SB Nation - Indianapolis Colts

Happy Veteran's Day

BigBlueShoe — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 14:41:36 -0000

NFL.com

My grandfather fought at Iwo Jima in 1945. My uncle was in Vietnam in the late-1960s. My cousin was a Marine just after the first Gulf War. My father, while not a war veteran, served in the Peace Corps early in its inception. So, though he did not fight in a war (he was a pacificst), he did serve his country in a positive way.

Here's to all veterans and people who serve. One of the more inspirational veterans you will meet is Josh Bleil (pictured above), who lost both his legs in Iraq. Despite his injuries while serving, Josh still walks with the help of two prosthetic legs and a cane. Josh, who works for his hometown Indianapolis Colts as a community spokesperson, is a living example of what Veterans Day is all about.

Fine job by NFL Network to do a story on him.

Analysis: Packers (4-4) After 8 Games

Brandon — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 13:00:42 -0000

by Chris O'Meara - AP

2 days ago: Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Kellen Winslow (82) grabs a fourth-quarter touchdown pass as Green Bay Packers cornerback Charles Woodson (21) looks on during an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009, in Tampa, Fla. The Buccaneers defeated the Packers 38-28. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

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Obviously the 1st half of the season ended badly with a loss to what was previously the last team without a win. Ex-Packer DT Gilbert Brown took some shots at Mike McCarthy this week, and former S LeRoy Butler says it's time for Mike to "turn the play calling over to Joe Philbin." Really? Philbin might be a heck of a guy, but he's primarily been an offensive line coach since 1986 and became a 1st time offensive coordinator in 2007. After watching the offensive line struggle this season, it's not exactly clear whether Philbin is doing a very good job himself.

Here's how they measure up statistically after the first 8 games compared to the rest of the league, rankings from NFL.com:

Team	Run Offense	Pass Offense	Run Defense	Pass Defense
Packers	10	9	9	8

They're top 10 in every major statistical category. I would expect a winning record with those stats. For as bad as the offensive line has been this season, it sure hasn't stopped the offense from being productive. I'm not defending them, just pointing out that we can't just say the 4-4 record is all the offensive line's fault. There's something else going on here. More after the jump.

Let's compare them to three other teams, the unbeaten Colts and Saints, and the Cowboys. I think everyone would consider those three teams better than the Packers. Again rankings from NFL.com:

Team	Run Offense	Pass Offense	Run Defense	Pass Defense
Saints	5	4	19	16
Colts	29	1	14	9
Cowboys	8	6	12	20

According to Football Outsiders: all 3 teams have an offense in the top 5 (the Packers are at No. 8); the defenses of the Colts (No. 6 overall) and Saints (No. 4) are playing great (the Packers are No. 5), while the Cowboys are struggling with the No. 20 defense. The No. 29 run offense from the Colts sticks out like a sore thumb, but obviously their No. 1 pass offense is more than compensating for it. The official rankings don't take into consideration that the Saints lead the NFL in INTs, but their run defense really isn't very good anyway you look at it. And the official stats don't notice that the Colts have only allowed 4 TD passes this season.

My point is that the Packers seem to measure up well against 3 teams that have combined for 2 losses in their first 24 games.

Though one area I haven't addressed is special teams. The Packers are dead last by a comfortable margin, according to Football Outsiders. The 3 worst special teams games of the season have been against the Bengals, Vikings (at Lambeau), and Buccaneers; all losses. An easy answer might be it's the special teams fault, but good special teams play doesn't necessarily equal a winning football team. Currently the Browns have the best special teams unit in the NFL, while some winning teams like the Saints (No. 26), Broncos (No. 27), and Steelers (No. 30) aren't getting much from their special teams either.

But something else jumped out in those 4 losses this season: passing TDs allowed. The Packers have allowed 16 passing TDs this season, tied for 4th worst in the NFL. 12 of those have been given up in the 4 losses, and it has worked out exactly to 3 TDs in each game. The common theme in those 12 TD passes was the absence of the pass rush.

Another problem is that 10 of those 12 TD passes were for 15 yards or less. In theory it might be easier to cover in the red zone, where there is less field to cover, but that hasn't been the case this season.

Against the Bengals: TD passes of 5, 5, and 13 yards. If you watch the highlight of each TD pass on NFL.com, you'll see QB Carson Palmer dropping back with no pressure in his face as he steps up in the pocket and throws. On the final 2 TD passes, you'll also notice S Aaron Rouse standing around after the play, looking confused. Which is probably one reason why he was released a couple days later.

Against the Vikings (in Minneapolis): The first TD pass from the 1 yard line was asking for trouble (Favre ran one way then turned to throw across the field for the TD) but they got away with it. The 2nd one was a strike to WR Sidney Rice for 14 yards, and similar to the TD passes by Palmer, Favre dropped back in the pocket and then stepped up to throw with little pressure on him. The final TD was a 31 yard pass to Berrian on which S Derrick Martin played the wrong coverage, and he hasn't been seen playing defense since.

Against the Vikings (at Lambeau): The 12 yard TD pass to TE Visanthe Shiancoe had no pass rush again. The 51 yard TD pass was a fluke play where 3 Packers collided as they jumped for the ball, and Favre got away with throwing into triple coverage. The final 2 yard TD pass was a quick pass out into the right flat which the OLB couldn't get to.

Against the Buccaneers: A 6 yard TD pass that was a quick pass out into the right flat which the OLB couldn't get to. That play is something teams will try and exploit again since it worked in consecutive weeks. A 7 yard TD pass during which the Packers finally got some pass rush! DE Johnny Jolly broke free and collapsed the pocket, but LB Clay Matthews tried to go inside, so there was nobody outside to the left when QB Josh Freeman scrambled to throw a high arching pass to TE Kellen Winslow that only he could catch. On the final 7 yard TD pass, CB Jarrett Bush was fooled on a double move by a rookie WR into the right corner of the end zone. He could have gotten it if he hadn't been fooled, but Bush has been underwhelming us with his coverage skills for the past 3 seasons.

Some of those TD passes couldn't have been avoided. But on most of them, the QB had too much time to throw. The special teams and the offensive line have been bad this season, and the team would be a lot better if those units could get themselves turned around. But where they're losing games is on TD passes allowed in the red zone. What they really need is a pass rush, especially up the middle (paging Cullen Jenkins and B.J. Raji), to turn the opponent's red zone opportunities into FGs or stops.

Armaggedon 2009 (or, the War of 18 and 12) : Just how evenly matched are the Patriots and Colts

BigBlueShoe — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 11:16:43 -0000

More photos » by AJ Mast - AP

2 days ago: Indianapolis Colts linebacker Clint Session runs the ball after intercepting a pass from Houston Texans quarterback Matt Schaub in the fourth quarter of an NFL football game in Indianapolis, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009. The Colts won 20-17. (AP Photo/AJ Mast)

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For all the hoopla the New Orleans Saints are getting (and rightly so) for their 8-0 start, the reality is that, statistically, the Patriots and the Colts are more impressive. And while it is no en vogue for people like Buccaneers coach Raheem Morris to proclaim "Statistics are for losers," the reality is stats tell us an awful lot about how good a team will likely be moving forward.

Small side note: Anyone else find it both pathetically and ironically funny that Morris, who is 1-7 as a head coach, would proclaim that "statistics are for losers." Speaking of losers, Morris will be lucky if he keeps his job at the end of this season.

The Saints sport the league's best offense, averaging nearly 38 points per game, which is, of course, INSANE! However, their defense is surrendering 21 points per game, ranking them 19th in the league. But while the Saints appear free-wheelin' and high-flyin', the Patriots and Colts seem much more balanced as football teams and, therefore, much more dangerous.

New England sports the #2 scoring defense in football, surrendering 14 points a game. Their offense scores 28 points per game (#3 in the league). Indy trots out the #1 scoring defense, giving up just 13 points per game, and an offense that scores 27 points per game (#6 in the league).

If we Colts fans know anything it's that great offense with mediocre-to-bad defense can only take you so far in this league. Eventually, you will run into a team that will stall your offense. When that happens, your defense must have the talent and the coaching to win the game for your team. For the Pats and Colts, they seem to have the kind of defensive talent to stop opposing teams, which is incredible considering the Pats are without Mike Vrabel, Tedy Bruschi, Rodney Harrison, and Richard Seymour this year. Meanwhile, the Colts are without Bob Sanders, Marlin Jackson, Ed Johnson, and Tyjuan Hagler. Yet, they still shut people down.

Again, balance on offense and defense can make a football team dangerous, and this Sunday two very dangerous teams will face off in what hopefully will be a great game.

For more, check out Marima's FanShot.

Stat of the Day: 100 Receptions

John (obviousman) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:44:39 -0000

I was around, and a San Diego Chargers fan, when LaDainian Tomlinson caught 100 passes in a season. I remember that being one of the most frustrating 4-12 teams in history. Anyways, I got an e-mail last night that I was perusing this morning when I saw this....

Rivers’ top two receiving threats -- TE ANTONIO GATES and WR VINCENT JACKSON -- are tied with 42 receptions apiece and can challenge RB LA DAINIAN TOMLINSON’s franchise record of 100 receptions in 2003.

What?!? While it's possible that I just forgot this stat, I am fairly certain that I remember his 100-reception season as a record for a running back. I had no idea that no WR in the history of the Chargers has ever caught 100 balls in a season. That's amazing, especially considering how potent the Bolts offense has been over it's history.

More to the point, only 1 of the top 3 Chargers' spots in terms of receptions is held by a WR. Here's the list.

LaDainian Tomlinson, 100 rec (2003)
Tony Martin, 90 rec (1995)
Antonio Gates, 89 rec (2005)

That's unbelievable! Even with Gates and VJ getting the majority of the catches this season, each of them is on pace for only 84 catches by season's end.

By comparison, the Denver Broncos have had 6 WRs with seasons of 100 receptions or more. The New England Patriots have had 3 WRs with 100+ catch seasons in the last decade alone. The Colts have had 5 seasons like that, with 4 coming from Marvin Harrison. Even the Chicago Bears' Marty Booker caught 100 passes in a season once. The youngest team in the league, the Houston Texans, already have 2 seasons of 100+ receptions from a WR.

This begs the question.....which teams in the NFL have never had a 100+ reception season from a WR? It has to be rare, right? Maybe not as rare as you'd think. Here's a list of them.

A Little Love to the Pats Blogger

BigBlueShoe — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:18:39 -0000

MaPatsFan, the head writer over at Pats Pulpit and a person I consider a friend (even though he has horrid taste in football teams), recently lost his father to congestive heart failure. The senior Pats fan passed away this past weekend, which saw the Patriots defeat their rivals, the Dolphins, 27-17:

I have been away, off and on, for the past several weeks. My father has been battling congestive heart failure for 3 years and finally decided to rest this past Saturday, November 7th. I had a desperate need to participate in the last part of his life; without friends like JohnHannahRules and Marima, I could not have stayed focused on that mission. They are truly wonderful people.

Please head over to Pats Pulpit and give MaPatsFan some support during this difficult time. It would be appreciated.

Also, just to prove that I am really nothing more than a sentimental softy at heart, we will break with tradition and offer up a little salute to MaPatsFan Sr. by writing two words I have never written on this blog: Go Pats!

Week 9: Inside the Numbers

mgrex03 — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 23:09:14 -0000

More photos » by Darron Cummings - AP

Schaub knows what's coming next. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

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Two weeks in a row now the Colts have taken a lead down to the wire, coming out victorious. This week, a missed field goal by Kris Brown sent the Colts to 8-0, giving them a commanding 3.5 game lead in the AFC South. The game started out great for the Colts, but slowly started to slip away when Peyton Manning threw an INT late in the first half. The defense then struggled to get the Texans off the field until the 4th quarter, when they stepped up when they were needed.

A few notes from the game:

Manning threw 40 passes in the first half, the highest number of passes in the first half since Rich Gannon threw 41 in 2002 against the Steelers. It was also a career high for Manning in the first half. (Elias)
The Colts have been great in close game as of late. From Ned Macey of Football Outsiders:

The Colts ability to win close games is uncanny, except that it seems to disappear in the playoffs. They've won 15 of their last 16 meaningful regular season games decided by one touchdown or less but are 0-2 in the playoffs in games by one touchdown or less in that same streak. Actually, counting the playoffs, three of their last four losses by less than one touchdown are to San Diego.

It didn't take long for Dwight Freeney to extend his streak of consecutive games with a sack to 9, sacking Matt Schaub on the very first play of the game. That means he had sacks on consecutive plays, as he sacked Alex Smith on the 49ers' last offensive play last week.
Dallas Clark set the franchise record for catches in a game by a TE with 14. This was third highest reception total for a TE in NFL history (~~can't find the record or who owns it~~) Thanks to skywalker, the record is held by Jason Witten and Kellen Winslow, Sr with 15. I'm guessing we won't see Brian Cushing trying to cover him at the end of the month.
Seventeen games and counting...

Overall, it didn't look like one of the Colts' best games this season, but what do the numbers say? Find out after the jump...

Here are the stats for Week 9:

Statistic	Offense	Rank	Defense	Rank	Off/Def Above	Off/Def Below	Record
DSR	78.4%	2	72.7%	16	N	N	4-1
ANPY/A	4.453	18	5.133	11	N	N	6-1
Turnovers	2	14	3	3	N	N	4-1
Yds/Drive	37.80	4	34.73	19	N	N	4-0
ToP/Drive	2:32.7	17	3:08.5	21	N	Y	4-3
Yds/Play	5.324	14	5.380	15	N	N	4-1
First Downs/Drive	2.70	1	2.00	18	N	N	4-1
3rd/4th Down	46.2%	9	64.7%	26	N	N	6-2
Avg Start Pos	31.7	9	24.0	5	Y	N	7-1
3 and Outs	2	5	5	3	Y	N	2-3
RZ Eff	71.4%	13	66.7%	8	N	N	1-2
Plays/Drive	7.100	2	6.455	21	N	N	4-2
Penalty Yds / Play	0.563	13	1.451	3	Y	N	5-2
RB Success	47.1%	15	41.7%	4	Y	N	7-4
Yds/Carry	4.00	15	3.12	4	N	N	1-3
Net Punts Yds/Game	32.67	25	41.50	16	N	Y	4-3
Ranking - Week (26)	6		11		8
Ranking - Season (258)	79		142		97

Some Thoughts:

I was wrong about the Colts shredding the Texans pass defense, as the Colts had their worst ANPY/A showing of the season, finishing 18th this week. I didn't think I'd see a game this year where the Colts' opponent would be better in this category, but it happened this week. This is a good candidate for why the Colts had to fight tooth and nail to win.
The Texans defense came into the game best in the league in First Downs/Drive and Three & Outs/Game, but that didn't matter this week, as the Colts offense had quite a few long, sustaining drives.
The Colts defense was worst in the league this week in Third/Fourth Down Conversions, as the Texans converted almost 65% of them. They flashed a stat at one point that the Texans were converting 3rd and 10+ yards at 20% this year...the Texans converted the next 2 of 10+ yards. Unacceptable.
The Run defense was fantastic once again. Top 5 in both rushing categories. Great job by the D-Line and LBs.
Overall it was a run of the mill, above average game for the Colts, both for the week and for the season.

Colts Season Totals through Week 9:

Statistic	Offense	Rank	Best	Defense	Rank	Best	Record	Win %
DSR	78.4%	1	Colts	67.2%	10	Jets	56-5	0.918
ANPY/A	8.043	2	Saints	3.890	3	Bills	68-5	0.932
Turnovers	1.00	3	Chiefs	1.88	8	Saints	57-13	0.814
Yds/Drive	40.04	1	Colts	28.55	16	Giants	60-7	0.896
ToP/Drive	2:54.5	6	Steelers	2:54.6	25	Saints	57-18	0.760
Yds/Play	6.343	3	Cowboys	4.676	4	Jets	58-11	0.841
First Downs/Drive	2.19	2	Patriots	1.69	22	Cardinals	49-11	0.817
3rd/4th Down	50.5%	2	Dolphins	44.5%	30	Cardinals	48-10	0.828
Avg Start Pos	28.7	21	Bears	26.1	3	Cowboys	63-13	0.829
3 and Outs	2.38	2	Cowboys	3.75	19	Texans	41-15	0.732
RZ Eff	68.5%	12	49ers	60.5%	10	Saints	36-21	0.632
Plays/Drive	6.313	2	Patriots	6.106	29	Giants	45-20	0.692
Penalty Yds / Play	0.655	4	Jaguars	0.846	14	Seahawks	67-45	0.598
RB Success	47.5%	11	Dolphins	47.9%	20	Eagles	47-20	0.701
Yds/Carry	3.73	27	Titans	4.30	17	49ers	27-32	0.458
Net Punts Yds/Game	40.66	11	Raiders	42.21	27	Browns	31-27	0.534
Overall	2		Patriots	14		Saints

A few thoughts here:

The stats in the Top 6 continue to be there, and I don't think that will change soon.
Red Zone Efficiency is lower than it should be. The Colts absolutely cannot settle for FGs going forward. I'm guessing they'll be working on that a lot this week.
The YPC is low, but the Success Rate is high. Getting Brown back healthy should help.
Defensively it is still getting opposing offenses off the field. The stats relating to that (ToP/Drive, First Downs/Drive, 3rd/4th Down Conversions, Plays/Drive) are all bad. I know it is a bend but don't break defense, but a few more stops will go a long way to helping this team keep winning.
ANPY/A still has the best record when you're above average on both sides of the ball, only losing 5 times (Giants losing to SD this week the latest). Still a good sign for the Colts.

Armageddon 2009: Patriots v. Colts

BigBlueShoe — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:40:02 -0000

More photos » by Winslow Townson - AP

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

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This week, we get to gear up for (arguably) the most anticipated regular season game on the entire NFL schedule: The New England Patriots at the Indianapolis Colts. Despite both teams not playing in the same division, and despite both teams not facing in other in the playoffs since the now-legendary 2006 AFC Championship Game, this match-up is indeed still the best rivalry in pro football.

Hell, it might be the best rivalry in all of sports.

More people will likely watch this game than any Red Sox v. Yankees game that was played last baseball season. It will likely gain higher ratings than the World Series, the NBA Finals, or the excellent Hockey playoff match-up last season that pitted their game's best players (Capitals ace Alexander Ovechkin and Penguins phenom Sydney Crosby) against each other. And while football rivalries like Packers v. Vikings, Cowboys v. Giants, and Steelers v. Ravens feature impressive teams loaded with big stars who are followed by large fanbases, no two players get debated more than Tom Brady v. Peyton Manning. And there is a reason for this.

They are the best in the league; maybe ever.

With all due respect to Drew Brees, who is having an amazing year with the still undefeated Saints, he can't touch Tommy Terrific or Perfect Peyton. Brees has all the physical tools, but until we see him rise to the occasion and lead his team to a conference championship game win, one can't put him on Brady or Manning's level.

Personally, I have long maintained Peyton is better than Tom, and unlike many of the Pro-Brady faction, I actually have tangible evidence to back it up. Peyton has helped his team to more wins. He has more impressive career numbers than Brady. And, to put it bluntly, Peyton has had a bigger overall impact on the league than Tom.

That no-huddle, spread offense the Patriots have used since 2007? Yeah, Peyton brought that back en vogue ten years ago.

But regardless of where you fall in the debate, what many of us agree upon is that these two are, quite possibly, the best to ever play the position. And while the morons in the established media world might claim that this reason or that prevents Manning or Brady from being in the all-time discussion (remember Chris Collingsworth saying earlier this season that Peyton Manning needed to win one more championship to be considered on the same level as Dan Marino... why does this schmuck still have employment?), what we fans know is that time and again these two have DEFINED great quarterback play for an entire generation. And as these two continue to re-write history books, the classic Pats v. Colts rivalry has begun to take a turn.

More so than any other time before, the rivalry has evolved from a nasty, bitter slap fest into one of mutual respect. Sure, we think (and know) the Patriots are cheaters, and Patriots fans think our Colts are nothing but cry-babies who change the rules to help them win. However, despite the outward silliness (and name-calling fun) of the rivalry, both sides also know that both teams demand (and have earned) respect.

In addition, both fanbases also respect one another. For me, pro football suffers when the Pats v. Colts rivalry suffers. I know about a billion Patriots fans who likely agree with that sentiment.

Keep an eye out here and at Pats Pulpit for more lead-up to this excellent rivalry game.

Time capsule: Plunkett to Vataha keys victory over Colts, December 19, 1971

JohnHannahRules — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:15:18 -0000

A clear and cold late December afternoon in Baltimore's Memorial Stadium. The sun struggled all day to bring the temperature above the freezing mark, and by game time the barometer rests around forty -- a fine football day. The bundled crowds assemble in the face of a light southerly breeze as Johnny Unitas, black high-topped cleats and buzz cut in place, warms up along the sidelines. Baltimore is in a fight for playoff positioning, trailing Miami by half a game in the standings in the regular season's final week.

The 38-year-old Unitas was nearing the end of an unrivalled career. He had been dueling for starts with Earl Morrall all season, but there was plenty of gas still in the tank.

The previous year marked the merger of the upstart AFL with big-brother NFL. The storied Baltimore franchise had been called to play the low-rent league frequently as a member of the new AFC East. In 1970, they defeated Boston in the first-ever meeting, 27-3, with Unitas throwing 3 touchdowns. In 1971 the Patriots became "New England," but the early results were much the same. Baltimore had walked all over the Patriots in brand new Schaffer Stadium back in October, 23-3. The lone Patriot score was a Charlie Gogolak field goal, courtesy of a 19 yard interception return by Patriots defensive back John Outlaw who picked Earl Morrell in the second quarter.

Here now in December, the 10 - 3 Colts had the Dolphins in their sights and 5 - 8 New England firmly in the rearview. Across the field from Morrall and Unitas, two kids in their early 20's were stretching for the kickoff: a speedy receiver from Stanford named Randy Vataha and his old college quarterback, rookie Jim Plunkett.

The game was an ambush. Playing with nothing on the line, the Patriots sprinted to the lead on the feet of their young guns. Plunkett connected with Vataha from 2 yards out to open the scoring. The Colts answered with a field goal and were driving again, moving across midfield when 3rd year pro Outlaw stepped in front of an errant Unitas offering and raced sixty yards up the field for a touchdown, the longest return of the season.

Coming out after the half, Unitas took his men in on a 31 yard strike to favorite target Eddie Hinton and it looked like the football universe would right itself. But the Patriots bounced right back. Two weeks previous, New England had helped the Colts with an upset victory over Miami, keyed by two Plunkett scoring throws and an interception return for six. The pattern would repeat this week. Plunkett found Vataha for an 88 yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to put the game away. Hinton and Johnny U would add one more to make it look better in the books, but the story had already been written. It was New England's first regular season win over an Original Franchise since the merger a year before.

Unitas and Morrell led the Colts through the playoffs with a win over Cleveland before meeting and losing to Miami, whose seeding advantage had Baltimore on the road for that game. Miami had corrected a tie from the first week with a final week win over the Packers. They ultimately lost to the Cowboys in the Super Bowl. Among his many honors, Unitas' 17 years with the Colts is still a team record.

Plunkett earned Rookie of the Year honors, though the team finished 8-6. He helped the Pats to three upset victories that year, leading with an opening day two-TD display against the Raiders to christen Schaffer Stadium. Plunkett would ultimately find himself in Oakland, also finding there the success that eluded both he and the team in New England.

John Outlaw was purged when Coach Fairbanks took over the New England squad, but found a home with the Eagles where he played for five more years.

Randy Vataha played six years with the Pats, ending his career with a one-year stint in Green Bay. After retiring, Vataha helped to found the USFL with an ownership stake in the Boston Breakers.

It would take the Patriots until 1980 to claw their series record with the Colts to .500 parity. In the decades since, New England has widened the split and the series now favors the Pats at 44-28, 2-1 in postseason play. The Colts have won four of the last five, however, including a playoff victory in 2006.

Much has changed in the league and with these franchises since that night in 1971, as the inimitable Johnny U was on his way out and Jim Plunkett on his way in. Goalposts were moved back and out of the way, and the Colts suffered an ignominious removal to Indianapolis, among other things. But just as the 1971 matches revolved around the quarterbacks, it was the rise of the quarterback position that turned these teams from sometime foes to full time rivals.

Peyton Manning was drafted in 1998 out of the University of Tennessee and immediately went to work on the history book, breaking rookie records left and right and throwing the ball all over the league. By the time New England drafted the unlikely Tom Brady in 2000, Manning had thrown for 52 touchdowns and almost 8,000 yards.

In 2001, New England's starting quarterback Drew Bledsoe was leveled against the Jets. Brady stepped in and started the rest of the year, leading the team to a Super Bowl victory. He also began to chip away at Manning's head start, with a 44-3 victory in the their first encounter.

The rest, you know.

Complaining about the Ryan Moats fumble

BigBlueShoe — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:09:35 -0000

More photos » by Tom Strattman - AP

2 days ago: Houston Texans running back Ryan Moats (21) fumbles the football as he is tackled by Indianapolis Colts safety Antoine Bethea (41) during the second quarter of an NFL Football game in Indianapolis, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Tom Strattman)

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Shutdown Corner, Yahoo! Sports' dedicated NFL blog, has taken some hits from us Colts fans of late because... well, the writing has been pretty bad. I wish I could say different because there are some good people there, but in general it leaves a lot to be desired as a football blog. Chris Chase's silly hit piece on Jim Irsay was one of the worst "professional" blog articles I'd ever read, and Chris took his lumps for it. He was blasted not just on this site, but in the comments section of his own article. Now, we have Doug Farrar, who is pretty much openly saying that the Ryan Moats fumble was incorrectly corrected after a replay review, and that the resulting call affected the "landscape in the AFC South for the rest of the season."

Sorry Doug, but you're being a bit of a drama queen with that statement.

First off, let's be clear on something. Ryan Moats did indeed fumble. The replay clearly shows that. It was incorrectly not called a fumble after the whistle blew. Then, when the Texans let the clock tick to the two minute warning, that gave Colts coach Jim Caldwell enough time to digest the replays and throw a red challenge flag. The challenge was Moats fumbled. The refs reviewed, saw that he had, and then saw that the ball was recovered by Indy in the endzone for a touchback.

What Doug Farrar and Alan Burge of the Houston Texans Examiner, who Farrar quotes in his blog post, are arguing is that the ball may have touched tackler Antoine Bethea's arm while Bethea's leg was dangling out-of-bounds. If Bethea's arm was touching the ball while his leg was touching out-of-bounds, that means the fumble was not established back in-bounds. Thus, Texans ball on the two.

However, when you watch the replays, it most certainly is not conclusive that Bethea's arm is touching the ball while he is established as out-of-bounds. Burge has a still screen apparently showing it, but it looks so grainy I swear I see the second gunman hiding behind a grassy knoll in the background.

What did seem conclusive is Moats' fumble and Jerraud Powers' heads-up play to re-establish his feet in bounds to gain control of the ball. THAT is what the refs were looking at, and that is what they called. Remember, refs are only allotted one minute and thirty seconds to view all this crap.

As many of you know, I am very tough on refs, and I personally have no love for Jeff Triplette, who is better served bagging my groceries than reffing my football team's games. But in this case, he got the call right, or, at the very least, got the call as right as possible given the allotted time. And despite Farrar's dramatics, the call did not have the kind of far reaching consequences that he pathetically seems to suggest. Allowing the Colts to score the eventual game-winning TD in the fourth quarter and then missing a gimme FG to potentially force OT were the reasons the Texans lost, not the Moats fumble call.

The Beatdown Knows The Problems

Bruce Raffel — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:53:13 -0000

More photos » by Ed Reinke - AP

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A lot of frustrated people have been expressing their opinions on the poor play of the Baltimore Ravens this past weekend in losing to the Cincinnati Bengals 17-7. Looking lackluster and bland, the offense seemed to be in slow motion and the defense sat back on their heels once again. After looking like the old Ravens the week before, we seemed to regress and let a team that we were pretty sure was a pretender prove that perhaps we are the ones who are pretending this season.

The quotes from the fans seem to say it all. Here are some great thoughts and samples from some of the stories or FanPosts over the past two days that the Ravens would be pretty smart to take into consideration when re-assessing their personnel and future plans:

Playoffs

Playoffs? Dont talk about playoffs, are you kidding me? Playoffs?…I'm just hoping we can win a game….Jim Mora summed it up people.

by ShaneOmacDaddy on Nov 10, 2009 3:00 AM EST

I feel like we just gave up yesterday when we just started throwing the screen to Rice each and every play. We basically just gave up at that point and did not even care to look at the WR. We just wanted to get the hell out of Cinci and take our loss. I do not agree with that at all and it was a disgrace of a showing by Cam and the Offense.

You have to hate losing more than you love winning.

by Mr MaLoR on Nov 9, 2009 7:34 PM EST

I like what you’ve been writing. My thoughts as well. If you can’t stand toe to toe you better get creative. We did neither against just "decent" teams. If we simply dinked and dunked we’d have a better shot than Cams random deep balls when Mason rarely gets separation on deep balls. What was he thinking. Wasted downs.

by raven on Nov 9, 2009 9:25 PM EST

As Don Meredith would say...

Turn out the lights the party’s over – they say that all good things must end. That’s a wrap for the season folks. Who do you like in the draft next spring?

by Rayfan1 on Nov 8, 2009 4:37 PM EST

Penalties

What is up with all the pass interference calls? We are leading the league in getting called for interference. It is really starting to get ridiculous and it is killing us. I don’t know about you but I am tired of seeing our cornerbacks grabbing jerseys and getting burned in the process.

Don't forget to check out my blog at http://baltimoreravenschat.blogspot.com

Best regards,

Chris

by RavensBlogger on Nov 8, 2009 8:45 PM ES

PENALTIES, NOT REFS!!

Listen I could care less about talking about the refs.

it’s not the refs! it’s the penalties!!

Where Have You Gone Johnny U?

by The Exiler on Nov 9, 2009 11:36 AM EST

I was not a Kyle Boller fan but it just goes to show you that with no blocking any QB can look like Kyle Boller. There was one point where the Bengals had 12 first downs and we had 14 total plays from scrimmage! No one came to play. Is Gano still available? This is not our season. We can still hope to break even but don’t expect any post season for these guys. And even though the refs were not to blame for the game – there is clear bias. That would mean to me that you try even harder to not make penalties because you know they are watching us closely.

by Rayfan1 on Nov 9, 2009 9:28 AM EST

BENGALS ATOP

the AFC North, and deservedly so. Being a frustrated Ravens fan right now, you guys are making a strong statement. Personally speaking, I believe you’re the Top team in the Division right now, and possibly the entire AFC. With the Ravens hoping for, at best, a wild card, I sure as hell hope the Bengals take it to the Steelers this coming Sunday – you have the better team, now show it!

by ravens347 on Nov 9, 2009 9:52 AM EST

Oh, did the Ravens lose?

I turned off the debacle toward the end of the second quarter, never looked back and moved on to more meaningful things in my life. I just couldn’t watch the game any further. What a horrific game. I can’t express my disappointment enough. The Ravens were supposed to be a playoff-caliber team. They are not. I predicted a 9-7 record and they WILL NOT finish better than that. What more can be said? They were flat-footed all game, beaten off the ball on both sides, lethargic, way too deliberate and just didn’t show any sense of urgency! Geez, am I pissed!

by Smiley4660 on Nov 9, 2009 10:52 AM EST

Time to pack it in

C’mon guys…its over…it wasnt meant to be, this isnt the team to take us to the Super Bowl or even the playoffs. We will finish 8-8 with losses to the Colts, twice to Steelers and Green Bay…possibly even Bears to put us at 7-9. Hauschka needs to be released this week to send a message to the fans. Ray Rice even said yesterday "we came out and played slow", thats so nice to hear from the team I love and cheer for every Sunday, that they come out and play like a bunch of slouches and don’t really care. I am so fed up with this team and their attitude, it isn’t fair to the fans that pay their hard earned money in this economy to buy their jerseys and tickets to watch them play. I feel like I’ve been slapped in the face by this team and they should be ashamed of themselves.

by ShaneOmacDaddy on Nov 9, 2009 4:27 PM EST

this has been one of the most frustrating seasons

all around from getting our hopes up after each win, to failing just short, to not playing to our potential. I don’t understand it.

by ryantz on Nov 9, 2009 12:10 PM EST

The season, as far as playoffs and Superbowls, is probably over. We’re a distant third in our own division, and there’s several competitive wildcard teams in other divisions.

We still have to face Indy, Pittsburgh twice, Chicago at home, and Green Bay on the road.

We’ll also face Detroit, Cleveland, and Oakland.

7-9 to 10-6 is probably our range of records, and 10-6 probably won’t get us into the playoffs, so it’s better to sit back, relax and enjoy what we can, and hope for some of the young players to develop so that we can have a stronger season next year.

by math_geek on Nov 9, 2009 3:04 PM EST

Pitt won like Pitt wins…They let you stick around keeping the game under control and then explode on your tendencies. Their games always go to the 4th quarter. They just deep down know that they are closers. They are the furthest thing from what we are.

by raven on Nov 10, 2009 12:38 AM EST