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      Mark Sanchez, idiotic tripping-coach highlight Jets’ loss to Dolphins

      December 12, 2010 /
      EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - DECEMBER 12: Mark Sanchez of the New York Jets looks to hand the ball off against the Miami Dolphins at New Meadowlands Stadium on December 12, 2010 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images)

      Here are a six-pack of observations on whatever the Dolphins and Jets are calling that thing they did at the New Meadowlands on Sunday. I hesitate to call it a game.

      1. Mark Sanchez is awful again.
      Leave it to Mark Sanchez to prove doubters wrong for most of the season, only to revert back to his 2009 form for the stretch run. He completed just 17-of-44 passes for 216 yards with no touchdowns and one interception in an ugly 10-6 loss. This of course follows his 17-of-33 performance on Monday night against the Patriots. His 38.6 QB rating against the Dolphins was a season-worst and coach Rex Ryan even revealed in his postgame press conference that he nearly benched the second-year quarterback. Sanchez hasn’t completed 60 percent of his passes in over a month and also has five turnovers compared to no touchdowns in his last two games. He has shown zero confidence the past two games and he’s back to diving in and out of the pocket as soon as he senses pressure. In his defense, Santonio Holmes did drop a touchdown pass (with no defenders around him) early in the game, although that’s still no excuse for Sanchez to play as poorly as he did. The problem for Ryan is that Mark Brunell and Kellen Clemens aren’t any better, so the Jets will have to ride the Sanchez train out and hope he can find whatever magic he had earlier in the season.

      2. Jets’ strength coach Sal Alosi should be ashamed of himself.
      In what can only be described as a classless move, TV replays showed Jets’ head strength and conditioning coach Sal Alosi stick his knee out to intentionally trip Dolphins’ gunner Nolan Carroll as he was streaking down the field to cover a punt in the third quarter. Caroll fell to the turf with an apparent knee injury and Miami trainers tended to him after he limped off the field under his own power. Alosi was fortunate that Carroll wasn’t seriously hurt. He could have ended the rookie’s season and for what? To be a jackass on the sidelines? What good could have possibly come out of purposely tripping an opponent? The Jets should review the situation and take immediate action. And if they don’t fire the moron, he at least should issue an apology to Carroll and the entire Dolphins team. What a stupid, stupid decision and how embarrassing for the Alosi and the Jets. This is the last thing Ryan needs to deal with after two straight losses.

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      External Sports, NFL

      Patriots prove there’s still a gap between AFC and NFC in dismantling of Bears

      December 12, 2010 /
      CHICAGO - DECEMBER 12: The wind swirls snow as Tom Brady of the New England Patriots calls the signals against the Chicago Bearsat Soldier Field on December 12, 2010 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

      Here are a six-pack of observations from the Patriots massive 36-7 beatdown of the Bears on Sunday.

      1. The gap between the AFC and NFC is still wide.
      This was only one game on one Sunday between two teams in the NFL. And the NFC still holds the most recent edge over the AFC in the only game that matters. But the Patriots’ victory over the Bears on Sunday still proves that there’s a wide gap between the two conferences. It’s doubtful that anyone was surprised the Patriots beat the Bears, who many believe are highly overrated. But let’s look at the facts. The Bears were one of the hottest teams coming into this game. They were at home. They had just witnessed the Packers lose to the Lions and they had an opportunity to take a two-game lead in the NFC North. They were home underdogs, which is a role they absolutely love. This should have been a much closer game and it wasn’t. It was a massacre – a true murder by numbers. The Pats outgained the Bears 27 to 12 in first downs and 475 to 185 in total yardage. They also forced four turnovers as Tom Brady threw for a season-high 369 yards and two touchdowns. Again, the Bears are only one NFC team and maybe if the Falcons played the Patriots next Sunday, the outcome would be different. But it’s hard to refute after watching this game that there isn’t a talent gap between the top teams in the AFC and the top teams in the NFC.

      2. Maybe the Bears aren’t who we thought the were.
      Are the Bears for real? I don’t know. They had a game they’d like to forget but overrated? You know people are going to throw out that term but I’d counter with: What did you expect? If you thought the Bears were overrated coming into this game then you’re not surprised that New England won. If you want overrated, try the New York Jets. That’s overrated. I don’t think a team that beat a red-hot Philadelphia team a couple of weeks ago is overrated. I just think the Patriots are that much better. You had two hot teams face each other and one flexed its dominance while the other one absolutely sh*t themselves. I still happen to think that this Bears team can do some good things. I still think they can win a playoff game at home. Are they legit Super Bowl contenders? Maybe not. But I also don’t think after one embarrassing loss you can vehemently answer “no” to the previous question.

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      External Sports, NFL

      Redskins lose to Bucs on botched extra point attempt

      December 12, 2010 /
      The ball sails over Washington Redskins' kicker Graham Gano's head as holder Hunter Smith misses the snap costing the Redskins the game during the fourth quarter against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland on December 12, 2010. The Buccaneers defeated the Redskins 17-16. UPI/Kevin Dietsch Photo via Newscom

      Think Mike Shanahan will try to blame Sunday’s 17-16 loss to the Bucs on Albert Haynesworth, even though the massive defensive tackle was at home suspended?

      Despite getting a 173-yard rushing effort out of Ryan Torian, the Redskins found a new way to lose when a high snap slipped through the fingers of holder Hunter Smith on what should have been a game-tying extra point attempt in the final seconds of the game. Donovan McNabb had just engineered a late scoring drive that was capped on a touchdown pass to Santana Moss but due to Washington’s inability to do anything right this season, the botched extra point cost the Skins the game. Their ensuing onsides kick failed and the game was over.

      This season couldn’t end fast enough for Shanahan. Everyone knew it would take a while for him to turn things around in D.C., but this season has been marred by controversy and embarrassment. No matter what side of the debate you’re on in the Haynesworth debacle, the bottom line is that Shanahan failed to perform damage control at the start of the season and now Haynesworth is at home and the Skins are still losing. He’s a lazy malcontent of a player, but Haynesworth was by far Washington’s most productive defensive lineman and Shanahan never had control of the situation. (Or maybe Haynesworth would have continued to be a pain in the ass and it wouldn’t have mattered. Whatever.)

      As for the Bucs, they kept their playoff hopes very much alive and with home games coming up against the Lions and Seahawks the next two weeks, anything could happen. They certainly seem to have a better chance than the Packers, who have the same 8-5 record but have a much tougher road ahead. They’re at New England next week before hosting the Giants and Bears in the final two weeks.

      Thanks to a botched extra point attempt on Sunday, the Bucs’ fairytale ride isn’t over yet.

      External Sports, NFL

      The Packers’ playoff hopes take a humongous blow

      December 12, 2010 /
      DETROIT - DECEMBER 12: Aaron Rogers of the Green Bay Packers during the second quarter of the game against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field on December 12, 2010 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images)

      About the only thing that is going right for the Packers today is that the Bears have no desire to beat the Patriots, because Green Bay’s season is currently hanging in the balance at Solider Field right now.

      The Packers had a disastrous day in Detroit on Sunday, losing 7-3 to a Lions team that picked up its first divisional win in 19 straight tries. Things got started when Greg Jennings had a potential touchdown pass go off his hands in the first quarter and into the waiting arms of a Detroit defender, then quarterback Aaron Rodgers was knocked out of the game with a concussion in the second.

      Things only got worse as Matt Flynn struggled to move the ball against Ndamukong Suh (otherwise known as the Detroit Lions defense) and even when he did, he threw an interception to linebacker DeAndre Levy in the end zone late in the third quarter to kill a potential scoring drive. (He also overthrew Greg Jennings on a 4th-and-1 at the Detroit 31-yard line to put the final nail in the coffin.)

      But the Packers can’t pin the loss entirely on Flynn because the Packers didn’t produce any points when Rodgers was in either. And some of the blame for that falls on Mike McCarthy and his coaching staff, which decided to run the ball early and often instead of attacking the league’s worst secondary. I’m not sure what the Packers’ game plan was, but it clearly wasn’t to go after the Lions’ weakness.

      Now Green Bay must hope Chicago loses to New England so that they don’t face a two-game deficit in the NFC North by the end of the day. As of this writing, the Bears are trailing the Patriots 21-0 and look completely hopeless, so the Packers’ season is still very much alive.

      That said, they travel to New England next Sunday and there’s a good chance that Rodgers won’t be medically cleared to play. Unless Flynn can produce a miracle, the Packers will probably be home when the postseason starts.

      But first things first: Chicago must lose to New England.

      External Sports, NFL

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