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The Patriots did not have a single penalty for the first time in franchise history. New England has won 13 straight regular-season games vs. the NFC Michael Lombardi

Bookmark and Share Print This Send This October 27, 2008, 05:39 PM EST
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MONDAY’S TAVERN TALK….

MAJOR INJURIES

RUNNING BACKS Jamaal Charles, Kansas City Chiefs - sprained ankle -

FULLBACKS Tony Richardson, New York Jets - undisclosed -  Justin Griffith, Oakland Raiders - undisclosed - Jerome Felton, Detroit Lions - leg -

WIDE RECEIVERS Arnaz Battle, San Francisco 49ers - sprained foot - Josh Reed, Buffalo Bills - strained Achilles' - Glenn Holt, Cincinnati Bengals - shoulder -

TIGHT ENDS Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys - ribs - L.J. Smith, Philadelphia Eagles - concussion - Delanie Walker, San Francisco 49ers - elbow -

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN Barry Sims, San Francisco 49ers - sprained ankle Greg Warren, Pittsburgh Steelers - knee - out

DEFENSIVE LINEMEN Leonard Little, St. Louis Rams - hamstring - Jamaal Anderson, Atlanta Falcons - undisclosed - Jonathan Fanene Cincinnati Bengals - hamstring - Domata Peko, Cincinnati Bengals - ankle -

LINEBACKERS Lofa Tatupu, Seattle Seahawks - groin - Brendon Ayanbadejo, Baltimore Ravens - ankle - Rashad Jeanty, Cincinnati Bengals - foot - David Harris New York Jets - undisclosed -

DEFENSIVE BACKS Anthony Henry, Dallas Cowboys - quadriceps - Likely out Week 9 Ryan Clark, Pittsburgh Steelers - shoulder - Quentin Jammer, San Diego Chargers - undisclosed - Ellis Hobbs, New England Patriots- shoulder - Jermaine Phillips, Tampa Bay Buccaneers - arm - Deltha O'Neal, New England Patriots - undisclosed - Allen Rossum, San Francisco 49ers - hamstring

I’M BUYING A ROUND FOR THE HEAD COACH OF THE WEEK…

TOM COUGHLIN                       NEW YORK GIANTS

Yes, I know he has one of the best teams, but what has impressed me about the job Tom is doing is his ability to handle Plaxico Burress and not let it affect the team.  He is using a very simple leadership strategy called the “Law of Threes”.  On each team there are three types of players.  The first are the ones that will do anything that is asked, willing to help the program.  The second group are the undecided players, the players that are not sure what to do.  And the third are the malcontents.  These are the players that want to buck the system all the time, and try to breakdown the team.  As a leader, there is a tendency to try and win over the players in group three, by trying to make them happy. But all that does is move the players from group two into group three, and cause you to start to lose the players in group one.  What Coughlin has done is focus on group one.  He pays no attention to group three and what has resulted is that Plaxico is on an island and no one wants to join him.  The team is bigger than Plaxico.  Mike Singletary needs to follow this advice.    

I’M BUYING A ROUND FOR AN ASSISTANT COACH OF THE WEEK…

BRIAN STEWART                                 DALLAS COWBOYS

This has been a tough week for Brian Stewart.  He had to deal with all the talk about the poor play of the defense and that Wade Phillips was going to call the plays.  Add in the fact that the Cowboys were facing a very hot quarterback in Jeff Garcia and a hot offense in the Tampa Bay Bucs.  The Cowboys played their best game of the season on defense, holding the Bucs to only nine points.  They played exceptional in the red zone area, limiting the Bucs to three field goals.   I am sure Wade has been involved all season as it is his defense, but this week, Stewart got the players to focus on their assignments and play with passion and intensity.  Not since the Thanksgiving day game against the Jets last year have the Cowboys played in a game and not allowed a touchdown. 

KARAOKE TIME…  WHAT HAPPENED? 

We’re approaching the halfway point of the season.  Last year, none of the 12 playoff teams had a losing record through 8 games.

2007 Playoff Teams

THROUGH 8 GAMES

AFC             W-L

1. Patriots     8-0

2. Colts        7-1

3. Chargers     4-4

4. Steelers     6-2

5. Jaguars      5-3

6. Titans       6-2

NFC             W-L

1. Cowboys      7-1

2. Packers      7-1

3. Seahawks     4-4

4. Buccaneers   4-4

5. Giants       6-2

6. Redskins     5-3

The Chargers fall to 3-5.  Only 5 of the 104 teams that started 3-5 since 1990 made the playoffs (4.8%)

 The Saints improve to 4-4.  38 of the 108 teams that started 4-4 since 1990 made the playoffs (35.2%)

 Started 3-5 and Reached Playoffs

SINCE 1990

                                            Final W-L                 Playoff W-L

'02 Jets                                    9-7                             1-1

'96 Jaguars                               9-7                              2-1

'95 Lions                                  10-6                            0-1

'94 Patriots                               10-6                            0-1

'90 Saints                                  8-8                             0-1

 38 teams started 4-4 and reached the playoffs

YOU HAVE TO WONDER…HOW ABOUT THESE STATS…

  1. Eli Manning: 0 INT in 5 of 7 games this season (0 INT in 4 games last season) Manning was not sacked for 2nd straight game and 3rd time this season
  2. The Texans have won 3 straight in a single season for the first time in team history. Andre Johnson: 4th straight 100-yd game (5th this season) Matt Schaub had a career-high passer rating of 144.0; 9 TD passes in his last 4 games
  3. The Patriots did not have a single penalty for the first time in franchise history.  New England has won 13 straight regular-season games vs. the NFC
  4. Washington quarterback Jason Campbell: 0 INT in 252 consecutive pass attempts dating back to last season.  Campbell: 4th career 300-yd game (2nd this season)
  5. For the first time this season, Terrell Owens led the Cowboys in receiving yards with 33. Owens was held under 100 receiving yards for the 11th straight game (longest streak for Owens since 1998-99); he's started the season with 8 straight games under 100 receiving yards for the first time since 1997, his 2nd NFL season.
  6. The Cowboys won despite scoring a season-low 13 points; the 13 points is their fewest in a win since defeating the Redskins 13-10 on Dec. 26, 2004.  Dallas has been held under 20 points in back-to-back games for the first time since Oct. 2005
  7. Matt Ryan: 4 TD, 5 INT in 4 career road games (Roddy White: 3rd straight 100 yard game.
  8. Philip Rivers: 5th 3-TD game this season, 3rd 300-yd game this season.  Chargers: 1-4 on road this season (2-1 at home) Chargers committed season-high 14 penalties
  9. The Jaguars lose despite having more first downs, total yards, rush yards, pass yards and time of possession; Jacksonville was 11-20 on 3rd down.  The Jaguars are the only team this season to have each game decided by 7 points or fewer
  10.  Steelers: 2nd loss in last 11 home games (1st home loss in last 10 games vs. the NFC) The Steelers were 1-10 on 3rd down, 0-4 on 4th down.  Pittsburgh’s defense did not have a sack for the 1st time this season.  Ben Roethlisberger: sacked 5 times, upping his total to 23 sacks this season (3rd in NFL)

Steelers Offense   SUNDAY

1st 3 Qtrs           4th Qtr

Points                        14                       0    

1st Downs                  12                       0

Total Yards                 247                     2

Turnovers                     2                       2

Sacks Allowed             3                       2

RAMBLING THOUGHTS

  1. When Pittsburgh lost their long snapper, Greg Warren, it was devastating for them.  It’s hard to always have two good snappers on the team.  The Steelers will have a long injury report this week.  When you build a size speed team like the Giants, you have a better chance of dealing with injuries.  Hint for Detroit: build a size speed team. 
  2. The Tampa defense is hard to score on unless you make big plays.  They are one of the best red zone teams in the NFL and they are one of the best tackling teams in the NFL.  Now, they just need a little offense. 
  3. I think Joey Galloway is still an amazing player.  His burst and his speed are still very rare.  They just need to get him the ball.  And yesterday, Garcia was back into that “jumping around in the pocket” mode.  It will be a long week for Jeff dealing with “Love You Bro” Gruden. 
  4. Herm “Lets Build Something Together” Edwards had the Chiefs ready and in position to win the game.  His team played hard and with passion.  They are just not talented enough to make plays in the clutch. 
  5. What does that say for a Jets defense that allowed 24 points to a team that has scored fewer than 21 points in the last 14 games?  I know Favre’s interception gave them seven, but the Chiefs did move the ball well all game.  
  6. Detroit and Cincinnati are just bad teams right now and I am not sure there is more than one win, if that, for them this year.  They are fighting for the first pick for sure. 
  7. The Chargers miss Shawn Merriman, BUT that is not the only reason they are not very good on defense.  They look soft, they look non physical and they don’t appear like they can turn it around.  Good thing they are in the AFC West--- where there is no dominating team.  3rd place in the AFC South would win the West. 
  8. When you are limited in the amount of protections you have in your arsenal, and you are limited in the amount of checks in your protections, the last team you want to play is the Baltimore Ravens.  They challenge even the best team’s protections schemes.  The Raiders have seven road wins since 2003. 
  9. The Cardinals are close to being a viable playoff team, they have to find some balance in their offense.  Right now, they are the NFL version of Texas Tech as the fate of the game always resides in the quarterbacks hands.  They need a running back. 
  10. Going into the 49ers game, the Seahawks had been outscored 98-26 on the road this year.  The 49ers have to fix their offensive line—no matter who the coach might be—it is a talent problem. 

LET’S HAVE A TOAST TODAY

To Dick Juaron, the head coach of the Bills, who was rewarded with a new contract.  This is a smart move by the Bills front office, as they now have the team and the coach in place to make a run at a Super Bowl. 

HEY BARTENDER, WHAT’S ON TAP TONIGHT?          

INDY AT TENNESSEE

The Titans always play the Colts tough, even when they are not as talented as they are this year.  The Titans have a good handle on how to defend this offense. 

The Colts have won 7 straight MNF games…in 12 career games vs. TEN, Peyton Manning is 8-4 with 20 TD and 10 INT…in his career on MNF, Manning is 9-2 with 23 TD and 10 INT…

Manning’s 60.7 comp pct, 6.8 yards per attempt, 80.0 passer rating are his lowest since his rookie season in 1998…

Reggie Wayne:  17 receptions in last 2 games vs. TEN…Marvin Harrison; 259 receiving yards, TD in last 2 games vs. TEN…

After being 6th in rush defense in 2007 (106.9), the Colts run defense surrenders 153.5 YPG this season – they rank 28th in the NFL…

The Colts rank dead last in rushing offense (70.0 YPG)… And when they play outside, this problem shows up even further. 

Including this week, over the next 5 weeks, the Colts play the unbeaten Titans, the Patriots, AFC North leading Steelers, the Texans and the Chargers, who beat Indy twice last season.

The Titans defense has allowed 66 points this season…Kerry Collins has won 6 straight starts for the Titans…Collins is 2-1 in his career vs. the Colts (threw for 4 TD in a win back in 2002)…Collins is 1-7 as a starter on MNF in his career…

Tennessee set a franchise record with 332 rush yards last week…

LenDale White has a rushing TD in 5 of the last 6 games; his 8 rush TD this season are 1 more than he had all of last season.  White’s 8 rush TDs are the most in a season since Eddie George had 12 in 2002…

Chris Johnson leads the AFC with 16 rushes of 10+ yards…

Comments

Add a Comment
Mr.Murder
Oct 27, 2008
07:10 PM

Jauron has always been a class act, if one can determine solely by his interviews.

Jeff Garcia made happy feet esctatic with his attempts to run upfield everyu time Dallas widened their rush lanes. They basically invited him into the lanes and closed them late in the game. He left some routes and points on the field by rushing into those lanes and denying his team time to work a weak secondary down.

Was it the Tampa WR matchup, or are the young Dallas DB making some plays? Their young corner was hitting pretty hard from what I could determine.

Patspsycho
Oct 27, 2008
07:42 PM

Cassel is developing poise in the pocket. Checking down much faster these days. Fans in New England are excited about the Pat's 11 picks in the next draft, but make that 12 because Cassel is gone if he keeps getting better.

b roo
Oct 27, 2008
08:27 PM

Murder,
Dallas has some really good young CBs. Jenkins, Scandrick and Ball are all probably better or at least as good as Pac and Henry. T-New was the best but he's getting older and even he may not be as good as the young uns. Additionally, Watkins is better than R. Williams. As Lombardi says, sometimes it is addition by subtraction cuz the guys behind are better players.

Nikos
Oct 27, 2008
10:36 PM

Mike,
To add to your "YOU HAVE TO WONDER…HOW ABOUT THESE STATS…" on the Patriots, the offense actually hasn't had a penalty over the last two games. They have really gone back to the basics and cleaned things up over the last two weeks since the San Diego debacle. Ipressive.

DL
Oct 27, 2008
11:45 PM

I give NE credit for winning without Brady but their schedule is still jokes.

BabyJ
Oct 28, 2008
03:56 AM

b roo,

*cough* knee jerk *cough*
Dallas' young corners played well, but to say they are better than established veterans after one game is a little premature. What we do know about these guys:
-Scandrick definitely looks the best of the bunch. There is a legitimate chance that he takes the slot position away from Newman when Dallas goes to nickle (Newman would stay on the outside). -Jenkins played terribly against the Rams a week ago; inexplicably not covering not covering his assignment on a couple of plays. He had a better game this week, although he gave up some completions in the first half. Made some nice breaks on the ball in the second.
-Alan Ball didn't bite on a double move by Galloway which showed he was prepared. However, from what I saw from him in the preseason, he is probably just another Jacque Reeves (which isn't bad as your 5th corner).

Watkins is NOT better than Roy. Both he and Brown are mediocre cover safeties that can't provide a lick of run support. Compounded with the fact that when either of these two play, Ken Hamlin is forced into the ss spot, one can easily can see that the D is better with Roy in. He may give up plays in the secondary from time to time, but he provides excellent run support (notice how the Cowboys run D has been suspect since he's been injured) and allows Ken Hamlin to make plays at the FS (which is his more natural position).

Sonny L.
Oct 28, 2008
08:45 AM

How do the Pats win in spite of Ellis Hobbs at CB?? This guy is BRUTAL... Even Belichick can't hide this guy out there. QB's salivate getting ready to play against him...

b roo
Oct 28, 2008
10:06 AM

BabyJ
Its not just one game. Jenkins has been playing all year. He had a couple of bad plays in StL but was really good in GB. He hasn't made as many mistakes as T-New or Henry have this year, who have both looked really bad so far. When T-New gets healthy he SHOULD be the best CB though. The Roy debate is unending and I see both sides, guess I'm just tired of seeing him get beat in coverage.

Danny
Oct 28, 2008
01:52 PM

Wow--two rookies and a guy who has spent almost his entire career on the practice squad better than henry and pac? Agreed, that is ridiculously knee jerk--they played one good game, do you really expect them to do the same to the Giants? The G-men have an EXPLOSIVE offense, capable of huge plays at any time. Pac was out of all aspects of the league for more than a year, we all knew it would take some time for him to adjust, and he was improving before he washed down 40 stupid pills with a bottle of Patron; Henry has been pretty solid, but he never has been an elite corner. Alan Ball played great, but again, he has been on the practice squad for a reason, and I am thrilled that Scandrick and Jenkins are growing up quickly, but like Mike said, Tampa does not have an explosive offense.

The game against the Giants is scary, especially with no Henry and no Witten. In order to win, the Boys need a big play or ten from then QB position, and I don't think they will get that, if the previous two games Brad Johnson "played" are any indication. He is not being given an opportunity to make these plays for a reason, because HE CAN'T MAKE THEM.

The Cowboys have the slightest of chances to win, but they will need more than 13 points and the defense to play at an even higher level, including multiple turnovers forced--don't think it will happen, maybe they can tap into Eli Manning circa 2004-about middle 2007.

Yoon-Jae Lee
Nov 07, 2008
02:52 PM

I like your analysis of Coughlin's method of dealing with plax. However, I don't know if the same approach would work for a young, developing player like Vernon Davis. Plaxico has been producing at a satisfactory rate (even better during last years championship run), and so his ability is a known quantity. As long as Plax gets his act together off the field (admittedly a tall order), things will come around for the team.

Vernon, however, may need more of a disciplinary approach to get his play on the field up to satisfactory level. He has issues with lack of discipline (and occasionally, outright stupidity)during games. I think Singletary was on the right track, he just went too far. Had he stopped after sending Davis to the locker room, and avoided calling him out to the press, he would have sent a strong message to the player and the team without alienating them.

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