Tag: Jacksonville Jaguars (Page 15 of 23)

      NFL Week 17 Quick Hit Thoughts: Lions 0-16, Brees falls short, Big Ben hurt

      December 28, 2008 /

      Detroit Lions– With their 31-21 loss to the Green Bay Packers, the Detroit Lions wound up on the wrong side of history in 2008, finishing the season 0-16. No team in the NFL history has ever finished 0-16, but the good news for Lion fans is that owner William Clay Ford Sr. doesn’t plan on changing a thing about the organization. Yikes.

      – I feel bad for Drew Brees. He needed just 16 more passing yards in the Saints’ 33-31 loss to the Panthers on Sunday to eclipse Dan Marino’s record for most passing yards in a single-season. I’m a little surprised that with Carolina’s defenders playing so far back, that Brees didn’t just zing one over the middle for 10 or 12 yards and let one of his receivers pick up the rest of the yardage. But I admire Brees for slinging it down field in an attempt to try and win the game. (I think that’s what he was doing?)

      – In a nightmare situation for the Steelers in their 31-0 win over the hapless Cleveland Browns on Sunday, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was carted off the field after suffering a concussion late in the second quarter. Big Ben’s head slammed hard against the turf after he was crushed by two Brown defenders and it took the trainers nearly 15 minutes to attend to him. It’s unclear at this point the status of his health, although the Steelers do have a bye week before they host a playoff game.

      – I didn’t see much of the Ravens’ 27-7 win over the Jaguars, but I do know that Baltimore is one scary looking playoff team. Their defense will allow them to compete with anyone and Joe Flacco might be playing better than any rookie in the league – including Matt Ryan.

      – Peyton Manning went 7 for 7 for 95 yards and a touchdown in his final tune up before the playoffs. Whoever wins the AFC West between the Chargers and Broncos Sunday night should savor the moment because it’s going to be short-lived considering they’ll have to play Indy next weekend.

      – I can’t believe how far the Bears’ defense has fallen since Chicago’s appearance in the Super Bowl two years ago. I mean, the Texans did whatever they wanted to the Bears and Chicago’s secondary made Matt Schaub look like Joe Theismann.

      – According to the St. Petersburg Times, Buccaneers’ running back Cadillac Williams appears to have suffered a torn left patellar tendon in Tampa’s 31-24 loss to the Raiders. I don’t want to speculate before more information is released, but it’s a shame that such a promising career might be cut short.

      NFL

      NFL Week 17 Primer Late Games

      December 26, 2008 /

      Here are snapshot previews of the late games with playoff implications on Sunday.


      Chad Pennington      Dolphins (10-5) at Jets (9-6), 4:15PM ET CBS
      Things got hairy last week for the Dolphins in Kansas City, but their win over the Chiefs put them in position to make the playoffs (not to mention win the AFC East) with a win over the Jets. The problem is that they haven’t had much success in the Meadowlands this decade and the conditions are going to be cold and nasty. Still, they’re playing a Jets team that has lacked fire over the past couple of weeks, while quarterback Brett Favre has recently admitted that he’s at less than perfect health. A win would be the ultimate revenge for Chad Pennington, who has a bad taste in his mouth from the way the team pitched him in the dumpster right after they traded for Favre. Pennington felt that he gave a lot to a Jets’ fan base and organization that didn’t return the favor. So expect a very motivated Chad to show up in Jersey on Sunday and one with revenge on his mind. Miami’s offense got back on track last week in Kansas City, but their defense took a step back after allowing the Chiefs to rack up 31 points. Before last week, the Dolphins had limited their three previous opponents to 9, 3 and 12 points, respectively. Hurt or not, Favre is going to come out fired up considering this might be his final game. This should be a great battle.

      Broncos (8-7) at Chargers (7-8), 8:15PM ET NBC
      The Broncos have completely crapped the bed the past two weeks, losing to both Carolina and Buffalo to set up a must-win situation in San Diego to win the AFC West. The problem is that the Chargers have won three in a row to put themselves in position to win the division with a victory. San Diego’s offense is seemingly back on track, racking up 41, 22 and 34 points respectively in their last three games. Phillip Rivers is having an MVP-like season and should have no problem moving the ball against a Denver defense that has been shredded for most of the season. But the Chargers need LaDainian Tomlinson and Darren Sproles to be effective in order to keep the offense balanced. The defense, which has played dramatically better since Ron Rivera took over at coordinator, also needs to step up against a Broncos’ offense that is averaging almost 280 passing yards per game. Winner takes all in this matchup, although it appears that Denver has already blown its chance. A Charger win would be sweet justice after they lost to the Broncos earlier this season thanks in part to Ed Hochuli’s blown call.

      Wade Phillips      Cowboys (9-6) at Eagles (8-6-1), 4:15PM ET FOX
      There’s a bit of a stink surrendering this game because by kickoff, the Eagles will already know whether or not they’re playing for a playoff spot. Philly needs Tampa Bay, Chicago and Minnesota all to lose in order to have a shot at the postseason. Since it’s unlikely that all three teams lose, the Eagles will have to settle for the role of spoiler in this game. The Cowboys control their own destiny. If they win, they’ll clinch the sixth and final playoff spot in the NFC. If they lose, they’re done. According to Jerry Jones, Wade Phillips’ job is not on the line this Sunday. But things could change if the Cowboys are embarrassed by a division rival with the postseason on the line. Despite what Jones says, Phillips better come up with a way to slow down Donovan McNabb and Brian Westbrook they way Washington did last Sunday, or else he could be heading to the unemployment line.

      Jaguars (5-10) at Ravens (10-5), 4:15PM ET CBS
      The Ravens need just one more victory to put a cap on an amazing year. They should get that victory, too, because they’re playing a Jacksonville Jaguars team that has lost four of their last five games. Although they showed spunk in almost beating the Colts last Thursday night, they won’t be able to move the ball on a motivated Baltimore defense. As long as rookie quarterback Joe Flacco doesn’t succumb to the pressures of facing a must-win situation, the Ravens should be fine. The Jaguars can’t run the ball behind a depleted offensive line and if Baltimore can beat the Cowboys on the road and in the final game at Texas Stadium, they should have no issues with a hapless Jacksonville squad.

      NFL

      Vikings stay one game ahead of Bears in NFC North, but lose Frerotte

      December 7, 2008 /

      Tavaris JacksonIt wasn’t pretty, but the Minnesota Vikings beat the Detroit Lions 20-16 on Sunday to remain one game ahead of the Chicago Bears – who beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 23-10 – in the NFC North Division.

      The story for the Vikings is that quarterback Gus Frerotte was carted off the field with a back injury and that Tarvaris Jackson (yes, that Tarvaris Jackson) lead Minnesota to a come from behind victory. Jackson completed 8 of 10 passes for 105 yards and a touchdown, although Brad Childress kept things ultra-conservative and relied on Adrian Peterson (102 yards on 23 carries) to move the ball.

      Not that he was playing very well before the injury, but the Vikings will need Frerotte the rest of the way or else their slim lead in the division could evaporate. Jackson hasn’t played all season and it was evident on Sunday that Childress still doesn’t have a ton of confidence in the young QB to win the game by throwing the ball. And if Childress doesn’t have confidence in Jackson to throw the ball vertically against the Lions, than he won’t when the Vikings play the Cardinals, Falcons and Giants the rest of the way.

      Even though they’re still one game back in the division and were just waxed in Minnesota a week ago, the Bears actually look like they’re in better shape right now than the Vikings. They have a tough home matchup on Thursday against the Saints, but then play a skidding Packers team at Solider Field before wrapping up their season against Houston. Minnesota actually has a tougher remaining schedule, although Chicago needs to beat the Saints on Thursday or else their postseason dreams might be dashed.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      What happened to the Jaguars?

      December 2, 2008 /

      Jacksonville JaguarsMany football fans have been asking this question since Week 2 when they fell to 0-2, but what in the hell happened to the Jacksonville Jaguars this season? This was a team that not only was supposed to push the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC South once again, but possibly compete for a Super Bowl, too.

      For three quarters Monday night in Houston (a 30-17 Texans’ victory), they were absolutely unbearable to watch. They couldn’t run the ball (their staple over the years), their defense couldn’t stop Sage Rosenfels and rookie Steve Slaton, and David Garrard couldn’t even drop back to pass without having his center step on his feet and falling down.

      The Jags are a perfect example of what happens when a good team (or any team for that matter) doesn’t have an offensive line. Their line has been riddled with injuries this season and everything has fallen apart. Last year the o-line was opening up MAC-truck-sized holes for Maurice Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor. This year you couldn’t fit mail between those slots.

      Another piece of the puzzle missing this year is Mike Smith – the Jags’ former defensive coordinator who is now the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. Many people noted that Smith essentially just ran Jack Del Rio’s defense over the years, but maybe “Smitty” had a bigger impact than people think because Jacksonville’s defense just isn’t the same nasty unit this year as they were in year’s past.

      With all that, it’s still amazing how far they’ve fallen. Again, they were rough to watch last night and that was easily the worst Monday Night Football Game of the year. (Although Slaton was fun to watch and I think the Texans’ found a solid running back in last April’s draft.)

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Omen? Jaguars’ mascot catches on fire before game against Titans

      November 17, 2008 /

      Is it a bad omen when your mascot catches on fire before the biggest game of the season?

      From SPORTSbyBROOKS.com:

      Team introductions are a chance for the home team to get fired up. However, the ORLANDO SENTINEL says that the Jacksonville Jaguars took a different approach yesterday when coming out for their game against the Tennessee Titans, actually setting their mascot on fire. Apparently Jaxson de Ville got a little too close to the pyrotechnics as the team charged out of the locker room, causing his stuffed ears to go up in flames.

      Luckily, he was able to rush off the field and get put out before he did his full impersonation of Michael Jackson shooting a Pepsi commercial. (I guess that makes him the Jackson-Ville Jaguar. Get it?) But I think it’s safe to consider your mascot bursting into flames as a bad omen, and perhaps it was as the Jags blew a 14-3 halftime lead and fell to the Titans, 24-14.

      Mike Bianchi of the ORLANDO SENTINEL said after the game that the locker room “smelled of a dying team.” Usually, that’s only said about the Raiders, when the staff forgets to clean well enough to clear Al Davis’ “old man smell” out of the team offices. Clearly Jack Del Rio Death Watch is on.

      I know there’s a human being trapped in those suits, but I can’t help chuckling when I think about a mascot setting on fire. Blame it on Will Ferrell’s character in “Old School.”

      Humor, NFL

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