Monday, January 16, 2012
Tebow, Defense, and the NFL Playoffs
Another weekend of NFL football has come and gone, and we all learned some very valuable lessons as we move into the AFC and NFC Championship games.
(1) Tim Tebow. Welcome to the playoffs kid. A place that Tom Brady has ruled for a decade now. There's no doubt that Tebow is a winner, and I believe the Broncos watch the playoffs from home without him, but on Saturday he was in the wrong place at the right time. After a 45-10 slaughter in Foxboro, Tebow time has officially ended for this season. But I'll say this; The kid is a true leader, and you'll be hard pressed to find a player working harder this offseason. He'll be a better QB next year, as long as Elway and the brass in Denver give him a solid threat at WR.
(2) Defense wins championships. But occasionally the offense needs to help out. And Alex Smith did just that this weekend. The last 4 minutes of that game was a straight slugfest, and Smith stood toe to toe with the NFL's Ali, Drew Brees. Not once, but twice Smith lead his team down the field for a game winner, and showed the poise and determination of a playoff veteran while doing it. But as my buddy Lee Corso would say, "not so fast my friend..." Had his defense not forced three turnovers in the first quarter, and spotted him a 17-0 lead, things may have been a lot different. I'll give Smith the credit he deserves, but a lot of credit needs to go to the terrific D that San Fran has played all year long. Without that defense, they also may be watching these playoffs from the couch.
(3) Aaron Rodgers. In case you're wondering, Tim Tebow has more playoff wins this year than he does (sorry, had to do it). Talk about a guy who needed his defense... Or maybe a receiver to catch and actually HOLD ON TO a ball. I think we all overrated this team quite a bit. Deep down, we all knew that the defense (or lack thereof) was gonna catch up to them. And it doesn't help that Eli and the Giants offense are red hot, while thier defense has been smothering of late.
(4) For the same reason the Packers went down to the G-Men, I think the Patriots will go down to the Ravens: Defense wins championships, and it's easier to struggle from the offensive side of the ball. Tom Brady will face the most intense pass rush he's faced all season, and the best coverage (LB's, CB's, and S) as well. I think Baltimore will disguise a lot of things and be able to outsmart Belicheck and Brady in a relatively low scoring game. As for the NFC, it's almost a draw.
I think we're in for two exciting games this weekend. That being said, here are my early predictions...
Ravens 23 Patriots 20
49ers 27 Giants 26
Enjoy the games!!
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I will have to agree with you on most of your arguments, but we are forgetting a few things about this weekend. 1.) Let’s talk about some of the horrific calls that the referees made in all the games. First we know that Jennings was without a doubt a fumble. Second the roughing the passer calls in both games were just crazy. I mean can you even touch the QB anymore? Maybe in the offseason they will pass a new rule and the QB will wear the red practice jersey and if you get within 2 feet of the QB it will be considered a sack, come on its football let these guys play.
ReplyDeleteNow let’s talk about tackling. Some of these guys need to go watch a pop warner game so they can hear the coach talk about hitting between the numbers and wrapping with their arms. These players are always just assuming that because they run into someone that they will fall down, WRONG so let me inform you that the NFL is full of elite players who have some of the best agility in the world so you have to wrap your arms. Two weeks in a row Defenses have allowed Hakeem Nicks to break away for a long momentum game changing play because the CB have decided not to wrap their arms. Hey just to through this out there to other CBs in the league….Nicks is the size of a TE that can run through little hits and out run most CBs in the league so from now on it might be a good idea to go low and wrap your arms around his legs.
Hard to talk about tackling when two of the teams in discussion are 31 and 32 in total defense this year. And as for bad calls, I agree. Some major blown calls and terrible roughing the passer calls. I'm just glad the game didn't hinge on those bad calls. It's a shame when you're actually wishing Ed Hochuli was officiating the game you're watching. And as for the actual QB rules, I think the new rules are fine, I just think the officials need to be more consistent in making those calls. In one game a QB is getting destroyed all game long with no flags, and on another channel, a QB gets chased by a defender and his towel falls off, so they throw every flag they have.
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