Author Archives: The Chancellor of Football

Week 7 AFC West: The Pendulum Swings

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Just when it seemed that you knew where the season and how the teams would fare, up jumped week 7. The Oakland Raiders had to recover from not only the loss of owner Al Davis, they had to replace QB Jason Campbell due to injury. It seemed natural that there would be a letdown after the emotional win over Houston but a 28-0 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs may have turned the season. The Chiefs looked like their 2011 campaign was doomed after an 0-3 start. However do you realize that the Raiders have a bye and if the Chiefs defeat the Chargers, they would actually be in first place with a 4-3 record?? Sure we’re getting ahead of ourselves until you realize the AFC West has been thrown for a loop.

Gone is the efficient offense the Raiders enjoyed for 6 weeks with Campbell at the controls. The Raiders tossed up 6 interceptions yesterday with perennial below average quarterback Kyle Boller at the controls. He and Carson Palmer each threw 3 interceptions. Palmer’s is understandable since he has only two practices with the team but Boller has no excuse for being that ineffective. The Chiefs came into the game with only 5 interceptions on the year. However they left Oakland with a confidence boosting win and the Raiders are left trying to salvage a good season start short circuited by injury.

Tim Tebow in the midst of yesterday’s 18-15 comeback win over Miami

Did we say changes?? Well the Broncos will be galvanized for the next few weeks with their 18-15 comeback win over the Dolphins. The Broncos were down 15-0 with just under 3 minutes remaining when Tebow and the offense came to life. Up until then he looked like the erratic quarterback that John Elway envisioned before the season. Turnovers, inaccurate throws, and not reading the whole field. He missed a wide open Aaron Decker, when the Dolphins broke a coverage that would have been a 78 yard touchdown. Tebow completely whiffed on his throw. For much of the day he displayed exactly what team exec. John Elway and Coach John Fox’s countenances had suggested about his play.

Yet when the game and the lingering questions of inserting Tebow was on the line, he led a dramatic comeback. His first touchdown was a scramble throw but the throw for 27 yards to Daniel Fells to set up the second showed maturity. He threw a bend to the TE over the linebacker in the heart of a Cover 2 (we don’t say Tampa 2 here) which showcased the type of throw Tebow was accused of not being able to make. Then came his TE throwback screen for the TD before running in the two-point conversion himself. Yet before we get ahead of ourselves…lets take a look at the standings

AFC WEST W L T PCT HOME ROAD DIV CONF PF PA DIFF STRK
San Diego 4 2 0 .667 3-0-0 1-2-0 2-0-0 3-2-0 141 136 +5 Lost 1
Oakland 4 3 0 .571 2-2-0 2-1-0 1-1-0 4-3-0 160 178 -18 Lost 1
Kansas City 3 3 0 .500 1-1-0 2-2-0 1-1-0 2-2-0 105 150 -45 Won 3
Denver 2 4 0 .333 1-2-0 1-2-0 0-2-0 2-3-0 123 155 -32 Won 1

Which brings us to the front running San Diego Chargers. After Coach Norv Turner was upset by Jets Coach Rex Ryan who said earlier in the week, ‘that he would have several rings had he coached the talent in San Diego’. The Chargers took the field with that emotion and marched to a 21-10 halftime lead only to fold in the second half enroute to a 27-21 loss. This was a big loss, not only because Turner’s reputation was on the line but again this team displayed the lack of heart to take down an AFC heavy.

Its a broken record around here to talk about how they play up to or down to their competition yet here we go again.  The two teams with winning records the Chargers have played they lost to. This is music to the Chiefs ears who host San Diego this week and can overtake the Chargers in the AFC West with a win. The Chargers are 1-2 on the road and looked like the AFC’s best team in the first half. Yet a second half collapse against a team that knocked them out of the playoffs a few years back is disheartening and may have long term affects. Especially with a showdown with the World Champion Green Bay Packers in two weeks. This team could possibly be .500, again!! You have to be kidding me?? After a 4-1 start?? Of course it doesn’t sound far fetched. No more than the NFL’s #8 offense being shut out (2nd half) in the type of game that could have gotten the Chargers over the hump from a maturation standpoint. Even with Rex Ryan’s bulletin board shenanigans and they play that flat when their coaches reputation is on the line?? Uh Oh!! We fully expect it if you read our preview nothing has changed and yes the pendulum has swung.

The Chiefs are playing mistake proof football and Coach Haley has scaled back Matt Cassel’s passing. As of this week the Chiefs are the 7th best in the NFL at rushing the football. This bodes well for their upcoming game with the Chargers ranked 21st at stopping the run. They have gone back to last year’s formula that produced a 10-6 season. Thomas Jones (58 att., 185 yards) does the heavy lifting but the committee of Jackie Battle (232 yards / 5.2 avg) and Dexter McCluster (210 yards /5.0 avg.) has been effective. The Chiefs are 6th in sacks allowed with 10 and the defense has rebounded to a respectable 18th. Coach Haley, this is the formula you need to stay with until you have a full offseason with Cassel. He’s not yet ready to be your Kurt Warner as his early season play showed. One more week and the Chiefs can be in first place at midseason. Who would have thunk it 4 weeks ago??

http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2011102300/2011/REG7/broncos@dolphins#menu=highlights&tab=recap

Which brings us to the 2-4 Broncos again. The comeback was one that was more frantic than it was artistic but its the heart that was displayed that rallied his teammates that can’t be underestimated. You saw it in the team’s body english along the sideline and the spirit exhibited on the field. First the team found life in Willis McGahee’s emergence and now Tebow going into the lineup. His team believes in him and all comments about his play should be relegated to what he does the rest of this season. However as we at the Taylor Blitz Times look back, yesterday’s performance invokes the memory of the first comeback by Lil’ John Elway. Each came against weak teams but the experience could have long term affects on confidence. How can you be so enigmatic for 57 minutes and deadly in the last 3?? Yet when you quarterback the Denver Broncos, you will ALWAYS be compared to John Elway. Well here is Elway’s first fourth quarter comeback which looked eerily similar to Tebow’s yesterday. Take a look

Did you notice Elway only had one good throw on the corner route to Clint Sampson?? The rest were screens and a frantic ad-lib to a blitz. They looked the same to me and Tebow has a chance to grow from his moment in Miami just as Hall of Famer Elway grew from his. Are we saying Tebow will become a Hall of Famer?? Time will tell…we’re just comparing novice quarterback comeback to another for their starting point value. Now maybe his team executive nemesis Lil’ John will cut Tebow some slack. Believe me, we have.

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Best Finish To An NFL Game Ever: Hail Mary -1980 Vikings v. Browns

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Everyone loves a fantastic finish and we feel as though NFL Films and such focus too much on the glamour teams. They leave too many great moments on the cutting room floor if it’s not Dallas, Pittsburgh, or Green Bay. What if we were to tell you that a team actually completed a hook and lateral (not ladder) and a hail mary to finish a game?? Yes everyone remembers the hook and lateral in the ’81 AFC Divisional Playoff between San Diego and Miami, yet we’re going to take you to one that was even better. It was the last great moment in the 21 years Metropolitan Stadium served the Minnesota Vikings.

It was 1980 and the ink was just drying on the Nation’s newspapers of Ronald Reagan’s landslide victory over incumbent President Jimmy Carter. The Iran hostage situation was over 400 days old and we were completing the 1980 NFL Season. Teams were just now fully understanding the capabilities afforded them when the NFL loosened it’s rules on passing before the 1978 season. The ball was able to be thrown and touch multiple receivers without having to hit a defender in the interim giving birth to the Hail Mary.

Hall of Fame Viking Coach, Bud Grant

The Minnesota Vikings had just said goodbye to Hall of Fame QB Fran Tarkenton, the league’s All Time yardage and touchdown passing leader. In stepped Tommy Kramer, who had none of the big game moxie of a Tarkenton. He was a poor man’s Danny White in that he followed the most revered quarterback in the team’s history.

After losing the fourth game to the 4-0 Detroit Lions, 27-20, it looked as though the Vikings had indeed passed the baton. However with a strong finishing kick they went into the penultimate game of the season with an 8-6 record. If they could win the 15th game, they would win Bud Grant his 11th NFC Central Division Tltle. Their opponent  going into that game was no slouch.

In came the 10-4 Cleveland Browns and Sam Rutigliano. He was in his third year and on his way to his second straight NFL Coach of the Year award for breathing life into a moribund franchise. In those years they were known for their ability to win a game in the final seconds and had performed that feat 14 times in the last two years with less than 2 minutes remaining. Moreover this was the Browns first winning season in nearly 10 years. What better chance to show that they had arrived than to go on the road and win in a tough NFC camp and finish off the Viking’s season.

So on a cold day the Browns took the field and roared to a 23-9 lead and the Vikings looked cold on their sideline as the 3rd quarter ended. Then the Browns started playing conservatively and played close to the vest as the Vikings roared back.

After the Vikings scored 2 touchdowns to trim the Browns lead to 23-22. The Browns had the ball and drove toward midfield yet the Vikings defense held and forced the Browns to punt and pin Minnesota at their own 20 yard line. There was less than :20 left in the game. Time for daring and time for one final drive to win the NFC Central Division championship for their coach. This is what took place…

Epilogue: The Vikings running a hook and lateral on the opposite of the three receivers look on a Hail Mary was beautiful and I can’t remember anyone running it like that since.  By the way, do you know who the Cleveland Browns linebacker #53, who was beaten on the play was?? Try former Pittsburgh Steeler Coach Bill Cowher.

Yet this team covered 80 yards in 2 plays to earn Hall of Fame coach Bud Grant his 11th and final NFC Central Division title. However they went down to the eventual NFC Champion Philadelphia Eagles in the ’80 NFC Divisional round of the playoffs 31-16.

Mike Davis intercepts Brian Sipe’s pass for Ozzie Newsome to end the Brown’s season 14-12, in the 1980 playoffs.

On that exact same weekend the “Cardiac Kids” Cleveland Browns lost in the ’80 AFC Divisional Round to the Oakland Raiders 14-12. This game was made famous for “Red Right 88”. The tail end of a play’s assignment that had the Browns throw to the tight end in -42* weather rather than kick the obvious field goal. It was 3rd down and Coach Rutigliano opted to go for the endzone one more time. Only to have Raider Safety Mike Davis step in for a game clinching interception to end the Browns season. However the Browns had two kicks blocked in that game which was one of the coldest in NFL history.

However for one  magnificent drive, Tommy Kramer, Ted Brown, and Ahmad Rashad gave Viking fans the last great moment in Metropolitan Stadium. Within 2 years they would move indoors and the Viking franchise hasn’t been the same since. Hopefully they can get a new stadium deal and go back outside where the Vikings should be.

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ESPN- What the F*ck Happened To You??

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ESPN,

Yes I asked the question and meant it in the language I used. Why am I upset? Well I have been a fan since the channel’s inception in 1979. You see, Columbus, Ohio was one of those first test cities for ESPN making it’s first foray into cable television. If my mom wasn’t watching something or it was my turn to channel surf, boom ESPN was on in our house. Now many of the old NFL stories you used to play on holidays is why I’m a historian on the sport now.

All you had were experts in terms of former players, former coaches who would talk strategies and insight to what the casual viewer could learn. Now I turn on your network and all I see are Jen Sterger eye candy types regurgitating what someone teleprompts her to say.

Half the time they can’t get into an indpth discussion on most of the topics and when they cross reference something there are TEN better references that could have been used! Damn! Does it really have to go to the lowest common denominator like most channels?? You don’t have to sexy up football, men have watched the NFL for 92 fuckin’ years. It didn’t start from an MTV spinoff

You want to know how long I go back with you…First off in 1980, you would start showing football in the third week of July when you would show the Super Bowl highlight from the previous season. I would be buried in the TV listings looking for it because from that point on you’d dabble in historical pieces until the season would start. You had no football shows to speak of but you got the juices going.

By 84′ you’d have Jim Simpson hosting these shows. He’d come on and speak for a few minutes before the Yearbook (they weren’t called that at that point) of the ’73 Dolphins and the ’74 Steelers (which i taped) or a Super Bowl highlight as these shows were dotted across a television viewing day. I always had tape running in those days.

Can remember wanting to hear what ESPN would say about a game on SportsCenter and can remember Chris Berman’s on the field report after “The Catch” following the ’81 NFC Championship with San Francisco knocking off Dallas 28-27. Same thing for the ’82 NFC Championship as the crowd stormed the field in RFK. CBS wouldn’t get down IN the celebration where you guys did. Gave it more feeling than reporting from the booth.

Then every holiday before real games were played you’d show something of yesteryear that added history to the tradition. Can remember on Thanksgiving ’85 taping yearbooks for the ’68 Jets, ’69Chiefs, ’70 Raiders, and ’73 Buffalo Bills. Then on Christmas Day the ’71 AFC Divisional Playoff Highlight to Ed Podolak’s spectacular 350 yard game where the Dolphins beat the Chiefs 27-24 in the longest game ever. Then you played the ’77 AFC Divisonal Playoff of the Super Bowl Champion Raiders beating the Colts in double overtime 37-31.

Up to that point you let the game and the sounds do all the talking, yet in ’86 you started to sprinkle in some good shows. Namely Monday Night Theater (predecessor to my Taylor Blitz Times Theater on Facebook) where you would highlight great games of the past relevant to the two teams playing. Then the coup de’ gras…Monday Night Matchup.

I can still remember the good old days on that show with Ally Sherman, Steve Sabol of NFL Films, and a young Chris Berman. It was the best television show ever covering the X’s and O’s on the sport and I wouldn’t miss it.

With that show’s success you decided: Why not have our own pregame show for the Sunday games?? NFL Gameday and NFL Primetime hit and I was watching from that first episode in ’87. You snatched up the late Pete Axthelm from NBC to go with Chris Berman and a just retired Tom Jackson and I haven’t watched a full pregame broadcast from the regular networks since.

Berman came off the television, just like us. A huge fan, who just happened to be up close to express it and ask the questions we zealots would had we switched places with him. Then you introduced the Sunday Night Games and I thought Mike Patrick was the best play by play announcer next to Dick Enberg. He made the games feel like an event. Can still remember the Sunday Night Matchup with the Cleveland Browns with CBs Frank Minnifield and Hanford Dixon against the Forty Niners and WR Jerry Rice. That game was treated like a Super Bowl and that game dwarfed all others that day and the folllowing Monday.

You were elevating the game with your coverage and shows and literally my television wasn’t off ESPN by this time at all. Throw in college basketball, NFL,  and the NBA’s televised drafts?? Man, I can remember a six way phone conversaton when the Boston Celtics selected Len Bias in the ’86  draft. We all hated the Celtics so we were in a complete shock as you broadcast his selection. Then broadcast on SportsCenter and subsequent shows of his death two days later. Being a high school teenager at the time, man this was big news. Then being on your station following up Bias one week later was the death of Cleveland Browns safety Don Rogers from a cocaine overdose. Where regular news spoke of this for a few minutes and moved on, you gave it hours and depth. Especially one from the black community, I looked at that as a sign of respect not afforded by the regular networks. To many of us, the perception was if something happened to a black celebrity it wouldn’t be afforded the coverage of that of a white one. That was extremely important to me.

At that time and beyond you were the sports information universe outside of what else I was reading on my own. Yet in the late 90’s you started to change into something more commercial, more sinister, more tabloid. Gone was the respect of the athletes you covered and you seemed to sensationalize items that didn’t need to be. Yes, the ignorance and tragedy of Ray Carruth’s murder/ attempted murder of his fiance should be covered, but every time someone gets a speeding ticket or a DUI doesn’t have to be. The tone your station has reporting transgressions of black players has a negative undertone to it. Any argument at a team’s practice facility was now on the air 24 hours a day. All of a sudden you were in a race to leak every off the field incident and to me started to seem more like TMZ than ESPN.

Just know that  power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. It was exactly at the turn of the century where you became aware of your own pull and started to act as though you owned or governed the leagues you covered. The corporate dumbing down of your shows started and the proliferation of eye candy blondes took the place of former players and writers. Whether they’d be asking silly ass questions on the sideline during games or slowing down topics discussed on shows, I kept asking why??

Then to make matters worse is you are even now a tabloid to those who work / worked for you and started to eat your own young. From the Sean Salisbury incident ( which was totally wrong in our estimation) to Erin Andrews being peeped on while dressing on the road, to Jalen Rose’s DUI a few months back.  Instead of hearing about a trade on Sports Center we’re listening to some report on Erin Andrews?? Please stop! Where the hell did my favorite station go?? What the fuck is this nonsense??

Get back to doing what you had done to become a sports giant. Be there for the fan and offer the best talent and the best coverage a fan can ask for based on information and insight they can provide. You don’t see Fox News getting rid of Greta Van Susteren for an eye candy strumpet with a blouse full do you?? No because the viewer is tuning in for the news and want to hear it from a credible source. Sports is in the same boat and we zealots would tune in anyway. Listen, there were over 80 million viewers that tuned in for Super Bowl X and a reported 120 million for Super Bowl XX, and the sideline reporter for the latter was Bob Griese. Certainly not eye candy. We’re going to tune in. Some outlets don’t need the sex sells dogma that has infiltrated every other aspect of advertising and entertainment.

But alas, we know this is falling on deaf ears but needed to be expressed. Like our government you’re too big to listen and too far gone to reverse your tactics. I thank the NFL for realizing this and building their own network based upon your prior model in the NFL Network. If it weren’t for Chris Berman and Tom Jackson, I wouldn’t turn to your channel. Yet for the few times a week I’m around a television, I tune to you inadvertently and leave a few minutes later disappointed.

So at this time I have to break up with you and I’ll miss my friends Chris and Tom but it isn’t the same. Trey Wingo doing NFL Primetime makes me want to throw a brick through my television and I paid too much for my 47″ 1080P LG. That move along with the bimbo eye candy was the last straw for me and I won’t turn on your channel ever again. From a historian and writer who aspires to make this blog and subsequent website, radio shows, and internet television shows in the spirit an old ESPN could enjoy… This is goodbye.

Chancellor of Football from the Football Offices of Burbank, California

Sincerely Yours,

Jef A Taylor

Chancellor of Football

NFL Week 5 AFC West: Defining Moments

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A tumultuous week in the NFL was sent into a state of shock with the passing of Raider Owner Al Davis. His passing came on a Saturday before his beloved Raiders were to take the field at Reliant Stadium and take on the Houston Texans. In a display that would have made Davis proud, his Raiders willed their way to a 25-20 win to raise their record to 3-2which keeps them within one game of the division leading Chargers.

In a game where Darren McFadden was held to 51 yards rushing and Campbell to 184 yards passing, it was Sebastian Janikowski’s 4 field goals that were the difference. Early drives that were short circuited were just in range for Janikowski’s big leg where he connected from 55 and 54 yards to keep the Raiders in the game. In all he made 3 from beyond 50 yards in a single game. Are you kidding me?? Thats a seasonal statistic for a kicker.  They also won with timely defense with a game sealing interception despite giving up 403 yards passing to Matt Scaub. The Texans were missing All Pro wideout Andre Johnson and the Raiders figured to stop the Texans aerial assault. Good thing they willed themselves to a victory or their record could have dropped to 2-3 and would have had them 2 games back to the Chargers and a third loss in the AFC making wild card tiebreakers difficult. Yet with a 3-2 record and their next two games against the Browns and Chiefs, the Raiders can finish the first half of the season on a winning streak. Take a look at the standings…

AFC WEST W L T PCT HOME ROAD DIV CONF PF PA DIFF STRK
San Diego 4 1 0 .800 3-0-0 1-1-0 2-0-0 3-1-0 120 109 +11 Won 3
Oakland 3 2 0 .600 1-1-0 2-1-0 1-0-0 3-2-0 136 133 +3 Won 1
Kansas City 2 3 0 .400 1-1-0 1-2-0 0-1-0 1-2-0 77 150 -73 Won 2
Denver 1 4 0 .200 1-2-0 0-2-0 0-2-0 1-3-0 105 140 -35 Lost 3

Ryan Matthews slashes through the Bronco defense last Sunday.

Which leads us to the quiet San Diego Chargers who haven’t had the statistical season they had a year ago but the wins are more important for them. They’re still playing up and down to their competition only this year they have maintained leads until the end of games instead of coming from behind and falling short. Yet will this formula keep?? Even though they are 4-1 they have only outscored their opposition by only 11 points. Before holding off a furious rally by the Tim Tebow led Denver Broncos last week, those wins were courtesy of the hapless Miami Dolphins, a down Kansas City team, and a 1 win Vikings team. So are they as good as their 4-1 record?

A year ago Phillip Rivers threw for over 4700 yards, 30TDs and only 13 interceptions. Where this year he’s not having as good a season with 1,536 yards, 6TDs and 7 interceptions. He’s on pace for almost 5,000 yards yet another for 23 interceptions. Ryan Matthews is on pace for a 1300 yard season with over 413 yards with a gaudy 4.9 yard average. However.. how will Rivers and company play when they face stiffer competition?? They were manhandled against the Patriots in week 2 and after a bye comes the desperate for a win Jets, a possible resurgent Chiefs team (2 straight wins), the World Champion Packers, and a motivated team from Oakland. This is their season!! If they come through this crucible with a winning record, they learned how to win and have moxie. If they lose the majority of these four it’s the same underachieving Chargers of the not so distant past.

Which brings us to the heartland in Kansas City, Missouri. Now we here had picked this team to be a darkhorse for the Super Bowl and this team was knocked flat with an 0-3 start. Face it the first two were against frightfully strong teams in the 4-1 Buffalo Bills and the 5-0 Detroit Lions. Despite that they have picked themselves up by their bootstraps and returned to their strength which is running the football. Last week’s 28-24 win over the Colts was defining for it gave the team a boost in confidence going into their bye week. If they come out and beat the Raiders in two weeks it would put their record at 3-3 and ahead of the Raiders in the standings. The Chiefs have been running the ball with a committee of Thomas Jones (166 yards), Dexter McCluster (172 yards), and Jackie Battle (156 yards) with some success yet haven’t rushed for 1 touchdown yet. On defense it’s time for Glenn Dorsey to make some plays and help out Tamba Hali who has 4 sacks. Dorsey has yet to register a sack, forced fumble, knocked down pass or anything. First round draft pick needs to produce more.

John Fox you picked a good time to put in Tim Tebow now leave him in the rest of the year. He nearly rallied you back to a win vs. San Diego and you need to ride the coat tails of  the spirit brought by he and a rejuvenated Willis McGahee and see what you have. In reality there should be 6 more wins at least with Tebow playing. Had you waited another week, you may have lost the season and your fanbase. Good luck the rest of the way.

NFL Week 5 Game Predictions

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Proposed patch in memory of Al Davis by the Remember The AFL Group in honor of Al Davis' passing.

We are steamrolling into week 5 with a slate of pivotal games today. Now we told you to circle the week 5 Monday Night matchup between the Detroit Lions and the Chicago Bears back in May, so loyal readers shouldn’t be surprised. So we had a bumpy first quarter to this football season predicting games. Week 1 we were 8-8, followed by 12-4, 12-4, and 11-5. So right now for the season Taylor Blitz Times is sitting with a nice 43-21 record. Unlike other groups, we don’t take the 5 easy games to pick and try to look good, call them all and see what you can come up with.

So without further adieu lets get into the games”:

Tennessee Titans @ Pittsburgh Steelers: With the 22nd ranked rushing defense having allowed 2, 100 yard rushers, this is a good time for the Titans to keep playing mistake free football an pulling off an upset. James Harrison is out with an orbital bone break. That’s not a good thing. Roethlisberger will keep the Steelers in it. If you look at the Steelers rushing totals, they’re not as good as years past. Titans

Cincinnati Bengals @ Jacksonville Jaguars:  The Bengals have been protecting Andy Dalton and Bruce Gradkowski with the run and Cedric Benson has rewarded them as the 6th best rusher in football. The flip side of that equation is they now field the #1 defense in all of football. The Jaguars come in with the #2 rusher in Maurice Jones-Drew and the same formula of protecting a rookie quarterback in Blaine Gabbert. They do field a more middle of the road defense and for that reason we’re going Bengals.

Seattle Seahawks @ New York Giants: The Seattle group is foundering under Tavarres Jackson just as we thought and are a junior league NFL team for the forseeable future. If the Giants can’t get up for this team and blow them away in less than 3 quarters, it will say a lot to how far the Giants have slipped since Super Bowl XLII. Giants

Arizona Cardinals @ Minnesota Vikings: Adrian Peterson talk to your offensive line. Here comes the 24th best defense in all of football. What most folks don’ t know is Beanie Wells is averging 5.4 yards per carry and has 5TDs so far. We think the Vikings front seven can slow him down. Vikings

Philadelphia Eagles @ Buffalo Bills: Could two teams arrive at this game so different from one another?? We asked at the beginning of the year if the Eagles were the second coming of the ’94 49ers or ’95 Dolphins?? Early returns are showing have them less than the Dolphins with a 1-3 record. The team isn’t playing with much confidence. The “Land of the Misfit Toys” Buffalo Bills are believing in themselves more and more. Even with last week’s loss to the Cincinnati Bengals they led for much of the game before losing 23-20. It was a game they should have been on lookout for a letdown yet still played well….at home in Rich/Ralph Wilson Stadium??? They keep it going today BILLS!

Steve Smith has resurfaced as one of the best receivers in the NFL and is second in receiving yards.

New Orleans Saints @ Carolina Panthers: This is going to be a fun game to watch….what is surprising is the Panthers aren’t really running the ball as much as you’d expect. Coming into this game, the Saints rank 2nd and the Panthers 3rd in offense and come in 14th and 15th respectively. Cam Newton is on pace for setting rookie passing records and the reawakening of Steve Smith is frightening. The Saints don’t have an answer for Smith…seriously that defense?? Panthers

Kansas City Chief @ Indianapolis Colts: “The I Cant Believe Its Not Butter Bowl” We have the Chiefs winning this one. The Colts played well for the Monday Night  audience to keep from being embarrassed on national television. Chiefs are better as a team. Chiefs

Oakland Raiders @ Houston Texans: In memory of Al Davis, this team will play some hard rugged football. The Texans are out to show they belong with the AFC Heavyweights and Arian Foster will run for more yards than Darren McFadden today. Texans

Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ San Francisco 49ers: The NFL is paying for the 10-6 Bucs of last year not making the playoffs. They are playing physical football with a chip on their shoulder. LaGarette Blount is running like a new model of Eddie George where your heart better be in it if you want to tackle him. Josh Freeman and company go in and burst the Niners bubble today. Bucs!

New York Jets @ New England Patriots: After giving up 34 in consecutive games, this is a bad place for the Jets who stole that first game with the Cowboys. At this point you can’t pick against Brady who has thrown for 1,553 yards, 13TDs and 5 interceptions. Wes Welker leads the NFL in receptions and receiving yards and with that much attention on him the Patriots have to find other receivers. Last January they didn’t. However with the Jets unable to run, they just give Tom Brady too many chances. Patriots

Green Bay Packers @ Atlanta Falcons: Have to take Aaron Rodgers and the Packers

San Diego Chargers @ Denver Broncos: Chargers roll to 4-1 start

Chicago Bears @ Detroit Lions: Lions kill the Bears Monday Night

NFL Week 4 AFC East: See You At the Crossroads

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The AFC East has a Super Bowl favorite, a Gotham media darling, and a classic underdog who are all vying to be pro football’s best for 2011. Then you have the Miami Dolphins who lost their quarterback Chad Henne to season ending shoulder surgery as of Thursday. Where do the Dolphins go besides a rebuilding year now with their main quarterback out?? Then more important question comes up… Who are the New York Jets?? Are they the team we here at Taylor Blitz Times picked to win Super Bowl XLVI, or are they the .500 ball club emblamatic of their 2-2 record??

Right now there is a team to the northeast, dying to get some payback and deal the Jets possibly a crushing blow to their season in the Patriots. They have treated their first four games like a 7 on 7 passing drill with the league’s #1 ranked offense.  Do you realize this team is averaging 507 yards per game?? The New Orleans Saints are #2 and average nearly 50 yards less per game. YIKES! Is this really the time for a Jets defense, which has given up 34 points in each of the last two games, to take on a Patriots team averaging 33.8?? Tom Brady has passed for 1,539 yards with a league leading 13TDs while leading the second highest scoring team in all of pro football.

Last Sunday the Patriots beat the Raiders 31-19 behind a modest day from Tom Brady (226 yds passing) yet went to the ground game for the first time this season. BenJarvus Green-Ellis rushed for 75 yards while Stevan Ridley (pictured here) ran for 97 with each scoring once. They kept the ball from the Raiders with 30 carries for 182 yards in the most balanced game of the season. However their defense is still struggling. Campbell lit them up for 344 yards yet a few timely stops by the Patriot defense ultimately derailed the Raiders. In a battle of once beaten teams, the Patriots proved they were the more complete team. Now they set their sights on an old antagonist who upset them in the playoffs in the New York Jets. Think this team hasn’t had that game circled on the calender?? Think again…but let’s check the standings.

AFC EAST W L T PCT HOME ROAD DIV CONF PF PA DIFF STRK
Buffalo 3 1 0 .750 2-0-0 1-1-0 1-0-0 3-1-0 133 96 +37 Lost 1
New England 3 1 0 .750 1-0-0 2-1-0 1-1-0 3-1-0 135 98 +37 Won 1
NY Jets 2 2 0 .500 2-0-0 0-2-0 0-0-0 1-2-0 100 95 +5 Lost 2
Miami 0 4 0 .000 0-2-0 0-2-0 0-1-0 0-4-0 69 104 -35 Lost 4

Bills Fred Jackson is among the league's best rushers.

That’s right the Buffalo Bills were knocked from the ranks of the unbeaten yet what have we learned?? Well they fear no evil and have gone after their opponents with aplomb not seen since Jim Kelly. When you’re down to a perennial division rival with 3 minutes to go and your first play is a five step, hitch and throw up the sideline for 40 yards, you’re not fearing anybody. Last week the Bills offense was slowed in a 23-20 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bills were up 17-3, in a game where many felt they were due for a letdown after the emotional win over New England. Yet the #1 defense in football slowed the Bills offense down and rookie Andy Dalton led the Bengals to a comeback win. However the Bills are still 4th in scoring with 33.2 points per game. http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/buf/2011.htm Fred Jackson is doing his best Thurman Thomas impersonation with 369 yards rushing, 4TDs, and another 13 receptions out of the backfield for 147 yards more. While Ryan Fitzpatrick has thrown for 1092 yards 9 touchdowns and only 3 interceptions. They now return to the friendly confines of Rich Stadium where they get to take on the back pedalling 1-3 Philadelphia Eagles. Its going to be loud Michael Vick, just warning you.

Which brings us back to the “Boys from Gotham”…who are they?? Well right now they are a .500 football team. The defense is the strength of this team yet has given up 34 points in back to back road losses to the Raiders and the Ravens. Those were bad losses to fellow AFC teams that will have tie breaker affects on playoff seeding at the end of the year. Now they have to take on a revenge minded Patriot team who is averaging nearly 34 points?? Yikes this doesn’t look good and it’s time to face facts. These three early road games were where this team was to establish it’s dominance. If they could have stood tall and stepped on the leaders of the AFC North and the strongest team in the AFC West they would be coming into this game with confidence and seize control of the conference. Then to put the hammer down on the Patriots would have cemented that point home. Once you think about their stealing their opening game against the Cowboys after a sluggish start and this team could be 1-3.

However they are 2-2 and have a chance to right the ship today. If they can ride football’s #8 defense to a victory against the Patriots they will have held serve that they may still be best in the AFC East. http://www.nfl.com/stats/categorystats?tabSeq=2&defensiveStatisticCategory=GAME_STATS&conference=ALL&role=OPP&season=2011&seasonType=REG&d-447263-s=TOTAL_YARDS_GAME_AVG&d-447263-o=1&d-447263-n=1 Right now Mark Sanchez has been given free reign of the offense to be able to audible and throw downfield. He isn’t lighting it up statistically and something needs to be done with Shonn Greene and the running game. We know Center Nick Mangold has been out but the ineptitude of the Jets running game is derailing this team. Do you realize that after 4 games Shonn Greene leads the Jets in rushing with only 157 yards?? In four games?? Pathetic!! His rushing average is a paltry 3.1 yards per carry with Tomlinson averaging 3.0. These have to improve and they may have to get into a groove and give Tomlinson the ball first and supplement with Greene. Something has to be tried or they’ll continue to be undone by an unbalanced offensive attack. Will it happen this week in Foxboro??

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