Month: October 2005 (Page 5 of 12)

      Class (and an ass whoopin’) from the Colts

      October 18, 2005 /

      Tony Dungy showed why he’s one of the most liked coaches in football, calling Marvin Harrison’s number late in the fourth quarter for a record-setting TD. Harrison and Peyton Manning now have hooked up in the end zone 86 times, and the fans really wanted to see them break the record at home. With less than 10 minutes left in the fourth, the surging Colts already up 31-20 and a trip to Houston next on the schedule, Peyton threw a fade to the right corner of the end zone and Harrison, in one of the prettiest TD receptions you’ll see all year, caught the ball firmly in his hands while dragging his right foot up against the sideline. Live action, I didn’t think there was any chance he got both feet in. But he did. Teammates congratulate. Crowd goes crazy. Madden gushes. Beautiful.

      The Colts actually looked like they were in some serious trouble early on, with the Rams scoring the first 17 points of the game. Manning made a terrible throw to Harrison in the third quarter on what was a sure TD, and later Peyton was shown arguing with an Indy coach and then with one of his offensive lineman. But with Mark Bulger out, the Colts defense started creating turnovers and the offense found a groove, resulting in a 45-20 score (as of now — it’s still the fourth quarter).

      End result? The Colts are now 6-0, and if teams are going to continue to force them to win on the ground instead of through the air, they’ve proved that they won’t have a problem doing just that.

      NFL

      White Sox going to the Series

      October 16, 2005 /

      I’m sitting here watching the White Sox celebrate their 6-3 win over the Angels in Game 5 of the ALCS and I’m thinking, is this really the same team that nearly blew a 15-game lead in the AL Central?

      Jose Contreras was brilliant tonight, giving the Sox their fourth complete game of the series. In fact, the entire Chicago rotation was unbelievable, sporting a 2.23 ERA against the Angels to go along with those four complete games. That was the strength of the team through the spring and summer months, and while it abandoned them late in the year, Contreras, Freddy Garcia, Jon Garland and Mark Buehrle all came up big when it mattered most.

      But I wonder how Cubs fans will feel about this. How long have people been waiting for a World Series in Chicago? It’s happening this year, but not the way North siders have been hoping it would.

      MLB

      Sunday Recap: Week 6

      October 16, 2005 /

      Newsflash: The Vikings are in trouble. Of course, you knew that. Everyone knew that after the news got out about their floating sex party. Of course, just when you thought that maybe — maybe — the Vikings would respond by playing some inspired football, they instead get embarrassed by the Bears in a 28-3 loss. The box score is terrible: Daunte Culpepper threw two picks and completed just 26 of his 48 attempts (54%), no Minnesota WR topped 41 yards, and while Mewelde Moore had 109 total yards (57 rushing), he obviously failed to reach the end zone. Meanwhile, TE Jermaine Wiggins caught 10 passes, which is great in point-per-reception leagues, but with just 68 yards, Wiggins hardly set the world on fire this weekend.

      At this point, it’s hard to recommend starting any Minnesota player. Travis Taylor has delivered some big games with Nate Burleson on the shelf, but he, like every other Vikings receiver (including Burleson, when he comes back), is far too inconsistent to be anything more than a last-ditch option. Moore is capable of putting up some impressive yardage totals but has failed to reach the end zone now in 15 career games. By default, Culpepper remains the team’s most attractive starting option, but with four TDs and 12 interceptions on the season, it may very well be time to bench all your Vikings, including Culpepper, until further notice.

      SUNDAY HEADLINERS

      Mark Brunell: 331 yards, 3 TD, 0 INT
      Wow, who saw this one coming? Brunell was awful last year in nine starts for the ‘Skins, completing 118 of his 237 attempts for 1,194 yards, seven TDs and six INTs. That’s all good for 63.9 QB rating. This year? Try 85.7…and that’s before Sunday’s game. Brunell has now thrown for 300-plus yards each of the last two weeks and has at least two TD tosses in each of his four starts on the year. Of course, Santana Moss’ breakout season is probably making Brunell look better than he really is, but at this point, there are few safer fantasy QBs out there.

      ALSO: Carson Palmer (272 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT), Drew Bledsoe (312 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT), Jake Plummer (262 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT), Tom Brady (299 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT)

      Shaun Alexander: 22 carries, 141 yards, 4 TD
      LaDainian Tomlinson is having another monster season (and delivered another monster performance this week), but Alexander is every bit as reliable and valuable as LT2. The Seattle back has always been a TD machine but after this game against the Texans, Alexander now already has 12 touchdowns on the season, a pace that would leave him with 32 for the season. Tomlinson, meanwhile, has 11 TDs and a slight edge in total yards. Any way you slice it, Alexander is an elite fantasy back and any talk of anyone other than LT and Alexander going 1-2 in drafts this year seems ludicrous in hindsight.

      ALSO: LaDainian Tomlinson (31 carries, 140 yards, 1 TD; 2 catches, 39 yards, 1 TD; 1 passing TD); Willis McGahee (29 carries, 143 yards, 1 TD; 3 catches, 24 yards); Curtis Martin (18 carries, 148 yards, 1 TD); Tatum Bell (13 carries, 114 yards, 1 TD; 3 catches, 20 yards)

      Santana Moss: 10 catches, 173 yards, 2 TD
      The Redskins took a lot of heat for trading Laveranues Coles for Santana Moss straight up, but look at the numbers: Coles has 26 catches, 289 yards and one TD for the Jets, while Moss now has 33 catches, 631 yards and four TD in Washington. That’s a 2,019-yard, 12-TD pace, and that’s a great trade for the ‘Skins. For those of you who snagged Moss late, congrats.

      ALSO: Chad Johnson (8 catches, 135 yards, 1 TD); Jeremy Shockey (5 catches, 129 yards, 1 TD); Steve Smith (6 catches, 123 yards, 1 TD); Rod Smith (6 catches, 123 yards, 1 TD)

      SUNDAY FLATLINERS

      Trent Dilfer: 147 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT
      Considering Dilfer came into today’s match-up with the Ravens averaging 260 yards and better than a touchdown a game, the Cleveland QB was probably in a fair amount of starting lineups this week, especially with Brett Favre and Donovan McNabb both on byes. Granted, it’s not exactly surprising that Dilfer laid an egg against the Baltimore D, but owners who started him in a pinch were at least hoping for one TD. So were Browns fans.

      ALSO: Daunte Culpepper (237 yards, 0 TD, 2 INT); Vinny Testaverde (161 yards, 0 TD, 2 INT); Tommy Maddox (154 yards, 1 TD, 3 INT); Trent Green (181 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT)

      Ricky Williams: 5 carries, 8 yards, 0 TD; 6 catches, 22 yards
      If you watched ESPN this morning, you saw a report that said you could expect Williams to get plenty of work in his first game back from suspension. Maybe I misinterpreted that statement, because Ricky and Ronnie Brown each had 11 touches, with the rookie getting nine carries to Williams’ five. The Dolphins fell behind early in Tampa Bay, which could partially explain Ricky’s lack of carries, but until (unless?) Nick Saban establishes a starter, neither Miami back is a safe start.

      ALSO: Jerome Bettis (4 carries, 4 yards, 0 TD); Kevin Jones (12 carries, 21 yards, 0 TD); Stephen Davis (13 carries, 27 yards, 0 TD); Anthony Thomas (21 carries, 47 yards, 0 TD)

      Laveranues Coles: 4 catches, 33 yards, 0 TD
      Coles has had games of 17, 16 and 33 yards, has topped out at 89 yards this year, and has scored just one touchdown. That translates into a 770-yard, two-TD pace, not to mention a terrible trade for the Jets.

      ALSO: Randy Moss (0 catches – injury); Eddie Kennison (0 catches); Lee Evans (3 catches, 22 yards); Mike Williams (2 catches, 27 yards)

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Michael Irvin wisely keeps his mouth shut

      October 16, 2005 /

      ESPN’s “NFL Sunday Countdown” crew started talking about the alleged sex party the Minnesota Vikings threw on two charter cruises last week, and I immediately thought, “What the hell is Michael Irvin going to have to say about this?” Drugs, hookers, guns, arrest warrants…Irvin’s certainly no stranger to this type of depravity. Sure enough, Chris Berman tossed it to Tom Jackson first, then Steve Young chimed in, and every time they showed a wide-angle shot of the entire crew, Irvin was in the middle, grinning ever so slightly. At first, I thought we weren’t even going to hear from Irvin, which would’ve been disappointing but also would’ve made sense.

      But kudos to the former receiver for stepping up and saying that, because of his history, he had no business criticizing anyone for their off-field choices. That’d be like Andy Reid offering Mike Holmgren some dieting suggestions. Irvin did say that the hardest part of the past week for those Vikings players involved was going home and facing their wives and kids. Yeah, that can’t be an easy conversation.

      Of course, what Irvin (and perhaps Young and Jackson, for that matter) could’ve said was that these types of parties happen all the time in the NFL, but I’m sure ESPN, not to mention Paul Tagliabue, wouldn’t have been thrilled about that.

      NFL

      Irish come close, but can’t finish off USC

      October 16, 2005 /

      Fourth-and-nine at their own 26, less than two minutes remaining. Sixty-one yards later, USC is within field goal range, the Irish holding tightly to a 31-28 lead. A couple minutes later, after fumbling the ball out of bounds at the one on the previous play, Matt Leinart sneaks into the end zone with three seconds left on the clock.

      ESPN’s Gene Wojciechowski is already calling this back-and-forth contest “The Greatest Game Ever Played“:

      “Wow. Even the goalposts had goose bumps. Seven seconds left. USC with the ball inside the Notre Dame 1-yard line. No timeouts remaining for the Trojans. Star running back Reggie Bush cramping up. The geeked-up sellout crowd near sideline’s edge, just waiting to storm the field.”

      You gotta hand it to Charlie Weis and the Domers — they had this game in their hands, up until that sensational 61-yard pass to Dwayne Jarrett. Meanwhile, are Leinart and USC unstoppable? At this point, they may just be.

      College Football

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