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      Average Giants beat average Falcons

      November 22, 2009 /

      The Giants’ 34-31 overtime victory over the Falcons might have made for a nice highlight piece for ESPN, complete with a rousing effort by Eli Manning and a fourth quarter comeback engineered by Matt Ryan. But the truth of the matter is that one very average team beat an equally average team today.

      Both of these teams have noticeable holes, namely on the defensive side of the ball. Manning completed 25 of 39 passes for 384 yards with three touchdowns, but he accomplished all of that against cornerbacks that wouldn’t start for most teams in the NFL (Chris Houston is brutal). Ryan completed 26-of-46 passes for 268 yards and two touchdowns (he also drove his team down the field for a game-tying touchdown with only 38 seconds remaining), but he too faced a suspect secondary dealing with injuries.

      Both the Giants and Falcons can move the ball offensively, but neither team has a defense that is ready to take on the likes of the Saints or Vikings in the postseason. New York is a tad better on that side of the ball, but that’s only because they can rush the passer. (They’re also dealing with injuries, whereas the Falcons defense is what it is – average at best.)

      Nevertheless, this was a big win for the Giants because it came against a conference foe. This may not be a team ready for the postseason, but a win is a win and now the G-Men are in the right position to at least win one of the Wild Card spots in the NFC.

      As for the Falcons, they’re still very much in contention for a Wild Card spot themselves, but they need a better defensive effort going forward. They can’t generate any pressure, they can’t make plays in the secondary and they can’t force turnovers. Mike Smith and coordinator Brian VanGorder better come up with a better scheme because they just don’t have the playmakers on that side of the ball to go toe-to-toe with opponents.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      NFL

      Big Ben hurts head in overtime loss to Steelers

      November 22, 2009 /

      Teams never assume victory before they play the game (or at least they shouldn’t), but the Steelers must have felt great heading to Kansas City this weekend. After all, the Chiefs have struggled offensively all season and their top playmaker, Dwayne Bowe, was suspended four games earlier in the week.

      But not only did Pittsburgh suffer defeat on Sunday, but they’re key offensive player also suffered an injury.

      Ben Roethlisberger suffered a head injury in overtime of the Steelers’ 27-24 loss to the Chiefs in Week 11. Big Ben caught a knee to the head on a diving scramble and lay on the ground for several minutes before walking off under his own power. He finished 32-of-42 for 398 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions.

      Roethlisberger shredded Kansas City’s secondary the entire game, but three turnovers and one big play by Chiefs’ wideout Chris Chambers (four catches, 119 yards) doomed the Steelers in the end. Chambers’ 61-yard reception in overtime set up Ryan Syccop’s 22-yard game-winning field goal.

      This loss hurts the Steelers on many levels. Not only did they suffer defeat in a game everyone assumed that they would win, but once the Bengals beat the Raiders in Oakland later today, Pittsburgh will also essentially fall three games back in the AFC North. It’s never easy to fly cross-country and play on the road just one week after suffering a tough divisional loss. But this was a game Pittsburgh needed to win.

      It’ll be interesting to see if Big Ben misses any time. He’s a tough player, so one would assume that he’ll play next week but head injuries are always a little trickier to deal with.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      NFL

      MLS keeps growing and growing

      November 22, 2009 /

      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      The MLS Cup takes place tonight and it will likely yield the highest television ratings in the league’s history. Thankfully, the promising showdown between the Los Angeles Galaxy and Real Salt Lake landed a beneficial time slot. Last year’s final was squeezed between the NFL’s regular season schedule on network television in the middle of the day — I doubt you remember. Since soccer seems to do well in prime time (and can’t compete with the “other” football), ESPN will broadcast the final tonight at 8:30 PM ET.

      It may seem otherwise, but Major League Soccer is succeeding. This year, professional soccer came to Seattle. In the wake of the Supersonics leaving for Oklahoma City, the Seattle Sounders officially began their first season in the MLS. Like the Super Bowl, the location of the MLS Cup rotates each year. In a wise decision orchestrated by the league, today’s Cup will go down at Qwest Field, home of the Sounders. It’s quite a gift, but the city has more soccer fanatics than most and surely appreciates the gesture.

      “MLS made a great decision in expanding to our region,” said King County executive Dow Constantine, the obligatory politician on hand. “Here’s a place where darn near every kid grows up playing soccer.”

      Then, on Thursday, MLS Commissioner Don Garber participated in an online chat on the Seattle Times website, telling the world that all was well with MLS and would be even better in the foreseeable future.

      “This season will forever be known as one of the key moments in the history of soccer in America,” Garber said during the day.

      Next year, the Philadelphia Union will debut, in a brand new stadium no less. Portland and Vancouver will follow in 2011. Montreal is also on board. If all goes according to plan, the league will then contain 19 teams.

      People are watching American soccer — you just don’t know them.

      Once again, you can catch the MLS Cup tonight at 8:30 PM ET on ESPN.

      Soccer

      Stanford loses to Cal, Oregon squeezes by Arizona in double overtime

      November 22, 2009 /

      Masoli

      After Stanford failed to top Cal earlier in the evening, Jermiah Masoli provided some late-game heroics for his Oregon Ducks. In double overtime, Masoli took the snap at the Arizona Wildcats’ 1-yard line and ran the ball in for a touchdown. The Ducks will now face Oregon St. next week to see which team advances to the Rose Bowl.

      The Rose Bowl race is no longer complicated: The winner of Oregon (7-1) versus Oregon State (6-2) on Dec. 3 (a Thursday) in the most important Civil War ever played will earn the Pac-10’s automatic bid to Pasadena.

      Arizona, the only Pac-10 or Big Ten Conference team never to play in the Rose Bowl, is still that team after a wrenching defeat pinned a third league loss on the Wildcats. Arizona had already succumbed this season, to Washington, on a game-winning touchdown that deflected off a receiver’s foot.

      What else could bounce off something to torture Arizona?

      How about Oregon’s kicker, Morgan Flint, tying the score, 24-24, in the fourth quarter with a 43-yard field goal that deflected in off the crossbar?

      Assuming the Ducks win their all-state showdown, they’ll finish the season with a record of 10-2. They would then meet the Ohio State Buckeyes, another 10-2 team ranked in the top 10, in the Rose Bowl. We’ll see how the other Bowl games take shape, but this one at least sounds appealing.

      College Football

      Q&A Question of the Week: Week 11

      November 22, 2009 /

      Every week, I pick one question from our Fantasy Football Q&A and post it on Sunday morning. This week’s question comes from Pradeep, who is wondering how he should replace Michael Turner.

      “I need to replace Turner. I have J.Stewart on my roster…so he is the current pick. I also have Bradshaw and Sammy Morris on bench but they don’t look attractive to me. I can pick up Beanie Wells, Snelling, Forsett, or Betts from the waiver. What are my options both for next week and to build a little more depth into the RB position going forward?”

      My answer: I’d dump Morris for Snelling and start him while Turner is out.

      The simplest thing for Turner owners to do is to run Snelling out there until Turner gets back. That way, you’re pretty much guaranteed the starter in ATL for the rest of the season. The value of some of these other RBs depends largely on how long the starters for their respective teams are going to be sidelined. Sammy Morris is on his way back, but Maroney has been decent as the Pats’ starter, so NE may elect to go with a RBBC to ease Morris back in. Julius Jones will miss this week, but SEA is optimistic that he’ll be back soon. Still, Forsett has value in PPR leagues because he’s going to get extra snaps now that Edgerrin James out (even if Jones is healthy). The Falcons are optimistic about Michael Turner’s injury, but high ankle sprains are tricky, so no one really knows how long he’ll be out. Clinton Portis is dealing with a concussion and is seeing specialists about it. It wouldn’t be surprising if they shut him down, since the Redskins are pretty much out of the playoff hunt. Cedric Benson said that he’d play this week, but it looks like he’s going to be out, so Bernard Scott looks like a great one-week start. Beanie Wells continues to earn more work in the ARI backfield and with a relatively easy schedule coming up, it wouldn’t be surprising if he gets a ton of carries as the Cards try to protect the lead.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      Fantasy Football, NFL

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