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      Matt Ryan is officially in a sophomore slump

      November 15, 2009 /

      For anyone that has actually devoted some time watching Matt Ryan over the past month, it’s hard to argue that he doesn’t look like a completely different quarterback than he did last year – or even at the start of this season. He bails out of plays, he overthrows receivers and he looks frightened in the pocket.

      It appears that the dreaded sophomore slump has officially sacked “Matty Ice.”

      During the Falcons’ 28-19 loss to the Panthers on Sunday, Ryan looked uncomfortable for most of the first half. He threw a horrible interception just before halftime that led to a Carolina touchdown, which put Atlanta behind 21-10. Then late in the game with the Falcons needing a field goal to take the lead, he again was picked off after he forced a pass downfield to a double-covered Michael Jenkins.

      In both cases, Ryan not only made poor throws, but poor decisions – something that didn’t plague him last season.

      Of course, Ryan had nothing to do with Jason Elam missing a chip shot field goal one possession before the critical interception. Had Elam made the field goal, the Falcons would have had the opportunity to stop Carolina and eek out a much-needed division win. Instead, Elam shanked the kick like someone with money on the Panthers and put his team in an awful situation.

      Getting back to Ryan, he really has no excuse for playing as poorly as he has, because the running game has been productive (unlike earlier in the season when the passing game had to carry the Falcons). Michael Turner (nine carries, 111 yards) suffered a high ankle sprain in the first half and couldn’t return, but Jason Snelling picked up the slack in his place and Ryan just couldn’t deliver. The running game should allow Ryan to make more plays in the passing game but he just hasn’t made the throws.

      The Falcons have a great opportunity to earn a Wild Card in the NFC, but they can’t do it if Ryan continues to play as poorly as he has. He needs to rekindle the magic that helped him win the Rookie of the Year Award, or second half collapse for Atlanta is certainly possible.

      As for the Panthers, they’re starting to get back to what they did last year: Run the ball and play good defense. It also helps when Jake Delhomme isn’t trying to give games away by throwing the ball to the other team and generally being useless.

      With this win, the Panthers have gotten back into contention for the NFC Wild Card.

      Update: Turner’s injury could be serious. If he’s out for any extended length of time, the Falcons’ season could be in danger, especially considering Jerious Norwood hasn’t played in weeks due to injuries.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      NFL

      Broncos: Struggling team or overrated?

      November 15, 2009 /

      When a team loses to a good Ravens squad after starting the season 6-0, nobody questions it.

      When that same team drops a home game on national television to the physical Steelers, again, nobody questions it.

      But when that very same team can’t beat the hapless Redskins (whether it’s on the road or not), then it’s only fair that the “O” word starts to rear its ugly head.

      I actually don’t think the Broncos are overrated – I think they’re just sputtering. Had Kyle Orton not suffered an ankle injury right before half, there’s a good chance he and Brandon Marshall (who had an excellent game while catching five passes for 134 yards and two touchdowns) would have continued to torch Washington’s secondary on their way to a victory. Instead, the highly incapable Chris Simms came in and was incredibly inaccurate while missing open receivers and lacking composure in the pocket.

      Denver also had to travel cross-country, which is tough for any team, nevertheless one that played on Monday night. The Broncos were worn out from their loss to the Steelers and it showed today.

      That said, I don’t want to completely make excuses for this Broncos team because they were playing the Redskins – a team that gave up weeks ago. Their defense gave up 27 points to a Sherman Lewis-led offense, which is ridiculous – I don’t care if they played on Friday night and had to travel Washington from China. They also allowed Hunter freaking Smith to throw a 35-yard touchdown pass to Mike freaking Sellers on a fake freaking field goal, which is ludicrous.

      The bottom line is that Josh McDaniels and his coaching staff have their backs up against the wall and they need to figure out how to fight out of the situation. Teams have obviously figured out what the blueprint is to beat the Broncos and now it’s time for the rookie head coach to adjust. They’re still in a great position at 6-3, but the Chargers are breathing down their necks so a sense of urgency is a must.

      NFL

      The Bengals have finally found the right blueprint for success

      November 15, 2009 /

      Last year, it was easy to view the Cincinnati Bengals as a joke. They were a mess on the field and an embarrassment off it. Their star player couldn’t stay healthy, their running back was a castoff from Chicago, one of their star receivers couldn’t match his off-field antics with quality on-field production and their head coach had no idea how to hold everything together.

      But it’s amazing how one offseason can change everything. Carson Palmer is healthy again and playing extremely well, Cedric Benson has revived his career, Chad Ochocinco is still a circus act (but a productive circus act), and Marvin Lewis’ name keeps coming up as a coach of the year candidate.

      The Bengals beat the Steelers 18-12 on Sunday and they didn’t use smoke and mirrors to do it. They held Rashard Mendenhall to 36 yards on 13 carries by dominating the line of scrimmage and forcing Ben Roethlisberger to beat them through the air. But Big Ben couldn’t and Cincinnati put the clamps on Pittsburgh’s offense inside the red zone and made the Steelers settle for field goals instead of touchdowns.

      All in all, it was a complete effort by the best team in the AFC North. The Steelers and Ravens have often been highly regarded as the most physical teams in the division and the Bengals outplayed both of them not once, but twice this year. As long as Palmer and Benson (he left today’s game in the third quarter due to a hip injury) can stay healthy and the defense continues to play well, there’s no reason to think that the Bengals can’t make a deep run in the postseason.

      The Bengals have finally figured out that chemistry can play a huge role in helping a team win. Gone are the days where the inmates run the asylum in Cincinnati; winning has a way of forcing players to shut up and fall in line.

      NFL

      Real Salt Lake beats Chicago Fire in shootouts

      November 15, 2009 /

      Real Salt Lake

      The MLS Cup Playoffs provided another nail-biter on Saturday as Real Salt Lake defeated the Chicago Fire 5-4 in shootouts to win the Eastern Conference Championship.

      This time, Ned Grabavoy – a Chicago-area native and substitute in the final minute of overtime – scored the winning penalty kick in the seventh round as his shot went off the fingertips of Fire goalkeeper Jon Busch.

      Salt Lake goalkeeper Nick Rimando made three saves in the shootout – all to his left – after stopping six shots through overtime.

      The Fire have lost three consecutive conference finals, and fell for the second time on penalties this season. They lost the SuperLiga final 2-1 via the tiebreaker to Tigres of Mexico on June 27.

      “It’s an empty feeling in your stomach right now,” Chicago coach Denis Hamlett said. “I think all season we worked hard and stuck together to get to this point and to lose the way we lost tonight; sometimes soccer is a cruel sport.”

      On November 22, Real Salt Lake will make their first appearance in the MLS Cup finals when they meet the Los Angeles Galaxy at Qwest Field in Seattle. The game will be shown on ESPN2 at 8:30 PM ET.

      Soccer

      Pacquiao brutalizes Cotto in final round, wins 7th straight title

      November 15, 2009 /

      Manny Cotto

      Many pundits thought Miguel Cotto would be the one to upset Manny Pacquiao in a title match, but they were wrong. Cotto gave it five strong rounds before struggling. Cotto, overcome by Pacquiao’s speed, could not escape the onslaught of punches coming his way. In the 12th and final round, Manny went rabid on his opponent, prompting the referee to stop the match.

      “They should have stopped it three rounds earlier, when Cotto started to run,” said Freddie Roach, Pacquiao’s trainer, who, once again, called the shot on how this one would go.

      And now Cotto, one of the toughest, most feared welterweights of the era, was reduced to dancing and ducking backward, apparently praying for a miracle. Afterward, Cotto said what has become obvious to all now.

      “I have fought all the greatest welterweights,” he said, “and Manny is the best.”

      Pacquiao’s move up through the ranks, from a 106-pounder 14 years ago to a 145-pound welterweight champion (they fought the 147-pound division at a catch weight of 145) has been like a military march.

      Manny has now won a record seven straight titles in seven divisions, gaining 40 pounds throughout the process. But that’s not the most amazing part…

      After 12 rounds of boxing, Manny met up with his band at Mandalay Bay to play a late-night gig.

      Cotto checked himself into the hospital.

      Boxing

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