#scott kacsmar

[junker-town]

How the Falcons can still upend the NFC playoff race

Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images

The 3-7 Falcons have upset two teams in a row, and they could shake things up in the NFC playoff race.

The Atlanta Falcons’ 2019 season isn’t exactly going as expected. Their firepower on offense paired with a ton of talent on defense had them as a potential sleeper Super Bowl pick heading into the year. But we’re more than halfway through the NFL season, and the Falcons are just 3-7.

The good news though is that they’ve found some rhythm and are now officially playing the role of spoiler in the NFL. In the last two weeks, the Falcons have upset the Saints and the Panthers to disrupt the NFC South race.

That turnaround is a surprise, given that just a few weeks ago head coach Dan Quinn was expected to be fired at the end of the year, if not before. While he still might be headed for the unemployment line, the Falcons are finally looking like the team we thought’d they be all season.

So what’s changed?

Atlanta’s defense has majorly stepped it up the last couple of weeks.

The biggest difference is the defense has been getting after the quarterback a lot better than it was earlier in the season.

Before Week 10, the Falcons only had seven sacks all season. Then, they sacked Drew Brees six times, with Grady Jarrett recording 2.5 of them. That continued in Week 11 against the Panthers as the Atlanta got to Kyle Allen five times. Adrian Clayborn had two of those, while Takkarist McKinley registered his first full sack of the season.

Sunday was also a turning point for another problem that had been plaguing the Falcons’ defense: its inability to create turnovers. Coming into the week, the defense had forced an NFL-low four turnovers. Against the Panthers, it picked off Allen four times.

In the last two games, Atlanta’s defense hasn’t allowed a touchdown either — only the fifth time in franchise history it’s done so. The defense was giving up an average of 31 points per game before then and has averaged 6 points per game in back-to-back wins. The Falcons also outscored the Saints and Panthers by a combined score of 55-12.

Part of the defensive improvement might be the coaching changes Quinn has made. After the team’s bye week on Nov. 3, the Falcons announced that Raheem Morris, who was coaching the receivers, would move over to work with the defensive backs. The switch made sense, considering Morris has spent many years of his career coaching secondaries. Then news broke that Quinn, who was calling the defensive himself, delegated the defensive playcalling to Jeff Ulbrich and Morris.

In the last two weeks, those moves seem to have paid off; the defense looks like a completely different unit. However, cornerback Isaiah Oliver insists things are just working better for the defense later in the season.

“Defensively, we have the same players on the field, we’re calling the same calls we have been calling, running the same defense — it’s just working better, honestly,” Oliver told reporters after the Panthers win. “Guys are communicating more and getting to the ball quicker. But in terms of the schemes, everything is the same.”

Meanwhile, Matt Ryan and the Falcons’ offense have been productive recently, too. Ryan has thrown for 493 yards and three touchdowns over the last two weeks, and receivers Calvin Ridley and Julio Jones are each averaging around 85 yards per game in that time span.

The one area that could use some improvement is in the Falcons’ running game. While it has had to deal with injuries to running backs Devonta Freeman and Ito Smith, the Falcons have just four rushing touchdowns all season, and they’re averaging just 3.6 yards per play on the ground.

The Falcons are a long shot to make the playoffs, but they can be a spoiler.

The Falcons have three home games against the Bucs, Saints, and Panthers before traveling to San Francisco to play the 49ers on Dec. 15. Atlanta then ends its schedule with a home game against Jacksonville and a game on the road against the Bucs. The Panthers, Saints, and especially 49ers losing to the Falcons could shake up the playoff seedings, both in the NFC and wild card standings.

Here’s a look at the current NFC playoff seedings:

49ers (9-1)

Packers (8-2)

Saints (8-2)

Cowboys (6-4)

Seahawks (8-2)

Vikings (8-3)

In the hunt: Rams (6-4), Eagles (5-5), Panthers (5-5), Bears (4-6), Lions (3-6-1), Cardinals (3-7-1), Falcons (3-7)

The conference as a whole is a lot more top-heavy than in previous years, too:

NFC teams with 8+ wins thru Week 11 2019 - 5 2018 - 2 2017 - 3 2016 - 1 2015 - 2 2014 - 1 2013 - 2 2012 - 1 2011 - 2 2010 - 1 2009 - 2 2008 - 2 2007 - 2 2006 - 1 2005 - 1 2004 - 2 2003 - 1 2002 - 2 It's never been like this at the top in this era.

— Scott Kacsmar (@ScottKacsmar) November 18, 2019

The Falcons have eight teams in front of them in the wild card race, so them making the postseason doesn’t look too likely, but it’s not impossible. Their best bet would be to win the division, which doesn’t look all that easier either.

Here’s a look at the current NFC South standings:

Saints (8-2)

Panthers (5-5)

Falcons (3-7)

Tampa Bay (3-7)

Still, they can try to ruin things for their rivals, whether that’s keeping the Saints from a first-round bye or keeping the Panthers out of the playoffs altogether.

The one downside to Atlanta winning is it moves the team further down the draft board. The Falcons are still in contention for a top-10 pick, at least right now. But even if they win two more games, they’re likely to miss out on a can’t-miss prospect like Ohio State defensive end Chase Young.

That’s not on the players’ mind, though. The consecutive wins have the Falcons feeling good. Cornerback Desmond Trufant talked after the game about keeping the momentum going:

✌️ division wins and we're not done yet. pic.twitter.com/WXAaybByWK

— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) November 17, 2019

This season obviously hasn’t been ideal for the Falcons, but beating their remaining NFC South opponents — most importantly, the Saints and Panthers again — would be a decent end to a disappointing year. Even if they don’t make the playoffs, playing spoiler wouldn’t be a bad alternative.

[eagles]

As the Wentz Turns

Carson Wentz is having an amazing sophomore season. His team is winning (8-1). He leads the NFL in touchdown passes (23) and has a passer rating of 104.1. There are a lot of people who think he should be the league’s MVP. Not everyone loves Wentz. His two most infamous critics are Scott Kacsmar of […] from Iggles Blitz http://ift.tt/2lYCh7I via IFTTT

[badlands75]

Badlands75RT @ScottKacsmar: Playoff games with a TD catch Marvin Harrison - 1 Josh Allen - 1

Playoff games with a TD catch Marvin Harrison - 1 Josh Allen - 1

— Scott Kacsmar (@ScottKacsmar) January 4, 2020

from Twitter https://twitter.com/Badlands75 January 04, 2020 at 04:54PM via IFTTT

[askandanswerbot]

can you live without internet?

— five. (@beyond_ktown) Mon Dec 31 11:08:45 +0000 2018

Nope, got one in TB, but almost.

— Scott Kacsmar (@FO_ScottKacsmar) Mon Dec 31 11:11:59 +0000 2018

[buddyrabrahams]

Twitter reacts as James Conner shines in place of Le’Veon Bell

If Le’Veon Bell was hoping a mediocre offensive performance in Week 1 might convince the Pittsburgh Steelers to pay up for his services and end his holdout, he’s coming away sorely disappointed.

The Steelers jumped to a 21-7 lead on the Cleveland Browns in the third quarter of Sunday’s season opener, and the run game was a huge part of it. Even though Bell wasn’t on the field, backup James Conner was outstanding in his place, getting 90 yards on his first 11 carries and scoring two touchdowns. Add three catches for 32 yards and Conner was arguably Pittsburgh’s standout player.

James Conner adds a 22-yard touchdown run, and I'm thinking Le'Veon Bell may be checking Travelocity.

— Dan Graziano (@DanGrazianoESPN) September 9, 2018

In fact, Conner outperformed Bell’s 2017 performance against Cleveland.

Conner has more yards than Bell had Week 1 at Cleveland last year. More rushing, more receiving.

— Scott Kacsmar (@FO_ScottKacsmar) September 9, 2018

Others felt that Conner’s performance was proof that the Steelers’ offensive line was the real key to the run game and made both Bell and Conner look good.

I’m not saying Leveon Bell is being exposed but James Conner is running through wide open holes created by the offensive line, is averaging 6 yards a carry and has 80 total yards in the first half

— Justin Fenton (@justin_fenton) September 9, 2018

One particular thing that many enjoyed? The Steelers’ offensive line, several members of which were openly critical of Bell during the week, seemed to be playing up their celebrations with each of Conner’s rushing touchdowns.

Pittsburgh’s o-line’s euphoric over the top reactions to James Conner TDs are high comedy.

— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) September 9, 2018

James Conner celebrating as hard as he can with the O-Line was a brilliant little troll to Lev Bell #Respect

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) September 9, 2018

A penny for Bell’s thoughts right now. Conner certainly looks the part, even if the quality of opponent has to be taken into account.

from Larry Brown Sports https://ift.tt/2NYwZSZ

[nflfanpointii]

Demario Davis could be the missing linebacker link the Saints have longed for

When you think about the linebacker position for the Saints, there’s a lot to love about the Demario Davis addition.

Demario Davis enters the fold after a long stint with the Jets. What are the areas he excelled most at last season, and where would the Saints get the biggest return from him?

Scott Kacsmar: Davis is coming off a career year where he was very active with the Jets. Not only did he have 83 stops (second in the league), but he had 19 hurries and 5.0 sacks. That’s about the same pass-rushing production that the Saints got from Craig Robertson, A.J. Klein, and Manti Te’o combined (19.5 hurries and 4.0 sacks). Davis also had excellent coverage metrics, though that’s not consistent at all with previous seasons of his career. So it’s tough to tell if he was just going all out for one last shot at a big contract before he turns 30, but hopefully playing for a Super Bowl contender will continue to bring out his best in New Orleans.

Davis was rewarded by the Saints with a 3-year, $24 million contract that came with $18 million guaranteed. When it comes to Dennis Allen’s defense, Davis has been used in nickel sets along with being primarily a weak side linebacker. Davis has versatility to be the man in the middle or play strong side, but his speed and coverage skills are where the Saints will benefit from him the most.

With injuries to Alex Anzalone, A.J. Klein, and Nathan Stupar last season, the Saints had to primarily rely on Manti Te’o and Craig Robertson, who filled in nicely, all things considered. This season favors a starting rotation of A.J. Klein (strong side), Manti Te’o (middle), and Davis (weak side) with Stupar, Robertson, and Anzalone likely as the backups.

The hope is that Davis, who turns 30 in January, pencils in as a missing link that Dennis Allen and the Saints defense have been looking for for quite some time. Perhaps his durability helped New Orleans make Davis a key addition, as he has not missed a single game since entering the league in 2012. Being led by second-year linebacker coach Mike Nolan, things are looking up for the Saints defense with Davis in the fold.

[delectablyholynerd-blog]

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free preview: The 52 things That You Want to know about Patriots vs. Eagles

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free The AFC's best team will square off with The NFC's best team On Sunday in Minneapolis, however, the 2 competitors couldn't be more different in terms of how they got there and what a title would suggest.

Before we enter the 52 things that you should know about the sport, Here's a fast look at just what the game would imply for the New England Patriots along with also the Philadelphia Eagles (the underdogs). Super Bowl 2018 Live Free

Super Bowl 2018 Live Stream

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free

The Eagles haven't won a Super Bowl in franchise history. Their Quarterback Sunday will not be Carson Wentz. It is going to be Nick Foles. If the Eagles win, they'll combine the Giants as a member of just two teams which was able to shoot the powerful empire at the Super Bowl.

The Patriots are faking for their second straight championship and their sixth Super Bowl ring since the 2001 season. They're trotting out four-time Super Bowl MVP Tom Brady at quarterback. If the Patriots win, they will simply add to their legacy as the greatest dynasty in the history of this sport.

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free Discover exactly what SportsLine's advanced Computer model has to say about the last score of Super Bowl LII.

Super Bowl 2018 Live Stream

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free

So, There's a Whole Lot in stake. So, without further ado, here are 52 Things to understand about Super Bowl 52 for you prepared for your sport.

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free 1. The Patriots and Eagles will confront each Other in a rematch of Super Bowl XXXIX in February 2005, when the Patriots won 24-21. That victory declared that the Patriots' third Super Bowl victory in four years and their second straight championship. They wouldn't win another one prior to the 2014 season. They can once again conquer the Eagles for their third Super Bowl in four years and their second straight championship.

2. The match will probably be played in U.S. Bank Stadium at Minnesota. It's the second Super Bowl in Minnesota and also the first one since Super Bowl XXVI in January 1992.

3. The temperature at Minneapolis is forecast to be approximately 6 Degrees Sunday, but the game will probably be performed indoors.

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free 4. The match will be played Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast by NBC. Al Michaels (play-by-play), Cris Collinsworth (analyst) and Michele Tafoya (sideline reporter) will probably be about the phone. WATCH NOW LIVE LINK

5. Justin Timberlake will perform at halftime despite the wardrobe malfunction between him and Janet Jackson back in 2004.

6. Pink will sing the national anthem prior to kickoff. The over/under has been set at 120 seconds.

7. This is Brady's eighth Super Bowl appearance. Nobody has played more.

8. Brady has as many Super Bowl appearances (eight) as the entire Eagles roster, per NFL Research.

9. If the Patriots win, Brady will possess the most Super Bowl wins (six). He has already won the most Super Bowls from quarterbacks and he's tied into Hall of Fame linebacker and defensive end Charles Haley with five Super Bowl wins.

10. If the Patriots win, then they will win their sixth Super Bowl since 2001 and their second straight championship.

11. If the Eagles win, then they're going to win their first Super Bowl in franchise history.

12. If the Eagles win, " they're the fourth team in NFL history To win the Super Bowl following a losing record in the previous season (7-9 in 2016)," based on NFL Research.

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free 13. Of the Patriots' eight Super Bowl Opponents in the Bill Belichick era, that the Eagles are the only team using a top-five scoring offense and defense, based on NFL Research.

14. The Patriots will wear white uniforms. They are 3-0 in the Super Bowl when wearing white under Belichick. Based on ESPN's Adam Schefter and Evan Kaplan, 12 of the last 13 Super Bowl winners are dressed in white.

15. The Eagles will wear. They moved 10-1 in green this season with Their only loss coming out of a meaningless Week 17 game, based on BleedingGreenNation.com.

Super Bowl 2018 Live Stream

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free

16. Quarterbacks who led the league in passing yards have gone 0-5 in Super Bowls, based on NFL Research. Brady, who led the NFL in passing yards this season, can fit the fad.

17. Brady is about his fifth Super Bowl MVP award. The single player To steal MVP from Brady throughout a Patriots Super Bowl win? Deion Branch (James White should've won it last year, for its album). For the whole list of Super Bowl MVPs, click here.

18. Rob Gronkowski, Who missed last year's Super Bowl with a back Injury, is in the concussion protocol, so his status is up in the atmosphere. If the Super Bowl had been played this past Sunday, he wouldn't have suited up.

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free 19. Brady is still dealing with a ideal Hand injury that he suffered in the lead-up to the AFC Championship Game. Based on NFL.com's Ian Rapoport, Brady had 12 stitches removed last week. Nobody should be too worried considering Brady lit up the Jaguars For 290 yards, two touchdowns and also a 108.4 passer rating with those 12 stitches still in his hands. Brady will be still be Brady on Sunday.

20. Nick Foles started three games in the regular season. In Accordance with NFL Research, just 2 quarterbacks (Doug Williams and Jeff Hostetler) started fewer games in the regular season before starting in a Super Bowl. Williams and Hostetler both won.

21. The average margin of victory to the Patriots in their five Super Bowls wins under Belichick is 3.8 points.

22. The average margin of defeat for the Patriots in the Super Bowl losses under Belichick is 3.5 points.

23. If the Patriots win, they'll tie the Steelers for the most Super Bowl wins (6). If they lose, they will tie the Broncos for the most Super Bowl losses (5). Charge with this 1 goes to Reddit user "surfboard-lover. "

24. The Eagles rank fifth in overall DVOA. The Patriots rank sixth in overall DVOA.

25. The Patriots ranked first in yards gained. The Eagles ranked seventh in yards gained.

26. The Patriots ranked second in points scored (458). The Eagles ranked third in points scored (457).

27. The Patriots ranked 29th in yards allowed. The Eagles ranked fourth in yards allowed.

28. The Patriots ranked fifth in points allowed (296). The Eagles ranked fourth in points allowed (295).

29. The Patriots and Eagles boast the specific same point differential (+162), that was a league.

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free 30. If the Eagles win, Chris Long says He will skip the visit to the White House again. He skipped it a year ago after the Patriots beat the Falcons because he doesn't support Donald Trump and his policies.

31. An asteroid may pass by Earth on precisely the same day as the Super Bowl. It won't hit on our world.

32. A Tecmo Bowl simulation has got the Eagles winning. For a complete recap, click here.

33. Eagles proprietor Jeffrey Lurie once tried to Purchase the New England Patriots.

34. Bettors love the Eagles so far. According to vice President of humor and sports such as MGM Resorts Jay Rood, his sportsbook has been heavy on Eagles action.

"We Were becoming Eagles action all the way round. So we chose to Reunite and test the waters," Rood said, per SportsLine. "I was a little surprised to see that the people moving against the Patriots this challenging, but I really could understand why they see some value"

35. As of Monday, that the Patriots have been 4.5-point favorites along with also the over/under has been set at 48 points, based on SportsLine.

36. The Eagles are underdogs in every single one of those playoff games thus the creepy dog masks.

The Patriots, meanwhile, are preferred in every game this season -- thus their own appropriate masks.

37. Inside our "Madden NFL 18" simulation of this sport, the Patriots Won an overtime thriller that was really too difficult to trust. Take a look at our recap, because it really was the craziest game in NFL history involving:

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free A double-digit fourth-quarter comeback in the Eagles A 99-yard go-ahead push by Brady using a minute to move. A blocked extra point reunite to tie the game. A walk-off touchdown in overtime.

38. The sport will be refereed by Gene Steratore. The Eagles are 10-3 (0.769) in games refereed by Steratore and the Patriots are 12-5 (0.706). If his name sounds familiar, it's because he was the referee who made the decision to use a index card to measure a key first down at a December playoff-like game between the Raiders and Cowboys.

39. This is from Scott Kacsmar over at FiveThirtyEight:

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free Since 2001, the year which Tom Brady took Over as starting quarterback, the Patriots are 15-0 in the playoffs against a new competitor and 12-9 at a rematch from the standard season.

The Eagles didn't play the Patriots in the regular season. Anyhow, you should read the entire story linked above.

40. Brady is 40 years old. He could become the oldest quarterback to Acquire a Super Bowl, breaking Peyton Manning's record that he set when he won a Super Bowl in age 39 two years back. Belichick, meanwhile, is 65. Collectively, Brady and Belichick are producing history.

41. The Patriots haven't scored in the first quarter of a Super Bowl under Belichick. No, Belichick does not want to speak about it.

42. Brady sports the league's best Passer score under pressure (95.5), however, the Eagles make pressure in an absurdly large speed (41.9 percent), based on Professional Football Focus.

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free 43. Patriots running back Dion Lewis Posted The highest elusive score of running backs in the regular season, compelling 49 missed tackles, based on PFF. The Eagles' defense allowed 3.8 yards per carry from the regular season, which ranked sixth.

44. Patriots receiver Brandin Cooks averaged 16.6 yards per catch From the regular season, the second-highest typical among receivers with at least 60 catches.

45. Gronk caught just 69 passes from the regular season, which is nice because it's his favourite number.

46. Based on FiveThirtyEight, the Patriots had the easiest path to the Super Bowl in modern NFL history.

47. After Brady won his first Super Bowl, Eagles defensive end Derek Barnett was 5 years old, as NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah pointed out.

48. The Eagles are the only NFC East team with no Super Bowl.

49. Eagles recipient Nelson Agholor Has the sixth-best WR score in soccer, based on PFF. WR test is a quarterback's passer rating on throws that target a specific receiver.

50. After averaging 4.1 catches, 43.9 yards and 0.1 touchdowns from the Regular season, Patriots recipient Danny Amendola is averaging nine catches, 98 yards and a touchdown in the playoffs.

51. Two former Patriots who won the Super Bowl last season reside on the Eagles roster: defensive end Chris Long and running back LeGarrette Blount. No, they're not still friends using their former teammates.

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free "Straight enemies," Blount said last week, per NJ.com. "Is not no longer friends? Is not no more friends? Is not no longer homies? None of this. We all know ... We all know what we're likely to perform. They know what they're most likely to perform. We have exactly the same goal in mind. There are not any hard feelings, it just is what it is."

52. Annually ago -- following the 2016 regular season -- Alshon Jeffery Was portion of this Bears. He promised that "we will win the Super Bowl next calendar year." He didn't specify precisely what he meant by "we." Jeffery went to sign with the Eagles. So, his prediction could still come true if the Eagles beat the Patriots.

Super Bowl 2018 Live Free However, as most of us understand by this time, that's just one huge if.

[usatrendingsports]

Tremendous Bowl 2018 preview: The 52 issues it’s best to learn about Eagles vs. Patriots

The 52nd Tremendous Bowl is simply a day away an you may have questions: What is the take care of the Eagles and people canine masks? The place did the Patriots and Eagles rank in DVOA this season? What would a Lombardi Trophy imply for every of those groups? Earlier than we get to the solutions, a recap of how we bought right here.

There are not any Tremendous Bowl championships to rejoice within the Eagles’ historical past. Their beginning quarterback, Carson Wentz, was making a powerful case to be regular-season MVP earlier than he was sidelined as a result of damage, so backup Nick Foles will begin on Sunday. If the Eagles can win, they will be part of the Giants (who did it twice) as the one groups to beat the mighty Belichick-Brady period Patriots within the Tremendous Bowl.

For the Patriots, a Tremendous Bowl look is outdated hat. They’re vying for his or her second straight championship and their sixth Tremendous Bowl ring because the 2001 season. They’re trotting out four-time Tremendous Bowl MVP Tom Brady at quarterback. If the Patriots win, they will solely add to their legacy as the best dynasty within the historical past of the game.  

So which aspect of the Tremendous Bowl line do it’s essential be throughout? Go to SportsLine now to see which aspect of Patriots-Eagles it’s essential leap on, plus what X-factor determines the end result, all from a Vegas legend who’s 9-Three on Eagles’ video games. 

So, there is a ton at stake. So, with out additional ado, listed below are 52 issues to learn about Tremendous Bowl 52 to get you primed for the sport.

1. The Patriots and Eagles will face one another in a rematch of Tremendous Bowl XXXIX in February 2005, when the Patriots gained 24-21. That win marked the Patriots’ third Tremendous Bowl victory in 4 years and their second straight championship. They would not win one other one till the 2014 season. Now, they will as soon as once more beat the Eagles for his or her third Tremendous Bowl in 4 years and their second straight championship.

2. The sport will likely be performed at U.S. Financial institution Stadium in Minnesota. It is the second Tremendous Bowl in Minnesota and the primary one since Tremendous Bowl XXVI in January 1992.

Three. The temperature in Minneapolis is forecast to be round 6 levels Sunday, however the sport will likely be performed indoors.

four. The sport will likely be performed on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET and will likely be broadcast by NBC. Al Michaels (play-by-play), Cris Collinsworth (analyst) and Michele Tafoya (sideline reporter) will likely be on the decision.

5. Justin Timberlake will carry out at halftime regardless of the wardrobe malfunction involving him and Janet Jackson again in 2004.

6. Pink will sing the nationwide anthem earlier than kickoff. The over/underneath has been set at 120 seconds.

7. That is Brady’s eighth Tremendous Bowl look. No person has ever performed in additional.

eight. Brady has as many Super Bowl appearances (eight) as the entire Eagles roster, per NFL Analysis.

9. If the Patriots win, Brady may have essentially the most Tremendous Bowl wins (six). He has already gained essentially the most Tremendous Bowls out of all quarterbacks and he is tied with Corridor of Fame linebacker and defensive finish Charles Haley with 5 Tremendous Bowl wins.

10. If the Patriots win, they will win their sixth Tremendous Bowl since 2001 and their second straight championship. 

11. If the Eagles win, they will win their first Tremendous Bowl in franchise historical past.

12. If the Eagles win, “they will be the fourth team in NFL history to win the Super Bowl after having a losing record in the previous season (7-9 in 2016),” in response to NFL Analysis.

13. Of the Patriots’ eight Tremendous Bowl opponents within the Invoice Belichick period, the Eagles are the only team with a top-five scoring offense and defense, in response to NFL Analysis.

14. The Patriots will put on white uniforms. They’re Three-Zero within the Tremendous Bowl when sporting white underneath Belichick. In keeping with ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Evan Kaplan, 12 of the last 13 Super Bowl winners have been dressed in white.

15. The Eagles will put on inexperienced. They went 10-1 in inexperienced this season with their solely loss coming in a meaningless Week 17 sport, in response to BleedingGreenNation.com.

16. Quarterbacks who led the league in passing yards have gone 0-5 in Super Bowls, in response to NFL Analysis. Brady, who led the NFL in passing yards this season, can buck the development.

17. Brady goes for his fifth Tremendous Bowl MVP award. The one participant to steal MVP away from Brady throughout a Patriots Tremendous Bowl win? Deion Department (James White ought to’ve gained it final yr, for the file). For the complete record of Tremendous Bowl MVPs, click on proper right here.

18. Rob Gronkowski, who missed final yr’s Tremendous Bowl with a again damage, has been cleared from the concussion protocol, so he’ll resume his regular position within the massive sport. If the Tremendous Bowl had been performed this previous Sunday, he would not have suited up.

19. Brady continues to be coping with a proper hand damage that he suffered within the lead-up to the AFC Championship Sport. In keeping with NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, Brady had 12 stitches eliminated final week. No person needs to be overly involved contemplating Brady lit up the Jaguars for 290 yards, two touchdowns and a 108.four passer ranking with these 12 stitches nonetheless in his hand. Brady will likely be nonetheless be Brady on Sunday.

20. Nick Foles began three video games within the common season. In keeping with NFL Analysis, only two quarterbacks (Doug Williams and Jeff Hostetler) started fewer games in the regular season before starting in a Super Bowl. Williams and Hostetler each gained.

21. The typical margin of victory for the Patriots of their 5 Tremendous Bowls wins underneath Belichick is Three.eight factors.

22. The typical margin of defeat for the Patriots of their two Tremendous Bowl losses underneath Belichick is Three.5 factors.

23. If the Patriots win, they will tie the Steelers for essentially the most Tremendous Bowl wins (6). In the event that they lose, they will tie the Broncos for essentially the most Tremendous Bowl losses (5). Credit score for that one goes to Reddit person “surfboard-lover.”

24. The Eagles rank fifth in general DVOA. The Patriots rank sixth in general DVOA.

25. The Patriots ranked first in yards gained. The Eagles ranked seventh in yards gained.

26. The Patriots ranked second in factors scored (458). The Eagles ranked third in factors scored (457).

27. The Patriots ranked 29th in yards allowed. The Eagles ranked fourth in yards allowed.

28. The Patriots ranked fifth in factors allowed (296). The Eagles ranked fourth in factors allowed (295).

29. The Patriots and Eagles boast the very same level differential (+162), which was a league excessive.

30. If the Eagles win, Chris Lengthy says he’ll skip the go to to the White Home once more. He skipped it a yr in the past after the Patriots beat the Falcons as a result of he does not help Donald Trump and his insurance policies.

31. An asteroid would possibly go by Earth on the identical day because the Tremendous Bowl. No, it will not hit our planet.

In response to a number of questions, asteroid 2002 AJ129 will safely go Earth on Feb. four. At closest method, will probably be at a distance of two.6 million miles / four.2 million km — over 10 occasions the gap between Earth and the Moon. Extra: https://t.co/ZhYzOXRSfP pic.twitter.com/baJhxv2Dzj

— Asteroid Watch (@AsteroidWatch) January 19, 2018

32. A Tecmo Bowl simulation has the Eagles successful. For a full recap, click on proper right here.

33. Eagles proprietor Jeffrey Lurie as soon as tried to purchase the New England Patriots.

34. Bettors love the Eagles thus far. In keeping with vp of race and sports activities for MGM Resorts Jay Rood, his sportsbook has been heavy on Eagles motion.

“We have been getting Eagles motion all the way in which round. So we determined to go down and take a look at the waters,” Rood mentioned, per SportsLine. “I used to be a bit of stunned to see the general public going in opposition to the Patriots this tough, however I can perceive why they see some worth there.” 

35. As of Saturday, the Patriots are four.5-point favorites and the over/underneath has been set at 48.5 factors, in response to SportsLine.

36. The Eagles have been underdogs in each single one in every of their playoff video games — therefore the creepy canine masks.

The Patriots, in the meantime, have been favored in each sport this season — therefore their very own applicable masks.

37. In our “Madden NFL 18” simulation of the sport, the Patriots gained an additional time thriller that was actually too laborious to consider. Try our recap right here, as a result of it actually was the craziest sport in NFL historical past involving:

A double-digit fourth-quarter comeback by the Eagles

A 99-yard go-ahead drive by Brady with a minute to go.

A blocked further level return to tie the sport.

A walk-off landing in additional time.

38. The sport will likely be refereed by Gene Steratore. The Eagles are 10-Three (Zero.769) in video games refereed by Steratore and the Patriots are 12-5 (Zero.706). If his title sounds acquainted, it is as a result of he was the referee who made the choice to make use of an index card to measure a vital first down in a December playoff-like sport between the Raiders and Cowboys.

39. That is from Scott Kacsmar over at FiveThirtyEight:

Since 2001, the yr that Tom Brady took over as beginning quarterback, the Patriots are 15-Zero within the playoffs in opposition to a brand new opponent and 12-9 in a rematch from the common season.

The Eagles didn’t play the Patriots within the common season. Anyway, it’s best to learn your entire story linked above.

40. Brady is 40 years outdated. He can change into the oldest quarterback to win a Tremendous Bowl, breaking Peyton Manning’s file that he set when he gained a Tremendous Bowl on the age of 39 two years in the past. Belichick, in the meantime, is 65. Collectively, Brady and Belichick are making historical past.

Tom Brady (40) and Invoice Belichick (65) are a mixed 105 years outdated, which would be the oldest age for any beginning quarterback-head coach mixture in Tremendous Bowl historical past. pic.twitter.com/sgx1W55zMm

— ESPN Stats & Information (@ESPNStatsInfo) January 26, 2018

41. The Patriots have not scored within the first quarter of a Tremendous Bowl underneath Belichick. No, Belichick doesn’t need to discuss it.

Belichick about not scoring within the first quarter of Tremendous Bowls: “We attempt to rating in each sport. I do know that is most likely laborious to grasp.”

— Phil Perry (@PhilAPerry) January 24, 2018

42. Brady sports activities the league’s finest passer ranking underneath strain (95.5), however the Eagles generate strain at an absurdly excessive fee (41.9 p.c), in response to Professional Soccer Focus.

43. Patriots working again Dion Lewis posted the best elusive ranking amongst working backs within the common season, forcing 49 missed tackles, in response to PFF. The Eagles’ protection allowed Three.eight yards per carry within the common season, which ranked sixth.

44. Patriots receiver Brandin Cooks averaged 16.6 yards per catch within the common season, the second-highest common amongst receivers with at the very least 60 catches.

45. Gronk caught precisely 69 passes within the common season, which is good as a result of it is his favourite quantity.

46. In keeping with FiveThirtyEight, the Patriots had the best path to the Tremendous Bowl in trendy NFL historical past.

47. When Brady gained his first Tremendous Bowl, Eagles defensive finish Derek Barnett was 5 years outdated, as NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah pointed out.

48. The Eagles are the one NFC East group with out a Tremendous Bowl. 

49. Eagles receiver Nelson Agholor has the sixth-best WR ranking in soccer, in response to PFF. WR ranking is a quarterback’s passer ranking on throws that focus on a particular receiver.

50. After averaging four.1 catches, 43.9 yards and Zero.1 touchdowns within the common season, Patriots receiver Danny Amendola is averaging 9 catches, 98 yards and one landing within the playoffs.

51. Two former Patriots who gained the Tremendous Bowl final season now reside on the Eagles roster: defensive finish Chris Lengthy and working again LeGarrette Blount. No, they don’t seem to be nonetheless pals with their former teammates.

“Straight enemies,” Blount mentioned final week, per NJ.com. “Ain’t no pals. Ain’t no pals. Ain’t no homies. None of that. We all know … We all know what we will do. They know what they’ll do. We each have the identical objective in thoughts. There are no laborious emotions, it simply is what it’s.”

52. A yr in the past — after the 2016 common season — Alshon Jeffery was a member of the Bears. He promised that “we’re going to win the Tremendous Bowl subsequent yr.” He did not specify what he meant by “we.” Jeffery went on to signal with the Eagles. So, his prediction can nonetheless come true if the Eagles beat the Patriots. 

However as everyone knows by now, that is one massive if.

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[junker-town]

Monday Morning Pleighbook: Josh Allen and the Bills proved just how unpredictable the NFL is

Calvin Ridley has arrived, Patrick Mahomes is still throwing TDs, and Earl Thomas is investing in himself in Week 3’s Monday Morning Pleighbook.

There are things that we know about the NFL, whether that’s about specific team strengths, the schedule in a given week, the fact that Brock Osweiler is 6’8 or that Ryan Fitzpatrick went to Harvard.

But on Sundays when that first kickoff is booted, we really just don’t know what’s going to happen. The Bills’ 27-6 upset of the Vikings was a prime example of this.

The Bills were the slam dunk Dumpster Fire Meme Team to start the season. Nathan Peterman opened as their starting quarterback — you know, the same guy who threw five interceptions in 14 attempts last season after he replaced Tyrod Taylor. He didn’t get to the end of the Bills’ 47-3 loss to the Ravens before getting replaced by rookie Josh Allen.

Allen started their Week 2 game against the Chargers, which featured a first half so bad it contributed to Vontae Davis walking out of the stadium and retiring. This has nothing to do with what goes on out on the field, but even the Bills’ social media account placed the Vikings in Wisconsin instead of Minnesota on a graphic. Everything was bad!

Conditions were right for a beatdown. The Vikings have been considered a favorite in the NFC after reaching the conference championship game last season and acquiring Kirk Cousins in the offseason. Everybody on this website’s panel of picks selected the Vikings to win (lol sorry guys), because why wouldn’t they? The Vikings seem to be one of the more complete teams the NFL has to offer on paper.

Yet the Bills came out and scored on their very first drive — a Josh Allen scramble and dive into the end zone.

Later, he hurdled a guy:

Yep. @JoshAllenQB is out here hurdling defenders : CBS #GoBills pic.twitter.com/648TG3QxFT

— NFL (@NFL) September 23, 2018

None of this made sense. The Bills weren’t supposed to be up 17-0 (they were 17-point underdogs!). Allen’s not supposed to be making plays. The Vikings aren’t supposed to look like the Bills from Week 1 and 2.

Overall, Allen had a solid game. He went 15-of-22 passing for 196 yards and one touchdown to go along with his 39 yards and two rushing touchdowns on the ground. However, I’m not going to sit here and say that the Bills and Allen might not actually be bad. There’s a great chance they still have a horrid season, and wind up with the No. 1 overall pick.

That’s why Sunday’s game was the perfect reminder that we just don’t know what could happen in those 60 or more minutes after a kickoff. It’s what keeps us coming back to the NFL week in and week out, and why we’re already ready to get Week 4 going.

For now, let’s check out what else happened in Week 3. Well, at least until you get to the bottom of this page. Thanks.

Calvin Ridley’s coming out party

Last time people were this excited for a Calvin, he had just gotten a job at WacArnold’s. On Sunday, Ridley popped off with seven catches for 146 yards and three touchdowns, his longest being this 75-yarder:

BALLER ALERT CALVIN RIDLEY IS GOING OFF. pic.twitter.com/UQvg5f1n8M

— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) September 23, 2018

That bomb was part of Matt Ryan having one of the best games ever in a losing effort:

Matt Ryan just put up the highest passer rating (148.1) in a loss in NFL history (min. 25 attempts).

— Scott Kacsmar (@FO_ScottKacsmar) September 23, 2018

Ridley was somewhat of a surprise selection by the Falcons, but still one that made sense. The Falcons have drafted a good wide receiver from Alabama before (the Julio Jones guy), and offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian was familiar with him from his time at Alabama. Sunday validated that selection, especially since he cooked the Falcons’ biggest rival.

The Falcons lost a competitive, close game. But if there’s something positive to take away from it, it’s that the Falcons are still scoring in the red zone (previously an impossible task), and Ridley looks like WR1b next to WR1a Julio Jones. Let’s keep it that way.

Patrick Mahomes is still slangin’ touchdowns

Fatrick — as he’s apparently called, among other things — now has 13 touchdown passes on the season. It’s the most touchdowns by a player in the first three weeks to open a season in NFL history. Future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning previously held the record, with 12.

Manning wasn’t making plays like this, though:

You're not going to stop @patrickmahomes5 and the @chiefs! : FOX #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/bXIe30xL0j

— NFL (@NFL) September 23, 2018

Almost as impressive as the 13 touchdowns, is the fact that Mahomes hasn’t thrown an interception yet. Whether it’s been a quick three-play drive, or getting yardage in bits, Mahomes has shown there’s nothing he can’t handle.

There’s a strong likelihood he has a game or two that brings him back down to Earth, but for now it’s fun to watch him just picking apart NFL defenses.

People have done amazing things at just 23 years of age. John Singleton directed “Boyz ‘N the Hood.” English poet Jane Taylor wrote “Twinkle, twinkle, little star.” Orson Welles produced and performed his “War of the Worlds” radio broadcast. My friends and I got third place in trivia at our favorite Mexican restaurant.

But none of us threw for 13 touchdown passes in the first three games of an NFL season.

Earl Thomas doesn’t need to practice

Thomas missed all of training camp and the preseason trying to get a new contract, which he did not get. There’s still been rumors, and he apparently even had Cowboys coaches coming up to him and asking if he was ready for “the trade” on Monday according to The Athletic’s Michael-Shawn Dugar.

No matter where Earl Thomas is playing next week, or for the rest of the 2018 season, he showed on Sunday he’s still got the sauce by intercepting a pair of tipped passes.

The first one he barely got from his ankles, barely keeping the ball off the ground:

.@Earl_Thomas... Are you kidding?! What a pick! : FOX #Seahawks pic.twitter.com/IOMjSa91Au

— NFL (@NFL) September 23, 2018

The second one is the reason why he’s referred to as a ball hawk:

ANOTHER pick by @earl_thomas! : FOX #Seahawks pic.twitter.com/TGPkNhwApD

— NFL (@NFL) September 23, 2018

Even though he’s on the field, he’s still going to be looking out for himself first. This is a power move:

Earl Thomas on missing practice: "I need to make sure my body is 100. I'm investing in myself. If they were investing in me, I would be out there practicing. But I feel like if any thing, I don't give a damn if it's small, I got a headache, I'm not practicing."

— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) September 24, 2018

“I’m investing in myself.”

We should all strive to be like Earl Thomas. Take some time to invest in yourself today. I’ll be doing so by splurging on a nicer than usual lunch.

Khalil Mack is one of the most efficient players since Khalil Mack

Mack, the pass rusher Jon Gruden can’t find, has been tearing it up through the first three games of the season. On Sunday, he got another forced fumble, his third in as many games. The guy is just a bully on the field:

Mack gets sacks @52Mack_ pic.twitter.com/SpO3bcwzmm

— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) September 23, 2018

Watching someone try to block Khalil Mack is like watching Kevin from The Office spill his chili. You can’t do anything other than feel bad for the poor guy when he gets worked like that.

As you might imagine, forcing three fumbles in three straight games is pretty hard to do! According to ESPN Stats & Info, the last person to do that was Khalil Mack, who did it during Weeks 12-14 in 2016.

You know you’re a good player when you are the standard.

Taysom Hill is still playing football

If I told you that Taysom Hill was the Saints’ third-string quarterback, you might imagine that he doesn’t see the field. And yet, he sees it all the time.

I mean, clearly he’s only going to be taking quarterback snaps if the Saints get creative with a formation or play, or something happens to both Drew Brees and Teddy Bridgewater. But it’s still funny that this guy who could probably still somehow find eligibility at BYU is out here doing everything else on the field.

Here he is picking up a big third-and-2 in the fourth quarter:

Taysom Hill picks up a huge chunk of yardage on 3rd down! #NOvsATL pic.twitter.com/0ObdduMc6q

— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) September 23, 2018

Hill was also playing special teams snaps as he was last season, getting his blocks in, and putting pressure on the Falcons. He’s not doing a ton, but it’s enough to make an impact, and every football team has at least one guy like that.

YEAHHHHHHHHH

YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!

The Lions have Lil Jon doing the halftime show tonight. Here’s 20 seconds of him screaming “YEAH!” pic.twitter.com/LOsXrSQU3a

— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) September 24, 2018

YEAH! YEAH!

YEAH! YEAH! YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!

YEAH!

TIGER WOODS!!!

TIGER WOODS!!!

— Patrick Mahomes II (@PatrickMahomes5) September 23, 2018

OTHER THINGS FROM WEEK 3

Adam Schefter reported that the Steelers are willing to listen to trade offers for Le’Veon Bell

We had our first big, terrible injury. Jimmy Garoppolo was the victim.

Phillip Lindsay got ejected for some silly punches.

Clay Matthews is not allowed to make tackles anymore, or else it’s a penalty. Thems the rules.

Jet sweep hot potatoes are the NFL’s version of the hottest new meme.

[flauntpage]

Sorting Out Carson Wentz’s Deep Ball Struggles

Carson Wentz is the man. Let’s just get that out of the way.

Three games into his second season, he’s continued to exhibit the raw talent and leadership traits that convinced the Eagles to trade up to get him in the 2016 draft. For the most part, he’s improved on the mechanical flaws from his rookie season and continues to dazzle in his ability to keep plays alive and make a big splash when his team needs it the most.

At this point, there’s little doubt that Wentz is a franchise quarterback. The question becomes, what kind of franchise quarterback can he be? Is he one you win with, or one you win because of?

To move towards the latter, there are areas of his game that he needs to improve on, namely the deep ball. There are certainly other flaws, but finding the ability to consistently connect with his receivers downfield is the one thing keeping him from being great.

Wentz’s deep ball woes have been well documented this season, but just how bad has it been? That depends on who you ask.

If you’re just looking for something to fit your narrative, you can completely ignore all context to the situation, like Football Outsider’s Scott Kacsmar (noted Wentz hater and leader of the Air Yards faction).

Wentz is 3-of-13 on passes thrown 20+ yards, including that fluke completion to Ertz yesterday.

— Scott Kacsmar (@FO_ScottKacsmar) September 18, 2017

This tweet was sent prior to week three, so the statistic itself is no longer relevant, but, then again, it was never relevant in the first place. Not mentioned here is fact that of those 13 attempts, one was a Hail-Mary, two more were Torrey Smith drops, and two others were YOLO balls that Wentz left up for Alshon Jeffery to go grab.

The other important factor to consider is the specifics of each play. No two deep balls are the same. Some are launched from a clean pocket and a perfect throwing platform. Others are quite the opposite.

To bring a more nuanced perspective to Wentz’s downfield accuracy, I broke down every one of his deep balls from the first three weeks and classified them as either on or off-platform throws.

Note: For better perspective, I didn’t include designed intermediate routes and throws. I only included legitimate vertical shots (13 by my count).

Off-Platform or Impacted Throws

Of the 12 downfield passes (excluding the Hail-Mary in Kansas City), eight of them fell into this category, which is slightly encouraging given the significant increase in difficulty that these throws carry with them.

More specifically, there were two passes where Wentz was either hit or was unable to follow through due to defensive pressure. One came on the throw to Smith, which drew the questionable pass interference call:

The other was on a YOLO ball to Jeffery that Wentz actually put in a good spot:

Given the circumstances, it’s difficult to take too much from these two plays because it’s hard to blame a quarterback who is hit while throwing.

Six other throws were either made under duress or came while Wentz was magically evading pressure like Chip Kelly dodging human interaction. This is particularly important to note because very rarely, in these situations, is a quarterback able to throw from a prototypical upright position and get the same trajectory on the ball.

(This is also one of many reasons why I think quarterback mechanics are vastly overvalued by most Twitter quarterback “gurus.” How many times does a quarterback get to throw from a perfect platform in an actual game? Less than we think, but I digress.)

One of the six throws was the touchdown to Nelson Agholor and another drew a pass interference call on Jeffery, so they’re not all bad, but let’s take a look at some of the others.

On this one, versus Kansas City, Wentz rolls out, does a good job ducking under the pressure of the edge defender, and lofts the ball to Smith. The ball hit the receiver in the hands, but, in fairness, this was not a very good throw:

Again, he’s under duress, so I don’t want to kill him too much here, but the fact is that Smith had to make a pretty big adjustment and deal with arguable pass interference because of the ball placement. A well-placed ball leading Smith down the sideline could’ve been a touchdown.

In the next one, Wentz again moves outside the pocket and launches the ball like a sixth grader at recess, but gets nowhere close to Jeffery:

This is a really difficult throw. All of Wentz’s momentum is carrying him to his left and he has to try to push the ball back across the field to his right. However, an argument can also be made that Wentz had more time to settle his feet and throw a better ball. Maybe he made the throw harder than he needed to. Then again, that’s easy to say when I’m not the one about to get destroyed by a 300-pound defensive lineman.

The other four off-platform throws were all similar to the two above. In reviewing them, I came across another theme and potential weakness in Wentz’s game that I thought showed itself a bit in 2016 as well: finishing broken plays.

In fairness, this criticism is a little “nitpicky.” After all, the only reason Wentz even has the opportunity to struggle in these situations is because he’s a magician in the pocket. Not many other quarterbacks can do what he does.

In fact, the only downside to this weakness is the opportunity cost of not making a bigger play. With that said, the ability to make those plays is a real differentiator for a quarterback. Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson are known for consistently capitalizing on these sequences. Neither of them would be considered as good as they are without their ability to dunk on these plays.

Wentz doesn’t have to strike on these plays with the same consistency as Rodgers or Wilson to be a good quarterback, but improving in this area could really elevate his game to the next level.

Platform Throws

These four throws were generally more concerning than the other, more difficult, throws discussed. On these, Wentz had decent protection and a good opportunity to set his base and drive the ball to the receiver. This is where mechanics can come into play.

On this first play, versus Washington, Wentz is throwing from a crowded pocket. I actually struggled classifying this one because it looked like he wasn’t able to follow through on his throw. If you look closely, however, there does appear to be room to follow through. Wentz, for whatever reason, didn’t do it:

Not driving his hip through the throw was something he struggled with last season that he needs to continue to be more consistent with.

The next one, from Sunday’s game, is more concerning. Jeffery beat his man and streaked down the sideline while leaving a very nice five-yard space for Wentz to fit the ball into. The route was a quarterback’s dream.

Obviously, Wentz missed the throw, but when watching, pay particular attention to his lead foot as he makes the throw. He pushes it way too far outside towards the sideline and, in turn, so went the ball:

This mechanical error, while small, correlates to some of his struggles from his rookie season.

Is it the end of the world? No, absolutely not. In fact, overall, Wentz’s footwork and mechanics have been much improved this year. These things take time and repetition, but this may be something, similar to Donovan McNabb’s worm killing habit, that we have to deal with on occasion.

The other two throws were the underthrow and overthrow to Smith in the season opener versus Washington. From a mechanical standpoint, both of these plays were fine:

This seems more a matter of Wentz getting on the same page with his new receiver, which, hopefully, will come in time:

While Wentz’s inability to hit the deep ball has been a hot topic of late, I don’t think it’s cause for huge concern just yet. After all, deep shots are a low percentage play for all quarterbacks. When factoring out some of the more difficult, off-platform throws, we’re talking about a sample size of just four throws for a quarterback working with brand new receivers.

The importance of those vertical shots cannot be understated though, both for Wentz and the overall offense.

For Wentz, being able to hit those deep shots will take immense pressure off of him throughout the course of games. As the Giants demonstrated on Sunday, it’s very difficult for any offense to continually move the ball in small chunks. It’s unsustainable, keeps opponents within striking distance, and puts unnecessary pressure on the quarterback.

For the overall offense, striking on these big plays can open up a game and flip that pressure back onto the opposing offense. A good offense has to be able to work the short and intermediate areas of the field while mixing in an effective running game. Generally speaking, the Eagles have done a good job in this area, but adding a quick strike element to the offense can take it to the next level.

Sorting Out Carson Wentz’s Deep Ball Struggles published first on http://ift.tt/2pLTmlv

[badlands75]

Badlands75RT @FO_ScottKacsmar: 2018 Chiefs allowed the most points (421) ever by a team with more than 10 wins in NFL history.

2018 Chiefs allowed the most points (421) ever by a team with more than 10 wins in NFL history.

— Scott Kacsmar (@FO_ScottKacsmar) January 10, 2019

from Twitter https://twitter.com/Badlands75 January 10, 2019 at 10:15AM via IFTTT

[jersey135-blog]

For Colts, Protecting Andrew Luck Remains a Concern

The Indianapolis Colts can have all of the wholesale jerseys china offensive weapons in the world, but it won’t matter for their star quarterback Andrew Luck if they can’t actually keep him upright.

According to Football Outsiders Scott Kacsmar, Luck has led cheap jerseys the league in QB knockdowns over the past 3 seasons:

Follow Scott Kacsmar ✔ @FO_ScottKacsmar QB knockdowns (hits + sacks) 2012 leader - Andrew Luck (122) 2013 leader - Andrew Luck (115) 2014 leader - Andrew Luck (115) 3:56 AM - 19 May 2015 68 68 Retweets 49 49 likes If Saturday’s preseason loss to the Chicago Bears was any clear indication, he may be in-line for his 4th straight season as the NFL’s wholesale jerseys leader in QB knockdowns. An honor that Luck likely admittedly doesn’t want to receive again.

Even with veteran offseason addition Todd Herremans at starting guard and Jack Mewhort sliding over to starting right tackle in a re-constructed Colts offensive line, Luck was still hit entirely too much once again (via ProFootballTalk):

“Mewhort was beaten for a sack by Pernell McPhee on the second play of the game and then gave up another pressure to McPhee on the next snap. Herremans allowed pressure up the middle and Jared Allen hurried Luck after navigating his way around left tackle Anthony Castonzo. Luck wound up sacked once and hit twice, which isn’t what coach cheap jerseys from china Chuck Pagano wants to see.” For those keeping track at home, Luck was sacked and hit twice on his 1st five pass attempts. That’s not exactly a recipe for success during the upcoming season.

Protecting the health of the Colts franchise player in Luck is of the utmost importance going forward, as he’s clearly indispensable to the team.

Something that head coach Chuck cheap jerseys china Pagano is already stressing to his team:

“We’ve got to be able to protect the quarterback,” Pagano cheap nfl jerseys said via ESPN’s Mike Wells. “Pass [protection] at times was okay and at times has got to be better, got to get it shored up.” Rightfully so too, as the success of the Colts season could ultimately depend on it.

[hegelbon]

Analyzing Sports and You

Okay, I’m limiting this to a half hour because no one is going to pay for or read this, but I feel I need to concretize some ideas that I’ve had about advanced football analysis. Off the bat: advanced football analysis, the type for which we’ve seen Football Outsiders and Pro Football Focus become famous, is a noble enough endeavor. It is important that we stop seeing the games we love through the standard box score lenses we’re used to. Maybe it’s important because we want to be scouts or GMs someday; maybe it’s important just because we want to be better fans, knowing who deserves the credit and blame outside of normative stereotypes. Regardless of motive, it’s totally fine and in fact progressive and good to want better stats. It’s what baseball has been up to since Bill James decided to mimeograph a bunch of pamphlets in the garage, and it’s good and timely that football is catching up.

That said, I am not particularly impressed with the current iteration of advanced football analysis. I’d mince words, but after a war of words on twitter today, I doubt I’m anyone’s fav over at Football Outsiders, and generally my inability to market myself as a football fan makes me invisible on the gridiron freelance beat. So whatever, let’s just say what we mean: these sites do interesting work, but it’s interesting work that is outdated and flawed. I’d like to explain why I think this.

The outdated bit is arguably the less hot of these hot takes: I think advanced football analysis is slowly and unnecessarily working through the missteps and growing pains that sabermetric analysis did from, say, 1990 to now. Call it post-Moneyball the book and pre-Moneyball the movie. In that period, it was common to fetishize the three true outcomes above everything else, get furious at the valorization of any other skill attribute than patience, power, and pitch speed, and basically get real rebellious at the old Dad Figure of Joe Morgan.

In lots of ways, this period kicked ass, since it spawned Fire Joe Morgan and The Dugout, so I have almost no complaints. But a lot of the analysis, looked at now, is a bit dubious. We all have our columns where we champion Brandon Allen or Wily Mo Pena, arguing that they’re blocked by reductive/racist/boneheaded/traditionalist/etc managers and GMs who don’t know how to use them. We all had our GM heroes who could do no wrong, and the ideology of Billy Beane was – despite our clear expression that it was not – as close to a religion as the discourse had. Basically, sabermetrics hadn’t killed its heroes.

And then, as the 2010s began, something strange happened – we started questioning stuff fairly aggressively. Baseball Prospectus’ Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller (now both sadly no longer with BPro, but happily onto bigger things) and Fangraphs’ Eno Sarris and, heaven help me, Carson Cistulli were some of the most thoughtful pioneers here. They began to question whether our biases have helped us ignore players that were actually good; whether power and patience were actually the only skills that mattered or whether they were simply scarcities during a period where we cared about scarcity; and whether we really did have a good model of “player value” in Wins Above Replacement (or Wins Above Replacement Player, or Value Over Replacement Player, or rWins Above Replacement…you get the point). The step the baseball analytical community took, in other words, was to look at all the truths it had set up as sacred and question every single one.

It seems to me that the football analytics community ought to preemptively do the same thing. The specter of having an outdated draft claim akin to “Brandon Allen is better than Paul Goldschmidt” is scary enough to my mind that any analyst worth their salt would immediately doubt any sort of received thought they considered true. And yet, critiques (valid ones!) of management, drafting strategy, and racist pigeonholing of players in particular skill positions have lead analytical football writers to fall into the trap of proving others wrong instead of looking at what’s in front of them. This is what leads to hot takes about “the kind” of quarterback that can succeed, or breathless mockery of teams at the top of the draft or thereabouts who “reach” for a bad player. There’s a player every year who is a special player – Myles Jack this year, and partly Jalen Ramsey – and players who are overrated. Yes, this is about Carson Wentz.

But while I will happily let it be known that I am an Eagles fan obsessed with and convinced by Wentz, I also want to insist that this article isn’t really about him. No, it’s more about what Wentz represents, which is these analysts’ stubborn inability to study what they got wrong. And some folks do, don’t get me wrong – Ben Natan, John Barchard, Derek Klassen have all turned around on Wentz and thought about what they could have missed. And while Ramsey has hit undeniably, I’m sure there are those souls in Jags twitter doing the opposite kind of analysis on Jack, and in Rams twitter doing that analysis on Goff, etc, etc. The problem is that there are still loud voices that remain egotistically bent on justifying their pre-draft grades on players.

In baseball, this problem resolves itself – you can believe in a prospect all you want, but if they can’t make it past AA, welp. But in football, the range of results on a player are much wider and much more subject to personal interpretation. This is all well and good for casual conversation, of course – you can talk about if Joe Flacco is elite with your uncle or whatever and really enjoy yourself, and I say go with god. But the problem is that if you’re planning on having a serious scientific analysis of players and their abilities, you need to be more exact than that. And DVOA, All 22, and casual non-trained scouting of film is not exact; or put more kindly, it’s along the spectrum of exactitude, but not nearly there enough to be confident in.

And yet, on twitter there is the pretension that the whole analytical community is the smartest person in the room, empirically considering 100 percent of the data while us proles nip at their heels. I’m blocked by this guy now because I disagreed with him, but if you’re not here are some examples:

Imagining that you look at 100 percent of a deeply complex and subjectively tinted game and come away with the only empirical analysis is not just flawed thinking, it’s egotism and it’s dangerous. Even worse, we get accounts defended by stats like DYAR that gets zero skepticism or self-critique. These are tautologies – the players are good because the metrics said they’re good. And the metrics are good because they show us the good players. It’s silly and juvenile, but mention that the process looks a lot like the failed attempts of a now more mature sabermetric enterprise, and you’re out of the magic circle.

In the end, football analytics has its own problems that aren’t encompassed by sabermetric analogues, and I can admit that too. I’m not as good at interpreting the NFL as I am MLB; I’m fine admitting that also. But even if I’m wrong on Wentz or Jack or Goff or whatever, it doesn’t excuse the lack of self-critical method and intellectual doubt that’s rampant in these circles. When this is your go to sense of self

it should come as no surprise that your work is attacked as a project of ego-proof than anything else. And when your thesis is “I was right, and let me prove why” then all the All 22 and gifs in the world won’t save you from bad thinking.

Football, like any sort of thing-in-the-world, is driven by subjective analysis. When you deny that you’re vulnerable to being a subject, and when you insist that you’re immune to any bias, then you’re just a god to yourself in your own thinking. There’s a lot to be said about advanced football analysis today; it’s just not being said by the people who are trying to prove a point instead of trying to learn something new.

[junker-town]

The Saints beat the Falcons in an offensive clinic that needed overtime

If you’re a fan of offense, this game was for you.

The Falcons and Saints rivalry lived up to the hype on Sunday, after the Saints were able to pull out a victory in overtime after 60-plus minutes of an offensive clinic.

The Saints won the toss in overtime, and took a nice slow-burn of a drive that ate up plenty of clock. However, this game wasn’t going to end in a tie, as we’ve had twice previously this season.

After getting inside the five-yard line, Drew Brees found Alvin Kamara for what appeared to be the the game-winning touchdown, but it would be overturned, just short of the goal line.

.@A_kamara6 with the walk-off pic.twitter.com/mcgpk5ZQMZ

— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) September 23, 2018

Drew Brees would hop over the goal line on the next play for the game-winning score.

.@DrewBrees... FOR THE WIN! #GoSaints pic.twitter.com/cG16pAAVbC

— NFL (@NFL) September 23, 2018

Drew Brees was very Drew Brees throughout the game.

Even at 39 years old, it’s hard to expect anything less than good football from Drew Brees. He broke Brett Favre’s NFL record for most career completions during the game, eclipsing the 6,300 mark.

He also showed off his mobility, along with a spin so crisp that your washing machine is jealous:

DREW. BREES. We're all tied up in Atlanta, 37-37. : FOX #GoSaints pic.twitter.com/6jFpOSN74Z

— NFL (@NFL) September 23, 2018

OK, maybe not that crisp. But it did the job.

Matt Ryan had a damn good game himself.

Ryan completed 26 of his 35 passes for 374 yards and five touchdowns, a career high for finding the end zone.

One of his best career performances set a record, but in the wrong way:

Matt Ryan just put up the highest passer rating (148.1) in a loss in NFL history (min. 25 attempts).

— Scott Kacsmar (@FO_ScottKacsmar) September 23, 2018

Calvin Ridley showed why the Falcons took him in the first round.

There won’t be many complaints about Steve Sarkisian this week, at least for the time being. Calvin Ridley had a breakout game, proving himself to be a more than formidable WR2 across from Julio Jones.

His best play was this 75-yard bolt to the end zone:

BALLER ALERT CALVIN RIDLEY IS GOING OFF. pic.twitter.com/UQvg5f1n8M

— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) September 23, 2018

Things got to a point where the Saints just had to tackle him:

Man I felt that one pic.twitter.com/GtA6LedGRl

— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) September 23, 2018

The Falcons and Saints remain one of — if not the best — rivalries in the NFL.

This game only helped that argument.

[junker-town]

Monday Morning Pleighbook: Fitzmagic is dead. Long live Fitzmagic.

The Chicago Bears crushed the Bucs, Earl Thomas sent a message, and Alvin Kamara has left the building in Week 4’s Monday Morning Pleighbook.

Fitzmagic officially fizzled out on Sunday, when Khalil Mack and the Chicago Bears poached whatever was left of it after the Steelers embarrassed Ryan Fitzpatrick for a half in Tampa on Monday Night Football a week earlier.

Mack forced a fumble on Fitzpatrick in the second quarter with the Bears up 21-3. Then down 35-3 late in the first half, Fitzpatrick threw an interception in Bears territory. You know the script from here: Fox cameras show Jameis Winston with his headset on, and he comes out for the second half, effectively ending this magical journey.

Fitzpatrick’s rope was shorter on Sunday because the Buccaneers secondary at times looked like the plot of a Ballers episode — it had many holes in it. Because of these holes, the Bears got out to a big lead fast, making it easier to pull the plug on Fitzpatrick for Winston.

Fitzpatrick is an accomplished NFL journeyman (some, like Joe Tessitore are kinder with words and call him “well traveled” instead) that finds his way to incredible peaks, while also diving in the deepest of valleys with seven different NFL teams throughout his career.

The Fitzmagicking of 2018 was an amazing peak, even for him. Nobody really saw it coming — any conversation around the NFC South focused on either the Saints, Falcons, or Panthers. ESPN’s FPI gave the Buccaneers just a 7.2 percent chance of starting the season 2-0.

And yet Fitzpatrick came out during the first two weeks of the NFL season looking like a Hall of Famer. He joined Tom Brady and Cam Newton as the only three players in league history to throw for at least 400 yards in each of their team’s first two games of a season. He also had four touchdown passes in both of those games, which were played against the defending Super Bowl champions, and 2017’s NFC runner-up.

Fitzmagic also gave us this postgame classic:

Ryan Fitzpatrick’s postgame look: pic.twitter.com/4qkRyu7l7X

— Greg Auman (@gregauman) September 16, 2018

With the great outfit came a great performance, as Fitzpatrick joked about not letting a big game change you while having gone from looking like a Civil War vet to Conor McGregor. When he was asked about the origins of the outfit, he credited a shirtless DeSean Jackson who was standing on the side for the fresh get up.

Well, except for this part of the outfit:

“The chest hair is mine.”

In case you’re wondering — yes, chest hair is an accessory for some.

Fitzmagic wasn’t meant long for this world, but it was fun while it lasted. It brought us more than we ever could have imagined Ryan Fitzpatrick, Starting Quarterback For An NFL Team In The Year 2018 would have.

Shoot, Fitzmagic was such a thrill that one of the NFL’s most popular factoids, his Harvard education, became an afterthought. Now, we’ll get back to that practice, but with a little bit more respect for him than before.

Elsewhere, Earl Thomas flipped off the Seahawks sideline

Earl Thomas has been trying to preserve his health in an effort to get either a contract extension with the Seahawks, or a trade to another franchise. He’s been hesitant to participate in practice, and hasn’t done more outside of the 60 minutes on the field every Sunday than he has to.

While that’s a good strategy for somebody trying to maximize their value and earnings, sometimes injuries are just unavoidable in the NFL. Thomas broke his leg on Sunday, and left the game on a cart, in an air cast.

He then delivered a middle finger to the Seahawks’ sideline. Because most of the videos online right now are choppy, here is a nice, clean, Getty image of Thomas speaking his mind. Because this moment deserves it:

Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images

When asked about the middle finger after the game, Pete Carroll deflected and said “it’s a big stadium.”

Yeah, it’s a big stadium. But I don’t think that was directed at Cardinals Fan Paul in the 14th row, Pete. The jig is pretty clear, and now Thomas will likely go into the offseason hoping a team believes in him just as much after the injury as they did before.

We all got robbed of some classic Marshawn Lynch

It would appear that the world came awfully close to another legendary Lynch run during the second quarter of the Raiders’ game against the Browns. However, officials blew this one dead before Lynch could take matters into his own hands:

Beastmode went Beastmode again @MoneyLynch pic.twitter.com/KMuO4OLIgy

— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) September 30, 2018

While Lynch didn’t get to finish his path of destruction, it was nice to see that the old BeastMode is still alive and well. He ended up finishing the game with 130 yards on 20 carries. He even had a few catches for 27 yards.

There’s still plenty of season left, so maybe we’ll get another iteration of the BeastQuake.

Alvin Kamara is still Alvin Kamara

Kamara single-handedly beat the Giants on Sunday. He finished the game with 180 total yards and three touchdowns, which included this one that erased any doubt as to whether or not the Saints were going to win:

KAMARA! 3 TDs. Incredible.#GoSaints #NOvsNYG pic.twitter.com/qJJ79h4CKJ

— NFL (@NFL) September 30, 2018

He ended up in the tunnel, and honestly probably should have just stayed there.

When you’re playing the Saints and you see the No. 41 and that tape on the arms out in front of you, there’s not much to be done except hope you get it right the next time.

Saquon Barkley can fly

Speaking of the Giants, we knew No. 2 overall pick Saquon Barkley was going to be special. But we probably didn’t expect him to look like Walter Payton so early in the season with this diving flip into the end zone:

AIR @SAQUON! ⬆️#GiantsPride #NOvsNYG : CBS pic.twitter.com/7L5uRMzGNz

— NFL (@NFL) September 30, 2018

Barkley’s been having a solid start to his career minus the Giants just not being very good. Feats of amazing athleticism will always make it into the pleighbook, so welcome, Saquon.

REJECTEDDDDDD

Josh Rosen’s career, unlike Barkley’s, has not been off to a good start.

Rosen got thrown into the fire last week to try to pull out a victory against the Bears, and it simply didn’t go well at all. This week, he went up against the Seahawks, and things were better, except for this firm denial:

They really did Rosen like that pic.twitter.com/R68vnEOx66

— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) September 30, 2018

Rosen’s going to make a lot of rookie mistakes, and that’s fine. But this is one that even many normal ass human beings wouldn’t make. Bobby Wagner didn’t even appear to offer Rosen a hand up, and he reached for assistance anyway.

I personally didn’t get to watch much of that particular game on Sunday, though I’m going into Week 5 questioning his in-game decision making strictly because of that situation.

Baker Mayfield’s happiness for Nick Chubb

Baker Baker, Touchdown Maker got his first start on Sunday, and nearly got the Browns a second-consecutive win, and their first on a Sunday since 2016. But the Browns lost in overtime, because they are still working out this whole Being The Browns thing.

However, after Nick Chubb broke loose for a 63-yard touchdown, Mayfield sprinted down the field with him so he could celebrate with his teammate:

Some call it Moxie. Others call it Baker Mayfield. @bakermayfield pic.twitter.com/D2XewjnpXZ

— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) September 30, 2018

If you don’t have at least one friend that gets excited for you like Mayfield did for Chubb there, find one. Reassess everything, and then let me know how that goes for you in the comments below, via tweet, or via email.

The Atlanta Falcons

This space is usually reserved for the good, weird, and funny things about an NFL Sunday. For some of y’all, this is going to fall into two of those categories (good, and funny). For myself, one of SB Nation’s handful of Falcons fans, this isn’t any of those.

The Falcons seem to have figured things out on offense — something once we all believed impossible under one Steve Sarkisian — and they still aren’t winning games. I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed.

Here’s a Falcons-ass stat:

Since 1940, teams scoring 36+ points at home with 0 turnovers are 402-4. The Atlanta Falcons are 0-2 since last week when doing that. Half of the losses are Atlanta now.

— Scott Kacsmar (@FO_ScottKacsmar) September 30, 2018

Here’s another one:

Matt Ryan is the first player in NFL history to lose back-to-back games with 350 Pass yards, 3 Pass TD and 0 Int. pic.twitter.com/VjUnou4D1a

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) September 30, 2018

And here’s one from the previous week:

Matt Ryan just put up the highest passer rating (148.1) in a loss in NFL history (min. 25 attempts).

— Scott Kacsmar (@FO_ScottKacsmar) September 23, 2018

I just had to get that off my chest. I’ll see y’all next week.

OTHER THINGS FROM WEEK 4

Tyler Eifert celebrated a TD with a Stone Cold beer chug, kinda

Adam Vinatieri is the GOAT

Jeff Fisher isn’t any better in the broadcast booth

Mitchell Trubisky just waxed the Bucs in the first half for the best day ever for a Bears QB

The Titans beat the Eagles in OT because Mike Vrabel isn’t about these ties

The Colts got too aggressive, and lost their OT game against the Texans

Read my pal Charles McDonald (the FourVerts guy on Twitter) on Our Falcons

Adam Stites explained why his Jags dunked on the Jets with a late TD and 2-point conversion

Marshawn Lynch got mad, then got into Beast Mode

The Browns are better, but they’re still the Browns

[junker-town]

The Colts’ way-too-aggressive fourth-down call handed the Texans a win in OT

There’s brave and then there’s reckless. The Colts’ decision was way too risky.

Indianapolis Colts coach Frank Reich took a risk to avoid a tie against the Houston Texans, and his roll of the dice made sure a tie didn’t happen. The problem is that his ill-advised decision handed the Texans an easy, game-winning field goal attempt on a silver platter that they nailed for a 37-34 win.

After the two teams traded field goals in the 10-minute overtime, the Colts got the ball back with less than two minutes and only needed one more field goal to win.

The drive started well enough for Indianapolis with Andrew Luck completing passes of 12 yards and 9 yards on the first two plays. But then Jadeveon Clowney blew things up with a clutch sack that pushed the Colts into a third and long.

What Jadeveon Clowney just did to Quenton Nelson is just wrong pic.twitter.com/lxgepYlEB1

— Jody Smith (@JodySmithNFL) September 30, 2018

A 17-yard gain on third down put the Colts back near the middle of the field, but it set up Reich to make a decision that proved costly. Indianapolis had a fourth-and-four at their own 43-yard line with 27 seconds left. The choices were:

Punt and likely secure a tie

Go for it and have a chance to win, but risk giving the Texans the ball in position to win

Reich opted for the latter and it blew up in his face.

The Colts can’t be the Titans today in OT. No one feels sorry for you. #Titanup pic.twitter.com/gLm95NG2mi

— Rainey (@RaineyVoI) September 30, 2018

After the play, the Texans were already close to field goal position but locked it up with a 24-yard pass on first down that set up a 37-yard game-winner. Ka’imi Fairbairn drilled it and the Texans got their first win of the year.

The win for Houston snapped a 10-game losing streak that dated back to November 2017. Reich’s decision let the Texans off the hook for stumbling through the fourth quarter and allowing the Colts back into the game.

The Texans led by double digits for most of the day and carried a 28-17 lead into the fourth quarter. Then the Colts came clawing back with a touchdown with 7:41 to go and then — after a Texans field goal — a game-tying touchdown with 45 seconds left.

The Colts even led in overtime, which is unsurprisingly rare for a losing team.

Colts are 5th team to lose a game after leading in overtime in NFL history. They were also the first (2015 Carolina game).

— Scott Kacsmar (@FO_ScottKacsmar) September 30, 2018

But all that mattered at the end was that Reich wanted so badly to avoid a tie that he handed over a gift-wrapped win to the Texans.