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I've got a TON to say so let's get at it
He Said What??
Vikings head coach Mike Tice on the ability of
WR Randy Moss, who left Sunday’s game with
a strained hamstring that Tice described as “more
than mild,” on the possibility of Moss playing
next week: “He’s a freak and he heals
really quick.”
49ers head coach Dennis Erickson on the idea that
someone can adjust to losing: “Nobody gets
used to anything like this. It’s hard for
everyone involved. Nobody does these things on purpose.
Nobody fumbles on purpose. Nobody misses tackles
on purpose. When you play hard and prepare like
we all do and lose close games, it becomes hard.”
Saints head coach Jim Haslett on his team’s
performance in a 38-31 loss to the Vikings in which
his defense gave up 605 yards of total offense:
“If you want to use the word we stunk on defense
and we played probably good enough on offense but
we still had opportunities to score more points.
But we left them on the field.”
Falcons offensive coordinator Greg Knapp on watching
QB Michael Vick at work: “I have been surprised
with his running ability and also with his release,
how quick he gets the ball off. To see the video
is one thing. But when you see it in person —
wow!”
Jaguars RB Fred Taylor on his team’s ability
to pull out close games this season: “A lot
of people try to overstate it, saying we’re
doing this and we’re doing that. But realistically,
we’ve just been fortunate. It’s just
at the end of the game we’re getting the win
and the other team is getting the loss.”
Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan warning against
his team getting too confident after winning its
last four games: “If you start thinking you’re
good in the NFL, and you don’t prepare, you
can get embarrassed. Every team can beat you easily
if mentally you’re not ready to play.”
Dolphins DE David Bowens predicting that his team
will win its final 10 games instead of going 0-16:
“I honestly believe that. Look at New England
— those guys aren’t blowing people out.
They’re getting the turnovers, they’re
not having penalties and they’re playing together.
If they can win that many games, why can’t
we win 10?”
Saints CB Ashley Ambrose, part of a secondary torched
by Vikings QB Daunte Culpepper for 425 yards and
five touchdowns on Sunday night, has seen a lot
in his 13-year NFL career. So when he wants to bring
a historical perspective to an issue, we’ll
listen.
How well, then, is Culpepper playing right now?
“In all my time in the NFL, I've never seen
a quarterback this hot," Ambrose told The Associated
Press.
Stats
Stat #1 Since winning the Super Bowl, the Buccaneers
are 8-14.
Stats of the Week No. 2
Daunte Culpepper has 18 touchdown passes, more
than the total touchdowns of all teams except Indianapolis
and San Diego.
Stats of the Week No. 3
Since entering Week 5 with the league's No. 1 rated
defense, Seattle has given up 63 points.
Stats of the Week No. 4
Reuben Droughns is on pace to rush for an all-time
single-season record 2,583 yards.
Stats of the Week No. 5
Detroit totaled 125 yards of offense at home, while
Oakland totaled 145 yards of offense at home..
Stats of the Week No. 6
Miami quarterbacks have thrown four interceptions
returned for touchdowns.
Stats of the Week No. 7
Buffalo held the ball for all but four plays in
the fourth quarter.
Stats of the Week No. 8
The top five defensive teams -- Denver, Washington,
Miami, Tampa and Pittsburgh -- have a combined record
of 13-17.
Stats of the Week No. 9
The top five offensive teams -- Minnesota, Indianapolis,
Green Bay, St. Louis and Denver -- have a combined
record of 19-9.
Stats of the Week No. 10
New England and Philadelphia, both undefeated,
have not attempted a fourth-down conversion this
season. Stat submitted by reader Mike Paulson of
Alexandria, Va.
Stats of the Week No. 11
Minnesota is averaging one-fifth more offense than
the next-best team in the NFL -- 477 yards per game
versus 389 for Indianapolis.
Stats of the Week No. 12
Stretching back to last season, Atlanta is 2-10
when Michael-Mike Vick does not play and 8-2 when
he does.
Great Plays
Great Play of the Week No. 1
The Browns leading 24-17 early in the fourth quarter,
Cleveland faced third-and-3 on its 41. Running back
Lee Suggs went into the right flat for what seemed
like a dinky flare pass -- then cut upfield along
the sidelines. Jeff Garcia hit Suggs in stride,
and he outran the linebacker chasing him to the
end zone. TMQ has always liked the tailback "up."
Usually it's against linebacker coverage, and usually
the linebacker is stunned when the pattern is not
for a dinky short gain. Why don't teams send their
tailbacks up the field more often?
Great Play of the Week No. 2
Trent Green "crouch faked" the handoff
to Priest Holmes, then threw a 52-yard strike to
Johnnie Morton to set up Kansas City's first score.
Few teams coach quarterbacks to "crouch"
fake -- hunch over the ball on a play-action pass.
Yet the crouch fake is consistently effective, making
it nearly impossible for the defensive front seven
to see if the quarterback has kept the rock. Why
doesn't every team use the crouch fake?
Great Play of the Week No. 3
Leading 23-20 with 2:45 remaining, New England
faced the decisive down of the contest -- third-and-7
on its 40. Seattle seemed to assume it would be
some dinky short-pass attempt. Tom Brady rolled
left and had plenty of time; Bethel Johnson went
deep against defenders expecting him to pull up
short, and made a diving, running-full-speed catch
at the Seattle 12-yard line; TMQ wrote the words
"game over" in his notebook. Set aside
that this is the kind of once-engaging, now-infuriating
play that has characterized New England's winning
streak -- an incredibly difficult clutch catch on
a pass that most good receivers would have dropped.
Just consider how sweet the New England strategy
was, going for the game-icing big gain when everyone
expected something rinky-dinky.
Horrible Plays
Horrible Play of the Week No.
1
Trailing 15-14 in the fourth quarter at Jersey/B,
the Squared Sevens faced second-and-7 on the Jets'
27. The call was an end-around to Arnaz Battle;
fumbled exchange, loss of 8. Suddenly San Francisco
is out of field-goal range on the Jets' 35. A third-down
pass clangs incomplete, and San Francisco launches
a Preposterous Punt -- which booms into the end
zone, Jets ball on their 20, net field-position
gain for San Francisco of 15 yards. San Francisco
punted from the opponents' 35 when trailing in the
fourth quarter. The football gods winced.
Horrible Play of the Week No.
2
Near the goal line, New England likes to throw
the snap hitch -- quarterback takes the snap, straightens
up and throws instantly -- to any wide receiver
who is single-covered. David Givens scored from
the Indianapolis 7 on the snap hitch in the AFC
Championship Game last year, for example. Leading
10-0, the Flying Elvii had second-and-3 on the Blue
Men Group 6. David Patten lined up wide left, exactly
where Givens had been, and was single-covered, the
safety shading toward the center. Male model-esque
Tom Brady audibled to a snap hitch; Patten stiff-armed
the cornerback and scored; suddenly the visitors
are in a 17-0 hole to the defending champions. The
Seahawks seemed surprised by the call. Where was
Seattle's film study?
Eye on Week 7
Look for the Browns to quickly come back to earth
next week against the Eagles. Jeff Garcia and William
Green will not play nearly as well as they did in
Week 6.
Michael Vick should have another good week. He'll
get the opportunities to make a lot of plays at
Kansas City. You should expect at least one rushing
score.
Curtis Martin and the Jets face the ultimate task
of trying to beat the Patriots next week. You can't
sit Martin as he faces his former team in a big
game, but Chad Pennington might have trouble finding
his receivers very often.
Dallas' passing game should continue to flourish.
Terry Glenn could have another big game, as he faces
the Packers, his former team, in Green Bay.
Even against the weak New Orleans defense, there
might be no hope for the Oakland passing game. Yet
you should expect Aaron Brooks and Joe Horn to hook
up often against a secondary that does not play
as well as advertised.
The Bengals play on Monday Night Football, and will
show they don't belong there against Denver. Another
disappointing week for Chad Johnson, as he is shut
down by Champ Bailey.
Now get
back to work...
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On Football Writer Ray Monohan is an NFL analyst
with 10+ years of experience covering the NFL. He
provides a great perspective on the NFL with player
and team insight unmatched in the NFL football betting
industry.
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