Tag: Brian Westbrook (Page 8 of 9)

      NFL News and Notes: Rams bench QB Marc Bulger

      September 23, 2008 /

      Marc Bulger– After stumbling to a 0-3 start and looking atrocious while doing so, the St. Louis Rams have decided to make a change. Veteran Trent Green will reportedly start at quarterback this weekend against the undefeated Buffalo Bills as the Rams have decided to bench Marc Bulger. (NFL.com)

      – Willie Parker will miss Monday night’s game against the Baltimore Ravens after spraining his knee in last week’s loss to the Eagles. Rookie Rashard Mendenhall is expected to make his first NFL start. (NFL.com)

      – Packers’ CB Al Harris could be lost for the entire season with a ruptured spleen, which was the same injury that knocked out former Bucs’ QB Chris Simms for the entire 2006 season. Tramon Williams, a second-year undrafted free agent, is currently Harris’s backup at left corner. (National Football Post)

      – RB Brian Westbrook reportedly suffered a high ankle sprain during the Eagles’ win over the Steelers Sunday, a game in which “Westy” had to leave the game in the first half. His status for this Sunday’s game is still up in the air, but Westbrook expects to play. (Rotoworld.com)

      – Struggling quarterback Derek Anderson is expected to start in Week 4 for the Cleveland Browns, but the team is prepping second-year backup Brady Quinn to play. Anderson could have a quick hook if he struggles Sunday against Cincinnati. (ESPN’s Chris Mortensen)

      – Despite his poor performance in Tennessee last Sunday, Matt Schuab will reportedly keep the starting quarterback job in Houston. Unfortunately for Schaub, things don’t get any easier against Jacksonville this Sunday. (Houston Chronicle)

      – After destroying the Patriots with it last Sunday, the Miami Dolphins will keep the ‘Wildcat’ package in their offensive. RB Ronnie Brown shredded New England for over 100 yards and four touchdowns while lining up predominately in that formation last Sunday. (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)


      Obviously, the Bulger news is big, but I doubt there were too many owners starting him last week. His numbers are down and I think most of us were expecting him to eventually turn it around and finish somewhere in the top 15. Scott Linehan is apparently desperate and feels like he’s on the verge of getting fired. Trent Green is old, but STL has some weapons so he could be a decent spot starter if he can get in the groove…As for Westy, Correll Buckhalter looks like the primary backup despite all the preseason talk about Lorenzo Booker…Rashard Mendenhall will be a hot pickup this week, but don’t break the bank in Blind Bidding leagues. He faces a tough Ravens defense and Parker could be back as early as next week. But if you can add him cheaply, do so, as you never know with knee sprains…Brady Quinn is a guy to target in larger leagues. The “Bench Derek Anderson” talk seems to be getting louder and louder and Quinn has a chance to be good with all the weapons in the Browns’ offense.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Eagles sack Ben Roethlisberger, drop Steelers 15-6

      September 21, 2008 /

      The Eagles bounced back from their Monday night defeat in Dallas by shutting down Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers 15-6 in Philadelphia on Sunday.

      Ben RoethlisbergerIt was over when …
      Steelers backup QB Byron Leftwich threw an incomplete pass on fourth-and-10 with 35 seconds remaining to end their slim chances of pulling off an improbable comeback. The Eagles took over on downs and kneeled down to run out the clock.

      Game ball
      This contest featured a dominant performance by the Eagles’ front-seven on defense, but not to be overlooked was the sensational effort from Philadelphia punter Sav Rocca. Rocca punted the ball three times in the fourth quarter and all were pivotal in the victory. In the Eagles’ first possession of the quarter, they were forced to punt from their own 11-yard line. The Steelers expected to get the ball back in good field position, but Rocca boomed a 64-yarder that Santonio Holmes was only able to return for 5 yards because of its hang time. On his next effort, Rocca blasted another 54-yarder that went out of bounds and pinned the Steelers at their own 6-yard line. Finally, Rocca used his touch to kick a 37-yarder that bounced out at the Steelers’ 7-yard line. Without those punts, the Eagles may not have gotten the win.

      Key stat
      The Eagles recorded nine sacks and a safety during the game and had at least twice that many knock-downs. Even more amazing, is that the stat is somewhat deceiving because Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger barely escaped four other times and was credited with 6 rushing yards on those plays. If Roethlisberger was less elusive, the Eagles very easily could have tallied 15 sacks or more.

      Noteworthy
      Eagles RB Brian Westbrook left in the second quarter with an ankle injury and did not return. … Roethlisberger left late in the fourth quarter with a hand injury and did not return. … The Steelers did not have a play of 20-yards or more until Heath Miller’s 21-yard grab with less than two minutes left. … In one eight-play stretch of the second quarter, the Steelers gave up five sacks, committed a false start penalty and threw an interception. … Pittsburgh did not get into the red zone until its final drive. … Donovan McNabb set a new Eagles franchise record with his 176th career touchdown pass..

      I think Eagles’ defensive coordinator Jim Johnson took out his frustrations from Monday night on the Steelers today because he was absolutely relentless in blitzing his defenders (even more than he usually is). And had RB Brian Westbrook not suffer an injury early in the game, it’s likely the Eagles would have won by more than nine points.

      It was clear Big Ben’s shoulder dramatically affected his play today. Several times throughout the game he set up to throw long and checked down to his running back instead. And while he normally has issues holding on to the ball too long in the pocket, it was a major problem today. It’ll be interesting to see whether or not the Steelers choose to rest Roethlisberger over the next couple weeks with tough defenses in Baltimore and Jacksonville coming up.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Week 3 NFL Primer

      September 19, 2008 /

      Aaron RodgersSunday’s Best: Cowboys (2-0) at Packers (2-0) 8:15 PM ET NBC
      General NFL fans and fantasy football owners alike are pumped for this Sunday Night Football matchup. The home team generally has the upper hand, with the host going 14-2 in the last 27 years of this underrated rivalry. Before becoming a starter this season, Packers’ QB Aaron Rodgers only saw significant playing time one other time in his career – last year in a regular season loss to the Cowboys after Brett Favre was injured following two interceptions. Rodgers did well, too, completing 18 of 26 passes and tossing one touchdown. The Dallas defense will be well prepared for Rodgers this time, although the Cowboys are coming off a short week after beating the Eagles on Monday night.

      Upset Watch: Saints (1-1) at Broncos (2-0) 4:05 PM ET FOX
      If there’s one thing the NFL has taught fans over the years is to expect the unexpected. After two weeks, the Broncos look like world-beaters and after losing last week in Washington, the Saints appear to be vulnerable. But Denver’s defense didn’t play well in the second half last week and even without WR Marques Colston, New Orleans has more than enough offensive weapons to make things interesting this weekend in Denver. The Broncos are coming off an emotionally draining win last Sunday against San Diego, not to mention an emotionally draining week having to answer questions about Ed Hochuli’s blown call. Could the pissed off Saints be catching Denver at the right time?

      Ben RoethlisbergerIntriguing Matchup: Steelers (2-0) at Eagles (1-1), 4:15 PM ET CBS
      If it weren’t for the mega matchup in Green Bay on Sunday night, the Steelers-Eagles game Sunday evening would be the best of the Week 3 schedule. Pittsburgh has looked very good in its two victories, but questions remain about the health status of QB Ben Roethlisberger, who is dealing with a bad shoulder (although head coach Mike Tomlin says Big Ben’s shoulder isn’t separated). Philadelphia will be coming off a short week after playing on Monday night, but the Eagles are always tough to beat at home. Donovan McNabb and Brian Westbrook will also look to bounce back after fumbling away an opportunity to beat the Cowboys. This should be a physical game between two very good teams.

      Other Notable Games:
      Jaguars at Colts, 4:15 PM ET CBS
      Jacksonville’s offensive line is incredibly beat up, which hasn’t bode well for the usually-explosive Jag running game. But Indy lost its best run-defender in Bob Sanders for 4-6 weeks and the Vikes’ Adrian Peterson ran wild on them last Sunday. Could the Jaguars really start the season 0-3? Could the Colts really start 1-2? Neither team looks like the potential Super Bowl contenders everyone thought they would be entering the season.

      Panthers at Vikings, 1 PM ET FOX
      The Vikings are looking for their first win of the season while the Panthers are looking to gain even more of an edge in the NFC South. Can Carolina keep Adrian Peterson in check? Will Steve Smith take advantage of a weak Minnesota secondary in his first action of the season after serving a two game suspension?

      Cardinals at Redskins, 1 PM ET FOX
      Usually this game would be a bore-fest, but Arizona is 2-0 and Washington might have gotten on track after beating the Saints last Sunday. The Cardinals could open up a decent size lead in the NFC West with a victory.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Bad McNabb-Westbrook exchange costs Eagles in wild MNF shootout

      September 15, 2008 /

      Tony RomoWhen Brian Westbrook and Donovan McNabb combine for four touchdowns in one game, usually the Eagles come away with a win. But that wasn’t the case Monday night as Dallas defeated Philadelphia 41-37 in the wildest NFL game of the season.

      Westbrook gave the Eagles a 37-31 lead early in the fourth quarter on a 1-yard touchdown run (his third TD of the game). But after a Cowboys’ field goal cut the lead to 37-34, a botched exchange between Westbrook and McNabb gave Dallas the ball back with just under eight minutes to play. The Cowboys turned the miscue into a Marion Barber 1-yard score, which proved to be the game-winning touchdown.

      Outside of an interception and a fumble that the Eagles recovered for a touchdown, Dallas QB Tony Romo was outstanding again. Romo threw for 312 yards and three touchdowns, including a 72-yard bomb to Terrell Owens (3 catches, 89 yards, 2 TDs) in the first quarter. On top of scoring the game-winning TD, Barber also finished with 69 yards on 18 carries.

      Both defenses played like garbage, but this was the most exciting game of the young season. I hate to use a tired sports analogy, but this was like two heavyweight boxers going at it for 60 minutes. Neither team backed down and the game was littered with big plays. (And boneheaded ones, too.) Some of the throws that McNabb and Romo made were absolutely incredible.

      McNabb, Romo, Barber, Westbrook, T.O. and Witten had to help folks win some fantasy games tonight.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Fantasy Fallout, Week 2: Eagles @ Cowboys

      September 15, 2008 /

      Eagles 37 @ Cowboys 41
      The Dallas offense is a juggernaut. Tony Romo shrugged off an awful play early in the game that gave the Eagles defense a touchdown to finish with 312 yards, three TD and a pick. He looks cool, calm and collected in the pocket and with Brady out, he has as good of a chance as anyone to finish as QB1…Terrell Owens (3-89-2) had a big day against his old team, but Romo went to Jason Witten (7-110) when he needed to move the chains. Patrick Crayton (2-23) had a quiet game…Marion Barber is a stud. He racked up 114 total yards on 22 touches and scored twice, once on the ground and once through the air. With LT2 struggling, Barber is a contender to finish as the top fantasy RB…Felix Jones (3-10) was a non-factor in the rushing game, but scored a TD on a kickoff return…The Eagles looked great except for the missed exchange between Donovan McNabb and Brian Westbrook. That turnover was so out of character for McNabb. He finished with 281 yards and a TD, but would have had another score had DeSean Jackson (6-110) not made a boneheaded, showboat play by tossing the ball back before crossing the goal line on his 60-yard almost-TD catch…Jackson’s dumb move gave Westy and extra rushing touchdown. He finished with 24 touches for 102 yards and three TD (2 rush, 1 rec). He’s probably the frontrunner to finish as RB1 with LT2’s gimpy toe…Other than Jackson and Westbrook, no other Philly receiver had more than three receptions, so it looks like Jackson is WR1 for now…L.J. Smith (1-10) had a quiet day.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      « Older posts Newer posts »

      © 2026 The Scores Report – The National Sports Blog

      Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑