SB Nation - Nick Novak

Pour Some Sugar On Me - Roger Goodell Establishes What the Fine Will Be If Dan Snyder Does Not Fire Vinny Cerrato

Sugar — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:45:10 -0000

In case you missed it, the Tennessee Titans owner was filmed giving Buffalo Bills fans the ol' bird from his perch on Sunday. If you aren't a Bills player, fan or employee--or Roger Goodell--you probably laughed your ass off. Goodell dropped a $250,000 fine on Bud Adams today...which leads me to my headline...because if Snyder does not fire Cerrato, he will be essentially flipping the entire Redskins fanbase the middle finger, and should be fined at least the same $250,000 amount.

Ten Yard Fight - 10 Chances To Make One Good Point

It's Dallas Week, so this week, instead of covering the league, I got 10 great memories of involving the hated Cowgirls. This is not an exhaustive list, nor is it any particular order. Feel free to add to this collection in the comments section below.

1) Darryl Grant's catch of a Dexter Manley tipped ball and subsequent touchdown in the NFC Championship game in 1982. It is one of my earliest memories of watching the Redskins period. I was barely 5 years old. The win over the despicable Cowgirls put us in the Super Bowl and the television images of RFK rocking are burned into my brain. Box score here.

2) Lavar Arrington tracking down Troy Aikman and sending him to the broadcasting booth. I admit this is kind of a macabre memory to love, but this one is great for multiple reasons. First, after so many Sundays of getting burned by Aikman over the years, it was satisfying (and fitting) that it be the Redskins that ended his career. Guys like him would and could play forever but they usually get knocked out of the league. Troy made the right decision to retire and as it turns out, he is one hell of a television broadcaster. He is generally fair and even-handed when he calls Redskins games, though since he is on the "A" team for Fox, we have rarely gotten him over the years.

3) Darrell Green's last game as a Redskin. The miserable Cowgirls were in complete disarray that week. Dave Campo's job was in question and the players on his sideline had completely phoned it in. We probably had no business beating that team but they were so obviously out of sorts it was hardly a contest. Both teams finished with losing records that year, but the going away present everyone wanted to give Darrell was a home victory over the pitiful Cowgirls. Box score here.

4) Brunell to Moss twice in the 4th quarter on Monday Night Football. I sat in stunned silence as the seconds ticked away in a loss that most likely was going to cost us the season. I was at a bar in Bethesda and as some of my buddies were ready to roll, I told them I kind of had to watch the end of this one. I had to witness the final whistle on my hopes for the season. The first touchdown to Moss was fun, but that feeling in my stomach that it was too little, too late was impossible to ignore. Then...no way...a seconddeep ball to Moss? With the lead in hand now, I was left to ponder the sick joke being played on us all that night: we come all the way back in the last minute only to lose to a field goal at the last second. The ensuing defensive stop was awesome, and everyone went crazy. Every car on the street was honking and every passerby was high-fiving. Box score here.

5) I would like to take this moment to remember a few moments from the pathetic Cowgirls' history that did not involve the Skins. Both were playoff games, and both put BIG smiles on my face. The first was back in 1998, in a playoff game against the Cardinals. Jake "The Snake" Plummer led the Cards to a huge win over Dallas. I might be mistaken, but it could have been their first playoff victory. Have the Cowgirls won a playoff game since then? Maybe they have, but I am not so sure. The second moment was more recent. When the Cowgirls had the game in hand against the Seahawks in the 2006-2007 playoffs, Romo was set to hold for a game-winning field goal. The rest is not only history, it created a whole new vocabulary. In prison, they now say, "Don't 'Romo' the soap!" I tell my two year old not to "Romo" his bottle. Cell phone users hate it when their calls are "Romo'ed".

6) The blocked field goal/Sean Taylor return a few years ago. It was a pretty classic slugfest but with the score tied 19-19, we found ourselves on defense with the low-life Cowgirls driving to put it away on the leg of Mike Vanderjagt. I remember it all too well...Jason Witten absolutely abusing Adam Archuleta for a huge gainer to set up the last-second kick. Once again, I found myself sitting in my seat awaiting the inevitable. I did not have the best angle to see the block, and once that ball was loose, it was tough to tell who had the ball. But then there was #21, making his way for the game-winner. Everyone was going nuts...but even within the moment, I knew it was overtime, since the clock was ticking down to zero during the play. Sean Taylor's head-whip was visible from my seat. It was an obvious call. When the referee announced we were going to have one more play from the end of the penalty, it was as if he actually announced, "Everyone is going to get laid." Nick Novak...47 yards...ball game. Box score here.

7) Darrell Green chasing down Tony Dorsett on Monday Night Football. This one I did not see live. I have seen it a million times though and it always makes me gawk. Forget the game itself...in one moment, one of the greatest running backs in the league was shown to be very mortal, and an unknown, undersized cornerback put himself on the map forever.

8) Jason Buck pushing the center into Troy Aikman, forcing the fumble and the ensuing Emmitt Smith gaffe that led to the Danny Copeland touchdown. I believe it was the season opener, on Monday Night Football with Mark Rypien under center for the Skins. I was a hot pretzel vendor at RFKstadium in high school and I had a knack for making sure I was selling pretzels in a section with the best view of the action on the field. On this play, I was actually behind the end zone that the Cowgirls were playing out of, and I saw the whole thing unfold. Jason Buck lined up over the Dallas center and on the snap, he bullrushed the dude right into Troy Aikman who never had a chance. Emmitt Smith made a huge bonehead error by not covering the ball (did he try and throw it or just muff it?) and we recovered for the touchdown. Only thing is, the refs never saw any of it. Danny Copeland, who had recovered the ball for the touchdown, had run almost to midfield celebrating. The refs were still looking in the pile of linemen for the ball. Everyone was yelling and pointing at Copeland, who then ran back and showed the refs the ball. I remember thinking, "Are they just going to take his word in this?" We beat the sad-sack Cowgirls handily, but that was pretty much the end of the "good old days" era. I think that was Richie Petitbon's debut? Box score here.

9) Cooley's 3 TD performance in 2005 to propel us to the playoffs. Mark Brunell threw four total touchdown passes in a game where we absolutely dominated the detestable Cowgirls. It was one of the best games I have ever been to at FedEx. Drew Bledsoe threw three interceptions and Clinton Portis ran for 112 yards to go along with the studly performance from Cooley. Box score here.

10) I'll make this one last since I know that the wretched Cowgirls were barely trying, but in November of 2007, we grabbed the final NFC playoff spot by holding Marion Barber to -1 rushing yards and the entire team to only 1 yard rushing. They actually brought Tony Romo back out for a series in the second half but quickly removed him to prevent a certain injury. Our defense was incredibly nasty that day. Box score here.

On these, I certainly stand to be corrected on any facts I may have misstated. I am very aware of some of the older games played between the two teams that featured such greats as Ken Houston, Sonny Jurgensen, Charley Taylor...I am hopeful that those of you out there who saw these games firsthand will share your memories.

Give Me The Numbers, STAT!

PSSOM Notes...Well last week I pulled for Jim Zorn to be given another year and we had quite the lengthy discussion about it. Nothing quite as controversial about this week's edition I'm afraid. It seems though that some of my article titles are not getting through to folks. Seriously, the fact that even one person "corrected" the Animal House reference yesterday is embarrassing. Last week, one poor soul didn't get the Def Leppard reference in the title of this weekly piece (this marks the 14th edition of the PSSOM series.) We need to do better. Finally, we have to stay positive after the big win and prior to the showdown in Dallas, but we can't just forget altogether the joke of a front office we have. If we reserve all commentary on that subject for losing weeks we not only come off as whiners, we become no better than mindless kittens, distracted by the ball of yarn that is each win. I'll keep it simple and I'll keep the message on point. The following list represents a possible example of a good front office--do your own compare and contrast with Vinny Cerrato's reign of terror:

Notable First Round Draft Picks

1996 - T Jonathan Ogden
LB Ray Lewis
1997 - LB Peter Boulware
1999 - CB Chris McAllister
2000 - RB Jamal Lewis
2001 - TE Todd Heap
2002 - S Ed Reed
2003 - LB Terrell Suggs
QB Kyle Boller
2005 - WR Mark Clayton
2006 - DT Haloti Ngata
2007 - G Ben Grubbs
2008 - QB Joe Flacco
2009 - T Michael Oher

By the way, I counted and these men have combined for 39 Pro Bowls. That does not include any from Haloti Ngata, who will get his fair share I am sure. I don't particularly care for the Ravens, but Ozzie Newsome is simply a class act. Every pick may not be a Hall of Famer, but only one of these guys didn't pan out (Boller). You want to hear the worst part? They have a stated rule that every year they draft at least one offensive lineman. Now, I don't know how that has worked out each year, but holy crap is that a refreshing philosophy.

Image via www.shwiggie.com

Chiefs Special Teams Unit One of the Worst in the NFL

Joel Thorman — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 21:27:31 -0000

via cache.daylife.com

Rick Gosselin of the Dallas Morning News compiled quite a bit of data based on the 2008-2009 season to measure the best and the worst specials teams units in the NFL.

He ranked teams based on 22 special teams statistical categories including punt/kickoff returns, average starting position, field goal accuracy, net punts and so on (click the link above for the full list). Just about any special teams statistic is included in his ranking.

Click through to see how the Chiefs fared (not well) in comparison to the rest of the league.

Buffalo Bills
Tennessee Titans
Cleveland Browns
New York Giants
Oakland Raiders
San Francisco 49ers
New England Patriots
Chicago Bears
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Atlanta Falcons
San Diego Chargers
Carolina Panthers
Philadelphia Eagles
New York Jets
Seattle Seahawks
Jacksonville Jaguars
St. Louis Rams
New Orleans Saints
Detroit Lions
Pittsburgh Steelers
Houston Texans
Baltimore Ravens
Washington Redskins
Cincinnati Bengals
Minnesota Vikings
Green Bay Packers
Dallas Cowboys
Arizona Cardinals
Kansas City Chiefs
Miami Dolphins
Denver Broncos
Indianapolis Colts

*A quick side note before we get to the Chiefs and why they're so low on the list. I bolded the playoff teams because I was somewhat surprised that special teams as a whole isn't any kind of indicator as to how successful a team will be. 6 playoff teams ranked in the top 13 of league and 6 ranked in the bottom 20. Maybe there's nothing to it but I thought it was interesting to note.

The Chiefs were the fourth worst team in the NFL. Much of that can be contributed to the return game that featured four players at one point or another throughout the season (Dantrell Savage, Kevin Robinson, Jamaal Charles and B.J. Sams).

Since B.J. Sams is not on the team anymore (!!!), let's take a look at our two primary punt returners last season, Dantrell Savage and Kevin Robinson, both of whom appeared in 8 games.

Player	Returns	Yards	Long	Average
Dantrell Savage	8	17	11	2.1
Kevin Robinson	11	94	32	8.5

League average: 9.3 yards per return

Not too impressive. The lack of actual returns makes me suspicious of the coverage team. With punt returns, it's definitely a joint effort. The return man usually has to make at least one man miss to gain anything of substance. Collaboratively, the coverage team has to give him something after he makes the first guy miss. Judging by these stats, someone wasn't doing their job.

Now to the kick return game. Again, since B.J. Sams is off the team now (!!!), we'll focus on Dantrell Savage, Kevin Robinson and Jamaal Charles.

Player	Returns	Yards	Long	Average
Dantrell Savage	26	633	59	24.3
Kevin Robinson	19	420	36	22.1
Jamaal Charles	15	321	40	21.4

League average: 22.8 yards per return

Things don't look so bad here. Kickoff returns don't vary much around the league. Last year Tennessee led the league with 25.4 yards per return while Green Bay was the worst with 20.1 yards per return. 5 yards may not seem like much, but it does make a difference, especially with an offense like the Chiefs that had trouble scoring at times. Not to sound too much like Herm here, but those 5 yards could be the difference between a 40 yard field goal and a 35 yard field goal (which, once you look at the stats below, could actually mean something for the Chiefs).

The Chiefs definitely improved in the kicking game once Connor Barth replaced Nick Novak. Though Barth's future with the Chiefs is still a question mark, his performance clearly beat Novak's.

Player	20-29	30-39	40-49	50+
Connor Barth	6/6	3/4	1/1	0/1
NIck Novak	3/3	1/3	2/3	0/1

League average: 84.5%

Overall, Barth completed 10/12 kicks for an 83.3% success rate. Novak, on the other hand, only completed 60% of his 10 kicks.

I say Barth's future on the team is definitely in question because he's still got plenty of tests to pass. With only 2 attempts beyond 40 yards, consider him an incomplete at this point. Besides, the difference between the highest rated kicker in the league and the lowest rated kicker isn't much so the turnover rate is high.

Our punter, Dustin Colquitt, is the only real positive to come out of this statistical ranking. He netted 44.4 yards on his punts in 2008. I won't spend much time discussing him because he's not going anywhere and I can assume we're all pretty happy with his performance.

The Chiefs finished last in the NFL in two of Gosselin's categories that helped comprise this list:

Opponent's starting point - 31.9 yard line. Compare this with Jacksonville who help opponents just 24.5 yards from the end zone. The Chiefs defense, on average, spotted the other team 7.4 yards before they even took the field in comparison to the Jaguars. It's the little things on special teams that can go a long way to helping an already battered unit like the Chiefs defense.
Field Goal - 16. Compare this to the New England Patriots and New York Giants, both of whom ended the season with 36 3 pointers. Is it the punt/kick return starting position? Is it the running game? Is it the kicking game? For a coach that admittedly enjoyed a defensive game comprised of field goals, Herm sure was bad at fielding a squad who could kick the ball through the uprights with some regularity.

Who is responsible for the Chiefs special teams woes?

Mike Priefer. Luckily for us Priefer has been plucked (plucked?) by the Denver Broncos to man their special teams unit. Click here to see what AP had to say about Priefer when Styg50 from Mile High Report asked about him.

Priefer came on board in 2006 with Herm Edwards so it's no surprise that he's gone when that and the Chiefs special teams ranking is taken into account.

With Priefer gone, the Chiefs can start fresh. Kevin Robinson appears to be promising in the kicking game, which he should be considering he was drafted as a return specialist (even if it was in the 6th round). Connor Barth is a big maybe at this point in the kicking game.

I'll say Dustin Colquitt is the only player who is guaranteed to make it through the regime change unscathed. Barth and Robinson were primarily special teams players (unlike Savage and Charles who I won't count here) and they've got no guarantees they'll be around next season considering they helped comprise a special teams unit that ranked 29th in the NFL.

An example of "getting it right"

Keeping with Scott Pioli and Todd Haley's theme of "Getting it Right", I wanted to include a quick example of one team that has gotten it right when it comes to special teams. Bobby April is assisted by DeMontie Cross in the Bills special teams department.

The Buffalo Bills have topped Gosselin's special teams rankings 3 of the last 5 years. Their kicker (Rian Lindell) and punter (Brian Moorman) are two of the best in the league.

Where the Bills have shined as well is the return game. Rookie Leodis McKelvin had an excellent season scoring one touchdown and averaging 28.2 yards per return. The punt return game is equally as impressive with Roscoe Parrish adding another touchdown on 15.3 yards per return. Both of those numbers are near the top of the NFL.

How long has special teams been a problem?

The Chiefs special teams unit has gone from one of the best (2003) to one of the worst (2008) in just 6 short years. Let's take a look at how the Chiefs have fared in comparison to the rest of the league in 3 major special teams categories over the last 6 years.

Year	Punt Return Average	Kick Return Average	Field Goals Made
2003	1st	1st	15th
2004	9th	3rd	27th
2005	24th	10th	14th
2006	23rd	24th	20th
2007	25th	30th	20th
2008	29th	27th	31st

***

I'm not going to lie to you all and act like I know much about special teams coaches around the NFL. There are excellent special teams coaches out there however. John Harbaugh was the special teams coach in Philadelphia for 9 years before stepping into the secondary coach role for 1 year before getting tabbed as the Baltimore Ravens newest head coach.

So, while special teams coaches won't get much publicity or credit, they do have influence and many of them aren't just fillers. They can be good coaches who can add a lot to a team.

The special teams coach is a position that will be filled by Todd Haley hopefully within the next week to two weeks.

Poll

Who is primarily to blame for the Chiefs special teams woes?

The players

175 votes

[Former] Special teams coach Mike Priefer

315 votes

Other

47 votes

537 votes | Poll has closed

Jay Feely's Agent "Shocked" About His Quick Release

Chris Thorman — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 12:24:39 -0000

Must watch Philip Rivers lose....

I'd probably be a little pissed off too.

"We’re shocked, baffled, disappointed," said his agent, Glenn Schwartzman. "It was not our understanding that they were just going to give the job to Jay. We in no way thought that. We knew he would have to win the job.

"While no one promised him the job, we were under the impression he would be given a better opportunity to win it. If they’re going to base it off two days of kicking, they probably shouldn’t have signed him. It makes no sense to make a decision about Jay without letting him kick in the preseason game."

Feely has to feel a bit used after this. He was essentially brought in to jazz up our current kickers, although I feel like if Feely had out kicked either Barth or Novak over the last two days that it would have been one of them getting the boot.

This is the business of the NFL. I'm glad to see the coaching staff isn't keeping any player around to save face, even in the kicking position. Football players are the number one priority in Herm's Kansas City.

Plus, we already had way too many former Miami players on our roster. And, anyone else realize how incestuous the kicking game is in the NFL? Lawrence Tynes replaced Jay Feely in New York and then we bring Feely in for a visit. Nick Novak has been on Washington's and Chicago's roster. Twice. Former Chiefs kicker Dave Rayner even signed with the Dolphins earlier this year before being released.

It's a small world when you've got unbelievable legs. (Guess the sports movie reference!)

Poll

Who will be the Chiefs kicker Week 1 against the New England Patriots?

Connor Barth

206 votes

Nick Novak

59 votes

Someone else

12 votes

277 votes | Poll has closed