SB Nation - Nathan Vasher

How the Bears can move up in the 2010 NFL Draft

Lester A. Wiltfong Jr. — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 16:00:16 -0000

by Jason DeCrow - AP

With no first or second round picks thanks to the Jay Cutler and Gaines Adams deals, getting an impact rookie will be challenging, but not impossible. The Bears need to find a way to get into the first or second round, and then of course, not whiff on the picks. The Bears currently have one pick in the third through seventh rounds for a total of five picks. As far as I can tell the most picks you can start draft day with is ten, but you can wheel and deal once the draft starts to get as many as you want. The Bears need to do what ever they can to get ten draft choices before draft day in order to maximize their dealing capabilities.

Looking over the Bears roster you'll see plenty of players under contract that shouldn't be a part of their future. Some players will have to be cut, but some have enough value to pick up a late round pick. Jerry Angelo (if he's still the GM this off season) has to deal away some dead weight. Just remember, making trades in the NFL isn't like other sports, player movement through trades just doesn't happen that often, but Angelo will have to thoroughly explore all possibilities. And the biggest thing he must consider is he may be drafting for the last time in Chicago, so if the opportunity arises use some of the 2011 draft choices to help get some picks in 2010.

One thing to keep in mind when dealing away some of your depth is the special teams will suffer. But with Dave Toub coordinating that phase of the team it's a chance you have to take. I'll speculate on some possible moves the Bears could make.

A) Nathan Vasher has a big money deal, but could be moved because he has had some past success. All you need is one GM to think a change of scenery could revive his career. Someone will want a former Pro Bowl corner, and a change just may do him good. Depending on the timing of the deal you could possibly get a fifth or sixth round pick for him. If the Bears could squeak out a few reps at free safety for the "Interceptor" it could help his trade value or if he fills in adequately at corner for a game or two they'll see his value go up, maybe as high as a fourth round pick.

B) I know the Bears were burned by trading away a safety a few years ago in Chris Harris, but it's clear the Bears are moving forward with Al Afalava as the strong safety. He outplayed Kevin Payne to win the job, but Payne has starting experience on his resume. He has some value around the league. The Bears seem comfortable with Craig Steltz backing up SS, so moving Payne makes sense right now. Depending on team needs this off season the Bears might end up with as high as a fifth round pick for him.

C) With Greg Olsen winning the starting tight end job from Desmond Clark, and with the emergence of Kellen Davis as a serviceable back up, Des Clark is expendable. Neither Olsen or Davis can block as well as Clark, but blocking is something they can improve on. Remember Clark was a wide receiver at Wake Forest and worked to become a better than average blocker. You need your reserve tight ends to be core special teamers and Clark doesn't fit that. If he fully recovers from this years injuries and finishes strong he might bring you a fourth round pick. Besides this season, he's been a reliable starting tight end for the Bears, and even though Clark is an 11 year vet he could be a starter for another team.

D) Garrett Wolfe, currently on IR because of a lacerated kidney, is expected to be ready for full participation come this off season. It should be with another team. For what ever reason the Bears have never been able to find a way to fit him into the game plan. He's excelled on special teams the last couple years and in his limited time with the ball in his hands this year he's been ok. With Jones expected back next year in some role and Khalil Bell able to fill the special teams spot of Wolfe, the Bears need to float Wolfe's name out there to gauge his value. At most I think they could get a fifth round pick for him, but their probably more likely to get a sixth.

The next two players I'll throw out there I really can't see traded, but you never know. Trading away players of their stature is difficult because one side will never feel truly compensated in any deals that may get to the table.

E) A popular name that is mentioned in trade speculation by many fans is Tommie Harris. With his production coming no where near his contract, moving him could be next to impossible. He has however, started playing better of late. Here's the question to ponder; If Harris is 100% and playing like the Tommie of old do you still want to trade him? If he has a strong finish to the year and they decide he isn't worth the risk, they could get a third (maybe a second) round pick for him if the right situation arises.

F) Before the recent drama surrounding Brian Urlacher I never would have even considered trading him away. But with him dropping those quotes for the Yahoo Sports piece, I could see him moved. Now finding someone that would want to take on that contract is another thing entirely. With his recent injury history teams may shy away from him, but there will be a few organizations that'll show interest. If his wrist heals properly, and all indications are that it will, he could fetch as high as a second round pick.

* Of course any of these players and any future draft choices could be used to pick up a legit number one wide receiver. In that case, picking up a guy like Brandon Marshall or Anquan Boldin would trump any plans I touched on above.

But if the Bears do stockpile lower round picks they'll then need to be used to move up in the draft, something Jerry Angelo hasn't done much of in the past. Using an NFL Draft Pick Value Chart, one of which every GM in the league uses, you can see the points needed to move up in the draft. If you've never seen the chart go take a look so what I say next makes sense (well... I'll try and make sense).

There are always teams looking to trade down, whether to save on the first round draft pick contract or because of how the draft is falling they realize "their guy" will be available later. The Bears would need between 600-900 points to get into the bottom half of round one. Many times the team trading up will have to overpay to make the move. I won't take into consideration any picks potentially obtained by moving Harris or Urlacher (like I said, it's unlikely they'll be moved).

OK, so in the scenarios outlined above the Bears would have their own 3rd-7th round picks plus two 4's a 5 and a 6. I'll look at some draft day deals that could move them into day 1 (1st round) or day 2 (2nd and 3rd round) of the 2010 NFL Draft.

1) The three 4th round picks (approximately worth 200 points) could get them into the 3rd round.

2) They Bears could package their third and fourth round picks (about 300 pts.) and move into the lower end of round two.

3) To get into the latter part of the 2010 1st round they could always move their '11 #1 pick and a handful of late '10 picks. There seems to always be a team picking in the late 1st round that is looking to get out of that pick.

4) If the Bears finish 10th worst this year their 3rd round pick (220 pts.), their 4th round pick (82 pts.), and their 5th round pick (37 pts.) could move them up to the bottom third of the 2nd round. That 2nd plus their 2011 2nd could get them into the 2010 1st round.

5) We'll call this the "Ditka Deal"; If the Bears trade every single one of their 2010 picks, their 3rd-7th (375 pts.), plus their 4 picks acquired in my moves above (approximately 200 points), they could jump up near the top of the 2nd round.

You can see how a creative GM could work the phones to move up. All you need is a willing partner and the guts to pull the trigger on numerous deals. With day 1 of the draft limited to the 1st round this year there will be more time to work the phones before day 2 and the 2nd and 3rd rounds.

Laundry List of Mediocracy: Stuff Since the Bears Super Bowl

Dane Noble — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 22:09:57 -0000

When a season opens up with as many high expectations as the Bears did, it's not hard to start the finger-pointing game when things go wrong. We have all taken the time to try and pin-point things, but that task can be a bit overwhelming.

Enter Bears writer Jeff Dickerson: (an excerpt):

Football is the ultimate team game. You win as an organization, you lose as an organization. Instead of simply blaming one person (Ron Turner) for the Bears being 20-22 since the Super Bowl, take a step back and look at the big picture: It's been a collective effort, from the front office down to the players. Nobody should be immune from criticism, because everybody played a part in this mess.

Dickerson goes on to try and quantify (and qualify) why the boat is not only rocking, but also sinking since the Super Bowl:

After trading Thomas Jones to New York, the Bears handed the starting running back job to Cedric Benson (bust) in 2007.

Mark Anderson is promoted over Alex Brown in 2007 -- Anderson clearly couldn't handle the assignment.

Nathan Vasher got hurt versus Dallas in 2007 -- he never recovered.

Brian Urlacher dealt with major back issues in 2007, and missed almost all of 2009 with a dislocated wrist.

The Bears drafted Dan Bazuin (bust) in the second round in 2007.

The Bears drafted Michael Okwo (bust) in the third round in 2007.

The Bears drafted Garrett Wolfe (reach) in the third round in 2007.

And that's just 2007. Make sure you check out the full article for his complete run down.

Did he leave anything out? What do we need to see, starting right now, to right the ship before it is completely capsized?

Looking back at Perry Fewell's career path

MattRichWarren — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:03:15 -0000

More photos » by Don Heupel - AP

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It's only appropriate that Buffalo Bills interim head coach Perry Fewell's first game as an NFL head coach would be against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Fewell broke into the NFL as a coach with the Jaguars organization in 1998. Let's take a closer look at the Bills' new leader.

Playing Career
Perry Fewell attended South Point High School in Belmont, N.C. and was inducted into the Belmont Sports Hall of Fame in 2001. Following high school, he went to Lenoir-Rhyne College in North Carolina and was a football standout. He was a four-year letterman, and as a senior in 1983, he was named the team's Most Improved Player.

College Coaching Career
Following his graduation, Fewell accepted a two-year stint with the North Carolina Tar Heels as a special assistant under head coach Dick Krum, followed by one year at Army. From 1988 to 1991, he made the move to Kent State University as a defensive assistant, before holding the same role back at Army (1992-1994). In 1995, Fewell became defensive backs coach and assistant head coach at Vanderbilt University, where they finished 2-9 twice and 3-8 - but coached future Pro Bowl safety Corey Chavous.

Professional Coaching Career
In 1998, Fewell accepted a job on Tom Coughlin's staff as defensive backs coach under defensive coordinator Dick Jauron. The following year, Jauron was hired in Chicago as head coach; former Panthers head coach Dom Capers replaced Jauron as defensive coordinator, and he kept Fewell on staff as his defensive backs coach. Capers left to accept the job as the expansion Houston Texans' head coach following the 2000 season. Gary Moeller was hired from the Lions to replace Capers, and John Pease took over the following year. Fewell continued to be passed over for the defensive coordinator job for much more experienced candidates.

After Coughlin's firing in 2002, Fewell moved to St. Louis, where he was appointed defensive backs coach under head coach Mike Martz and defensive coordinator Lovie Smith. With the Rams, Fewell coached Aeneas Williams, his greatest pupil, to his final Pro Bowl appearance. The Rams snagged 24 interceptions in Fewell's first year. When Smith took the head coaching job in Chicago, Fewell was again passed over for the coordinator position, as the Rams hired recently-fired Cardinals defensive coordinator Larry Marmie.

A year later, Fewell joined Smith's staff in Chicago as the defensive backs coach under defensive coordinator Ron Rivera. During one year with the Bears, both safety Mike Brown and cornerback Nathan Vasher were selected to the Pro Bowl, and Chicago ranked second in defense and third in passing defense.

A year after joining the Bears, Fewell was offered his first chance at a defensive coordinator job with the Buffalo Bills and new head coach Dick Jauron. Jauron, as mentioned earlier, was defensive coordinator in Jacksonville when Fewell broke into the NFL as defensive backs coach there. In his years as a coordinator in Buffalo, Fewell's units have been up and down in statistically in every category - except rushing yards, where they have ranked in the bottom 10 for four straight years. Aaron Schobel is the only Bills defender to be selected to the Pro Bowl in Fewell's time in Buffalo, earning the honor in 2006 and 2007.

On November 17, 2009, the Bills fired Jauron as head coach, promoting Fewell to the interim head coaching position. Here's a quote from Aeneas Williams who says he isn't surprised by Fewell's promotion at all:

"Coach Fewell knew how to relate to the guys to get the veterans as well as the younger guys to play together. He commanded the respect of the players -- not demanded, but he commanded the respect of us players by his professionalism and his ability to help us be successful."

ESPN's Adam Schefter had some interesting points to make about Fewell in a recent article as well:

When NFL teams were sifting through head-coaching candidates to interview last winter, at least three of them were advised to talk to Buffalo's then-defensive coordinator Perry Fewell. None did. But now the Bills have given the 47-year-old Fewell an opportunity as interim head coach... Some men carry themselves in a way befitting an NFL head coach; Fewell is one of them. Sitting in a conference room in an Indianapolis hotel last summer before a preseason game against the Colts, Fewell impressed those around him with his mix of smarts and seriousness. It is what he has done in each of his NFL stops -- Jacksonville, St. Louis, Chicago and Buffalo. Now Fewell inherits a talent-deficient roster, with plenty of holes along the offensive line. But should the Bills play for him the way the 49ers played last season for Mike Singletary, Fewell could wind up having the "interim" tag removed from his title.

On his new role as Bills head coach, Fewell wasn't thrilled his chance had to come at the expense of one of his mentors. "It's something I always wanted to do," said Fewell, "but I didn't envision doing it like this." Only time will tell if he holds onto the position for longer than the seven games he is scheduled to coach now. Either way, Fewell will certainly have a home in the NFL in 2010 and beyond.

49ers 10 - Bears 6: 49ers day-after press conference

Fooch — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 23:00:40 -0000

Mike Singletary usually has an 11:45am press conference the day after the 49ers play. Today it was bumped up to 10:45 and I didn't get a discussion post up. I just received the transcript for the press conference and have posted it after the jump. If you'd like to read it while watching the actual press conference, you can watch the archived footage at 49ers.com.

There is a whole assortment of quotable info, but there is always some particular useful thoughts. In terms of injuries, nobody has been knocked out for next week's game. Michael Lewis had a stinger, Arnaz Battle a quad injury, Mark Roman a knee contusion, Adam Snyder an AC Sprain, and Takeo Spikes a hamstring sprain. The 49ers were brutalized with bumps and bruises in the Titans game, but they came away relatively healthy (all things considered) after this game. Having a few extra days of rest will definitely help.

As for yesterday's inactives, it sounds like Isaac Bruce will be back and active next week at Green Bay. Morgan has supplanted him in the starting lineup, but no word yet on how this affects Jason Hill's playing time. As for Glen Coffee, there's no word yet on whether he'll be able to play next week. I'd say err on the side of caution with concussions, particularly as this one seems a little more rough than the Michael Lewis variety.

We'll have a separate post at some point about him, but I'd like to point out Coach Singletary's comments about the defensive line in general, and Aubrayo Franklin in particular:

[NT] Aubrayo Franklin, I thought, had another great game. He's been, probably, the most consistent player that we've had this year thus far. Aubrayo has that low center of gravity. He is always working at just trying to get his body in the right position to make plays. The best thing about him is he's very unselfish, as with [DT Isaac] Sopoaga and [DT] Justin Smith as well. That's really how you're effective against the run. You have unselfish players who are willing to do their job, get in the gap and hold those guys so the linebackers can get where they need to go, and then the linebackers have to be very disciplined going downhill to make sure that they're fitting in those areas as well.

All things considered, are most folks happy, or at least satisfied with the play of the defensive line? The pass rush that they provide (on top of what the OLBs are supposed to be doing) can be a bit inconsistent, but I have to say that what has made Aubrayo Franklin such a force in the middle now is that he's showing more consistency. Last season he finally started putting things together, and this year he's carried it over on a week to week basis. I realize sometimes he's utilized in a limited role, but I think he's really stepped up for this defense. There are still issues on the defense, but for any improvements they've made, Aubrayo Franklin definitely deserves some credit.

Head Coach Mike Singletary
Press Conference - November 13, 2009
San Francisco 49ers

Opening statements:

"Good morning. I'll talk about the injuries first. [SS] Michael Lewis just has a stinger. [WR] Arnaz Battle, quad. [S Mark] Roman, knee contusion. [RT Adam] Snyder, AC sprain. [LB Takeo] Spikes, hamstring strain, and that's day-to-day. None are so serious that they won't play next week. Spikes, we just have to really watch from day-to-day and see how that goes. [WR] Isaac Bruce, his ankle, I'm sure, will be fine. I think when he is healthy, [WR] Josh Morgan will be the starter.

It was a good game to win last night for many different reasons. The biggest reason is you have a four-game losing streak, and it's just great that it came last night. So, I'm very thankful for that. I think, as I look at the special teams, the biggest thing is we've got to make those kicks. [K Joe] Nedney has to make that kick, and he knows that, and we're trying to get late in the game that pooch kick from our punter. We've got to get that one. Those are things that we have to do going forward. Normally, they're good about those things. I don't know what it was. I know Nedney hooked that kick, don't know why. The only thing I saw, the snap was kind of a poor snap. It was on the ground. He had to pick it up and set it up, and I don't know if that had anything to do with it. We'll find out later today when I talk with them. I thought overall, our special teams, our coverage team did a good job getting down field and getting good field position. I thought we did a pretty decent job overall.

Defensively, I thought out defense, it did what we focused on. They did what we talked about all week, and that was creating turnovers. And, we have to continue to do that, getting our offense the ball. We've got to continue to work on our tackling. A lot more of that was on the perimeter where our DBs were tackling. We just have to do a better job at tackling. We'll continue to work on that.

[NT] Aubrayo Franklin, I thought, had another great game. He's been, probably, the most consistent player that we've had this year thus far. Aubrayo has that low center of gravity. He is always working at just trying to get his body in the right position to make plays. The best thing about him is he's very unselfish, as with [DT Isaac] Sopoaga and [DT] Justin Smith as well. That's really how you're effective against the run. You have unselfish players who are willing to do their job, get in the gap and hold those guys so the linebackers can get where they need to go, and then the linebackers have to be very disciplined going downhill to make sure that they're fitting in those areas as well.

[LB] Matt Wilhelm stepped in and did a nice job for Takeo, and the reason we wanted to go with Matt - not that [LB] Scott [McKillop] is a bad player or anything - Matt has experience. And, that helps tremendously. I think Scott was doing a great job on special teams, and really contributing there. Matt Wilhelm just stepped in and has a really good understanding of this defense. Some of the same things that we do here are some of the concepts anyways that he was familiar with in San Diego. It just made it very natural for him to step in and understand what we're trying to do right away and get it done.

I think our rush was effective. Even though we didn't record a sack, I think that had a lot to do with [QB Jay] Cutler being off balance and not quite seeing what he was hoping to see or trying to see. That, sometimes, can be just as effective depending on the quarterback. So, defensively, overall we did a good job. We've got to continue to do a better job on tight ends. I think the tight end had a few plays. He's a good tight end. He's got great speed and creates matchups; bad matchups for us. For the most part, I think our guys just have to be more consistent in terms of when we have a tight end that's a special guy with good speed, you have to figure out a way to handle that. I think [TE] Vernon [Davis] creates a lot of the same mismatches for defenses when he's going, when he's playing.

The offense, I thought [QB] Alex [Smith] did a good job. I thought our offense did what they needed to do in order for us to win the game. Yes, we would have like to have gotten more points, and I think that will come. The fourth-down play, the fourth-and-one, we were in the red zone. I felt, let's go for it. It was fourth and less than a one, less than one yard to go. If I had to do it over again, I wouldn't. Maybe it was too early in the game, or maybe I was too greedy early on. But, the thing that I want my offensive line to know, and I talked to them after that play, is I want them to know that I believe in them and I believe that any time that we go for a fourth down, the only reason that I'm going for that is because I believe they can get it. That was my thought process, and letting them know that.

I thought we did a good job running the ball. We felt that we could be effective running the ball, and it showed later on. And, because I felt our defense would do a good job against their offense, it's the reason that later on in the game we decided to run the ball more and not take a risk in throwing the ball and run some time off the clock and put the game away. And, that's pretty much it."

On whether he would thinks not scoring more points off of turnovers is troubling:

"I wouldn't say troubling. It's something we have to get better at. Whether you can complete the first down that we had the opportunity to get and continue to go, even though that wasn't on a turnover, I just think we have to do a better job overall in our offense. When we get on the field after a turnover, we have to have the thought process of converting. We've got to convert something, field goals, touchdowns - something. We just have to do a better job of that."

On whether QB Alex Smith's interception in the second quarter prompted him to be more cautious in the second half:

"I don't like any time there's a turnover or an interception. If you're going to get one, hopefully it's like a punt. But, on that particular play, I can certainly understand it. I just think Alex threw it more outside, and it should have been more inside, just a little bit inside. But, when the safety was coming over like he was, I just think it was a tough throw to make. You had to be right on the money to make that throw. Maybe his body position wasn't just right to do that."

On the reason for the penalties:

"I don't know. That bothered me a bit, and I will address that today. From a standpoint of, to me, you're going to have some offsides, and, to be honest with you, going into the game, because of some of the things Vernon said during the week, I think he had a penalty or two jumping offsides. Plus, getting ready to go in after pregame, and the guy coming over talking to him, I think he got in his head a little bit early on, and he wanted to make sure that he got the best of the guy. And, so that's the kind of stuff you don't want to get into because it makes it about you. Vernon and I talked about that before and after the game. I just think some of the other things are just inexcusable. The penalty on [CB] Tarell Brown, I talked to him just a bit after that and we're going to talk about that today. To me, they're what you call selfish penalties. That was a selfish penalty, when it becomes more about me and how tough I am and I'm going to show you I'm not going to take that. You put the team at risk. You put the team in a very difficult situation, particularly, that was a key situation. That just can't happen. It won't happen. So, we will deal with that today but we will not have those kinds of penalties in the game. It happened last night, but that's the last time this year that you will see us have those many penalties because that's one of the things we can't do. We're not the kind of team that - we are a disciplined team and we've got to do a much better job of that. And, we will."

On what Smith did well:

"I think he managed the game. I think he did a good job managing the game. I think he did a good job buying time, trying to make and getting outside of the pocket and trying to keep it going. I think there were times when guys were breathing down his neck and he found a way to make a play. I thought he did a good job there."

On the player's weekend schedule:

"We met about that this morning, talked about it. Tomorrow they will have off. Sunday they will have off. Then we'll come back next week and we are starting on Monday and we will work some on Monday. Then we will work the rest of the week and we will get ready to go."

On whether other teams think they can bait Davis before the game to throw him off:

"I just think what Vernon has done up to this point is really fantastic. I think going forward, he just has to remember that the Vernon that got him to this point is the Vernon that just goes out there and gets it done. If anyone comes up and talks to him or whatever, you just keep going. After the game you can stand there and talk, and maybe that's a good time. I think Vernon has grown up, and I don't think he really understands or he really knows how important he is to this team and how the team responds to him. He is just a gut who has a lot of energy, that is really what it boils down to. He has so much energy and is a very emotional guy. You want guys like that because you have to have guys like that to win championships, and he possesses that. The more we talked about it yesterday, he knows as we are going forward that he has to do a better job of being one of the leaders of this team. And he will do a better job."

On why he didn't call a timeout late in the second quarter to get his team into a two-minute situation:

"That's why I didn't do it, because the fact that they did convert it. That would have just given them that much more time to work with and I didn't want to do that. I felt that if we got the ball back, we will take a shot or do whatever. But I just didn't want to take that risk. That's all."

On WR Isaac Bruce's role the rest of the season:

"He is still going to play. He is still going to play. We just think that the time has come with Josh Morgan where we want to see what he can do as the starter and let him take that lead and let's see what he can do with it. Isaac Bruce is still going to mentor. Isaac Bruce is still going to play. He is still going to make plays, but he is just not going to start. His time will be a little bit limited there. That's all."

On having a successful defensive game plan despite the short week:

"First of all, it is huge for [defensive coordinator] Greg Manusky and his staff to just really work their tails off and try and figure out, not just yesterday but week-in and week-out, try to put in a game plan. Some games you have a feel for what the offense is going to do, what the quarterback is trying to do and some tendencies he might have. When that happens, and it happened a few times this year, when that happens, it really makes it nice for our defense because now you go into a game and it takes a lot of the guessing out of it and you can anticipate more. I think as you go into a game defensively and you can begin to anticipate early in a game, and some of those things you are anticipating are being called, that makes you play that much faster. There are other times you go into a game and they kind of change those tendencies. When teams change those tendencies, it makes it more difficult to have a bead on them. I think overall defensively, week-in and week-out, Greg and his staff do a great job of trying to put the guys in position to win."

On S Mark Roman's long interception drought before last night's game:

"I was aware of the drought and very happy to see him get a turnover, get an interception and be able to run with it a little. That was great to see."

On whether having multiple guys step up can become a staple of the defense:

"I would like to think so. Going forward, I think we just have to continue working and we just have to continue to study and the coaches will continue to do a good job getting our guys in a position to win. I think for us as a team, getting into that second half of the season and knowing that sense of urgency that we have and where we are trying to go and the things we are trying to do, it is very important that we continue to play fast, continue to do all the little things that help us win football games. Going forward, hopefully we can do that."

On whether Nedney's early miss played a role in his decision to punt late in the game:

"Yeah, it played a role. But not only that, but it was really windy at that time and I felt if you try to kick a field goal you could get one of those where the ball is held in the air and they have a chance to return it. You don't want to be in that situation. I just felt it was a great opportunity to get a punt and pin them inside the five, or something like that. It just didn't work out."

On whether Bears CB Nathan Vasher's long touchdown return from several years ago was on his mind:

"Yes. Yes. Absolutely."

On whether this game could boost S Michael Lewis for the rest of the year:

"Yeah, Michael Lewis can be a big-play guy. He is a big hitter and I am just glad we have him. He is just a steady guy back there trying to make plays and his leadership - he is the guy who leads by example. So that was really good to see."

Vikings/Packers: What a Difference One Loss Makes

Gonzo — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:00:35 -0000

by Morry Gash - AP

about 1 month ago: FILE - In this Oct. 5, 2009, file photo, Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre reacts after running back Adrian Peterson rushed for a touchdown against the Green Bay Packers during the first half of an NFL football game in Minneapolis. The Packers know they need to intensify the pressure for Sunday's rematch with Brett Favre and the Vikings at Lambeau Field. (AP Photo/Morry Gash, File)

View full size photo »

So, in case nobody has said anything about it thus far, apparently the Beloved Purple are making their annual pilgrimage to Green Bay this weekend to take on the Packers. There's something different about this week's game, though. . .can't quite put my finger on what it is. . .

Oh, yeah. . .it's that guy on the right over there, isn't it?

It's pretty amazing how much the perception of the Minnesota Vikings seems to have changed after one loss to the defending world champions in their house. If we take a look around the interwebs, six of the seven "experts" at The Sporting News have picked the Packers to beat the Vikings this weekend. Five out of ESPN's eight prognosticators have also picked Green Bay to beat Minnesota. Even the bloggers of SBNation have chosen the Packers to beat Minnesota this weekend, for crying out loud (and we should know better). The folks in Las Vegas have. . .for entertainment purposes only. . .made the Packers a three-point favorite, although that means they consider the two teams to be even since home field is generally considered a three-point advantage.

Not to sound arrogant, but. . .did any of these people see the game that took place in Week 4 between these same two teams?

I know that I did. I seem to remember the Vikings bouncing Aaron Rodgers off the turf like a super ball lots of times, Ryan Grant not doing very much, and most importantly the Vikings winning the football game. Honestly, not a whole lot has changed in the three weeks since that took place.

Yes, the Packers got a week off, and then went out and beat the Lions and Browns by a combined score of 57-3. Remember back in Week 3 or so when the experts out there said that everybody shouldn't get too excited about the Vikings "only" beating the Browns and Lions to open the season? Also, one needs to keep in mind that the Packers faced the Lions at home without Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson, and they also still managed to give up five sacks to a Detroit defense that was playing without their top three defensive linemen. And, yes, I suppose that the Packers' 31-3 victory over the Browns is more impressive cosmetically than the Vikings' 34-20 win. The starting defense still didn't give the Browns any touchdowns (they got one on a Josh Cribbs' punt return and one against the Vikings second-team defense after the game had long been decided).

Thus far over the course of the season, the Packers have beaten one team with a record of .500 or better. That team was the Chicago Bears back in Week 1. Point #1. . .they won that game against Chicago despite Jay Cutler throwing four interceptions (and hitting Packer defenders in the hands and/or chest many more times than that), and they still needed Nathan Vasher to fall down in coverage to eek out a last-minute victory. Point #2. . .did any of you watch Bears/Bengals last week? Man, that was a thrashing unlike anything I've seen in a while. The Bears didn't look like they could beat the University of Cincinnati, let alone the Cincinnati Bengals.

Green Bay's other three victories this season? Against the Lions, Browns, and Rams. . .the three teams that everyone said not to get too excited about the Vikings beating. I'm sure that Green Bay fans could counter that by saying that we needed miracles to beat the Niners and Ravens. But, hey, the Vikings won those games, and that's what counts. I can't tell you the number of Bear and Packer fans I've heard complaining about how the Vikings "haven't played anybody," though.

The Packers are going to look a little different for this one, too. They're currently down to three healthy receivers in Greg Jennings, Donald Driver, and James Jones. I realize the Vikings will (likely) be without Antoine Winfield, but after the play of the secondary last week in Pittsburgh (holding Santonio Holmes and Hines Ward to 3 catches for 62 yards, including just 1 for 3 for Ward), that doesn't sound quite as scary as one would have originally thought. Tackle Chad Clifton is listed as doubtful, and his prospective replacement, rookie T.J. Lang, got pretty thoroughly eviscerated by Jared Allen a few weeks ago when he got his shot at him, including allowing Allen to record yet another safety on Rodgers. Jermichael Finley, who torched the Vikings for 6 catches, 162 yards and a touchdown in Week 4? Yeah. . .Packers' coach Mike McCarthy said he's a "long shot" to play this week.

And, unless the Packers have magically discovered a pass rush that works against teams with offensive lines that grade out better than "awful," they're still going to have a hard time getting to the quarterback. Let's not forget. . .Brett Favre is 6-0 lifetime against teams that have either been coached by or had their defenses coordinated by the overrated Dom Capers.

Seriously. . .what's changed since Week 4? Not a hell of a lot that I can see.

A Green Bay win this weekend turns the NFC North into a dogfight the rest of the way. A Minnesota win should, essentially, lock up the NFC North for the Vikings. Just like in investing, past performance is not always an indicator of future gains. . .but, if I were a betting man, I'd certainly go with history in this one. Brett Favre owned Lambeau Field for sixteen years, and he should own it one more time this Sunday afternoon.

Notes, Scribbles, and Things Jotted Down: Bengals Edition

Dane Noble — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:21:38 -0000

More photos » by Tom Uhlman - AP

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For some reason, looking for someone to place the blame on is the first reaction by many. It hasn't taken long for the gamut to be run- blame the ownership, the management, the coaches, the players. The most important part, though, is just to blame someone, anyone, right? I disagree.

I started jotting down notes, like I usually do, and honestly, stopped during the second quarter. The team we played last night looked good. Cincinnati has an excellent offense, and when you don't put pressure on a QB as good as Carson Palmer, he rips you apart.

The essence of our defense requires the front four to be able to put pressure on the QB. That's just the type of defense we run; when we get to the QB, our LBs and DBs are successful. When we don't get to the QB, our Tampa-2 gets exposed. Bend but don't break... keep everything in front of you... it's just not working.

We don't have the personnel to effectively and successfully run the Tampa-2. I know it, and the Bears know it as well... hence the revolving door of players at the CB and safety position over the last couple of seasons.

- Charles Tillman is overrated.

- Nathan Vasher has never regained his Pro Bowl form since his groin injury in 2007.

- Besides Vasher in 2005, the last cornerback the Bears sent to a Pro Bowl was Donnell Woolford in 1993.

- Josh Beekman is our backup left guard, right guard, and center. That's not good.

- Al Afalava is the best defensive player on our team (besides Briggs). We'll probably trade him for a DE next year.

- Lovie Smith said last week and this week that he would take responsibility for not having our guys ready to play. I wonder if Jerry Angelo will take responsibility for not giving Smith enough talent to be successful.

- Who cares about blaming someone? The Bengals have more talent than the Bears, and they won the game. Their WRs > our DBs. Their OL > our DL. Their DL > our OL. Math made simple.

- Oh, and by the way... trolls will be dealt with swiftly and harshly. If you are only going to post to try and throw salt in a wound, piss people off, or be obnoxious, you might want to go somewhere else.

Are the Bears getting out-coached?

SackMan — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 21:00:27 -0000

More photos » by John Froschauer - AP

Chances are... Lovie Smith is probably dialing up a blitz in this picture from the sidelines in Seattle on Sept. 27, 2009. The Bears had blitzed on 45% of their opponent's drop-backs prior to that game. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

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After Sunday night's painful loss in Atlanta, I found myself questioning the abilities of the Bears coaching staff once again. The Bears had two weeks to prepare for that game, yet they littered the field with penalties and blunders which ultimately cost them a chance at victory. Three of the biggest coaching mistakes in that game are flat out inexcusable.

1. The Roddy White TD - The Bears were caught out of position when 3 receivers were covered by only 2 defenders. The Falcons had two wideouts and TE Tony Gonzalez lined up in trips right at the LOS, and Gonzalez was MLB Nick Roach's responsibility. The Bears were running a safety blitz, and outnumbered in coverage. No timeout was called on the field by Roach... and, no timeout was called from the sidelines either. The result: Matt Ryan threw an quick screen to Roddy White, who was uncovered with two blockers, and ran for one of the easiest TDs you'll ever see in the NFL.

2. The no-huddle - The Bears defense was caught off guard by a no-huddle attack, and the Falcons finished a 12-play drive in the first half that ended with a Tony Gonzalez TD. Gonzalez was wide open in the back of the endzone, where MLB Nick Roach once again failed to cover him. When asked by reporters after the game about the Falcons no-huddle offense, Love Smith said they were unprepared for it, even though Matt Ryan said they've used the no-huddle a lot this season when he was asked a similar question. It was later discussed the the Falcons used the no-huddle very often vs New England earlier in the season. So, the Bears had two weeks to prepare for it, and were unprepared? Hmmmm... go figure.

3. Twelve men on the field - For the second time this year on Sunday Night Football, the Bears found themselves in a numbers crunch. The first time this happened, in Green Bay, the Bears were punting in the 4th quarter from their own 26 yard line with a 12-10 lead. When they thought the Packers had too many men on the field, they ran a fake to try an take advantage of a "free play." But, they were wrong, lost a challenge and a timeout, and turned it over on downs at their own 30 yard line. The Packers kicked a field goal to take a 13-12 lead.

This time, in the 4th quarter once again, the Bears had just forced the Falcons to punt on a 4th and 4 from the Bears 36 yard line. But, 12 men on the field gave the Falcons a 1st down at the Bears 31 in the 4th quarter with a 14-7 lead. Thankfully, Matt Ryan was intercepted by Nathan Vasher at the Bears 7 yard line on the very next play.

When I reflect on those 3 things... I sit here and scratch my head.

Then, I start to think of some other concerns that raise my eyebrow.

The Bears blitz
Over the past two seasons, the Bears have blitzed more than almost every team in the NFL.

Per Dan Pompei, on Sep 27th:

Last year, they blitzed on 34 percent of their opponents' drop-backs. This year, with coach Lovie Smith handling the defensive play-calling for the first time, they have blitzed on 45 percent of their opponents' drop-backs.

Only six teams -- the Jets, Bills, Steelers, Browns, Cowboys and Cardinals -- have run more blitzes than the Bears this season. And of those, only the Bills and Cardinals operate out of a four-man front as the Bears do.

I also remember it being documented that the Bears led the NFL in blitz % last season... although I can't find a source.

Sunday night vs the Falcons was no exception. The Bears blitzed Matt Ryan repeatedly in that game, however they failed to register a single sack or QB hit. Ryan's jersey never even touched the ground. When a team blitzes that many times, you'd figure they would eventually get to the QB... right? But, the Bears blitzes over the past several years have been practically useless... which raises another coaching question: Why?

Leading the league in blitz % in 2008, the Bears ranked 22nd in the league with 28 sacks. So far this season, the Bears have vastly improved their pass rush with 14 sacks... however, 10 of them are from defensive lineman. Why aren't the blitzers actually getting to the QB?

Talent has underachieved on the Bears, and excelled on other teams

Players come and go... and sometimes perform better on other teams. I get it... it's just the way it is. However, in the Bears case, there's a long list piling up. These players have had limited success as a Bear, and have left Chicago and prospered in other places. And, when you break it down... you wonder why they aren't achieving this success in Chicago?

It's not like the Bears have lacked talent... this list is proof.

QB Kyle Orton (traded) - Has led the Broncos to a 6-0 start and has a QB rating of 100.1

RB Thomas Jones (traded) - Led the AFC in rushing in 2008 with the Jets, and is currently #5 in the NFL in rushing yards

RB Cedric Benson (released) - The former #1 pick is experiencing a revival as a Bengal, and is currently #3 in the NFL in rushing yards

WR Justin Gage (released) - Led the Titans in receiving in 2007 & 2008, and is starting for them again in '09

WR Bobby Wade (released) - Led the Vikings in receiving in 2007, and is still in the league as the #3 WR for the Chiefs

WR Mark Bradley (released) - Is the 2nd leading WR for the Chiefs, and in 16 total games for Kansas City, has 45 catches for 557 yards & 4 TDs... nearly equaling his total output with the Bears in a span of 34 games over 4 seasons.

S Chris Harris (traded) - Has been the starting SS for the Panthers for 3 seasons, and led the league with 8 forced fumbles in 2007.

T Mark Colombo (released) - The former #1 pick, who battled knee injuries with the Bears, has started 53 consecutive games for the Cowboys at RT

FB Lousaka Polite (released) - He joined the Bears after 3 years in Dallas, and has been the starting FB for the Miami Dolphins for the past 2 seasons

It pains me to say it, but the evidence is stacking up here against Lovie Smith and his staff. Maybe it's a narrow-minded view, since my eyes are focused so much more on the Bears, than the rest of the NFL as a comparison. But, the overall picture sure doesn't look too good.

Poll

How would you grade the Bears coaching staff?

A: Great: They give the team a very strong competitive advantage

14 votes

B: Good: They are sometimes a step ahead, but usually pretty even with the opposition

149 votes

C: Average: They don't make or break the team

266 votes

D: Below average: They get out-coached way too often

498 votes

F: Bad: They are always unprepared

82 votes

1009 votes | Poll has closed

Dissecting the Play: Rodgers to Jennings (game winner)

Lester A. Wiltfong Jr. — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:00:23 -0000

More photos » by Morry Gash - AP

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It was third down with one yard to go from midfield. Fourth quarter, a little more than a minute left on the clock, with Green Bay trailing by two. Just the kind of situation the Brett Favre led Packers were known for taking a shot on. Would the Aaron Rodgers version do the same? You had to figure they were in 2 down territory, so a pass, check that, a play-action pass, should have been on the collective minds of the Bears defense.

A lot of talk has been made of Nathan Vasher doing his best Elvis Patterson impression on the play, and of course head coach Lovie Smith taking to his CB's defense by implicating safety Kevin Payne on the play as well.

But, should the blame be shared equally?

Vasher said;

"I lost my footing a little bit, but I definitely have to be on top [of the pass route],"

Yes, Vasher should have been on top of the route, because he looked to be in man to man coverage. The Bears weren't in Cover 2 on the play. They had strong safety Al Afalava as an eighth in the box to defend against the run, and Kevin Payne was the lone safety. Given the circumstance I would have rather seen the Bears in the Cover 2, the defense had done a solid job against the run all day so put it on the d-line to protect that yard.

In the Tribune's Bears Bits by Vaughn McClure we read;

The Bears apparently were playing a version of quarter-quarter-half, with each cornerback responsible for a quarter of the field and the free safety responsible for the middle half. Strong safety Al Afalavacame up on Rodgers' play fake, then Vasher anticipated help as he covered his zone down the left side.

"Can't give up a deep ball late," Smith said. "Nate wasn't the only one that was a part of that."

Smith was asked to detail what happened on the play.

"Al was coming down in support, which he should have done," he said. "Someone else should have been back deep in the middle of the field -- not Al."

OK, First off, Vasher didn't anticipate help, he slipped, and even if he didn't slip, he would've got toasted on the play because he doesn't have the speed to cover one on one. And is their version of quarter-quarter-half, Cover 1 with both CB's manning up if their WR takes it deep, or Cover 3 with both CB's responsible for their deep quarter, and the safety responsible for the middle half? If it were the latter, then there is no reason for Vasher to do anything but immediately backpedal then turn and run with Jennings. If it was more a Cover 1 look, then Payne would have a better chance protecting against a deep crossing route or a post route. In fact with Payne taking deep middle in any instance, he's looking for those routes. Expecting him to cover the deep middle, then get over to the sideline (deep quarter) to offer Vasher help is a tough cover, even for a 4.3 40 type player. A little tangent here; Wouldn't it be nice to not have to always "help" out our corner?

The play can get spun any way they'd like, but bottom line is that was Vashers man. Could Payne have been there to help out? Yes. Could he have ran over in time to help and cover his first responsibility (deep middle)? Probably, if he were to recognize the play from the snap. Did the Packers just have a great play call on. Unfortunately, yes.

Nathan Vasher's Job Officially in Flux

Adam T — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 14:42:29 -0000

We've been talking about it for years now. We need to replace Nathan Vasher as our #2 corner back, but the Bears never acted on it. We thought in the beginning of the off-season that this would be the year, with Corey Graham showing some good skills last year. Due to concerns elsewhere, he was moved to safety, only to see him come back to corner too late to make a move to dethrone Vasher. Then Zackary Bowman stepped up and seemed a likely candidate until he got hurt.

In week one versus the Packers, the Bears ran Vasher, Tillman and Bowman in and out with Tillman and Vasher getting the bulk of the reps. Vasher will still see plenty of time, but the Bears have announced that Bowman will start next week against the Steelers....kind of. The announcement isn't official, but Bowman has been practicing with the first team offense.

With Trumaine McBride out, the Bears cannot shed Vasher yet, but if we can get him covering a third string receiver and not the most dangerous man on the field, perhaps we can avoid these last-second bombs that seem to often beat us.

Shallow Thoughts & Nearsighted Observations

Ted Bartlett — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 12:30:13 -0000

More photos » by Tom Uhlman - AP

3 months ago: Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer (9) is sacked by Denver Broncos linebacker Mario Haggan (57) in the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 13, 2009, in Cincinnati. Denver won the game 12-7. (AP Photo/Tom Uhlman)

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Happy Tuesday, friends. It's a happy week in Broncoland, hopefully one of many to come this season. There was some good, some bad, some lucky, and some spectacular on Sunday. We'll discuss it all, like we always do, and we won't apologize for winning, because a win is a win. Ready.... BEGIN!!!

1. The Broncos on Sunday reminded me of the Patriots of about 2005, only operating at about 60% of potential. The defensive looks were varied, the tackling and coverage were solid, and the whole was generally greater than the sum of its parts. On offense, there was a lot of commitment to running the ball, some screening, and mostly lower-risk stuff when they did go downfield. The team played like they expected a close game, and did the sorts of things you have to do to win close.

Consider the following:

a. The Broncos committed no turnovers, and forced two. (I personally count the bad snap on the FG, which doesn't technically count, and don't count Scheffler's interception, which does.) I now reiterate my belief that turnovers are the number one determinant of winning and losing.

b. The Broncos committed few penalties, and they were minor ones, the obvious exception being the Casey Wiegmann holding call on the successful 4th-quarter Correll Buckhalter screen.

c. Brett Kern had one notable shank, but mostly punted very well, helping the Broncos in field position. (I now reiterate my belief that field position is the number two determinant of winning and losing.) The return work for the Broncos was very shaky all day, and I would say the Broncos lost the field position battle by a bit. It would have been a lot worse without Kern's solid work, and some good coverage on punts.

d. The clock management methodology at the end of the first half was right out of Bill Belichick's book, and we can expect to see it repeatedly over the coming years. I want to talk about this in some detail, because it's going to become a key part of the character of the Broncos football team.

The unsophisticated observer of football tends to think that a "2-minute drill" calls for clock conservation and a sense of urgency. You know, people like Dan Fouts. It's not that simple, though. You have to consider field position and how many timeouts you have, and do a mental calculation of the probability of your offense scoring, and failing that, the probability of pinning the opposing team deep, and giving them no good shot at scoring, should you have to punt.

The Belichick 2-minute ethos is simple. The number-one objective in a 2-minute situation is to prevent the opposition from scoring. The number-two objective is to score yourself. Deep in your own territory, you make the clock run, almost always by handing off from a spread-out shotgun look. The Patriots have been doing this with Kevin Faulk forever, and I knew that's what the Broncos were doing on first down on Sunday.

Eddie Royal returns the ball to the Denver 17, with 1:48 to go, and 2 timeouts.

DEN 1-10 own 17 yard line 1:48 Handoff to Correll Buckhalter for 7 yards

DEN 2-3 own 24 yard line 1:17 Handoff to Buckhalter for 6 yards

DEN 1-10 own 30 yard line 1:01 Screen pass to Buckhalter for 7 yards

DEN 2-3 own 37 yard line :40 Incomplete deep out to Jabar Gaffney

DEN 3-3 own 37 yard line :34 WR screen to Eddie Royal for 11 yards

Timeout Denver

DEN 1-10 own 48 yard line :26 Deep out to Jabar Gaffney for 21 yards, out-of bounds

DEN 1-10 CIN 31 yard line :20 Incomplete downfield pass to Tony Scheffler (near fumble)

DEN 2-10 CIN 31 yard line :14 Inside handoff to Buckhalter for no gain

Timeout Denver

DEN 3-10 CIN 31 yard line :05 Matt Prater makes 48 yard field goal, Denver leads 3-0 at halftime.

This is very good clock management. The likelihood of driving 83 yards in 1:48 with 2 timeouts, and getting a Touchdown is pretty low, particularly when the offense has struggled all half. The likelihood of getting close enough to try a field goal is much higher.

If you go 3-and-out really quickly on 3 incomplete passes, there is suddenly about 1:35 left, and it's 4th and 10 on your own 17. In 2008, over 2,293 punts in the NFL, the average net outcome was a change in field position of 39.53 yards. Add that to 17, and you just gave the ball to the other team at their own 43, with 1:20 or so to go. They only have to go 20-25 yards to get into field-goal range, which is really manageable. That is why your starting field position matters to your strategy in a compressed-time situation (I don't like the term 2-minute drill. This is the real thing, not a damn drill. It's the old Boatswain's Mate in me). When the Broncos have the ball inside their own 30 or so, expect them to always follow this strategy at the end of the first half.

2. Information from my eyes, from a second pass of the Broncos-Bengals game:

a. The Broncos have a terrific set of CBs. Champ Bailey showed his worth, and Andre' Goodman made one outstanding downfield play, deflecting a ball, and generally had good coverage, even when balls were completed near him. The guy who continued to flash star ability, though, was Alphonso Smith. The Broncos are never going to regret taking this guy.

b. Brett Kern really punted well Sunday, except for one shank. The pass rush bailed him out of that, which I will get into a bit later. For awhile, Kern was the best weapon the Broncos had.

c. Knowshon Moreno ran sideways way too much Sunday. Bobby Turner will certainly be on his back about that, and let's hope the lesson sinks in very quickly.

d. I am not the first person to say this, but I wanted to see more of Peyton Hillis carrying the ball. I wonder if Spencer Larsen's injury caused the staff to shy away from it, since Peyton is really now the only available FB for awhile.

e. Andra Davis had a fantastic game, with 9 tackles, 3 for losses, and 1 sack. He played downhill all day, and thumped some Bengals. That's exactly what we need from him.

f. We need Wesley Woodyard to come in for Davis in coverage situations too, and we got some return on that, with his interception.

g. Wrapping up in the tackling game needs to definitely be better.

3. Information from my eyes, other games' version:

a. The Cardinals really struggled to protect Kurt Warner on Sunday, and it was the main reason they lost to the 49ers. The Niners sacked him 3 times, but hit him a lot of times more than that, 8 according to ESPN.com's box score. The 49ers also struggled in protection, but in key moments, they kept Shaun Hill upright.

b. Warner hasn't looked quite right to me, through the preseason, and into today's game. I haven't figured out what it is yet, but there's something wrong. It's almost like his personal sense of timing isn't there, like it is when he is going well. It will bear watching in the coming weeks, but if he falls off really sharply, the Cardinals will have something to worry about.

c. I really don't like Shaun Hill's skills, but he finds a way to win games. I can see why Mike Singletary likes him, because he is sort of similar to Jim McMahon from a skill-set perspective. I kind of feel bad for Mike, actually, because at no point in his career, as either a player or a coach, has he ever had a big-time QB to work with.

d. Cullen Jenkins is a beast, and he dominated against the Bears on Sunday night. Nobody on the Chicago line could handle him. I've said it before, but his injury almost single-handedly sunk the Packers season last year. When you have a guy like him, you have a really good chance to be stout against the run with 7 in the box, which is what their old Jim Bates-inspired (Bob Sanders-coached) defensive scheme is predicated upon. When they had to stack the box, they couldn't cover well enough anymore, and all of a sudden, they're a 6-10 team.

e. I believed it, and said it on Draft Day, and I believe it even more strongly now. The Packers messed up drafting B.J. Raji, despite the strong likelihood that he'll be a good player. They badly, badly needed help at Offensive Tackle, and they should have either traded up for Eugene Monroe or traded down a bit and taken Michael Oher. Chad Clifton is horrible on the left side, and Allen Barbre, the new RT, looks quite a bit worse than Mark Tauscher, the out-of-work, washed-up guy he replaced. This is a big enough problem to potentially make them struggle to make the playoffs, and it's otherwise a Super Bowl-caliber team.

f. Jay Cutler flat-out choked with that 4th pick. And like on the first three, Cris Collinsworth blamed the receiver. Guys, Cutler doesn't need enabling. That's the lesson from Denver that nobody seems to learn. (He needs to be coached with a foot in his hind parts, actually.) While it is true that the guy (Johnny Knox) needed to shield Al Harris from getting inside him, it was a terrible decision to go there anyway. KC Joyner's bad-decision metric would kill Cutler's game Sunday, because he threw the ball straight to the other team 6 times, with them only catching 4 of them.

g. There were a lot of dropped passes across the NFL this weekend, it wasn't just the Broncos and Bengals. I don't know if receivers were just rusty or what, but it was pretty bad.

h. I loved the call on third-and-one with 1:18 to go in the Packers-Bears game. Aaron Rodgers threw a great ball and hit Greg Jennings for a 51-yard TD pass. Jennings ran a textbook go-route on the play, widening out on Nathan Vasher, and then taking a great line to the catch spot. They exploited the hell out of the whole Bears secondary on that play, and it was an easy pitch and catch.

i. NBC criticism time. Bob Costas doesn't know what the hell he is talking about. (The Colts lost their outstanding receiver Anthony Gonzalez today! Really? Outstanding?) Rodney Harrison can barely get a clean sentence out, and reminds me of Emmitt Smith already, as a TV guy. Tony Dungy is going to get old quick, and the holdovers from the NBC studio still aren't that good either, though I'm glad to be rid of Jerome Bettis. Collinsworth is really hit or miss, but mostly missed Sunday night, and Al Michaels just seems like he doesn't care anymore. Twenty years ago, he was pretty good, but now, he's the worst play-by-play guy in the business. He blows more calls, and misspeaks more often than anybody. It's like a George W. Bush speech with him, every game. It makes me wish Madden 10 was real life, and Tom Hammond was in there instead. Michaels' toupee is atrocious too, but that isn't exactly new news.

j. I got beat up for this a couple weeks ago, but I still think Joe Flacco is better than Matt Ryan, and I want to reiterate it. He can do everything Ryan can do, but he has much more zip on his fastball, and he's significantly more mobile, too. It's kind of reminiscent of the Chris Paul/Deron Williams debate (now, non-debate) in the NBA. Both are really good, but the one who was drafted lower is a bit better.

Flacco was hurt by a lot of drops on Sunday, but he personally looked really good, and was the primary reason Baltimore beat Kansas City. The Chiefs tied the game at 24 with 5:21 to go, and Flacco went and won the game, beating a blitz with a great deep ball to Mark Clayton (who I should have started in the official MHR fantasy league).

k. Tamba Hali continues to look pretty good as a LB in the 3-4 for Kansas City, but Mike Vrabel alternately looked lazy and washed-up on the other side. Big things are allegedly expected from Vrabel this year, but I sure can't tell.

l. My brother Chris (a fellow Broncos fan, and sometimes MHR lurker) was stuck with the Jets-Texans game at home in Los Angeles on Sunday, but he said it was worth watching, so I took in the Short Cut. The Jets defensive front did a job on the Texans O-line, and I asked Chris if it was primarily schematic, or primarily a man beating a man. He said it was some of both, and I agree wholeheartedly, after watching the game. Rex Ryan is definitely still at it, sometimes lining up a three-man line as a 1-technique, 3-technique, and 5-technique, all to one side of the Center, having nothing but LBs on the other side. Nice evaluation, Chris, if you get around to reading this.

Vernon Gholston actually showed some flashes of being able to play, which was surprising, and the Jets clearly have a plan to overload blitz from a lot of fronts. Darrelle Revis did a great job on Andre Johnson, too, really taking Houston's best player out of the game.

m. The second-best defensive rookie I saw this weekend (behind Alphonso Smith) was Brian Cushing of the Texans. He was constantly around the ball, and looked like a better, more downhill-playing Chad Greenway.

n. I continue to be very impressed with Mark Sanchez. He looked poised and talented, which I expected. What I didn't necessarily expect was how well he would bounce back from throwing a TD pass to the other team (for Houston's only points of the game.)

o. So, you remember that thing about your objectives when getting the ball inside 2 minutes of the first half? Here's an example of the wrong way to do it. Tampa Bay started with 2 minutes to play, at their own 14-yard line. They led the game 7-6 at that point.

TB 1-10 own 14 yard line 2:00 WR screen to Michael Clayton, loss of 1 yard

TB 2-11 own 13 yard line 1:21 Byron Leftwich runs out of bounds for a gain of 1 yard, rather than staying in the field of play and gaining a couple additional yards.

TB 3-10 own 14 yard line 1:14 Handoff to Clifton Smith for 4 yards, burning 6 seconds

Dallas Timeout

TB 4-6 own 18 yard line 1:08 Punt out of bounds, Dallas ball, own 44 yard line

DAL 1-10 own 44 yard line 1:01 Tony Romo passes to Jason Witten, 9 yard gain, out-of-bounds at TB 47

DAL 2-1 TB 47 Offsides by (disappointing) Gaines Adams, 5 yard penalty, first down Dallas

DAL 1-10 TB 42 :55 Romo passes to Miles Austin for a 42 yard TD

This is the exact scenario which I described above, that you're trying to avoid.

After Tampa hit on a long pass to Michael Clayton, and Mike Nugent missed his second field goal, Dallas led 13-7 at the half, and went in with all the momentum. In a compressed-time situation, (especially when you lead 7-6), the status quo is okay. Write that down, the status quo is okay. THE STATUS QUO IS OKAY. The dumb play was Leftwich running out of bounds, and it cost the Bucs bigtime.

p. You know who might be the comeback player of the year this year, if he can stay healthy, is Cadillac Williams. He ran with suddenness and violence on Saturday, and looked better than he has since his rookie season.

q. The Patriots offensive line probably makes them not a legitimate Super Bowl contender. Of course, I thought the same thing of the Steelers last year, so take that for what it's worth. It is very, very difficult to be a championship team with a bad offensive line, though, and both of those teams have bad offensive lines.

r. I still think Tennessee is the best all-around team in the AFC. They're really strong on both lines, and their rookie WR, Kenny Britt, is going to open up their running game even further as the season progresses. I picked them at the last minute against Pittsburgh, and though the Steelers won, I feel like I had the game right. The Steelers couldn't block Tennessee, and Tennessee mostly could block Pittsburgh.

s. A rookie CB who was impressive was Derek Cox from the Jaguars. He had a fantastic interception of Peyton Manning in the end zone, on a fade route, and recovered a fumble too. He was hurt by getting beat deep twice by Reggie Wayne, but all in all, I think he's a find at CB, as a 3rd-rounder from William & Mary.

t. The Patriots definitely deserved to lose on Monday night, and there are serious issues with their team. Their offensive line is bad, they lack much talent at RB, and their defense can be thrown on, if they don't get pressure on the QB. They're brilliantly coached, but talent-deficient in some key places. They don't need to apologize for winning, but they do need to remember that they got dominated all game.

u. How about the effort and discipline showed by the Raiders? They came to play football Monday night, and the Chargers mostly looked like they want to sleepwalk through the early part of the season again.

v. Speaking of the Raiders, they must be really happy with the acquisitions of Greg Ellis and Richard Seymour. Those two players really improved their defense, and both got sacks Monday night.

w. Marcus McNeill looked awful against Seymour, and don't underestimate the importance of a long-term Nick Hardwick injury (an assumption, since he left by cart). The Chargers have no quality offensive line depth, not even anybody as good as Russ Hochstein or Seth Olsen.

x. Great coverage by the Raiders, especially Tyvon Branch and Chris Johnson. Branch, especially, did a nice job on Antonio Gates for most of the game. Nnamdi Asomugha was his normal self, even if Vincent Jackson did get a TD on him in the 4th quarter.

y. The Chargers defense is not very good, and the Raiders' suddenly seems like it is. I am positive that the Broncos' defense is better than San Diego's, as I have been saying for a couple weeks now. Shawne Merriman is staying blocked, and they're less talented at DE and ILB than they've been in recent years.

z. You may recall that Louis Murphy was one of my Draft favorites. And, incidentally, he caught a great throw by JaMarcus Russell too, after he struggled for a lot of the game. He is coming along as a player, as I said a couple weeks ago. Russell did struggle with accuracy a lot of the night, but I can see a lot of improvement in his process and decisiveness over this time last year.

aa. Hopefully, Darren Sproles is still having trouble fielding kicks in about 5 weeks. He flubbed three of them Monday night.

4. Between The Lines, Week 1: (Big up bchiper for suggesting the name about a month ago, when I solicited input from the community.)

a. Denver at Cincinnati

Denver Offense vs. Cincinnati Defense:

i. The Broncos offensive tackles were both outstanding, in both pass protection and the running game. Ryan Harris technically gave up a sack, although after 5 seconds and a trip on a shoestring tackle as Ryan rode the player deep and outside; it was totally on Kyle Orton. Antwan Odom got that sack, and another on Russ Hochstein later, and Robert Geathers was a total non-factor in the passing game, mostly against Ryan Clady.

ii. The interior of the Broncos offensive line was much more of a mixed bag. Ben Hamilton was called for holding and a false start, on the key 4th-quarter drive where the Broncos didn't score. He mostly carried out his assignments beyond that, but those lapses are very troubling. Hochstein gave up two sacks, and didn't look good. He really made me miss Chris Kuper. Casey Wiegmann had maybe his worst game as a Bronco, and got pushed backward a few times in the running game. The holding call on the successful Correll Buckhalter screen pass in the 4th quarter was really not much of a hold, but you can't be taking that penalty in that spot.

iii. The interior line for Cincinnati did a much better job than I thought they would, and mostly maintained their gaps in the running game. Hochstein and Wiegmann struggled some with Pat Sims and Domata Peko. I was impressed with their play for the Bengals, and they played a key part in the Broncos running game never really getting going.

iv. Among 20 running plays, I counted 11 zone-blocked plays and 9 man-blocked plays. Buckhalter had good success both ways, and LaMont Jordan had a nice run on a zone play. Peyton Hillis had his only carry behind man-blocking, which I think suits him best, and Knowshon Moreno ran both ways, having more success in man-blocking, which didn't have him running sideways, which was largely his downfall in his underwhelming debut.

v. I would call this battle pretty much a draw, which means the Broncos underachieved. Both sides had some success at times, in a battle that most would have expected the Broncos to win going away. The Broncos have some work to do on the offensive line. Statistically, the Broncos rushed 20 times for 75 yards, 3.8 yard per carry average. Orton was sacked 3 times, and hit 5 more, but really never faced significant pressure from a 4-man rush. Cincinnati really only got there by blitzing.

Cincinnati Offense vs. Denver Defense:

i. The good for Cincinnati: Andrew Whitworth did a pretty nice job at Left Tackle. He showed the ability to be fine there this season. The bad: Anthony Collins had a pretty rough time on the Right side, and looked like a guy who needs to be a backup. Collins never handled Elvis Dumervil well when he rushed from that side, and he got pushed backward a lot in the running game.

ii. As a general statement, the Broncos defensive line did an outstanding job of maintaining the line of scrimmage, and often resetting it a yard behind the blue line on the screen. It was a very encouraging sign against a big offensive line. I was very pleased with the interior performance of both Ronald Fields and Marcus Thomas. They didn't get their names called much, but both played with excellent leverage and physicality.

iii. I felt like the Denver DE/OLBs could have done a much better job in setting the edge in the running game. That is their number-one job, and several times, the interior successfully strung running plays out to the sideline, only to see Cedric Benson get some room out there. They're going to have to get better there.

iv. Of the Broncos' 3 sacks, all came from players who are classified as linebackers. Andra Davis and Mario Haggan both just barely beat Dumervil to the QB. Darrell Reid rushed with his hand down from a DE position on 3rd down, right after Haggan's sack, and beat Collins like he stole something on the play. Those two sacks were really important, incidentally, because both came right after Brett Kern shanked a punt and gave Cincinnati outstanding field position.

v. The Broncos won this battle, no question about it. They wore down a little at the end, but the defensive line was terrific in this game. They allowed 86 yards rushing on 27 carries, with 1 TD. That's a 3.2 yard average, which is very good, especially against a really talented guy like Benson. The pass rush was okay, but can get better. They hit Carson Palmer 4 times, in addition to the 3 sacks, and hurried him several other times.

b. Jacksonville at Indianapolis

Jacksonville Offense vs. Indianapolis Defense:

i. The key matchup featured Dwight Freeney against Eugene Monroe, who was making his NFL debut. Freeney dominated Monroe early in the game, notching a sack, and barely missing another, when David Garrard pulled out of his tackle. Monroe did better as the game went on, and the Jaguars took advantage of Freeney's constant proclivity to rush upfield by running several successful draws to his vacated spot. Monroe did have the key block on Jacksonville's only TD play, impressively hitting Antoine Bethea in space, a la Ryan Clady. On the negative side, Freeney had a neutral-zone infraction in the game, giving Jacksonville a first down.

ii. The Jaguars' other rookie Tackle, second-rounder Eben Britton, also was a mixed bag, mostly against Robert Mathis. He stoned Mathis a few times, got pantsed by him a couple more, but mostly they played close to even. Mathis did have a few impressive plays in the running game as the backside DE, crashing down the line.

iii. I was impressed by the job done by the inside guys for the Jags, including Maurice Williams, Brad Meester, and Vince Manuwai. They opened a lot of holes for Maurice Jones-Drew and anchored very well in the passing game. I only saw one very impressive defensive play by a Colts interior player, and that was a pursuit play by Ed Johnson. I was more impressed with his effort in hustling for 25 yards than anything, really.

iv. The Colts D-line looked the same as ever, with speed from the edges, not much anchoring power, and averageness inside. The Jaguars are much better up front than last season, and I would venture to speculate that they'll be a good offensive line 8-10 weeks from now, when Monroe and Britton have a bit more experience.

v. Statistically, the Jaguars rushed 26 times for 114 yards and 1 TD, a 4.4 yard average. David Garrard was sacked once and hit 6 more times. The numbers tend to support my conclusion that Jacksonville had a slight overall edge in this area.

Indianapolis Offense vs. Jacksonville Defense:

i. Indianapolis' Left Tackle, Charlie Johnson struggled somewhat, mostly against Derrick Harvey. Harvey didn't do a lot in the pass-rushing game, but he made his presence felt in stopping the run. Some were surprised that Johnson ended up as the starter, with Tony Ugoh on the bench, but I was a charter member of the Ugoh-Is-Soft-And-Lousy club a year ago, when the BMIA's of the world were still loving on him. Harvey is improved from his rookie year, but is still a better run player than pass rusher, and probably always will be. He's just not a fast-twitch guy, and smartly tries to play with power rather than quickness.

ii. I've never been the biggest Jeff Saturday fan, and Sunday's game was a good example of the reasons why. He really, really struggles when you ask him to anchor against a power player in pass protection or move a defensive lineman vertically in the running game. This has always been the case to some degree, but he's declined somewhat since his best years, from the looks of things. Saturday's strength is getting out to the second level and hitting pursuers. His quickness is an asset there, and his lack of power is minimized as a liability. He did look good several times in that tasking. I don't think he's a good Center anymore, overall, though - he's more like an average one.

iii. John Henderson had kind of an underwhelming game for the Jags from a playmaking perspective, but he generally was stout inside in the running game. He spent a good amount of time pushing Mike Pollak and Saturday backwards in the running game. Really, the Colts' whole O-line spent a lot of their day a step into their own backfield.

iv. Jacksonville's pass rush was marginal, and they got only one sack, from Reggie Hayward, who subsequently broke his shin and went down for the season. Ryan Lilja got beat for the sack, but the blocking scheme put him in a tough spot, coming from the inside to block an outside rusher.

v. The numbers tell two stories. The Jags were stout against the run, allowing 71 yards on 31 carries, a 2.3 yard average, with 1 TD. Peyton Manning had his way in the passing game though, taking one sack, and only getting hit two additional times. Give the slight edge to the Colts for volume, and if you're the Jaguars, you know you've now gone two offseasons needing pass rush help, and not satisfied the need.

5. The following is the schedule for the regular season for the Between The Lines feature.

Week
1	Jacksonville at Indianapolis
1	Denver at Cincinnati
2	Houston at Tennessee
2	Cleveland at Denver
3	Green Bay at St. Louis
3	Denver at Oakland
4	New York Jets at New Orleans
4	Dallas at Denver
5	Atlanta at San Francisco
5	New England at Denver
6	Baltimore at Minnesota
6	Denver at San Diego
7	Arizona at New York Giants
8	Denver at Baltimore
8	Cleveland at Chicago
9	Green Bay at Tampa Bay
9	Pittsburgh at Denver
10	Chicago at San Francisco
10	Denver at Washington
11	Miami at Carolina
11	San Diego at Denver
12	New York Giants at Denver
12	Pittsburgh at Baltimore
13	Houston at Jacksonville
13	Denver at Kansas City
14	Green Bay at Chicago
14	Denver at Indianapolis
14	Philadelphia at New York Giants
15	New England at Buffalo
15	Oakland at Denver
16	Seattle at Green Bay
16	Denver at Philadelphia
17	Chicago at Detroit
17	Kansas City at Denver

All 32 teams will be evaluated at least once. I'll evaluate the Broncos 17 times, obviously, and the next most frequent subjects will be Chicago and Green Bay with 4 appearances, Baltimore and the Giants with 3, and Cleveland, Houston, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Kansas City, New England, Oakland, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, San Diego and San Francisco twice each. All other teams will appear once.

6. My apologies for the lack of Lighting Up The Scoreboard Friday. I was having software problems on the recording from the Madden end, and I don't even know if it will work this week, when i try again. I will at least shoot to have an audio podcast this week, even if I can't get the Madden content in there.

7. Retired for John Elway.

8. Man-cavery:

I have been fighting the urge to spend $1,000 on another living-room TV, and I have managed to keep that beast at bay, for now at least. I brought the TV on the right (a 32" job), in from my bedroom for gameday, and I think I will continue to do so for awhile. I had the Red Zone channel on the bigger laptop, the main game I wanted to see on the bigger TV, and another interesting game on the smaller, moved-in TV. I was keeping notes on the smaller laptop, on the couch. My only problem was changing channels, because the remote wanted to change the channels on both DirecTV receivers, when I only wanted one to move. Does anybody know any solutions to that?

That's all I have after taking up a lot of your time. Have a great week, and let's hope I can get my software issues worked out this week. It's Browns week, which means a lot of grief for me from the locals here in Cleveland, but it's the kind of grief I am happy to absorb if the Broncos win. In any case, we'll be back next Tuesday with more Shallow Thoughts & Nearsighted Observations.