Blogger Blitz: Different vibe for Eagles' D

If you turn the ball over nine times in your first two games but win them both, your defense must be doing something right. Such is the case with the Philadelphia Eagles, whose defense is playing at a much higher level than it was at this time last season. Whether it's the addition of DeMeco Ryans at middle linebacker or the depth and energy brought in by all of the rookies who are seeing significant time, the Eagles' defense has a different feel about it this year. In this week's Blogger Blitz video, I talk about how different it felt in the Eagles' locker room Sunday, with players talking about specific defensive schemes and the success they did or didn't have with them as opposed to saying things like, "We need somebody to step up."

For example, an energized cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha said the plan the Eagles made last week was for him to cover Baltimore receiver Anquan Boldin and for Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie to cover Torrey Smith, who's a faster straight-line runner while Boldin is a little more shifty. The Eagles settled on those matchups but also decided that, when Boldin went inside, they'd leave him to rookie Brandon Boykin because they wanted to keep Boykin on the slot receiver. Now, that did leave Asomugha on Jacoby Jones, who beat him for a touchdown and nearly beat him for another. And that's something to watch going forward -- whether high-end speed guys are tough matchups for Asomugha at this stage in his career. But I don't recall one time last season when an Eagles defensive player talked so enthusiastically about the way he was working and planning in conjunction with his coaches and teammates in advance of the game. Not to say it wasn't happening, but everyone seems more engaged this season.

Because Asomugha is my example, of course I think it's possible that new secondary coach Todd Bowles is a part of this new vibe. And certainly, everybody has to be more comfortable in Juan Castillo's second season as defensive coordinator, if only because that seems less weird this season. It's a combination of many factors that has the Eagles playing very tight defense so far, and if the offense ever gets its ball-security act together, the Eagles could be one of the better teams in the league.

20 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/63560/blogger-blitz-different-vibe-for-eagles-d
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

08.49 | 0 komentar | Read More

Don't blink if you want to see Randy Moss

Randy Moss has several "returns" to the Metrodome in his career, including the 2006 preseason while with the Oakland Raiders and after being re-acquired by the Minnesota Vikings in 2010. Here's some advice for Vikings fans who want to see Moss on the field Sunday: Pay attention.

Yes, Moss' latest homecoming is notable mostly for the part-time role he has assumed for the San Francisco 49ers. Moss is in essence sharing the 49ers' No. 3 receiver role with Kyle Williams, behind starters Michael Crabtree and Mario Manningham, and has been on the field for only 37 of the 49ers' 130 offensive snaps (28.5 percent) over the first two games. Quarterback Alex Smith has targeted Moss on only five of his 57 pass attempts, completing all five for 61 yards and a touchdown. (Statistics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.)

Randy Moss

#84 WR
San Francisco 49ers

2012 STATS

• Rec5
• Yds61
• TD1
• Avg12.2
• Long20
• YAC0

Moss, 35, didn't play last season and hasn't been a downfield threat since averaging 15.2 yards on 83 catches for the New England Patriots in 2009. The 49ers aren't really a downfield offense, preferring to utilize their physical line to run the ball while Smith attacks mid-range openings. But if the 49ers thought Moss could routinely stretch the defense downfield, it stands to reason they would use him that way -- as a decoy if nothing else.

Speaking to Bay-area reporters this week, Moss said "I am not" concerned about playing time and noted "it's really not up to me." He added: "I just come out here and practice every day. When called upon I try to make a play."

We've learned over the years that Moss is a special athlete and football player. There is no sense writing him off now, or ever. But if he has reached his physical limit, kudos to the 49ers for recognizing it and finding a reasonable way for him to contribute rather than mis-cast him in a role he played 10 years ago. And for two games, at least, Moss deserves credit for accepting the 49ers' plan.

20 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/63561/dont-blink-if-you-want-to-see-randy-moss
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

08.49 | 0 komentar | Read More

After missing first-down pass, Jags run it

Pretend for a second you are a run-first offense.

But you throw on first down.

And the pass in incomplete.

Do you go back to what you do best? Or do you throw again?

Run it, odds are you wind up in third-and-long, the most predictable passing situation there is. So I like your chances of extending a drive a lot better if you throw it on second down.

So far, the Jaguars disagree.

In fact, through two games, they are the only team in the NFL that, after throwing incomplete on first down, has run it on second down every time.

Five-for-five.

The Redskins have done it five times in six chances (83.3 percent). Four other teams have done it at least three-quarters of the time -- the Chargers (75 percent), the Jets and Steelers (71.4 percent and the Vikings (66.7 percent).

The numbers are courtesy of Elias, via ESPN Stats & Information. No, they are not a giant sample size. But after watching the Jaguars' aproach against the Texans Sunday, I wanted to take a look. And I don't like the small trend.

It seems pretty stubborn, and really sends your offense a signal with that first-down throw: Miss, and it's a two-down series, and the first of those two is going to be a run.

The rest of the AFC South does a better job here:

• Indianapolis, four of nine for 44.4 percent
• Houston, one of six for 16.1 percent
• Tennessee, one of six for 16.1 percent

Even if you've got Arian Foster or Maurice Jones-Drew, a second-and-10 run isn't likely to land you in a good spot to have your best chance at a new set of downs.

And those unpredictable Jaguars might want to throw on their next second-and-10, just to catch a defense by surprise.

20 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/63557/after-missing-first-down-pass-jags-run-it
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

08.49 | 0 komentar | Read More

Schefter: Harrison unlikely to play Sunday

The Steelers will likely be without linebacker James Harrison for a third straight game, according to ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.

Losing Harrison unquestionably hurts the defense. But it has yet to severely impact the results of games.

Since the start of the 2011 season, the Steelers have done just as well with Harrison (8-3 record) as without him (5-2 record). In a stat that will shock most, Pittsburgh averages slightly more sacks without Harrison. The Steelers have recorded 17 sacks in seven games without Harrison and 22 with him. LaMarr Woodley has sacked the quarterback 8.5 times in the seven games that Harrison has missed.

Where the Steelers really feel the loss of Harrison is in keeping offenses off the scoreboard. In the 11 games with Harrison since the start of 2011, the Steelers have limited teams to 12.7 points including two shutouts. Without Harrison, Pittsburgh has given up 18.2 points.

Harrison hasn't played since a playoff loss in Denver nine months ago. He was sidelined all of training camp with a knee injury, and had arthroscopic surgery on Aug. 15. There's a possibility that he could be available after next week's bye.

Steelers safety Troy Polamalu, who is dealing with a strained right calf, could also miss Sunday's game at Oakland. He was sidelined in Sunday's 27-10 win over the New York Jets.

Chris Carter, a fifth-round pick in 2011, is expected to start in place of Harrison once again. Backup safety Ryan Mundy would make his third start of the season after replacing Ryan Clark in the season opener and Polamalu last Sunday.

20 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/63569/schefter-harrison-unlikely-to-play-sunday
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

08.49 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ravens not looking for revenge vs. Pats

Heading into Sunday night's game against the New England Patriots -- a rematch of last season's crushing AFC Championship Game loss -- the Ravens have the R-word on their minds. But it's not revenge. It's about rebounding from last Sunday's one-point loss to Philadelphia.

The Ravens know they can't do anything Sunday to get even with the Patriots. A trip to the Super Bowl was on the line in January. This time, the winner gets to move on with a 2-1 record. Not exactly high stakes.

"I don't think the last game we played against them has anything to do with this game," quarterback Joe Flacco said.

The players who would need to redeem themselves the most aren't around anymore. Lee Evans, who failed to catch the winning touchdown, is out of football. Billy Cundiff, who missed the tying field goal, is playing 45 minutes down the road Sunday for the Redskins.

Consecutive Wins
Following Losses

(Longest current streaks)

Team	No.
Ravens	13
Falcons	10
Steelers	10

Inside linebacker Ray Lewis said this week's game hasn't stirred up any memories from the AFC title game.

"It's always hard to think like that when you have a totally different makeup as a team," he said. "So, we are looking at this game as a totally different game."

The Ravens have been able to move on from tough playoff losses. They've returned to the postseason every year under coach John Harbaugh.

It's the same way with Baltimore in the regular season. The Ravens have won 13 games following losses, the longest current streak in the NFL.

"We've been a pretty good team since I've been here, and good teams are able to put their past losses in the background and forget about it and move on to the next one," Flacco said. "I think that has a lot to do with winning that next game, just being able to forget about it and still go play your best game that next week."

20 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/63549/ravens-not-looking-for-revenge-vs-pats
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

07.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

The bleaker, the better for these Giants

So let's see. Here's a partial list of the New York Giants who didn't make the trip to Carolina for tonight's game against the Panthers: Their starting running back, their starting right tackle and two of their top three wide receivers, one of whom was just named NFC Offensive Player of the Week.

Yeah, it looks as though the Giants have things set up just the way they like them.

Desperate.

You don't think the Giants can beat Cam Newton & Co. tonight without Hakeem Nicks, Ahmad Bradshaw, David Diehl and Domenik Hixon and with all of the problems they already had before this rash of bad injury news? Well, then you haven't been paying very close attention. These Giants seem to thrive when things look the bleakest, when their chances look the worst. Of course they'd rather have all of those guys healthy and ready to play, but with this group sometimes it takes a run of bad fortune to one part of their roster to bring out the best in the rest of it.

And there's plenty of latent stuff here. The Giants' vaunted pass rush has been quiet in the first two games. They have just four sacks, and only one of those from a defensive end. Jason Pierre-Paul has played like a maniac, but they continue to wait for Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora to contribute on the other side. Cornerback Corey Webster, the star of the secondary last season, has been ordinary while the Giants have shuffled replacements around at the other cornerback spot to overcome injuries there. The running game continues to plod, even as the offensive line believes itself to be capable of bigger things. And even with Nicks out, they still have Victor Cruz, who showed once again last week that he's always an 80-yard touchdown just waiting to flip the switch from potential to kinetic.

The Giants are more than capable of winning tonight's game in spite of their problems, because many of the solutions to those problems can be found if the players they do have simply play better. In microcosm, Sunday's game offered the perfect example. Quarterback Eli Manning, their roster's rock, threw three interceptions in the first half only to come alive in the second and lead the Giants to 25 fourth-quarter points and a comeback victory over the Buccaneers.

"A lesser group of men," Giants coach Tom Coughlin said Sunday afternoon, "would have had trouble."

But this group of Giants doesn't get down or upset when things aren't going their way. They've seen it too many times, have seen it turn out OK too many times, to disbelieve. This game tonight can't help but remind you of Week 9 of last season, when they went to New England without Nicks, Bradshaw and center David Baas and managed a comeback victory over the Patriots. They weren't supposed to win that day either. They were supposed to be outmanned. They were down by three points and on their own 20-yard line with 1:21 left in the game. But Manning just marched down the field, finding Ramses Barden and Jake Ballard for key catches, and won them the game with a touchdown.

Of course, then they lost five of their next six games to drop to 7-7, fell behind the Jets in Week 15, fell behind the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game and fell behind the Patriots in the Super Bowl. These Giants either don't like to make it easy or don't know how. They don't seem to play as well as they can until they absolutely have to.

When they have to, though, they've consistently shown a champion's ability to do just that. And there's no way anybody in their locker room tonight will be hanging their heads about the list of key guys who didn't make the trip. These Giants greet their troubles with a collective shrug. It's a Thursday game, so Nicks' sore foot didn't have time to feel all the way better after he played 73 snaps and caught 10 passes for 199 yards on it Sunday. These things happen. On the flip side, he gets nine days between this game and his next one, so maybe that'll take care of the problem once and for all.

Would they prefer to have him? Of course. But spending the night thinking like that isn't going to help them beat the Panthers. The Giants have a coaching staff that excels at keeping them focused on the important things, the present things, the things they can control. They have a quarterback for whom no deficit is too intimidating, for whom no set of circumstances is dire enough to cost him his cool. They will lean on those things, and on the depth they have on their roster (unproven though much of it may be), and if they win this game tonight in Carolina without 27 percent of their starting offense, it's not going to surprise them and it shouldn't surprise anyone else.

This is simply the way the Giants roll. If things weren't tough, or bleak, or desperate, I'm not sure they'd know what to do with themselves. Just when it looks as though they can't possibly win, that's when they have you right where they want you.

20 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/63556/the-bleaker-the-better-for-these-giants
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

06.21 | 0 komentar | Read More

NFL32: Can Cutler lead Bears to victory?

You are fully responsible for the content you post. Content that includes profanity, personal attacks or antisocial behavior (such as "spamming" or "trolling"), or other inappropriate content or material will be removed. We reserve the right to block any user who violates our terms of use, including removing all content posted by that user.

20 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/63551/nfl32-can-cutler-lead-bears-to-victory
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

21.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

So, Peyton, about that arm strength?

Backup quarterback Brock Osweiler caused a bit of a stir in Denver when he said he was warming up late against Atlanta on Monday night because it would have been him, not Peyton Manning, who would have thrown the Hail Mary if the Broncos had been in the situation to throw one in the final seconds of the 27-21 loss in Atlanta.

Manning, who has never been known for having a huge gun, was asked about his arm strength Wednesday. His answer: "I am what I am. It is what it is. Whatever. Whichever expression is appropriate for that. I don't really know what to tell you."

I have a feeling Manning may tire of questions about his arm strength after every interception or Denver loss. But he'd better get used to it. I don't see the questions ending.

20 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/63550/so-peyton-about-that-arm-strength
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

17.01 | 0 komentar | Read More

Four thoughts on Golden Tate's $21K fine

September, 19, 2012

Sep 19

5:47

PM ET

What comes to mind after the NFL levied a $21,000 fine against Seattle Seahawks receiver Golden Tate:

• No surprise: The rules are relatively clear if you've got enough time to study them and keep pace with periodic changes to them. I'll admit to needing a refresher periodically. In this case, Tate was delivering a blindside block on Dallas Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee. That qualified Lee for protections covering defenseless players. In general, those protections prohibit the blocker from hitting the defenseless player in the head/neck area. They also prohibit the blocker from using his own head to hit the defenseless player anywhere. In my view, Tate did lower his head so that his helmet impacted Lee. He also might have hit Lee in the neck area. Easy call for the league.
• Lee uninjured: Lee got back up pretty quickly and returned to the game following an examination. That was the most important detail relating to this play.
• Chunk of change: Tate was scheduled to earn $540,000 in salary this season. The $21,000 represents about 1.2 percent of his career earnings through Week 1. That amount is also the minimum fine for first-time violators of NFL policies on blindside blocks, hitting defenseless players and impermissible use of the helmet.
• Tate's return big: This play involving Tate has overshadowed the difference he makes for Seattle on offense. The team needs a big season from him. The receiver position hasn't worked out the way Seattle would have drawn it up. Sidney Rice has had injury problems. Kris Durham never developed. Ricardo Lockette has not taken the next step. The more Seattle has to rely on receivers such as Mike Williams (since released) and Braylon Edwards, the clearer it is that the Seahawks need to address that position in the offseason. With Tate back from a knee injury Sunday, Edwards played sparingly. Tate caught three passes for 38 yards.

• NFC West Blogger
• Joined ESPN in 2007
• Lives in the Seattle-Tacoma area with his wife and two sons

20 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/63544/four-thoughts-on-golden-tates-21k-fine
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

14.56 | 0 komentar | Read More

Little-known linebacker impressing Colts

Looking for one, great unexpected surprise out of the AFC South?

His name is Jerrell Freeman.

He's played two games as an inside linebacker for the Colts, called into duty because of Pat Angerer's training camp foot injury.

The Colts have credited Freeman with 44 tackles -- 22 solo and 22 assists. He's also got a sack, an interception for a TD, a forced fumble and a pass defensed.

"He's exceeded all of our expectations," coach Chuck Pagano told Indianapolis reporters this week. "That's because of the work he's put in and the time he's put in. He's playing a ton of plays and you could see at the end of the game, he didn't have obviously the same speed and burst that he had at the start but you know 70, 72 plays into it, really pleased with Jerrell and where he's come.

"After losing Pat and having him step up and fill in, he's done a remarkable job and you can see his progress and you can see him getting better with each series in each game."

Freeman represents the ends to which general manager Ryan Grigson has gone in hunting for personnel to fill out a thin roster.

The linebacker played at Mary Hardin-Baylor and was an undrafted free agent with the Titans who didn't make the team. He spent 2009, 2010 and 2011 with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League.

"Defense is, I don't want to say it's complicated but it's one where you have to get a feel for a lot of things," Freeman said. "When you get in there and you get enough reps, you start to get a feel for other players, feel for the call, where things are going to pop, what to do with your feet, being patient, all stuff like that. You get more comfortable as the weeks go on."

Sunday, the Colts will seek to stop Jacksonville's Maurice Jones-Drew. If they are effective at it, Freeman's sure to be a central figure.

If Angerer is on track to return in the schedule the team spelled out when he fractured his foot, he'll be back soon -- probably after the bye for a Week 5 game against Green Bay. What happens then?

Maybe Pagano will look to pair Angerer and Freeman while shrinking the role of Kavell Conner, the other inside linebacker.

20 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/63545/little-known-linebacker-impressing-colts
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

14.56 | 0 komentar | Read More