The 15-Play Drive

15 thoughts on week-15 in the NFL...

1. Too many angles to devote just a few lines to Giants/Eagles from Sunday, so I'll start with this...While it may be "The Miracle at the New Meadowlands" for Eagles fans, I'm guessing it's more like "The Christmas Collapse" for Giants fans. Considering the circumstances, it's one of the worst regular season losses for a team I've ever seen.

2. Polish up that resume Matt Dodge. You've been shaky all season long, and yesterday's punt straight to DeSean Jackson when you were instructed to kick it out of bounds was the capper. Where have you gone Jeff Feagles?

3. Andy Reid and Tom Coughlin both made huge mistakes during yesterday's NFC East showdown. Reid held onto the challenge flag like it was a Krispie Kreme doughnut when replay clearly showed DeSean Jackson was down by contact on his fumble early in the 4th quarter. As for Coughlin, there's no excuse for not having the hands team on the field with under 8-minutes to go, and the Eagles set to kick-off trailing 31-17.

4. Whether he did it intentionally or not, Jaguars receiver Mike Thomas did wave his left hand before returning that punt 78-yards for a touchdown against the Colts. The ruling should have been fair catch. Mike Carey's crew got it wrong.

5. You blew a shot at a touchdown Bennie Sapp. Why are you trying to pitch the ball after intercepting Ryan Fitzpatrick when there's a ton of open field staring you in the face?

6. The collar is extra tight for Tom Coughlin, Tony Sparano and Gary Kubiak this morning. All three head coaches lost Sunday, and the news that Bill Cowher's short list includes the Giants, Dolphins and Texans can't have them feeling any better.

7. Aside from the Jets Brad Smith, the two most dangerous kick returners in week-15 were Patriots offensive lineman Dan Connolly and Colts linebacker Tyjuan Hagler. Connolly returned a squib kick 71-yards against the Packers, while Hagler took an onside kick back 41-yards for a touchdown to seal their victory over the Jaguars.

8. Take the rest of the season off Austin Collie. That's three concussions this season. I didn't think that was such a brutal hit, but Collie looked like he was out before he hit the ground.

9. Under the heading of you can't predict this...Donald Brown outrushed Maurice Jones-Drew 129 to 46, Matt Flynn threw for more yards and touchdowns than Tom Brady, and the Lions, Panthers, Bengals and Bills all won on the same day.

10. Speaking of the Lions, caught up with head coach Jim Schwartz on the Sunday Drive following their 23-20 OT victory against the Buccaneers to end their 26-game road losing streak. Schwartz did his best to minimize the importance of the win, "The road losing streak never really made our radar." That may be the understatement of the year.

11. The Todd Collins award of the week goes to Matt Hasselbeck. The Seahawks QB completed a respectable 10 of 17-passes for 71-yards before being pulled in favor of Charlie Whitehurst. However, he was a turnover machine throwing 2-interceptions, and losing a fumble in the end-zone that was recovered by the Falcons Jonathan Babineaux for a touchdown.

12. Even on a day when the Titans scored 31-points and Kerry Collins threw for 2-TD's, Randy Moss was a total non-factor again. Six different receivers caught passes for Tennessee, but not Moss, who wasn't even targeted one time.

13. Tim Tebow did fine in his Broncos starting debut. He made several nice throws and was dangerous running with the football at times. That said, Tebow is not ready to be a starting quarterback in the NFL. And if he plans on subjecting his body to that much punishment every Sunday, he'll never survive a full season.

14. Yes, we had an overtime game end on the first possession in week-15. That still means in 15 of the 17-OT games this season, both teams got their hands on the ball. In case you're wondering that's 88-percent. Have I made my case yet?

15. Lost in all the other big performances Sunday was the impact Chiefs defensive end Wallace Gilberry made against the Rams. Who? If you don't know him yet, Gilberry a 3rd year player out of Alabama, sacked Sam Bradford 3-times and also forced a fumble. He was part of a Kansas City defense that held Bradford to 181-yards passing, and limited Steven Jackson to 67-yards rushing.

The 15-Play Drive

15 thoughts on week-14 in the NFL...

1. Jets strength and conditioning coach Sal Alosi must be suspended by the team, banned from the sidelines permanently by the NFL, and the league should also fine the organization heavily. What Alosi did yesterday, intentionally tripping the Dolphins Nolan Carroll, was one of the most unprofessional things I've ever seen in sports.

2. Mark Sanchez has lost the "Eye of the Tiger" and is now doing his best "Chicken Little" impersonation....And yes Jets fans, the sky is falling. In their last 2-games, Sanchez has completed just 34 of 77-pass attempts with 0-touchdowns and 4-interceptions. No coincidence the Jets offense scored a combined 9-points in back to back losses.

3. How does Michael Vick take two helmet to helmet hits on the same play Sunday night, and there's no flag? Were the officials members of PETA?

4. I know you haven't played much Matt Flynn, but up 3-0 in the 3rd quarter you can't force a ball into the end-zone like that. Green Bay would never score again in a 7-3 loss to Detroit. The victory ended the Lions 19-game losing streak against the NFC North.

5. By late Sunday afternoon everyone knew the Giants/Vikings game would be held at Ford Field except the Lions. Spoke with Detroit linebacker DeAndre Levy after their win against the Packers, and when I asked him what he thought about two other teams playing in their stadium he said, "I had no idea. It's the first I'm learning of this."

6. Tom Brady is not of this earth. He hasn't thrown an interception since week-6, and in the Patriots last 8-games, Brady has 19-touchdown passes. Hand him the MVP and get it over with.

7. It took until week-14 for the smoke to clear, but there's no doubt in my mind these are the top five teams in the NFL...

Patriots

Falcons

Saints

Steelers

Eagles

8. There were certainly multiple candidates, but the Todd Collins award of the week goes to Brodie Croyle. Subbing for the injured Matt Cassel, the Chiefs QB completed just 7 of 17-passes for 40-yards before being pulled in favor of Tyler Palko. Croyle is now 0-10 in his career as a starter.

9. On a Sunday when the likes of Roddy White, Dwayne Bowe, Larry Fitzgerald, and Terrell Owens didn't get into the end-zone, Bengals offensive tackle Andrew Whitworth and Eagles guard/center Todd Herremans each had a TD grab. You can't make this stuff up.

10. Mike Shanahan and Donovan McNabb put on a game mismanagement clinic at the end of the 1st half against the Buccaneers. Follow along here...

1st and goal at the 5: Keiland Williams 3-yard run

Timeout #2: 1:05 to go

2nd and goal at the 2: Keiland Williams no gain

Timeout #3: 20 seconds to go

5-yard delay of game penalty

3rd and goal at the 7: Donovan McNabb pass incomplete to Keiland Williams

Someone want to tell me how you can possibly have a delay of game following a timeout? On top of that, McNabb tried to call a 4th timeout before the penalty. Unfortunately, you're only allowed three per half Donovan. Pitiful.

11. Nice hands and hops Antwaan Randle El. That 18-yard one handed reception late in the 2nd quarter by the Steelers wide-receiver was one of the catches of the year.

12. So much for the magic of the interim head coach. While Jason Garrett and Leslie Frazier have experienced immediate success in Dallas and Minnesota, the Broncos looked the same under Eric Studesville yesterday as they did when Josh McDaniels was in charge.

13. The Seahawks defense made Alex Smith look like a combination of Steve Young and Joe Montana. I'd give Smith more credit for his big day, but since his 3-TD passes were exactly one quarter of his total for the season, I think Seattle's D had more than a little something to do with it. By the way, 5-8 San Francisco is just a game out of 1st place again in the awful NFC West.

14. Hide your face Roman Harper. I know it didn't technically count, because your fumble return was negated by replay, but Rams QB Sam Bradford ran you down from behind....And you had a sizable head start.

15. Cardinals kicker Jay Feely is an offensive juggernaut. He single handedly outscored the Broncos, Browns, Bills, Packers, Lions, Dolphins, Jets, Bengals, Steelers, Buccaneers, Redskins, Panthers, Rams, Seahawks, Bears and Chiefs. Feely kicked 5-field goals, 4-extra points and also ran for a touchdown on a fake field goal. That's 25-points he accounted for Sunday.

The 15-Play Drive

15-thoughts on week-13 in the NFL...

1. Gutsy performance by Ben Roethlisberger Sunday night. His nose looked how the Ravens probably feel today after losing a tough, physical game 13-10. Great game to watch by the way. I'd take Steelers/Ravens every day of the week and twice on Sunday.

2. So let me get this straight...Ravens linebacker Jameel McClain clearly delivers a brutal helmet to helmet hit on Steelers tight end Heath Miller and there's no flag. Yet Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh knocks down a scrambling Jay Cutler from behind and gets nailed with a 15-yard penalty for unnecessary roughness. Referee Ed Hochuli called it a "non-football act--a blow to the back of the runners helmet in the process of him going down." And the league wonders why players are confused. I'll say this...if Cutler wasn't a quarterback, it wouldn't have been a penalty.

3. Caught up with Vikings QB Tarvaris Jackson on the Sunday Drive after his solid performance in relief of an injured Brett Favre, and Jackson was more than honest when I asked him if he felt he was auditioning for the job, "I'm only human. It's hard not to think about next season." To be fair, Jackson wasn't brilliant throwing 3-interceptions to go along with his 2-touchdown passes, but he more than held his own against the Bills. In other words, there was no real drop-off after Favre left the game.

4. Pat Sims is a Bengal through and though. That's the only way to explain his bone-headed neutral zone infraction against the Saints on 4th and 2 at the Cincinnati 7-yard line with 34-seconds remaining. His idiotic mistake gave New Orleans a 1st down, and the win as Drew Brees threw a 3-yard TD pass to Marques Colston on the next play. Watch the ball Pat. They don't teach that in Cincinnati?

5. There's aggressive, and then there's stupid. Chiefs head coach Todd Haley was the latter of the two in Sunday's 10-6 win over the Broncos. You're leading 10-3 midway through the 3rd quarter and it's 4th and goal at the 2-yard line. Kick the field goal and make it a two possession game Todd. That wasn't the time to roll the dice. Matt Cassel, who told me afterwards he "wasn't surprised" by Haley's decision, was sacked for a 13-yard loss on the play. Haley has gambled often this season, and most of the time things have worked out. But you have to know when to take the points, and he made an emotional decision against a Denver team that embarrassed him the first time around.

6. Never has the loss of one player crippled a team as much as Kurt Warner's retirement has to Arizona. Last season Warner threw for 3,753-yards with 26-TD's and 14-INT's. The Cardinals went 10-6, won the NFC West and averaged over 23-points per game. This year through 12-games Cardinals quarterbacks have thrown for a combined 2,480-yards with 8-TD's and 16-INT's. Arizona is now 3-9, putting them in last place in worst division in football, and they're averaging just over 16-points per game. Only the Panthers have scored less than the Cardinals.

7. No coincidence that the Todd Collins award of the week goes to Derek Anderson. The Cardinals quarterback completed just 7 of 20-passes for 93-yards with 0-TD's and 2-INT's before being pulled for Max Hall, a two time recipient of this award. In a related note, Anderson was not seen smiling or laughing while sitting on the bench.

8. If there's a better 4th quarter team than the Falcons, I haven't seen them. Atlanta has come from behind 6-times this season in the final quarter to win games, including Sunday's 28-24 victory against the Buccaneers.

9. It's 13-quarters and counting since the Titans scored an offensive touchdown. Along those lines, Randy Moss continued his disappearing act with 1-reception for 13-yards yesterday. In 4-games with Tennessee Moss has 5-catches and no touchdowns. That's some impact you're making Randy.

10. Peyton Manning might as well dress up as Santa, because he's handing out interceptions like Christmas presents. In the Colts first 9-games, Manning was picked off a total of 4-times. In their last 3, he's thrown 11-INT's, 4 of which have been returned for touchdowns.

11. It certainly helps when your team runs for 251-yards as they did against the Chargers, but anyone else notice that Raiders QB Jason Campbell seems to play a whole lot better when Bruce Gradkowski isn't looking over his shoulder.

12. Maybe its time to throw Maurice Jones-Drew into the MVP conversation. That's 5-straight 100-yard rushing games for the Jaguars running back. In 4 of those games, he's run for more yards than the other team.

MJD 186-yards Titans-57

MJD 113-yards Giants 135

MJD 133-yards Browns-88

MJD 100-yards Texans-53

MJD 135-yards Cowboys 50.

13. People still don't get it. This was the statement from Cowboys radio play by play man Brad Sham at the end of the 4th quarter Sunday with Dallas and Indianapolis headed for OT, "You lose the coin toss, you lose the game." Let me educate Brad and anyone else out there who hasn't picked up on this yet. We've now had 16-overtime games this season, and in 15-of them both teams had at least one possession. The Cowboys lost the coin toss Sunday, but they won the game. Any questions?

14. Talk about home field disadvantage. Miami is 6-6, but just 1-5 at Sun Life Stadium. They score a field goal less at home than they do on the road.

15. I agree that it's a quarterback's league, but if the playoffs began today Peyton Manning, Philip Rivers, Kyle Orton and Aaron Rodgers would all be watching from home. That's 4 of the top-5 passing QB's in the NFL this year.