NFL Week 15 Christmas Miracle Part 2

By Dan Rodgers

We will start with my team for Part 2. The Jets were in prime position to make the playoffs after needing help, yet again. Just like two seasons ago, the Jets needed a lot of help to make the playoffs, and took advantage of the help they got.

A few weeks ago, Oakland, Cincinnati, and Tennessee lost to give the Jets the lead for the sixth seed. They controlled their own destiny to make the playoffs, but instead they felt like making it interesting by losing and giving the teams a chance. Not only did they lose to the Eagles, whom they've NEVER beaten (0-9), but they got incredibly embarrassed on offense and defense. Santonio Holmes got a taunting penalty after catching a touchdown to cut the lead to 28-10. All of this after the receiver let a ball go through his hands that was intercepted and fumbled the ball that was returned for a touchdown.

The Jets play the Giants in a game that will most likely decide both team's playoff fate. Surprisingly enough, the Jets still control their destiny based on a lucky tiebreaker with the Bengals. The Giants play the Cowboys in the final week of the season, if they win both games, they are playoff bound.

This madness was just the beginning of the late games. The Raiders scored 10 points in the fourth quarter to take a 13-point lead on the Lions. Matt Stafford led the Lions on a 71-yard drive in under three minutes to cut the lead to six. After forcing a punt, Shane Lechler did what he does best, and pinned the Lions at the two yard-line with just over two minutes to play. Unfortunately, that was way too much time for Detroit.

The game-winning touchdown drive included a 48-yard completion to Calvin Johnson. Megatron also caught the game-winning touchdown, his second on the day. The Lions left over a minute for the Raiders to attempt the tying field goal, which they did. Sebastian Janikowski attempted a 65-yard field goal, which was blocked. If Oakland had won the game, they would have the tiebreaker over the Jets, so New York caught another huge break.

The Cardinals were wetting the bed against Cleveland, but were able to come back and kick the game-winning field goal in OT. I'm not going to spend too much time on this, but it was an incredible game, and the Cards kept their playoff chances alive by getting to 7-7.

The final late game was Tom Brady vs. Tim Tebow, and the game did not live up to the hype. The Broncos actually took a 16-7 lead in the second quarter, but we all know that you can't kick field goals if you want to beat the Pats. After the 16-7 lead, the Pats responded with 20 unanswered points, with three Denver fumbles in the mix. The Denver offense isn't built for huge comebacks, especially when the defense is struggling to stop the opposition.

The Pats scored a touchdown in the third, and everyone thought it was "Tebow Time" when the Broncos cut the lead back to 11. Brady responded with a touchdown drive of his own that killed way too much clock. Tebow and two other Broncos lost fumbles, and the Pats didn't turn the ball over. I hate the Pats, but they shut up the Broncos, Tebow and all of his followers of Tebowism.

The night games only made everything else even more interesting... but we'll get to those tomorrow.

Rodgers That

NFL: Let's Vent

By Dan Rodgers

Are the New York Giants serious? Eli Manning throws three interception and the team fumbles three times, losing two of them.

They were playing the Seattle Seahawks. Let us review this. Don't even try to tell me the interception in the red zone wasn't Manning's fault. He led Victor Cruz way too much and Cruz was forced to reach out for the ball. There was still over a minute left and they were inside the 10; there was no reason to not run the ball.

Regardless, New York should have killed them because the Seahawks are terrible away from home; not to mention they had to travel to the east coast for an early game! This had all the makings for the Giants to kill them and of course, they suck. Seattle has gotten killed on the road and had five sacks in four games, but today they had three on Manning.

I should have been smarter and realized that 10 people, including myself, picked the Giants for survivor and I should have stayed away. I admit, I was probably a bit lazy and picked New York because they were the blatantly obvious choice, but the thing with me is that I'm smarter than that. Usually. Today I wasn't and it cost me big time. I hate the Giants now...

On to the Jaguars... This game went relatively how I expected. The Jags scored more than I thought, but when it came down to it, I was still in perfect position to win. Blane Gabbert fumbled while driving for a potential win (they were at midfield), and Cincy tried to run the ball out but turned it over on downs with like 10 seconds left. The Jags completed a pass and did the whole b.s. lateral thing to try to make something happened, and someone on the Bengals picked up the loose ball and ran it in for a TD. You should be able to guess why I'm upset that the total score went from 43 points to 50.

Lastly, I should have been smarter with the Houston game. They beat Pittsburgh last week which was huge for them and they are playing an Oakland team that is pissed about under-performing at home against New England and is emotional about the passing of Al Davis.

Early games: 4-4 ATS 5-3 SU

UGH.

Rodgers That

The Terrible Franchise that is the Oakland Raiders

By Dan Rodgers

You might wonder why I would dedicate an entire post to the Oakland Raiders. Well, I'm not too sure ... maybe Al Davis makes everyone that listens stupider.

The NFL held their annual supplemental draft on Monday. The only player that was selected was former Ohio State QB Terrelle Pryor. Considering this post is about the Raiders, you can assume that Pryor was drafted in the third round by Oakland.

In case you're not familiar with the supplemental draft, this will help you out:
Players that didn't file for the NFL draft or were for some reason ineligible are allowed to enter the supplemental draft. Teams must submit a "bid" for a player when the round arrives that they want to select them. However, they must forfeit their pick in that round in the following year's draft. For example, the Raiders selected Terrelle Pryor in the third round. Now they have to forfeit their third-round pick in the 2012 draft. The Raiders don't have a second- or fourth-round pick in next year's draft, so they selected Pryor in the third round and didn't risk another team selecting him in the fourth.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask.

Fun fact: Oakland has drafted the player with the fastest 40-yard dash time at the combine in Indianapolis the past three years.

I understand Al Davis has a history with the NFL, dating as far back as the AFL, but he is over 80 years old and has not successfully run the franchise for a few years. It seems like all he is interested in is the most athletically-gifted players. He over-drafted Darrius Heyward-Bey a few years ago, took Terrelle Pryor as I mentioned above, drafted Jacoby Ford (incredible speed), Darren McFadden and the list goes on...

The NFL needs to step in and do something about this problem if the franchise doesn't turn around soon. The QBs on the roster are Jason Campbell, Kyle Boller, Trent Edwards and Pryor when the sign him. That is utterly pathetic. Campbell could have been a quality starter but got stuck in a terrible situation in Washington before going to Oakland.

Basically, I would give the Raiders a few "probationary" years to get the franchise in better shape. Then, I would require minority owners in the team to devise a plan for ownership and decision-making within the franchise. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy laughing at them, but the Raiders struggles are not good for the game.

They differ from the Bills, Lions, Rams and other teams that might be struggling. Clearly the Lions and Rams are on the up-tick. The Bills are terrible but make decent personnel moves and attempt to bring in proven talented players to help the team.

However, while the Raiders want to suck, I'll gladly take one more game against a lesser opponent on the Jets schedule.

Rodgers That

Week 9: Games to watch

By Dan Rodgers

Okay, so after some time off we're bringing back some games to watch. We are passed the half way point in the season and the divisional races are getting interesting.

Game 1

Chargers at Texans - This game is huge for both teams because Houston has fallen to third in the division. The Chargers are in a bigger mess at 3-5, they are two and a half games back in a weak AFC West. The Chargers NEED this win to have a decent shot in the division, but KC and Oakland play each other so they won't fall too far back. Houston might need this game even more because Tennessee just picked up Randy Moss and Indy is well, Indy. Look for Houston to try to have a balanced offense, but they will air it out if necessary. Rivers will have a big game as usual, look for him to close in on 400 passing yards.

My Prediction: Chargers (-3) 30 Texans 24


Game 2

KC at Oakland - This is a huge divisional game. Didn't think I would be saying that at the beginning of the year. KC leads Oakland by one in the AFC West, but while KC is squeaking out close ones, the Raiders have looked very good as of recent. I like the Raiders to win and make this division even closer. Both teams will be rooting for Houston to beat SD, but need to take care of their own business. I like McFadden to have a decent game, and don't expect much from KC's passing offense.

My Prediction: Raiders (-1) 24 Chiefs 17


Game 3

Indy at Philly - For some reason the Eagles are favored by three points in this game. That technically means the spread makers feel like these teams are evenly matched. That is very interesting due to how well the Colts have been playing and the fact that the Eagles have been hurt. Vick and DeSean Jackson come back from injury today, and expect big things from them. Peyton should have his way as usual and I'm confused as to why the Colts aren't favored. I would stay away from this game because of the weird spread, but the Colts are probably the safe bet. However, one of my philosophy's is if the spread is weird in one teams direction, take the team you wouldn't typically take. Usually, I would take the Colts, since the spread is weird, the Eagles might be the pick.

My Prediction: Colts (+3)2 28 Eagles 30

Rodgers That

Moss officially waived

By Dan Rodgers

Former Minnesota Vikings WR Randy Moss has officially been waived by his twice former team and can be claimed as soon as Wednesday.

There are numerous reports as to reasons why he was waived, including but not limited to:

• Insulting teams catering
• Insulting random people around teammates
• Alienating teammates
• Showing praise to former coach and team that just beat him

Basically, Moss is back to his former ways. He was an outspoken jerk when he used to play for the Vikings, and has now reverted back to that. When with New England, he was winning, happy and quiet. He was not going to get resigned by the Pats after his contract was up after this season, so they unloaded him for a pick. Minnesota is going nowhere fast and Brad Childress should be fired.

I'll write more about this when Moss gets picked up; here are 10 teams who I think might be interested, in order of their chance (waiver order, team with worst record/best chance at top):

• Dallas Cowboys - Why wouldn't they want to bring in a high profile receiver...haha
  
• Denver Broncos - Coach Josh McDaniels had Moss when he was in NE
  
• San Diego Chargers - With Vincent Jackson's future past this year up in the air...
  
• Washington Redskins - They have no receivers over 5'10"
  
• St. Louis Rams - Bradford is playing well, could use a big target...weak division
  
• Oakland Raiders - Playing well and had Moss a few years back
  
• Seattle Seahawks - Playing well and didn't have Moss a few years back
  
• Chicago Bears* - Cutler could use Moss-like receiver
  
• Tennessee Titans* - See above, insert Young for Cutler
  
• Kansas City Chiefs - Surprising a lot of people, could use a big offensive weapon

*Coin flip to determine order

It will be interesting to see who takes him...he has a lot of issues but there is no doubt that he is a great receiver. I suspect that someone off this list will claim him, but wouldn't be surprised if a team that wasn't put in a claim. Moss is a guy that a lot of teams probably wouldn't mind having because he is a game-changer. Let's see what happens...

Rodgers That

(Not so) rapid reactions

By Dr. Jekyll

Apologies for the hiatus, but when life gives you Stanley cup and NBA finals and a world cup, sometimes forget to share opinions. With that being said, here are some (not so) rapid reactions to the past few weeks in sports:

The Los Angeles Lakers remind me that every sport constantly needs a bad guy. I’m not an NBA fan by any stretch of the imagination, but I tune in to watch them lose… Andrew Bynum makes me feel like a failure at life for doing what he does at my age. Originally, I ate cake while watching the game for enjoyment, now it’s eating feelings…

Strasmus came early this year in DC, as the resurrection of the franchise is in the hands of ohmygodthiskidcanpitch… For how awful it is that Baltimore has more opponent fans in the stadium than O’s fans, it really makes me more likely to make the trip up to “Fenway South” a few times each year… MASN2 had coverage of the Strasburg start, MASN covered the O’s vs. Yankees. That’s like having the Super Bowl on ESPN2 and the “Puppy Bowl” on ESPN…

I really hate Chris Pronger, and Duncan Keith was robbed of a playoff MVP trophy in the only sport where the playoff MVP trophy is just about pointless…

I watch soccer games on mute, thank you vuvuzela. Also, ESPN should have Spanish announcers do the World Cup as well; they’re much more active…

Speaking of active, Rajon Rondo is the reason the Celtics will win this NBA finals, as opposed to ’08 where they won in spite of him…Kobe Bryant is still “the next Michael Jordan”. No knock on LeBron, but when Kobe takes over, it’s a beautiful thing to watch…

Everyone throwing no-hitters every week is getting annoying. Want to make an anniversary less special? Have one every other day. See what I mean…?

Soccer won’t make it big in the states for one reason: that all of our best athletes play football or basketball. And the moment they’re good enough to play at an international level for soccer, they’re shipped to England (not that I particularly care)…

The realignment of the conferences will be the death of age old rivalries, but will eventually lead to the playoff system over the BCS that we all desperately want…USC is doomed, Lane Kiffin will miss Oakland, if such a thing is possible…

NFL Week 13: The Down and The Dirty

By Dan Rodgers

Hey everybody, finals week is approaching fast. This week and next week will be the last two mini editions of this segment. The rest of the season and the playoffs will be a more in depth look. Enjoy.

Week 13

The Down

Hooray, now all three first-round quarterbacks have thrown five (5) interceptions in a game this year. Matt Stafford, my very own Mark Sanchez, and most recently, Tampa Bay's Josh Freeman. He did throw for 321 yards, however, he was unable to come through in a very winnable game against division foe Carolina. Congrats to Freeman for joining the club, I'm sure Stafford and Sanchez will welcome him with open arms. Better luck next time.

The Dirty

Due to the lack of impressive performances this week, the winner of the award goes to Bruce Gradkowski of the Oakland Raiders. Yes, you heard me correctly, the quarterback of the Raiders just won this award. This is mainly because he threw for 308 yards and three touchdowns against the Pittsburgh Steelers in a 27-24 Oakland victory. However, I also want to give recognition to Tony Romo who threw for 392 yards and three touchdowns, and to Jason Witten who had 14 receptions for 156 yards in a loss to the Giants.

Rodgers That