What A Difference A Day Makes

There is nothing I want to do more than break down most, if not all of the games this weekend. The only problem with that is there is nothing to be learned. Week One is an illusion. With the exception of Indianapolis and New England, there is no telling yet who will be the elite teams of 2007. You cannot say Cincinnati will be better than Baltimore this year, or that the Saints will be awful, or even that Atlanta will have a top five pick. One thing you might be able to take out of this weekend though, is coaching. And oh, were there some bad coaching calls...

There is something to be learned when you are watching football with casual fans. For example, if a group of people who rarely watch games that their teams aren't involved in start making fun of a commentator's analysis of a play, make note of it, because the commentator was probably right. However, if you are watching a game where their teams are not involved, and they are looking around in disbelief of a play call (or a series of calls), then they are probably on to something. This happened during last night's Bengals/Ravens game. Somehow, with eight plays on a goal-to-go basis with the game on the line, Baltimore threw five times with, get this, Kyle Boller. Needless to say, an interception in the end zone ended the game. Which suits them right, since they decided to throw on fourth and one earlier in the game. All of this makes you forget that in the first quarter, the Ravens fumbled three times in five plays. You would think having the advantage of an extra day to game plan (or, in the case of the Colts and Saints, four days), that Brian Billick would be more prepared than the other coaches. You would think. But he's not the only one...

...because Mike Nolan and Ken Whisenhunt didn't seem to use the extra time wisely either. Games where there aren't very many offensive highlights will be hailed as a great defensive struggle by purists. In the case of the Cardinals/Niners, it was just bad play calling. It's not hard playing defense when the other team refuses to throw beyond the first down marker. There is only one word I could think of to describe the offensive calls of last night's game: scared. And scared play calling is the precursor to scared quarterbacks. I respect the fact that Whisenhunt comes from the Bill Cowher School of Ram-It-Down-Your-Throat Football, but you have to use the tools in the shed. With one of the best wide receiver tandems in the game, an aging running back and a weak offensive line, smash mouth football isn't the way the Cardinals are going to win games. What this game should have looked like is what happened at the end of the game when both teams went on their ending drives. We saw the best of Alex Smith and Matt Leinart in those drives. So what's with the conservative play calling? With an extra day to figure out how to score on the other team, these coaches still decided that run-run-pass was the best option for victory.

There isn't a lot to gain from one game, but one thing has been true for a while: coaches tend to over think situations way too often. Both Monday night games were atrocious to watch, despite the fact that they came down to the wire. Very few teams were well prepared this weekend, but if anybody should have been, it would be the participants of last night's games. What a difference a day makes.

While You Were Gearing Up For Football...

... there were baseball games going on. And now, nearing the middle of September, there are only two races left: the NL Central and NL Wild Card. This is exceptionally bad for the MLB. With twenty days to go, interest in baseball is going to hit a serious downhill slope. September and October are the most important months for the NFL, and football being the most watched sport in America, baseball suffers. And having only two races worth watching, let's see if the cities involved even care.

As far as the Wild Card, we have San Diego, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles. Do we really need to address the latter? We are left with Chargers/Padres and Eagles/Phillies. Show of hands of who thinks either the Padres or Phillies will do anything if they make the postseason? I didn't think so. How about the future of the Chargers or Eagles? The Chargers are a given. Anyone who has the Roto King in the backfield is going to matter. And despite the loss to Green Bay, the Eagles should find themselves having big games at the end of the season.

Now, we turn our attention to the NL Central. The Brew Crew is currently one game ahead, but guess what? It's Milwaukee, and the Packers are undefeated (1-0, but we are talking about Cheeseheads, people). I'm giving this one to the NFL. However, the Cubs are coming in second, and I have to believe that they matter more to Chicago right now than the Bears. First off, the Bears were in the Super Bowl last year, so there might be a quiet confidence that they will fare well this season. Having said that, the fact that they put up the same amount of points as the Chiefs on week one might send enough panic through the Windy City that the message boards will be run amok with Rex Grossman threads. I'll give this one to the MLB.

So, with only two races left, and only one city really paying attention, baseball will be put on the back burner for fantasy trades and reruns of NFL Live. By the time October comes around, will anybody really care? I expect fans from Boston and New York (Yankees and Mets) to pay attention as always, since the Patriots would have locked up a bye and the Giants/Jets will have locked up a top ten draft pick. Arizona, Cleveland and Los Angeles (Angels) are the other teams left, and all three have bad or no teams. So there might be a chance of a ratings spike in October, due to the fact that the only cities who would've been watching anyways won't be tied up with football. Or will they? As bad as the NFC West is, the Cardinals might be relevant. As bad as the Browns are, the whole city will be waiting for Brady Quinn. My last visit to L.A. gave me the impression that sports don't exist there. So there is only one thing that will help baseball, and that's the Cubs in the Series. Because if it's Angels/Diamondbacks, expect America to be tuning into Raiders/Titans.

Sunday Brunch

After Sunday's games, you could identify the victors by one common denominator: they were hungry. San Diego, Dallas and Indianapolis were the three teams this weekend who obviously wanted it more than who they played. Chicago just ended up getting Phillip Rivers mad. New York made Tony Romo forget all about January. New Orleans, well, looked like the "Ain'ts" of old. It's easy to chalk it up to the fact that the winning teams are usually more fired up than ones that are getting their butt kicked, but certain teams were in more of a football mode than others. And seeing as they are already there by the first week, pencil these teams in for January. Yeah, I know, picking the Chargers, Cowboys and Colts as good teams isn't really going out on a limb. But it's Week One. Basing season predictions off of one game isn't really a smart nor scientific way to go. It's basically the same as preseason predictions, which I have already discussed as being nothing but an educational guessing game. However, seeing certain teams crank their game to the next level, with the season just starting, is always a good sign. There is a reason these teams were obviously going to be good. The fact they laid their hearts out this early is the reason why.

Notes On The NFL, Day 1

Super Bowl preview? Doesn't look like it. The Saints got hammered by Indianapolis tonight, 41-10, and America's Team doesn't look ready to challenge for the trophy quite yet. Then again, it's Week 1. I never put too much stock into the first week of the season, in any sport. Every player reacts differently to the transition from preseason to regular season. It takes a little time to get things together. That being said, Sean Payton better get things together, and considering his next two opponents are Tampa Bay and Tennessee, it's a pretty safe bet that he will. One thing he has to fix is what I feel was the turning point of the game: punting the ball on fourth and one with 12:50 left in the fourth quarter, down by 17.

Alright, I know they were down by a lot, but you can't tell me last year's top rated offense couldn't have mustered two touchdowns and field goal in a quarter. How can you punt on fourth and one? The way corner back Jason David was just letting anyone he covered blow by past him, there is no reason to give back Peyton Manning the ball. Speaking of David, I guess we know now why the Colts got rid of him. He was horrible. Maybe he had Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne on his fantasy team. Which reminds me, have you noticed how many players talk about owning fantasy teams? Gambling is a huge violation for professional athletes, but somehow a form of gambling that involves the achievement of players in the same league is standing unopposed. Even if there isn't any "gambling" involved, anyone who plays fantasy sports knows the biggest triumph is being able to brag to the other owners. It's not hard to believe that if a game is at a point where it's unwinnable, that a corner will "trip" while covering his #1 receiver. This is considerably overlooked by the league.

Alright, back to the game. What bothers me about New Orleans is that their offensive line couldn't keep anybody off of Drew Brees. I know blocking Dwight Freeney isn't the easiest task in the world, but they have got to figure something out. What helped them last year was the threat of Reggie Bush and Deuce McAllister, which kept defenses off balance. You could chalk it up to the Colt's defense, but I don't buy it. If you recall last year's NFC championship game, Sean Payton completely got away from what got them there in the first place. I think that is what happened here. This better not be a trend for Payton, because it looks like he gets a little gun-shy in big games. I mean, he punted on fourth and one. These aren't the high fliers of 2006, and the Saints need an identity quick. Oh yeah, and they need to fire Jason David.

No Break For The PGA

Finally, golf's biggest (only) rivalry has come to fruition. Phil Mickleson outlasted Tiger Woods to win the Deutsche Bank Championship, taking the top spot in the FedEx Cup. It is on. Well, except for one little fact: Lefty will not be participating in the BMW Championship. Once again, thank God it's football season. While it will be interesting to see if Tiger can regain his usual #1 status, we are denied the head-to-head rivalry professional golf has been waiting for. The ratings for this event would have been huge. Well, as huge as it could be during opening week of the most popular sport in the country. Golf needed this, as well as the fans. Sixteen NFL teams will lose this week, and fans of sixteen teams will want something to watch. The PGA better roll around in mud and do a dance for the Gods, because if Tiger isn't in contention at the BMW, then neither will professional golf. Thanks Lefty, for making our decisions at the remote control easier than we ever thought they would be.