Tag: Roddy White (Page 6 of 13)

      NFL Week 7 MVP, COY and ROY power rankings

      October 31, 2010 /

      Raise your hand if you can figure out this NFL season. Yeah, that’s what I thought. A few hands went up in Pittsburgh, a couple in New England, and a few more in New York/New Jersey. Choosing players and coaches who might be in line for postseason awards is even more difficult to grasp, but we’ll give it another shot here….


      MVP Power Rankings

      1. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts—His team is 4-2 and a contender in the tough AFC. But more than that, Manning leads the NFL with a 103.4 QB rating—319.3 yards per game passing, 13 touchdown passes and just 2 picks. The guy is once again dominant, and he’ll continue to make life miserable for opposing coordinators.

      2. Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons—The Falcons are 5-2 and one of the top teams in a wide-open NFC, and this guy is probably the biggest reason why. He busted on to this list by catching 11 passes for 201 yards and 2 scores against Cincinnati last Sunday—a whopping 18.3 yards per catch. I’m really not sure how you defend this dude, who keeps making us open our mouths wide with some acrobatic grabs and pure athleticism.

      3. Ahmad Bradshaw, New York Giants—Don’t look now, but the NFL has a new leading rusher (708 yards). He’s short (listed as 5’9” but probably more like 5’8” with a heel lift), and extremely hard to bring down. Now that he’s healthy and listed as the starter for the 5-2 Giants, Bradshaw is taking over, running behind a good O-line, but also making plays happen in the open field himself, and making guys twice his size miss. If he could only just stop fumbling (four times in seven games)….

      Honorable mention: Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers; Antonio Gates, San Diego Chargers; Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles; LaDainian Tomlinson, New York Jets; Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers; Osi Umenyiora, New York Giants; Arian Foster, Houston Texans; James Harrison, Pittsburgh Steelers; Jerod May, New England Patriots

      Coach of the Year Power Rankings

      1. Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh Steelers—Sure, the Steelers got lucky with that fumble-non-recovery thing against Miami last week. But Mike Tomlin has his team ranked at or near the top in everyones’ power rankings. The man knows how to win, no matter who is under center—but with Big Ben there, and with a healthy Polamalu and another defender (James Harrison) who almost retired because the league told him to stop hitting guys so hard, there isn’t a doubt anywhere that the Steelers will go deep into the postseason.

      2. Tom Coughlin, New York Giants—I’m gonna be a homer here, but you can’t not give credit to a coach who brings his team off of life support after three games, and then has them on top of the NFC by winning four straight. This, despite a team that ranks near the bottom of the NFL with a minus-five turnover differential—thanks to 10 fumbles lost and 11 picks. And also despite all those Bill Cowher rumors a month ago. The bottom line? The players have his back, and the defense is now playing lights-out under first-year coordinator Perry Fewell.

      3. Jeff Fisher, Tennessee Titans—At some point you just have to bring Fisher, the longest tenured NFL coach, into the conversation, because he brings his team to play every week. Last season, the Titans started 0-6 and ended up 8-8 and almost in the playoffs. This year, his feisty bunch is 5-2 and in first place in the AFC South. They’re never out of any game no matter who is at QB, and Chris Johnson hasn’t even begun to catch fire yet.

      Honorable mention: Pete Carroll, Seattle Seahawks; Raheem Morris, Tampa Bay Bucs; Todd Haley, Kansas City Chiefs; Rex Ryan, New York Jets; Andy Reid, Philadelphia Eagles, Steve Spagnuolo, St. Louis Rams; Bill Belichick, New England Patriots; Mike Smith, Atlanta Falcons.

      Rookie of the Year Power Rankings

      1. Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys—I’m just glad my Giants won that game on Monday night, because this dude almost stole the show all by himself with three touchdowns—2 receiving and 1 on a punt return. He’s ridiculously explosive and has all-around scary talent. I mean, is it too early to call Dez a future Hall of Famer? Probably, but in 15 years, don’t forget that I just said that.

      2. Ndamukong Suh, Detroit Lions—Opposing offenses were able to breathe easy last week with this beast on bye. Today, Donovan McNabb will get to know him a bit better.

      3. Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams—Even last week in a losing effort, two of Sam’s 13 completions were for touchdowns, and he’s on pace for 20 TD tosses. Not bad for a rookie.

      Honorable mention: Jahvid Best, Detroit Lions; Max Hall, Arizona Cardinals; Rolando McClain, Oakland Raiders; Jermaine Gresham, Cincinnati Bengals

      External Sports, NFL

      Roddy White goes off on Bengals as Falcons’ offense finally rolls

      October 24, 2010 /
      ATLANTA - OCTOBER 24: Roddy White of the Atlanta Falcons stiff arms Chinedum Ndukwe of the Cincinnati Bengals at Georgia Dome on October 24, 2010 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

      After turning in their worst performance of the year, the Falcons needed a rebound game. And after nearly giving the game away in the second half after building a 24-3 halftime lead, the Falcons hung on to beat the Bengals 39-32 on Sunday.

      Roddy White had a massive day, recording 11 passes for 201 yards and two touchdowns. He also added a two-point conversation, although it was his fumble that gave the Bengals life in the second half. Pacman Jones stripped White, then scooped it up for a 59-yard touchdown return to give Cincinnati a brief 25-24 lead.

      But White’s 11-yard touchdown reception and two-point conversation early in the fourth quarter gave Atlanta the lead back at 32-25. Michael Turner added a 3-yard touchdown run with 4:33 left on the clock and even though the Bengals got to within one score after a Chad Ochocinco 8-yard touchdown pass with under two minutes remaining, a last-second desperation drive by Cincinnati failed.

      This is the type of performance that people expect out of the Falcons’ offense every week and really, there’s no reason why they can’t duplicate this effort most Sundays. Matt Ryan averaged 9.1 yards per pass, Turner rushed for 121 yards and seven different receivers caught passes. The deep pass made several appearances today, which is something that has been missing from the Falcons’ offense much of this year.

      The bye couldn’t have come at a better time for Atlanta, which is banged up defensively and could use the rest. In the second half, the Falcons have dates with the Bucs (twice), Ravens, Packers, Seahawks and Saints, so they better get healthy.

      External Sports, NFL

      Get used to the way this Falcons team wins

      October 10, 2010 /
      Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan (2) throws with pressure from Cleveland Browns linebacker David Bowens during the second quarter of their NFL football game in Cleveland, Ohio October 10, 2010. REUTERS/Aaron Josefczyk (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)

      At halftime of the game between the Browns and Falcons, I was ready to start using the term “overrated” when it came to Atlanta. Before the season, many pundits said the Falcons were Super Bowl contenders, yet there they were in Cleveland on Sunday trailing 7-6 and being somewhat dominated by a more motivated Browns’ defense.

      But a 20-10 win later and I’ve started to realize that the Falcons are who they are.

      They’re not overrated – far from it. Are they a Super Bowl contender? Maybe, but don’t expect them to play as smooth and as fluid as the Saints did last year when they rolled over opponents on a weekly basis. Atlanta is heavy metal compared to New Orleans’ smooth jazz.

      This Falcons team relies on its running game and methodical passing to wear defenses down in the second half and keep the game close. Then, when they have an opportunity to strike, they take it and all of a sudden have found a way to win.

      Most teams try to have a similiar philosophy, but few pull it off like the Falcons. Thanks to Michael Turner’s 140 yards on 19 carries, Atlanta wore Cleveland’s defense out and then just when you thought Matt Ryan wasn’t going to complete a pass for more than five yards (or complete a pass period), he hit Roddy White on a 45-yard touchdown pass midway through the third quarter and the Falcons never looked back.

      If you’re a football fan and you’ve watched the Falcons these first five weeks, chances are you haven’t been impressed outside of their rout of the Cardinals in Week 2. You may have even wanted to use the term “overrated” yourself.

      But the fact remains that they’re 4-1, Ryan is making plays when it matters most, Turner and Snelling continue to wear teams down, White is damn near unstoppable and the defense is fast and opportunistic. (Did you see Kroy Biermann’s 41-yard interception return for a touchdown late in the game? Holy amazing play, Batman.)

      Have they been fortunate a couple of times this year? Without a doubt. Garrett Hartley’s missed field goal in Week 3, Nate Clements’ fumble in Week 4 and Seneca Wallace’s (who was playing great before coming out just before halftime) injury today has all played a huge factor in Atlanta’s strong start. But it all plays into the Falcons’ makeup in some weird, twisted way.

      “Winning Ugly” should be their philosophy the rest of the season.

      External Sports, NFL

      Roddy White makes play of the day (if not season) in Falcons’ win over 49ers

      October 3, 2010 /
      ATLANTA - NOVEMBER 29: Roddy White #84 of the Atlanta Falcons celebrates his game-winning touchdown in the final seconds against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with Eric Weems #14 and quarterback Chris Redman #8 at Georgia Dome on November 29, 2009 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

      The 49ers must feel a massive sense of déjà vu right now.

      In a Week 5 game in San Francisco last year, former 49er cornerback Dre Bly intercepted a Matt Ryan pass and had a clear beat on the end zone.

      The only problem is that he started high stepping around midfield and Falcons’ receiver Roddy White caught up to him and stripped him from behind. One of Atlanta’s offensive lineman was able to recover the loose ball and the Falcons went on to beat the Niners, 45-10.

      Fast-forward to today, where San Fran outplayed the Falcons in Atlanta for three and a half quarters and while nursing a 1-point lead with under two minutes remaining, Nate Clements intercepted Ryan and headed for the end zone.

      A touchdown would have likely sealed the win for the Niners, but White chased Clements down from behind, stripped the ball and one of the Falcons’ offensive lineman (I’m not making this up) recovered it at Atlanta’s 7-yard line. (The lineman’s name who recovered the ball was Harvey Dahl, who never gave up on the play either and made just as big of a play as White did.)

      With just over a minute remaining in the game, Ryan gathered himself and orchestrated an impressive drive to get the Falcons into field goal range at the San Francisco 25-yard line. After Mike Singletary tried icing the kicker (does that ever work?) by calling a timeout, Matt Brant kicked a 43-yard field goal to lift Atlanta to a 16-14 victory.

      The Niners did a lot of things right today and they seemed destined to earn their first victory of the year. Even though they only scored 14 points, new offensive coordinator Mike Johnson put together a sound game plan and if it weren’t for a couple of Alex Smith-drive-killing-interceptions, San Fran may have won easily.

      But the game essentially came down to White’s play late in the fourth quarter. At the risk of sounding like a motivational poster, the Falcons won today because of White’s hustle and determination. And considering he’s made a play like this before, it goes to show you that he’s much more than just a Pro Bowl receiver.

      It was one of the best plays you’ll see all season.

      External Sports, NFL

      2010 NFL Question Marks: Atlanta Falcons

      August 4, 2010 /
      FLOWERY BRANCH, GA - JULY 30: Chevis Jackson , Dunta Robinson and Brent Grimes of the Atlanta Falcons celebrate after a defensive turnover during opening day of training camp on July 30, 2010 at the Falcons Training Complex in Flowery Branch, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

      Merry training camp season, everyone. It’s been a long offseason, but football is finally gearing up again and to celebrate I’m rolling out a new series on TSR entitled “2010 NFL Question Marks,” where I discuss one or two of the biggest concerns that teams have heading into the new season. Granted, some teams have more issues than others, but I’ll primarily be focusing on the biggest problem areas. Today I’ll be discussing the Falcons, who still have some holdover questions from last year in their secondary.

      When you look up and down the Falcons’ current depth chart, you don’t see a lot of weaknesses. Their offensive core of Matt Ryan, Michael Turner, Roddy White and Tony Gonzalez is outstanding and while their offensive line is comprised of five no-names (save for maybe former first rounder Sam Baker), they’re solid as a collective unit (even underrated to some extent).

      Atlanta’s biggest question marks come on the defensive side of the ball, although they’re not as prevalent as some may think. John Abraham saw his sack total drop from 16.5 in 2008 to only 5.5 in 2009, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t effective. He still provided the Falcons with a steady pass rush – he just didn’t get to the quarterback as frequently as he did in ’08.

      That said, the Falcons definitely need him to pick up his game if they’re going to make a trip back to the postseason this year. The good news is that he’ll have help in the form of Jonathan Babineaux (the team’s most underrated defensive player and best interior pass-rusher) and Peria Jerry (assuming he’s healthy), as well as two ends in Kroy Biermann and Lawrence Sidbury that I firmly believe will turn heads this season. Plus, if former 8th overall pick Jamaal Anderson ever lives up to the potential he displayed during his final year at Arkansas, the Falcons could have the makings of a great defensive line.

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, NFL

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