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FMQB: Tip your Bartenders!

Posted by fmquarterback on September 27, 2019
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FMQB: Tip your Bartenders!

 

Woohoo, Antonio Brown got released!!! Knock on wood if you’re with me!

 

Quick Hits:

  • Even after bad penalties, bad play calls, and bad turnovers, the Browns should have won (or at least tied to go into OT) the game against the Rams. Additionally, their entire starting secondary was inactive in the game. We’d be having a MUCH different conversation about the Browns if even 1 of those things goes differently.
  • Even after blowing a terrible lead, the Buccaneers lost the game, Daniel Jones didn’t win it
  • I’m not sure what Vikings team or what Falcons team is going to show up each week
  • Wow, the Saints beat the Seahawks on the road and with their backup QB? If the Saints can go .500 until Brees gets back, they’ll be in good shape. At this rate though they may be going 5-2!
  • Whoever thinks Running Backs are useless should watch Dalvin Cook and Mark Ingraham’s Sunday performance
  • Jacoby Brissett is making the Colts competitive, 75% comp, 310 yds, 2TD’s and a 118.1 rating to take the Colts to 2-1
  • Lamar Jackson could be this/next year’s Patrick Mahomes. He looked incredibly sharp out there and was electric on the run
  • You would have thought with how dirty the Eagles defense was playing that Gregg Williams was their coach
  • Last night reinforced how much I dislike the challenge of the pass interference rule. A couple calls were right and not overturned which would have made this even more ticky tacky. But a couple calls were blatantly missed and not reviewed.

 

 

Adventures in Coaching:

Last week it was the officials, but this week the coaching had me shaking my head several times on BASIC football IQ. Here’s what was weird:

  • The Browns ran the ball on a 4th and 9 while losing in the 4th quarter
  • Bruce Arians took a delay of game, ON PURPOSE, to back the kicker up 5 yards on a game winning field goal try. They missed…
  • The Ravens, when down by 11, decided to go for 2. Meaning they’d be down by 9 if they converted (still a 2 possession game) or 11 if they didn’t (meaning they’d HAVE to convert a 2 pointer to even tie).
  • The Patriots were up 30-7, and ran a play that called for Brady to throw a block
  • Good/bad call: The Ravens Onside kick was one of the more bizarre attempts. They tried a drop kick and kicked it incredibly far (30 yards) and high for an onside kick. The call was weird, but only made sense because they were kicking to a rookie who may not be aware he could call for a fair catch. Good football IQ for him to do so.

 

 

Stat of the Week:

Every team in the NFC North has a winning record, and against the rest of the NFL are 7-0-1

 

Stat of the Week #2:

6 new QB’s started this week (Saints, Panthers, Dolphins, Jets, Steelers and Giants), and those QB’s were 3-3

 

Stat of the Week #3:

Patrick Mahomes hit the NFL history list with the 4th most pass yards through 3 games to start a season. Also compared to last year through his first 3 games, Mahomes has a higher Completion %, nearly 100 more yards per game, a higher passer rating, fewer interceptions and fewer sacks than the start of his MVP season last year. He is also on pace to become the first 6000 yard passer.

 

Stat of the Week #4:

Eli Manning, if this is the end, will finish his career 116-116

 

Stat of the Week #5:

Sean McVay in 34 games has scored 30 points in 22 of those games (or 65%). In the previous 10 years, the Rams only had 17 games with 30+ points (or 11%)

 

Stat of the Week #6:

Daniel Jones is 1-0 when trailing by 18+ points. Eli Manning is 0-44 in those games

 

Stat of the Week #7:

As of 3 weeks ago, Antonio Brown was slated to earn $30M this season. Currently he’s likely going to end 2019 with $158,000.

 

Stat of the Week #8:

The 49ers had 5 turnovers and still won

 

Stat of the Week #9:

Statistically, if Lamar Jackson starts Week 4 by throwing 8 straight interceptions, he would still have a higher passer rating than Baker Mayfield

 

Stat of the Week #10:

It has been 22 years since a team has called a run on a play of 4th and 9 or longer

 

Stat of the Week #11:

The Chiefs have scored 57 points in the 2nd quarter alone! That actually beats out 8 teams’ total point production.

 

Stat of the Week #12:

In 2016, the Patriots had Tom Brady, Jacoby Brissett and Jimmy Garrapolo on their roster. This year, those 3 QB’s are a combined 8-1.

 

Dad Joke of the Week:

Technically speaking, every Browns assistant coach is a part of the Kitchen Staff (since the head coach is Kitchens…). Tip your Bartenders people!

 

Games of the Week:

Bills vs. Patriots, one team won’t be undefeated after Sunday. We’ll likely see how legit the Bills are, whether they hang in there with the Pats or get blown out.

Browns at Ravens: essentially the battle for the AFC North could be won or muddied on Sunday

Vikings at Bears: Could have Wild Card ramifications, but trying to keep up with the Packers.

 

2002 Called…

So just to be clear, Tom Brady is the Super Bowl Champion, the Bengals are awful, Jon Gruden is on the sidelines as a coach, a Carr brother is leading his team into obscurity, and Shakira and Jennifer Lopez are doing the halftime show. And you’re telling me this is 2019 and not 2002?!?!

 

The Saga continues:

If you woke up this weekend hoping to not have to hear about Antonio Brown, you were/are about to be disappointed. Here’s a list of the continued saga of AB over just the past 7 days:

Released, twitter rant, retiring, going back to college, teams interested, in court for trashing an apartment, hints at unretirement.

 

2pt Tracker:

No final minute 2pt decisions this week, although I’m very tempted to put the Ravens in there since they failed on 3 different 2pt attempts. So that’s 6 (or 3) points off the board when they lost by 5. But standings stay the same.

 

Jaguars: -1

Texans: +1

 

Memes of the Week:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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FMQB: Year 9, Knock on Wood if you’re With Me!!!

Posted by fmquarterback on August 30, 2019
Posted in: NFL. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

FMQB: Year 9, Knock on Wood if you’re With Me

Friday Morning Quarterback is back! Year 9!!!! It seems like forever since I’ve put out a post, and I have to say this is been one of the crazier offseasons for stories. Knock on wood if you’re with me!!!!!

 

It’s the NFL’s 100th season. Antonio Brown is getting weirder by the day, and is apparently being sued by a chef because he found his fish head in the freezer and thought it was a mob threat. Not to mention his helmet issues. The Packers played a preseason game on an 80 yard field and no kickoffs (do we think that was on accident)? The Giants were the laughing stock of the league when they drafted Daniel Jones, only to have him look like a veteran QB WAY ahead of Manning in the preseason. And are we really living in a world where the Cleveland Browns are the most hyped team going into the season? Don’t even get me going on the shockwave through the NFL of Andrew Luck retiring, likely leaving $100+ million and a hall of fame bust on the table.

 

This is my annual Prediction post. And I’ll have an abbreviated Week 1 recap next week. Finish the Dad joke and you’ll find out where I am currently honeymooning: “Did you know the first French fries weren’t made in France? No, they were fried in….”

 

2019 Predictions:

  • Rookie of the Year- NOT Kyler Murray
  • MVP- Patrick Mahomes again
  • Comeback player of the year- Cooper Kupp
  • The Daniel Jones Eli Manning narrative will dominate headlines. Manning will make it through the first 4 weeks going 1-3, and by Week 5 Daniel Jones is under center.
  • LeVeon Bell will underperform, starting all 16 games but not hitting 1000 yards, which will hurt the RB market for everyone else moving forward
  • Speaking of RB market, Zeke has a deal done by Week 3, but is outside the top 5 rushers. Gordon will hold out, into October. Gurley will play, but be affected by his knee, coming in outside the Top 10 but will be top 5 in TD’s.
  • Rosen is the starting QB for the Dolphins by Week 7, but will still struggle
  • Nick Foles won’t have the same success as in Philly, but will be a dramatic increase from Blake Bortles.
  • Odell Beckham will be mostly off the radar in terms of drama, but will light it up on the field. Antonio Brown however will continue adding to his weird saga, and will get extremely frustrated as him and Carr are on different wavelengths.

 

FMQB Ranting already:

I do want to step in and give my opinion of the new pass interference rule, and the fact it’s reviewable. My prediction is this is a one and done rule, and will be a disaster once games are won and lost due to it. (I get it Saints fans, you have a right to complain). But we’re going to have a scenario where a call is overturned in the end zone that is ticky tacky and decides the game. I guarantee this happens, and likely more than once. It’s almost a weekly occurrence that a 4th and Goal ends with a fade in the endzone, and now coaches are going to challenge every play. It’s going to be a situation where you look at the play and accept the call on the field, but under review there’s some minor hold that technically defines PI, and it’s going to change the outcome of the game. Just watch, that’s my prediction.

 

Take on Andrew Luck:

I was absolutely shocked to hear Luck was retiring. In fact, one way I know I’m old, is that I remember doing this blog the year leading up to Luck being drafted and now he’s retiring! Here’s my thing, yes the timing was absolutely terrible and essentially ruins the Colts’ season, but he had every right to do this. He’s a grown man and can make whatever decision is right for him. The fact Colts fans booed him off the field was also despicable. The organization was classy by letting him keep close to $25M, that’s a ton of money! But after seeing Calvin Johnson, Rob Gronkowski, and now Luck retire essentially in their prime, I think this is going to become a thing in the NFL. People are more cognizant of the toll it takes on their bodies, and enjoying life. I just wouldn’t be surprised to see some QB’s play well into their 40s, while other stars leaving at 29 is considered “normal.”

 

AFC North: I have the Browns and Ravens battling it out for the division. Should be fun to see the progression of both 2nd year QB’s. The Steelers will regress, and we’re nearing the end of this “regime.”

AFC East: Patriots have this in the bag as always, although I think the Jets are going to make a run at it and sneak in a wild card spot. Sam Darnold is going to be a force to be reckoned with in the upcoming years. Watch for the Dolphins to have a Top 3 pick.

AFC South: Such a weird division! You could almost argue for any team, but no team to be more than 10 or 11 wins. I had the Colts taking it until Saturday, now I think they’ll be in last place. The Texans will be solid, the Jags should improve with Foles, and the Titans would be playoff caliber if Mariotta stays healthy.

AFC West: The Chiefs should take this division handily as well. On the fence with Denver, if Flacco has some magic left they could be a team on the rise. Oakland also looks good on Hard Knocks, but that could be fancy camera work. Chargers should regress with Melvin Gordon and Keenan Allen missing time.

 

 

 

NFC North: Another weird division. I do think the Bears are the best team in the division, but their kicking woes could easily lose them 3 games. Packers should be better if Rodgers is healthy and a hungry coach. I think the Vikings have a 9-7 season and miss the playoffs again, and the Lions will pull a Lions and be obsolete by Week 5.

NFC East: Without Foles to fall back on, Wentz will have to stay healthy, but the Eagles have a chance to make a deep playoff run. The Cowboys will do what they always do under Jason Garrett, and go 8-8 after a playoff year. The Giants will be newsworthy, but not in the playoff hunt. And the Redskins will have QB woes that still aren’t addressed by January.

NFC South: The Saints are still a powerhouse, but their window is rapidly closing. They’ll take the #1 seed one last time though. The Bucs will have to move on from Winston after this year. Panthers will struggle with Newton staying healthy, and the Falcons will be in line for a Wild Card spot.

NFC West: The Rams are easily the best team in the division. The Seahawks will make a push, but they’ve lost too many players to make the playoffs. Jimmy G will lead the league in INT’s, so the 49ers aren’t in the picture. And Arizona will be a fun team to watch but Murray will have ups and downs.

 

Playoff Predictions

 

AFC:

Patriots

Texans

Chiefs

Browns

Ravens

Jets

 

 

NFC:

Eagles

Bears

Rams

Saints

Falcons

Packers

 

AFC Championship:

Chiefs vs. Texans

 

 

NFC Championship:

Saints vs. Eagles

 

Super Bowl:

Chiefs vs. Saints- Chiefs win it all

 

Quote of the Offseason:

“He drinks a gallon of milk every day. … I think it’s the milk that’s not pasteurized, either. I think it’s right out of the teat.”

Jay Gruden on Colt McCoy’s milk habits.

 

Best Quote of the Offseason:

“Knock on wood if you’re with me” Jon Gruden

 

Meme’s of the Offseason:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FMQB: C’mon Finland!

Posted by fmquarterback on December 21, 2018
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FMQB: C’mon Finland!

 

2 more weeks left! The playoff picture is starting to form, with the Packers, Giants (yes I said it), Dolphins, and Broncos basically losing their chance to extend at this point. Another fairly surprising week, with the Seahawks, Patriots, and Rams getting upset.

 

Highlights:

  • Browns take out Broncos on the road, eliminating them from playoff hopes
  • Is Nick Foles like the biggest known secret in the NFL? He is 4-1 in his last 5 starts, including taking down the 2017 Falcons, winning the NFC Championship, Winning the Super Bowl, winning opening weekend, and now taking down the high powered Rams.
  • Bears clinch first division title since 2010, went from worst to first
  • Colts blank Cowboys, their first shutout since 2003 (which is surprising, they’ve basically been mediocre this whole time).
  • 49ers shock the Seahawks
  • Steelers give Patriots their 2nd straight loss

 

Stat of the Week #1:

Despite not starting Weeks 1 and 2, Baker Mayfield has more passing yards than Russell Wilson, Mitch Trubisky, and Marcus Mariota. Mayfield also has more TD’s than Matthew Stafford, Derek Carf, Eli Manning, Dak Prescott, Case Keenum, and Mariota. Fewer INT’s than Andrew Luck, Roethlisberger, Goff, Newton, and Trubisky. And a better rating than Manning, Mariota, Stafford, Dalton, and Alex Smith.

 

Stat of the Week #2:

The stat line for Derek Henry’s last 2 games, 408 yards rushing and 6 TD’s. Before Week 14, Henry was 28th on the rushing list, but has jumped to 11th.

 

Stat of the Week #3:

The difference a defense makes: The 49ers have a measly 2 INT’s this season, while the Bears have 26!

 

Stat of the Week #4:

Stat to Watch: The Saints are 68% kicking Field Goals, and a league worse 86% on extra points. Something to potentially watch come playoff time…

 

Stat of the Week #5:

The Jags had 43 offensive plays and a total of 20 yards passing.

 

Stat of the Week #6:

The Browns are 4-2 since Gregg Williams took over. That means it took 6 games for Gregg Williams to surpass the number of wins that Hugh Jackson had the previous 40.

 

Stat of the Week #7:

Stat to watch: Adrian Peterson is 78 yards shy of a 1000 yard season, and will pass Eric Dickerson to become 8th all time in rushing yards.

 

Headline of the Week:

“Raiders Power Rankings shoot up after Nathan Peterman signing” The Onion

 

For the Record:

  • The Patriots scored a TD on the 3rd offensive snap, and didn’t get in the endzone the rest of the day.
  • Remember the Titans came out 19 years ago. How in the world is this the first time the Titans team has done that celebration?!?!
  • Something seriously wrong with New England. Both Brady and Gronk don’t look like their normal selves
  • Something is also seriously wrong with Jared Goff. After being in the MVP race (and still making the Pro Bowl), in his last 3 games he’s 72-131 for 1 TD and 7 INT’s.
  • Despite the last minute FG, the Redskins Jags matchup had to have been the worst of the season. A team with a 4th string QB beat Cody Kessler who only threw it 17 times.
  • Seriously, the Raiders actually signed Nathan Peterman?!?! Although the thinking behind if makes sense, that makes Derek Carr look like a GOD compared to his backup. It’s about the same discrepancy between Drew Brees and myself, and that’s not exaggerating because Peterman has only 3 more TD’s but 12 more INT’s than I have.

 

Quote of the Week:

“Christmas comes at an inconvenient time, right in the middle of the football season” Bill Belichick

 

Quote and Stat of the Week:

“There were nine mistakes ahead of me” Josh Rosen. Um, looks like there may have been one. Only Josh Allen has a worse passer rating on the season.

 

Thank You:

So I get to see stats on where the blog reaches and how many clicks I get. Honestly, I enjoy doing it enough for the 12 avid readers to continue doing it, but diving in and looking at the reach that one guy who’s a bit more than a casual football fan can have, is truly remarkable. Not that they’re earth shattering numbers, but look at this map. People from every country that isn’t grey have clicked or read my article. Thank you for everybody who have given me 8 years! I plan on continuing, just humbled to see this. Although what the hell Finland?!?!

Memes of the Week:

 

 

FMQB: The Miracle in Miami

Posted by fmquarterback on December 14, 2018
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FMQB: The Miracle in Miami

What an absolutely crazy and insane weekend in the NFL! This by far had the most upsets, surprises, crazy plays, and it kept going with last night’s last minute Chargers win!

 

Week 14 Highlights:

 

  • Patrick Mahomes continues to be magical. His 4th and 9 conversion throwing across his body was nuts, he’s the only QB who can complete that throw 39 yards while running to the opposite direction. And of course his no look pass (which you NEVER see in the NFL) was a part of his repertoire that Safety’s should be fearing.
  • Amari Cooper had one of the most electric 4th quarters and Overtimes for one player that I’ve ever seen. His game winning catch after being tipped by the defender for a walkoff TD, superb!
  • The Bears defense will be scary in the playoffs, they just shut the Rams down with zero touchdowns
  • Panthers have lost 5 straight now, Cowboys have won 5 in a row
  • Utterly shocked to see that the Giants had scored 34 points by halftime
  • Colts upsetting the Texans at home leaves the door open for their playoff push and possibly the division!
  • Quick note about Thursday’s game. Holy cow San Diego (yes San Diego), scored 15 points in the last 4 minutes of the game. LOVE the call to go for 2 for the win or loss. You’re on the road, against the best team in the AFC and it’s a MUST win to try to get a home playoff game. Going for 2 has been a 60% conversion this season. Going into OT, the Chiefs likely have a slight edge. Way to play the odds. THAT is when you go for 2, not week 4.

 

Upsets:

Take a look at these upsets from last week:

  • Raiders over Steelers
  • 49ers over Broncos
  • Colts over Texans
  • Dolphins over Patriots
  • Bears over Rams
  • Browns over Panthers
  • And NEARLY Ravens over Chiefs

 

Stat of the Week:

Aaron Rodgers set the new record for most pass attempts without an Interception. With as much flak as he’s gotten for poor play, when you look at the stats it doesn’t support that. He has 22 TD’s and 1 INT

 

Stat of the Week #2:

The Browns have the same number of wins in 1 month (at 3-2) as Hugh Jackson had in 2 ½ years (3-36-1)

 

Stat of the Week #3:

Amari Cooper first person ever with 3 go ahead TDS in the 4th and OT

 

Stat of the Week #4:

Brady is 25-2 on the road in December, but against the Dolphins in December, he’s 1-6

 

Stat of the Week #5:

Baker Mayfield is the 3rd QB in NFL history with a TD in his first 10 games. The other two are Marino and Warner

 

Stat of the Week #6:

Sunday was Sean McVay’s 29th game as a head coach, and only the first time the Rams didn’t score a TD

 

Stat of the Week #7:

TE George Kittle set the franchise record for the 49ers (yes, beating Rice, Taylor, Owens, and other greats) with 210 yards receiving. Oh, I forgot to mention, he had the record by halftime

 

Stat of the Week #8:

Quiz time, guess which QB has the most rushing yards in a 3 game span, and just demolished Michael Vick’s record of 294 yards during that span? Cam Newton? Nope. Lamar Jackson has to be it now! Nope again. Josh Allen!!! And he has the record by 39 yards

 

Stolen Stat of the Week #9:

Since holding a 4th quarter lead over the Patriots in last years AFC Championship game, the Jaguars are 4-10.

 

Stolen Stat of the Week #10:

I’m nervous about Jared Goff. In his last 2 games, he’s completing 48% with 1 TD and 5 INT’s

 

 

The Miracle in Miami:

Hands down play of the year, which is why 1 play is getting it’s own section. There are so many things to talk about! First off, the Patriots absolutely blew basic situational football at the end of both halves which just never happens. Brady took a sack and the clock ran out in the first half, and then the Pats defense was not ready for the hook and lateral. For as good of a coach Belichick is, why the hell was Gronkowski on the field for the final play? There’s no QB in the league that could have made that throw, especially since most Hail Mary’s are thrown way behind the line of scrimmage anyway, so 75 yards by Ryan Tannehill? Never going to happen! Apparently on the Patriots radio broadcast, after the play happened there was 35 seconds of silence haha! For the record, “The Miracle in Miami” already has it’s own Wikipedia page.

 

 

QB Change:

Fairly surprised that Lamar Jackson remaining the starter over a healthy Joe Flacco. Although he’s 3-1 and almost beat the Chiefs at home. But other than his rushing, his stats are pretty mediocre. Jackson is completing 58% of passes and 4 TD’s to 3 INT’s. Bold move, especially for a team that is holding the 6 seed with 3 other teams tied with them.

 

AFC Shakeup?:

  • There is mathematically a scenario where the Browns still win the AFC North! And the Steelers’ next 2 games are against the Patriots and Saints! Buckle up!
  • Although also not likely, the Dolphins have a shot at dethroning the Patriots as well. They would have to win out and have the Pats lose 2 of 3.
  • The Colts can win the South under the same scenario
  • And the Chargers can beat the Chiefs if they win on Thursday (did they win last night) and win 1 more than KC the rest of the way.

 

 

Giants and Packers:

So, truth be told these crazy scenarios never work out. HOWEVER! There are 2 very likely scenarios, in which the Packers could still make it in, as well as the Giants who started 1-7. Because this isn’t “the Cardinals need to beat the Rams and it happens” type of scenario, they’re all realistic, I feel compelled to bring it up.

 

Packers: Of course the Packers need to win out, but they’ve already beaten the Bears, and the Jets and Lions should be doable. THEN, they need the Redskins to lose 1 game (with a 3rd string QB, they’ll probably lose all 3), the Panthers to lose 1 game (they’ve dropped 5 in a row), and the Vikings lose 2 of their last 3.

 

Giants: Also need to win out. BUT, they play the Titans, Indianapolis, and a Dallas team that will likely be resting. Tough, but very doable. Then, they need the Vikings to lose twice, Packers lose one, Panthers lose two, Eagles lose 2, and Redskins lose 2. And looking at the schedule, those are VERY possible.

 

 

Quote of the Week:

“So whoever’s watching that in New York should stay off the bottle”- Malcolm Jenkins. Haha, while funny, he should expect to be writing a check to the league very soon!

 

Games of the Week:

Packers at Bears

Cowboys at Colts

Patriots at Steelers

 

Memes of the Week:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FMQB: The End to Brock-Tober :(

Posted by fmquarterback on October 26, 2018
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Most recent Week here: https://fmquarterback.com/2018/11/09/fmqb-hill-has-the-runs-and-it-tyreeks/

FMQB: The end to Brock-tober ☹

Week 7 Highlights:

  • Panthers are quiet this year, but beating the defending champs on the road after being down by 17 in the 4th quarter is pretty special
  • I like the call by Vrabel going for 2 and going for the win in London after scoring a TD in the waning seconds. Not so much the execution, they had 2 shots at it due to a penalty. Roll Mariotta out and have him run it if nobody’s open
  • Aaron Donald went off on Sunday with 4 sacks!
  • The Bears Hail Mary down to the 1 yard line was the most exciting play of the year
  • Wow the Jags have fallen quickly. Blake Bortles looked awful Sunday against a very winnable game

 

Stat of the Week #1:

Patrick Mahomes, 22 TD passes is the most for a player’s first 8 starts ever

 

Stat of the Week #1:

After having no 100 yard rusher in the past 5 seasons, the Lions have 2 through 6 games this year.

 

Stat of the Week #1:

Odell Beckham Jr. is the fastest player to 5,000 receiving yards.

 

Stolen Stat of the Week #1:

In the first three quarters at Philadelphia, Cam Newton was 9-of-17 for 68 yards. In the fourth quarter Newton was 16-of-22 for 201 yards and two touchdowns.

 

Stolen Stat of the Week #1:

Until Sunday, Justin Tucker went 40-40 on PAT’s in High school, 71-71 in college, and 245-245 in the pros.

 

Stat of the Week #1:

Chandler Catanzaro missed an extra point, missed a 30 yard FG in the 4th, but nailed a 59 yarder to win the game in OT

 

Stat of the Week #1:

The Saints were 4 for 5 on 4th down conversions on Sunday, including one in the 4th quarter where a FG would have tied the game, or a failed conversion would have left them trailing.

 

Stat of the Week #1:

The fact that somebody has 4 blocked punts in 2 seasons should not be underappreciated!

 

Stat of the Week #1:

Patriots have scored 38 pts in 4 straight games, that has only happened 4 other times in last 20 years

 

For the Record:

  • Eagles vs. Jaguars LOOKED like a good London matchup, but both teams have struggled. It will be the 24th game played in London, and not 1 has offered 2 teams with winning records.
  • The fact that Justin Tucker can miss an extra point means the longer extra point is working. It’s not a gimme anymore and makes the play more exciting.
  • Blake Bortles was benched for Cody Kessler, who once went 0-8 with the Browns
  • There’s a lot of controversy in the Cowboys penalty, but fact of the matter is, the center is clearly moving the ball. I don’t care if that’s how he’s done it for years, that’s a penalty.
  • The Browns have 4 overtime games through only 7 weeks
  • Coming into Sunday, the Titans hadn’t scored a TD in 2 games. Which is also why I like the call to try to win the game right there.

 

Record Watch:

  • The Eagles and Jaguars; teams in last year’s Championship games, are 3-4 this year
  • The Bears could easily be 6-0 right now, with heartbreaking losses to the Packers in Week 1, Dolphins in OT last week, and both turnovers and 1 yard separated a win last Sunday.
  • After starting 0-3, the Texans are in 1st in their division after winning 5 in a row.
  • If the Playoffs started today, the Steelers would host a playoff game despite having 3 wins, while the Chargers would play on the road with 5 wins.
  • The Steelers, with a BYE, went from 3rd to 1st in their division despite both the Bengals and Ravens having 4 wins to Pittsburgh’s 3.

 

Sequence of the Week:

Vikings CB Xavier Rhodes went down with an injury. As rookie CB Holton Hill came in, the announcers said “This is a great time to attack the rookie, watch for Darnold to throw that direction.” Throw he did, and Hill got the first interception of his career.

 

Surprise ages:

Doesn’t it seem like Odell Beckham Jr. and Amari Cooper have been in the league for several seasons? Odell is in his 5th season, but is only 25 years old. Cooper is in his 4th, and is only 24. That’s nuts to think they both could have another decade in them!

 

Arrest of the Week:

The Broncos just released their backup QB Chad Kelly (nephew of hall of fame QB Jim Kelly) after his criminal trespass charge. The homeowner also beat him with a vacuum cleaner tube. Can’t make this stuff up!

 

Games of the Week:

Saints at Vikings: Should be an awesome offensive matchup, Minneapolis Miracle part 2?

Packers at Rams: Could be an early playoff preview

Browns at Steelers: I’m praying for another tie

 

 

 

Memes:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FMQB: The Minneapolis Miracle

Posted by fmquarterback on January 19, 2018
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FMQB:

 

Don’t worry, I’m getting there, I’m getting there.

 

Let’s take it one game at a time, since in reality the weekend was just a big crescendo to one of the best plays you’ll ever see in playoff history. I would first like to point out, that I didn’t see any of this coming, and went 1 for 3 on my picks. To be fair, there were 4 QB’s who have made it to and/or won Super Bowls against QB’s with extremely little playoff experience, and somehow the New QB’s went 3-1 in this weekend’s matchups.

 

Falcons at Eagles:

Little bit of a weird game, didn’t really seem like either team could get much going. The Eagles defense looks legit though. I was also surprised at with how much Foles seemed to be struggling early, he ended up going a respectable 23-30. The Falcons had a shot, drove down 74 yards and had 4 plays from 1st and Goal. But it was painfully obvious who Ryan wanted to go to, throwing 3 of the 4 passes to Julio. It came down to the final play from the 2 yard line, but they couldn’t punch it in. Good ending to a defensive game.

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FMQB: Ghosts of Playoffs Past

Posted by fmquarterback on January 12, 2018
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FMQB: Ghosts of Playoffs Past

 

WildCard Round:

We had our excitement, we had our duds, we had our duds that turned into excitement. That pretty much sums up this past weekend. BRIEF analysis below.

 

Titans at Chiefs:

The first half made this game look like a dud. Alex Smith had a dominant first half, going 19-23, 231 yards, 2 TD’s and 1 secret admirer with John Gruden. They took a 21-3 halftime lead and yours truly almost went to do something productive for the weekend. Unbelievably, the Titans didn’t give up and held Smith to only 33 yards in the 2nd half while racking up their own points. They botched two 2 pt conversions but took a 22-21 lead. The play where Henry fumbled the ball and the Chiefs ran it back would have been one we saw on replay for years to come had it actually been a fumble. But they shocked the Chiefs with a wicked comebackon the road to advance.

 

Falcons at Rams:

I’ve told many people that I distinctly remember being depressed in 2005 when the Rams lost to the Vick led Falcons, but this time I feel really good about where our team is and where we are going. The Rams should have done two things and they could have won that game. First, Gurley averaged 7.2 yards per carry, yet only got the ball 14 times. Still enough for 100 yards, but what the heck? He found a major weakness in the defense and they didn’t exploit it at all! Second, for the love of God stop Julio Jones! Only 3 WR’s caught passes in the game; Jones, Sanu, and a guy nobody’s heard of had 1 catch.

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FMQB- Drop Your Buffs

Posted by fmquarterback on January 5, 2018
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FMQB: Drop Your Buffs

 

Sorry for the Survivor reference, but now that all the riff-raff are out, it’s time to get down to business.

 

I missed a week, despite some time off. Here’s a snapshot of what Week 16-17 was going to look like.

 

  • The Eagles suddenly aren’t looking invincible anymore
  • Hope you didn’t bet on the Eagles game, their spread was 9.5. Scored a flukey TD at the end of the game to go up 9, and then kneeled during the extra point to be sportsmen. That’s a bad beat!
  • 2 TD’s got called back against the Bills using the stupid catch rule. Go figure it was the Patriots who benefited
  • Interesting situation in the NFC, where you almost want the 4th seed so if you win the first game you play the Wentz-less Eagles. Both the Panthers and Saints will be fighting for the NFC South, so one of them wants to win to get a home game. So if you’re the Rams, I think resting your starters and letting Garrapolo go 5-0 as a 49er makes perfect sense.

 

Back to Week 17, and the culmination of 20 team’s seasons.

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FMQB: Midway Point

Posted by fmquarterback on November 10, 2017
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FMQB: Midway Point

 

Hard to believe we’re already halfway through the season! The best part of there being no true powerhouse in the NFL this year, is the playoff picture is already looking like a close, muddy mess. In the AFC, the top 6 teams are either 6-2 or 5-3. Meaning the Bills are currently the last team in, but just 1 game back from having home field advantage. The NFC is the same (minus the Eagles securely in the top seed). One week could completely change the orders of numbers 2 through 6.

 

 

Season Surprises

  • Jared Goff has to be #1. This isn’t 1 or 2 good games, he has proven he can be a franchise QB in this league
  • Carson Wentz to a certain extent. He had a better rookie year, but he is looking like he’ll be a playoff contender every year
  • Where did the Jaguars come from? Remember the QB controversy with Bortles in the preseason? Not that he’s playing great, but he’s not losing games for them either. Their defense has them at 5-3
  • What happened to the Giants and Buccaneers? The Ben McAdoo looked like a coach of the future last year, and he could easily be out of a job in a few weeks

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Posted by fmquarterback on October 27, 2017
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FMQB:

 

Roller Coaster:

Even though they are division rivals, I feel just terrible for the Cardinals. I know every fan base minus maybe the Patriots has the “woe is me” approach, but the Cardinals can definitely be up there. They’ve had YEARS of mediocrity, never in the playoffs but too good for the #1 pick. All of a sudden they get Kurt Warner, and have a Super Bowl win locked down only to have heartbreak happen. They’ve been solid since, but have lost several playoff games. They finally get Adrian Peterson, who absolutely goes off in his resurgence. Enough so that Larry Fitz was talking about the “rings” they would have had if AP had been there the whole time. Flash forward 1 week, Palmer gets hurt and is out for the season, Bruce Arians (a coaching genius) is talking about not returning, and AP regresses to Saints-like numbers. They were a playoff caliber team as of last week, and it looks like they’ll lock up pick #8 again.

 

Stat of the Week:

Bears CB Eddie Jackson is the first defensive player to have 2 75+ yard defensive return TD’s in a game.

 

Stat of the Week #2:

There are 3 QB’s in the league who have thrown for more INT’s than TD’s this season (looking at at least 75 attempts). Two of them play for Cleveland…Fun fact, I decided to save a stat for next week but didn’t want to re-number all of these. I had to come up with one more stat, which is how I discovered this gem!

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