Tag: 2011 NFL Playoffs (Page 9 of 13)

      Cromartie says he hates Tom Brady, calls him an A-hole

      January 12, 2011 /
      Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Pierre Garcon (85) turns upfield after a 21-yard pass reception in front of New York Jets defenders Antonio Cromartie (31) and Eric Smith (33) during the fourth quarter of the Jets 17-16 AFC Wild-Card Playoff win at Lucas Oil Field in Indianapolis on January 8, 2011. UPI /Mark Cowan

      Well, this Jets-Patriots game is certainly getting interesting.

      From the New York Daily News:

      Cromartie, in his first year with the Jets after four years with the Chargers, backed up Ryan Tuesday when he was asked by the Daily News if he’s ever seen Brady pointing after the Patriots score.

      “We see that a lot. He does it a lot,” Cromartie said. “That’s the kind of guy he is. We really don’t give a damn, to tell you the truth.”

      Okay, what kind of guy is Brady?

      “An ass—-.

      “—- him.”

      “That’s what I think about him. I don’t really give a damn about him,” he said. “I don’t have to play against him. I play against the receivers.”

      Well, Brady is the one throwing to those receivers. “Yeah, but if I beat the s— out of his receivers, he can’t throw the ball,” Cromartie said.

      He’ll beat the s**t out of his receivers? Apparently the only thing receivers have to do to beat Cromartie is make one hard step outside and cut back inside on a post pattern when he lines up off the wideout. Because that’s all Pierre Garcon of the Colts did last week when he scored on that 57-yard touchdown pass. After that play, Cris Colinsworth spent the rest of the game explaining how Cromartie can’t cover if he’s not jamming the receiver at the line.

      Meanwhile, the Patriots have gone about their business while refusing to talk about the Jets. And why should they say anything? The last time these two teams met, it took the Pats all of 14 minutes to build a 17-3 lead. That game was over before it started.

      External Sports, NFL

      Former Bears Scout: Passing on James Starks was the “most embarrassing moment” of my career

      January 12, 2011 /
      Green Bay Packers running back James Starks gains 27 yards to the Packers 32-yard line as he shakes off a tackle attempt by Philadelphia Eagles Kurt Coleman during first quarter action of the Philadelphia Eagles-Green Bay Packers NFC Wildcard playoff game in Philadelphia at Lincoln Financial Field January 9, 2011. UPI/John Anderson

      Former Bears scout Greg Gabriel wrote an interesting article for the National Football Post. He describes the scene as the Bears tried to decide between James Starks and Dan LeFevour.

      As we got closer to our pick, Angelo made the decision for the Bears to draft Starks. When we drafted a player there was a protocol we followed. After the decision on who to draft was made, Cliff Stein (the Bears contract negotiator) would call the players agent and tell him we were planning on drafting his player. He would tell the agent that the wanted to get a 4-year contract with the player and wanted the contract done by a certain date. If the agent agreed then I would call the player and give him the news that the Bears were going to take him. This is exactly what happened with Starks. I was on the phone for a minute or so with Starks when Angelo walked in my office and told me he had changed his mind and was drafting LeFevour. I put Starks on hold and then said to Angelo that Stein had already talked to the agent and I had the player on the phone…we couldn’t do business like that. He said he was sorry but he decided he wanted LeFevour and the card had been turned in.

      I then had to tell the player (a player that I had developed a good relationship with over the previous two years) that in fact we were not drafting him. Hearing a kid go from being extremely excited to silence was not easy. It was the most embarrassing moment I had experienced while scouting.

      This is something of a story now that Starks is emerging as the top tailback for the Packers. He rushed 23 times for 123 yards against the Eagles, showing very good burst and wiggle through the hole. He also showed some nice hands out of the backfield, which makes sense since he caught a total of 93 passes in 2007 and 2008 as a member of the Buffalo Bulls.

      After Ryan Grant went down, the Packers decided not to add Marshawn Lynch to the mix at tailback and it appears that Starks was the main reason why.

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, News, NFL, Rumors & Gossip

      Rex Ryan once again opens his mouth to take attention away from players

      January 11, 2011 /
      New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan watches his team play the Indianapolis Colts in the third quarter during their AFC Wild Card NFL playoff football game in Indianapolis, January 8, 2011. REUTERS/Jeff Haynes (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)

      You can’t fault Jets’ coach Rex Ryan for trying to take pressure off his players by providing bulletin board material for the opposing team. (Wait…does that take pressure off his players?)

      One week after saying it was “personnel” between him and Peyton Manning, Ryan took a few more shots at Patriots’ QB Tom Brady.

      From ESPN.com:

      Ryan claimed he didn’t mean to take a shot at Brady last week. Ryan, in talking about how much he respected Peyton Manning, suggested Brady didn’t measure up because he has Belichick “dialing up plays,” while Manning runs the Indianapolis Colts’ offense.

      But Ryan expressed his disdain for Brady’s “antics on the field,” which include pointing at the opponents’ sideline after a touchdown.

      “That’s just Brady being Brady,” Ryan said. “I don’t like seeing that. No Jets fan likes to see that. He can’t wait to do it. He’s not going to say anything publicly, but he does it. It’s what it is. It’s my job to keep him out of the end zone.”

      I’ve always liked Rex Ryan. His defensive game plans are usually outstanding and for the most part, his teams are prepared. He’s also funny and he has a personality, which is refreshing these days in sports.

      That said, whatever he says to the media leading up to the game doesn’t matter. At the end of the day, he still has to figure out a way to beat Bill Belichick in Foxboro, which he has yet to do as a head coach. In the same article that I pulled the above quotes from, Ryan admitted that he was outcoached in the 45-3 Monday night bloodbath in early December. And he went on to say that he needs to rise to the same level that Belichick is in order to beat him.

      But at least leading up to kickoff, he provides the media something to talk about.

      External Sports, NFL

      2011 NFL Divisional Round Odds

      January 11, 2011 /
      coln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, 09 January 2011. EPA/JUSTIN LANE fotoglif882603

      Ravens @ Steelers, 4:30PM ET, Saturday
      This will be the third meeting between these two teams this season. In Week 4, the Ravens beat a Ben Roethlisberger-less Steelers in Pittsburgh, 17-14. But the Steelers got their revenge in Week 13 by beating the Ravens 13-10 in Baltimore behind Troy Polamalu’s strip of Joe Flacco late in the fourth quarter. It’s a little surprising to see oddsmakers open this game at 3.5 with the way the Ravens played last Sunday in Kansas City. One would think that they would have set the point spread at 3 and let the public play with it from there. I can’t see this line going up throughout the week. The public remembers that the Ravens should have beaten the Steelers twice this year and they tend to latch onto Wildcard teams because those teams’ performances are fresh in their memory. I bet this line closes at Steelers –3, or even –2.5.
      THE ODDS: STEELERS –3.5 (36.5)

      Packers @ Falcons, 8:00PM ET, Sunday
      Home field advantage is usually worth three points, or so the logic goes. To see the Falcons opened at only –1.5 means one of two things: either oddsmakers believe that the Packers are the team to beat in this game or they believe that the public believes they’re the team to beat. (Or it could mean both, I guess.) Aaron Rodgers and the Pack are red-hot and the public views them as a legit Super Bowl contender. With the way James Starks ran last week, people are starting to buy into a Green Bay championship run, which means an upset this Sunday in Hotlanta. That said, the line has moved all the way up to 2.5 in the matter of 24 hours, so is Vegas getting heavy sharp action on the Falcons? It’s good to see that this matchup received the primetime spot on Saturday night because it should be the best game of the weekend.
      THE ODDS: FALCONS –2.5 (45)

      Seahawks @ Bears, 1:00PM ET, Sunday
      It’s not surprising that the Seahawks are underdogs again but didn’t their upset of the defending champs last Sunday by them a little bit of respect? They already beat the Bears once in Chicago this year and yet they’re double-digit dogs. Neither oddsmakers nor the public (at least the majority of the public) believes that the Seahawks have two upsets in them, especially since they have to go on the road this week. But I wouldn’t be surprised if the line drops from 10 to 9.5 or even 9 by kickoff. I don’t get the sense that everyone is on the Bears’ bandwagon this year, so the public may take the points with the road dog. But if you like the Bears, it may be best to wait and see if the number comes off the all-important “10.”
      THE ODDS: BEARS –10 (41)

      Jets @ Patriots, 4:30PM ET, Sunday
      The line opened at Patriots –9 and it almost immediately jumped to –9.5. But the spread has now dropped back to 9 so maybe Vegas is getting action coming in on both sides. It’s hard to imagine that the line wouldn’t move back up to 9.5 or even 10 by kickoff after the way the Patriots spanked the Jets 45-3 in their last meeting. But maybe Rex Ryan made believers out of people by the way he held Peyton Manning in check. In the end, I can’t see the public not backing New England and if the line stays below 10 then it would be a gift to Patriot backers.
      THE ODDS: PATRIOTS –9 (45)

      External Sports, NFL

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