Ah, 2009. It was just over three short years ago and everything was going so smoothly, especially out in the desert of Arizona; gas prices were down, the country wasn’t divided over who to vote for (because the election just passed and everyone went back to not caring about politics for three and a half years at a time), and the Arizona Cardinals were coming off their first Super Bowl appearance… EVER! It didn’t matter that they lost a close game in which they completely outplayed their opponents, the Pittsburgh Steelers, for the entire game except for the final minute of each half (to be fair, it wasn’t the Cardinals fault that James Harrison and Mike Wallace made two of the most memorable plays in recent Super Bowl history). To many franchise this could have been heartbreaking; to the Cardinals, it was just a minor speed bump, because they were finally RELEVANT again. And with young stars like Larry Fitzgerald, there was so much to look forward to that the past was insignificant. Since then, the desert has become a lonely place for the charismatic star with the flowing hair and bright future. His fellow wide receiver, who completed the most dynamic pass-catching duo in the league, Anquan Boldin bolted to Baltimore while his quarterback, Kurt Warner, decided it was time to hang up his spikes and move on with his life. Now, Fitz was all that was left of the once-vaunted Cardinals air-attack. He spent the last few years on losing teams with the likes of Matt Lienart, John Skelton, and Kevin Kolb as his quarterbacks. Yikes! Did the Arizona front office realize what they had done? They took a Maserati and stuffed a 1998 Volvo engine in it and hoped it would run just as well. 

(Just over three short years ago Fitzgerald was scoring a touchdown in the Super Bowl, and look how happy he was! Oh, how things have changed... http://www.sacbee.com/static/weblogs/photos/superbwlsm/sprbwl15.jpg)

This is the problem with the NFL (and football in general) when it comes to personnel decisions and talent evaluation: football is the ultimate team sport, in which each player’s success is completely dependent upon his teammates. When you have great players around you, it isn’t difficult to look like a good one. Take the quarterback position, for example (the most teammate-reliant position in all of sports). Alex Smith, of the San Francisco 49ers, spent the first five years of his career struggling through losing seasons on bad teams and being labeled a bust. Suddenly, within the last two years, his team got good (and I mean REALLY good) and he began to turn into not that bad of a quarterback. Just a year after many questioned the ‘Niners resigning of him, he outdueled Drew Brees in the playoffs as he led TWO go-ahead drives in the fourth quarter to beat the Saints. Smith is an example of how quick a quarterback can go from cast-off to hero thanks, mostly, to a change in the players around him (not to say he didn’t improve or his coaching didn’t get better, they both did, but a lot of it had to do with the rest of the team around him getting better). On the opposite end of this spectrum is the embattled Michael Vick. He, as much as any player in sports history, has had his share of ups and downs. However, this year many people are blaming Vick for the Eagles’ struggles and calling for his benching in favor of rookie Nick Foles. Once you closely watch the film of the Eagles’ games, you would have to be crazy to say Nick Foles would fair any better. Did Vick just suddenly get that much worse once he signed his contract extension? No! He is missing 60% of his starting linemen! Let me repeat that: 60 PERCENT! Most teams struggle when one of their starting linemen goes down (ask the Packers last year), now imagine losing three of them. The Saints game this past Monday perfectly summed up the Eagles’ problems: they can’t block anyone! The Saints defense is not just the league’s worst, they are on pace to become the NFL’s all-time worst defense. Yet, they held the Eagles to just 13 points. My point: it’s damn hard to do anything on offense when people get to tee-off on your quarterback. The play that sums up just how bad the Eagles’ line is came on the opening drive of the game. The Eagles were moving the ball just fine, got into Saints territory, and looked like they were going to move up and down the field at will. Then, the Saints decided to blitz two linebackers right up the middle in front of Vick. They didn’t even try to disguise it, both of the walked up to the line and stared right into Vick’s eyes, essentially saying ‘I’m coming to get you’. What happened? No one blocked one of them! How do you not block the guy standing right in front of you?! To show just how unfair it is to criticize Vick, he managed to spin away and elude the blitzer, only to get smacked right in the chin at the end of his spin by the defensive end, who simply threw the guy trying to block him out of the way. Fumble. Eagles recover, but lose 25 yards. Drive over. 

These are just two examples of players whose relative worth have been defined, mostly, by the players surrounding them. Now, can you really expect Larry Fitzgerald to stay at that elite level when you downgrade from Kurt Warner to John Skelton? How do you expect him to catch bounce passes and alley-op lobs over the middle with head-hunting and ball-hawking safeties roaming around there? It’s like when you tell your little brother to go deep and then lead him right into a pole; except Fitz isn’t your little bro, he’s one of the best receivers this league has ever had. Now why do you want to see him get creamed every time the ball doesn’t one-hop to him? And the absolute worst part about the whole situation is that Fitz is possibly the best teammate out there. He never complains, never blames anyone else, he just does his job. Did you see him during the Cardinals four-game winning streak to start the season? Every time there was a big play, Fitz was the first player racing down to congratulate his teammate. Watch the defense’s fumble return for a touchdown at the end of the first half against the Eagles earlier this year. You’ll see Fitz sprinting full-speed down the sideline as his teammates run down the field. At one point, it almost looks like he’s going to run onto the field with them to help escort the guy with the ball into the endzone. So, if you’re the Cardinals’ general manager and you have this guy who is one of the best at what he does, never complains, and genuinely enjoys playing, wouldn’t you want to give him a decent chance at winning so he doesn’t waste his whole career on terrible teams? Oh, and it’s not like he’s a quarterback, who you need to surround with talent at all positions, he just needs a half-decent player to throw the ball to him! You can make the argument that they tried by trading for Kevin Kolb, but that was an awful decision. Why would you place the future of your franchise in the hands of a career back-up who started just one game before getting injured? All it would take to get Fitzgerald’s career back on track towards all-time great status would be spending a first round pick on a quarterback. Now, I understand that drafting a quarterback can be risky business and they actually did so when they took Matt Leinart (and that didn’t exactly pan out for them). But think about this, the Redskins traded quite a bit to get RGIII and that looks like it was worth it after just half a season. Couldn’t the Cardinals do something similar? Better yet, why not break the trend of not trading players in the NFL? Wouldn’t they be able to get a player like Philip Rivers or even Jason Campbell for pennies on the dollar? And wouldn’t either of those guys be heads and shoulders better than Kolb or Skelton? Oh please, for Larry’s sake, make this happen Cards!

Fitzgerald is just one of the many players at all levels of football whose talent is being hidden due to the players around him; he just happens to be the best example because his situation seems so easy to fix. Football is the ultimate team game- you hear that all the time from current players, former players, coaches, and anyone else involved with football who knows what they’re talking about. Still, so often talent-evaluators refuse to take this into account; and it is difficult to understand why general managers can’t grasp this simple concept yet. Hopefully, your team won’t be the next team to make this disastrous mistake and leave you with the next Larry Fitzgerald- the best guy in the worst situation. 

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I hope you enjoyed reading! If you have any questions, comments, or other suggestions on how to improve the column or any other topic feel free to contact me at my email address [email protected], on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/adam.colman.9 or on Twitter @AdamRColman. 

Thanks for the support! 

With the NFL completing week nine tonight down in New Orleans, every team will have played at least 8 games (or half the season). This should give a good enough sample size to allow us to start making accurate assumptions of the true quality of every team.

Broncos 31, Bengals 23

What a roller coaster that was. At this point in the season, can we expect anything less from the Broncos? After mounting enormous comebacks early in the season (some that fell short and some that were successful), the Broncos looked like they were finally going to dominate from the beginning of the game (taking a 14-point lead on Trindon Holliday’s franchise-record 105 yard TD-return to start the third quarter). That was, until the Bengals rallied back, scoring 17 unanswered points of their own. But like we’ve seen so many times before, Peyton Manning led the Broncos to two more scores in the fourth quarter to recapture the lead for good. With the come-from-behind win, Manning set the NFL record for most 4th quarter comebacks- and the Broncos moved to 5-3 on the season. The Broncos are clearly the best team in the AFC West- but that isn’t saying much. Their real challenge won’t come until the playoffs roll around. As for the Bengals, they have some good young players (A.J. Green is quickly becoming one of the top receivers in the game today), but seem to be missing that ‘it’ factor that could propel them into the playoffs.

(Peyton set the NFL record for most 4th quarter comebacks Sunday. Is he the best quarterback of all time?http://i.usatoday.net/sports/_photos/2012/09/09/Manning-walks-off-winner-in-Broncos-debut-9P28DQVQ-x-large.jpg)

Ravens 25, Browns 15

Give Ray Rice the ball, win games- seems like a pretty simple formula, doesn’t it? Especially with the defense depleted, the Ravens need Rice more than ever. In their last game before their bye against Houston, Rice had just 9 carries in a blowout loss. I understand wanting to give Flacco more control of the offense; however, when you have a player of Ray Rice’s caliber he needs to be the focus of your game plan every week. The Browns actually hung around in this game for a lot longer than many may have expected. They have been playing surprisingly well as of late, being in games even when they aren’t quite able to pull out the W. I would say they have a bright future, but that’s hard to say when your quarterback is a 28-year-old rookie (seriously, what were they thinking? Did they realize he’s actually OLDER than Aaron Rodgers- the league’s reigning MVP?).

Packers 31, Cardinals 17

Even with Greg Jennings still sidelined with a groin injury and Jordy Nelson going down early in this one, the Packers air assault kept on humming. James Jones has developed into a premier target- something he showed flashes of in between drops earlier in his career- and Randall Cobb is one of the most versatile players in the league (sort of a Darren Sproles-type, only more of a receiver than running back). The two of them have been carrying the load with Rodger’s top two targets out, making this team even more dangerous when they return. They aren’t the team that almost reached perfection just a year ago, but they do resemble the championship team of 2011. Once they get everyone healthy, the Pack will be dangerous. The Cardinals, on the other hand, need to figure out what has happened. After a 4-0 start they’ve now dropped 5 straight. Could it be that they actually miss Kevin Kolb? Whatever it is, they better fix it ASAP if they want to make the playoffs in the tough NFC.

(Making big plays as a receiver, runner, and return man, Randall Cobb has quickly become one of the most electrifying players in the league- as well as a fan favorite.) http://cdn3.sbnation.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/2219939/154528806.0_standard_352.0.jpg

Bears 51, Titans 20

The Bears completely dominated this game, and it wasn’t even as close as the score indicated. Their defense is one of the best in the league, and they showed why yesterday- forcing five turnovers. Once they get the ball in their hands, they’re also great at getting into the endzone- as Brain Urlacher ran his pick back for just the second touchdown of his career. Offensively, they aren’t too shabby either. Matt Forte might be the most underrated player in the league and the Cutler to Marshall connection has been deadly effective (Marshall caught 3 TDs in the game). The Titans shouldn’t be too disappointed, as the Bears have made many teams look bad so far this year. At least Chris Johnson was able to get over 100 yards on the ground, a huge improvement from his numbers to start the season- although 80 of his 141 yards came on a break away touchdown late, once the game was essentially over. 

Colts 23, Dolphins 20

Can you believe that this game was a battle for the last playoff spot in the AFC (yes, the AFC is that bad this year)? In a closely contested game throughout, both rookie QBs played extremely well. Many may have expected so from Andrew Luck, but Ryan Tannehill has quietly been putting together a very strong rookie campaign. However, this day belonged to Luck- as he set the NFL rookie record with 433 passing yards, surpassing the mark set by Cam Newton last year (by the way, where has THAT Cam been this year? More on that later). Luck did so by placing balls in the perfect spots for his receivers for most of the day, and getting a little Luck-y on a great play by receiver T.Y. Hilton- another rookie- on a jump ball (a play where he literally took the ball away from two Dolphin defenders). The Colts are now in the driver’s seat for that last wild-card birth, but this race is far from over. Expect these two teams to battle it out until the final week of the season. 

(Side note: if you haven’t seen Colts coach Chuck Pagano’s speech to his team you NEED to. Even during his own battle with leukemia, he is still able to be incredibly inspirational)


(Colts head coach Chuck Pagano, battling leukemia, gave one of the best and most inspirational speeches I've ever heard. If you don't get fired up after hearing that, someone needs to check your pulse.
http://www.totalprosports.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/chuck-pagano-inspirationa-speech-following-colts-victory.jpg)


Panthers 21, Redskins 13

In the much-anticipated battle of the last two Heisman Trophy winners, it was Cam that looked like the one getting all of the hype the last few weeks, not RGIII. Griffin may have thrown for more yards at the end of the day (215 to 201), but Newton was far more efficient and was able to get his team touchdowns in the redzone instead of settling for field goals (something that came back to haunt the ‘Skins). While Griffin got off to a blistering start, he’s seemed to cool down the last two weeks. I blame this more on teams making adjustments to the Redskins unique offense and the inability of the coaches to adjust more so than on Griffin’s skill set, but it is still something to keep an eye on. For the Panthers, they aren’t going to make the playoffs (like some of their team members would like to think) but game’s like this are the ones they need to win if they want to make the playoffs anytime soon. 

Lions 31, Jaguars 14

The Lions finally got their running game going! This is a revelation, because if they get decent contributions from their running backs their offense will be one of the most dynamic in the league. Stafford still threw for 285, but (unfortunately for all of his fantasy owners) had no touchdowns as Mikel Leshoure hawked most of them once they got near the goal line. I’m sure Stafford will gladly trade those touchdowns for the victory, which brings them to 4-4 for the season and (don’t look now) just a half game back of Seattle and Minnesota for the final wild card spot in the NFC (and they already have a win over Seattle this season and a chance to even the season series with Minnesota next week). On the other side of the ledger, the Jags fell to an abysmal 1-7 and are now serious contenders for the top pick in the 2013 NFL Draft. They may want to seriously consider keeping MJD out as long as possible (regardless of when he recovers from his injury) in order to clinch the worst record, because he has been their only semblance of an offense all season long.

Texans 21, Bills 9

The Texans had one bad loss at home that made people seem to forget about them, but that can happen to anyone when Rodgers and the Pack get on a roll. In their other seven games, the Texans have been dominant. In a depleted AFC, this may be their year to break through- as long as hey can stay healthy. They weren’t flashy against the Bills, but they did what they had to do to come out with the victory without much tension late in the game (which is what we’ve come to expect from them). The Bills actually didn’t play poorly, and against many other teams they may have had a chance. Unfortunately for them, the Texans were simply the better team- and there was no way they were letting Mario Williams win in his return to Houston. 

Buccaneers 42, Raiders 32

In a rematch of the 2002 defense-dominated Super Bowl, these two played a defense-optional game out in the Bay. Doug Martin may be just that good, as this was not his first break-out game of the season, but there were way too many missed tackles and bad angles from the Raiders. Carson Palmer finally played like the Heisman Trophy winner he was at USC, but it took all he had just to keep the game close. You don’t win games when you let a rookie running back dominate you like that. The Raiders have talent, but they need to find an identity if they are to be better than a mediocre franchise. As for their opponents, the Bucs (just like the Lions) have quietly crept within a half game of the final playoff spot. They’ve looked really good and really bad at times this year, but if they can ride Martin over the second half of the season they could find themselves back in the playoffs. 

(Doug Martin, slightly unheard of coming out of Boise State, is putting together one of the best season by a rookie running back since Adrian Peterson.
 http://sinfl.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/doug-martin.jpg)

Seahawks 30, Vikings 20

Both teams are solid playoff contenders that have one thing in common- they are much better at home. The Seahawks have yet to drop a home contest while the Vikings have only won one game outside of the Metrodome. That being said, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that the ‘Hawks came out on top in this one- especially when you add in the fact that the Vikings managed just 63 yards passing in the game! There is simply no way you can win in the modern NFL with that little production from the quarterback position. Luckily for them they have one of the best running backs in recent history in Adrian Peterson (who defied all logic just by being on the field to start the season, not to mention that he’s been playing at an elite level still). Did you see that jump cut on his long run on the second play of the game? If not you missed out- he split two defenders like Chris Paul coming off a double team as they crashed into each other and he took off towards the endzone. If Ponder can give their offense any sort of balance, they will be a scary team to play down the stretch. For the Seahawks, that kind of balance is what Russell Wilson is finally providing for Marshawn Lynch and look what it’s doing for them! Wilson threw for 173 and 3 scores, by no means eye-popping numbers, but enough to make their offense dynamic and keep defenses on their toes. Just a few weeks ago many were calling for Matt Flynn in Seattle, but Wilson has silenced those critics and brought the ‘Hawks back into a tie for the final playoff spot. If he keeps up his play, they should be able to secure that spot by January. 

Steelers 24, Giants 20

After the Giants got off to a hot start following their opening night loss and the Steelers struggled out of the gates, at the midpoint of the season they seem to be going in different directions. Eli Manning has cooled down for the G-Men, looking more like the guy who led the league in interceptions a few years back than the Super Bowl champion. Meanwhile, the last quarterback taken at the top of that draft class, Big Ben, has been playing very well and his speedy receivers have been making big plays once he gets the ball in their hands. With Isaac Redman adding 147 yards on the ground, the Steelers are finding a balance on offense that makes them a scary team to play. Both teams look like they’ll make the playoffs comfortably, but right now the Steelers look like the team that could get on a roll and make a run to the title- something the Giants have made a living doing this decade. 

Falcons 19, Cowboys 13

Tony Romo played great, the defense stepped up, yet it still wasn’t enough for the ‘Boys. So close- that could very well be the motto of this year’s Cowboys team. There always seems to be something keeping them from getting over that hump. This is a very good Falcons team and they played with them for much of the game. Unfortunately for Cowboy fans, the loss dropped them to 3-5 and in the tough NFC nothing worse than 9-7 has even a chance of making the playoffs. That means they’ll need to go at least 6-2 over the second half of the season if they want a shot at the playoffs. Are they up for the challenge? I guess we’ll find out soon. As for the undefeated Atlanta Falcons, many seem to think that none of their remaining regular season games matter because they must prove themselves in the playoffs for any of it to mean anything. To that, I say bullsh**. Making sure they lock up the top seed is first and foremost on their checklist, as they are much better with that home field advantage- and they’ll need it against whomever they see in their first playoff game, since it will likely be either the Packers, Bears, Giants, or Niners. Losing to one of those teams should not been seen as an automatic failure of a season, however. They have built something in Atlanta that is sustainable. If they can be a playoff contender each year, they’ll get a shot to make a run eventually- regardless of what happens this year. In games between teams of that caliber, it often comes down to one or two breaks here or there. If they can consistently make it to those games, they’ll have plenty of chances to get those breaks.

THURSDAY NIGHT REWIND

Chargers 31, Chiefs 13

Did anyone outside of San Diego and Kansas City bother to turn this one on? In fact, with the way their teams have been playing, did anyone in those cities tune in either? The Chargers record is respectable and makes it look like they are in playoff contention, but anyone who has watched them play this year knows they are not nearly as good as their .500 record. Even though they won this game, I still think the Norv Turner-era in San Diego should be coming to a close by season’s end. It could be worse for Charger fans, though. They could be Chiefs fans. The Chiefs are awful, which is sad considering they have some really good playmakers on this team (Jamaal Charles, Dwayne Bowe to name a few). They may lose Bowe this offseason, but Charles should stick around. They are 1-7 and on their way to a very high draft pick, where they hope to land a franchise quarterback (a position that is a complete disaster for them right now). Unfortunately for them, I don’t see a real franchise-changing quarterback in this year’s class. USC’s Matt Barkley got the most hype coming into the season but, while I defended him after his so-so Freshman year, I don’t see him having that high of a ceiling as a pro. He puts up strong numbers at USC, but throws more interceptions than a top pick should and benefits enormously from having two of the nation’s best at wide receiver in Robert Woods and Marquis Lee. With them, he gets tons of yards just from their YAC and incredible play-making abilities. West Virginia’s Geno Smith has cooled off after his blazing start, and the other top prospects (like Oklahoma’s Landry Jones and Arkansas's Tyler Wilson) all have glaring holes in their game. If I ran the Chiefs, I’d try to work out a way to get someone like Seattle’s Matt Flynn rather than rely on a rookie from this year’s class.

(College quarterbacks Matt Barkley, Geno Smith, and Tyler Wilson are among the top prospects for the 2013 NFL Draft, but are any of them good enough to change a franchise? Let us know what you think!)
 http://static.nfl.com/static/content/photo/2012/09/19/0ap1000000063835.jpg

Looking Ahead to Monday Night

Philadelphia Eagles at New Orleans Saints

While neither of these teams are in playoff contention at the moment, this game still has tons of interest surrounding it. While the Eagles offense has not looked very explosive so far this season, if there’s one team that could bring out their explosiveness it is the Saints and their terrible defense. Any game the Saints play in turns into a shootout, and I expect nothing less tonight. The Saints are playing for pride at this point, but Drew Brees and the rest of their veterans have a lot of pride to fight for. The Eagles, through all the questions surrounding them, can pull within a half game of the playoffs with a win. Wait, what?! Isn’t this the team that already fired their defensive coordinator and is on the brink of doing the same to their quarterback and head coach? All it takes is one game to turn a season around and the Eagles are hoping this is it. The Eagles have too many weapons between Vick, McCoy, Jackson, and Macklin for them to not put up ridiculous numbers tonight. But, will they be able to slow down the Saints enough to get the win? Without their secret weapon Darren Sproles in the lineup for the Saints, it will be a little bit easier. 

The Eagles just need this win more than the Saints (who have the suspension of their coach as an excuse for this season) and I think they’ll get it thanks to the dynamic play of Michael Vick, who will return to his old form and put up over 350 yards of total offense. Eagles over the Saints, 34-28. 

Last Week’s Pick

I had the ‘Niners beating the Cardinals in last week’s Monday Night game by a score of 20-10. The ‘Niners played a little better than I expected, led by Alex Smith’s nearly flawless performance (and really, how could I have seen that coming from him?), as they routed the Cards 24-3. Still, the Cardinals came within a yard of adding a garbage time touchdown that would have made my prediction damn close to reality. Oh well, there’s always this week!

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I hope you enjoyed reading! If you have any questions, comments, or other suggestions on how to improve the column or any other topic feel free to contact me at my email address [email protected], on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/adam.colman.9 or on Twitter @AdamRColman. 

Thanks for the support!