Due to the amazing feature in NFL Gamepass that let's you watch "compressed" games in 35 or 40 minutes, I was able to watch all of Sunday's action in less than the time that it would take to watch the two Sunday telecasts with commercials, reviews, and breaks between plays. Not sure that I can ever go back to spending 3 hours+ watching a game ..unless it's the Patriots in the play-offs and I want to feel the camaraderie of real-time viewing with friends. Anyway here are some observations from yesterday:
It IS time to panic in Cleveland: Generally, getting blown out in an early season game is not as bad as it seems at the time (see "on to Cincinnati") but this game had an ominous vibe to it. Certain organizations (like the Pats and Spurs) have demonstrated that setting the right organizational tone, and having super competent guys running the ship, is almost essential for any kind of prolonged success ...especially in the NFL when it "takes a village" as opposed to a couple of stars that dominate (like the NBA). One had to question the move of The Browns promoting Freddie Kitchens to the role of head coach despite almost no relevant experience (he'd never been a head coach at any level or an NFL coordinator). Naming a guy head coach because your outspoken and temperamental QB thinks its a good idea could be seen by detractors as "letting the inmates run the asylum" If you are a Browns fan, yesterday is your worst nightmare ,,, one of the most undisciplined performances seen in the NFL in a long time with ridiculous unsportsmanlike conduct penalties and a total of 18 penalties for 182 yards ...YIKES! Add in the fact that the O-line looked very shaky (who thought the Ziegler trade was a good idea with a short QB that needs protection up the middle?) and the Browns had to sell out to stop the run on "d" and thus exposed themselves to big plays through the air with man coverage and no safety help at all (from Marcus Mariota, nonetheless) and one could conclude that this all spells T-R-O-U-B-L-E. We''ll see. At the very least, the # of Browns Fans booking Super Bowl trips is plummeting.
The running game is alive and well in the NFL: What do all of the teams that had surprisingly effective offensive performances have in common? They all have extremely effective running games (at least as of now). Both in the aforementioned case of the Titans versus the Browns and the Ravens dismantling of the Dolphins (and the "coming out party" of one Lamar Jackson) the threat of the running game caused the opposing defense to expose themselves to one-on-one matchups with no safety help and easy reads / throws and catches. Jackson and Mariota may not be able to pick apart complicated zone packages, but give a guy one-on-ones in space with time to throw and almost any NFL QB will prosper. Of course, Jackson did even better than that and was deadly accurate with his throws. Marquise Brown looked like the star that he was at Oklahoma. The Ravens suddenly look dangerous (although they did beat a team that would be lucky to win 3 games this year ..we'll see what happens against a better opponent.
Meanwhile ...in Minnesota they didn't even bother with the passing part of it, It has been the Stephanski / Zimmer plan all along to combine a stingy "d" with an effective running game (with some Cousins play action sprinkled in), and after importing some help on the OL (including #1 pick Garrett Bradbury), enjoying relative health on the OL in addition to a healthy Delvin Cook ..the blueprint now looks pretty formidable. Rookie Alexander Mattison also looks like an effective option to spell Cook and keep him fresh. Don't sleep on the Vikings!
The Patriots are scary good Actually, this is no surprise to me. I've been telling anyone who would listen that this rookie class is the best of the Belichick era and the defense looked very physical and dominant in the pre-season. Et voila! The utter destruction of a Steelers team that could still win the AFC Central. The Antonio Brown gamble becomes even more significant now that it has been firmly established that The Pats were the team to beat without him. The only danger (other than an AB84 toxic meltdown) is that The Pats enjoyed an almost injury free 2nd half of last season. This year they are already down 2 starters on the one part of their team with limited depth ..the O-Line. It has been demonstrated time and again that the way to beat the Patriots is to force Brady "off the spot" with a conventional pass rush and make him uncomfortable. They may be one Isaiah Wynn injury away from a full blown OL crisis.
Jimmy G's enshrinement in Canton remains on hold: Another shaky day from the once heir apparent, and suddenly the fortunes of the 49ers (with their improved defense) are being held hostage by his relative incompetence. Can he revert to his form of 2017 or is the beginning of the Nick Mullens era closer than we think? Stay tuned.
No resolution to the Josh Allen enigma: Is Josh Allen the "glass half empty" guy would was inaccurate in college and at times seems like he couldn't the broadside of a barn (see 1st half versus Jets) or the "glass half full" guy, a natural leader in a proto-typical NFL body (including arm) who is destined to be a star once he improves his accuracy? Not sure ..although if forced to answer that question I'd probably choose the former ...it's not often that an inaccurate QB suddenly becomes accurate. Anyway, great comeback engineered by him yesterday (albeit against a hyper-conservative Jets offensive plan that almost completely ignored the space more than 5 yards beyond the line of scrimmage). The Bills are an interesting team. Stout D and an emerging running game with a promising young back (for the love of God ..someone please tell Shawn McDermott & company that Frank Gore is 10 years past his prime). If Allen can hold it together, a wild card berth is not out of the question ..but then again, the "glass half empty" Josh Allen could throw them out of any chance of a winning season.
Shady McCoy looked relevant again ..... nice to see
The Jameis Winston / Bruce Arians pairing off to an ugly start: Some are calling for the heads of both Winston and Arians after Week One. Here is my take on the whole thing ... there is no denying the trend that play-action is the solution for many QBs who cannot thrive in an offense without a running game. There are so many QBs that are clearly better when presenting the dual threat of run / pass (Mariota, Jackson, Cousins, Goff quickly come to mind). Bruce Arians has made a career of building offenses around a running game and a complimentary vertical passing game off of play action. I guess the thinking in TB was that since Winston has decent stats on downfield throws, putting him in the Arians system might resurrect his career. However, I'm not buying it. TB tried this yesterday (run on running downs and throw off play action ..except there are two big issues with this 1) Tampa had one of the worst running games in the NFL last year. Granted, it was slightly better than that yesterday (and the first signs of the USC version of Ronald Jones were encouraging), but I have a tough time believing that there is much hope of the running game being a strength. As a result, they were left yesterday (especially with the addition of penalties) in a bunch of difficult down and distance situations ..and those didn't turn out well generally. 2) Winston doesn't seem like he will ever be effective taking snaps under center and then standing in the pocket and making traditional reads. He just doesn't seem comfortable or able to deliver the ball on time to the right place. I feel like putting him in this system is like putting a square peg in a round hole. It will be interesting to see if Arians ever reverts to the wide open, shotgun based approach from last year where Winston had some success (although it was a mixed bag ..he still turned the ball over a lot). He actually made some good throws yesterday on the move and from the gun ..but the disastrous interceptions are what everyone is focusing on. One of them was OJ Howard's fault ...another player that seems ill suited to a conventional approach... and the 2nd was a product of botched timing between Winston and Barber that lead to an easy Richard Sherman pick 6. The last one that broke the backs of TB ...that summarized everything that is discouraging about Winston in one play. Anyway, the point being ..Bruce, loosen up. Let him sling the ball around one last time, let the playmakers run around in space, help him to see the field better ...if (when?) he fails, at least it will be on his own terms.
