Saturday, September 27, 2014

The Fantasy Show with Mike & P.L. Week 4

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Early must win game for these NFL teams

One of the things we love most about the NFL is it's parody. Every fan base can embrace each new season with renewed optimism, regardless of what happened the previous year. Worst to first is not an NFL cliche...it's pretty much the norm now.

But for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Translation...

Recent history has shown that at least one of the twelve teams that made the playoffs a year ago won't make it back this season. After three games, these 2013 playoff teams are in serious jeopardy of being next if they don't pull off a victory this weekend.

Kansas City:

After three games, Kansas City looks more like the team that finished last year's regular season 2-5...not the one that started 9-0. Jamaal Charles, their best player, has been out....but no one cares. Half the league is down their running back. At 1-2, the Chiefs could be in trouble. Not only are they facing the Patriots this Monday night, but they're already behind division leading Denver and San Diego...both at 2-1. Another loss could bury them in the AFC Wildcard race....especially with games against the 49ers and Chargers the next two weeks.

Green Bay Packers:

Aaron Rogers and Company are also in a must win situation as they face Chicago...their bitter rival...this week. At 1-2, the Packers are a game behind the Bears (2-1). A loss would not only put the Packers two and a half games behind Chicago, but it would also drop them to 0-2 in their division. Both their loses have come to NFC teams (Seattle, Detroit), so an L this Sunday to another NFC opponent could put an early stranglehold on any tiebreaker advantage they may need when the season ends.

New Orleans Saints:

Yes, New Orleans (1-2) has been competitive in all of their games, but competitiveness isn't a criteria when it comes to playoff tiebreaker rules.

So again...no one cares.

The Saints travel to their dome away from home...Jerry World...for a prime time Sunday night match up with the new look Cowboys. Dallas' run game is for real, and the Saints struggle against the run. This could turn out to be very interesting. The Saints can ill afford to fall to 1-3. With Atlanta (2-1) looking like they're back, and Carolina  (2-1) continuing to win, a third loss in four games could have the Saints playing catch up all year...instead of pitch and catch.

San Francisco 49ers

If the 49ers were in any other division they may have avoided this list, but the NFC West is too brutal to survive a 1-3 start...especially when you're already two and a half games behind division leading Arizona (3-0), and some team in Seattle (2-1) is also a game ahead. This week San Fran takes on the read hot Philadelphia Eagles (3-0). This game will come down to a test of tendencies. The Eagles have come from behind in every game this season. The 49ers blew leads in both their losses. One thing's for sure, San Fran better figure it out this week, or it's three loses to NFC teams...this early in the season.

It's these types of games that we forget when the season comes to a close, and a team that's playing well misses out, while a team that started strong limped in.

It's all about the tiebreakers.

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Saturday, September 20, 2014

Jake Locker, Andy Dalton, and what could have been

The Tennessee Titans blew a golden opportunity to not only start 2-0 for the first time since it last made the playoffs in 08, but to also get an early two game cushion on the reigning AFC South champion Indianapolis Colts. A team they struggle with mightily.

Last week's loss to the Cowboys effectively ended the four month honeymoon between Titans fans and their embattled, and surgically repaired starting qb Jake Locker.

Throughout the preseason, Locker played brilliantly. New head coach Ken Whisenhunt heaped praise upon praise for Locker's commitment, and quick grasp of the new offense. In week 1, Locker was on his game, leading Tennessee to an impressive opening day road win over the Chiefs.

Last week? Well....

His 26 yard passing performance in the first half against Dallas ultimately did the Titans in. He missed several wide open receivers, which stalled drive after drive.

Locker settled down in the second half...throwing for over 200 yards and a td, but a couple of errant throws sealed the Titans fate. He finished with 238 yards for the game.

The Titans' quest for consecutive road wins is daunting, as the 2-0 Cincinnati Bengals await them this Sunday. Locker's quest for a bounce back performance is equally daunting, as the Bengals boast one of the most talented defenses in the league.

If that wasn't enough pressure, Locker will be facing Bengals qb Andy Dalton. And I'm sure that by game time someone will ask the Titans what could have been....

In 2011, Tennessee selected Jake Locker with the 8th overall pick of the first round. In the second round of that draft, the Cincinnati Bengals selected Andy Dalton. Since that time, the teams have gone in completely opposite directions.

One qb has led his team to three consecutive playoff appearances, and has a 115 million dollar contract extension to show for it. The other is playing out the last year of his deal, after his team said..."thanks, but no thanks" on an extension. And you can't blame Tennessee...Locker has rarely been on the field and the Titans haven't sniffed the playoffs since his arrival.

I'm sure that coach Whisenhunt will give the politically correct answers if asked to grade the two qb's at this point of their careers. But we all know that Whiz would take Dalton over Locker if given the choice. Looking back, I'm sure the Munchak regime wish they would have too.

But I digress.

This week, one qb will be playing with the confidence of security. He knows that, win or lose, he's the qb of the future. Meanwhile, Jake Locker is not only trying to win games, but he's also trying to extend his career.

So where's the happy medium?

Locker can take a queue from the qb that beat him last week, Tony Romo. Let's remember the previous week, Romo did his own team in with costly turnovers. All by trying to do too much. Against Tennessee, he resisted the temptation, and took what the defense gave him...which was gaping holes in the run game. Romo won by not beating his team, something we rarely see from him.

For the Titans to be successful this week, Locker will need to focus on just getting the win. And not whether he's in Dalton's class (pun intended) or not. Jake seemed to be set on a Locker - Romo shoot out at high noon last week, and looked jittery from the start. Romo was just trying to get to .500. I'm sure he'll take the win over a 500 yard passing day.

Tennessee has the best passing defense in the league so far this year, and has given up the fewest passing tds overall since 2013.

Let Dalton be their problem.

The Titans just need Jake to play ball, and not prove anything. It wasn't the stats that got Dalton the extension. It was the wins.

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Thursday, September 11, 2014

Titans get 2nd chance to make first impression

There's an age old saying..."You never get a second chance to make a first impression". While that saying still holds true in a variety of life's arenas, it doesn't apply to the 2014 Tennessee Titans.

Let's be honest. If we polled 1,000 casual football fans in non NFL cities...and asked them who is the team they know the least about...I'm willing to bet the Titans would be unanimously mentioned in the top three, if not number one.

It's simple math.

Small market city + 0 marketable superstars + 0 playoff appearances in over five years = you're buried in the noon time slot every week....and don't even think about asking for a prime time slot. 

Although Tennesseans are relatively new to professional football, it's SEC roots go back generations. It's a football savvy town...so they get it. They just set their schedules around the noon games each Sunday. Nobody cares about professional Tennessee football but them, and they're perfectly ok with that.

Case in point....

Last week, the Titans not only spanked Vegas as underdogs, but they thoroughly dominated a playoff team from a year ago. An opponent that...at one point...won 9 straight games last year. Tennessee's offense, which was one of the best in the league during the preseason, put up 26 points and over 400 yards of total offense.

They dominated time of possession, and forced Chiefs qb Alex Smith into 3 interceptions. Something he hasn't done in five years. To put the proverbial cherry on top...the defense...which was abysmal during the preseason...shut down one of the most explosive offensive weapons in the league in Jamaal Charles. 

Few noticed...and fewer cared. As a Dallas resident, I surfed one sports channel after another, only to find mere snippets of the Titans victory. 

But that will all change this week. 

Yes...the Titans still play at noon this Sunday, but their opponent will thrust them into the national spotlight....for better or worse.

Yep...it's Cowboys week.

No matter the record...who they play...or where they play...the Dallas Cowboys will be the lead story when the post game highlights kick off. Coincidentally, so will the Titans.

Last week Tennessee was overlooked by the national pundits, but all of the heavyweight journalists that cover the league will be in downtown Nashville this Sunday. That's great for my hometown by the way. They will certainly enjoy the country cuisine.  

But I digress.

Tennessee has an opportunity to reintroduce themselves to the league this Sunday. 

Let's do the math.

Victory over America's team, + 2-0 start, = national pundits giving your new attitude team a garner of respect. Plenty of cities that do not have NFL teams nearby get the Cowboys game each week. It was the same in Nashville prior to the Titans arrival.

With little national exposure this season, Tennessee can leave a first..but lasting impression on the casual fan with a victory over Dallas. A loss, and well.....at least they're in the lead highlights for a day or two.

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Saturday, September 6, 2014

Titans face wounded animal in week 1

Ask any NFL player around the league and they'll say the same thing...."Actually, I don't read the papers, or watch ESPN, or get on social media. I have no clue what people are saying. I'm just focusing on...."

Raise your hand if you believe that.

I understand the rationale behind the answer, because it's mostly asked in reference to negative press. But what if the things you're reading actually slant in your favor? If you're the Tennessee Titans...you better stop reading.....

Now.

Coming into their season opener, the Titans...if they are reading...must like what they are seeing. They see the Chiefs' best receiver being suspended for the game. They see a team with a depleted offensive line, and injury riddled receiving corps. They see a team that lost one it's best defensive backs, and they now have a player in Dexter McCluster that basically did it all for their opponent the previous season.

If they are watching tv or listening to the radio the Titans are hearing one national pundit after another pick Kansas City as the team least likely to return to the playoffs. I even heard Stephen A Smith recently say that the 2013 Chiefs were the worst 9-0 team he's ever seen. 

The worst?

Kansas City did all it could to earn the bad rap, losing 5 of their last seven regular season games, and blowing a 38-10 lead in the wild card round.

Add that all up, and you will have a very ticked off and fired up opponent Sunday afternoon. An opponent that plays in one of the rowdiest stadiums in the league. Chiefs head coach Andy Reid will have his team ready to play. 

And by the way, Jamaal Charles will be playing.

Tennessee should benefit from the element of surprise this week, as head coach / play caller Ken Whisenhunt rolls out his new scheme for the first time. Coach Whiz also has the benefit of familiarity, having played the Chiefs twice last year as San Diego's offensive coordinator.

It all comes down to Jamaal Charles. We've seen him carry his offensive on the ground and through the air on several occasions. He's healthy and fully capable of doing it on Sunday. We've also witnessed a Titans first team defense give up td's with little resistance this preseason.

The Titans offense looked great this preseason, and should be the most talented unit on the field Sunday. If a shoot out at high noon were to occur, the chances for an upset increases. 

For Tennessee's sake, I hope they did stay away from all of the Chiefs bashing. They should look at Kansas City as a playoff team from a year ago, that came into their house last year and won. A team with a good head coach, and true home field advantage.

A team just like you, not predicted to do much...and looking to prove people wrong.

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