Week 12 Analysis: Philadelphia @ New England

November 26th, 2007 1:24 am
by Big Dog

God bless Andy Reid and the Philadelphia Eagles. I’ve written previously about how watching the New England Patriots just dominate football is boring. This week the Eagles demonstrated that New England aren’t untouchable.

The Eagles came to play with a clear plan, and for the most part were able to execute it well even though QB Donovan McNabb was out with an ankle injury and backup QB A.J. Feeley(27-42, 345 yards, 3 TDs, 3 INTs) was managing the game. Feeley did a magnificent job and even though the Eagles didn’t come away with the win, due mainly to a pair of interceptions from Feeley, it’s important to remember that for most of the game Feeley had better stats than New England QB Tom Brady 34-54, 380 yards, TD).

For the Eagles’ offense it was clear from early in the game that New England weren’t going to give any room deep or on the outside. This opened up the inside pass every time. In fact, this was a feature topic of conversation for John Madden and Al Michaels mostly because it was absolutely true for the whole of the game. Even when Philadelphia took the lead and New England’s defense was clearly struggling to contain them, the inside pass was always there for Feeley. In addition, Eagles RB Brian Westbrook had his typically solid game, making good, strong runs and critical receptions.

On defense, the Eagles were able to contain Patriots WR Randy Moss(5 receptions for 43 yards) and basically eliminate his impact on the game. This did open the game up for WR Wes Welker who managed an impressive 13 receptions for 149 yards. In truth, if it hadn’t been for Welker’s speed and effective route running, New England wouldn’t have been in this game at all.

The most frustrating aspect of the game for the Eagles were Feeley’s interceptions. The first came on his second play of the game and was returned by CB Asante Samuel for a TD. The Eagles dealt with that setback promptly, with a fantastic drive for their own TD. The second interception came in the late stages of the fourth quarter, as Philadelphia was 3 points down and trying to score for the win. Feeley (against all the experience and success of the game to this point) attempted the long throw to the outside corner of the endzone and once again Samuel took the pick. In the resulting drive, New England ate a lot of the clock and forced Philadelphia to burn their final timeout.

The Eagles got the ball back with 20 seconds on the clock, needing to make about 40 yards to be within FG distance. Once again, Feeley went for the outside throw, clearly trying to preserve time and ignoring the old football adage “take what they give you”. This time Patriots’ S James Sanders came away with the ball and that was the game.

This was one of the genuinely exciting Patriots games of the season and among other things provided an excellent demonstration of why Andy Reid is considered to be one of the best coaches in the league today. The Eagles came so very close to a truly remarkable upset win today, and in so doing, they have provided a blueprint for taking on New England that is bound to haunt the Patriots through the rest of the season.

Posted in A.J. Feeley, Al Michaels, Analysis, Andy Reid, Asante Samuel, Brian Westbrook, Game, James Sanders, John Madden, NFL, NFL Coaches, NFL Franchises/Teams, NFL Players, NFL on NBC, NFL on television, New England Patriots, Philadelphia Eagles, Randy Moss, Tom Brady, Wes Welker | No Comments »

NFL Week 5 Analysis: Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers

October 10th, 2007 8:40 am
by Pro Set

Chicago 27-20 Green Bay

Green Bay fell from the ranks of the undefeated in a terrible home loss to Chicago. Giving up a halftime lead of 17-7, and a third quarter lead of 20-10, the Packers conceded 17 unanswered points and lost their chance to eliminate, effectively, the Bears from the NFC North race.

As was correctly identified by Al Michaels and John Madden on NBC, the key play was the third quarter INT thrown by QB Brett Favre. Chicago scored on the next play to move within a FG and never gave up the momentum. 

For the Packers, 5 turnovers and a dozen penalties were too much to overcome. The standout penalty in the first half kept a Bears drive alive when the Packers were deemed to have lined up over the centre on a CHI FG attempt. In the second half, however, penalties on early downs killed GB drives. Even when GB seemed to have recovered impetus with the tipped 4^th quarter INT off an underthrown QB Brian Griese pass, a penalty contributed to a 3 & out. A truly amateurish final drive made a joke of the 2 minute drill and never gave the Packers a chance. 

For the Bears, they executed the classic NFL road strategy of hanging around until the home team ran out of steam. It also helped that the Packers gave up two fumbles on long drives early in the game. RB Cedric Benson had a serviceable game, despite his low YPC figure. I also thought that the Bears did well in picking up GB blitzes. Griese was always looking for the unmarked swing pass and this prevented him from locking on downfield and giving his reads away. 

One moment, in a game splattered with huge plays, was the TE Greg Olsen TD rec off the MLB Brian Urlacher INT. the TD was awarded under the “force-out” judgment of one official. In my opinion, the “force-out” provision is a terrible rule that places an impossible burden on the field judge, side judge, line judge and head linesman. 

It is simply not right that an official is required to judge whether a player would have come down in bounds with two feet unless contacted. It seems to me as if the slightest contact now justifies a force out ruling when the receiver simply did not get two feet in bounds. The rule is a clear and unwarranted artifice to increase scoring. Subjective judgments from officials should not decide games. 

If a receiver cannot catch a pass and get two feet in bounds, why does he deserve a touchdown? What is so wrong about a defender preventing a receiver from landing in bounds? How much contact is required? Does the receiver have to make a “best effort” to get his feet in? In the even world of the NFL, it’s time to let the players decide the outcomes of games. 

Roger Goodell should stop focusing on players’ private lives and continue to address his primary concern: the games themselves.   

Posted in Al Michaels, Analysis, Game, John Madden, NFL on NBC, Week 5 Instant Analysis | No Comments »

NFL Week 4 Instant Analysis: Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants

September 30th, 2007 11:54 pm
by Pro Set

Philadelphia 3-16 NY Giants

It would be tempting to blame the injury problems of Philadelphia for the loss to NY Giants. RB Brian Westbrook was among those sorely missed. The truth is, however, that the Eagles were outplayed in a classic demonstration of why left tackles get paid so much money.

When Phildelphia had possession, I felt that they ran the ball well through RB Correll Buckhalter. I also felt that PHI followed up their rare first downs with too many subsequent 1^st & 10 pass plays. The NBC coverage foussed heavily on the battles between RT Jon Runyan and LE Michael Strahan, and, on the other end, LT Winston Justice and RE Osi Umenyiora. It is trite to say that the Giants dominated the edge rush and forced QB Donovan McNabb into rushing his passes.

What nobody seemed to address, however, was that McNabb was not stepping up into the pocket and keeping his eyes downfield. He was taking five step drops and then getting hit. After the sheer volume of sacks that the Eagles conceded, I wanted to see McNabb hit his final drop step and step up, allowing his tackles to concentrate on stopping the inside move. Did anyone hear the name of DT Fred Robbins get mentioned? That means that there was less inside pressure on McNabb, but I guess that they did not have time to pressure him before he was sacked by the edge rushers.

There really is no point writing more than this. Since PHI could not protect the passer, the Eagles could not throw the ball. This meant that it was imperative for the Eagles to get the lead. On this reasoning, the game was decided in two plays.

First, with NYG moving forward late in the second quarter, LB Omar Gaither picked off a QB Eli Manning pass. After carrying the ball back to midfield, he ran out of bounds. I could not believe that he did not try to run over Manning. This was a terrible decision. The momentum of the turnover disappeared in a symphony of penalties and negative plays. How many truly great NFL defenders would run out of bounds when faced with a QB guarding the yardage to the endzone: not many.

Second, the FR TD return by LB Kawika Mitchell deserves mention. I still don’t know how a skill position player like Correll Buckhalter could not cover up that fumble. This Giants TD, occurring late in the 3^rd quarter, drained the belief from the PHI players. If PHI had entered the final quarter, after conceding endless sacks and penalties, with only a ten point deficit, the NYG player might well have thought that the Eagles would prove impossible to extinguish: it’s happened before in this rivalry.

So, overall, the Eagles tried but failed in their (hopefully unintended) application of the Homer Simpson strategy. Stand up like a man, take as many punches as the other guy can possibly throw at you, and then push him over for the knock out victory. Having said that, Andy Reid had as many answers to the NYG pass rush as Moe Siszlak had to the power of Drederick Tatum. Was Andy Reid not once an NFL offensive lineman?

Finally, we only had to wait 90 seconds before John Madden mentioned exotic blitzes (see preview).

Posted in Analysis, Andy Reid, Brian Westbrook, Correll Buckhalter, Donovan McNabb, Eli Manning, Fred Robbins, John Madden, Jon Runyan, Kawika Mitchell, Michael Strahan, NFL, NFL Coaches, NFL Franchises/Teams, NFL on NBC, NY Giants, Osi Umenyiora, Philadelphia Eagles, Shaun Andrews, Week 4 Instant Analysis | No Comments »

Week 2 Instant Analysis

September 17th, 2007 9:13 am
by Pro Set

San Diego 14-38 New England

When assessing an NFL game, first impressions are important. As I looked over the depth charts before Sunday Night Football, the overriding issue was how the San Diego secondary would cope if the pressure did not immediately get to Brady. The brutal truth was that the New England passing game was too good. It often appears that QB Tom Brady could stop and drop-kick a field goal from the pocket that the New England O-line creates. Anyway, let’s focus on the first half, which was in all facets decisive.

The formula which let to the devastating first half NE offensive display was simple: pocket protection and passing accuracy. It sometimes seems simplistic to attribute the highest level of the game with nothing more than the skill that every QB seeks: accuracy. Yet it is consistent accuracy on a range of throws that sets the professionals apart. It is all about doing the simple things well every time. If you think that it is over-simplistic, contrast the first play that the Chargers ran from scrimmage with their TD drive to open the second half.

In analysing this overmatched contest, the most pressing concern is how other team are going to attack the New England offense. The sheer presence of WR Randy Moss takes away a safety. This severely limits the blitzing flexibility of the defense. I cannot see any NFL defensive coordinator risking pure man-to-man on Moss. There will be a sizeable cushion whenever a 2-deep system is not being used. If you disagree, watch the 3^rd quarter Moss TD rec on CB Drayton Florence, who might now agree that he cannot cover Moss alone. It will be fascinating to see how Buffalo decides to defend the Patriots next Sunday.

From the San Diego perspective, I was very disappointed that the Chargers did not try to exploit the absence of DE Richard Seymour and SS Rodney Harrison in the decisive first half. QB Philip Rivers was slightly off last week, and perhaps Chargers coach Norv Turner wanted him to throw early to gain confidence. That is the only rationalisation that I can deliver, because the NE defense, as it proved, drains, rather than supplies, confidence to opposing QBs. In his better than average call on NBC, John Madden made great points about the NE front seven disguising their true assignments pre-snap. Disguise and subterfuge are far less effective against straight ahead, fast hitting running plays. Strength and speed cannot be ‘coached up’ , so to speak, and with SD possessing top level speed and strength, the coaches should have let them test it against the Pats.

I would have rushed RB LaDainian Tomlinson off tackle behind FB Lorenzo Neal, followed by RB Michael Turner on third down draws or slams. Even if this failed for two or three drives, it slows the pace of the game, reduces turnover risk, and even by default sets up play action to TE Antonio Gates. The high point of this was when SD recovered a NE fumbled kick-off return just after an SD touchdown. Norv Turner could not resist trying the deep passing play from the NE 31, and Rivers was sacked. And then Rivers was sacked again. Only on 3^rd & 30 did we finally see the first screen pass to Tomlinson. Surely this was not to be saved for 3^rd & 30? It was an all-around poor offensive game-plan from the SD offensive staff.

In summary, it has to be back to basics for SD next week at Lambeau. My early feeling is that SD will be a great value bet. For NE, it will be truly be a case of avoiding complacency against Buffalo. And that, again, is what separates truly professional teams: they win when they should, as well as when they merely have a good chance. NE might be so professional that the Patriots push the rules to the limits, but if NE were a listed company, just like many soccer clubs are in Europe, would shareholders expect anything else?

Posted in Analysis, Antonio Gates, Bill Belichick, Dick Jauron, Drayton Florence, Game, John Madden, LaDainian Tomlinson, NFL, NFL Coaches, NFL on NBC, New England Patriots, Norv Turner, Philip Rivers, Randy Moss, Richard Seymour, Rodney Harrison, San Diego Chargers, Tom Brady, Week 2 Instant Analysis | No Comments »