Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 656 of 1503)

      Order restored: Jets crush Raiders

      October 25, 2009 /

      A week ago the Raiders beat the Eagles and I swear fire and brimstone started falling from the sky. Rivers and seas boiled. Forty years of darkness was upon us. Dogs and cats started living together. Mass hysteria. Earthquakes, volcanoes…

      All right, enough Ghostbusters, although disagree with the greatness of that movie and I’ll punch you in your shin. Order was restored today in the NFL as the Jets hammered the Raiders 38-0 in Oakland. Rookie running back Shonn Greene exploded for 144 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries, as Leon Washington suffered what could be a serious leg injury. If Washington misses significant time, the third-round pick out of Iowa will see more opportunities, which he certainly deserves after his performance today.

      Mark Sanchez rebounded from his five-interception performance last week, as he completed nine of 15 pass attempts for 143 yards and a touchdown. Granted, Sanchez didn’t have to do much because the Jets’ built a 24-0 halftime lead thanks to their running game and multiple turnovers by the Raiders. But at least New York was able to shift the focus off its rookie QB for one week.

      Speaking of those hapless, heartless Raiders, JaMarcus Russell looked putrid once again. He was pulled in the second quarter in favor of Bruce Gradkowski after he set the Jets up with their first score by fumbling close to his end zone on Oakland’s first possession. Russell also threw two interceptions and as expected, Gradkowski didn’t fair much better as he threw for only 97 yards and also lost a fumble.

      So much for Oakland building off last week’s win over Philadelphia.

      NFL

      Cowboys make statement against Falcons

      October 25, 2009 /

      Imagine if the Cowboys played with as much confidence, emotion and focus as they did Sunday against the Falcons. Maybe they’d actually cash in on some of their potential and make the playoffs.

      Fresh off its bye, Dallas smacked Atlanta 37-21 in Week 7, as Tony Romo completed 21 of 29 pass attempts for 311 yards and three touchdowns. Receiver Miles Austin had another huge day, hauling in six passes for 171 yards and two touchdowns, including scores of 59 and 22 yards.

      Defensively, the Cowboys looked like they were playing with a chip on their shoulder. Matt Ryan hasn’t been touched all season, yet Dallas consistently crashed the pocket and racked up four sacks. They also intercepted Ryan twice and forced two fumbles, although one was recovered by Atlanta.

      The Cowboys need to find a way to play with this kind of fire every week. They made a statement today against a good opponent, but it means nothing if they come out next Sunday and give a lackluster effort. When they play at a high level, they’re tough to beat. But they’ve had issues playing consistently week in and week out, so the jury is still out on whether or not they can do it after this win.

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      NFL

      Brady starting to look comfortable again

      October 25, 2009 /

      Forget who the Patriots’ opponents were – Tom Brady has looked great the past two weeks.

      For the first five weeks of the 2009 season, Brady looked an awfully lot like a player that had major reconstructive surgery a year ago. He looked uncomfortable in the pocket, wasn’t accurate and was getting flustered by how he was playing.

      But in New England’s 59-0 win over Tennessee and its 35-7 rout of Tampa Bay in London, England today, Brady looks like the old Tom Brady again. He has thrown nine touchdowns in his last two games but more importantly than the numbers, he finally looks comfortable again.

      Earlier this season, Brady got into a bad habit of throwing off his back foot. But against the Bucs, he showed the ability to step into his throws and while he did throw two interceptions, he played with a ton of confidence and his receivers did an excellent job picking up yardage after the catch.

      The Pats head into their bye in great shape at 5-2. They have an important stretch of games after their off week, including two against the Dolphins and one against the Colts, Jets and Saints. If Brady continues to play with confidence, the Pats will be dangerous in the second half.

      NFL

      Packers find their running game in win over horrendous Browns

      October 25, 2009 /

      For the second consecutive week, the Packers whipped a bad opponent as they routed the Browns 31-3 on Sunday. Aaron Rodgers threw three touchdown passes in the win, including a 45-yarder to Spencer Havner, a 71-yarder to Donald Driver and a 5-yarder to James Jones.

      But the story for the Packers was their running game, as they totaled 202 yards on the ground. Ryan Grant rushed for 148 yards on 27 carries and Brandon Jackson chipped in 31 rushing yards on nine carries. The Packers’ O-line is still incredibly banged up and vulnerable, but if they can run the ball every week as well as they did today, then they won’t have to worry about teams pinning their ears back to get after Rodgers.

      The Packers are starting to build confidence. Granted, they’re building confidence against the trash of the NFL, but they’re building confidence nonetheless. They still haven’t beaten a team with a winning record (they beat the Bears, but that was in the opener), but they’re crushing bad teams.

      And make no mistake about it – the Browns are a bad football team. In fact, they’re one of the most offensively inept teams I’ve ever wasted time watching. Nobody kills a potential scoring drive like Derek Anderson and unless Josh Cribbs scores on a kick return or in the Wildcat, the Browns don’t score period.

      Eric Mangini has a lot of work to do to getting this Cleveland team to respectable. I know at times the Browns have been competitive this season, but they were a total disaster today.

      NFL

      Turnovers doom Vikings in loss to Steelers

      October 25, 2009 /

      With their 27-17 win on Sunday, pundits are going to talk about how the Steelers made a statement against a good team. But there’s a strong argument that the good team the Steelers beat actually beat themselves.

      The Vikings turned the ball over twice with less than seven minutes remaining, both of which resulted in defensive touchdowns for Pittsburgh. Brett Favre had a hand in both of the turnovers, as he was stripped once (which was returned by LaMarr Woodley for a 77-yard touchdown) and intercepted once (which was returned by Keyaron Fox for an 82-yard touchdown). In fairness to Favre, the interception ricocheted off Chester Taylor’s hands, but he was also a tad quick throwing the ball while setting up the screen.

      Some may view Minnesota’s two turnovers as Pittsburgh’s defense making things happen. But the reality is that the fumble and interception were gifts by Favre and the Vikings, who were in scoring range both times. Minnesota had a chance to come away with a victory and wound up serving up a win for the Steelers.

      That’s not to say that the Steelers didn’t earn the win, because they did. They held Adrian Peterson to only 69 yards on 18 carries and deserve credit for not only forcing two key turnovers, but also turning them into immediate points. But this was hardly a statement win. Not only did the Vikings turn the ball over twice late in the game, but they also committed 11 penalties (the Steelers only had three) and found ways to shoot themselves in the foot multiple times.

      NFL

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