(Intended to post this before Sundays action started however I didn't get it in on time so now I am blessed with the opportunity to reflect. I wrote the 3 storylines about a week ago. Week 1 Results & Reflection were wrote this afternoon)
Pursuit Of Happiness:
Its been long 7 months but Football is back folks! Ask anyone I work with and they will tell you my NFL withdrawls were almost too much to cope with. Luckily I was able to ween myself off with the NFL Draft in April mixed with some quality NFL Network programming during the long lay away. However now I'm back and ready to return to the full fledged addict I am every year at this time. Im ready to hit the football drug hard for the next 5 months. Im sure my work ethic, effort in relationships, and general productivity will go down faster than the girl you take home from MJ's (local bar) this weekend. Now in all seriousness - heres a few storylines I am looking forward to following.
1) Luck & RG3 - This is no Peyton Manning & Ryan Leaf comparision. In fact the contrast between these two players is much greater (besides maybe work ethic and being decent human beings). Luck is mature way beyond his years and holds his ground in the pocket better than half of the veteran QBs in the league already. RG3 has charisma, leadership, and the confidence you would expect to see from a proven QB not a rookie. Luck already has me concerned about what he will be doing to AFC defenses a couple years from now - I will probably hate him more than Brady and Manning for the same reason; he's just too damn good! RG3 will anger me because he is blessed with the same skill set as Mike Vick (elusive, nimble, rocket arm) but he will have two qualities (a young) Mike Vick never had; size to stand in the pocket, and a good head on his shoulders. Predictions (for this season): Luck will throw for more yards and RG3 will help his team win more games.
Week 1 Results: RG3 shines in debut and Luck looks like a rookie. In Lucks defense he is playing on a very poor squad vs. a potential Super Bowl contender in my opinion. Just not enough threats for Luck to work with as of right now. Hopefully Indy will find a few playmakers to lighten the load on Luck but for now expect to see lots of yardage paired with few wins. RG3 on the other hand looked outstanding. Completing his first 8 passes and hooking up with Pierre Garcon for his first career TD pass on an 88 yard catch and run - he looked like everything he was cracked up to be and more. The only thing I can say is, love or hate him, Mike Shanahan is an amazing play scripter. It's no wonder he traded up to snag Griffin in this years draft. He is the strong armed, mobile, west coast passer Shanahan made a living from. (See John Elway & Jay Cutler in Denver). Ask the Saints - the Shanahanagins is no laughing matter - this guy can call plays. Look for continued success from RG3 this season - enough to be a worthy QB1 on most fantasy teams. Thank you Mike for turning my QB position to strength on my fantasy roster.
2) The Confident Cam & Carolina Panthers - Okay anyone that said they knew Cam would be as successful as he was in his first year is one of two things; a liar, or Bo Jackson. I can remember discussing it with football fanatic friends of mine - I said if Cam is there in the 15th round of my draft(s) I am taking him. Like a fool I let (people I used to consider:)) friends talk me out of doing so, and like a fool I watched him torch the Packers and Cardinals for miles of yardage. Even more foolish was when I had the chance in week 4 to trade Miles Austin for Cam straight up - once again I listened to my (former) friends when they told me Cam will come back to earth. Finally by week 9 I stopped listening to the bad influences around me and pulled the trigger on Miles Austin & Steve Smith (Carolina) for Cam and still felt I got away with robbery as it was in a Keeper League. My advice - trust your instincts when it comes to Fantasy Football. Its about 80% luck anyways so you might as well take the players you like and then laugh at your friends or yourself come end of the season. In his sophomore season I believe Cam will be very successful once again - maybe his individual stats won't improve much (or at all) however his team will win more games. Remember this guy single handedly took a weaker SEC team to the National Championship. Prediction: Carolina Panthers make the playoffs!
Week 1 Results: That was ugly. Everything from the weather, the pass protection, the execution, to the running game was just plain bad. Maybe I need to credit Tampa Bay a little more and be less harsh on the Panthers but 'Come On Man!'. Here's my take on the situation. Tampa Bay had plenty motivation heading into the game - new head coach, new players, new attitude, and sweet revenge after the Panthers swept them last season. Another thing to note is that in week 1 - defensive coordinators had basically an entire off season to gameplan for opposing offenses and players (Ie. Cam). Call it good coaching if you want but the fact is the Panthers O-Line and Cam never established any chemistry or rhythm. Too often did I see Cam scrambling for his life and throwing off his back foot. I hope I'm wrong but perhaps I spoke too soon on the Panthers - in a copycat league the tape on Cam is out and he may be in for a much bigger test in his sophomore season as defenses have a better understanding on how to contain him. Please prove me wrong Cameron - the future of the 'Ari Gold' franchise is counting on it.
3) Peyton Manning Reminds Us What We Missed In 2011 - As Maurice Jones Drew said on NFL Networks Top 100 players "You can take Tom Brady away from the Patriots and they still go 11-5...Take Peyton away from the Colts and..." We all know what happened. No one player has ever had more of an impact on a team than Peyton did last season. First time Peyton missed a game...ever? Oh ya and guess who drafted him last year - this guy. The Madden Cover and I love putting curses on people. So this year I assure you I will not draft Peyton so Broncos fans can breathe a sigh of relief. The scary thing is an 80% Peyton is still better than 85% of the QBs in the league. Denver a playoff team from last year (beat the Steelers with Tim Tebow as their QB) has a strong defense and nice weapons on offense now inherits a proven winner, field general, hall of famer, and one of the true good guys in sports. If Peyton stays healthy this team is bound to cause some problems in the AFC playoffs. Prediction: NFL Fans get blessed with another Brady vs Manning AFC Championship game.
Week 1 Results: It feels good to be right about something this weekend. Peyton reminded us that he is still the most intelligent and lethal QB in the game at the line of scrimmage and in the hurry up offense. This guy processes defenses faster than a supercomputer - he is robotic (not only in his movements). Maybe it was because he was facing the team I despise more than any other in the league but I enjoyed the Pitt vs. Den the most of all contests this Sunday. It was great to see Peyton back doing what he was put on this earth to do. An interesting note - remember how I talked about curses? Forget the Madden Cover - once again I may have jinxed a couple Top 5 QB's. Everytime I draft a "Sure Fire" QB early I see them falter (see Peyton L.Y.). This year it may come true again. I felt lucky to draft Stafford in one league and had Cam as a keeper in another. Sure enough both QBs let my fantasy squads down this weekend in what seemed like vanilla matchups.
Other Week 1 Reflections:
A few other things I learned: Tampa Bay, Washington, and even Cleveland reminded me that football is a game won and lost in the trenches. Clevelands defense made Philly's "high powered" offense look very average, and almost pulled off a miraculous upset (with rookies starting at QB, RB, and RT) while completing less than 40% of their passes...are you kidding me? Tampa Bay controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and sucked the life out of the Panthers and held one of the leagues best rushing attacks to a dismal performance. Washingtons defense disrupted New Orleans timing enough for the first 3 quarters to almost blow them out of their own stadium. Drew Brees said himself the Saints were lucky to be as close as they were considering how poor they played.
The Buffalo Bills reminded me what it must be like to cheer for the Raptors, Leafs, and Blue Jays. Year after year outclassed from top to bottom. Whether it be the ownership, management, coaching, ,lack of talent, or the organization as a whole - these teams just are not realistic championship contenders - why do I do this to myself. It doesn't take a genius to figure out the Bills struggles. Look at your top playmakers on offense. Fred Jackson - undrafted player signed from Coe College, Ryan Fitzpatrick - 6th round QB from Harvard (they play football there?), Stevie Johnson - 6th round WR from Kentucky (at least its the SEC), Donald Jones - undrafted WR from Youngstown State (where?), David Nelson - undrafted WR from Florida (4th best reciever for Gators - now 3rd best WR for Bills)...at least we got C.J. Spiller - 1st round RB from Clemson (This guy is excited about his career day yesterday - too bad it came in a 48 - 28 BLOW OUT DEFEAT! Give your head a shake!). Bills need to draft offensive talent in the early rounds of the draft or at least talent from big schools otherwise they might as well play in the CFL. Thank goodness Chan gets his former team at home this week. Ps. Ryan can we get that big check we gave you last season back?
That's all folks! See you next monday.
- Damp Money
Pursuit Of Happiness:
Its been long 7 months but Football is back folks! Ask anyone I work with and they will tell you my NFL withdrawls were almost too much to cope with. Luckily I was able to ween myself off with the NFL Draft in April mixed with some quality NFL Network programming during the long lay away. However now I'm back and ready to return to the full fledged addict I am every year at this time. Im ready to hit the football drug hard for the next 5 months. Im sure my work ethic, effort in relationships, and general productivity will go down faster than the girl you take home from MJ's (local bar) this weekend. Now in all seriousness - heres a few storylines I am looking forward to following.
1) Luck & RG3 - This is no Peyton Manning & Ryan Leaf comparision. In fact the contrast between these two players is much greater (besides maybe work ethic and being decent human beings). Luck is mature way beyond his years and holds his ground in the pocket better than half of the veteran QBs in the league already. RG3 has charisma, leadership, and the confidence you would expect to see from a proven QB not a rookie. Luck already has me concerned about what he will be doing to AFC defenses a couple years from now - I will probably hate him more than Brady and Manning for the same reason; he's just too damn good! RG3 will anger me because he is blessed with the same skill set as Mike Vick (elusive, nimble, rocket arm) but he will have two qualities (a young) Mike Vick never had; size to stand in the pocket, and a good head on his shoulders. Predictions (for this season): Luck will throw for more yards and RG3 will help his team win more games.
Week 1 Results: RG3 shines in debut and Luck looks like a rookie. In Lucks defense he is playing on a very poor squad vs. a potential Super Bowl contender in my opinion. Just not enough threats for Luck to work with as of right now. Hopefully Indy will find a few playmakers to lighten the load on Luck but for now expect to see lots of yardage paired with few wins. RG3 on the other hand looked outstanding. Completing his first 8 passes and hooking up with Pierre Garcon for his first career TD pass on an 88 yard catch and run - he looked like everything he was cracked up to be and more. The only thing I can say is, love or hate him, Mike Shanahan is an amazing play scripter. It's no wonder he traded up to snag Griffin in this years draft. He is the strong armed, mobile, west coast passer Shanahan made a living from. (See John Elway & Jay Cutler in Denver). Ask the Saints - the Shanahanagins is no laughing matter - this guy can call plays. Look for continued success from RG3 this season - enough to be a worthy QB1 on most fantasy teams. Thank you Mike for turning my QB position to strength on my fantasy roster.
2) The Confident Cam & Carolina Panthers - Okay anyone that said they knew Cam would be as successful as he was in his first year is one of two things; a liar, or Bo Jackson. I can remember discussing it with football fanatic friends of mine - I said if Cam is there in the 15th round of my draft(s) I am taking him. Like a fool I let (people I used to consider:)) friends talk me out of doing so, and like a fool I watched him torch the Packers and Cardinals for miles of yardage. Even more foolish was when I had the chance in week 4 to trade Miles Austin for Cam straight up - once again I listened to my (former) friends when they told me Cam will come back to earth. Finally by week 9 I stopped listening to the bad influences around me and pulled the trigger on Miles Austin & Steve Smith (Carolina) for Cam and still felt I got away with robbery as it was in a Keeper League. My advice - trust your instincts when it comes to Fantasy Football. Its about 80% luck anyways so you might as well take the players you like and then laugh at your friends or yourself come end of the season. In his sophomore season I believe Cam will be very successful once again - maybe his individual stats won't improve much (or at all) however his team will win more games. Remember this guy single handedly took a weaker SEC team to the National Championship. Prediction: Carolina Panthers make the playoffs!
Week 1 Results: That was ugly. Everything from the weather, the pass protection, the execution, to the running game was just plain bad. Maybe I need to credit Tampa Bay a little more and be less harsh on the Panthers but 'Come On Man!'. Here's my take on the situation. Tampa Bay had plenty motivation heading into the game - new head coach, new players, new attitude, and sweet revenge after the Panthers swept them last season. Another thing to note is that in week 1 - defensive coordinators had basically an entire off season to gameplan for opposing offenses and players (Ie. Cam). Call it good coaching if you want but the fact is the Panthers O-Line and Cam never established any chemistry or rhythm. Too often did I see Cam scrambling for his life and throwing off his back foot. I hope I'm wrong but perhaps I spoke too soon on the Panthers - in a copycat league the tape on Cam is out and he may be in for a much bigger test in his sophomore season as defenses have a better understanding on how to contain him. Please prove me wrong Cameron - the future of the 'Ari Gold' franchise is counting on it.
3) Peyton Manning Reminds Us What We Missed In 2011 - As Maurice Jones Drew said on NFL Networks Top 100 players "You can take Tom Brady away from the Patriots and they still go 11-5...Take Peyton away from the Colts and..." We all know what happened. No one player has ever had more of an impact on a team than Peyton did last season. First time Peyton missed a game...ever? Oh ya and guess who drafted him last year - this guy. The Madden Cover and I love putting curses on people. So this year I assure you I will not draft Peyton so Broncos fans can breathe a sigh of relief. The scary thing is an 80% Peyton is still better than 85% of the QBs in the league. Denver a playoff team from last year (beat the Steelers with Tim Tebow as their QB) has a strong defense and nice weapons on offense now inherits a proven winner, field general, hall of famer, and one of the true good guys in sports. If Peyton stays healthy this team is bound to cause some problems in the AFC playoffs. Prediction: NFL Fans get blessed with another Brady vs Manning AFC Championship game.
Week 1 Results: It feels good to be right about something this weekend. Peyton reminded us that he is still the most intelligent and lethal QB in the game at the line of scrimmage and in the hurry up offense. This guy processes defenses faster than a supercomputer - he is robotic (not only in his movements). Maybe it was because he was facing the team I despise more than any other in the league but I enjoyed the Pitt vs. Den the most of all contests this Sunday. It was great to see Peyton back doing what he was put on this earth to do. An interesting note - remember how I talked about curses? Forget the Madden Cover - once again I may have jinxed a couple Top 5 QB's. Everytime I draft a "Sure Fire" QB early I see them falter (see Peyton L.Y.). This year it may come true again. I felt lucky to draft Stafford in one league and had Cam as a keeper in another. Sure enough both QBs let my fantasy squads down this weekend in what seemed like vanilla matchups.
Other Week 1 Reflections:
A few other things I learned: Tampa Bay, Washington, and even Cleveland reminded me that football is a game won and lost in the trenches. Clevelands defense made Philly's "high powered" offense look very average, and almost pulled off a miraculous upset (with rookies starting at QB, RB, and RT) while completing less than 40% of their passes...are you kidding me? Tampa Bay controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and sucked the life out of the Panthers and held one of the leagues best rushing attacks to a dismal performance. Washingtons defense disrupted New Orleans timing enough for the first 3 quarters to almost blow them out of their own stadium. Drew Brees said himself the Saints were lucky to be as close as they were considering how poor they played.
The Buffalo Bills reminded me what it must be like to cheer for the Raptors, Leafs, and Blue Jays. Year after year outclassed from top to bottom. Whether it be the ownership, management, coaching, ,lack of talent, or the organization as a whole - these teams just are not realistic championship contenders - why do I do this to myself. It doesn't take a genius to figure out the Bills struggles. Look at your top playmakers on offense. Fred Jackson - undrafted player signed from Coe College, Ryan Fitzpatrick - 6th round QB from Harvard (they play football there?), Stevie Johnson - 6th round WR from Kentucky (at least its the SEC), Donald Jones - undrafted WR from Youngstown State (where?), David Nelson - undrafted WR from Florida (4th best reciever for Gators - now 3rd best WR for Bills)...at least we got C.J. Spiller - 1st round RB from Clemson (This guy is excited about his career day yesterday - too bad it came in a 48 - 28 BLOW OUT DEFEAT! Give your head a shake!). Bills need to draft offensive talent in the early rounds of the draft or at least talent from big schools otherwise they might as well play in the CFL. Thank goodness Chan gets his former team at home this week. Ps. Ryan can we get that big check we gave you last season back?
That's all folks! See you next monday.
- Damp Money
