NFL Lucubrations

As we approach week 4, many things have already transpired in the league that actually did not involve a certain mention of a certain hyckocrite.



Please allow me to spew over a few :





QUARTERBACK CHANGES

Some were necessary. Vince Young obviously is not right in his body and mind presently, so Kerry Collins had to take the snaps. Tavaris Jackson will probably benefit from watching and learning, as well as getting healthy. Last seen, he was still walking with a limp from his preseason injury. Gus Frerotte should be able to hand the ball of 40 times without much issue. The QB carousal in KC is pretty much going to be recurring theme all season, since none of the three they have are exactly top flight players.



Then, there are some moves that make, or would make, no sense. Yes, Mark Bulger is getting destroyed in Saint Louis right now. He has one healthy target worth mentioning, and no blocking can hold up forever as he waits on someone to actually get open. His replacement, Trent Green, is one solid hit away from serious health concerns. Sure, Trent will get rid of the ball faster...but to whom exactly?

Romeo Crennell almost buckling into a few fans to replace their franchise, and All Pro, QB makes me think he has to go. The problem obviously isn't Derek Anderson. Bringing in Rick Mirer Jr. won't make a difference. Until the receivers start holding onto passes, and the offensive line plays well...it won't matter who is QB. It's always easiest to pint the finger at the QB, but the overall execution of the offense is the reason. The Browns running game is so mediocre, that teams are loading the box for blitz packages. Factor in the bad blocking, Anderson has little time to unload the ball. When he has, they get dropped. Braylon Edwards has especially had a huge case of butter fingers. Then there are the key injuries to Stallworth and Jurevicius that have really hindered the aerial attack. Patience is hard to have in the Not For Long league, but until Anderson gets his teammates to play up to their abilities = no fan should expect him to as well. It's eleven on eleven, not one on eleven.





ROOKIES

It is easy to point out how well the Razorback duo, Felix Jones and Darren McFadden, Matt Forte, Jonathan Stewart, and Matt Ryan are doing. Eddie Royal has also shown his mettle early on, but I wanted to talk about one kid in particular = Ryan Clady. I admit I was wrong about him. I thought he was better suited for RT until he learned the LT position, due to his inexperience there. So far, he has been better than excellent. I understand that linemen get little love, and the Rookie Of The Year Award usually goes to guys who get their hands on the ball. Still, in my mind, Clady is one of the top rookies in the game so far. As far as Felix? Well, if you follow this blog, you know I had 2 predictions long before the draft. One was that he would be a Cowboy. Check. The second was that he'd be R.O.Y. We'll have to wait and see there.





ZANY EVENTS

Even with instant reply in place to robotize the game, things still go awry. This is really the wrinkle that makes the game so great. Of course, the corporate boobs like Goodell can't see this. Watching the Broncos win after a bad call by a referee is a big part of NFL history. Sure, the fans of the losing teams get irate. Me? I get a mixture of both. It is humorous after the smoke clears. I am all for blown calls, even if my favorite teams are the victims of them.





POOR PLAY

I think it was quite evident to every NFL fan, who pays attention, that preseason is a necessity. I know the millionaire players gripe about training camp, but just look at the guys trying to play their way into shape as the season progresses. Watching Steven Jackson, a certain QB, and others play pretty poorly just accentuates the need for the entire preseason ritual to stay as is.





THE QB "OUT OF THE TACKLE" RULE

Man, do I dislike this rule! It's intentional grounding! I mean, the NFL has taken away virtually all the masculinity in the Quarterback, now this adds to it. Why not just put flags on their hips or shove them in a Popemobile? Do QB's REALLY NEED pads or a helmet anymore? In or out of the pocket, the ball should at least be in the vicinity of a pass receiver.





Well, that's it for now. More football is needed to occur before I'll go on. Time to break out ALL of my Redskin paraphernalia and Cowboy voodoo dolls and start chanting prayers for a Washington win.