SB Nation - Ahmard Hall

Colts 27 Titans 17 Recap: It's Officially Over Now

Jimmy — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 23:44:12 -0000

More photos » by Michael Conroy - AP

Peyton waived goodbye to our playoff hopes. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

That will pretty much do it for the 2009 Titans. I know we were all hoping for the miracle playoff run, but the seventh loss of the season pretty much ends that. The thing that is even more frustrating about today is that Chris Johnson was held under the pace he needed to catch Eric Dickerson and even to get 2,000 yards. It seems that is the only thing we are going to have to cheer for the rest of 2009.

You got an idea of what kind of day it was going to be on the Colts first play from scrimmage when Peyton Manning's pass to Austin Collie deflected off of his hands right to Pierre Garcon for a 27 yard play. Three plays later Nick Harper fell down trying to cover Garcon, he went for 36 yards, and set up the Colts first touchdown- an 8 yard run from Joseph Addai.

I think it is time that we stop getting mad at Harper. I wouldn't get mad at my 15 month old son if he let an NFL receiver run right by him, so why should I get mad at Harper. The person we should be mad at is Jeff Fisher for being so dang stubborn about letting veterans play. Fisher job isn't to be loyal. It is to put the best players on the field to help his team win. He clearly isn't doing that, and save the fanposts when the same thing happens to Britt when it is healthy. That is the reality of having Fisher as the coach. It always has been, and it always will be.

One of the few smart decisions Fisher has made this year is finally letting Britt return kicks. I guess someone finally told him that it is legal for rookies to do that kind of thing.

The second thing that happened during the game that made me really mad at Fisher was in the red zone on the Titans first possession. LenDale White, your short yardage back, gets 6 yards on first down to the three yard line. Instead of giving him the ball again Fisher decides to put Chris Johnson back in the game. No gain on second down with CJ, an incomplete throw on third down and the Titans have to settle for a pointless field goal.

A couple things here- LenDale is the perfect back to run against the Colts undersized defense. We talked a lot about that after the first game between these two teams. Why do you even have him on the roster if you aren't going to use him in this situation? I understand you don't want to take carries away from CJ, but inside the 5 the home run is 5 yards long. LenDale is the perfect guy to pick up those yards.

Secondly, if you are inside the five yard line against the Colts it should be four down territory every time unless a field goal will win the game as time expires. I understand why the field goal is kicked there, but it just seems all the more reason to let LenDale hit it up in there a couple more times and see where that gets you instead of being satisfied with the field goal in your back pocket.

The Titans defense stopped the Colts on their next possession and should have taken the lead following that but Nate Washington can't catch the football. We were all mad at the Steelers fans for saying what they said about Washington in week 1, but it turns out they were right. The Titans signed Washington for one reason, to make big catches down the field. He has proven time and time again this season that he cannot do that.

The next Colts possession saw another receiver running by Nick Harper, a horse collar penalty on Vincent Fuller, and big chunks of yards all over the field before another Addai touchdown run. You started to get the feeling at this point that the game was getting away from the Titans, and you got that feeling all the more when Ahmard Hall coughed up the football on the ensuing drive.

I know that we all love the Sarge for a lot of things that he does, but he has proven in his career that giving him the ball is dangerous. He has 102 touches in his career and has lost 4 fumbles, and it always seems to come after he has picked up a bunch of yards.

The next Titans possession ended in an interception. It actually could have ended earlier had Kelvin Hayden been able to pick off an out intended for Lavelle Hawkins. Rich Gannon analyzed that play perfectly when he said it was a bad decision by Young and a bad play by Hawkins when he didn't come back to the ball.

The thing that really frustrated me after the interception was the knee injury that crept up on VY after he had bounced back in bounds to hit Jacob Lacey and sat on the bench for about 30 seconds. I know the VY people are going to kill me for saying that, but that is how it looked to me. If anyone else has another explanation I would love to hear it.

The Colts did what they do with a short field and scored a touchdown to go up 21-3.

The Titans would answer with a nice drive of their own that ended with Britt catching yet another touchdown pass. The big play on that drive was a 24 yard reception by The Hawk. This will probably seem weird since I was criticizing him a few paragraphs ago, but another thing that makes me mad at Fisher is that the only thing Lavelle has done since getting to see the field is make plays. You have to wonder why he didn't get a shot sooner.

That touchdown was encouraging because it cut the score to 21-10 with the Titans getting the ball after halftime, but of course 20 seconds is way too much time when you can't cover kickoffs, can't cover receivers and Tony Brown can't keep his head. The Colts got a field goal to take away the momentum the Titans were able to build.

The second half was even more frustrating than the first. The Titans offense was able to move the ball down the field but were unable to capitalize in the red zone until it really didn't matter. The first red zone miscue came late in the third quarter. The Titans faced first and goal from the one. First down was a fumbled snap. Second down was a hold on Eugene Amano that backed the Titans up 10 yards then a 2 yard pass to Bo Scaife. Third down was a VY scramble to the two yard line. Fourth down was a horrific play call on a fade to Britt in the back of the end zone.

The defense held again only to see a Titans drive stall in the red zone again. That drive started with a snap to VY that he wasn't ready for, no idea who was at fault, and ended with a bad throw to Hawkins.

That pretty much did it. The Colts got a field goal to push the lead to 27-10 after a 15 play drive that took 7:23 off of the fourth quarter clock. The Titans came back after that to get a touchdown that didn't matter. Then they actually recovered the onside kick, but all comeback hopes were laid to rest after four incomplete passes.

This team looked a whole lot more like the team that started the season 0-6 than the one that was 5-0 out of the bye. A lot of people were talking this week about how the Colts aren't that impressive because they have barely won a lot games, but we saw today why they are so good. They don't make mistakes that kill them, they are really good on third down and their defense bends but doesn't break. That is the type of ball that wins championships. The Titans just simply aren't there this season.

If you loved how negative this recap was, you will love MCM Radio tonight at 9 for sure. Click here to join us.

Tennessee Titans Morning Links: For The Truth Shall Set You Free Edition

August West — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:14:21 -0000

More photos » by Wade Payne - AP

Quit tryin' to high-five me and go get yer friggin' check book!

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Chris Johnson ripped-off almost 200 yards on the ground against the Texans in week 2, and this time around he's looking to ditch the 'almost' in that statement. If he has another game like that on the Monday Night stage, you're going to see him become on of the most popular players in the league. I'd guess if he breaks 180 his jersey sales will hit top 5 by the Cardinals game.

Ok, so you remember how Texans owner Bob McNair called their week 2 victory 'The biggest win in franchise history'? (That's cute isn't it?) Well I'm starting to feel bad about that, because should our boys stomp them Monday Night it's almost like we would have made all their dreams come to life, then slayed them as quickly as they came... just like that line in Laid to Rest, by Lamb of God! Took the long way around for the set-up to this week's Friday Tasty Jam.

The Big Marine, Ahmard Hall, came up with a very fitting nickname for Vince Young as he heads back to his hometown looking to cement his resurgence:

Mayor of Houston

No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No. Somebody tell Fisher that we don't care about the past three years because we're in the now now. Everything that's happening now, is happening now. We can't go back to then. Why? Because we passed it. When? Just now! ( FYI: I have to bring that quote out twice a year. It's in my contract.)

Follow us through the jump as we try to forget the pain of that last link...

I 100% agree with T-Rac's Posse on this one: it's way too early to be thinking playoffs. I do wonder though, who in T-Rac's Posse is the party supplies guy? No need to be all obvious about it though, just a little wink would do...

At least some folks in Houston realize there's the distinct possibility they're about to prance into a buzzsaw on a very big stage...

Since Fisher isn't all the way out of the woods yet, here's a list of the hottest coaching commodities heading into the offseason. At least there's a nice mix of wily veterans and burgeoning talent should we be in the market.

Just a refresher to remind everyone why Monday's game is going to be physical no matter how it turns out.

How crazy is it that we're finally a relevant team in fantasy football circles?

For all the complaints people have about Bud, at least he's not Daniel Snyder. Read the second paragraph of this list for a crash course in how ruin a storied franchise.

I heart Taylor Mays. Please don't come with a bunch of comments about where he went to school because he could have played for the Appalachia School for the Blind and I'd still take him no.2 behind Eric Berry. Yeah I said it: the two best players in the draft, by a mile, are safeties.

This list from Houston Press writer John Royal is classic if you're up-to-date on your Houston sports journalists:

2. Speaking of which, I'm sure John McClain is working on a column right now reminding us all that Bud is just misunderstood and that all he ever wanted to do was to be liked.

8. If Texans win, Justice calls Gary Kubiak a genius for drafting Williams.

9. If Texans lose, Justice calls Charley Casserly an idiot for drafting Williams.

21. There will be a discussion of Vince Young's problems from last year. By everybody except Richard Justice.

and this gem:

25. Bob McNair will be called a class gentlemen. As will the entire team. But most fans would probably prefer a playoff team.

Every time you read a great Titans-related story on the web and don't share it with the MCM community through the fanposts, fanshots or by emailing me at mcmaugustwest@gmail.com Matt Schaub gains one health point. Is that what you want?!!!!?!?!

Tennessee Titans Morning Links: Thank You To Our Real Veterans Edition

August West — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 15:18:09 -0000

Gotta love KSK

What better way to start off the Veteran's Day links than with a story about the Titans' own veteran of military service, Ahmard Hall. Hall served in the Marines in Kosovo and Afghanistan before walking on to the Texas Longhorns team upon his return. We can't thank Ahmard Hall and every other veteran for the US Military enough for their bravery and sacrifice for this nation, so perhaps the best we can do is never forget that they're the backbone of everything good in our lives. Without our veterans we wouldn't have the freedoms we enjoy today.

Jim Trotter of SI.com makes his prediction for the second half of the season, and he's predicting a continued marriage between Vince Young and the Titans after the season ends:

3. Vince Young will be the Titans' QB beyond this season.

... Young looks as if he has been humbled and hardened after being relegated to the sidelines the final 15 games last season and the first six games this year. He always has had a way of rallying teammates, and he'll do it again by leading the Titans to four to six wins in their final eight games (which means six to eight wins in his 10 starts).

If you missed the debacle excitement last night , head on over here to check-out a preview of the upcoming game by Jimmy, Buffalo Rumblings and myself.

Follow us through the jump to learn more about the history of Kearse's knee problem...

In a sign that doesn't look too good for the injured David Thornton, the Titans added LB Eric Bakhtiari to the practice squad yesterday. It's not an outright admission that Thornton's hip problems are serious, but it shows they feel the need to increase depth behind him now that McRath is an interim starter.

One of the chief concerns VY needs to focus on heading into this game is rookie stand-out safety Jarius Byrd, who enters the Thunderdome with 7 interceptions already to his name, including a three game multiple-interception streak. Here, USA Today takes a closer look at his game.

Jevon Kearse's knee problems date back to his days in Philadelphia, and when he re-injured it earlier in the year doctors found that it had never fully healed correctly. He's hoping to be back in practice as the team prepares for the Buffalo game this week.

Mechelle McNair won a court decision yesterday giving her the right to sell Steve McNair's recently opened restaurant, Gridiron9. A buyer has already come forward.

Every time you read a great Titans-related story on the web and don't share it with the MCM community through the fanposts, fanshots or by emailing me at mcmaugustwest@gmail.com a Ravens (or Steelers) fan smiles. Is that what you want?!!!!?!?!

Highlights from Titans on 2 with Jeff Fisher

smashville — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 01:21:23 -0000

The three top coaches, Jeff Fisher, Mike Heimerdinger, and Chuck Cecil were on Titans on 2 tonight. Here are some highlights:

Jeff Fisher:

(on wearing a Peyton Manning jersey earlier today): "Apparently I offended a few people, but you've gotta let that go. This was in respect to Tony and had just a little fun with a very worthwhile charity.

(on if there will be changes at QB): "There may be some minor changes, I'm not going to sit here and tell you what they are right now for competitive reasons. I've stood firmly being the fact that Kerry is our starter and Vince is our backup, so you're just going to have to wait and see

(on injuries): "I would say there's a really good chance they come back. I think Nick (Harper)'s going to need another week or two, and then I think Craig Stevens will be back. Two of those three guys back in the secondary would be very helpful for us."

Tests came negative so Lendale would be listed as probable if there was a game this week.

Mike Heimerdinger:

"We just didn't play very well...I have to find something to get us going and put us in better position to make plays and catch the ball and get that swagger back."

(on playing Vince Young in a wildcat offense): "I think that some of the better plays, Vince is a great athlete that needs to get on the edge. People are not letting him on the edge. I don't think Vince is going to do what Tebow does at Florida which is run the power off tackle consistently and go down in there because he is a great athlete that needs to get on the edge. We've looked at it, we have a package in there, but right now, I don't think we have those people to do those things, and people are not going to let Vince on the edge, and so we haven't done it.

(on putting Lendale White and Chris Johnson in the game at the same time) Well, that's a good idea, but one of them's going to have to lead block for the other one, and I'm not sure CJ is going to take on those linebackers from New England that were taking on Ahmard Hall. You know, both those guys, we've worked them before. Actually the two times we've had a package in which they were both in there and we were going to flex CJ out and make him a pass receiver and hand the ball off to Lendale, Lendale's gotten hurt the week before and has never made it through, so the two weeks we've had it, we haven't had them healthy to do it.

"I try not to coach Chris (Johnson) at all, I'm afraid I'll mess him up lately."

Chuck Cecil:

"Am I responsible for the way the defense is playing, everyone blames me? You know what? Absolutely. I'm the defensive coordinator. That's my job, to make sure the defensive plays well, and we're not. We're not playing as well as we should" "You talk about living a nightmare - that's what that was."

"It's really easy to go out and be positive and practice hard when you're 10-0. When you're 0-6 and everybody hates you and thinks you're a dog, you find out who you really are."

"We kinda feel like the field positions, they were playing on it too, but for some reason our guys weren't really very comfortable with it"

"Hey why don't you blitz? Six of the seven blitzes I brought we brought against them were big plays for them. Three of them were touchdowns."

Shallow Thoughts & Nearsighted Observations

Ted Bartlett — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 12:30:13 -0000

More photos » by Chris Park - AP

about 1 month ago: Denver Broncos tight end Tony Scheffler dances through the end zone after his 19-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter of the NFL football game Monday, Oct. 19, 2009 in San Diego. Scheffler had six receptions for 101 yards. The Broncos won 34-23 over the Chargers. (AP Photo/Chris Park)

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Happy Tuesday, friends, and welcome to another edition of Shallow Thoughts & Nearsighted Observations. I had a fairly selfish weekend, leaving Cleveland on Friday and traveling to South Bend, Indiana, for the Notre Dame-USC game on Saturday afternoon. My friend Ramona has a brother who is a graduate student at Notre Dame, and he was able to get us pretty good tickets. I didn't get home until about 5 PM on Sunday, so I missed all of the early NFL games, and only got to see the second quarter on of a few late ones. I recorded the Short Cuts of the 3 most interesting early games, with a plan of watching them Monday evening, after work and before the Broncos-Chargers game. I apologize if this is a slightly thinner ST&NO than usual, but I don't ever want to be the guy who comments on football I didn't see, scanning the box scores for some stats which may or may not be meaningful. You know who I mean, all of them. Without further ado, let's get this thing moving, ST&NO style. Ready..... BEGIN!!!

1. So, I am writing this at 12:16 AM ET on Tuesday morning, with the rest of the column basically already in the can. Such is life when you have a Tuesday morning time slot, and a back-and-forth, hotly contested Monday night game. I've only gotten to see the game once, obviously, and we're in a compressed time situation, but I'm going to try hard to manage the clock well, and come with some thunder on the short track.

This is a great feeling, isn't it? Frankly, even if I had a lot of time to write, there isn't much to say that I haven't been saying all season. I've covered most "isn't this great" angles, right? It kind of makes writing a column like this difficult, when it comes to finding new material for the Donny Deutsch Big Idea. I can't even really play the disrespect card anymore.

Luckily, I have two weeks to think of new ideas, until the Broncos take on the Baltimore Ravens. I have a feeling that I'll be talking about the 7-0 Broncos after that game, because the Ravens can't defend the Broncos, and the Broncos defense actually matches up very favorably with the Baltimore offense. Until then, let's enjoy this win, this place in the standings, and the feeling we're all feeling right now. I remember this feeling, from the late 1990s. It's the one where your team is a legitimate contender to win the Super Bowl.

ZOMG! That was a new angle in Donny Deutschland, and it just kind of slipped out, didn't it? I knew something was right on the tip of my tongue (err... fingertips). But, yes, I said it, and yes, I mean it. Let's forget about Kool-Aid, and start thinking about Lombardi Trophies. Remember, I'm the crazy man who had the Broncos on 11-5 before the season started, which would now only require playing .500 football the rest of the way. Consider this an enhancement to my original forecast.

2. Information From My Eyes, Broncos at Chargers:

a. The Broncos initially really missed Brian Dawkins when he went out in the second quarter, but they eventually settled down and performed respectably on the back end, until he returned.

b. On the huge Elvis Dumervil strip/sack late in the 3rd quarter, the play was supposed to go to Antonio Gates, who was split out wide to the left, and running a vertical route, which I expect would have been a back-shoulder fade on the sideline. Josh Barrett had him man-to-man, and engaged him with great position and technique off the line. Philip Rivers had to hold the ball on his 3-step drop, and that was what caused the sack. Barrett is the best Safety I have seen in the NFL at covering the top TEs man-to-man.

c. While I am at it, Barrett had Gates blanketed on Dumervil's second sack too, (with Dawkins over the top, for good measure), early in the 4th quarter, and it was clear he was again Rivers' first read on the play. If Barrett could do nothing else well, he'd be worth having around to cover guys like Gates in obvious passing situations, like that 3rd-and-14 was.

d. They got to that 3rd-and-14 by finally blowing up a screen pass. The linemen disengaged, and slid laterally like they knew the screen was coming, and Mario Haggan tackled LaDanian Tomlinson for the 4-yard loss. This was an enormous play.

e. The right side of the Chargers line, Louis Vazquez and Jeromey Clary, aren't nearly good enough to be starters on a winning team. Clary gave up two sacks, and Vazquez got pushed around a LOT by Marcus Thomas and Ronald Fields. I actually thought their replacement Center, Scott Mruczkowski, played very well in the game, considering the low expectations I had for him from seeing the last few games.

f. The Broncos consistently got pressure in the second half, and mixed it with terrific coverage in the back end. This has been a recurring theme this season. Robert Ayers was a beast, and would have gotten about 3 sacks against lesser QBs than Rivers.

g. Only getting to see the game once, in live action, I can't really do much of a Between The Lines feature, but the Broncos offensive line was dominant in pass protection. The only sack they gave up was for 2 yards, and it was well blocked, with Orton running into the sack after a long time holding the ball.

h. Darcel McBath did a great job filling in for Brian Dawkins, and made every key special teams tackle.

i. The Broncos would not be 6-0 without Kyle Orton as their QB. With the exception of the bonehead sack he took late in Week 1, he has completely avoided making the game-losing plays that all post-Elway QBs have made for the Broncos.

j. Did anybody notice that Darren Sproles did absolutely nothing for the Chargers on offense? That was a big key to the game.

k. I already mentioned the overall protection, but Ryan Clady owned Shawne Merriman, and the lights stayed on all night. I loved Keyshawn Johnson and Cris Carter mocking Merriman's stupid dance on ESPN, too. Rare value from the Worldwide Leader.

3. Information From My Eyes, Other Games:

a. I remember that last season when the Broncos went into the Meadowlands and beat the Jets, Michael Lombardi of the National Football Post was positively ebullient in his praise of Jay Cutler. Not everybody likes Lombardi, but I consider him to be very rare, as a guy who primarily shares his thoughts about football in the written space, and actually knows what he is talking about. (Most former participants who know interesting things can't write, and most writers don't know anything beyond the surface level).

Anyway, Lombardi was excited by the way Cutler threw the ball on a really cold and windy day. We know about Cutler's exceptional arm strength, and Lombardi's point was that on a bad-weather day like you get in New York, that characteristic was extremely valuable, and the difference between winning and losing.

If I were Mike Tannenbaum and Rex Ryan, I'd be more than a little worried about Mark Sanchez. He looked terrible Sunday, on every throw he attempted. The five interceptions and 14 other incompletions were mostly not a function of bad decisions, they were a function of the mind being willing, and the body not being able. I know how to dunk a basketball, but I can't jump close to high enough to do it on a 10-foot rim. Sanchez lacked the zip to get his ball downfield effectively, and the weather was only pretty bad, not as bad as it can get in northern New Jersey. Sanchez did tell the CBS announcer crew that he had never played or practiced in temperatures below about 55 degrees, so I don't want to go overboard on making pronouncements yet, with just a one-game sample size. This is a big deal, though, and it will bear watching as the season goes on.

b. He never has the stats to back this up, but stats are merely convenient indicators; Lee Evans is one of the five best WRs in the NFL. If he ever had a good QB throwing him the ball, and an offensive scheme which featured his talents, the stats would be there, believe me.

c. I was asked recently by a reader if I still thought that Bills rookie LG Andy Levitre looked like he couldn't play in the NFL. The answer is, at least in the second half and overtime on Sunday, he looked league-average. When I originally criticized Levitre's play, he got dominated in the preseason by Tennessee's Tony Brown and Jason Jones, who are both Pro Bowl-caliber DTs. Kris Jenkins had already gotten hurt by the time I was watching Sunday, but Levitre was a slight positive in the run game, and a slight negative in pass protection. I still do doubt if he can anchor effectively against a good bull rush.

d. Wow, the Tennessee Titans had an unspeakably terrible Sunday. The Patriots completed 38 out of 45 throws, and the Titans completed 2 of 14. Those two completions were a 15-yard gain by their FB Ahmard Hall, and a 22-yard loss by WR Nate Washington, for a net of (-7) passing yards.

Those stats tell the story of the Titans this season. They were outstanding in coverage the past few years, and they're terrible this year, due to some injuries and shocking regressions by a couple players like Michael Griffin and Cortland Finnegan (who is currently hurt.) They also got good play from Kerry Collins in 2008, and they've gotten extremely lousy play from him this year. He's getting pretty solid protection, but he isn't hitting open men (when men do manage to get open). I don't think Vince Young is the answer, but it's time to make him the starter for the rest of the season, to see for sure.

e. Former first-rounder Jamaal Anderson looked much better for the Falcons at DT than he ever has at DE. He was part of a sack of Jay Cutler late in the 4th quarter, after only having 2 in 2-plus years as an end. He lacked the suddenness to beat a Tackle, but really got off the ball well against the Bears' Guards. He also was in coverage in the zone blitz the Falcons ran on 4th down, and caused Cutler's throw to be offline. The Falcons may be on to something.

f. ST&NO Favorite Thomas DeCoud has been playing at a Pro Bowl level for the Falcons all season, and he intercepted Cutler twice on Sunday night. He gets no recognition yet, but he is very instinctive and has a great feel for zone coverage.

g. Cutler still throws the pass to the seam better than any QB in the NFL, and makes big plays on the run. He's exactly the same player he was in Denver last season, and I mean that exactly how it sounds. The Bears got exactly the guy they saw on film, and I hope that's what they were expecting, because if it was, you'd have to expect that they're happy. I can be happy that they're happy, right? ;)

h. I am shocked that the Raiders beat the Eagles. I didn't watch a lot of the game, because it was my local FOX late game, and crap-tastic WJW FOX 8 had a really annoying sound problem going on. Looking at the stat sheet, it jumps out that the Eagles only ran the ball 14 times, and they were fairly successful in those carries, averaging 4.8 yards. Periodically, Andy Reid's Eagles teams have gotten really unbalanced and pass-happy, and it's a recipe for getting beat, over the years. With Sunday's injury to Jason Peters, coupled with the pre-existing absence of Shawn Andrews, it's hard to imagine why you'd think you can be successful protecting Donovan McNabb, when there is no threat of the run.

i. I have alway liked Sidney Rice, dating back to his days at the University of South Carolina. He's big, physical, and fluid. Brett Favre is turning him into a possible Pro Bowl player this season, and it seems they have a great deal of chemistry. He has 23 catches for 409 yards so far this season, and his impact is growing each week.

j. I actually thought that Michael Oher did a pretty credible job against Jared Allen Sunday, for his second start at LT. The sack Allen got came when Oher and the LG were releasing to the outside, like the play was supposed to be a screen, and since nobody went out to the left to receive a pass, I can only imagine that there was a communication breakdown somewhere on that play. When it came to man-to-man blocking, Oher did pretty well, and wasn't beaten like a red-headed step-child, as Allen claimed on Monday.

k. Anybody believe me yet that Joe Flacco is a true franchise QB? He got hit a lot, but made a lot of big-time throws on Sunday, and he had his team in position to win the game (again).

l. Steve Hutchinson blew up Haloti Ngata several times on Sunday, and as good as he has been in his career, I was surprised to see him win that matchup so convincingly.

m. I hated the Giants defensive game plan on Sunday. They need to be rushing 5 men, because that's how they do their business every week. They seemed like they wanted to sit back and try to play coverage, and it didn't work at all. The Giants really miss Kenny Phillips, who is a good young safety; they were particularly vulnerable in the middle of the field against the Saints.

n. The key to the Saints' offensive success is their ability to run the football. The success they've had in that area this year is the big difference from last season. The perception seems to exist that they're a spread-out, 5-wide kind of team, but they're not. They run frequently and well, and make big yards off their play-action stuff. If the Broncos happen to see them in a Super Bowl setting, the order of the day will be neutralizing the run.

o. Remember 2 weeks ago, when I said that the Steelers' success in running the ball was a function of San Diego's interior weakness, rather than their own strength? Look no further than Sunday's game against Cleveland for proof of that. Shaun Rogers did a great job inside for the Browns, and if you take away 21 yards gained on an end-around by Mike Wallace, the Steelers had 119 rushing yards on 35 carries, a 3.4-yard average. Remember, aside from Rogers, the Browns are very non-descript up front. The Broncos averaged 5 yards against them in Week 2, for purposes of comparison.

p. Ben Roethlisberger was lights-out on Sunday, and Hines Ward played very well again. I've never been Ward's biggest fan, and I considered him to be fading as a playmaker at the end of last season. He's looked rejuvenated this whole season, though.

4. I had some technical problems with Lighting Up The Scoreboard this week, and I ran out of time before I had to leave for Indiana on Friday. I wanted to incorporate some of the graphics I had created for it into today's ST&NO, and talk about a couple things the Broncos showed against New England.

The Trap - A Different Take on an Age-Old Play

This is a standard HB trap play, a traditional staple of the running game at every level of football. There is such a thing as a Tackle trap, but usually the backside guard is going to pull, and hit the NT or DT who was allowed to come across the line. The pulling player's block serves to push the defensive lineman toward the sideline, and the RB runs behind that block, where the play-side players are out hitting somebody on the second level.

For the record, this play works better, from an angles perspective, against a 4-3 look, because instead of a zero-technique NT, you have a three-technique DT right where you want your puller to meet him. The NT's presence makes the angle more difficult. This is the quintessential man-blocked play, so Broncos fans haven't seen a lot of it over the last 15 years.

Last week against New England, the Broncos brought in Russ Hochstein as an extra TE and pulled him. The play looked like this, and I am now showing it against San Diego's base 3-4 look:

This has a slightly different objective, which is to entice the five-technique DE, Luis Castillo (93), across the line, rather than the NT. Both Daniel Graham (89) and Ryan Clady (78) briefly engage Castillo, before releasing to the second level to hit both play-side linebackers. Castillo processes the events as being a misread zone-tandem block, where both O-Linemen thought they needed to get off the initial block to the second level. He crosses the line of scrimmage, looking for a big play, and is hit by Hochstein, who is pulling from the backside. Knowshon Moreno's angle is less severe, and he can run in the B gap, where Ben Hamilton and Casey Wiegmann have doubled the NT.

Of course, I drew and wrote all this up before the Monday Night game, and never saw this get employed against the Chargers, but we should expect to see it again this season. It worked really well a few times against New England. I am sure that, along with the Wild Horses stuff, the Broncos didn't think they needed to use it to run effectively against the Chargers.

5. Enjoyable/Aggravating Travel Note of The Week:

Here's a thought that I think I thunk. Does Enjoyable/Aggravating mean Enjoyable AND Aggravating? Enjoyable OR Aggravating? How about Enjoyable AND/OR Aggravating? That slash leaves a lot to the imagination.

Anyway, on the heels of my Notre Dame trip, I have a wedding to go to next weekend in Dallas. I leave Cleveland Thursday evening, (already wearing my drinking shoes as I deplane, at the groom's request), and return Monday afternoon. Scott, the groom, is the tattooed guy who was enlisted in the Army once, and eventually became an officer. He's now a Blackhawk pilot, and his wife is an Apache pilot, and both just returned from a year in Iraq. Scott is my fraternity brother (we're members of Tau Kappa Epsilon - Any other Tekes out there?) and it will be good to see him and some other guys who are coming in.

This is germane to ST&NO, because I get to write about whatever I feel like, and also because it affects near-term programming. (And also, also because it allowed me to introduce some snark about Peter King, which is always fun, and good for a cheap laugh or two.) Being on the bye week anyway, expect an abbreviated ST&NO next Tuesday, probably limited to some game observations that I am hopefully able to pick up on before the wedding on Sunday night. Obviously, Lighting Up The Scoreboard won't appear this Saturday, but expect it to be back on Saturday, October 31st, in advance of the Ravens game.

6. While we're snarking it up about MMQB, y'all know I am a helpful guy, right? Well, maybe you don't know, but you could guess. Anyway, I am one of these people who gets annoyed when people misuse words, like H-Back or factoid. Ahh, yes, factoid.

Peter King insists on calling a section of his MMQB column "Factoid Of The Week Which May Only Interest Me." I sent him a message once, long before I ever had a competing column, to helpfully let him know that he was misusing the word "factoid." See what a swell guy I am?

From our friends at Webster.com:

Main Entry: fac·toid

Pronunciation: \ˈfak-ˌtȯid\

Function: noun

Date: 1973

1 : an invented fact believed to be true because of its appearance in print

2 : a briefly stated and usually trivial fact

I actually like the Wiktionary.org definition better:

factoid (plural factoids)

An inaccurate statement or statistic believed to be true because of broad repetition, especially if cited in the media.

Usage Problem. A small insignificant fact, but still interesting. (Note: Refer above to the meaning of the suffix. It's ironic that the very definition of factoid has itself come to be a factoid.)

So, for ignoring my helpful advice a couple years ago, Peter gets an ESPN-style C'MON, MAN. By the way, his column yesterday was Bill Williamson Memorial Decent. He is still buying into this silly meme that the Broncos have an impossible schedule, which bugs me.

7. Retired for John Elway.

8. As a follow-up to last week's column, I give credit to Rick Reilly for manning up for his clownishness with all that Boy Blunder stuff. I thought he would stay unaccountable for it, but he surprised me.

9. Expect the Broncos not to do anything at the trade deadline. It's not like anybody is giving away a bigger/better Offensive Guard, and if they were, the Packers, Steelers, or Chargers would almost certainly outbid the Broncos for him. They're desperate for offensive line help, and for the Broncos, it would just be kind of nice to get bigger and stronger at LG.

That's all I have for this week, friends. Have a great one, and look for ST&NO again next Tuesday morning, where my next trick will be to make y'all think you're getting a football column, and instead, probably bring you A Wedding Story, like you were watching (a funny, masculine, fraternity guy version of) Lifetime. If you need me before that, get at me on Twitter at @TedBartlett905.

Poll

OK, I said it, and I want to know what the community thinks, in simple poll form. Is this team a legitimate Super Bowl contender?

Umm, yes. I've been waiting here for you with a cold glass of Kool-Aid, and you're late to the party.

339 votes

My expectations were a little more tempered, but I'd have to say yes, based on the evidence.

1008 votes

I have moved from the 7-9 crowd to the 11-5 crowd, but I think they're one and done. Later for the Super Bowl.

286 votes

I still think the big, bad schedule will keep the Broncos out of the playoffs.

7 votes

I am one of the few Chargers fans who cares enough to come mess up this poll.

9 votes

1649 votes | Poll has closed

Tennessee Titans Fullback Does Some Talking

John B — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 17:33:17 -0000

More photos » by John Russell - AP

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Ahmard Hall took some shots at Bart Scott yesterday:

"I don't like Bart; Bart don't like me. He knows that," Hall told The Tennessean. "We had a good battle last year and he knows what he is going to get from me. And I know what I am going to get from him. You're going to see us fighting all day. It is serious to me. I wouldn't fight the guy or nothing like that - unless he wanted to fight. I don't like the guy. He just runs his mouth all the time, even when he is not doing anything in the play."
Scott laughed off Hall's comments Friday. "That's fine," the linebacker said after practice. "I'll show up (tomorrow), he'll be there at 1, I will be there at 1 and we'll see what happens. I have played this guy two times in my career so. ... before last year I had no idea who the fullback was for the Tennessee Titans."

I think by this point we should realize how little talk means. It just adds to the fun of the game. What matters is what happens on the field. If this is the kind of thing that gets Hall motivated, more power to him.

Tennessee Titans Morning Links: Connectin' Like A Roundhouse, From The Townhouse To The Tenements Edition

August West — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 13:30:04 -0000

More photos » by Bill Kostroun - AP

One thing Rex can certainly do better than his dad, Buddy: eat.

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The Titans aren't using the Wildcat, plain and simple.

Paul K takes a look at how the Titans' defense can get better, and here's most of the conclusion:

Simply put, defensive backs need to cover better. As Jeff Fisher said Monday, "when a player gets beat one on one, it has nothing to do with the game plan or the calls or so on and so forth."

Today's Jam is my favorite hip-hop group of all time: Blackstar (Mos Def & Talib Kweli) doing Definition.

Follow us through the jump to discover how you can have a Hall of Fame worthy performance yet not be player of the week...

So Chris Johnson gets asked to put his shoes in the Hall of Fame, but he can't even get player of the week!?!??!!!

Ahmard Hall is ready to renew a very competitive rivalry with former Raven and current Jet Bart Scott.

The Tennessean does a chat with a Jets blog? How very original....

Jets QB Mark Sanchez has some knee soreness that could effect him Sunday, and the Jets in general have a lot of names on their injury list.

This New York game will be a homecoming of sorts for 1st round pick Kenny Britt.

Commenter and blogger Rustmeister has some thoughts on the game, and on whiny Titans fans.

If there's anything you would like to share with the MCM community, please take advantage of the comments, fanshots and fanposts to do so! Or, you can always email me at mcmaugustwest@gmail.com.

Tennessee Titans Morning Links: From OTAs to MMA Edition

August West — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 13:41:00 -0000

More photos » by Wade Payne - AP

Will he stay or will he go?

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It was no surprise that Bo Scaife didn't sign a long term deal before the franchise deadline, so now he'll have to play under the tag.

Great read on Titans GM Mike Reinfeldt.

Paul K talks with Ahmard Hall about his best block from last season. Gotta love the Sarge.

More links after the jump!

I had no idea Steve McNair had a cousin who is the running back at UT-Martin.

Steve's lack of a will could make things messy down the road. Lets hope that's not how it goes down...

The Titans drafted Wes Shivers with the their 7th round pick in 2000, but he only hung around the league for one year. Now, Shivers is making a living as an MMA fighter on Spike TV.

The Ravens Ratbirds appear to be trying to convince Derrick Mason to come back for at least one more year.

MCM is now the official sponsor of Keith Bulluck's Pro-Football-Reference page (complete with August's beautifully worded tribute to KB). -Jimmy

If there's anything you would like to share with the MCM community, please take advantage of the comments, fanshots and fanposts to do so! You can also email me at mcmaugustwest@gmail.com.

State of the Tennessee Titans Roster: Running Back

Jimmy — Thu, 14 May 2009 21:02:01 -0000

More photos » by Mark Humphrey - AP

Big Mac....Big contract....Big Mac....Big contract....(AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

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Unlike the quarterback position, there isn't a lot to debate when it comes to the running backs. This is easily the most talented and deepest position on the roster.

Chris Johnson is coming of a rookie season where he set the league on fire, and believe it or not, there is still a lot more he can do in this offense. You can probably count on one hand the amount of times he motioned out of the backfield and lined up in the slot. I am sure the reason they didn't let him do that much last season was because of the load that he was already carrying on the offense, but now with a full season under his belt, there is a good chance we will see him do that more. Also, he is really fast.

I think we all expect for LenDale White to have the best season of his career in this his contract season. While there is a part of me that gets really mad when guys do that, it will be just fine with me because the Titans will get the benefit of that in 2009, and then some team will give him a boatload of money in free agency. Then we won't have to worry about him anymore. (Although I will miss his interviews because there are very few guys out there who can come up with a term like swaggerjacked!)

Chris Henry is also fast, and there is a very good shot that he will be running into offensive lineman's backs in another city in 2009. The kid has a deadly combination of size and speed, but if you don't have vision it just doesn't matter.

I can't wait to see what they get from Rafael Little. He was a game changing running back before tearing up his knee, and it would be great if the Titans could plug him in there to give Crazy Legs some plays off next season.

Javon Ringer is another guy that I am pretty excited about. He proved in college that he is capable of carrying the load, and he is also very solid catching the ball out of the backfield. His best shot to be active on game day in 2009 will be to make an impact on special teams, but he could be a guy that could make an impact if CJ or The Round Mound go down with an injury.

And of course there is The Sarge, Ahmard Hall. Hall brings a lot to this offense that doesn't show up on the stat sheet, and he proved last season that he can make some plays when Dinger calls his number.

A lot of you didn't agree with me when I said quarterback was a strength of the Titans' roster, but I dare you to argue with me when I call running back the strength of the roster. These running backs combined with the offensive line that will be in front of them and a head coach that LOVES to run the football should bring good things to Nashville in 2009.

[UPDATE]- My apologies to the Bowling Ball, Quinton Ganther. He is a guy that got us all excited and does have some talent, but I just don't see anyway he can make the 2009 roster.

MCM Player Reviews: Ahmard Hall

Jimmy — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 18:00:14 -0000

Sarge is one of the most underrated players on this squad. He is one of those guys that you have to have on your roster to have success. He appears to be a great team guy, and that is refreshing to see amongst today's players.

Hall has shown the ability to make some big plays, so he is more than just a blocker. He is a free agent, and I just hope that the Titans don't underestimate what he means to this team like they did with Lorenzo Neal after the 2000 season. Just to refresh the front office's memory...

Eddie George Rushing Yards

1999- 1,304

2000- 1,509

2001- 939

Bring Sarge back.

Click here to see the entire player review series.

*A big thanks to MCM reader Ryan Sax for creating the graphic above. He has agreed to make one for every player in the series. You can check out some of his other work by clicking here.