Wellness

[gardenman]

And we start off this week on Saturday with New Orleans at Seattle. This could be an interesting game. New Orleans spent all season as a pass first team, so the Eagles went into last week determined to shut down the passing game only to have New Orleans focus almost exclusively on running the ball. The nickel defense we'd practiced all week was not effective against the Saints running game and we ended up losing. Now New Orleans goes to Seattle. Will they be a pass first team again, or a run first team? One thing's for sure, the Seahawks will have to be prepared for both. Seattle spanked the Saints earlier in the year and probably should again, but Sean Payton is a pretty clever coach. I'm thinking he'll have a few tricks up his sleeve to keep this game close. I'm still taking the Seahawks to win, but this could be a close one.

Game two on Saturday has the Colts going to New England. The Colts can't afford to fall 28 points behind to the Patriots. Belicheck would not let them back into the game if they fall that far behind. I actually think the Colts will win this game on the road. That was a huge shot of adrenaline they got from that win against KC. (That loss by KC may have hurt that team and made them far more vulnerable next year. Their confidence in Andy Reid may be just a tick shaken, and regaining that confidence will be a challenge for Andy. We could see the Chiefs tank in the next year or two largely like the Eagles did in their last two seasons under Andy.) I'm taking the Colts on the road.

On Sunday we start out with the Niners at the Panthers. I just don't trust the Panthers all that much. Cam Newton has all the talent in the world, but he's never quite earned my trust. He'll look really good and then implode. Steve Smith is coming back from a bad knee and his confidence in that knee may be a tad shaky limiting his effectiveness. Crabtree is playing well for the Niners. I'm givng the edge to the Niners.

And finally on Sunday we have the Chargers at the Broncos. I think the Chargers have a good shot at pulling this one out. The Broncos have sagged a bit towards the end of the season and Peyton Manning's numbers have tailed off a bit. The Chargers were the team in the Eagles home opener this year and for four years in a row that team has won the Super Bowl, so I'm taking the Chargers until they lose. Should they win? Probably not, but they shouldn't have even made the playoffs, but somehow they did. If there's a team destined to win the Super Bowl this year, it just might be the Chargers.

And in news around the league, the head coaching carousel is continuing to revolve. It seems like the hiring process is going a tick slowly this time around. Tampa and Houston have filled their vacancies, but the rest of the teams are all interviewing the same cast of characters and apparently no one is jumping out from the pack. Are they all waiting for a coach who's still in the playoffs, or have they found the cupboard a tad barer than they'd like? It looks like Jay Gruden may be favored by the Redskins, I've heard his name mentioned more there than elsewhere, but I'm not sure anyone is making too solid of an impression.

Johnny Manziel has now committed to entering the draft this year. Most have him pegged as a top ten pick with some saying he'll go first overall. His size worries me. He plays a very physical game and there are really big, fast defenders in the NFL. I'm not sure how good his long-term survival prospects are in the NFL. He's a guy we'll either see go very early to a team that falls in love with his potential, or he could be a Matt Barkley type who drops to the third or fourth round once teams get a chance to really look him over and assess his survivability. The kid's got talent, but if he's going to get killed, do you want to use a first round pick on him? He's 6' 1" (reportedly, those those numbers often change when the NFL does the measuring, that 6' 1" may end up being 5' 10") and 210 lbs. He's giving up five to six inches and about a hundred pounds to many of the defensive linemen who will be hunting him. Some little guys do fine (Brees, Russell Wilson) but some get killed (RGIII, Doug Flutie, etc.) He's a scary guy for personnel men. You don't want to pass him by if he can do in the NFL what he did at A&M, but you also don't want to waste a high pick on him if he's going to be too fragile to play the position. He's not likely to be a timing and rhythm type quarterback, but more of an improviser who can make things happen and that may limit the teams that will take a shot at him. I would not be at all shocked to see him drop into the second or third round before a team makes the move to draft him.

[teganslaw]

The Colts signed WR Deion Branch, but he won't make much of an impact on the game since he hasn't played in almost a year. Right now he's learning the Colts' offense and getting used to the rules. Some thought that he might give some pointers on New England's strategy, but that isn't happening. It was a good signing, but won't affect the playoffs much.

I have a good feeling about Saturday's game. The Colts have momentum and can show they aren't to be taken lightly. I don't expect them to pull off another big comeback, (the Patriots wouldn't allow that), but they have enough talent to keep pace with Brady. Besides, Jon Gruden has called the Colts "he team of destiny." I like that.

I chose Carolina in my football picks just because they are the home team. That game is basically a toss up.

Gardenman, did you hear about LeSean McCoy getting NFC "offensive player of the month"? Congrats to him! I heard that he set a new Eagles record in yardage.

[linda62]

New to posting to this forum. I suspect Detroit is waiting for Whisenhunt to be available for interview. As soon as the Chargers are finished, expect thing to start moving on coach hirings. I'm hoping Denver takes it all!

[Kitlynn]

I am of course taking the Broncos over the Chargers as they are my home team!! As Peyton Manning said yesterday it is going to be a tough game. It can all come down to one team having an off day. Peyton Manning is great but like he and everyone else has said it takes the whole team to win Play off games and the Super Bowl!!! It is going to be an on the edge of your seat game!!

[gardenman]

Welcome linda62!

And the Redskins have a new coach! Jay Gruden is the new head coach. It's an interesting hire, that's for sure. Apparently he's keeping some/most of the existing staff. There's a press conference this afternoon at four for the formal announcement.

teganslaw. The Eagles' offensive stars kind of dominated the NFC players of the month this year with Nick Foles winning it in November and LeSean McCoy winning in December.

[MomOf4]

I hope and pray the Broncos make it all the way but I also know this weekend's game is not a guaranteed win. I'm afraid they will not benefit from the week off.

[Txblond]

Our DD lives in Durango, CO - so I'm hoping the Bronco's go all the way, too.

Stupid football guy, Jerry Jones has done nothing so far regarding the Cowboy's coaches & staff- what's he waiting on? Are we really going to start out next season with the same bunch?

[gardenman]

Txblond. It looks like Jerry is sticking to the same old guys on the coaching staff again. It's an interesting approach. Monte Kiffin's not a bad DC, but he needs the right players to fit his system and maybe Jerry has conceded that point now and will flip the roster to give Kiffin the players he needs/wants?

JJ tried to keep the old defensive roster, which consisted of 3-4, man-to-man cover guys, intact last year and just force them to adjust to a 4-3, two deep zone defense. Maybe, just maybe, he's figured out that doesn't work and is now ready to make the wholesale roster changes needed on defense. The Cowboys have $25-$30 million in salary they've got to move to get under the cap, so maybe he's planning on flushing a lot of the high paid vets on defense and bringing in guys suited to Kiffin's defense? We'll get a better feel for his plans when personnel moves start to take place. If he keeps the same personnel and uses draft picks on similar players, then it's likely to be another disappointing year for Cowboy fans.

In other NFC East news, the Giants are saying that Eli Manning's accuracy issues this year were related to the offensive line and that Eli is only comfortable passing from a seven step drop, but their offensive line was incapable of protecting him in a deep drop so they went with three and five step drops and that's why Eli threw a million interceptions. Okay, sure. I guess that could be true, but you kind of think a veteran quarterback like Eli would adjust at some point. I'm hoping for the Giants sake that there's something physically wrong with Eli that they can get fixed (shoulder/elbow) but they seem convinced that his issues were all drop related. The farther we go into the offseason with no surgery, the more likely it is that there is no physical issue with Eli.

Jay Gruden's hiring by the Redskins doesn't seem to be impressing a lot of observers. He never really impressed me as an OC, but being a head coach requires a whole different skill set, so maybe he'll be good at that. It's a little interesting that he immediately announced that RGIII is the starting QB. It might have been a bit smarter to make every position up for grabs heading into the offseason. Chip Kelly did that last offseason and pretty much all the way through the season. He made it clear that production would matter most and even demoted DeSean Jackson to the second string for a while during the OTA's when he wasn't producing as well as some of the other receivers. It was halfway through the exhibition season before Chip finally named a starting quarterback. If RGIII struggles in the OTA's or training camp then Gruden may have already boxed himself into a bit of a corner. Some of the Redskins' players were reportedly a bit resentful that RGIII got special treatment from management and now he's being handed the starting job without having to compete for it. I'm not sure how well that will go over in the locker room. If RGIII struggles, it could become a huge issue.

[dancingwoman]

On 1/10/2014 Txblond said:

Our DD lives in Durango, CO - so I'm hoping the Bronco's go all the way, too.

Stupid football guy, Jerry Jones has done nothing so far regarding the Cowboy's coaches & staff- what's he waiting on? Are we really going to start out next season with the same bunch?

Hey Txblond..as we talked before I'm in Durango too... I'll be watching the game with the neighbors as the DH isn't a football kinda guy...lol...so hopefully we'll be happy after Sunday's game... DW

[Spurt]

On 1/10/2014 gardenman said:

Jay Gruden's hiring by the Redskins doesn't seem to be impressing a lot of observers. He never really impressed me as an OC, but being a head coach requires a whole different skill set, so maybe he'll be good at that. It's a little interesting that he immediately announced that RGIII is the starting QB. It might have been a bit smarter to make every position up for grabs heading into the offseason. Chip Kelly did that last offseason and pretty much all the way through the season. He made it clear that production would matter most and even demoted DeSean Jackson to the second string for a while during the OTA's when he wasn't producing as well as some of the other receivers. It was halfway through the exhibition season before Chip finally named a starting quarterback. If RGIII struggles in the OTA's or training camp then Gruden may have already boxed himself into a bit of a corner. Some of the Redskins' players were reportedly a bit resentful that RGIII got special treatment from management and now he's being handed the starting job without having to compete for it. I'm not sure how well that will go over in the locker room. If RGIII struggles, it could become a huge issue.

Hey GARDENMAN,

At first I thought this was an OK hiring and the more I read it makes sense.....

Jay has a charismatic personality and he gets along well with his players, he's worked with Bruce Allen before.....and he's the type that will get along with Snyder. He said he will be calling the offense.....and there are conflicting reports as to whether he will or won't keep our current assistants....he said there are good coaches within the organization and good coaches elsewhere...so he plans to interview a variety of candidates....He seems excited to work with RGIII and plans to incorporate a variety in the offense. He said they need to surround RGII with good players, then that takes the pressure off of RGIII and makes it more about the Washington Redskins....he said RGIII can throw the deep ball, intermediate ball, and has good speed what more do you want.

Pierre Garcon happened to be on a Fox Sports Daily panel and when Jay saw him he teased Pierre and asked him what he was doing there, Pierre asked him "when do we show up"....and Jay replied shouldnt you be running route or lifting weights....I mean seriously get out of the studio and run and route..." (When the decision was announced, Pierre gave him a solid endorsement and said he was excited to play for Jay).....Oh and ESPN's Stephen A. Smith and Skip Bayless didnt think Jay was joking with Pierre....all ready trying to start a controversy....

Oh and despite was Sally Jenkins says.....Snyder took a back seat to all the proceedings...he was not on stage ....in fact he sat in the SECOND row before the event and no stage role at all...

One weird thing was a tweet by London Fletcher ....he seemed to be endorsing Raheem Morris rather than Haslett....for DC.....and a bit of slam....he said the defensive struggles were not all about the salary cap...excuses, but he said Morris would be great choice for DC, and would make him feel better...about the HC, DC and OC then....Fletch seemed to be pulling for Bevell (great play caller) or Greg Roman....(those were my personal choices too....)

So as Fletch said we will just have to wait and see...only time will tell.....

BTW Fletch said there was no friction in the locker room with RGIII ....guys love him...And Pierre also said guys like him and he was always joking around with the guys, and he's really into music....he said the Quarterback is going to receive a little more attention because he runs the offense...

Most of the so called "experts" didnt really know what to make of this choice and said they would wait before giving an opinion.....but I trust John Kiem who said it was a decent hire....he has been honest and accurate in his assessment of the Redskins (he used to write for an independent rag I subscribed to before we came to ESPN)....

And GARDEMAN as for Johnny Manziel....dont worry about him he has a mentor to show him the ropes---the NBA's LeBron James......so I guess you can look forward to hoopla if Johnny wants to be traded after he's drafted...THE DECISION II