NFL News & Notes: Week Two

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Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Dan McGowan, GoLocalProv Sports Contributor

Anybody who has ever paid face value for a preseason ticket at Gillette knows how infuriating it is to watch Tom Brady play two series and spend the rest of the game trying to achieve perfect Justin Bieber hair. But if we’ve learned anything after two weeks of the regular season, it’s that teams who spend the entire exhibition schedule simply trying to avoid injuries aren’t just doing a disservice to the fan; they’re doing a disservice to themselves.

Weeks 1 and 2 have delivered some of the sloppiest, turnover-ridden, anemic performances the NFL has seen in years and a lackluster preseason is part of the reason. Teams who were supposed to be Super Bowl contenders (Dallas and Minnesota) now find themselves on the cusp of irrelevance while others have either showed no offensive game plan (Buffalo and Baltimore) or just didn’t bother covering defense (Houston and New England) during training camp.

You want to know just how unpredictable the NFL has been through two weeks? Through 31 games (not counting last night’s game), 20 teams favored in Vegas haven’t covered the spread. The old cliché about any team having a chance on any given Sunday isn’t supposed to be true. There are supposed to be good teams and bad teams. It’s not supposed to be a coin flip.

Are there surprises every year? Absolutely. But parity isn’t the reason some of the favorites may have already fumbled away their playoff hopes. A lack of preparation is.

How deep is the 0-2 hole?
The Minnesota Vikings just missed the Super Bowl last season and once Brett Favre finished playing with everyone’s head and decided to return for one more year, the team looked to be on the shortlist of contenders again. But because Favre didn’t take the preseason seriously, the team has now dropped its first two games and already finds itself with their back against the wall.

Of the 169 teams who have started 0-2 since 1990, just 22 have reached the playoffs. That’s about 13 percent. So for the Vikings and the Cowboys, two favorites in the preseason, week 3 has become a must win situation. Only five teams in the history of the NFL have ever reached the playoffs following an 0-3 start.

Where’s the defense?
After Carson Palmer carved up the Patriots defense in week 1, most pundits seemed to agree that it wasn’t time to panic. After all, New England won the game running away and most of Palmer’s production came when the game was already out of hand.

But now that second-year quarterback Mark Sanchez did the same to the Pats on Sunday, we now know how much of a problem the team might have. With Tom Brady at the helm and a plethora of talented receivers, there is no question the Patriots have an offense that can score on any team in the league. But the holes in the defense will need to be shored up for this team to be a serious playoff contender.

Same goes for Houston and its dynamic offense. No team will score more points than the Texans this year. But after allowing almost 1,000 yards of passing through two weeks, they too will need to figure something out if they expect to make a Super Bowl run.

Vick says he’s better than ever:
The jury is still out on whether or not Michael Vick will take over as Philadelphia’s starter, but the troubled start believes he is as good as he’s ever been:

"I'm 10 times better than I was four years ago,'' Vick said. "I've learned so much about the position, about being a complete quarterback, from [coach] Andy [Reid] and [offensive coordinator] Marty [Mornhinweg]. How to stay active back there, how to make good decisions, or they'll be down my throat. I like that. It's something I need.''

Jacobs will request trade
Brandon Jacobs threw another hissy fit during the Giants blowout loss to Indy Sunday evening. But it looks like it might be the final hissy fit he’ll ever throw in a Giants uniform. According the Bergen Record, Jacobs will request a trade this week.

It has to be disheartening to the Giants, who at one point though Jacobs might be an upgrade over former star Tiki Barber. He never panned out and had now fallen deep on the depth chart, despite earning over $13 million in guaranteed money since 2008.

 

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