QUOTE: “The major difference between a thing that might go wrong and a thing that cannot possibly go wrong is that when a thing that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong, it usually turns out to be impossible to get at or repair.” -- Douglas Adams, author, “Mostly Harmless”
Tonight, week one of the preseason ends. So what have we learned? Have we learned anything about certain players, certain teams or certain coaches? Mondays mornings at the Diner are always the day we make a few observations...
Did anyone watch HBO’s “Hard Knocks” last week? If you did, you saw Roy Williams, the former Cowboy, get his ass kicked in the one-on-one drill, which made me feel stupid for thinking he might be able to play linebacker down in the box. How can he be so non-physical? He’s bad on the third level. He’s not physical in the box, and so what do you have?
If you watched the show, you know that owner Mike Brown is in charge of that organization in terms of player personnel. He was running a meeting, and as they decided on the roster, Brown told the coaches what his decisions were. He owns the team, so he can do whatever he wants. Oftentimes in these settings, the coaches tell the owner what he wants to hear, which does not help anyone. Brown is a very smart man who will listen, but he needs to have coaches speak their minds honestly in the room, not after they leave. …
APGarrett Hartley
Garrett Hartley, the kicker for the Saints, tested positive for Adderall and will serve a four-game suspension when the regular season begins. That’s significant: He didn’t miss a kick all of last season. Previously, when Martin Gramatica was with them, he missed three kicks in the 40-yard range and cost them the Broncos game. John Carney gives the Saints a reliable option this year. …
Rex Grossman (hamstring) is out 4-5 weeks, which means he’s not going to be the No. 2 quarterback for the Texans. That role belongs to Dan Orlovsky. The Texans (and our Matt Bowen) must hope Matt Schaub stays healthy. One way or another, one game will determine the AFC South, and if the backup loses that game, the Texans (and Bowen) will be devastated. …
How can anyone in the Browns organization think those brown pants look good? Where’s the tradition? Where is the uniform that all of America has come to know? I hate when traditional uniforms are changed. …
The drops are apparently continuing with Browns wide receiver Braylon Edwards, who dropped a sure-fire touchdown this past weekend against the Packers. …
Jets wide receiver David Clowney might be all-preseason two years in a row. He needs to stay healthy so he can help the Jets’ very thin wide receiver corps. …
Defensive tackle Roy Miller, the third-round pick of the Bucs, is really going to help their interior defense this year and is a perfect fit in the Jim Bates defense. …
Do you think wide receiver/returner Julian Edelman, the Patriots’ seventh-round pick, turned some heads this weekend with his performance? Claiming anyone good from the Patriots off the waiver wire will be impossible as the Chiefs hold the third claim and will beat most teams to the player. …
I’m second-guessing myself for not making defensive tackle Tony Brown of the Titans a blue-chip player (see the NFC East/North in today’s Tavern) last week. He’s very good, and I think the Titans are even better than a year ago. …
The Packers’ second-round pick in ’08, quarterback Brian Brohm, needs to step up his game in the coming three weeks. His performance against the Browns was less than impressive. …
Remember last year when Ryan Torain was going to be the Broncos’ next star runner? He was waived last week after being unable to stay healthy during his professional career. Durability is as an important as ability. …
APMark Sanchez
Mark Sanchez will be starting on opening day for the Jets, at least in my mind. Matt Stafford of the Lions looks like he will, too, although I’m not 100-percent certain about that one -- yet. …
Peyton Manning getting sacked three times in his brief stint in the Colts’ preseason opener is shocking. If it happens this week, it will be alarming. …
Watching the games last weekend, I had a sense that more teams are playing them with a larger sense of purpose. Opening weekend is normally a relaxed setting, but this past weekend it seemed to have a slightly more intense feel. …
If Giants wide receiver Ramses Barden can escape press coverage and make yards after the catch, this will make the Giants even more explosive on offense. The G-Men wide receivers must run well with the ball after the catch tonight.
Julian Edelman was drafted by the New England Patriots in the seventh round (232nd overall) of the 2009 NFL Draft.
Mike - Julian Edelman was a 7th round pick for the Pats, not 3rd round.
Julian Edelman was a 7th round pick by the Patriots not a 3rd round pick.
"Watching the games last weekend, I had a sense that more teams are playing them with a larger sense of purpose. Opening weekend is normally a relaxed setting, but this past weekend it seemed to have a slightly more intense feel. …"
Do you think it has anything to do with a larger-than-usual number of first year coaches + veteran coaches that are on the hot seat? I'm counting at least 20 coaches from both of these categories that have something to prove.
Julian Edelman improved his chances of making the Pats' squad, as did Aaron Brown, the rookie out of Texas Christian for the Lions. I don't think Coach Schwartz likes back flips too much though. I think Ramses Barden will be even better than Plax, but we'll see how it goes tonight. It's hard to fathom Peyton Manning getting sacked three times, I'm really shocked that Saturday, Diem and Company allowed that to happen, but then again, the Vikings' defense is awesome! Thanks again, Lombardi. Have a good day!
Mike - your comments on Brohm fall into "Understatement of the Year" territory. I'll call it right now; if that kid doesn't make a REALLY good showing next week, he will not make the roster. GB has too many log jams at other positions this year (LB is going to be brutal) to keep a QB that hasn't shown any real potential at all since his arrival. Flynn is nobody's starter but he's shown some game. Brohm has shown nothing, nada, and I'd say zip but he hasn't shown that either.
Caught a good amount of Titans reps, around a two mile track visit at halftime.
Their rookie wideout made some good plays and took some tough hits. The team is so well coached and their D line really was handling a good bit of the game, and there was depth there still. Great defensive backfield chemistry is at work there.
The Bucs QB have a big veteran and a big rookie. The experienced one of the two had some trouble dealing in game management, he did that pretty well in the prior appearances with the Steelers. It is clear that the team will employ more verticle emphasis, he took shots when the chance was there and the team is looking to fuel up some scoring chances.
The Bucs appear to have found a pretty tough down lineman as well, can he combine with a secondary that has a good mix of experience and young talent? Trending away from cover two types of overachievers, towards people with higher draft status.
Brohm reminds me of Tim Couch's brief preseason stint with the Packers, which ex-Packer GM Mike Sherman shelled out $600K for a looksee at that disaster. Couch literally couldn't get the ball past the line of scrimmage.
A couple of years ago, Brohm was hailed as the most NFL ready QB in the draft. At the time, I thought the Packers made a good pick taking him in the second round. He's not gonna cut it. He's moving and scanning the field in slow motion. Scott M is dead on: the Packers are better off cutting Brohm and going into the season with an extra linebacker or running back. Like probably 30 other teams, if the starting QB, Rodgers, goes down, season's over anyway. Go with two QBs. If Rodgers goes down, make the call and get Favre up here to back up Flynn :)
Sorry Pete - #4 as a backup? Ain't gonna happen.
Without Rodgers our beloved Packers will be in trouble - but that was true most of #4's seasons too. Couch had no arm left, but Brohm is only behind the curve at this level. He could catch up & be a difference maker. I bet they keep him.
Mike Brown has proven in the past he doesn't want anybody but "Yes men" around him. He doesn't want honest feedback from coaches and he doesn't ask their opinion. He gave Marvin control of the team when he was hired and spent the next several years slowly taking it away. Signing Chris Henry last year was the final act of Marvin's castration.
Mike Brown may be smart on some level, but not as a football man and not as a leader. Part of being a good leader is surrounding yourself with smart people who will come up with new ideas. Brown has surrounded himself with family members and yes men.
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Aug 17, 2009
11:35 AM
Nice shout-out to Tony Brown, Mike. We in Nashville have know how good he is for a couple of years now. He got overshadowed by Haynesworth, but we have complete confidence in Brown sans Haynesworth.
You can play drinking games with his interviews, too. Drink up every time he says "of course".... HAAAAAAAAA Love the guy. Love me some Tony Brown!