, but quarterback Michael Vick and the Eagles got it done.  Philadelphia was trailing the New York Giants by 14 points at the beginning of the fourth quarter.  Vick passed, ran and scored a touchdown to get the Eagles 28 points in the final quarter of the game!  This is why he is leading Pro Bowl voting.  Philadelphia won, 38 – 31.

Rookie Debut

Quarterback Tim Tebow made his first start in the NFL.  He had 138 passing yards, 78 rushing yards and a touchdown.  It was a good start to his NFL career, but not enough for the Denver Broncos to beat the Oakland Raiders.  The Raiders won, 39 -23.

Are you ready for some football?

Tonight MNF is going to cold Minnesota, but not to the Metrodome.  The Chicago Bears will play the Minnesota Vikings at TCF Bank Stadium, home of the University of Minnesota football team.  This is the result of Metrodome collapsing last Sunday.  Officials ruled that it could not be repaired in time, the Bears petitioned the NFL to disallow the game at TCF Bank, but the show is going on.  Outside of the Brett Favre drama, this game is centered on Chicago keeping its playoffs hopes alive.  Right now Chicago is leading the NFC North, 9-4; but the Green Bay Packers are right behind them.  They meet for the final game of the season.  I think that Chicago will keep it together, while the Vikings still figure out who they are after a crazy season.  MNF kicks off at 8:30 pm on ESPN.

Ciao! 

Heels & Helmets®

If the NFL playoffs started today

Since the regular season is coming to a close, I thought I better get you prepared for the playoffs.  The postseason in the NFL is a three-week playoff system and the Super Bowl.  The rounds are: Wild-Card, Divisional, and Conference Championship.  The conference champions play in the Super Bowl.  Let me explain the how teams get on the road to the Super Bowl.

The NFL is divided into two conferences, the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC).  Each of those conferences has four divisions (North, South, East and West).  The playoffs are comprised of 12 teams, 6 from each conference.  The four division winners get playoff spots.  This is the reason why there is such a focus on division leaders.  You may have heard someone comment, “they are leading the AFC East” or “they are only two games behind first in the NFC North.”  It is all about making it to the playoffs.  After the division leaders are determined, two more teams are selected from each conference.  These are the teams that have the best record in the entire conference not including the division winners.  They will play division winners in the Wild-Card Round, hence they are referred to as “wild-cards.”  The best two teams in each conference are off during the Wild-Card Round and they have an automatic home game.  They play the winners of the Wild-Card Round in the Divsional Round.  The overall best team in the conference gets all of its games at home, not including the Super Bowl; unless, of course the Super Bowl is in their home stadium.   Jerry Jones thought his team would do it this year, but they are not even going to make the playoffs.

Take a look at the teams that would be in the playoffs if they started today.

With three weeks left in the regular season, there are several teams “in the hunt.”  This means that they are close to becoming a Wild-card.  I’ll use the current NFC standings to illustrate this.  At the moment, the New York Giants have a record of 8 – 4 after 12 games.  They would have a Wild-Card spot if the playoffs started over the weekend.  Tampa Bay is at 8 – 5 after 13 games.  They are hunting for the wild-card spot.  The Giants game this evening against Minnesota is pivotal.  If they win they move to 9 – 3 making Tampa Bay’s hunt more difficult.  If they lose, they will be tied with the Bucs.  This helps Tampa Bay with its hunt to become a playoff team. 

All of this leads me to tonight’s games.  The New York Giants and the Minnesota Vikings are playing in Detroit at Ford Field because the roof of the Vikings home stadium, Metrodome collapsed early yesterday morning.  As I shared, it is a big game for the Giants.  Minnesota would love to mess up things for the Giants, but I don’t think they are equipped to do so.  They don’t know who is going to be their quarterback (Favre is still trying to recover) and they did not know they had to make a road trip until yesterday evening.  The Giants better stay focused and get it done tonight.  Next week they have Philadelphia at home.

Are you ready for some football?

Monday Night Football is traveling to the Lone Star State.  The Baltimore Ravens play the Houston Texans at Reliant Stadium.  Even at 5 – 7, the Texans are still in the hunt for a playoff spot.  After a tough loss last weekend, Baltimore’s offense will be solid.  Joe Flacco, Anquan Boldin, Derrick Mason and Le’Ron McClain should not have any problems against the Texans’ 31^st ranked defense.  On top of that, the Ravens’ defense is ranked #7.  I don’t see Houston’s Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson doing too much damage against Ray Lewis and the gang.  I’m going with the Baltimore Ravens tonight.  MNF kicks off at 8:30 pm on ESPN.  This week we’re going to the hippest part of Washington, DC for the game, U Street.   Join us at Ben’s Next Door.

Ciao! 

Heels & Helmets®

December separates the best from the rest

It’s the most wonderful time of the year!  Ahhh… December.  College bowl games, the Heisman Trophy announcement and NFL divisional battles. 

Yesterday the BCS announced the schools that are going to play in its bowl games – the Rose Bowl presented by VIZIO, Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, Discover Orange Bowl, All State Sugar Bowl and Tostitos BCS National Championship Game.   Auburn Tigers and Oregon Ducks will play in the championship game on January 10 in Arizona.  This was not a surprise.  Both teams won their conference and are undefeated.  Every year there is controversy over whether the BCS selects the right schools and delivers a true champion. 

I think that the right schools are going to play in the title game.  Auburn has a superstar quarterback in Cameron “Cam” Newton.  The guy is big, fast, and can throw the football.  He could help teams in the pros like the Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers and Detroit Lions today.   With a new quarterback, things started off slow for the Tigers.  They had close wins against unranked Mississippi State and Clemson.  Each week Cam displayed just how good he is and took Auburn through the tough SEC without a loss.  Oregon is a high scoring team.  They dominated all of their opponents.  Thanks to quarterback, Darron Thomas, and running back, LaMichael James, the Ducks won 10 of their 12 games by 17 or more points.

Michigan State got a raw deal.  The Spartans shared the Big Ten title with Wisconsin and Ohio State.  Despite beating Wisconsin during the season they were not selected to a BCS bowl game.  Instead they are going to play Alabama and their former coach, Nick Saban, in the Capital One Bowl.   It will be frustrating for the Spartans to watch the team they beat represent the conference in the Rose Bowl. 

Check out all of the BCS and non-BCS bowl games.

Quick hits around the NFL Week 13

Dallas Cowboys beat the Indianapolis Colts 38 -35.  The Cowboys’ defense intercepted Peyton Manning four times.  Two of them were returned for touchdowns.  Just when Dallas was starting to look like the team people thought would contend for the Super Bowl, they lose wide receiver Dez Bryant.  Bryant suffered an ankle injury yesterday and is out for the season.

For the second time this season, a controversial call clouds the Chicago Bears victory over the Detroit Lions.  The Bears were behind when Lions rookie defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh was penalized for unnecessary roughness.  The Lions’ sideline thought that Suh just pushed Bears quarterback Jay Cutler to the ground.  The referees saw a blow to the back of Cutler’s head.  The penalty setup a Bears touchdown.  Chicago wins 24-20.

Atlanta Falcons came back in the fourth quarter to beat Tampa Bay Buccaneers 28 -24.  They remain first in the NFC South.

Minnesota Vikings quarterback, Brett Favre, injured his throwing shoulder.  With Tarvaris Jackson at the quarterback position, the Vikings beat the Buffalo Bills 38-14 at home.     

Pittsburgh Steelers pulled off a win against AFC rival Baltimore Ravens.  It was a bloody battle between two powerful defenses – literally.  The game left Steelers quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger with a bloody jersey and broken nose.  Steelers win 13-10 and hold first in the AFC North by themselves.

Are you ready for some football?

Monday Night Football is going to feel like the AFC Championship Game.  The New York Jets are going up to cold Gillette Stadium to play the New England Patriots.  They are divisional rivals tied at 9-2 for first place in the AFC East.  So, this is a battle for the top spot in the division and the conference.  Earlier this season (Week 2), the Jets beat the Patriots at home when they still had Pro Bowl receiver Randy Moss.  Tonight’s game is going to come down to experience and talent.  The Patriots have quarterback, Tom Brady, but I don’t think that it is going to be enough.  New York Jets quarterback, Mark Sanchez, may only be in his second season, but he is surrounded by a lot of experienced, talented players. Jets defensive backs Antonio Cromartie and Darrelle Revis will be able to beat anyone that Brady tries to throw to.  I’m going with the Jets.  I know that the Patriots slaughtered the Lions last Thursday.  Yes, the Jets barely won the last few weeks.  They don’t have to blowout teams to get to the Super Bowl.  They just have to win.  Good teams find a way to win and the Jets will do just that tonight.  MNF kicks off at 8:30 pm on ESPN.

Ciao! 

Heels & Helmets®