Month: September 2009 (Page 28 of 66)

      Dear Saints, we’re not worthy…

      September 20, 2009 /

      I didn’t think the Eagles would win on Sunday without Donovan McNabb, I just didn’t think they would get embarrassed on their home turf by the greatest offensive team known to man.

      Okay, so I’m exaggerating a little with that last statement, although the Saints are playing like a video game version of itself set on the “rookie” level.

      New Orleans improved to 2-0 on the young season thanks to another outstanding day by quarterback Drew Brees, who threw for 311 yards and three touchdowns on 25 of 34 passing. He found Marques Colston (8 receptions, 98 yards, 2 TDs) early and often as the Saints routed the Eagles 48-22 at Lincoln Financial Field.

      The Saints are playing like they’re angry at the scoreboard. And it’s not like they hung 40-plus points on a hapless Detroit team today either – they made a pretty good Philadelphia defense look like a flag football squad. Perhaps what’s most surprising about the Saints’ start is that their running game is featuring Mike Bell. Mike Bell! On 45 carries so far this season, Bell’s rushed for 229 yards and one touchdown. That’s 5.0 YPC for you math majors. Mike Bell!

      It’s only been two games, but I’m having a tough time believing that any defense will be able to slow down the Saints this season, or at least not in a dome or in good weather. If opposing teams don’t start generating a pass rush, Brees is going to continue his MVP-like season and the Saints are going to roll throughout the year.

      NFL

      Hasselbeck suffers injury as 49ers beat Seahawks

      September 20, 2009 /

      It’s always nice when the football gods can add a little insult to injury.

      Such was the case on Sunday when the Seahawks fell to the now 2-0 49ers 23-10 in San Francisco. Seattle signal caller Matt Hasselbeck was knocked out of the game after taking a blow to the back from linebacker Patrick Willis while trying to scramble into the end zone at the end of the first half. The team is calling it a rib injury, although there has to be major concern that Hasselbeck took the hit in the back after he virtually missed the entire 2008 season due to back problems.

      The insult to Hasselbeck’s injury came when Seneca Wallace entered the game and couldn’t generate any second half points. He did throw a 1-yard touchdown pass to Julius Jones after Hasselbeck left the field, but that’s about where Wallace’s contributions to Seattle stopped as he often settled for check down and underneath passes.

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      Will the Dodgers rotation hold up in the playoffs?

      September 20, 2009 /

      Chad

      The MLB regular season will conclude in the next two weeks and we have a pretty good idea which teams are going to make the playoffs. Barring any hot streaks or horrific droughts, the Yankees, Red Sox, Angels, Tigers, Phillies, Cardinals, Dodgers, and Rockies should all advance. (Perhaps the Twins will make a run if Michael Cuddyer keeps hitting like Babe Ruth.) While all these teams have the bats, ask any manager and they’ll tell you that it’s their rotation that wins a series.

      Neither of these clubs currently have a perfect starting four, but it’s the Dodgers that should be freaking out. After posting the best record in the National League for almost the entire season, Chad Billingsley has been demoted to the bullpen, Clayton Kershaw has a shoulder injury (non-pitching), and Hiroki Kuroda is trying to right himself after taking a line drive to the skull last month.

      The most consistent teams in the regular season — the ones with good records and rested bullpens — tend to have three or four pitchers with at least 30 starts.

      When the season ends in 14 days, the Dodgers may have only two.

      This month, the mix-and-match Dodgers have relied heavily on two starters, Jon Garland and Vicente Padilla, who arrived after the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. And the key starters Colletti mentioned have missed at least one start apiece in recent weeks: Wolf, Kuroda and Kershaw because of injuries; Billingsley because of inconsistent performance and waning confidence.

      Twelve pitchers have started three or more games for the Dodgers this season. Twelve. That’s a statistic one would expect from an also-ran, not a near-certain playoff team. But Padilla and Garland have performed beyond expectations, with a 6-0 record and 2.65 ERA over nine combined starts through Saturday.

      The Dodgers are very fortunate to have landed Vicente Padilla and Jon Garland. Though both were having mediocre seasons on their prior teams, they are shining with the Boys in Blue and may very will be the key to the Dodgers’ postseason success. Fans were initially skeptical about former Giants Assistant GM Ned Colletti coming aboard, but he’s proven to be the savviest general manager the Dodgers have had in years. As far as pitching is concerned, Colletti picked up George Sherrill, Padilla, and Garland late into the season — all have been solid. And who would have expected Randy Wolf to evolve into the team’s ace? Wolf, who previously played for the Dodgers in 2007, had his best season with the Phillies in ’03, then struggled to regain his prowess. Still, Colletti must have seen something in Wolf this past offseason because, with a 10-6 record and 3.24 ERA, he’s surprising everyone. Expect Wolf to start the first game of the NLDS. After that, it’s anybody’s guess who the Dodgers will look to.

      MLB

      Bears capitalize on Reed’s missed field goals

      September 20, 2009 /

      If there’s one thing I can’t stand in football, it’s when a kicker can’t make a field goal (or two field goals) in the fourth quarter and it costs his team a chance to win.

      Pittsburgh kicker Jeff Reed missed field goals of 38 and 43 yards in the fourth quarter of the Steelers’ 17-14 loss to the Bears, the second of which gave Chicago a chance to win. The field was slick and the turf at Solider Field didn’t do Reed any favors, but Chicago kicker Robbie Gould didn’t have any problem with the conditions as he booted the game-winning 44-yard field goal with just 15 seconds remaining.

      Reed choked, plain and simple. That said, I would be doing the Bear faithful a disservice if I didn’t give credit where credit is due. Coming off his brutal four interception night in Green Bay last week, Jay Cutler was excellent against the Steelers on Sunday, throwing for 236 yards and two touchdowns on 27 of 38 passing. He was also 3 for 3 on Chicago’s final scoring drive.

      On a day where Pittsburgh took away Matt Forte and the Bears’ rushing attack, Cutler played a near-flawless game while rookie receiver Johnny Knox (6 rec., 70 yards, 1 TD) stepped up in the passing game. If Cutler and Knox can continue to develop chemistry, the Bears’ receiving corps won’t be as bad off as everyone thought.

      While the Bears’ defense was certainly aided by Reed’s failures, Chicago did a nice job bottling up Willie Parker (14 carries, 47 yards) and keeping the Steelers out of the end zone in the fourth quarter. They still have some issues in the secondary and they didn’t generate the same pass rush as they did last week in Green Bay, but this is the second week in a row that the Bears’ defense gave the offense an opportunity to win the game.

      Even though it’s early, this was a huge win for Lovie Smith’s Bears.

      NFL

      Merry Christmas, Matt Ryan. His name is Tony Gonzalez.

      September 20, 2009 /

      Tony GonzalezMatt Ryan might as well change his birthday from May 17 to April 23, because that’s the day Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff traded a 2010 second round pick to Kansas City in exchange for future Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez.

      After hauling in five passes for 73 yards and a touchdown in Atlanta’s 19-7 win over Miami in Week 1, Gonzo followed up that performance with a seven-catch, 71-yard effort in the Falcons’ 28-20 victory over the Panthers on Sunday. He also caught his second touchdown pass of the year after Ryan found him on a 24-yard completion late in the first quarter to give Atlanta a 7-3 lead.

      It’s still early, but Gonzalez is turning out to be one of he best offseason acquisitions of the year. He’s such a mismatch on safeties and linebackers that it’s almost unfair that the Falcons can use him in the red zone. And when he’s not catching passes, he frees up Roddy White (6 receptions, 53 yards, 1 TD) and other receivers to make plays in the passing game.

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      NFL

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