While a few teams started digging their way out of holes, a couple more just kept digging deeper hoping they’ll come out on the other end. While week 2 was bliss for the New England Patriots as life after Brady began, week 3 was a slap back to reality. Picture a dolphin winding up and smacking you across the face with it’s flipper, it was that kind of slap for the Patriots. Quarterbacks continued to be replaced as often as those cheap light bulbs you pay for at the thrift store thinking you’ll get more out of four crappy ones than one good one. Marc Bulger, Tarvaris Jackson, Jeff Garcia, and soon Derek Anderson will all be riding the pine. At least they have the luxury of fans when it’s hot, coats when it’s cold, no dirty laundry (those grass stains are a pain to get out), and a teenager making minimum wage to squeeze a bottle of gatorade in their mouth when they become hydrated. Now that’s the life! I’d taking a million dollar paycheck to do that every Sunday, don’t feel bad for them, they are as happy as an elementary kid that’s “sick” and can’t go to school. Heading into week 4, keep the following three thoughts in your mind:
Eli Manning is on the positive side of comparisons with his brother this year.
Eli is at the Top of Manning Mountain
The time has come that Eli has dreamed about every night since becoming a starting quarterback in the NFL, he is better than his brother. The little guy who I believe has never used a comb in his life and wasn’t seen as an average quarterback until he won last year’s Super Bowl is now considered by many to be the superior Manning. Right about now, the only things Peyton has on his resume that Eli doesn’t is a few better commercials, a league MVP trophy, and couple hundred more touchdown passes, a few thousand more passing yard, and he hosted Saturday Night Live. Okay, so Peyton has a lot over Eli, but this year him and his Colts are staggering to start the season while Eli and his Giants are looking very capable of defending their Super Bowl title. You have to believe that ever since Brett Favre landed in New York that a lot of stress and media attention have been diverted away from Eli and allowed him to be more confident. Eli also has the luxury of talented targets around him on offense and a steady running game while Peyton is struggling with a depleted offensive line, an aging Marvin Harrison, and a pathetic running game. Colts running back Joseph Addai has looked very uninterested and has been very ineffective running the ball for the Colts, putting all the weight on Peyton. Maybe the Colts newly opened Lucas Oil Stadium is the source of their misfortunes. Maybe the Colts are receiving bad karma from the oil companies ruining all of our lives, ah, yet another travesty related to high oil prices.
Gus Frerotte will be fine as long as he doesn't score a running touchdown.
Gus Frerotte Could be the Next Randall Cunningham
The Vikings love to bring in oldies and hope they are still goodies. With the exception of Daunte Culpepper (who is now retired from the NFL at the ripe age of 31), most of the Vikings exceptional quarterbacks have been ones nearing the end of their careers. There was Warren Moon, Brad Johnson, and Randall Cunningham. Cunningham had the most success though. After retiring in 1995, Cunningham restarted his playing career again with the Vikings in 1997 and led the 1998 Vikings to a 15-1 record. Vikings coach Brad Childress is hoping to find that same success with Gus Frerotte, who surprised many when they heard he would be the starting quarterback in favor of Tarvaris Jackson. I’m sure the thought going through many people’s heads was “Gus Frerotte? That guy hasn’t retired or been cut from a team yet?” While Frerotte didn’t do anything to lose the game, he did enough to keep the running game healthy and help the Vikings win. Every time I think about Frerotte though, I equate him with “bone-head.” Does anybody else remember in 1997 when he had the most awkward and painful touchdown celebrations in NFL History? After scoring a touchdown on a 1-yard run, Frerotte starting running toward the walls surrounding the field. Thinking that the stands were a little too high to successfully attempt a “Lambeau Leap,” Frerotte head-butted the wall. He ended up going to the hospital with a sprained neck…
Randy Moss heads for the endzone in a Madden '08 screen shot. If only it was that easy for the Patriots on Sunday.
Madden Video Games are Practical
For all of you who have ever played Madden video games on the game consul of your choice, you have your “bread and butter” play. It’s the play that you go to when you are in a pinch, your never fail. As wonderful as it was to always call that play and have success, we all know that it is not like that in the NFL, right? Wrong! Well, at least for Sunday’s game between the Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots it couldn’t have been more wrong. The Dolphins’ never fail play was the direct snap to running back Ronnie Brown, they ran the play five times and were successful in every try. The Dolphins made the Patriots look downright silly and even invoked some moaning and complaining from the cocky and arrogant Belichick defense. Rodney Harrison, renowned aroung the league as the “dirtiest player” as voted by the coaches and players for the last few years was calling the Dolphins dirty. That’s as ludicrous as Michael Vick calling out a dog owner for using a shock collar. Whatever positive affirmations Patriots fans were reciting to themselves daily to mask their insecurities about not being able to win without Brady were replaced with profanity and despair. Here’s to hoping the Red Sox do something in the post season so that the greater Boston area doesn’t crack the top ten of “Most Depressing Cities in America.”
Tags: NFL
September 24th, 2008 at 6:50 pm
It’s too bad that the Colts are not doing well this season because they are one of my favorite NFL teams. Hopefully they will improve as the season goes on!