Bleacher Report - AFC West

Syracuse Basketball Jumps Two Spots In Two Polls

Ryan Maloney — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:21:00 -0500

A pair of lopsided victories over Ivy League schools has bumped the Syracuse Orange further up the top 10 in both the AP Top 25 and ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll.

The media members place Syracuse at No. 8 while the coaches put the Orange at No. 7, both polls were released Monday afternoon.

Colgate is next on the agenda for Jim Boeheim's bunch. The Red Raiders are winless in five tries this season and appear to be lambs looking to avoid a slaughter at the Carrier Dome on Monday night.

Tip-off is scheduled for 7 P.M. on Jim Boeheim Court. The game is not televised and can only be viewed in the Syracuse area by Verizon FiOS subscribers at ESPN360.com.

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

In Josh McDaniels' Defense

Josh Gilchrist — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 02:42:25 -0500

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4697154

This is a good article with lots of Josh McDaniels’ quotes as he presents his side of the story. Honestly, I totally believe his side of the story regarding that cocky punk Sean Phillips (I hope I mispelled his name; I don’t care enough to even check).

He is always talking some trash, and I am glad if Josh McDaniels threw it back at him. I think Ryan Clark of the Steelers should mind his own business regarding what transpired between the Chargers linebackers and Denver’s coach.

McDaniels shouldn’t even have to apologize about a network picking up an F bomb from him on the sideline. He was not miked up; he was doing his job. If you have ever been to a professional football game, you hear the F word more than any other word, it seems. It is up to the networks to screen and filter that out.

I am thinking that some guys in the NFL are feeling threatened by Josh McDaniels and need to vilify him somehow. People who don’t like the Broncos are going to judge him regardless, but I am glad that Josh McDaniels is telling his side of the story.

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

Come on Al, It's Time to Just Win, Baby!

Tobi Writes — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 23:41:55 -0500

Dear Al,

I know you've heard the talk.

"Al's over the Hill."

"The game has passed Al by."

And that one the really has to light you up...

"His deep passing game doesn't work anymore."

Idiots.

Like they haven't seen Kurt Warner bomb his teams into the Super Bowl.

You can't put up with that garbage! You are the Raiders! You are the heart and soul of the greatness!

Al, it's time to get back to the top.

The facts are the Raiders aren't meant to be built around spoiled high draft picks. The Raiders are always at their best when they are built around the rejects of the rest of the league.

The UFL is made of NFL rejects. Go raid the UFL.

Man, you know that playoff teams need good leadership at the top. A strong owner, a good coach, and a good solid QB. You got one out of the three, but you haven't had the others since John Gruden left.

JaMarcus Russell can hold the bench down until his contract is up or until you decide to cut his fat, lazy ass. The guy is another Ryan Leaf. He is an Akili Smith-level bust. The guy doesn't even come to camp in shape? You don't need him.

Bruce Gradkowski is a 53 percent career passer with a career QB rating of 61. On top of that, he doesn't have the arm to go deep. He's a solid backup to a third QB, nothing more.

Charlie Frye was a nice prospect once. He's an OK third QB, but it is pretty clear the Raiders don't have a starter.

Your head coach, Tom Cable, isn't a winner and is out of his league as a head coach. He ran the University of Idaho into the ground. He's actually the guy that ended the run of great coaches at that school. He was the first coach fired at Idaho in 22 years. 22 years! You know you have a program on cruise control when they haven't fired a coach in 22 years. Cable blew it taking over a strong program.

He certainly hasn't shown anything as the Raiders' coach.

It is time to cut your losses and roll the dice on getting better now, Al.

Fire Cable and hire Californian Jim Fassel away from the UFL's Las Vegas Locomotives to be the next coach of the Raiders and sign Former Buffalo Bill first-round pick and current Locos QB J.P. Losman to be your starting QB.

The Locos were that league's second best team, but they kept improving as the year went on and they ended up beating the league's best team for the title.

That is the sign of a well coached team. Fassel also is a former NFL coach of the year who took the Giants to a Super Bowl before he was run out of the league by the fans in New York. He is a Raider who just hasn't happened yet.

The UFL season is over, so he could step in filling the role that an interim coach would normally fill and take over the staff for the last five games, allowing him to see if he wants to keep any of your assistants or bring in his own guys next season.

Fassel is an intense ball of fire. He is good guy, but he can be the SOB the Raiders have needed for years to be your avatar on the field and kick lazy and problem players around.

He likes to run the ball and to take shots deep fairly often. He demands his players play with toughness and fire, and people in the NFL don't give him the respect he has earned. He seems like the perfect Raider's coach.

Losman went to the UFL to play for Fassel. The two are a very odd couple, but it clearly works.

Losman is a weird California dude who looks like a dirty unshaven surfer roaming the sideline and muttering to himself during the games.

But he respects Fassel and Fassel can get Losman's attention.

Losman is still the same guy who got run out of Buffalo.

He appears to think he is better than he is and also sometimes appears to bristle under coaching. That said, he really seemed to want to learn from Fassel.

Losman has the big arm to make the deep passing game work. He has the arm and deep accuracy to make this offense work like it should.

He is a surprisingly tough player who will stand in to hit the deep pass, but has a bad feel for sensing the rush and will hold on to the ball too long—Fassel is working with him on that.

Losman's mechanics come and go, but you can see a slow improvement in his consistency from working with Fassel. When his mechanics are good, he can throw an accurate pass with zip 50-60-plus yards. He can throw accurate bombs.

He completed a sweet 62.6 percent of his passes for 9 TDs and 2 INTs in the UFL's seven game season with a pretty marginal pair of starting WRs, but that was against poor secondaries. Still, he has a career 75.6 passer rating in the NFL, which is better than the career QB ratings of your other QBs.

Losman appears flaky, inconsistent, self-absorbed, a bit argumentative, and frankly a little weird, but he's also talented, tough, and better than anyone you've got.

Think of it as trading JaMarcus Russell for J.P. Losman. At this point, who wouldn't make that trade?

It isn't like there is a huge talent difference. Russel can probably throw the ball 90 yards while Losman can only throw it 70 --- big deal. Both have big arms and the physical talent to have been NFL first round picks.

Then there is how they actually play on the field. Losman has a 75.6 NFL QB rating for his career. Russell's is 65.5.

With a full offseason with Fassel, Losman could really smooth out his game and become a pretty good player.

He's a Raider. He might be another Jim Plunkett.

Fassel has enough faith in Losman to start him over Gradkowski, regardless of the occasional bad game by Losman. Losman, Gradkowski, and Frye lay out nicely as your QBs.

The Raiders are one of the worst teams in the NFL today. It sucks, but it is what it is. There is no difference in talent between the guys starting in the UFL and the bottom half of the Raiders' roster. So why not go sign some of those guys to replace your weaker backups?

You have guys that you know aren't developing or lack the talent to contribute in the NFL sitting on your bench. Time to dump some of those guys.

UFL rosters were built specifically to have NFL prospects in every roster spot. That is part of the UFL's hope to become a feeder league of the NFL.

The UFL didn't go after big time collegiate playmakers who the NFL wouldn't touch. They went after guys who have made NFL rosters. These guys were in the UFL because they didn't make enough plays to stay in the NFL, not because they lacked NFL talent.

And as it turns out a very small sliver of those guys in the UFL can make plays.

Use the retreads from the UFL to restore the chip on their shoulders that Raiders players should have towards the rest of the league.

The Locomotives won the title because their defense ate up the league's best offense. Give Fassel the freedom to bring in clutch playmakers like DE Adrian Awasome, DT Ross Kolodziej, LB Teddy Lehman, S Tony Parrish, or other Locos like TE Adam Bergen, WR Tab Perry, QB Tim Rattay, and others to fill out his bench and ease the transition.

Guys like Florida's WRs Taye Biddle and Marcus Maxwell could also be targets to investigate to help that receiving corps. They may be the two best receivers in that league and do appear to be legit NFL talents that would fit the Raider's down field passing scheme, not just bubble guys like most of the UFL's players. You can probably nab a couple of good backup OL from the UFL too.

The UFL season just ended and you have to think most NFL teams aren't going to touch most of those guys to try to discourage players from going to the UFL in the future.

Be Al Freakin' Davis.

Treat the UFL as your bonus draft. Add the right 10 or so players from the UFL and another three or four in the next draft and this team can be back in the playoffs next season.

Come on, Al.

Just win, baby!

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

Why Charlie Frye Won't See the Field In Oakland

Ramone Brown — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 22:53:42 -0500

There is clearly a production problem with the QB position in Oakland. First JaMarcus Russell completely bombed the first half of the season with a 51.6 completion rate and nine interceptions this season.

He was then replaced by Bruce Gradkowski who gave us very similar results mis-firing just as badly with a 52.2 completion rate, three INTs, and three fumbles this season. Aside from the 0.6 percent completion rate improvement, Gradkowski's performance is nearly identical to Russell's. Gradkowski over-threw receives, mis-read defense, and was unable to recognize open receivers.

With results like that many are calling for the Raiders third QB Charlie Frye. And it isn't completely un- warranted as Frye has the highest career completion rate of the three Raider QBs: Gradkowski 52.8, Russell 51.6, and Frye 62.0. With Frye's completion percentage exceeding the other two QBs by 10 percent it is a wonder why he hasn't seen the field. Frye not only has the higher completion rate, but has more career yards than Gradkowski, and the most NFL experience.

The reason Frye hasn't seen the field is because favorites are being played with the QBs in Oakland.

First off, Bruce Gradkowski. He was coached by Raiders QB coach Hackett while in Tampa, and Hackett was the one who pushed for the Raiders to bring in both Gradkowski and Jeff Garcia, Hacketts two former pupils. Because of there past in Tampa Bay it is clear that Hackett favors Gradkowski.

Then there is JaMarcus Russell. To fully understand this you have to go back to accusations made that Al Davis is racist. A Tim Brown quote was mis-understood where he basically said Al Davis doesn't like black players from Notre Dame because they rely on their education or smarts rather than pure physical ability.

No way am I saying that Davis is racist. What I am saying is he prefers black athletes who rely on their physical abilities over there brains.

Clearly JaMarcus Russell fits well into what Al Davis wants in his black athletes. Russell is one of, if not the, strongest armed QBs the NFL has seen. Also when Russell was drafted he was very athletic for his size, and fit perfectly in the Al Davis height-weight-speed mold.

Not only that, but Russell isn't seen as the most mentally gifted QB in the league as many have questioned his intelligence.

A QB who made it through college purely on physical ability, and isn't a big thinker. If the Tim Brown quote is true what else would Al Davis want in a QB.

Then there is Charlie Frye. Barring injury he likely won't see any action this year simply because the other two QBs are favored. The only thing he has going for him is being Al Davis's second favorite QB as Davis granted Frye an audience prior to signing him.

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

Come to Think of it: Josh McDaniels "Swears" Denver Broncos Just Trying To Win

Bob Warja — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 11:43:00 -0500

Hey, the Denver Broncos finally ended their run of futility, and all the reports focus on only one thing.

The win snapping Denver's four-game slide? No. Brian Dawkins' inspired play? Nope, that's not it either.

Instead, a swear word uttered by coach Josh McDaniels that was accidentally broadcast by the NFL Network during the game Thursday night took center stage.

It had been 38 days since the Broncos had won a game, yet all the talk is about McDaniels' penchant for the F-word.

Meanwhile, there was a football game played last night, a 26-6 victory over the Giants, who are in the midst of a serious slide of their own.

Elvis Dumervil had two more sacks, raising his NFL-leading total to 14, the second one leading to a fumble. But both teams share one common theme: They have stalled since starting out undefeated.

Denver won its first six games before losing four in a row, and the Giants have lost five of six since starting the season 5-0. So much for the concept of momentum.

But, it was Denver's inability to score in the red zone (hey, this is Kyle Orton and not Jay Cutler QBing the team, right? Just checking) that led to the NFL Network's embarrassing mistake.

Coming out of a commercial break, the NFL Network showed a clip of McDaniels yelling at his players on the sideline, saying, "All we're trying to do is win a [expletive] game!"

The vulgarity was clearly audible to viewers, and announcer Bob Papa immediately apologized on air. But he certainly doesn't need to apologize to me, and I suspect most football fans could care less about swearing.

This is football, after all, a tough game played by tough men, and things get said in the heat of battle. Isn't the game what it's all about anyway?

So McDaniels swore last night? Tough [expletive], I say, come to think of it.

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

Not Much To Say About the Broncos

Josh Gilchrist — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 10:58:38 -0500

This site was devoted to the culture change that is taking place within the Denver Broncos organization. After a four-game relapse that is reminiscent of the 2006, 2007, and 2008 seasons, this site is now about change that needs to take place.

I am not calling for the firing of Josh McDaniels, but the so-called boy genius has a long way to go. I am willing to give him time (like two seasons worth), but getting better before you get worse is one of the worst feelings—far too familiar to long-suffering Broncos fans.

Maybe the MSM was right about the Denver Broncos. I hate to say it. However, McDaniels has been unable to motivate his team and get them performing. They were outplayed by Baltimore and Pittsburgh, humiliated in D.C., and curb-stomped by their fiercest division rivalry at home after beating them earlier in the season (that one really hurts). No adjustments seem to be being made.

I hate to say anything negative regarding the hot start. Unfortunately, it will mean absolutely nothing if they lose out on the playoffs. The 6-0 record is quickly disintegrating.

Why? I understand that they aren’t a perfect team, but are they this bad? Did the boys put all of their heart and soul on the line those first six games and are now running on empty? Did McDaniels think that they could do the exact same thing week after week and avoid opposing NFL coaches figuring them out? Were the Broncos so amazing at adjusting in the second half of games, only to become completely unable to adjust, at all, to adversity in the middle of a season?

These are the questions that I would like to have answered. I am done making excuses for the Broncos. I was Mike Shanahan’s harshest critic. I still think he needed to move on from the Broncos, but I need to be fair in my assessment of Josh McDaniels too. Therefore, in all fairness, I think the Broncos’ coaching and performance has been inexcusable the past four weeks.

I thought Josh McDaniels was changing the culture. Maybe he is, but there is still a lot of work to do.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

Oakland Raiders' Punting Is Big News

Al's Wingman — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 02:38:51 -0500

A big win in dramatic fashion is the best medicine for a struggling team. It doesn’t get much better than scoring 10 points in the last 33 seconds of the game to knock off the Bengals last week.

In all fairness, Cincy really should have scored more points the way they controlled most of the afternoon’s action, but that's the way the ball bounces if you misplay your hand.

So far, two of Oakland’s three wins on the season have been big wins over very good teams (Philadelphia and Cincinnati). Can they do it again with Dallas on Thanksgiving Day?

Not a chance. Not on three days rest, with way too little depth on defense and special teams.

Despite QB Tony Romo being one of the best chokers in the business, the Cowgirls will find a way to win the game.

Tom Cable is still a lousy coach and a lousy play-caller. The Raiders run defense is still horrible despite the inspired play of Tyvon Branch at strong safety, leading the team in tackles (if your secondary is making that many tackles in the run game, that’s a problem).

Every Raiders fan is happy to see JaMeatloaf Russell benched. One of the worst football decisions of all time was Al Davis issuing faith in him to play up to his contract.

To his credit, Bruce Gradkowski is a gutsy QB and he will make some good plays, but he will not be able to carry the team. There is still some hope for the receiving game with Zach Miller, Louis Murphy, and now Chaz Schillens working himself back into shape. It’s just not going to be enough though.

Who really cares what Justin Fargas does at this point? His 40 yards per game average isn't really that important.

It’s one thing to beat a team at home because the other team makes a bad decision, replacing their kick returner at the end of the game and he ends up fumbling. It’s another thing entirely to try and win a game on the road just four days after their last game.

The Cowgirls will likely sleepwalk and score enough to get by.

The most telling sign of how boring/bad the Raiders are is all the discussion of their punting game. Seriously, who cares if a punter can hit a scoreboard? Next to the benching of JaMeatloaf, discussion of Shane Lechler hitting the scoreboard is the biggest story in Oakland.

That takes the cake. You know there's no news to speak of if a punter is highlighted over Tom Cable’s character assassination, which had previously dominated the first half of the Raiders season.

That’s right, the Raiders always have a punter to get them out of trouble.

Good stuff, what else they got?

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

Cult Of The Quarterback: Why NFL Rules To Protect The QB Erode The Game

David Xaviel is the Real Mr. X — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 02:35:15 -0500

Here is a topic that grinds my gears: the debate on whether the NFL should inordinately protect the quarterback, and whether it makes the game better.

Frankly, I think it makes the game worse. To me, it is the same as home runs from steroids, only in the NFL it is a codified inflation of stats.

Statistics don't make the game better, they make it worse. It is that simple.

Remember the movie The Incredibles ? In this case, stats aren't special when nearly every quarterback has comparable stats. The numbers are nihilistic. Rather than making the game exciting, they become more of a sedative than an endorphin.

Since 2004, two quarterbacks—Peyton Manning and Tom Brady—have broken the single-season record for touchdown passes, with Daunte Culpepper also coming close.

Never mind the glaring fact that Randy Moss is the common factor in the stats of Culpepper and Brady, because the mental conditioning that NFL fans are supposed to worship is that quarterback stats are independent.

This must be why many NFL fans despise wide receivers that celebrate a touchdown.

I don't assert that Manning and Brady are bad quarterbacks, but simply that their stats have been inflated.

Many players routinely beat the stats of yesteryear, and we're supposed to believe that the "new" record is better than the old record. To me, it's nothing more than an arcade game with a high-scoring player named ASS.

Since 1999, no-name quarterbacks have routinely waltzed onto the team and succeeded, such as Kurt Warner, Tom Brady, and Jake Delhomme.

Even Matt Hasselbeck with his bad back can throw touchdowns in the NFL. Rookie or first-year quarterbacks succeed like never before—Ben Roethlisberger, Joe Flacco, Matt Ryan, Philip Rivers, Tony Romo, Carson Palmer, and Matthew Stafford.

Even Matt Cassel has succeeded, who had not started a game since high school.

What I assert is that the pattern of practice squad quarterbacks, rookies, and no names ascending to stardom is the result of the rules to protect the quarterback. Obviously every team can't win, thus not every quarterback can succeed.

Yet, stats of recent have shown that quarterbacks whom pass over 220 yards are winning more than ever, unlike previous years. Thus, I must ask what has changed? Are the quarterbacks on average getting better, are executives getting better at finding personnel, or is this the result of something newly inherent to the game such as rules to protect the QB?

Cassel is just one example. I gave many examples, but I highlight Cassel because I think the fact that he had not started since high school was the final nail in the coffin, and proof in the pudding that a quarterback does not have to be very good in order to succeed in the NFL, just lucky enough to play on a team loaded with hard working players desperately trying to make the team to make him look good.

Some would argue that Cassel's success is an indication of the Patriots system, when I think it's an indication that the NFL is easier for quarterbacks. Thus, I'm not impressed by quarterbacks as "independent" players, when they are dependent on the team.

If high school quarterback skills are transferable to the pro level—that should tell you something about the NFL.

For quarterbacks, the NFL is arbitrarily kept at the same level as the high school game. While other players are expected to be inordinately better than their competition for their position, the quarterback is treated as a fully actualized person who doesn't need to learn, adapt, mature, or continue to improve.

If defenders find an upper hand, the NFL will say, "you can't do that," rather than tell the quarterback to improve.

The NFL wonders why players like Pacman Jones act out in generalized frustration.

It could also be why, on average, black players in the NFL are more athletic than white players. We know that biologically people are roughly the same. There's no biological reason that black athletes are often more athletic than white athletes.

So, the problem could be environmental, cultural, or systematic.

Generally, black players don't get the opportunity to be freeloading quarterbacks. They are expected to work harder to make QBs look good, and let them take all the credit too.

Meanwhile, white quarterbacks, don't have to work as hard to be on the field because the league carves out a position tailor-made to their limited skills.

Paychecks have nothing to do with the stratification in the NFL.

Why?

The NFL rules have made the game easier for the quarterback. Team's defenses are predicated on the notion that "defenseless" quarterbacks should be protected with exclusive rules.

Some defenders claim that quarterbacks should be protected from concussions and even wax emphatic for the "poor babies," who instead, should be subject to the same violence of the game as other players.

In the NFL, defensive players like Pacman Jones get suspended while "defenseless" quarterbacks accused of rape are protected by the NFL and media. Of course, I'm referring to Ben Roethlisberger, whom has an history of concussions and stupid behavior (i.e. the motorcycle accident).

Ironically, the fact that people say quarterbacks like Roethlisberger must be protected because of concussions, should be an argument against Roethlisberger's credibility in the civil suit that charged him with rape, in that, with his mental health, what would he remember?

Is he fully aware of where he is at all times?

If you're a quarterback concerned with concussions—then use your money to hire a specialist for a second opinion.

If you want to play football, you should be prepared to get hurt. If you're afraid to get hurt, don't play. Don't put the pussies on a pedestal (note: for those who are typically offended by that word, I ask that you consider the context and intent).

Like a cult follower, I do think that people truly believe that the quarterback should be above it all; that his stats are independent and earned only by him.

That is why a quarterback like Cassel had $60 million thrown at him by Kansas City for one season in New England, while receivers and running backs get demonized when they demand more money after a productive season (i.e. Brandon Marshall). The quarterback would demand more money, except he doesn't have too.

Remember this: the word "token" can be used to describe a "quarter," and thus in the NFL, the passer is really just the "token" back.

To the quarterbacks that whine, cry, and whimper about the violence of the game: Work harder and be quiet.

You have now been deprogrammed.

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

Oakland Raiders Aim for Dallas Upset: Yes Deion Sanders, the Joke Will Be on You

Big AL Fan — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 01:15:51 -0500

The Raiders take the field in Dallas as underdogs against the Division leading Dallas Cowboys. Most all experts pick us to lose. The problem with that notion is, the Raiders will win this game.

Yes Deion Sanders, your Cowboys will lose. You will be laughing under your breath during highlights of your Cowboys this week. You will not be able to take your usual cheap shot at the Raiders this week.

The Raiders need no motivation. The stage is enough. The team has been disrespected by the national media and NFL from day one.

This is still not the motivation. The motivation is, the Raiders will prove that they are the better team because they are. It will be a physical battle with many opportunities.

Remember, these teams saw each other during the preseason. They know who has who and what each can do. There will be no surprises here. It will be a day to man up and get it done.

Most all phases of the Raiders have been playing well all year. The struggles have been in the passing game. It was decided that Jamarcus needed more time to learn and get better by watching instead of playing.

Now with Bruce G. in the huddle, everyone noticed a bit more rhythm to the offense. Both players had a clean slate with a new offensive passing coordinator coming in this year. Bruce is ahead of Jamarcus in translating the scheme into play and the offense has confidence.

This renewed confidence is growing. The re-energized and already stellar Defense can play and at times dominate any NFL team period. Special Teams have been good all year with the exception of the return game. The Raiders have a healthy Offensive line for the 3rd week in a row and it showed last week.

Combined with Bruce's mobility, they did not give up a sack. The Raiders secondary is in my opinion the best in the league.

The Raiders will play man to man as Romo does not prefer this and is more comfortable with Zone.

The Raiders Running backs are fresh and hungry. Last week Cable smartly rotated each back throughout the game and they remained active.

All three backs have great attributes. Both McFadden and Fargas can break long runs at any time. Bush can churn out 12 yard runs early then break long runs as the Defense wears down. If McFadden is at full strength, watch out, he can showcase his speed on turf.

Zack Miller will show just how good he is.

Another reason why the Raiders will win is because the game is on a national stage, the Refs are forced to call the game straight-up. We shouldn't see any horrible calls as we seen during the first nine weeks.

Most of all, the Raiders have pride and I just know, they have the ability to dominate teams when the offense gets it going.

To the team, we all wish you Happy Thanksgiving. Go out there and leave it all on the field. After the game, we don't play for 10 days. Play hard, play smart, and win.

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

Why Charlie Weis with the Kansas City Chiefs Makes Sense

Steve Swearengin — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:03:33 -0500

The writing is most certainly on the wall in South Bend. Charlie Weis' head coaching experiment is all but over at the University of Notre Dame.

Weis has already acknowledged his inevitable departure by stating that his record isn't "good enough" at the moment to be the Notre Dame head football coach.

If you needed a more definitive reason why Weis won't be in Notre Dame next year, the school's Athletic Director will not allow him to go on his scheduled recruiting trip after Saturday's Stanford game. Instead Weis will fly back to Notre Dame to face the end of his run as their coach.

So what are the next steps for Weis? Rumors have been flying around the past few days regarding Weis in Kansas City. There just happens to be an opening for an offensive coordinator in KC, and with Weis' background, it would be no surprise to me to see him in KC in 2010.

It seems like a logical fit for Weis with the Chiefs, and here are a handful of reasons why.

1. GM Scott Pioli doesn't hide the fact that he wants to fill as many openings as possible in the Chiefs organization with ex-Patriots. Weis was the offensive coordinator in New England during the Pioli days.

2. Weis doesn't seem to have the natural leadership needed to be a head coach at the NFL or college level yet.

3. Weis and Todd Haley worked together on the Jets prior to Weis going to New England.

4. Weis could probably land another head coaching job at a much smaller school in the NCAA, but he might just want to return to what he is great at before he tarnishes his career any further.

5. His best chance to eventually become a head coach in the NFL would be to turn a struggling offense around over the course of a few years.

Personally, I would love to see Weis in KC next year. He has an amazing track record as an NFL offensive coordinator. Adding Weis would also give marquee offensive free agents more incentive to sign with the Chiefs.

Weis needs another chance, and the Chiefs need a talented offensive coordinator. The Chiefs could also use another personnel evaluator. So far, the Pioli/Haley-led 2009 Chiefs draft class isn't looking so hot. Another opinion on draft choices couldn't hurt.

After all, seeing Golden Tate in Chiefs red could be a very good thing in 2010!

If you're a Chiefs fan, please check out more of my work at ChiefsHouse.com , or if you're interested in starting your own sports blog, check out SportsPageNetwork.com! Thanks for reading!

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

Do the Oakland Raiders Have the Next Great Safety Tandem?

Ramone Brown — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 23:28:57 -0500

In the NFL great safeties are a luxury and teams with two great safeties are few and far between. Great safetie tandems are a QB's worst nightmare...Well, maybe second worst behind the second coming of Lawrence Taylor.

Great safety play usually dictates dominant defensive play. Last year the three teams with the most productive safeties were Tennessee (11 INTs and 153 tackles), Baltimore (10 INTs 110 tackles) and Pittsburgh (8 INTs 160 tackles). All three boasted top defenses in 2008 and combined for a 36-12 record.

With names like Troy Palamalu, Ed Reed, and Michael Griffin the play of the safeties undoubtedly had something to do with these teams' success.

Last year Raiders strong-safety Gibril Wilson led all safeties with 129 tackles and he now leads the Miami Dolphins in tackles. Many fans think that letting him go was a mistake. But don't worry his replacement is doing just fine.

Currently the Raiders second year strong-safety Tyvon Branch is on pace to match Gibril Wilson's 2008 total tackles. After only ten games Branch has 81 tackles under his belt this season, as well as two forced fumbles and a sack.

If the Raiders were to eventually develop a dominant safety tandem, Branch would be the center- piece. He had ridiculous combine numbers including the second fastest 40 time in the 2008 combine behind Tennessee's Chris Johnson. Branch also has experience returning kicks as well as playing both safety positions and corner.

So who will be Tyvon Branch's side-kick and partner in crime in the Raiders safety tandem? Right now it's between hard-hitting rookie Michael Mitchell, fourth year player Michael Huff, while current starting FS Hiram Eugene would be the under-dog.

Right now Michael Huff who seems to be resurecting his career and shedding the title of "bust" is leading the pack. So far in ten games backing up Hiram Eugene he has 39 tackles and three INTs and nine passes defended. Though he is very solid in pass coverage his only downfall is his lack of tackling ability, hence why Eugene starts over him. If he can develop his tackling he has the potential to be great.

Next is controversial second round draft pick Michael Mitchell. So far this year he has been hampered by injuries and used sparingly making most of his tackles on special teams.

So far this year he has only been used in sure running situations and in the Raiders wolverine package, which is a nickel package that uses a third safety near the line of scrimmage. The rookie still has a few questions surrounding him before we can proclaim him as the next Jack Tatum. Like is he durable enough for the NFL and can he keep up in coverage.

Then there's the Raiders starting free-safety Hiram Eugene. Though he doesn't have Huffs flashy speed and skills or Mitchell's hard-hitting when he is on the field he seems to get the job done. Though he is the most experienced of the bunch, in my opinion he has the least potential based on lack of pure physical ability. Also at 29, he is the oldest safety on the Raiders roster.

Which of these players, if any, has the potential to be part of the next great safety tandem on the Raiders. I would like to know what you think Raider Nation.

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

Stafford and Lions, Young and Titans: What We Learned from NFL Week 11

The Sportmeisters — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 03:16:36 -0500

By Ryan of The Sportmeisters

The home stretch is near! Who’s gunning for the playoffs, and who’s gunning for a good draft spot?

The Best Game No One Watched

It was a “family and friends” game, meaning, only family and friends would watch Cleveland face off against Detroit in the race for the No. 1 pick. Well, it became a game full of energy, comebacks, and a game-winning drive, as the Lions edged the Browns 38-37.

Cleveland took a huge 24-3 lead to start the game, showing an offensive firepower sorely missed the first 10 weeks of the season. Detroit, led by rookie QB Matt Stafford, climbed back, until Cleveland QB Brady Quinn led a scoring drive to make it 37-31 with under five minutes to go.

Enter Stafford, who got the team to midfield before launching a Hail Mary with less than 10 seconds to go, which was intercepted and ended the game.

BUT WAIT!

A pass interference call let Detroit have one final untimed play, where a now-injured Stafford found fellow rookie TE Brandon Pettigrew for the 38-37 win.

They say it takes one play in one game to turn a team around. For Detroit, that might have been the turning point, even with Stafford unlikely to play this week against Green Bay. The Browns can take some positive in the offense that showed up, but are miles away from any signs of competitiveness.

A Bucked Bronco

A month ago, the Denver Broncos, despite all their offseason turmoil, were 6-0 and kings of the AFC West. They held a 3-and-a-half game lead over the Sand Diego Chargers. Now, as we move to Week 12, the San Diego Chargers hold a one-game lead over Denver, thanks to a five-game winning streak that culminated in a 32-3 drubbing of the Broncos on Sunday.

It was just another case of two teams changing since Denver won the first matchup.

San Diego seems to be on all cylinders, with QB Philip Rivers managing the offense, and even RB LaDainian Tomlinson having a solid performance (20 carries, 73 yards, touchdown).

Denver is falling apart at the wrong time, and three turnovers and nine penalties don’t make it any easier. The Broncos have an early game this week against the NY Giants, and have to get back on track now, or risk watching the season end before their very eyes.

Remember The Titans

I usually write this on a Monday, but due to scheduling conflicts, I got to take in the Monday night game and add it to my recaps. I picked a good week to have a scheduling conflict, as behind 151 rushing yards from Chris Johnson and 189 all-purpose yards from Vince Young, the Titans squeaked out a 20-17 victory over the Houston Texans.

The Titans, who were the source of ridicule a year removed from 13-3, have now won four straight, and while they are still a ways away from any playoff talk, now seem like they are on the right track.

Using the same method that worked last year (punishing running game, dominant defense), they no longer seem in over their heads. Against Houston, they had 228 rushing yards, and the defense had four sacks, and held Houston to 57 rushing yards.

Tennessee is clawing back, slowly but surely.

Contenders and Pretenders

The playoff picture is getting clearer, so who is in the snapshot?

The New Orleans Saints, after a few weeks of questionable football, quieted the critics with a complete performance in a 38-7 drubbing of Tampa Bay. The Saints take their perfect record against New England on Monday Night Football this coming week.

What does a 4-2 record over the last six weeks get you? For the Miami Dolphins, it’s some playoff chatter, as last years AFC East Champions beat the Carolina Panthers to get back to .500. RB Ricky Williams had three touchdowns in place of injured RB Ronnie Brown.

The Indianapolis Colts are making it happen, squeaking out another close victory, this time against the Baltimore Ravens 17-15. The Colts ran their record to 10-0, their eighth straight 10-win season, and have won 19 regular season games in a row, second only to the New England Patriots (21 wins from 2006-2008).

Pretenders come in all shapes and sizes:

Bills coach Dick Jauron was given the boot, hoping to spark something in Buffalo. Despite Terrell Owens showing up for the first time all season, the Bills still lose, 18-15 to Jacksonville. The Bills are now 3-7.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are defending Super Bowl champions, but they’re not playing like it. They lost their second straight game, this time to the Kansas City Chiefs, 27-24 in overtime. They are fighting injuries, which is a contributing factor, but they need to get their act together if a repeat Super Bowl appearance is in the cards.

After starting 4-1, the Atlanta Falcons have taken a nosedive, with their latest, a 34-31 overtime loss to the New York Giants, running their record to 5-5.

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

Charles Is in Charge, but Matt Cassel is Still the Key To Chiefs Winning

James Adkins — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 02:49:21 -0500

The Kansas City Chiefs are in the midst of something they haven't enjoyed since October of 2007—a two-game winning streak.

New Head Coach Todd Haley has made more than his fair share of mistakes while learning the ropes as a first-year head coach this season. The team is full of young inexperienced players, and has endured the loss of team leaders with the release of a disgruntled former star and the suspension of a current one.

Needless to say, it's worth getting excited about when this young Chiefs team can string together a couple of wins. The question now is: Can they keep winning?

The Chiefs are winning because they are finally learning to play together, trusting their coach, and trusting one another.

Earlier this season, they were losing games because their opponents were making big plays far more frequently than the Chiefs were. Over the course of the past two weeks, however, the Chiefs have been the ones making the big plays.

Big plays breed confidence, and nothing is more important to a young inexperienced team than confidence.

No player on the Chiefs' roster has injected more confidence into this team than running back and kick returner Jamaal Charles. Charles has accounted for a 44-yard touchdown run and a 97-yard return for a touchdown during this Chiefs' winning streak.

Charles has provided the spark for his team the past two weeks.

Defensively, the Chiefs have been embattled all season long. They continue to allow huge chunks of yards to their opponents, but they are beginning to come up with big plays when they need them.

In Oakland, safety Mike Brown sealed that victory with a late interception. This week, against the Steelers, linebacker Andy Studebaker made two key interceptions that setup 10 points for the Chiefs.

So moving forward, what do the Chiefs need to do to continue winning?

The easy answer would be to say that they need to continue getting the ball to Charles, and relying on players on defense to create turnovers.

Sure, it would be nice if Charles and the Chiefs defense can continue to do what they've done the past two weeks, but it's far more likely that the Chiefs will need to look elsewhere for a consistent source of big plays.

That place is the passing game and quarterback Matt Cassel.

Cassel, with only six interceptions to his 12 touchdowns, has done a fairly good job of not turning the ball over. However, he has completed only 55 percent of his passes, has been sacked 34 times, and has made way too many drive-killing decisions this season.

Cassel appears to have developed a strong rapport with the recently acquired Chris Chambers. In addition to Charles, the emergence of Chambers in the passing game has been key to the success of the Chiefs' offense the past two weeks.

With Dwayne Bowe sidelined for another three weeks however, Cassel needs to develop a consistent second option in the passing game. Whether that threat is receiver Lance Long, tight end Leornard Pope, or Charles out of the backfield, Cassel needs to have another target he can rely upon for five catches a game.

Whether the Chiefs can extend their winning streak to three games this week in San Diego remains to be seen. The recipe for success is there, they just have to continue to build on the confidence that's gotten them to this point.

There shouldn't be any doubt that the Chiefs should fare much better in their final six games, than their first six. If not for the Chiefs' 0-6 start to the season, we might be talking about a run at a wildcard spot.

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

San Diego Chargers Charge into First Through Denver Bronco Blunders

Bowe Fertig — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 01:45:16 -0500

The Chargers week six dropped below .500 for the first time in the ’09 season at 2-3 after their heartbreaking loss to the Broncos. The Chargers had three months and 11 games to make up a 3 ½ game deficit but they achieved the feat in less than half that time.

In their first encounter at Qualcomm Stadium, the Broncos beat the Chargers in every aspect of the game. The Chargers took their four-game winning streak into Invesco Field and repaid the Broncos by controlling the tempo of the game and routing them 32-3.

The Broncos had very few things going for them when facing the Chargers week 10. The run game and home field advantage.

In the first drive of the game the Broncos ran the ball on the first seven plays for 42 yards and then on the eighth play Simms fumbled on his first drop back. The Chargers capitalize on a touchdown; the Broncos get the ball back and go three-and-out on three straight passes.

The Broncos only ran the ball 10 more times after running it on the first seven plays and kept the crowd out of the game all day.

In the hole down 13 points after two Nate Kaeding field goals, still with the game in reach, the Broncos make their biggest mistake of the game by bringing back Kyle Orton.

Yes Orton moved the ball, but the Broncos still got obliterated and there was no positive note for bringing back Orton and keeping him in the game. The move worsened Orton’s injury and affected Chris Simm’s confidence.

Josh McDaniels didn’t take history into account with Orton who was brought back too early last year after an ankle injury and played his worst ball down the stretch because of being brought back prematurely. Now the Broncos have a starting quarterback who is in worse condition than a week before and a back-up quarterback with no confidence and now have a big offensive task ahead of them on Thanksgiving at New York against the Giants.

Speaking of McDaniels bad first year moves. I am sure he learned another valuable lesson against the Chargers through speaking out of turn. Before the game the knucklehead in McDaniels told Charger players “that he owned them.” McDaniels got a taste of his own medicine and I am sure he won’t consciously do that again.

The Broncos couldn’t do anything right and the Chargers took advantage of it by controlling time of possession, 37:52 to 22:08, and rushing for 203 yards, the most this season in their biggest lopsided victory.

The Chargers are now 5-0 when Rivers throws below his average of pass attempts and have scored more than 30 points each time they crack the century mark in rushing yards.

Much of the success from the offense can be credited to the offensive line who are opening holes to run through and keeping the pressure off of Rivers.

Through the first five games of the season Rivers was sacked 15 times and in the last five games he has only been sacked five times and kept spotless last game. The running game has also benefited from the great play of the line after rushing for more than 100 yards in three out of the last five games.

The run has also been a contributor to Rivers success because now teams have to respect the run. The Chargers averaging the lowest total in rushing yards a few weeks ago, now are 20th in league averaging less than a yard fewer than 100.

In the last five games, Rivers has completed on average 69 percent of his passes compared to 59 percent through the first five and has thrown for better than 77 percent in his last two.

The offense has been rolling of late for the Chargers and the defense is following its lead sacking the quarterback 20 times in the last five games and having a leagues fifth best rushing defense allowing a tad over 80 yards per game.

To those who doubted the Chargers balance attack, 28 rushes for 203 yards and 22 passes for 145 yards sounds like a good balance attack to me. What perfect timing for my article last week on their underrated balanced attack .

The Chargers have two winnable games at home against Kansas City and on the road at Cleveland. Both teams won this past week with a few other unexpected wins so the Chargers could be in for tough games against the teams they are expected to beat, but as long as the Chargers can win the turnover ratio and control the clock, like they have been doing of late, they will go into Dallas at 9-3.

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com

San Diego Chargers Hitting the Right Notes

Paul Preibisius — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 20:15:47 -0500

The Chargers now five game winning streak has been great cause for optimism. With the Bengals laying an egg against Oakland, the team not only finds themselves back in the division lead a game ahead of the reeling Broncos, but now in a three way tie for that second seed, and the first round bye that accompanies it.

My faith in San Diego is growing in leaps and bounds, not because of the winning streak but how they have done it. My worry just after the last Raiders game (with the Chargers sitting at 4-3 and Denver at 6-1) was not the team’s capacity to win, but their capacity to win big games against big teams.

They had a solid final nine, with the Giants, Eagles, Denver (at the time still a force), Dallas (in the middle of their Miles Austin power-run), and Cinci. I figured they would need at least two of those game to earn a playoff spot, probably three to fight for the division.

They have already fulfilled the three of the five tough games criteria with their first three games, dropping the Giants and Eagles before thrashing Denver. Now they look at a run of the Chiefs (albeit with a little added swagger after the Pitt head scratcher), Browns, and Redskins mixed in with the much more human-looking variations of Dallas and Cinci.

In fact, I’d go out on a limb and say the most dangerous game is not going to be against either listed above, but the resurgent Titans fighting for respect.

On the team’s to do lists for me to really get excited over this team after week eight:

A. Defeat better than .500 team—Check, week nine Giants.

B. Put together back to back wins (I didn’t count the Chiefs/Raiders pair as such)—Check, weeks nine-11.

C. Come out take a lead and hold it—Check, somewhat week 10, more week 11.

D. Add some dimension to the team—Check as follows:

That dimension is what excites me. The team now proves they can get after an opposing team’s offense in a much more aggressive way (first five games- four picks, seven sacks; last five games- six picks, twenty sacks).

And now they are finally developing the running game. Ninety-six yards by LT was a start against the Eagles, but the Denver match, with its two hundred and three team yards rushing, showcased a missing element for the team. This was done by a method that I am somewhat baffled the team had not really pursued to this point: all four backs getting at least seven carries.

During LT’s injury and recovery the team tried to ride Sproles instead of platoon the remaining backs and spread the load. With LT still not as dynamic as he once was (his yardage totals have solidified but he still can’t seem to break that four yard a carry barrier).

The team gave him 20 carries, Sproles nine, and seven apiece to Hester and Tolbert. The lightning bug has continued his less than stellar season taking handoffs but Hester and Tolbert put up 6.6 and 8.3 yards per carry respectively. With a team lacking goal-line and short yardage punch, it is good to see the team trying out the rock in these guys’ hands (both of whom are much better suited to those frequent straight up the gut plays).

Rivers no longer has to do it all, and that will benefit the team in the long run. If they can continue to expound upon the improved running game and harass opposing offenses they will be able to start to run with some of the big teams in the playoffs.

As good as Rivers has been, I was not altogether confident that the team could go places on his arm alone. This team is not flawless, but no one is, especially this year, so good luck and go Chargers.

Read more AFC West news on BleacherReport.com