Mike Freeman's 10-Point Stance: 3 Reasons the NFL Is Such a Mess This Year

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1. Is quality of NFL play worse than ever?

This was said by Super Bowl-winning quarterback Trent Dilfer on ESPN this week: "The football has never been worse in the National Football League. The quality of product is horrific."

People like to hate Dilfer, but the truth is, he says some interesting things. And smart things. Like all of us, sometimes he's wrong and sometimes he's right. On this topic, I think he's right. It's a sentiment I've also heard expressed repeatedly by assistant coaches all season. I heard it again when I ran it by some coaches after Dilfer said it.

Many people across the league agree with what Dilfer said. Many, many people. The NFL is a mess.

Now, of course, this is all subjective. What exactly does "football has never been worse" mean? How do you qualify it? How do you even compare the quality of play to 2000, much less 1980 or 1950?

Again, all subjective, but here are three big reasons various assistant coaches told me Dilfer might be right:

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The running back factor: The position was supposed to be dead, and now we're seeing how important it is. One of the reasons the Packers, for example, are struggling is they can't control the tempo of the game, and one of the reasons the Vikings are one of the great surprises of the league is because they can.

Having a great running back takes pressure off the quarterback—and off the defense as well—and the end result of not having one can be an offense (and team) that looks sloppy and chaotic.

What we're learning this season is that running backs are not only far from archaic, but they are in fact still vital. Teams took them for granted, and that's affected how the game flows and looks.

Officiating: The officiating this year is easily the worst I've ever seen. Mistake after mistake. Part of it is something I've said before: The athletes are simply too fast for 50-year-old dudes to keep up with.

Take, for example, this scene from the Texans-Bengals game:

The ref falls on his ass just backpedaling. And these are the guys who are supposed to ref the best athletes in the world.

But it's something else. It's the thickening of the rule book to the point that it's difficult to tell what is a catch and what isn't. In some cases, even the officials don't know. That's how bad the officiating has gotten.

I challenge you to read this from Dean Blandino, the NFL's vice president of officiating, on what exactly is a catch, and tell me what a catch is. You cannot read it and know. It's like reading Klingon.

When even the men who are charged with enforcing the rules don't know them, well, that's a problem. The uncertainty with the officiating adds to the notion that football today is sloppier than in the past.

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The quarterbacks: Some of the biggest names in the sport have struggled, been hurt or both. Go down the list: Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Ben Roethlisberger, Andrew Luck, Tony Romo, Sam Bradford, Ryan Tannehill, Johnny Manziel, Tyrod Taylor. On and on it goes.

Mark Sanchez threw a red-zone pick last week. It was like being in a time machine. Different uniform, same result.

Backup quarterback play has never been pretty, but the backups this season have been so unbelievably bad (in Dallas especially) it has dragged the entire NFL into a bad place.

Dilfer continued to say something else that's also true: The athletes are so good, they are saving the game from being unwatchable. The grace some of them display offsets the problems.

But it's not enough to totally do so.

2. 'I think Peyton Manning is done'

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That was ESPN analyst Danny Kanell with a moderate temperature take. I don't know if Manning is done. But I do know I've seen great, elite players hit walls before. I covered Joe Montana's final years. And Emmitt Smith's. Manning's wall feels worse. Much worse.

It goes beyond the injury, which is a partially torn plantar fascia in his left foot. Manning has been in a steep decline going back to last year. He has 17 interceptions already, tied with Jay Cutler in 2009 for the most through nine games since Manning had 18 as a rookie in 1998.

So at the beginning of his career, Manning threw a lot of picks. Then there was greatness. Now, at the end, he's throwing a lot of picks.

The real story is: Why in the hell did Manning play this year in the first place?

And the other part of this is that this is how players go out, either through injury or through a sudden drop in skill level. It's a brutal sport, and most of the time there is no magical ending.

3. 'I hope Big Ben can walk in 10 years'

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I thought this, from an NFC player who is an admirer of Ben Roethlisberger, was a wonderful viewpoint:

"A couple of us were talking before practice about how much we admire him. If every team had 22 of him, you'd never lose a game. He can play through injury and pain like no player I've ever seen. Never wants to stay out of a game and always wants to help his teammates by playing. He might be the toughest player in the NFL.

"I also wonder personally though what his life will be like down the road. I hope Big Ben can walk in 10 years. Part of me admires him. Really admires him. But I also hope he thinks about that future. Think about all of the damage he's had done to his body and how quickly he always seems to return. I just hope someone is always reminding him that he will have a lot of life left after he leaves football."

4. Some injury reporting still seems shady

It was the Monday night game, and Pacman Jones, replays clearly showed, was kneed in the back of the head. He looked to be momentarily unconscious.

Even if he wasn't, he was hit in the back of the head. Hard.

It was announced by the Bengals that Jones had a shoulder injury.

Now, it's entirely possible that Jones did have a shoulder injury, emerging from a totally separate play. But, wow, that seems a tad unlikely.

Plus, later, cameras caught Jones sniffing an ammonia capsule.

Players use these capsules to fire themselves up or (not wisely) help them clear their heads after big hits. It's possible Jones always uses them—very possible—but again, he used one after he appeared to be knocked out for a few seconds.

So the question is, if Jones had a "shoulder injury" why was he sniffing an ammonia capsule? And remember, Jones had a concussion last season and wasn't straightforward about it. Teams aren't the only problem.

Later in the broadcast, Mike Tirico described Jones as "dinged." That's old-school language coaches, players and media used to utilize when describing a concussed player. That description was used because people didn't want to use the word concussion.

5. What the hell has happened to Kirk Cousins?

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He's playing football like he's Captain Kirk. As a Trekker, anything Captain Kirk-related is a good thing.

How well is Cousins playing? This is from the NFL: In Week 11, "Cousins completed 20 of 25 passes (80 percent) for 324 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions for a 158.3 passer rating—the highest attainable mark—and became the first Redskins quarterback to pass for at least 300 yards and post a rating of 150-plus in a game since Pro Football Hall of Famer Sammy Baugh in 1948."

Nineteen freaking forty-eight.

What's happened? Part of it is he played the Saints. They're putridly horrific on defense. The other part of it is Cousins' style of play fits Jay Gruden's system. The team is also getting healthier. Players like DeSean Jackson make a huge difference. 

So I don't think what Cousins is doing is a fluke. I think it will continue. 

6. Victor Cruz and Twitter 

When Victor Cruz announced this week he was getting season-ending calf surgery, his Twitter timeline was flooded with ignorant nonsense, mostly from people questioning his dedication.

This type of thing always fascinates me. I've covered the NFL for more than 25 years, and I've never come across a lazy football player. Or one that isn't dedicated.

Do people think Cruz wanted to get seriously injured? Cruz has always been one of the hardest-working players on the Giants. So he's a bad guy or lazy because he has a life outside of football?

I know social media can at times be a cesspool, and there are far worse examples than trolls going after Cruz, but it's still ignorant.

7. Merril Hoge on Johnny Manziel is fascinating

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One last quote from an ESPN personality. Hoge has been a harsh Manziel critic (deservedly so), but he's also been fair. Now, he's being analytical when it comes to Manziel, and it's interesting stuff.

On Mike & Mike this week, Hoge was speaking of the game plan coaches have used for Manziel in his three starts, and that plan, Hoge says, didn't include one three- or five-step drop.

"In all my years playing and studying this league, which would be 30, I have never seen three game plans where you didn't do one dropback pass," he said. "They have never done a three- or a five-step drop. Not one. I have never seen that. Now, the reason they don't, is he can't..."

8. Another reason the Patriots could go unbeaten

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The Pats are seriously banged up, but I'm not sure that will prevent them from winning the rest of their games. This is why: It looks like the quarterbacks they will play in their final seven games are Tyrod Taylor, Brock Osweiler, Mark Sanchez, Brian Hoyer, Marcus Mariota, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Ryan Tannehill.

9. 'Look at a coach that you have castrated'

This rant on Jerry Jones by a longtime Dallas broadcaster is one of the all-time great rants. Not just on Jones, but ever. It approaches "crown their ass" territory.

It's also all true.

10. Why so much anger over Cam Newton's celebrations?

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There wasn't a more discussed topic this week on my Twitter timeline, or a more ridiculous one, than Cam Newton's celebrations. There seemed to be a lot of angry bros, mad at Newton's celebrations, deeming them a plague to Western civilization and a threat to the existence of the future of the human race. Like a meteor.

There was even a mom who believed Newton's dancing was bad for her nine-year-old son. Justin Bieber is bad for nine-year-olds. Not Newton.

The commotion is curious because, well, this is Tom Brady celebrating a first down.

Oh, and here's some celebrating and doing something NSFW with the hips.

Oh wait. Here's a whole bunch of dudes celebrating set to some NSFW music.

OK thanks. Have a nice day, everyone.

Mike Freeman covers the NFL for Bleacher Report.