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| A Word from The Writer: The Monday Analysis - 15 August 2005 Screaming through camp in this hot, nasty weather. With Week 1 of the preseason all done, the Patriots are looking good. Patriots win preseason opener over Cinci Last year in the season opener at Cincinnati, the Bengals slapped New England 31-3. This year, the Patriots took the game 23-13. Tom Brady was given the night off, and Doug Flutie remained on the sidelines with a clipboard and his helmet on the whole time. Rohan Davey got the start, stunk the place up, going 4-7 for 42 yards and 1 INT. Matt Cassel, the seventh round pick out of USC took most of the game, looking impressive at 13 for 21 for 135 yards and 1 TD. Other highlights included impressive plays by linebacker Monte Beisel. Rookie wide receiver Jason Alexander scored a touchdown, while fellow rookie Kyle Eckel rushed for another. Adam Vinatieri finished it all off with three field goals. Mike Vrabel left the game with an ankle injury and is listed day-to-day. The Patriots play Thursday night at Gillette Stadium against New Orleans. Doug Flutie is expected to start. Patriots Notes The Patriots released defensive lineman Mario Monds...The Patriots signed rookie wide receiver Jason Alexander on July 31st, after the Wake Forest player was released from Tennessee, who signed him as an undrafted free agent on April 27th. League Notes The Jets traded safety Jon McGraw to the Lions for a condition raft pick in 2006...The Jets also released cornerback Pete Hunter, who was acquired in a trade with Dallas just last month...Eagles head coach Andy Reid sent Terrell Owens home and out of camp until the two have settled an unknown problem. Owens injured his groin early in training camp, and has been day-to-day... Bills rookie wide receiver Roscoe Parrish injured his right hand in practice. Parrish, a second round pick, is scheduled for x-rays on the injured hand...Cleveland and first round pick WR Braylon Edwards finally reached an agreement on a five-year contract, and the rookie is scheduled to appear in training camp...Steelers linebacker Joey Edwards is scheduled to miss four to five weeks after knee surgery to remove loose cartilage caused from hyperextending the knee during practice...Former Heissman trophy winner QB Jason White is retiring from the NFL. The undrafted free agent was signed by Tennessee in May, however, knee problems are forcing him out of the game...In a scene of deja vu, Bears QB Rex "Injuryman" Grossman broke his ankle in the first preseason game, and is expected to be out 3 to 4 months. Grossman has been plagued by injuries in each of his three NFL years, and the previous two, he only played in three games each season...Romeo Crennel scored his first victory as an NFL head coach with a 17-14 over the Giants... Training Camp Division Talk: The NFC East
NFC East
2004 Division Champion: Philadelphia Old ways continue to plague the NFC East in more ways every single season. For the past several years, the NFC East has been Phillyville. Even with the improvements elsewhere, and the Terrell Owens Distraction au du jour, little will change. New Jersey has no quarterback. No Manning amounted to a thing in this league (Playoff wins count far more than season high statistics, Peyton), and even with Plaxico Burress, the Giants will still go through growing pains with Eli Manning. He no longer has Kurt Warner as a distraction on the sideline. Tiki Barber is still a stud running back in this league, but he's a year older. TE Jeremy Shockey will continue to be a personnel headache off the field and disappointment on it, Shockey needs to help Manning move the ball, and he comes up short on helping the team. In order for Burress to do something with the ball, he needs to get the ball, and I doubt much will head his way. Manning had a lousy season in 2004, and he may have improved over the offseason, and we'll give him that. But the Giants are still not a top tier team. All in all, Tom Coughlin will have another season of heartburn and high stress mounted in a highly competitive press grouping in the Big Apple. And it isn't that I am anti-old school NFL. Well, I guess I probably am a little anti-old school NFL. Joe Gibbs will continue to struggle down in Washington, but part of that blame needs to land on the shoulders of Dan Snyder, who is just the black cloud of good things. The Santana Moss/Laverneus Coles swap was cute, but not enlightening. Nothing about the Redskins feels inspiring, particularly at the quarterback position. Mark Brunell is just on the down swing of his career, and Patrick Ramsey never had a swing, up or down. He's just not a dynamic player. Tim Hasselbeck was released during the offseason, and the Redskins drafted Jason Campbell out of Auburn as their second first round pick (they took cornerback Carlos Rogers, also out of Auburn). At 6'4", Campbell is taller than Ramsey and Brunell, and is expected to move into the starting role in the future. Dallas is New England old-home day, circa 1996. The emphasis is on old. Bill Parcell is old. He brought in an older Terry Glenn who spent 2004 injured. Now the older not-so-much-wiser Drew Bledsoe rejoins Parcells, and I get that ol' 1996 feeling all over again. What is missing is a Ben Coates-type of tight end, a Curtis Martin running game (not that that mattered in Super Bowl XXXI), and Bill Belichick, who isn't going anywhere near Dallas-Fort worth. No way, no when, no how. A healthy Julius Jones is going to help Bledsoe with his down field action by placing a rushing threat on opposing defenses, yet, Bledsoe needs to understand when no to blow a long pass and hand the ball over. At tight end, Jason Whitten might be the Coates answer Bledsoe and Parcells needs. At 6'5, 231 lbs, the third-year vet is a big receiving target for quick first down yardage, and has already seen the Pro Bowl. Then there is Philly, runner-ups to the Ball. Donovan McNabb has his hands full with this group. T.O. wants mo' money. He's mouthed off in the press about McNabb this off season. "I'm not the one who got tired." Maybe cause you weren't playing hard enough, Terrell. Nine catches is ok, but no touchdowns. And where were you when the ball needed to be moved. "I'm not the one who got tired." Yeah right, I've heard this song and dance before. "I'm not the one who got tired." Right, but you're the one who signed a "lousy" contract and your new agent wants to renegotiate. In fact, all of Drew Rosenhaus' clients who pushed for new contracts didn't get them. Maybe you have a "lousy" agent, there, B.O., I mean, T.O. Dallas picked up the pace in the offseason, between signing Drew Bledsoe at quarterback, and beefing up the dismal defense during the draft. Bledsoe should have enough protection on the front line. Parcells knows Bledsoe likes to stand in the pocket for three months before throwing the ball down field. In Dallas, he has capable playmaking receivers. Keyshawn Johnson is ideal for the deep threat passes, and a healthy Terry Glenn last had success playing with Bledsoe under Parcells. But Bledsoe has not had a 3,000 yard passing season in two years. At 33, he is young enough to be operating within his prime, yet his time in Buffalo was a sorry display. The Cowboys feel that Buffalo did not give Bledsoe enough around him on the offensive line and for weapons in order for him to have any success, and that is partially true. But Bledsoe is still not a scrambler, and still makes poor judgments in the passing game that turns out as a turnover. The Dallas offense is also blessed with tight end Jason Witten, a stud blocker and receiver of the likes of Ben Coates. Bledsoe needs to relearn how to use the tight end position to keep the ball moving, avoid trying to make a big play on every down, and not toss the ball away or into the hands of a defender. The other tight end, Dan Campbell, is a good blocker, and should help pave clear paths for the running and passing game. Parcells brought in more of "his guys" over the offseason, like CB Aaron Glenn to strengthen the secondary. Outside linebacker Demarcus Ware, the rookie out of Troy State, is a guy Parcells likes, and compares to Lawrence Taylor and Willie McGinest. The Dallas Defense was the best in the league in 2003, but fell through the floor in 2004. They gave up 460 points. Parcells ripped the defense up after the last game of the 2004 season. He wasn't happy. He released a lot of players and fired coaches. He insisted there would be changes, and is now adapting the defense to a 3-4, more to his liking. The Cowboys won five games for three straight seasons before Parcells turned things around and finished 10-6 and losing in the first round of the playoffs. Last season was a complete reversal, 6-10. If the Defense can measure up more to Parcells' liking (or at least in the neighborhood - the guy is never satisfied), and Bledsoe can be productive and get the offense to score some points, Dallas will threaten the NFC East. And if the trend continues, where the Super Bowl loser fails to make the playoffs for the fifth straight season, the Eagles will not be in the way. The truth is that Philly is most likely to make the playoffs, although maybe not as dominating as they have been in the NFC. Terrell Owens is a problem on and off the field, and many bet against T.O. starting 16 games, either because of injury and ego. He is wobbling through Training Camp with a groin injury that has occurred before in the past, plus, Andy Reid sent him home until the two of them can work out some mysterious problem. Neither has said very much, although Owens is bent out of shape that Reid told the receiver to "shut up." Well, it was good advice. Eli Manning has a new weapon in Plaxico Burress, but a poor showing in 2004 doesn't give many an optimistic view of the Giants offense. Tiki Barber is a good rusher, but he's another year older. Jeremy Shockey was supposed to revolutionize the tight end position, but he's suffered injuries in the past couple of seasons, and has failed to be productive. With Manning's limited play, he threw six touchdowns, but nine interceptions. Barber was the offensive stud scoring 13 TDs and rushing for 1,518 yards. The offense was a terrible 23rd in the league, and the passing was so un-Manning-like, considering they have that "passing camp" in the summer, ranking 26th and the run was 23rd. Plus, Tim "I Married a Survivor" Hasselbeck signed in the offseason to back up Manning, and coming from Washington, he remains in the division. Oh joy, I can hear the sound of the trumpets now. The Giants Defense gave up 347 points on defense, and 28th against the run, however, faired better against the pass, ranking 8th. Total defense was 13th, not bad, considering Michael Strahan was out on injury much of the season. While punt returns ranked 25th, ironically the Giants were the best in the league on kick returns. Kinda odd, really. Michael Strahan is back from injury, which should help the defensive production. LB Antonio Pierce and DT Kendrick Clancy were added in the offseason to bolster the defense. Joe Gibbs wishes he had guys to bring into Washington, but they're all retired, like Gibbs himself should be. It isn't that Gibbs isn't a good coach, I mean, he's a great coach, Hall of Famer. The man has three rings, and never once went to a Super Bowl he didn't win. But this is a different NFL, and this is a much different Washington Redskins organization and team, and the Washington Redskins are not in it. Gibbs always put emphasis on the quarterback position, but in 2004, the Redskins put a lot of money into Mark Brunell who was on the other side of his career, dismissing Patrick Ramsey as their full time starter. Ramsey ended up starting in place of the ineffective Brunell, but it certainly was not impressive enough, as the 'Skins used their second first round pick for a quarterback, Jason Campbell, but Gibbs insists that either Brunell or Ramsey will start, are the future, blah blah blah. Ramsey is doing everything he can to be impressive in Training Camp, and may start the season, but probably will not finish it. Washington picked up David Patten on free agency, so they have a guy who can catch, has won three rings, and is speedy. Philly has a small uphill battle to sway the recent trend in Super Bowl runners-up. The last four losers failed to make the playoffs the following season, including St. Louis, Oakland, Carolina, plus New England won in 2001, and missed the playoffs the next year, as well as Tampa the following years. Dallas is looking for improvement, i.e. back to the playoffs this season, period. New Jersey is looking for a winning record, and Washington is just looking for something to hang their hats on. The Eagles changed very little from last season. Andy Reid got rid of some dead weight (including a reportedly 40 lbs of his own) that wasn't helping matter, like Freddie Mitchell, and Dorsey Levens. Javon Kearse is the anchor on the defense. Donovan McNabb remains the fixture for the offense, and the cornerstone of the Eagles. Even if T.O. is not 100% this season, he still has Brian Westbrook at running back and Todd Pinkston as the second starting wide receiver. The Eagles are still the rulers of the NFC East, but Dallas will give everyone the most problems. Washington could have a stronger December than they will have a September, but it'll be too little too late for 2005. The Giants are still looking to figure out what kind of team they are under Tom Coughlin and his new staff, not to mention what kind of quarterback Eli Manning is going to be. New Jersey is still a work in progress, and it even took Peyton a couple of seasons to be productive. Next Week: AFC East 2005 Season Predictions: September 4 NFL Preseason Schedule Preseason is here! Let those games begin! Thursday, August 18, 2005 - 8 PM EST - New Orleans at New England, WCVB 5, WBCN FM 104.1. Check NFL.com for more preseason listings. 55 games are scheduled to be aired on NFL Network Top Ten List of the Week 1. Great to see the Patriots back playing, even if it is preseason.2. Matt Cassel looked pretty good the other night (are we seeing our Steve Young of the future?), but Coach Belichick wasn't happy. Maybe it was too many impromptu running plays. Calm down Matt. You'll make this team. 3. Speaking of impressive, Monte Beisel. What a maniac at linebacker. 4. What are the Red Sox on lately? With New York and Baltimore well into the rear view mirror, the Sox continue to play hot, and I don't mean the weather. 5. Terrell Owens is not worth a penny more, but he could be worth a first round draft pick. Think about it, Andy Reid. 6. Eli Manning reportedly showed up at camp bigger (like he'd been in the gym all offseason) and determined to be successful. Living up to that first pick status is tough work, eh Eli? Who would name their kid Eli in the first place? 7. Joe Gibbs continues to take on a lot of in his return to the NFL, and he can't like very much of it. 8. If the Patriots are a betting bunch - and they sometimes are not - Rohan Davey will be gone by Week 1, and Bill Belichick will chance Matt Cassel at the third QB. Or it might just be Doug Flutie who goes. We'll see a clearer picture Thursday. 9. I like the Patriots defense, even without Bruschi and Johnson. Media rumors are flying about Roman Phifer returning, but that's only speculation. I always liked Phifer, and wouldn't mind seeing him back. 10. I have another reason for wanting football season to start: Maybe this heat will finally go away! 15 August 2005 |
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