The Young and the Ageless

Can it truly be a soap without Brett??

The new reality show coming to day time t.v for a limited time only starts Saturday at 4:35 eastern standard time. Starring familiar stars such as Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and Drew Brees and introducing a few up and comers such as Russel Wilson, Andrew Luck, Cam Newton and Collin Kaepernick.

The only true reality on television is back for another likely crazy weekend after a wildcard weekend where three of the four wildcard teams beat their divisional champion opponent. San Diego beat Cincinnati, New Orleans beat Philly and San Francisco beat Green bay for a very successful start for the low seeds in the this year’s postseason. Anyway, the only QB who wasn’t mentioned above as a great old timer or a young star with endless potential, is San Diego’s Phillip Rivers. Rivers has had one of the best seasons in the NFL though and shouldn’t be thought of as a slouch.

The cool disparity between the old farts and young dudes makes things just that much more interesting heading into the Divisional Playoffs this Saturday. Manning vs Rivers, Brees vs Wilson, Brady vs Luck, Kaepernick vs Newton…wow! Clearly the belief that defense wins championships is no longer the truth. Though 4 of the 8 teams are actually in the top 10 in terms of overall defense it clearly comes down to who you have behind center. 5 of the best rated QBs in the league are still around in the second week of the playoffs and 2 of those that aren’t in the top 10 are Tom Brady and Andrew Luck.

That all said, Joe Flacco won the Superbowl last season and I think he is one of the biggest frauds in the NFL. So much is determined by injuries and if you peak as a team at the right time and so on.

Predictions:

Saints 24 – Seahawks 21

Patriots 35 – Colts 27

49ers 17 – Panthers 10

Broncos 31 – Chargers 24

PLEASE leave your predictions in the comments and bragging rights to whoever gets closest to being right!

---

Make sure you follow @cover32_cle and @cover32_NFL on Twitter for all the latest breaking news, columns, blogs and features from the Browns and the entire NFL.

Third Quarter Power Rankings: (Part One)

By the Caveman

32. Houston Texans (2-10) – Kubiak will be gone and the Texans will have themselves a nice #1 overall pick by season’s end.

31. Atlanta Falcons (3-9) – Were in the NFC Championship last year, and now are competing for worst in the league.

30. Cleveland Browns (4-8) – Should think of changing their name to the Josh Gordons. 

29. Washington Redskins (3-9) – Another team likely to fire their head coach.

28. Minnesota Vikings (3-8-1) – It’s all about QB here. Or the lack thereof.

27. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-9) – Won 3 of their last 4 games…how’s that for a 3rd-quarter turnaround?

26. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-9) – Also trending upwards in an impressive way.

25. Buffalo Bills (4-8) – Merely playing this season out and looking forward to the reasonably bright future of QB EJ Manuel.

24. Oakland Raiders (4-8) – Just try to come up with one positive thing to say about this team. I dare you.

23. New York Jets (5-7) – Geno Smith is finally looking like the pathetic QB we thought he was.

22. Tennessee Titans (5-7) – Dropping rapidly and a visit to Denver coming up doesn’t help.

21. Pittsburg Steelers (5-7) – Turned their season around, but it’s too little and much too late.

20. New York Giants (5-7) – Can you believe that they still could win their division?

19. St. Louis Rams (5-7) – Have great pieces in place, but need help to pull it all together.

18. San Diego Chargers (5-7) – Drop a 41 at Arrowhead and yet only manage 10 at home vs. Cincy? I still don’t understand this team.

17. Green Bay Packers (5-6-1) – They can do nothing without their superstar QB…a fitting example of what would happen to the Broncos if PFM goes down.

16. Baltimore Ravens (6-6) – Have a very difficult schedule going forward, and will likely miss the playoffs.

15. Miami Dolphins (6-6) – I believe the Fins emerge from the muddled AFC wildcard race and snag the 6th seed.

14. Chicago Bears (6-6) – Still alive and kicking. Not many teams that lose a starting QB for weeks could say the same.

13. Dallas Cowboys (7-5) – They just barely manage to beat bad teams. Not convinced.

12. Philadelphia Eagles (7-5) – Nick Foles certainly looks amazing, but don’t put him up on the superstar level just yet.

11. Arizona Cardinals (7-5) – Playing their butts off, and it’s paying huge dividends…they just might snag a wildcard with some help from the 49ers.

Courtesy – Ruthlessreviews.com

10. Detroit Lions (7-5) – When the Lions decide to play a full game, they are tough to beat.

9. Cincinnati Bengals (8-4) – Basically guaranteed a playoff spot, and the Broncos should hope their first matchup is against them.

8. Indianapolis Colts (8-4) – See above.

7. Kansas City Chiefs (9-3) – See above.

6. San Francisco 49ers (8-4) – Need to play with urgency if they want to make the competitive NFC playoffs.

5. New England Patriots (9-3) – Only claim to fame is that they beat the Broncos. But it took them 72 minutes and required Manning’s worst game of the season.

4. New Orleans Saints (9-3) – A blowout in Seattle is a minor setback.

3. Carolina Panthers (9-3) – Ron Rivera is one guy definitely not worried about his job.

2. Denver Broncos (10-2) – Faced the roughest 4-game stretch imaginable, and were a special-teams fluke away from winning every game.

1. Seattle Seahawks (11-1) – I had the Broncos here…until Monday night. That was impressive.

 

 

 

4 Reasons the Broncos are #1 Again

By The Caveman

 

Denver is 8-1, and just beat the Chargers with a pedestrian (by Broncos standards)

Broncos alternate logo (1997–present) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

final score of 28-20. That looks close on paper, and some might wonder if the Broncos are slipping. Winning by only 8 vs a .500 team? Are the best days of the 2013 Broncos behind us?

 

No. If anything, this win solidifies my confidence in this Broncos team. Sunday was a display of their championship-favorite status. My reasoning:

 

1. The Chargers are better than their record. San Diego has been good at times, great at others. Even with this loss to the Broncos, they still have a very solid chance of getting the last AFC Wild Card spot. They are a better team than any of their Wild Card competitors (Dolphins, Jets, Titans, etc). Beating them is not an easy task, and Denver did it.

 

 

2. The game was never in doubt. The Broncos were up comfortably at halftime, and the Chargers scored their only two touchdowns in what was very nearly garbage time. They came within 8 points, at which time the Broncos shut them down. That’s the way dominant teams play (see the 1998 Denver Broncos): get a strong early lead, and don’t let the opponent recover. The come-from-behind 3rd quarter blowouts we’ve been seeing lately are much more worrying to me than a steady lead-nursing game.

 

 

3. They did it on the road. Granted, half the stadium was in orange, but that comes with being the best team in the NFL including an all-time great at QB. It was still a hostile stadium with a loud crowd when Denver lined up on offense. They still owned the Chargers.

 

 

4. This was as close as it gets to a team win. We all know that if PFM goes down, the Broncos are finished. But we also know that if the entire team is completely and utterly dependent on him, that will not turn out well either. On Sunday, the run game looked solid. At least solid enough to keep some pressure off Manning, which is all you need in today’s NFL. The defense (as always) had holes in the passing game, but the amount of pressure they put on Rivers was Super Bowl worthy. If the defense consistently plays well enough to keep a very good offense to 20 points, the Broncos can start planning the parade now.

san diego chargers (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Denver has a tough 3-game stretch coming up, playing KC at SAFAMH (Sports Authority Field at Mile High), followed by NE on the road, and then travelling to Arrowhead for another rumble with the Chiefs. That said, I’d go so far as to say that I’d be shocked if the Chiefs beat them even once, and very surprised if the Pats can muster a win.

 

These Broncos are for real. The Lombardi trophy (if Manning stays healthy) is coming to town.

 

NFL Second Quarter Power Rankings (Part 2)

According to Kevin G

32. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-8) – Tell me one good thing about this team and I’ll tell you you’re a liar.

31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-8) – They ARRRRR bad.. OK forget the pirate joke…Greg Schiano will be the first coach fired and it will be soon.

30. Minnesota Vikings (1-7) – They have one of the most talented players in the last decade in Peterson but the rest of the team combined only MIGHT equal his talent.

29. Philadelphia Eagles (3-5) – The Iggles are quickly becoming the laughing stock of the NFL. Chip Kelly’s revolutionary offense has been the worst in football the last three weeks…Matt Barkley may have nice hair but gosh he’s a bad QB.

28. Atlanta Falcons (2-5) – My superbowl pick…this team has all but given up on the season and the one guy I feel sorry for is Tony Gonazalez.

27. Houston Texans (2-5) – Who has more pick sixes: The Texans in the last 7 weeks or the Denver Broncos in the last 5 years?…hmmmm

26. St Louis Rams (3-5) – I had to look twice to make sure this team really was 3-5. They are devoid of offensive talent and now Kellen Clemons is their starting QB. Gurgle gurgle puke!

25. Pittsburgh Steelers (2-5) – Maybe they should have been lower…I mean to get beat by the Raiders…fairly easily? C’mon man!

24. Washington Redskins (2-5) – Boy they got shallacked in the second half vs the Broncos. This team just doesn’t look to be on the same page. Shanahan’s time in Washington may be short.

23. New York Giants (2-5) – The last two weeks have actually been fairly decent for the Giants and they’re playing like a team that somehow has a chance to win the horrible NFC East.

22. Buffalo Bills (3-5) – This team doesn’t win many games but it seems like the put up a tough fight in every match. This week against the Chiefs could be verrrry interesting!

21. Cleveland Browns (3-5) – The Browns are my boys and they put up one heck of a game against the Chiefs but they just aren’t a winning team. According to Profootballfocus.com 3 of the Brown’s WRs (Bess, Little and Gordon) are in the bottom 20 of dropped passes…hmmmm

20. Tennessee Titans (3-4) – Titans are occasionally beastly on defense and occasionally look good on offense…key word being ‘occasionally’.

19. Oakland Raiders (3-4) – The Raiders do some things that I like. Pryor is a baller and this team could be somewhat scary within the next few years. Right now they are a 6 win team at best.

18. Miami Dolphins (3-4) – Not sure they belong this high after losing 4 straight games and giving up a big lead against the Pats on Sunday. This O line is legendarily bad!

17. Dallas Cowboys (4-4) – Gut…punch…I can’t imagine how the Dallas offense feels after putting up what should have been the winning points with one minute left then to have the Lions come back and win the game on a fake spike?…Bummer

16. Baltimore Ravens (3-4) – Baltimore traded away their team so they could pay a mediocre quarterback. Well done boys!

15. Arizona Cardinals (4-4) – I don’t know what to say about this team. If they had a real QB who didn’t turn the ball over 3 times a game, they could be in a real fight for the good NFC West.

14. New York Jets (4-4) – What the heck is this team? I heard one analyst ask if this team has taken on the personality of it’s coach…nuts.

13. Chicago Bears (4-3) – Really don’t deserve to be this high on a power rankings but they’ve done good things at points this year. Cutler being gone could kill their season.

12. New England Patriots (6-2) – I get they have 6 wins….but gosh this team hasn’t looked good yet this year.

11. San Diego Chargers (4-3) – If not for PFM, Phillip Rivers would be the first half MVP. Mike McCoy should be runner up for coach of the year as well.

10. Carolina Panthers (4-3) – This team is SCARY right now. A team with an attitude a VERY good defense and an offense that can put up some real points. This is a playoff team.

9. Detroit Lions (5-3) – If this team can start winning games like they did against Dallas they could be frightening. A prolific offense with the second best offensive player in the game in Johnson.

8. Green Bay Packers (5-2) – Good team, great QB but some brutal brutal injuries. This team could have a tough second half.

7. San Francisco 49ers (6-2) – Their offense is fairly underwhelming but their D is one of the best in the league and Kaepernick should be able to win games.

6. Cincinnati Bengals (6-2) – They started the season looking OK but recently they’ve looked great and have become one of the top three or four teams in the AFC.

5. Seattle Seahawks (7-1) – Absolutely deserved to lose Monday in St Louis. The O line is a real issue.

4. Indianapolis Colts (6-2) – Good defense, great QB and a coaching staff that seems capable of outcoaching teams week in and week out.

3. New Orleans Saints (6-1) – Offense as always is great but the biggest surprise is the defense that’s been one of the best in the league after a year where they were perhaps the worst D in football history. They could go far.

2. Kansas City chiefs (8-0) – OK so they’re 8-0, they haven’t looked like an 8-0 team and their offense just isn’t good enough for them to go deep into the playoffs. They have however been an incredible story and if they weren’t in the AFC west I would root for them.

1. Denver Broncos (7-1) – Ya they lost to the Colts (a very good team) and have struggled a little the last three weeks but this could be the greatest offense of all time with the greatest QB of all time and as Troy Aikeman said on Sunday “This team’s greatest strength could end up being their defense.”

The Curious Case of Von Miller

By the Caveman

 

 

 

If you’re a Denver Broncos fan, chances are you’ve heard of this guy, Von Miller. Some argue that he is the best defensive player the Broncos have ever had, and it’s not hard to agree. Champ Bailey has had a spectacular run with the Broncos, but the position he plays made it difficult to consistently dominate an offense. Atwater hit hard and was a fantastic leader, but was never best-player-in-the-NFL level. Linebackers Mecklenburg and Gradishar are the best Bronco defenders of all time in my opinion, and it is tough to compare a player that has played only 2 years to those that have played 10+.

But a quick projection (assuming 10 total years of play at his current prowess) comes out to 150 sacks. That’s 50 more sacks than Mecklenburg and Gradishar combined! I would even say that’s a moderately conservative projection, as generally sack machines don’t hit their stride until their 3rd or 4th year, and a 10-year career for Von Miller would have him retiring at a measly 32 years of age. Von Miller absolutely has the potential – perhaps even the expectation – to become the greatest defensive Bronco of all time.

NFL Week 3 – Broncos Status

By Eric “Caveman” Kosovich

Well, the first two games are in the books. In the history books, actually. The week 1 game saw Peyton Manning throw 7 TD passes…the last time someone did that was a mere 2 months after mankind first landed on the moon. In addition, PFM just passed the 60,000 yards passing mark. He is now 3rd all-time.

But enough about PFM – we hear about him all the time. What’s the status of our 2013 Denver Broncos as a team?

Taking Flack for Hanging Flacco

Well okay,  more like hanging a banner of Flacco. A HUGE image of Joe Flacco set by the NFL in the middle of Denver. Not just in the middle of Denver but on the Bronco’s stadium, Sports Authority Field at Mile High that faces 1-25 a major highway through the heart of Denver. My immediate reaction to the news was to find out how many eggs I have and how many I could spare to egg this monstrous banner. I would rarely promote breaking the law…but in the extreme circumstance I feel a bit of vandalism would be worth a night in jail.

I mean, who does this type of thing? Sure the Ravens got booted from their home opener by their home town family the Baltimore Orioles in the MLB. I don’t give a darn if they got their home game or not. If the NFL was so desperate for a Baltimore home game to start the season then do it on Sunday or another day that works for the team. Don’t send them to Denver and force the organization to treat it like a neutral field with the Ravens sharing home field.

(I’m getting more and more angry as I write this!)

This is Bronco territory. Home of John Elway, the Orange Crush, Peyton Freaking Manning. How dare the NFL try to make this into a comfortable situation for the Ravens. It’s not even that the Ravens, due to luck and some bad bad play late by the Broncos, booted the boys in orange to the curb in the playoffs with their overtime victory in last years Divisional Championship game. It’s the fact that the big wigs of the league can push around an organization and hang banners not related to the team that straight up tick off the entire fan base.

In an interview with 104.3 the Fan earlier today, Brian McCarthy the NFL Vice President of Corporate Communications, said , “We appreciate the fans’ passion and their desire to protect their team but think of this game as more of an opening ceremony, a celebration of the new season for the entire league,”

Bull ****! This is OUR town this is OUR team and we could give a rats furry back end about the “opening ceremony for the new season”.

The NFL also didn’t think this through as they posted similar signs on the 16th street mall in downtown Denver (not known to be regularly visited by the highest class of people). The annual rivalry game between the CU Buffs and the CSU Rams will also be held this Saturday and will feature a crowd filled with angry, drunk college students. I again, am a law abiding citizen and I generally obey the rules and am against those who don’t…but if some college students happen to spray paint or egg this hugely grotesque image,  you won’t see me crying.

The National Football League is turning into a power hungry dictatorship that will stop at nothing to get what it wants and will spit in your face while you’re down. I personally am a fan of the NFL but first I am a fan of the Denver Broncos and this is going too far. Let’s stand together Colorado Sports’ fans and tell the NFL just exactly where to stick their giant poster of Joe Flacco.

Roger Goodell, tear down that banner!

Gillikin’s Island: AFC Down-Trending Teams in 2013

By Kevin Gillikin  And The Skipper

 This is the first in a four-part series highlighting the NFL’s up-trending and down-trending teams heading into the 2013 season. Today we will go through the AFC Down-Trending Teams

With the NFL pre-season upon us, I thought it appropriate to open a discussion on the NFL’s top up-trending and down-trending teams heading into the 2013 season.

After hundreds of hours of watching game film, analyzing the draft and watching free-agent movements as well as the injury and waiver wires, I pretty much pulled this list out of my butt, a la Brandon Moore.  But I hope it’s a good launching point for discussion!

General Trends

First, I can’t stress enough just how thoroughly I think the NFC is going to dominate the AFC this year.

In my reading of things, the Broncos are the best team in football (no surprise there).  But going down the list, before you get to my second-best AFC team (Houston), there are as many as eight superior NFC teams:  Seattle, San Francisco, Green Bay, Atlanta, the New York Giants and possibly even Washington, New Orleans and St. Louis (although those last three are admittedly a stretch).

In this series, I’m going to go through the Top 4 up-trending and down-trending in each conference, but as you read the lists, keep the general “tide” in mind — the NFC as a conference is improving while the AFC, um, regroups.

Today’s feature covers the down-trending teams from this year’s Junior Varsity Conference.  Even if my picks are not 100% on target (and I think they are), the poetic justice for Broncos’ fans is so thick, I just couldn’t resist these four losers-to-be.

AFC Down-Trending Teams

#1 – New England Patriots

Bronco fans and all other non-Patriots’ fans, I’d like you to close your eyes for a moment, arms extended upward, palms up, head back and take a deep, deep breath.  Now exhale slowly and listen to what I’m about to say:

The Patriot Dynasty is dead.  Done.  Yesterday’s news.  Been on life-support for several years and Aaron Hernandez — how do I say this tactfully? — didn’t help.  The Patsies are no threat to make the Super Bowl and not that much of a threat to make the playoffs in my maybe-less-than-humble opinion.

Now if that’s not spiritually cleansing, I’m not sure what is.

And the best part is, I think it’s legit.  Hoodie sold his soul to the Devil and now it’s time to pay up.  NFL dynasties have a shelf life.  Eventually, they die.  It happened to the Lombardi dynasty, happened to Bill Walsh, happened to Mike Shanahan, now it’s happening to Bill Bellichik, much to the delight of, well, pretty much everybody.

The Pats have not put forth a stellar defense since their last Super Bowl win in 2005.  And yes, they will still throw out an elite offensive line and arguably the greatest quarterback in NFL history.  But to paraphase Tom Brady’s wife Gisele, “Who’s Tom going to throw to?  Himself?”

In my memory, I can’t remember a team being more thoroughly decimated at a position group than this year’s Patriots:  Hernandez, gone.  Gronkowski, a physical mess.  Lloyd, gone.  Welker, gone (bwahaha!).  Branch, gone.  Woodhead, gone.  All replaced by Danny Amendola?  OK, good start, but Tim Tebow at tight end?  Really?

Oh, and lest we forget, Tom Brady took a pay cut to keep Wes Welker.  Yeah, I’ll bet that  helped motivate those off-season workouts!

Sure, LaGarrette Blount and Leon Washington will add to the Patriots’ above average rushing attack from 2012, but that’s about the only bright side to their offseason.

And yes, I know, I know: Bill Bellichik and his resident toadie Josh McDaniel can win — often — with smoke and mirrors.  And yes, Tom Brady could probably make me look like a good wide receiver.  But this New England team is just flat-out devoid of talent, especially at the skill positions on offense.  Personally, I think it’s part of McDaniel’s Divine punishment for wrecking the Broncos for two years:  Try innovating on offense with a Hall of Fame quarterback and nobody to throw to.

Good luck with that, Josh!

Prediction: 7-9, second place in the AFC East.

#2 – Baltimore Ravens

Courtey – Inflexwetrust.com

If I had to venture a guess regarding NFL executives’ worst football-related nightmares, I would think they might go something like this:

“So, in my dream, we win the Super Bowl.  Confetti everywhere, a big parade and gorgeous women looking at me with admiration.  Wonderful dream.

And then I realize that my team really wasn’t that good to begin with and got hot late.  And then I realize that, not only am I losing the heart-and-soul of my defense this off-season, but we won that Super Bowl with an overrated, slightly-above-average quarterback.  In a contract year.  And my fan base thinks he’s the second coming of Johnny Unitas.

Suddenly, I find myself in a huge, dark room.  On my left is the quarterback’s agent, pushing in my face a long-term contract with hundreds of zeroes.  On my right are 10,000 fans with pitchforks, torches, and scowls on their faces.  I look back to my left, and there are the rest of my veterans, ready to bolt if I sign my quarterback.”

End of nightmare.  Folks, welcome to Ozzie Newsome’s world.

In choosing Door #1 and granting Joe Flacco a $120M, 6-year, back-loaded contract, Newsome has probably saved his own neck and put his fan base at ease, but he’s decimated his talent base in the short run and his salary cap over the long run.

In today’s NFL, you just can’t lose the likes of Ray Lewis, Dannelle Ellerbe, Paul Kruger, Ed Reed, Bernard Pollard, Matt Birk, Rollando McClain, Anquan Boldin and now Dennis Pita (injured and out for the season) and think you can compete.

Ravens’ fans can take heart that things won’t get that bad.   Ozzie Newsome truly is one of the best GM’s in the business.  He’s a fantastic talent evaluator and good with the draft and as he works to rebuild, it will be on a solid foundation of young talent.

The Ravens did pick up the fax man, Elvis Dumervil, and cornerback Michael Huff but had no other significant signings besides their huge contract given to Flacco. With a team that lost most of its starting defense and some major offensive pieces, it’s hard to believe this team will win more than eight games.

But where the Patriots are looking for a future of longish-term mediocrity, 2013 will be more like a bump in the road for Baltimore.  They’ll be back.

Prediction: 8-8, tie for second place in the AFC North.

#3 – New York Jets

The Jets have become the NFL’s version of Reality TV.  I have this idea for the NFL where they put cameras in the locker room (outside the showers, ladies!), set up an interviewer and stationary camera, ala The Office, and create a Reality show called “As the Butt Fumbles”.  Here’s the intro, courtesy of CBS.

It’s not uncommon for teams to have quarterback controversies.  The Jets have something more akin to a quarterback short bus.  Sanchez?  No.  Geno Smith?  Really?  Here’s a question for Broncos’ fans: Would you trade Brock Osweiller for either of these guys?  I wouldn’t.  I’d give Smith a brief thought and then pass.

There’s just something about the bright lights of New York that does strange things to people.  Your NFL team underachieves and goes into meltdown mode at the end of the season?  Players quit on their coach?  I’ve got it!  Let’s get rid of the backup quarterback and see if that fixes things.

It’s hard to believe that this team made it to the AFC Championship game just three short seasons ago, because they’ve become a sort of a caricature of themselves.

The Jets lost one of their biggest weapons this season when Darrel Revis left. They were surprisingly one of the better pass defenses in the league last year (#3) and Revis was a big part before he got hurt.  But now he’s gone, leaving Antonio Cromartie as the number one cornerback.

They cut Bart Scott among other defensive standouts and there really is no reason to believe their defense won’t be well below average. They signed CB Dee Milliner as a rookie and hope he can be their next Revis but I know that I, for one, am not feeling it.

On offense, they added (now-injured) Chris Ivory at running back, Braylon Edwards at receiver and a few offensive linemen but for all their offensive struggles last year I don’t see enough of an improvement to compete week after week. The often-injured Santonio Holmes is their number one wide receiver and I honestly don’t see their offense scoring more than 10 points a game with Sanchez at quarterback.

They did draft Geno Smith to be the future quarterback but no one is sure exactly what “future” means.  When Sanchez goes into a funk, the “future” is never more than a Pick Six away.

The drama of the QB battle, the mistreatment of Tim Tebow and Rex Ryan’s foot fetish are all examples of how this team constantly creates distractions.

The Jets have arguably the worst locker room atmosphere in the NFL, a losing mentality and an oaf of a coach.  I can see them winning maybe 4 or 5 games.

Prediction: 5-11, last place in the AFC East

#4 – Oakland Raiders

As a Bronco fan, the Raiders situation makes me kind of sad.  Almost like I’ve lost a friend in a backward sort of way.

Popeye and Bluto were mortal enemies, but Popeye never wanted Bluto actually, you know, dead.  If nothing else, it would get the show cancelled.  And there was something deeply spiritual about their never-ending battle.

Of course, the “prize” was Olive Oyl, so maybe this isn’t a good analogy.

Anyway, say what you want about the late Al Davis, but the guy had a plan.  It may not have been a very good plan (bring in reprobates and Broncos’ castoffs, run up the middle, throw deep, and “Just Win, Baby”), but at least it was a plan.

This current regime looks clueless to me.  No plan.  No direction.  Oh, they’ll still raid the Broncos (see Dennis Allen as head coach), but beyond that, they seem to be just wandering, zombie-like, to nowhere in particular.  I don’t know, maybe it’s what Darth Raider and their fans want — brrrrraaiiiiiinnnnnns — but this franchise is at risk of a double-whammy of having absolutely no artistic personae (like the Titans, Bills and Buccaneers) and a crappy on-field product to go with it.

Hey, the Jets might be atrocious, but at least they’re entertaining.  The Raiders are just painful to watch.

Matt Flynn starts at QB with future draft picks sent to Seattle for him (I’m fairly sure the Raiders have traded away the next ten years of first round picks). I guess he’s an upgrade over the disgraced Carson Palmer, but come on — Flynn was beaten out in Seattle by rookie Russel Wilson and has a reputation built on ONE big game he had while playing in Green Bay.

RB Darren McFadden is injury prone and has never lived up to his hype and their top two receiving targets are Jacoby Ford and Denarius Moore. Not exactly Tim Brown and Jerry Porter.

They picked up Josh Cribbs but he’s really only ever been used as a returner and Ford is already their primary return guy. They are still looking for a starting TE and they should have one of the worst offenses in the league.

On defense, they’ve added an old fart safety in Charles Woodson and a rookie CB DJ Hayden who was nearly killed when he had heart issues after a huge hit in college.

The Raider drafts never pan out and there’s little reason to think this team will be any better than they have been in the last ten years. They are also in an AFC West division that will be likely improved overall and should sweep Oakland in the six games they’ll play.  Come to think of it, the AFC West is the only division in the AFC that has a fighter’s chance of being better than last year.

Prediction: 0-16, -17.3 point differential.  Before the end of the season, the other 31 team owners will sign a sympathy card — Sorry for your loss[es] — pass the hat and offer the Raiders a compensatory first-round pick every season until they hit .500 again.

Honorable mention

Houston Texans (solid team, but simply not the same since Matthew Stafford torched their defense on Thanksgiving Day last year).

Pittsburgh Steelers (old, decaying, hanging onto the past and not really committed to rebuilding yet).

Buffalo Bills (whatever).

Next:  AFC Up-Trending teams.  I’m shooting for four.  Honestly, it may be tough to find four.

NFL’s Hottest QBs

By Eric (Caveman) Kosovich, 2013 NFL Training Camp QB Rankings

1. Peyton Manning – Denver Broncos.  Am I being a homer? I don’t think so. He was the best QB in the NFL last year, and has gotten more weapons. And he is healthier. Don’t mess with PFM.

NFC Minus KFC Almost Equals AFC

As you might be able to tell by the title this is the second part to a post I did a few days ago about the NFL and the power difference between the two leagues. As I stated in the last post, the AFC really only has one team that’s thought to be a serious Superbowl contender. The NFC has quite a few and I would think the AFC will get totally pommeled in playing their rival conference. There are powerhouses like San Francisco, Atlanta, Seattle and several other teams either on the rise or a few that are going for it all this year with a Superbowl or bust mentality.