The 15-Play Drive

15 thoughts on week-3 in the NFL...

1. No need to mince words. The Packers got screwed by the replacement refs Monday night, and left Seattle without the win they had rightfully earned. Not only did officials miss Golden Tate's blatant shove of Sam Shields on the game's final play, but they called simultaneous possession on a ball that was clearly grabbed by M.D. Jennings with both hands, while Tate tried to wrestle it away. At this point I think Lindsay Lohan has a better shot at staying out of jail than the replacement refs do of calling a competent game. Pathetic.

2. Your move Roger Goodell. Monday night's debacle shifts the leverage back to the locked out officials. If an embarrassment of this magnitude doesn't lead to a deal, nothing will.

3. What got lost amidst the controversy was the fact that the Seahawks defense once again showed it's one of the league's best. Limiting the Green Bay offense to 268-total yards is no easy feat. They may not be household names yet, but Seattle's defensive line and secondary are playing at an elite level.

4. I know you technically won the game Pete Carroll, but considering the circumstances, acting like you just captured the Lombardi trophy afterwards came off as minor league. You got a gift. Calm down. You can thank Santa Claus later.

5. The 49ers showed a stunning lack of maturity Sunday against the Vikings. This was a trap game all the way, and San Francisco fell right into it. In other words, Jim Harbaugh didn't have his team ready to play.

6. Minnesota made an early statement against the Niners vaunted defense with a 16-play 82-yard opening drive for a touchdown that took 7:40 off the clock. Following their upset victory, Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder joined me and Steve Torre on The Sunday Drive, and emphasized the importance of that TD: "It was big...We talked all week about starting fast, and keeping the pressure on them. For us to punch it in with a touchdown set the tone for that whole game."

7. The Dolphins offensive play calling was downright Tony Sparano-esque in overtime against the Jets Sunday. Choosing to run the ball with Daniel Thomas on 3rd and 7 at the New York 32-yard line wasn't nearly aggressive enough, especially when you consider the fact that kicker Dan Carpenter had already failed to connect on a 47-yard field goal attempt in the 4th quarter. Carpenter's 48-yard miss in OT set up the Jets game winning drive.

8. Have the Jets unveiled their top secret Tim Tebow ultimate weapon package yet, or did I miss something? In 16-quarters, Tebow has yet to attempt a pass, and has run for 33-yards on 8-carries.

9. I'd hate to see what Jamaal Charles would do to opposing defenses if he was totally healthy. The Chiefs running back tore through the Saints for 233-yards rushing and a touchdown Sunday. Afterwards, Charles told me and Steve Torre that he's still not 100%: "I'm just out there playing through pain, and grinding it out like a warrior."

10. The Todd Collins award of the week goes to Josh Freeman. The Buccaneers QB completed just 10 of 28-passes against the Cowboys for 110-yards with a TD and an INT. I'm not big on quarterback rating, but it's worth noting that Freeman's was 5.3.

11. I realize the officiating is a joke, but you can't try to grab the ref Bill Belichick. Your team lost, because they couldn't run out the clock on offense, or make a stop on defense in the game's final minutes.

12. The Eagles have been playing with fire, and they finally got burned. 3-more turnovers Sunday increased their total to 12 for the season. That means they're on pace for 64 over 16-games. In case you're wondering, the NFL record for turnovers is 63, set by the 1978 49ers.

13. How does the ball get snapped on 4th and 1 when you're trying to draw the other team off-sides? That's exactly what happened to the Lions in overtime against the Titans. I guess it was fitting that a crazy game had a crazy ending. Detroit head coach Jim Schwartz called it a "miscommunication"...I call it unforgivable.

14. Only Evander Holyfield knows Matt Schaub's pain.

15. Grow up Cam Newton. The Panthers QB needs to quit the poor me act when things aren't going his way. For all his physical talents, Newton's sulking routine has become a red flag.

The 15-Play Drive

15 thoughts on week-2 in the NFL...

1. Welcome to the pro game Greg Schiano. The Buccaneers head coach learned Sunday that what works in the Big East doesn't work in the NFL...ever. I had no issue with Schiano calling for the Buccaneers defense to attempt to create a turnover on the final kneel down of the game. However, Schiano's explanation of the play was disingenuous at best. If it's about playing hard for 60-minutes, why didn't Tampa Bay try the same thing when Eli Manning took a knee at the end of the 1st half?

2. Instead of his kneel down defense, what Schiano should be more concerned with in practice this week is tightening up a secondary that blew a 27-16 4th quarter lead. By my count, Eli Manning completed 8 of 13-passes in those final 15-minutes for 243-yards and 2-touchdowns. To put it in perspective, Manning had as many yards passing in that 4th quarter as Buccaneers QB Josh Freeman had in the entire game.

3. Whatever leverage week-1 gave Roger Goodell in his negotiations with the locked out officials, it's now gone. The replacement refs didn't get better in week-2...they were completely exposed.

4. Despite the inept officiating, there's no excuse for what Redskins receiver Josh Morgan pulled Sunday in the 4th quarter. With less than 1:30-remaining, and his team trailing 31-28, Morgan's 7-yard catch set up 4th and 1 at the Rams 29-yard line. Only one problem...Morgan lost his composure when St. Louis cornerback Cortland Finnegan shoved him after the play, and proceeded to pick up a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for throwing the ball at Finnegan. Morgan's temper tantrum turned a makeable 46-yard field goal into an impossible 62-yard attempt for Billy Cundiff, who couldn't reach from that distance if he had gale force winds behind him, let alone in the climate controlled dome.

5. No team pulled off a bigger upset Sunday than the Cardinals, but their 20 to 18 victory over the Patriots almost didn't happen after Ryan Williams lost a fumble at his own 30-yard line with 1:01-remaining. Only a missed Stephen Gostkowski 42-yard field goal saved Williams from total misery. Afterwards, I told Arizona safety Kerry Rhodes that Williams must be the happiest man in America, and he responded with this: "I talked to him...I went over and told him it would be OK...We just got to have his back like we did."

6. Speaking of New England, I still don't understand their lack of aggressiveness before Gostkowski shanked the potential game winning FG. Instead of trying to get any closer, the Patriots ran a quarterback sneak, followed by a kneel down, and a spike to stop the clock. I understand 42-yards is well within Gostkowski's range, but when Tom Brady's your QB, why not see if you can get a few more yards and shorten the distance?

7. The Jets clearly have no faith in Mark Sanchez. They made that statement loud and clear at the end of the 1st half in Pittsburgh. Trailing 13-10 with 1:03 to go and the ball at their own 31-yard line, New York choose to run twice with Bilal Powell, and head for the locker room. This despite the fact that they had 2-timeouts remaining. That's conservative to the extreme.

8. There's not a ton to cheer about in Cleveland these days, but the Browns are all set at the running back position, because Trent Richardson is a beast! Richardson had 109-yards rushing and a touchdown against the Bengals, but his most impressive moment to me was his 23-yard TD reception. On the play, Richardson broke 4-tackles inside the 10-yard line. In a season that will be short on victories, Richardson makes the Browns offense worth watching.

9. The Todd Collins award of the week goes to Blaine Gabbert. The Jaguars QB reverted to his rookie form in week-2 versus the Texans completing just 7 of 19-passes for 53-yards and a touchdown before leaving in the 4th quarter with a hamstring injury.

10. This is what you call a head coach/offensive coordinator over-thinking. With the Panthers trailing the Saints 10-7 in the 2nd quarter Sunday, Carolina faced 4th and short at the New Orleans 4-yard line. The easy, and right call for that matter, would have been to use 6'5 245-pound Cam Newton to run a QB sneak. Instead, the Panthers tried to get cute and run outside on a pitch, which was fumbled. It happens all the time. NFL decision makers need to realize, just because the other team knows what's coming doesn't mean they can stop it.

11. How do you lose Steve Smith? Only the Saints know the answer to that question, because that's exactly what they did in a critical sequence against the Panthers. Following a New Orleans TD that pulled them within 28-20 early in the 4th quarter, Carolina's offense took the field from its own 20-yard line. On its first play, Cam Newton found Smith wide open for a 66-yard reception. 5-plays later, Newton ran for a 5-yard score. Following their 35-27 win, Smith joined me and Steve Torre on the Sunday Drive, and I asked how he shook loose for that big catch: "They jumped the route, and nobody actually covered me." Now that's pathetic defense.

12. When Joe Flacco shows me he's an elite quarterback, then I'll believe it. With the Ravens down 24-23 at Philadelphia Sunday with 1:55-remaining, Flacco didn't look the part of a top-10 QB, let alone top-5. He completed exactly 2-passes for 21-yards on Baltimore's final drive, which stalled at their own 46-yard line. Not exactly the stuff legends are made of.

13. I know tackling is a lost art, but really Oakland? On his 23-yard touchdown run again the Raiders in the 3rd quarter, Dolphins running back Reggie Bush fought off four would be tacklers on his way to the end zone. Bush is shifty, and he's got speed, but at 6'0 203 it's not like your trying to bring down John Riggins.

14. Forget comparing Andrew Luck to Peyton Manning this week, how about comparing Peyton Manning to Peyton Manning. His second career start for the Broncos looked an awful lot like his second career start for the Colts.
1998 Manning: 21-33 188-yards 1-TD 3-INT
2012 Manning: 24-37 241-yards 1-TD 3-INT

15. Jay Cutler isn't the first quarterback to rip into some of his teammates in the heat of the moment, but it's hard to take the Bears QB seriously when he makes some of the worst decisions known to man. When you get picked off 4-times, you might want to look in the mirror before pointing the finger.

The 15-Play Drive

15 thoughts on week-1 in the NFL

1. Clearly the reports of Peyton Manning's demise were greatly exaggerated. The Steelers learned that the hard way Sunday night. Manning showed arm strength, accuracy, touch, intelligence, and more importantly, proved he could take a hit against Pittsburgh's blitzing defense. This was vintage Manning, especially in the 2nd half, and the rest of the league is officially on notice.

2. Believe it or not, Tim Tebow had just 8-more yards rushing in week-1 than Peyton Manning. In his Jets debut, Tebow carried the ball 5-times for 11-yards. Manning finished with 3-yards on 4-carries. See...they do still have a QB with the ability to scramble in Denver.

3. Don't feel bad Andrew Luck. Your introduction to the NFL regular season went according to script. What do I mean by that? Luck's first game was eerily similar to Peyton Manning's with the Colts back in 1998. Feel free to cue the Twilight Zone music.
Luck: 23 of 45-passing, 309-yards, 1-TD, 3-INT
Manning: 21-37-passing, 302-yards, 1-TD, 3-INT

4. There aren't enough adjectives to describe how well Redskins rookie QB Robert Griffin III played in a very tough environment. The Saints were undefeated in the Superdome last season, and 19-5 at home over the last three years. All Griffin did was waltz into the place, throw for 320-yards with 2-TD's, and run for another 42-yards in Washington's 40-32 victory over New Orleans. What stood out most to me though, beyond his athletic ability and rocket arm, was his poise. Griffin never committed the big mistake, even when the Saints made it a game in the 4th quarter. That was impressive.

5. If Andy Reid's trying to ensure Michael Vick won't make it through 16-games, he's doing a good job of it. Vick threw a career high 56-passes in the Eagles season opening win against the Browns. Afterwards, Reid claimed Vick looked "rusty." Better rusty than incapacitated. We all know Vick's not the most durable of QB's. Reid would do well to remember that going forward.

6. Vick wasn't the only QB airing it out in week-1. A total of 12-quarterbacks had 35 or more pass attempts. 7 of them threw at least 40-times. To say this is a passing league isn't a cliche...it's a fact.

7. I understand the replacement officials are far from perfect, but I don't want to hear guys like Giants linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka and Bills defensive end Mario Williams crying about it. The Giants and Bills lost their season openers because they were outplayed by the Cowboys and Jets. The refs had nothing to do with it.

8. Speaking of the Bills, they should be very concerned about QB Ryan Fitzpatrick. He threw 16-INT's in Buffalo's final 9-games last season, and that trend continued Sunday. Fitzpatrick was picked off 3-times against the Jets, including one that was returned for a touchdown. That 6-year 59-million dollar extension doesn't look like such a bargain anymore.

9. Say this for Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan...he's honest. Ryan joined me and Steve Torre on the Sunday Drive following Atlanta's convincing win in Kansas City. When I asked if he was trying to get veteran tight end Tony Gonzalez a touchdown in Gonzalez's return to KC, Ryan said: "Yeah...Luckily they finally gave him some one on one coverage on the play he scored on."

10. If the Seahawks are looking for another wide-receiver, they might want to turn to starting cornerback Richard Sherman. His ability to hang onto the ball and keep both feet in bounds during a 3rd quarter interception of John Skelton Sunday was a thing of beauty.

11. The Todd Collins award of the week goes to Brandon Weeden. In his pro debut, the Browns QB completed just 12 of 35-passes for 118-yards with 0-TD's and 4-INT's. Forget NFL ready, Weeden didn't look CFL ready.

12. Vikings kicker Blair Walsh's first NFL game couldn't have gone any better. Walsh hit all 4 of his field goal attempts, including a 55-yarder to force overtime. Then he nailed a 38-yard field goal in the extra session, which proved to be the margin of victory. However, Walsh did admit to me he wasn't quite sure about the new overtime rules: "I kind of had an inclination it wasn't the game winner, but it took me a minute or two to realize the rules had changed."

13. Anybody still believe the Jets have a quarterback controversy? I didn't think so.

14. The Raiders Travis Goethel should have back up long snapper removed from his job title immediately. Goethel rolled more gutter balls back to punter Shane Lechler than my 8-year old son does in the bowling alley.

15. The two most impressive teams I saw in week-1 were coached by John and Jim Harbaugh. What's scary for the rest of the league is the Ravens and 49ers, who should both have outstanding defenses again, looked more than capable offensively. Quarterbacks Joe Flacco and Alex Smith looked as comfortable and confident as I've ever seen them. Combined they completed 41 of 55-passes for 510-yards with 4-TD's and 0-INT's.