The Seattle Seahawks finished the 2013 preseason 4-0 after dismantling the Oakland Raiders 22-6 last night. Although beating the Raiders is the equivalent of pistol whipping a blind kid the Hawks showed once again they are primed for an epic Super Bowl run. Thankfully there were no serious injuries and the team can begin to focus on how to stop Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers. The next few days will be difficult in terms of cutting the roster down to 53 players, but it is a necessary evil going forward. Let's hope some of those players catch on with another team and continue to fulfill their dream of being an NFL player. Here are some observations from the game.
Bruce Irvin showed flashes of brilliance at his new position and almost looked comfortable in pass coverage. It's evident he still has a lot to learn, but hopefully he can be an asset when he returns from his four game suspension.
Stephen Williams made his presence felt with the first team and I'm confident we'll see much more of him during the season. I hope his ability to fend off smaller defensive backs will lead to several touchdowns.
Steven Hauschka has more distance on his field goals this year. This is a good thing because I have him on several of my fantasy teams.
Chris Harper may have let the moment overwhelm him. With two critical drops last night I don't think this will be his year to make the team.
Benson Mayowa can stay. With another sack and several quarterback hurries he's proven to be a pass rusher that can add depth to the rotating defensive linemen.
Until the next time let's keep a SeahawkCentric state of mind shall we?
Friday, August 30, 2013
Thursday, August 29, 2013
Is Johnny Football Too Big To Fail?
I usually try to refrain from blogging about the same subject over and over again, but the topic of Johnny Football is so volatile, polarizing, and controversial I had to address it one more time.
After being accused of signing thousands of autographs for money and questioned by the NCAA for over 6 hours Johnny Manziel has been suspended for the first half of the Aggies game vs. Rice on Saturday. For dramatic effect I'll repeat that unbelievable statement, JOHNNY MANZIEL HAS BEEN SUSPENDED FOR EXACTLY ONE HALF OF ONE GAME FOR ALLEGEDLY SIGNING HIS NAME THOUSANDS OF TIMES FOR MONEY. Does anyone have a problem with this statement?
If you do it's because you're expecting consistency and fairness from the NCAA as it relates to punishing athletes who receive improper benefits. Somewhere Dez Bryant, A.J. Green, and Terrelle Pryor are wondering what the hell is going on. They were raked over the coals and crucified for infractions far less severe than the Manziel accusations and their reputations were permanently damaged. Why does Johnny get a free pass?
If you don't have a problem with a first half suspension it's probably because you don't care what Johnny Football does off the field, so long as he performs at a high level on the field. Wins and losses are all that matters and you are curious to see if Manziel can duplicate the season he had last year.
Without question Johnny Football is receiving preferential treatment. Is it racially motivated? Is it financially motivated? Are NCAA investigators in this day and age really unable to come up with any evidence of wrong doing?
Whatever the case may be it sets a dangerous precedence going forward. You can't arbitrarily decide who to punish for NCAA violations. The rules should apply to everyone equally. Johnny Football doesn't deserve to play this season, but I'm glad he is. I'm more curious to see if Texas A&M can beat Alabama and LSU than if he profited from signing his name over 4,000 times. Hypocritical of me to say that isn't it?
After being accused of signing thousands of autographs for money and questioned by the NCAA for over 6 hours Johnny Manziel has been suspended for the first half of the Aggies game vs. Rice on Saturday. For dramatic effect I'll repeat that unbelievable statement, JOHNNY MANZIEL HAS BEEN SUSPENDED FOR EXACTLY ONE HALF OF ONE GAME FOR ALLEGEDLY SIGNING HIS NAME THOUSANDS OF TIMES FOR MONEY. Does anyone have a problem with this statement?
If you do it's because you're expecting consistency and fairness from the NCAA as it relates to punishing athletes who receive improper benefits. Somewhere Dez Bryant, A.J. Green, and Terrelle Pryor are wondering what the hell is going on. They were raked over the coals and crucified for infractions far less severe than the Manziel accusations and their reputations were permanently damaged. Why does Johnny get a free pass?
If you don't have a problem with a first half suspension it's probably because you don't care what Johnny Football does off the field, so long as he performs at a high level on the field. Wins and losses are all that matters and you are curious to see if Manziel can duplicate the season he had last year.
Without question Johnny Football is receiving preferential treatment. Is it racially motivated? Is it financially motivated? Are NCAA investigators in this day and age really unable to come up with any evidence of wrong doing?
Whatever the case may be it sets a dangerous precedence going forward. You can't arbitrarily decide who to punish for NCAA violations. The rules should apply to everyone equally. Johnny Football doesn't deserve to play this season, but I'm glad he is. I'm more curious to see if Texas A&M can beat Alabama and LSU than if he profited from signing his name over 4,000 times. Hypocritical of me to say that isn't it?
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
AFC East Preview
Typically this division is a one team race and this year won't be any different. The New York teams are in complete disarray and the team from South Florida has more questions than answers. That being said this is the NFL and things can change from season to season. Ok, I don't really believe that when it comes to the AFC East. More likely than not Bob Kraft's team will come out victorious and the other teams will suck. Here's how I think the division will shake out.
New England: 11-5
Tom Brady lost his security blanket, the defense is suspect, and the tight end position is an issue. Even with all those changes they are the Patriots and they always find a way to win. With 2 games against the Bills and 2 games against the Jets it's hard to believe New England won't win this division going away.
Miami Dolphins: 8-8
Lamar Miller better be as good as they think he is or the Dolphins will have a losing season. Mike Wallace gives them an added dimension of speed, but Miami lost Dustin Kellar in preseason and haven't found another complimentary receiver to fill his shoes. Ryan Tannehill is a year older and has big play capability, but not enough weapons to be dangerous.
Buffalo Bills: 6-10
CJ Spiller is a good fantasy player, but in the real world the Buffalo Bills won't make a lot of noise this year. Anytime your franchise has a WSU quarterback penciled in as the opening day starter you know things are bad. I'm giving them 6 games, but I wouldn't be surprised if they win less.
New York Jets: 4-12
Rex Ryan's final season as the head coach of the New York Jets will be uneventful. The Jets have no running game, traded away Revis Island, and will start either Geno Smith or Mark Sanchez in the season opener. This is a recipe for disaster. The New York media will have a field day with this train wreck.
New England: 11-5
Tom Brady lost his security blanket, the defense is suspect, and the tight end position is an issue. Even with all those changes they are the Patriots and they always find a way to win. With 2 games against the Bills and 2 games against the Jets it's hard to believe New England won't win this division going away.
Miami Dolphins: 8-8
Lamar Miller better be as good as they think he is or the Dolphins will have a losing season. Mike Wallace gives them an added dimension of speed, but Miami lost Dustin Kellar in preseason and haven't found another complimentary receiver to fill his shoes. Ryan Tannehill is a year older and has big play capability, but not enough weapons to be dangerous.
Buffalo Bills: 6-10
CJ Spiller is a good fantasy player, but in the real world the Buffalo Bills won't make a lot of noise this year. Anytime your franchise has a WSU quarterback penciled in as the opening day starter you know things are bad. I'm giving them 6 games, but I wouldn't be surprised if they win less.
New York Jets: 4-12
Rex Ryan's final season as the head coach of the New York Jets will be uneventful. The Jets have no running game, traded away Revis Island, and will start either Geno Smith or Mark Sanchez in the season opener. This is a recipe for disaster. The New York media will have a field day with this train wreck.
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Does Sean Payton Deserve A Second Chance?
"Cleavie, I gotta tell you I was a big Sean Payton before all the bounty stuff, but now I can honestly say I've completely lost respect for the guy. I just can't condone that kind of behavior. I don't think there's any place for it in the NFL."
John O'Malley
After serving a one year suspension for his role in the bounty scandal Sean Payton has returned as head coach of the New Orleans Saints. Although Payton paid DEARLY for his past indiscretion it is clear there are football fans out there who feel he's done permanent damage to his reputation. Does Sean Payton deserve a second chance?
To be fair, the length of Sean Payton's suspension was never really about the alleged bounties, it was about Roger Goodell establishing his presence of authority. When Goodell told the Saints organization to stop the program Payton was defiant and chose not to listen. Goodell wanted to make an example of the Saints and show the rest of the league what will happen if you disobey a direct order from the commissioner.
For the record I don't think the Saints were the only team that had this kind of program in place and I don't think Saints players set out to intentionally end someone's career. The NFL is a brotherhood and there are unwritten rules. Certain lines you just don't cross. Football is a violent game and there are too many opportunities to get even or retaliate for malicious plays. If you notice past and present players never spoke negatively about the situation or thought their safety was in jeopardy. Sean Payton paid his debt to society and that's all we can ask. Your thoughts?
John O'Malley
After serving a one year suspension for his role in the bounty scandal Sean Payton has returned as head coach of the New Orleans Saints. Although Payton paid DEARLY for his past indiscretion it is clear there are football fans out there who feel he's done permanent damage to his reputation. Does Sean Payton deserve a second chance?
To be fair, the length of Sean Payton's suspension was never really about the alleged bounties, it was about Roger Goodell establishing his presence of authority. When Goodell told the Saints organization to stop the program Payton was defiant and chose not to listen. Goodell wanted to make an example of the Saints and show the rest of the league what will happen if you disobey a direct order from the commissioner.
For the record I don't think the Saints were the only team that had this kind of program in place and I don't think Saints players set out to intentionally end someone's career. The NFL is a brotherhood and there are unwritten rules. Certain lines you just don't cross. Football is a violent game and there are too many opportunities to get even or retaliate for malicious plays. If you notice past and present players never spoke negatively about the situation or thought their safety was in jeopardy. Sean Payton paid his debt to society and that's all we can ask. Your thoughts?
Monday, August 26, 2013
Weekend Observations
It was fantasy football draft weekend and I must say I'm pretty impressed with my squads. What a surprise right? I can honestly say I kept my emotions in check and made my selections based on empirical data, not who my favorite players are. I still ended up with a few, but not as many as I would have liked. Oh well, business is business and I want my chips! Here's how my teams turned out:
Hurt Your Feelings League:
Drew Brees
Reggie Bush
Giovanni Bernard
Tavon Austin
T.Y. Hilton
Mike Wallace
Sebastian Janikowski
Cincinnati Defense
Trash Talking League:
Peyton Manning
CJ Spiller
David Wilson
Randall Cobb
Torrey Smith
Mike Wallace
David Akers
Houston Defense
Practice League:
Peyton Manning
Shady McCoy
David Wilson
Brandon Marshall
Vincent Jackson
Jared Cook
Steven Hauschka
Washington Defense
My trash talking team is probably the best, but my practice league has some suspect managers. That will be the easiest league to win for me. Here are some observations over the weekend.
Vince Young and Matt Leinart have made their way back to the NFL with Green Bay and Buffalo respectively. I guess the draft class of 2006 has staying power after all.
The New York Jets quarterback situation is starting to look like a high school science project gone wrong. Too many elements and none of them are achieving the desired results. It's obvious the Jets can't win with Geno Smith or Mark Sanchez at the helm.
It's been reported Dwight Howard wanted the Lakers to amnesty Kobe Bryant and fire Mike D'Antoni before he would sign an extension. I can understand the D'Antoni part, but getting rid of the Black Mamba? He'll pay for that one. Kobe has a long memory and he's an evil dude. There will be hell to pay once he finds this out.
The Seattle Sounders drew 67, 385 fans to see the debut of Clint Dempsey yesterday. That's the 2nd largest crowd in the history of the MLS. Wow. Hope Clint is all that!
Hurt Your Feelings League:
Drew Brees
Reggie Bush
Giovanni Bernard
Tavon Austin
T.Y. Hilton
Mike Wallace
Sebastian Janikowski
Cincinnati Defense
Trash Talking League:
Peyton Manning
CJ Spiller
David Wilson
Randall Cobb
Torrey Smith
Mike Wallace
David Akers
Houston Defense
Practice League:
Peyton Manning
Shady McCoy
David Wilson
Brandon Marshall
Vincent Jackson
Jared Cook
Steven Hauschka
Washington Defense
My trash talking team is probably the best, but my practice league has some suspect managers. That will be the easiest league to win for me. Here are some observations over the weekend.
Vince Young and Matt Leinart have made their way back to the NFL with Green Bay and Buffalo respectively. I guess the draft class of 2006 has staying power after all.
The New York Jets quarterback situation is starting to look like a high school science project gone wrong. Too many elements and none of them are achieving the desired results. It's obvious the Jets can't win with Geno Smith or Mark Sanchez at the helm.
It's been reported Dwight Howard wanted the Lakers to amnesty Kobe Bryant and fire Mike D'Antoni before he would sign an extension. I can understand the D'Antoni part, but getting rid of the Black Mamba? He'll pay for that one. Kobe has a long memory and he's an evil dude. There will be hell to pay once he finds this out.
The Seattle Sounders drew 67, 385 fans to see the debut of Clint Dempsey yesterday. That's the 2nd largest crowd in the history of the MLS. Wow. Hope Clint is all that!
SeahawkCentric: A Recap Of The Packers Game
The Seattle Seahawks won their 8th straight preseason game with a grind it out victory over the Green Bay Packers 17-10. The Seahawks didn't annihilate their opponent like they did in the first two games this year, but a win is a win. No one got hurt and the team continues to prepare for an epic Super Bowl run. The 3rd preseason game is generally considered the dress rehearsal for the regular season so this performance has to be critiqued with a little more objectivity than the previous contests. Here are some of the key points I noticed during the game.
The battle for the back up running back spot has shifted in the Christine Michael direction once again. Michael proved the San Diego game wasn't a fluke with an impressive 43 yard touchdown run and a one handed reception that resulted in a 25 yard gain. It will be hard to keep this guy off the field once the season starts.
Allen Bradford looks like the real deal. In my opinion he's successfully made the transition from running back to linebacker and gives the Seahawks much needed depth at the position. Whether it's keeping guys fresh or stepping in if someone gets hurt Bradford is becoming an important piece of the puzzle.
The offense hasn't had a lot of explosive plays down the field, but don't blame Stephen Williams for that. He's definitely done his part with a touchdown reception in every game this preseason. Outside of Golden Tate Williams is the Seahawks biggest threat at wide receiver until Percy Harvin comes back.
The Seahawks have to become more disciplined if they want to hoist the Lombardi trophy in February. Championship teams simply don't give up 182 yards on 14 penalties. Good teams will make the Seahawks pay for those mistakes and they'll have no one to blame but themselves for bad losses. The penalties are correctable, but it must be addressed now before it becomes an irritating habit.
Practice makes perfect and so far the Seahawks have been "practicing" at a high level. That's not to say there aren't areas that need improvement (The non-existent pass rush for example), but I still haven't seen a glaring weakness that makes me think this team won't be in New York on February 2nd, 2014. I'm still drinking the Pete Carroll Kool-Aid. Until the next time let's keep a SeahawkCentric state of mind shall we?
The battle for the back up running back spot has shifted in the Christine Michael direction once again. Michael proved the San Diego game wasn't a fluke with an impressive 43 yard touchdown run and a one handed reception that resulted in a 25 yard gain. It will be hard to keep this guy off the field once the season starts.
Allen Bradford looks like the real deal. In my opinion he's successfully made the transition from running back to linebacker and gives the Seahawks much needed depth at the position. Whether it's keeping guys fresh or stepping in if someone gets hurt Bradford is becoming an important piece of the puzzle.
The offense hasn't had a lot of explosive plays down the field, but don't blame Stephen Williams for that. He's definitely done his part with a touchdown reception in every game this preseason. Outside of Golden Tate Williams is the Seahawks biggest threat at wide receiver until Percy Harvin comes back.
The Seahawks have to become more disciplined if they want to hoist the Lombardi trophy in February. Championship teams simply don't give up 182 yards on 14 penalties. Good teams will make the Seahawks pay for those mistakes and they'll have no one to blame but themselves for bad losses. The penalties are correctable, but it must be addressed now before it becomes an irritating habit.
Practice makes perfect and so far the Seahawks have been "practicing" at a high level. That's not to say there aren't areas that need improvement (The non-existent pass rush for example), but I still haven't seen a glaring weakness that makes me think this team won't be in New York on February 2nd, 2014. I'm still drinking the Pete Carroll Kool-Aid. Until the next time let's keep a SeahawkCentric state of mind shall we?
Friday, August 23, 2013
Fantasy Footbal Wildcard #5: Maurice Jones-Drew
Two years ago Maurice Jones-Drew was fantasy gold for me. Plenty of yards from scrimmage, a generous number of touchdowns, and tremendous durability. 2012 however was a complete and total disaster. MJD was mired in a contract dispute and held out the entire preseason. That holdout led to injuries during the regular season and his production fell off dramatically. Will 2013 be the year MJD gets back to his old self?
I certainly think so. MJD is finally healthy again as he enters the final year of his contract. Ownership was unwilling to re-negotiate last year and I suspect he's going to perform as if he deserves Chris Johnson type money. Although he says the past is behind him I think he's still bitter about the way things transpired.
In addition, the Jacksonville offense still revolves around him. Blaine Gabbert has improved over the summer, but he's not even close to being a better than average quarterback. Justin Blackmon will start the year with a 4 game suspension and the defense doesn't exactly strike fear in their opponents.
From a fantasy perspective MJD is a top 5 back. After Adrian Peterson, Jamaal Charles, Shady McCoy, and Trent Richardson you'd be hard pressed to name a better running back. Some people would like to see him catch more passes out of the backfield, but when he's healthy he runs hard between the tackles and cashes in down around the goal line. Depending on when you draft MJD can still anchor your team. Your thoughts?
I certainly think so. MJD is finally healthy again as he enters the final year of his contract. Ownership was unwilling to re-negotiate last year and I suspect he's going to perform as if he deserves Chris Johnson type money. Although he says the past is behind him I think he's still bitter about the way things transpired.
In addition, the Jacksonville offense still revolves around him. Blaine Gabbert has improved over the summer, but he's not even close to being a better than average quarterback. Justin Blackmon will start the year with a 4 game suspension and the defense doesn't exactly strike fear in their opponents.
From a fantasy perspective MJD is a top 5 back. After Adrian Peterson, Jamaal Charles, Shady McCoy, and Trent Richardson you'd be hard pressed to name a better running back. Some people would like to see him catch more passes out of the backfield, but when he's healthy he runs hard between the tackles and cashes in down around the goal line. Depending on when you draft MJD can still anchor your team. Your thoughts?
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