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Four Rams Offensive Linemen on PFF Team of the Week
Clarence Dennis
STAFF WRITER
Pro Football Focus updated its ‘Week 1 Team of the Week’ following Monday Night Football’s double header.
The team now includes four members of the Rams’ offensive line: LT Andrew Whitworth, LG Rodger Saffold, RG Austin Blythe, and RT Rob Havenstein.
The offensive line proved protective on Monday night, allowing just one sack and two quarterback hurries — dominating Raiders rushers and PFF’s rankings.
There was a bit of question surrounding the Rams’ offensive line entering Week 1, with Blythe filling in at right guard for the suspended Jamon Brown. Blythe proved capable in Week 1, producing 100-percent pass-blocking efficiency, according to PFF.
Here is PFF’s grade and analysis for each offensive lineman:
“The Rams offensive line as a unit was fantastic, and that starts with Whitworth. He allowed just one hurry, and no hits or sacks, for 36 pass-blocking snaps in the win over the Raiders.”
“Saffold produced a perfect 100.0 pass-blocking efficiency, with no pressures allowed all game. He also impressed as a run-blocker, producing the highest run-blocking grade among offensive guards this week.”
“Saffold’s teammate was our second-highest graded run-blocking guard this week, trailing only his teammate. Similarly, he too produced a perfect 100.0 pass-blocking efficiency rating, with no pressures allowed all game.”
“Like Whitworth, Havenstein didn’t allow any sacks or hits, and just one hurry, from 36 pass-blocking snaps. That’s an impressive duo, with quarterback Jared Goff having to deal with just two pressures against his tackles over the course of the game.”
Havenstein also came up with a big fumble recovery on Monday night. Quarterback Jared Goff was stripped and sacked by Raiders’ OLB Bruce Irvin in the second quarter. The ball bounced around in a scrum before Havenstein secured it — giving the Rams a shot at a field goal on the drive.
The four Rams were joined by Broncos center Matt Paradis on the week’s best offensive line.
Since it's a short week we might as well kick this off today. Any Cardinals fan reading this is invited to join up and join in. It's easy and it's free.
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I’m a glutton for punishment. Go cards
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I hope the Cardinals win, but... The more likely outcome is we get destroyed and Bradford gets both his legs broken off.
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watching the raiders/rams...gruden has a perfect gameplan for rams d...tough runs, quick passes-crossing routes to te and a couple of deep shots-to me sounds kinda like what we thought cards were gonna do on offense..
this is how cards beat rams
-ol must play great
-McCoy must have larry and rsj run crossers and seam routes
-there must be some 50/50 balls thrown larrys way
-dj and Edmunds have to get some short passes but dj should run some of the deeper wheel routes that he excels at
-dl has got to play their gaps and Reddick and buc must do a better job at outside containment
-its time for some exotic blitzes-cj cant do it all
-dbs have gotta tackle
-pp should be able to handle brandin cook so other dbs have to handle rush and woods
-special teams must produce 2 big plays
-must win turnover battle
-hopefully cards feel angry and embarrassed and will play with a mean^%$S attitude
-imho cards should take ball if they win toss...falling behind will spell disaster
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They are bringing in linebackers and tight ends in for workouts. I wonder who. Hmmmmn I hope it’s bowman
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Wilks' losing to the Ramz and going 0-2 to start the 2018 season doesn't have to happen. But....over 80% of the Vegas money says he will lose.
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It's time for us to go back to a 3/4 and man press coverage. CJ and PP won't look absolutely lost. Get Rosen his first start and figure out a way to get the ball down the field. If you have to split DJ out wide and get Nelson on the field do it.
It's time to stop making it easy on the opposition. Bradford will retire both LF and DJ if given a chance. We have to make the Rams cover more room and we have to allow CJ to get off the ball and rush Goff.
Our OL doesn't completely suck. Rosen is the franchise. Get him in until he proves he's not ready. Everyone knows Bradford isn't the answer including the players, the organization and now the fans. This franchise needs a straight out bolt of electricity rammed right up their collective butts. Wilks can either define himself as a company man and loser or he can look at the tape and make the adjustments needed to try and turn this sinking ship around.
Anyone thinking this team is beating the Rams dinking and dunking the ball down the field with Bradford and without CJ having a monster game is out of their minds.
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That Rams pass rush will be too much. Carr wasnt getting any time in the pocket so you damn well know they will be up in Bradfords grill. Cole is gonna have his hands full with Donald. Pray Bradford's legs dont fall off this Sunday.
-------------- https://www.arizonasportsfans.com/f...-cards-coming-sunday-to-a-tv-near-you.280391/
Sunday’s game between the Cards and Rams will look like a fight between an 8th grader and a 3rd grader.
I honestly will be shocked if midway through the 3rd the Card faithful have all turned the slaughter off.
Wilks quote of the day, ‘guys were trying to do too much.’ Yea not the total ineptitude of the coaching staff to call plays that might actually work.
The only hope the Cards got is the Rams are tired from the MNF game.
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Donald and Suh may hasten the Rosen era.
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We will learn all we need to know about the 2018 Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. I'm not gonna lie. I already have this as an L, but what I need to see is some damn pride and fight out of the team.
This season's not over, but if they play like they played on Sunday, we know to cool any talk of playoffs, and a surprise run at a chip. (see Philadelphia eagles) Everyone expects us to get mopped, but prepraration and pride make a huge difference. Ask the Bucs.
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As of right now, Ryan Fitz-Magic > Sam Boring-ford.
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100% agree! If Sam and Co don't show any movement Sunday vs the Rams....which is a tall order....It's time to cut bait and see what the future holds. Worst case we give Sam through the Bears game...if they're 0-3....call it quits then and it's Rosen time.
I'd be interested to see the odds on the Rams game....guessing Rams +13, but I'd put it at Rams +20.
Cardinals are gonna need to find a lamp that offers three wishes to change this season around.
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opening line on cbs sports is 10... seems low to me
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Rams by 14 at Yahoo. Not sure where they get their line. WOW. 2-touchdown NFL lines are rare nowadays, usually involving somebody like Cleveland.
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Worst thing is I'm going to have to watch the game with my Rams fan buddy I grew up with that I see basically twice a year to watch the games. He'll be calling soon. He's alot easier to get a hold of now that the shoe has switched feet.
----------- https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2...d-rams-at-raiders-game-time-channel-streaming
I will watch the Rams game and see if we should start praying now
----------- I am seeing a blueprint for playing these guys:
run-heavy schemes to take Donald and Suh off the game they want and play best.
Of course, having a great OL to grade the road and two powerful backs does help.
But PI killing the Raiders so far. Curse that spot-of-foul! Lousy calls too.
-------------- Watching the raiders and rams offense
Makes me sad. I don’t think i saw one creative offensive play by McCoy and Bradford. I hope the cards offensive coaching staff are watching these games and taking notes
------------- Frosty Rucker is getting mauled by the Rams
------------- I noticed that the Ram's repeat the same play over and over.
Wilks needs to watch the tape.
------------- Well. Time to skip this Sunday.
They are going to get demolished.
------------- I didn't think the Rams looked all that
It was a tied game until the last second of Q3.
They looked weak at LB, and at the Edge. They couldn’t cover TE. A bit like us on Sunday but not as awful.
------------ Rams were just slow out of the gate due to resting their starters most of preseason
They throttled Oakland in the 2nd half. Raiders had something like 17 total yards in the 3rd quarter. Too much talent on the Rams. I don’t see another team winning the division.
---------- They throttled them in Q3 as well, Oakland had 17 total yards and the Rams outscored them 10-0
Yeah the Rams have some weaknesses but the same can be said about any team. I still see the Rams winning at least 10 games and the division. I don’t think the division runner-up will have more than 8 wins.
I'm sure I'm not alone but I have a feeling the Rams are going to utterly obliterate the Tardinals. Their O line does not match up well with our D Line and Bradford is not a mobile QB. If we slow down David Johnson, the won't be able to move the ball. I think Bradford might be having feelings of anxiety as we speak.
On offense, I'm not sure anyone will be able to prevent all the spacing created with Brandin Cook's ability to stretch the field. Gurley will go off again.
I see the Rams cruising to a 41 - 10 win. 2-0 to start the season.
It was much of the same on defense, though with a bit more of a rotation on the defensive line and at linebacker. Cory Littleton and the top four defensive backs all played 100 percent of the defensive snaps, while Nickell Robey-Coleman played 64 percent as the nickel corner.
Samson Ebukam led the way at outside linebacker with 57 snaps, but Matt Longacre wasn’t the starter many expected him to be. He played only 22 snaps, which was fewer than John Franklin-Myers (25) and Dominique Easley (32). Opposite Ebukam, it’ll likely be a committee approach at edge rusher.
Aaron Donald showed no ill effects from holding out, playing 89 percent of the snaps. Ndamukong Suh was close behind at 78 percent, followed by Michael Brockers at 65 percent. Ethan Westbrooks rotated in for 14 snaps, while Justin Lawler saw one rep.
Not only are the Los Angeles Rams one of the most talented teams in the NFL, they’re also one of the deepest. John Kelly was a stud this preseason behind Todd Gurley, Josh Reynolds is a solid No. 4 wide receiver option and Sam Shields is the team’s No. 4 cornerback.
Those are guys who could possibly start for other teams, but because of the Rams’ top-line talent, they have trouble finding playing time. That was certainly the case on Monday night against the Raiders as the Rams leaned heavily on their first-team offense and defense, hardly going to their backups.
Offense
As you can see, the Rams stuck to their guns in 11 personnel almost exclusively, only giving Gerald Everett and Johnny Mundt seven snaps combined. Malcolm Brown spelled Gurley only four times with Kelly inactive, while Josh Reynolds saw just two measly snaps. They were the only backups on offense to even see the field, keeping Mike Thomas, Pharoh Cooper and other backup linemen on the sideline.
It was bizarre to see Kelly and Justin Davis both on the inactive list, but it’s likely that McVay knew he’d have a fresh Todd Gurley to lean on, lessening the need for backup running backs.
Still, McVay clearly doesn’t feel comfortable giving Everett much playing time. He’s battling his way back from a shoulder injury, but he wasn’t on the injury report and is seemingly healthy. Higbee wasn’t even targeted by Jared Goff, making some wonder why Everett didn’t get much run.
Jared Cook, wow. Cook was doing his best jimmy Graham impression, he was unstoppable. But we also saw what drives you nuts about him, the Johnson int was an awful throw but your receiver has to help you out and at least knock it down, then the pick six, looked like he
Slowed down which allowed Peters to take his lunch money. Do the Rams have a TE? Just wondering.
Carr looked really uncomfortable, AD was coming but he never really got there and Carr was throwing it away or checking it down.
The Goff-Cooks connection is a work in progress, Goff-Woods too for that matter. Maybe a few snaps for Jared next year?
Gurley was Gurley, I like seeing Brown get a few carries.
Overall the offense looked pretty good, they spread it around TG did his thing but it would be nice to see the TE contribute to give the defense something new to focus on. The Raiders had no pass rush, Goff can’t get used to standing back there all day.
Some of this is comedy gold. Especially after all the trash talking they were doing the week before the game.
Full on meltdown of this site
Incoming 3-2-1
------------------------------- It's already started
------------------------------- they been blatantly holding and no calls its fucking bullshit
------------------------------- Carr now being schooled by Goff.
------------------------------- So painful...
------------------------------- What a soft broken ass team. We get rid of our dog in Mack and leave the team in these hands. Hopefully we hit on those first rounders cause we’re gonna need them.
------------------------------- it embarrassing I’ve waited a long time for this game and this is the performance I get
------------------------------- Anyone else remember how excited we were after the first drive?
------------------------------- This half Is what I was afraid of. They’re manhandling us in each phase. If Goff was a little more accurate on some deep balls, we’d be down another 10 pts or so.
------------------------------- Everyone acting like Mack would score us TDs when our offense can't. smh
------------------------------- he did yesterday
------------------------------- Cooper has same agent as Mack so he is gone after this season
------------------------------- You a raider fan Or a drunk school girl all I’ve seen you do is cry on here…. This is the top ranked team and we held with them this quarter is looking ugly but man did that first half look good if wwe don’t have so many penalties it’s completely different
------------------------------- Too bad foosball is a game of 4 quarters. The better team won.
------------------------------ This is a bad team, Nation. I hate to say it, but it is obvious. We lost the battle of the trenches on both sides. WRs can’t get open. We’re not running the ball well. We’re not stopping the run or getting pressure. We got abused on play-action on the regular. And Carr…he looks afraid, tentative. The first half was a mirage. In the second half, we saw what a good team does. Hopefully we can learn something from this game, but it will take this season and maybe longer to be playoff-caliber. Our rookies didn’t come through. Our CBs couldn’t cover long enough. Our OL couldn’t block well enough. And Carr, as much as I love the guy, is just not a top QB. He used to have a fearless attitude, but he’s turned into a guy who’s afraid to make a mistake. Cooper! He did nothing at all today. I’m just sad right now, Nation. To see Goff have all day to throw and complete passes at will was especially disheartening. I really believed in our rookies, but they’re just not good enough. Go Raiders.
-------------------------------- First half mirage Rams starters didn’t play at all in PS, so takes a while for them to get going together.
-------------------------------- Cherry on the top Gilchrist just got Liu Kang’d
-------------------------------- Derek Carr is a Fraud This guy bilked Mark Davis out of $125M and Khalil Mack. Sickening.
Plays like a frightened little boy. Pathetic 2nd half performance. Looks like the same guy from 2017.
And once again, Amari Cooper invisible.
--------------------------------- who do we point the finger at for the loss?
--------------------------------- Everyone?
--------------------------------- Gruden is not creative He is a dinosaur
--------------------------------- Carr definitely busted out w 2nd half, missed td in first
-------------------------------- Shoulda paid Mack and traded Carr
-------------------------------- Carr is the biggest pussy Raiders have ever had. 125 mill for this fu#=/+ pussy and Mack don't get a phone call....great move chucky
------------------------------- our rookies were good in preseason, but when the lights come on they need work. No pass rush will haunt us all year I am assuming.
------------------------------- IT WAS FUCKING PRESEASON, WHAT DON'T YOU SMART GUYS GET ABOUT THAT - IT WAS FUCKING PRESEASON!!!! LOL
------------------------------- Gonna turn to a blowout
------------------------------- Even if we had Mack, it would not make a difference. This team sucks right now.
------------------------------- At least we didn't give away our plays in preseason They never would guessed the one yard passes were the secret plays
------------------------------- This blog is funny You’re losing to one of the best teams in the nfl and ready to jettison your QB for a couple bad plays.
Your team was in it through 3 quarters, more so than most thought they’d be.
------------------------------- hey been this way since we lost Mack the sky is falling blah blah blah
------------------------------- no issue losing to rams issue with our franchise qb shitting himself in second half. And no pressure on qb, that is a huge issue
------------------------------- Same old raiders
------------------------------- we score a garbage TD here, and lose by six Hiding a blowout inside of a six point loss.
------------------------------- That end zone INT Shattered gentle Derek’s confidence into a million fucking pieces.
------------------------------- Some thoughts towards the end of the game Carr absolutely sucked in the second half, he also really underthrew Cook in the first half (1st interception) O-Line sucked in the first half but then calmed down and didn’t get as many holding calls; killed our momentum DRC/Melvin really ruined our momentum early with those PI calls No Pass rush Cooper was invisible (is the problem cooper, carr, or the coaches?) Reggie Nelson is slow and gave up a lot of plays, where was Karl Joseph??? Special teams SUCKED: Harris returning a punt instead of allowing a touchback, Harris allowing us to get pinned at the 6 yard line, Townsend punting was bad.
Jared Cook had a monster game, one of the only bright spots
-------------------------------- No pass rush Our young line can not get off there blocks. Rams adjusted to Cook. We’ll have a long season.
-------------------------------- Did you really expect to beat a Super Bowl contender?
-------------------------------- cooper three targets, jesus thats our number one guy?
-------------------------------- cooper.... cooper? name doesn’t ring a bell
-------------------------------- "Cooper is going to be the focal point of our offense"
-------------------------------- Cooper Kupp?
-------------------------------- Carr just terrible Where’s the receiving core?
-------------------------------- Still no passes to WRs. Ridiculous. Richard. Cook. Richard.
-------------------------------- Separation are the receivers not getting separation or is Carr just not looking downfield because he wants to get the ball out too fast.
-------------------------------- If we had Mack, Carr would not gave thrown that INT.
-------------------------------- because we'd be running the ball? you're starting to make sense
-------------------------------- Carr just threw a touchdown! Wait, that was an interception for a touchdown. pffft
-------------------------------- What a joke
-------------------------------- Stay looking for a new qb gentlemen. Carr will never win against good defenses.
------------------------------- wow!
------------------------------- Fuck Peters!!!!!!
------------------------------- He owns our baby Jesus QB That’s that Oakland in him tho
------------------------------- Well, an interception is to be expected when you keep throwing to the same 2 dudes.
------------------------------- Hahahaa Yeah fuck you david 150 million for this shit gtfo
-------------------------------- jeeezus, okay just put AJ in, onto next
-------------------------------- Peters again burns Carr. pick6
-------------------------------- Jeff George 2.0
-------------------------------- Please don't disrespect Jeff George like that...lol...
-------------------------------- Well I thought this would be about 31-14, just not like this.
Even worse than imagined.
-------------------------------- Carr #4 jerseys About to go the route of Moss #18s. Toss em on the mistake pile, what a joke
-------------------------------- David Carr 2.0 I am out!
-------------------------------- We kept the wrong player
-------------------------------- If Carr isn’t the answer Then keeping Mack wasn’t gonna help
-------------------------------- Gruden's post game presser should be enlightening
------------------------------- Enlightening or entertaining?
------------------------------- an we try to have a civil conversation tonight?
------------------------------- And then reality set in. Jon Gruden traded away the best hope we had at having a defense. He completely fucked this team up. Now we suck and we’re old on top of it. Face it boys, Jon Gruden has set his franchise back another decade
------------------------------- OT why do they keep showing Peters grab his junk?
------------------------------- second half melt down, disapointing. Derek just does not move in the pocket, he has to sit in one spot and throw, this is not good
------------------------------- Just terrible And the fans are booing already.
Yikes
------------------------------- Wasn't expecting to win, but didn't wanna get embarrassed. So much for that.
------------------------------- Should have traded for Bridgewater... ol well.. Raiders are who we thought they were. As fans it’s hard to accept that.
------------------------------- That defense is awesome. Rams SB champs easy if Gurley stays healthy.
------------------------------- Feels like 2012 all over again
------------------------------- After the Mack trade, the last thing we needed was a QB implosion.
------------------------------- "that relationship's going to continue to build" (Chucky & Happy Feet) kill me now
------------------------------ Typical Raiders... …no adjustments for their adjustments. You have to know they’re going to find a way to cover Cook so you have to take advantage of what they do and find another way. But honestly, our WRs are terrible. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that Coop and Nelson just couldn’t ever get open. I think it’s way past time to call Coop a bust, dating back to last year. The guy was supposed to be a "polished route-runner", but he get dominated by any CB who has a recognizable name. And the OL is no longer great. They were badly beaten by the Rams DL tonight. The second half was just as thorough of an ass-kicking as you could take. We couldn’t run. We couldn’t pass. We couldn’t stop the run. We couldn’t stop the pass. I don’t think it’s a scheme issue, though. I think our players just aren’t that good. This goes back to personnel and Big Reg. I thought Hurst and Hall and Key would be monsters tonight, but they hardly made any noise at all. I know, it’s the Rams. They’re a great team. But isn’t our goal to be great? If so, we at least gotta make a game of it for the entire 60 minutes, not just the first half. We just got out asses kicked, Nation. It fucking totally sucks.
------------------------------- Well, one way we can look at it is that the Rams were a top offense last season. I think 1st.
------------------------------- Chiefs fan here I miss Peters.
He just did you guys in again.
------------------------------- not wise to be here saying that stuff. leave us be
------------------------------- On Raiderdamus’s post I predicted 38-16 Rams So yay I wasn’t too far off!
This team has a long way to go. Sheesh.
------------------------------- A decent pass rush would've at least changed the script of the game Not saying it would’ve changed the result to a win, but I don’t remember anyone touching Goff. We got sMACKed.
------------------------------- This is an eval season for Gruden at key positions. I doubt Carr, Coop, and a whole bunch of these guys make it to Vegas.
------------------------------ What we learned is Mack is far better than Donald.
Compare their games. Mack = beast. Donald = average.
------------------------------ But you hate Mack. You don’t get to pimp this. Lol.
------------------------------ TRADE chucky And and 2 first rd picks for Mack..
------------------------------ Chi-town just let out a collective laugh.
------------------------------ Hope yall boys have good fantasy teams
So you can really enjoy this season.
------------------------------
browns:0-0-1 raiders: 0-1-0
------------------------------ I would say a 7-9 season is doable
------------------------------ soooo. i know its early but i love college football ed oliver from houston and nick bosa are two guys you wanna look at this year
------------------------------ The game may have passed Gruden by after all.
------------------------------ I am about to relapse on crack
With a minimum of 10 Pro Bowl caliber players on this team and a truly intelligent coaching staff, every game should be just a matter of time before we pull away.
This makes me pay closer attention to the things that go wrong. The first Raiders series was extended by Brockers jumping into the neutral zone. We lost a converted third down because apparently it’s okay to mug a receiver repeatedly from beginning to end. Then Donald is not only robbed of a sack, they called roughing the passer because he ended low on Carr as he was being cut blocked.
The entire game I was waiting for ONE SINGLE SOLITARY TOKEN glance of Jared Goff in the general vicinity of a tight end. It never happened. It wasn’t until the second half that McVay allowed Kromer to run the kind of plays that make Gurley’s talent shine. And though the Raider’s interior OLine is excellent, I expect far better penetration by Donald and Suh on a consistent basis.
These are the kind of things that used to signify the Rams would lose a game. Lady Luck and Any Given Sunday are excuses for the bovine herd. This team is truly accountable from the top down. While the Raiders are woefully equipped in talent, the coaching is impressive yet not nearly enough for this game.
To me, the best thing that happened this weekend outside the standings is the health of our team. As long as that ONE factor goes our way, I won’t accept that we should lose any game this year. I suspect the entire organization feels the same way even if they would be foolish to verbalize it.
I know nothing is set in stone yet but we have to play the games. With that being said It’s tiring with the 14-15 year loser mentality you read from posters mentality.
I believe we are a team of destiny I believe and your more than welcome to post “ it’s a fan site and I can post whatever I want”. Well I can to. It’s our time. It’s going to take a bit for our new talent and offense to mesh but when we do it’s to the races.
We were a second half team last year and made excellent adjustments. As soon as we went into half taking their best shots I knew the game was ours!!
Time to get out of that loser mentality!! This isn’t the Rams what you been used the last decade and a half!! time to knock that rust off your fanship!! HORNS UP BROS!!
We are finally gonna see snaps from all our starters
Don’t know about you, but I’m gonna be like the proverbial one-eyed cat peeking in the seafood store. Lol.
On the O:
Can’t wait to see a few of those new “wrinkles” that have been hinted about.
How will Cooks be used?
Will Higbee step up to at least effective status?
Might we see a play or two from Everett?
Will Goff be sharp or are we gonna see some rust due to lack of PS snaps?
Can this O hang 28 points on the Raiders? Or more?
On the D:
Will this DL trio be as awesome as many of us expect? Probably my point of greatest interest.
Will our LB’s hold up under the attack that Gruden is surely planning?
Okay, how much rope is Wade gonna give Peters and Talib? And will they be able to largely contain those Raider receivers? Maybe even smother? Perhaps an int, or two?
On the ST:
What can I say? I expect nothing less than another elite bunch of teams. Anything less would be a disappointment. Fassel has definitely spoiled us, huh?
We’ve got a shot at taking a 1 game lead over the entire division. Let’s don’t blow it by only playing one half of football like the Bears did last night. I wanna see fireworks on both sides of the ball, dammit! After those humdrum 4 PS games, I think we deserve it.
When the Los Angeles Rams take the field on Monday night against the Oakland Raiders, one player will be wearing a different jersey number. Rookie edge rusher John Franklin-Myers has switched from No. 57 to 94, taking Robert Quinn’s old digits.
He confirmed the switch on Twitter when a fan noticed the change on the roster.
No matter the position, 57 is somewhat of an obscure number. Arguably the greatest player to wear No. 57 was Hall of Famer Rickey Jackson with other notable names being Bart Scott, Olin Kreutz and C.J. Mosley, among others.
No. 94 was most famously donned by DeMarcus Ware and Charles Haley, as well as linebacker Chad Brown. Perhaps Franklin-Myers can fill the void left by Quinn, who made two Pro Bowls with the Rams and has 62.5 career sacks.
This number fits John Franklin-Myer much better than his first pick. When your over 6-4 & carry approx 290 lbs you should where something else beside #57. After wathing him in pre season I am sure he is much more DL'er than OLB/ER in my estimates. He is also a much better back up to Micheal Brockers than we had last season.
On Seven-Hour Games, Undefeated Browns and the Greatest Game Aaron Rodgers Ever Played By Peter King
Getty Images
At halftime in Wisconsin on Sunday night, after an entire state finished hyperventilating and began to come to grips with the notion that, My God, Aaron Rodgers might be gone again, Randall Cobbwalked into the Packers’ locker room at Lambeau Field. The veteran receiver was looking for Rodgers. He wanted to tell him to hang in there. He wanted to tell him he loved him.
But no Rodgers.
“Where is he?” Cobb asked.
“Working out, testing the knee,” one of the trainers told him.
Early this morning, in his car on the way home from the game, Cobb told me: “I was confused. He was what?”
Rodgers, in the second quarter of the first game of the Packers’ 100th season, collapsed in a pile of players and immediately grabbed his left knee. He tried to get up but couldn’t walk, and fell back to the field. A few minutes later, a cart came to take him off the field and you just felt with that cart there was something more than Rodgers riding away.
It was the Packers’ season. Right? MCL, ACL, whatever. Not good. Could this be the second straight season that ended way prematurely, with The Franchise out for some or more of the season, and the Packers’ hopes down the tubes again? Sure looked like it.
So Cobb said a couple of positive things to the shaky backup, DeShone Kizer, before the Packers went back on the field to try somehow to get back into it. Chicago led 17-0, and new Bear Khalil Mack was absolutely wrecking the game.
“We went out for the second half,” Cobb said, “and Aaron’s walking out too. He’s in uniform. Looks ready to go. I asked him if he was okay. He said, ‘Yeah, I’m good.’ So he got to the sidelines and starting talking ball, like normal. And I’m like, Well, I guess he’s playing.”
At one point early in the half, Rodgers said in the huddle: “Do your jobs, and I’ll handle the rest.”
Wishful thinking. When it was over, someone asked Rodgers what he was thinking when he looked up and saw the score in the third quarter: 20-0.
“Seven times three,” Rodgers said.
Maybe he’d get the ball four more times on one leg, and he knew he needed three touchdowns at least, and maybe one more score. These are the things great players think, even when they’re not sure how they’re going to make it through the next 23 minutes of gametime because they really can’t protect themselves.
I wonder sometimes, after covering sports for almost 40 years, what happens when a player who shouldn’t be on the field or the court or the ice begins to play. Do his teammates really elevate their games? Or at least try their damndest to do so because they know they have to or The Franchise could really be lost for the year.
That’s how it looked Sunday night. The line that allowed Rodgers to be hit consistently in the first half got better. Even with Rodgers basically stapled to the pocket because his usually fluidity was gone, he seemed to have a second more per dropback. And he knew he couldn’t afford to waste a series. It felt like a waste when he settled for a field goal with just over 18 minutes left in the game. Chicago 20, Green Bay 3 meant he still needed three scores.
“The protection was really good, and obviously, being more of a statue back there, I had to deal the ball on time and make sure we had guys getting open,” Rodgers said later.
They had maybe three series left. On the first came a throw that will have to go on the Hall of Fame reel. A minute into the fourth quarter, unable to plant with his right leg and fire forward with his left leg (the damaged one), Rodgers somehow wrist-flicked an arcing ball 52 yards in the air, to the right side of the end zone, to a covered Geronimo Allison. Allison made the contested catch and tumbled out of bounds. Chicago 20, Green Bay 10.
Great clock management by the Bears then. They held the ball for almost seven minutes, Trubisky consistently snapping the ball with less than five seconds on the play clock. With 2:39 left, a Cody Parkey field goal made it Chicago 23, Green Bay 17.
Now Rodgers had enough time. He didn’t have to hurry. Maybe it was the Lambeau Karma God interceding, but Bears cornerback Kyle Fuller—the cornerback Green Bay almost stole in free agency last March—dropped the easiest interception of his life on the first snap. Life, precious life.
Third-and-10. Green Bay 25.
The protection was really good, Rodgers had said. And now, on the next play, the line, so leaky early, had its best play of the night. Rodgers took the snap, and I timed how much time he had before the ball left his hand. 4.35 seconds. Luxurious for your average passer. For Rodgers, an eternity.
“I was running my route,” Cobb told me, “and I didn’t get the ball in rhythm and timing like I usually do. So in that case, we go to scramble mode. You look for an opening. So I looked for one, then looked back to Aaron and the ball was already in the air. I’m like, SHOOT! Ball’s coming! Here it comes.”
Safety Eddie Jackson, playing Cobb, dove for the ball, trying to flick it away. He couldn’t get to it. Cobb grabbed it and turned to run upfield.
“Nothing but green grass,” Cobb said. “Just run. I felt like I was back in my track days.”
“When you watch the replay, you’ll be amazed,” I said. “Khalil Mack ran practically the length of the field. He almost caught you at the 1-yard line.”
“I had a little moment with Aaron,” said Cobb. “Told him I love him. He’s such a warrior. It was amazing having him out there, after we thought he was done. He figured exactly how to play too: short, quick throws, rhythm and timing. That just reinforced what I already knew about him. I’ve seen it for years. But this was special.”
“Where does this game rank for you in your career?” I asked.
“I would say it’s probably the greatest,” said Cobb, in his eighth year with the Packers. “My wife and I just had a son. This is the Packers’ 100th season. It’s the Bears. This was a big night.”
Brett Favre had his moment in Oakland, the night after his dad died, when he played an impossible game with some great throws. This is Rodgers’ 14th season, and this might be his moment, the moment we’ll all remember when he’s on stage in Canton one day and the question is asked: What was Aaron Rodgers’ best game?
He’ll have gaudier games, and he’ll have a Super Bowl MVP game (at least one). But will he have a game when he had to play mostly on one leg and come back from a 20-point deficit? Will he, while hobbled, do something no Packers quarterback in 111 tries had ever done—win a game when trailing by at least 17 points starting the fourth quarter? Will it be against the team he loves to beat the most, the rival Bears, on a similarly historic night at Lambeau Field?
No. Aaron Rodgers is 34. He’s one of the best quarterbacks ever to play. And we just saw the best game of his professional life.
-------------------------------------- The Best of Week 1
It’s Overreaction Monday, the same as it is after the first Sunday of every NFL season. It’s the time when we can confidently say—this year—that Matt Ryan’s done, the Ravens are winning the Super Bowl, the Bills are going 0-16, the Browns will win nine, Watson and Garoppolo are frauds, Tyreek Hillis some combination of Barry Sanders and Bob Hayes, and somehow, some way we all fell for the Chargers again and the Chargers can only break our hearts; it’s an NFL rule.
Aside from the Rodgers fairy tale, my three stories of the day:
Fitzmagic Ryan Fitzpatrick face-timed with his family after the craziest game of the weekend, the 88-pointer (Bucs 48, Saints 40) in New Orleans. His wife got the six kids around the phone, and there was yelling and happiness and a family moment Fitzpatrick will remember for a long time. “We really didn’t have to say much, and I couldn’t say much,” he said. “I was overcome with emotion.”
There was also a fantasy football lesson.
“So my 9-year-old son, Tate, convinced my 11-year-old son, Brady, to put me on his fantasy team today,” Fitzpatrick told me from New Orleans. “I didn’t even know Brady played fantasy football. I guess it was a good decision.”
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You tend to win in fantasy football when your quarterback gives you 417 yards and four touchdowns and no picks and a rating of 156.2. Here’s what was so cool about Fitzpatrick after this game: He was totally, absolutely not surprised. He had no interest in going down the can-you-keep-Jameis-on-the-bench-when-he-returns path, because he knows the Bucs play Philadelphia and Pittsburgh in the next two weeks, and it’s fruitless to speculate about starting jobs that are three weeks away. His fatalism, his realism … those impressed me.
Watch Fitzpatrick’s deep throws on the highlights today if you can—things of beauty. His bomb to Mike Evans for a touchdown couldn’t have been thrown better by Marino or Elway. “I have so much confidence in my ability that a day like today is not a surprise to me—at all,” he said.
“I go out there when I start, and I think I’m gonna have this game every week, especially with this team. All offseason, I’ve seen how deep our skill-position group is. We’ve got five or six guys who, if they’re in one-on-one matchups, you know you can win with any of them. As a quarterback, it’s a dream to be in the huddle with these guys.”
But he wouldn’t say this was the best game he’d played in the NFL on his long and winding road through St. Louis, Cincinnati, Buffalo, Tennessee, Houston, the Jets and Tampa. “When I was with the Jets, we beat New England [in 2017]; in Buffalo, we beat New England [in 2011]. Those rank right up there. I remember I got benched for Ryan Mallett [in 2014], and when I got back in the lineup, I threw six touchdown passes to beat Tennessee. That was the most satisfying game of my life.
“I’m realistic about how hard this game is. I’ve thrown six touchdowns in a game. I’ve thrown six interceptions in a game. How do you come back from those? This game is a week-to-week proposition, and you better understand that. I’ll go home tonight and we’ll feel good about this one because it’s a big accomplishment beating the Saints here. But then I’ll get ready for the next one—the next one will be all that matters.”
The weird upshot of this game is the Saints might not be what we thought they were, particularly on defense. This is going to be a tense week around the Saints, and I wouldn’t be thrilled to be the Browns this week. They’re the next team up in New Orleans next Sunday.
Browns Gonna Brown No, they’re not, actually. Half the Twittersphere chortled uproariously when, with 13 seconds left in overtime, kicker Zane Gonzalez had a 43-yard field-goal try blocked by T.J. Watt of the Steelers. That’s so Browns. But the players didn’t chortle. The played were ticked off. Wideout Jarvis Landry, the unofficial we’re-not-gonna-take-it-anymore, hold-your-feet-to-the-fire guy in this locker room, left the field cursing, angry and said he refused to get used to this. And they didn’t lose!
Here’s why I think there’s more Landrys in the room than there used to be: The Browns rallied late, for once. With eight minutes left in the fourth quarter, Pittsburgh had the ball and led 21-7. Cleveland forced a turnover and got a quick score, and Cleveland recovered a James Conner fumble to set up Josh Gordon’s first touchdown since the Nixon Administration, and it was tied.
The Browns, historically, haven’t been fourth-quarter fighters. Now, with Landry and Tyrod Taylor and collegiate winners like Ohio State’s former star cornerback, Denzel Ward, the Browns are building a culture that doesn’t accept Brown-ness.
That’s all well and good, of course, but it’s going to come down to Taylor needing to be better than he was Sunday (15 of 40 passing), or letting Baker Mayfield play earlier than coach Hue Jackson wants. I like what I saw Sunday afternoon. Myles Garrett is the genuine item. Taylor might be better suited to back up Mayfield, but we’ll see about that. And a tie pissed them off. That’s a start.
------------------------------------------------------- The Award Section Offensive Players of the Week Ryan Fitzpatrick, quarterback, Tampa Bay. The man who defines “journeyman” in the NFL—seven teams, 15 years, 120 starts, 105 games on the bench—had the game of his life Sunday in New Orleans. He had a career high in passing yards (417) and rating (156.2, the second-highest in the 43-year history of the Bucs) in a totally bizarre 48-40 upset of the Saints.
Joe Flacco, quarterback, Baltimore. Have you heard? The Ravens drafted a quarterback in the first round this year. Lamar Jackson. And Flacco, barring a major turnaround from his recent mediocrity, would be playing for his job in 2018. He got off to a job-preserving start Sunday in a 47-3 win over the University of Buffalo. I mean, the Bills. Flacco’s performance (25 of 34, 236 yards, three touchdowns, no picks, 121.7 rating) marked the first time in four years he had a day with a rating over 120 and a TD-to-pick ratio of at least plus-3.
Defensive Players of the Week
Denzel Ward, cornerback, Cleveland. Near the end of the first quarter and near the end of the second quarter, Ward, in his first NFL game, intercepted Ben Roethlisberger with the Steelers already in field-goal range. Once at the Browns’ 10, and then at the Browns’ 29, Ward prevented the Steelers from scoring what could have been fairly crucial points in a 21-21 tie. I watched a chunk of this game, and Ward played fearlessly in coverage against Antonio Brown. He added six tackles.
Harrison Smith, safety, Minnesota. Smith led the Vikings with eight tackles in the 24-16 win over San Francisco, but that’s not why he’s winning this. He wrecked the Niners’ last two drives in a one-score game when Jimmy Garoppolo had given the Niners life. On third-and-five at midfield with 6:32 left, Smith came on a well-disguised safety blitz and nailed Garoppolo for a 10-yard sack. Punt. On second-and-10 with 1:45 left, Garoppolo threw deep downfield, over the middle, and Smith picked it off, ending the game. Just two more reasons why Smith is the best all-around safety in football.
We interrupt these defensive awards for a quick word about Khalil Mack from SVP:
Surely the Steelers boarded their buses for the two-hour ride home after the game angry that they turned it over so much and couldn’t beat the Browns, but imagine how they’d have felt without the play of Watt.
Special Teams Player of the Week
Tyreek Hill, wide receiver/punt returner, Kansas City. It took all of 1:57 for Tyreek Hill—who wreaked havoc on the Patriots in Week 1 last year—to do the same to the Chargers in California on Sunday. He took a punt—the first Chiefs’ touch of the 2018 season—at his own 9, and ran left, and kept running, and he left every Charger in his wake. The 91-yard punt return was the 12th touchdown of 50 yards or longer in his young career. He’s 24 years old.
Oh. And he made it 13 of those long TDs just seven minutes later. He caught the first touchdown of Pat Mahomes’ career, a 58-yarder, midway through the first quarter.
Ryan Allen, punter, New England. Fifty-one seconds left. Patriots nursing a seven-point lead. They’ve got to punt from near midfield, and the Texans will have one more chance. Allen boots it … high ball. Long. Will it get to the end zone? No … Defensive back Jonathan Jones downs it at the 1. A 54-yard punt, downed at the 1, and Deshaun Watson would have 43 seconds, on the road, to go 99 yards for the tie. Not happening. What a clutch kick by Allen, who had six punts for a 46.8-yard average in the Pats’ 27-20 win.
Coach of the Week
Dirk Koetter, coach, Tampa Bay. The Bucs, with a backup quarterback and still wondering whatever will happen to their suspended starter, walked into New Orleans and put up 48 on the Saints. Koetter was in job jeopardy after the Bucs’ 5-11 season last year. He’s significantly more secure this morning.
Goats of the Week
Nathan Peterman, quarterback, Buffalo. Enough. Forty-to-nothing is not all his fault. But 40-0 in 35 minutes? That’s two incredibly unprofessional appearances in two starts for Peterman. We’ve seen enough of Peterman, Sean McDermott.
Mike Gillislee, running back, New Orleans. The former Bill and Patriot was a pickup of necessity by the Saints with the four-game suspension to Mark Ingram to start the season. Gillislee may not be in Louisiana long. With the Saints driving to cut into a stunning Bucs lead late in the first half at the Superdome, Gillislee took a handoff from Drew Brees, and on a routine run around left end, he got hit by cornerback Vernon Hargreaves and the ball spun out of his grasp. Tampa Bay recovered, and safety Justin Evans returned it 34 yards for a touchdown. Amazingly, the Bucs led 31-17.
Kyle Fuller, cornerback, Chicago. As the Packers stared down a 23-17 deficit with 2:39 left Sunday night, Aaron Rodgers had first-and-10 from his 25. He had Davante Adams on a short incut, but Adams stumbled … and the pass went right into the chest of Fuller. This was not a particularly difficult ball to catch—not a bullet, but a touch pass. And Fuller, who dropped six picks last season (per Cris Collinsworth), dropped this one. Fuller will never have an easier pick in his life. Had he caught it, the Bears could have—minimum—tried a game-clinching field goal somewhere near the two-minute warning. What a drop.
--------------------------------------- What I Learned Rams coach Sean McVay, who begins his second season tonight at Oakland, on what he learned in his rookie year, as the youngest coach in modern NFL history:
“I would say the most important thing I learned is this: It’s okay to think you don’t have the answer to everything. There’s actually strength in being able to say, ‘I don’t know, but let’s figure it out together.’ Or, ‘Let’s lean on the people who have a lot more experience than I do,’ to be able to learn from them. What you also learn is that this is an extremely humbling game. You know when I learned that?
When I got hired to be a head coach, and I got a chance to hire some of these guys to come on to our staff—guys who I am thinking to myself, ‘I get to coach with this guy?’ Wade Phillips on defense, Joe Barry as an assistant head coach. John Fassel on special teams—I know nothing about special teams, and here’s this guy who’s as good as anyone in the league, on our team. All our coaches, working together. If you get a staff like we had, we all make each other better.
“I learned this from Mike Tomlin—who’s been a big help to me: Everybody’s got all the answers and no accountability. I was that guy. Before I called plays or even got into this role, you’re like, ‘Oh yeah, I’d do it this way.’ Well it’s a little bit different when you actually have to do it.
“I learned how important it is to bring in the right people to influence your team. Andrew Whitworth, Robert Woods. Smart guys, team guys who can help influence and affect the locker room in the right way. There’s real power in that.
“Something really important I learned: If I was trying to be involved in every facet of the job, I think I would’ve been really overwhelmed—and I would have done the team a disservice. Defense and special teams … I knew enough so that I could at least communicate to our players.
But to try and stick my nose in and be involved in those areas when I had smarter people to do it, that would not have been smart. If there’s a major decision to make, or a [replay] challenge on a defensive play or special-teams play, we’ll talk about it. Mostly, though, I’m not gonna override Wade Phillips’ call. Why would I?
“And it’s okay to devote myself to the offense especially when you’ve got a young quarterback who needs me like Jared [Goff]. People might say, ‘Well, why aren’t you standing on the sidelines to watch the defense?’ I think people have the misinterpretation that I don’t care about the defense.
Of course I care about defense and special teams. But I just think it’s too hard to call plays in this league and think that I’m not gonna look at what just happened in the previous series when the offense comes off the field. It’s okay to do what’s best for the team that way, even if it doesn’t look like what a head coach should do.”
------------------------------------------- Intelligent Football
This week, I asked Pro Football Focusfor some telling tidbits you could use in your pre-game study for Jets-Lions, who play the 15th game of the season in the early ESPN tilt. Here goes:
• The Robby Anderson factor. The fleet and unknown Jets deep threat will be just that for rookie starter Sam Darnold tonight. On passes of 20 yards or longer downfield last year, Anderson led all receivers in the league, with seven. With Jermaine Kearse doubtful tonight, look for Darnold-to-Anderson down the field three or four times.
• Beware Glover Quin, Jets. When targeted last season, the Detroit safety allowed a puny passer rating of 55.4. I remember in Lions camp this year Matthew Stafford raving about Quin. Darnold has to know where he is on every snap. And Quin’s not the only stingy guy back there: Darrius Slay allowed a 55.6 rating when targeted.
• Dropbacks under pressure. Only Russell Wilson was pressured more than Stafford’s 230 drops under pressure in 2017. If you’ve got Leonard Williams in your fantasy sack league (kidding), put him in your lineup tonight. But then there this …
• This is why Frank Ragnow was such a hot commodity by draft day, and why Stafford’s glad to have him. The rookie starting guard for the Lions played 42 games at Arkansas. Sacks allowed in his college career: zero.
• Targeting Darron Lee, perhaps? Could be a bullseye on Lee, the Jets’ inside linebacker, in coverage tonight. He allowed 50 completion in 69 coverage snaps last season, and an opposing passer rating of 111.4. Among 52 ILBs ranked by PFF, Lee was dead last in cumulative ILB ratings.
------------------------------------ Things I Think I Think
1. I think these are my quick-hit thoughts of Week 1:
a. 8:13 p.m. Central Time. Quietest I’ve heard Lambeau in a big game in a long time. When Aaron Rodgers is down on the field and his knee might have been injured, there’s a hush all over the state, not just the stadium.
c. Pats have now beaten Houston four times in Foxboro since September 2016—by 27, 18, three and seven points.
d. We might have been early, we national media doofuses, in promoting the Chargers to kings of the AFC West and thinking the Chiefs would have a new-quarterback-adjustment season.
e. Pat Mahomes does not look like he needs much of an adjustment. To anything.
f. The speed of the Chiefs is downright toxic.
g. It’s going to be a loooong year for Ereck Flowers, the new right tackle for the Giants, and he handled his awful game against the Jags’ front with not much class; he was the only one of five offensive linemen to not be available to the press post-game.
h. Nice debut for Niners linebacker Fred Warner, the third-round rookie from BYU, playing for Reuben Foster. Looks very much like he belongs.
i. Congrats, Adrian Peterson—not only for passing Jim Brown on the all-time rushing list with a 96-yard rushing day … but also for running harder and with more elusiveness than the 2017 Adrian Peterson. Impressive performance at Arizona.
j. What is that coverage plan, Jags, that releases Odell Beckham Jr., to freedom across the middle, with no one covering him?
k. A.J. Green with two fumbles at Indy, giving him eight in his last 46 games. Too many.
l. All those who had the Bucs scoring two touchdowns in the first 13 minutes at trendy Super Bowl pick New Orleans, raise your hand. (Stop. Just stop. You did not think the Bucs would score two touchdowns all day, never mind in the first quarter.) And to think that was only the beginning.
m. Ravens receivers looked good, particularly on the toe-tap, back-of-end-zone TD by Michael Crabtree.
n. Anybody running against the Jags this year? I don’t see how.
o. Yannick Ngakoue is going to be a very good and very impactful player in the NFL for a long time.
p. Good to see Todd Haley in midseason form, taunting Steelers corner Artie Burns midway through Cleveland-Pittsburgh.
q. Take a bow, Howie Roseman, for realizing how important the offensive and defensive lines are. The Eagles GM built great depth especially on the defensive front (Michael Bennett, Haloti Ngata, Chris Long) at the expense of offensive skill players.
r. That’s a winning formula, because going seven deep on the defensive line will be significantly more important than receiver depth when two or three on the DL are nicked come January.
s. I know Julio Jones is great, and he probably got jobbed on what would have been a 50-yard bomb that he juggled and likely caught Thursday night, but he drops too many balls (33 since opening day 2014).
t. Yikes: “Here’s a guy who doesn’t give a damn,” Steelers guard Ramon Foster told Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, speaking of Le’Veon Bell, and the reception for Bell will be downright chilly if he ever reports to the Steelers this year.
u. Very good nugget from Ian Rapoport on NFL Network, with news that the Patriots signed offensive coordinator (and perhaps head-coach-in-waiting) Josh McDaniels to a five-year deal to keep him in New England, and that McDaniels is “being paid like a first-time head coach … At one point his contract eclipses $4 million per year.”
v. Cool pooch punt by the Chargers, erasing Tyreek Hill for a moment with kicker Caleb Sturgisdumping a weird punt inside the 15-yard line.
x. Another year, another disaster of an offensive line for Seattle. It’s John Schneider’s Achilles.
y. Glad to see Akiem Hicks getting the Al-and-Cris props last night in Bears-Packers. He’s one of the small handful of truly underrated players in the NFL right now.
2. I think the charming, compelling story of Week 2 will be the Le’Veon Bell story. Or, rather, the Le’Veon Bell/James Conner story. Or maybe the James Conner/Le’Veon Bell story. So many possibilities in the wake of the great first game of the year by Conner—a league-high 31 carries for a league-high 135 rushing yards in the 21-21 tie in Cleveland. Add in his 57 receiving yards, and that’s 192 scrimmage yards.
Bell hasn’t had more in a game since December 2016. So what do you do if you’re Mike Tomlin and Bell comes in this week or next? I think I’d do what Bell and his agent apparently want the Steelers to do: don’t overuse Bell. That way, he’d theoretically be fresh as the season gets into its biggest days. He’d be fresh, relatively speaking, for free agency next spring.
Conner’s performance was a revelation. If I’m Tomlin, I’m secretly thrilled despite the tie, because now he can say they’re going to be fine without Bell and mean it, and he can think if Bell comes in they’ve got the best rushing attack they could possible have.
3. I think, after watching Khalil Mack’s performance in 42 of 60 defensive snaps Sunday night, anyone who thinks Mack is overpaid, or thinks the Bears overpaid for him … well, you’re probably not a person who is steeped in logic.
4. I think it’s time for your quickie Green Bay Packers history quiz, commemorating the start of their 100th season. Ready? (Answers in number 9, below.)
a. The Packers went 10-1 in 1919. What was the name of the team that beat them in the final game of that season?
b. The greatest two coaches in Packer history, who have statues at Lambeau Field, both finished their careers as the head coach of which NFL franchise?
c. Who caught the last pass Brett Favre ever threw in Lambeau Field as a Packer?
d. On the morning of the Ice Bowl, Dec. 31, 1967, a Dallas Cowboy took some coffee back to his room at a Green Bay hotel to try to warm up. When he picked it up off his widow sill a few minutes after getting to his room, it was filled with coffee ice chunks. Who was the player?
e. Bart Starr retains a physical memory of that Ice Bowl game today when it get chilly where he lives, in Birmingham, Ala. What is that physical memory?
5. I think John Mara will never have to walk around New York in a Cowboys sweatshirt.
6. I think you’ll like the answers to the Packer quiz.
a. The Packers lost to the Beloit Fairies, 6-0, on the last day of the 1919 season. (In fact, the Packers lost once in 1919 and once in 1920, both to Beloit.)
b. Curly Lambeau and Vince Lombardi finished their NFL coaching careers in Washington.
c. Corey Webster of the New York Giants. His interception in overtime of the 2007 NFC Championship Game led to a Giant upset of the Packers.
d. Defensive tackle Bob Lilly had that iced coffee in 1967.
e. The tips of some of Starr’s fingers were frostbitten that day, so when it gets cold in Alabama, he feels a tingle in the fingertips.
Aaron Rodgers’ Magic Caps a Wild First Sunday By Albert Breer
It feels like it was just yesterday that we were all moaning about the officiating and sloppy play in a sideways Thursday opener at Lincoln Financial Field.
And then Aaron Rodgers happened.
Somehow, on Sunday night at Lambeau, Rodgers went from riding a cart towards an uncertain future, after an inauspicious start to this particular game, to slicing and dicing a loaded Bears D and announcing his return to the NFL in the most emphatic way possible. He wasn’t just getting by out there, either. After his knee crumpled in a pocket collapsed by Khalil Mack and Roy Roberson-Harris, he got better.
“It would have had to take something really catastrophic injurywise to keep me off the field in the second half,” Rodgers told NBC’s Michelle Tafoya at the gun. “I went in the locker room, did all the tests, and then I was in the indoor facility, trying to loosen up. But I knew once I got back on field, the adrenaline would start flowing, I’d be able to hang in there.”
He did more than that. Like, a lot more than that …
At the time of his injury: three for seven, 13 yards, 50.3 rating; Packers down 10-0.
After post-halftime return: 17 for 23, 273 yards, three TDs, 152.7 rating; Packers outscore Bears 24-6.
The capper was a play where, as he said, he hung in, moving in the pocket long enough for his receivers to go into a scramble drill. Randall Cobb, sitting down right in Rodgers’ sightline, broke off his route. And with most of the defense following the quarterback shuffling to his left, Cobb raced up the right sideline for 75 yards and the game-winning touchdown.
Week 1 got off to a bumpy start on Thursday, but now we’re off and running.
In this week’s MMQB, we’ll look at Ryan Fitzpatrick, on his seventh team in Year 14, outgunning Drew Brees in a shootout at the Superdome; we’ll give you Tom Brady’s motivation as he ripped apart the Texans to kickoff Year 19; we’ll explain how Ron Rivera’s sturdy operation in Charlotte has its foundation; and we’re going to Miami to show how the longest game in NFL history revealed the difference in the Dolphins.
But could you start anywhere else but with the Packers on the first full Sunday of the NFL season?
The great thing about this game was that, over the first half or so, the story seemed pretty unlikely to be the one we’d be discussing on Monday morning. At that point, Packers-Bears was playing out like as if we were all watching a real-time referendum on the Raiders’ decision to trade Khalil Mack.
First there was the pressure on the play on which Rodgers got hurt, with 9:22 left in the second quarter. A few minutes later Mack came free, sacked backup DeShone Kizer, and ripped the ball from the QB’s hands. And finally, with 27 seconds left in the half, he picked off a bungled Kizer screen pass and ran it in for a score.
At that point, some Packers figured they’d seen the last of Rodgers for the night. The cart coming out to get you is typically a good sign of that a player is done for the day. Kizer even addressed his teammates at halftime, telling them he needed their trust. Then they went out to warm up for the second half, and you-know-who snuck on to the field behind them.
“He was in the back as we came out and we heard the crowd,” veteran tight end Lance Kendricks told The MMQB’s Kalyn Kahler. “And we were like, ‘Oh, there he is.’ It was cool.”
And then, everything changed.
The Packers made a slight adjustment—snapping Rodgers the ball out of the pistol, to limit how much he’d have to move—but the rest was business as usual.
Shut out in the first half, the Packers scored on all four of their meaningful second-half posessions. The three touchdown drives were of 81, 75 and 75 yards. It was one of those nights.
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“Aaron Rodgers was remarkable,” coach Mike McCarthy said. “I just can’t tell you how proud I am of him.”
The NFL should be too. Because of him, we’re all waking up on Monday morning with a pretty different feeling about pro football than we did on Friday. And given all that’s happened the last few months, the folks at 345 Park could use that.
------------------------------------------------------------- WATCH: THE MONDAY NIGHT KEY
Albert Breer breaks down a critical factor in the Raiders-Rams Monday night game.
Two new coaches and a new quarterback get unveiled tonight, but I think it’s the other team in the mix that’s most interesting. The Rams have spent this offseason trying to maximize the window they have while Jared Goff is still on his rookie deal. And so now a splashy offseason is put to the test.
As a result, Aqib Talib, Ndamukong Suh, Marcus Peters and Brandin Cooks are all aboard and will be front and center tonight in Oakland. Of course, we’ve seen these chemistry experiments—adding big-time names/egos to a contender to try to get it over the top—fail in the past.
Why won’t this one? Sean McVay’s track record in Washington and L.A. has shown he has an ability to manage big personalities and different types of players, which has allowed the Rams to cast a wide net for talent. And the best part is that he doesn’t mind much that all the splashy moves put a little pressure on everyone to win now.
“I don’t want our players ever to fear failure,” McVay told me a little while back, when we discussed the moves. “We always talk about attacking success.”
One thing’s for sure, starting tonight, it won’t be boring.
-------------------------------------------------------------- FITZMAGIC FALLOUT: A QB QUESTION IN TAMPA?
Chris Godwin didn’t take the bait, just so you know. I did ask the Bucs’ second-year receiver if it could be a little awkward when Jameis Winston returns from his three-game start-of-the-year suspension, given how Ryan Fitzpatrick played in New Orleans on Sunday, and that coach Dirk Koetter has made it clear that Winston isn’t guaranteed his job back. Godwin at least acknowledged that the question make sense, but went no further.
“That’s not something that we worry about, honestly,” Godwin said after landing back in Tampa. “We got a really big win today, and the next task at hand is to learn from this and go play the defending Super Bowl champions. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there. Right now we’ll enjoy this win and prepare for the big challenge ahead.”
That bridge will be crossed soon, though, and it looks a little different than it did 24 hours ago. Fitzpatrick completed 21 of 28 for 417 yards and four touchdowns in winning a 48-40 defense-optional war at the Superdome. It was Fitz’s first four-touchdown game in three years, and his 156.2 rating was a career high. As Godwin noted, the Eagles are next. After that, the Steelers.
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What if Fitzpatrick keeps crushing it? Would Jason Licht and Dirk Koetter actually leave Winston, the quarterback they tied their futures to in 2015, on the bench? That would be hard. But it’d also be hard to see the Bucs moving away from what we saw on Sunday, given everything that’s on the line for the GM, coach and everyone else in football operations in 2018.
What’s interesting is that while Sunday’s performance will be tough to duplicate, it’s understandable why the players aren’t totally slack-jawed over it. Mike Evans is a star. DeSean Jackson is a scary downfield weapon. Godwin and fellow 2017 draftee O.J. Howard have high-end potential. Licht has invested high draft picks on the offensive line and imported tough-guy center Ryan Jensen from Baltimore in March.
Add a tough camp (the Bucs were in pads pretty much every day allowable this summer) in the Tampa heat to the equation, and the result is what you saw against New Orleans.
“After the training camp we had, we really felt like we could come out and put on a show,” said Godwin, who had three catches for 41 yards and a touchdown. “You have so many weapons that Fitz had the ability to throw to.
And he did a great job of spreading the ball around and getting guys involved, and the offensive line did a really good job blocking. Just the confidence we had from training camp, with the talent we have in the room, the combination of all of that, we ended up with the result we had.”
There are other factors, too, of course. It’s Week 1, so new play-caller Todd Monken had the advantage of holding stuff back and springing it on the Saints.
That said, you’ll notice that Godwin mentioned Fitzpatrick as one element of the operation that he expected big things from. The receiver added that the only thing that surprised him about Fitzpatrick’s performance was the 12-yard run on third-and-11 with 2:42 left in the fourth quarter, which sealed the win. “I didn’t know he was that fast, man,” Godwin said of the 35-year-old QB. “Fitz was moving!”
Clearly the guys in the locker room think he can play. We all need to stay tuned to this one.
----------------------------------- THE PANTHERS D IS THE FOUNDATION
I’m guilty of the same thing most everyone else is regarding the Panthers. A lot of the focus in Carolina this offseason centered on two issues: David Tepper buying the team, and Norv Turner being hired to work with Cam Newton.
It was really neither of those things that won Tepper his first game as owner and Turner his first game as OC yesterday, 16-8 over Dallas. It was, instead, what it’s often been throughout Ron Rivera’s eight years in charge: the defense. And that’s notable because the Panthers are now on their third coordinator on that side in as many years.
Sean McDermott the head coach in Buffalo now, and Steve Wilks has the Arizona job. Successor Eric Washington didn’t miss much of a beat on Sunday. Carolina held the Cowboys to 232 yards and just 4.1 yards per play.
Washington has been groomed for this for a while. Like McDermott and Wilks before him, the new DC had a long history with Rivera (he was Rivera’s intern in Chicago for the Super Bowl season of 2006, when Rivera was the Bears’ coordinator). And as was the case with his predecessors, Rivera has given Washington full play-calling authority for a defense that he and McDermott designed back in 2011.
But more important than any of that is that he’s passed along a certain standard that a lot of people have had their hands in establishing, and not just coaches. Four or five years ago, middle linebacker Luke Kuechly told me he wanted to build a legacy defense in Charlotte, like the Steelers and Ravens have. By maintaining their level over the course of different play-callers, it seems Kuechly’s group is close to achieving that.
“One of the biggest things I do, and this is in all phases, they need to take ownership, they need to understand what the standard is,” Rivera said over his cell last night. “Set the standard, and hold everyone accountable to the standard, and if it slips, they’re the ones that have to be responsible to get it back on track. I tell the guys, I shouldn’t have to cheerlead every day at practice.
“It shouldn’t be me running around, yelling and screaming constantly. If they see something, correct it. And that’s been one thing that’s helped us as a football team, the willingness of our guys to take the standard, understand what it is, and then hold each other accountable.”
Never was it more apparent than at the end of the game. The Cowboys finally looked to have gotten their offensive act together early in the fourth quarter, with a 10-play, 75-yard touchdown drive. Rivera’s radar was up, at that point, for any sign of trouble within his ranks. Instead, he looked at the bench and saw a poised and calm group.
That unit closed things out from there, generating a turnover on downs, then a strip sack from Mario Addison (a Panther since 2012) to end the Cowboys’ final drive.
“Great effort,” Rivera said, “And Mario’s one of those guys who’s been here the whole time. He understands what our standard is and what kinds of things are acceptable and what aren’t.”
I expect we’ll see Newton get better in the coming weeks, because I do believe that Turner and his son, quarterbacks coach Scott Turner, have made progress with Newton that will take root on game day soon. But they do have a little time, because of the margin for error the defense gives them, and has always given the offense.
As for specifics, Rivera said Washington brings a mix of the hyperaggressive Wilks and the more conservative McDermott from a play-calling standpoint. And yes, he sees Washington as getting his head coaching shot at some point too, which is why he’s already looking at who might come after that.
1. Le’Veon Bell’s monocled emoji after the Steelers’ mucked-up tie in Cleveland was another example of the star back twisting the knife on the team in a “You’ve made me uncomfortable the last two years, so I’m not doing you favors now” kind of way.
Do I think staying away is smart for Bell? No, I don’t. He’s losing $855K a week, and that money isn’t coming back—and most NFL people I talk to aren’t so sure there’s a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow waiting for him. He has four things working against him in that regard. First, his age. He’ll be 27 in February and going into year seven of his career, which is pretty far down the line for a running back. Second, he has a suspension history.
Third, he’s been hurt (sports hernia, MCL tear, etc.) Fourth, teams have taken note of how his teammates reacted to Bell not reporting last week. Again, Bell’s a great, great player. But if I’m another team, I’m not sure I wouldn’t just look to the draft for get younger, cheaper running backs.
2. No getting around it—Nate Peterman was awful on Sunday for Buffalo. But I’ll repeat what I’ve said before in this space. My belief is, based on the investment they’ve made, the priority in the Bills’ handling of the quarterbacks this year has to be what’s best for Josh Allen. And I have a hard time seeing where playing behind the Buffalo line is what’s right for Allen’s development right now.
3. While we’re on Peterman, his predecessor Tyrod Taylor didn’t exactly set the world on fire on Sunday either, throwing for 197 yards, a touchdown and a pick on 15-of-40 passing for the Browns against Pittsburgh.
Those numbers were a part of why Cleveland struggled to get even a tie despite generating six takeaways on defense. But Taylor struggled a bit with his accuracy from the pocket, which was a problem for him in Buffalo too. We’ll see if he can get back on track in New Orleans on Sunday.
4. Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes was mighty impressive in throwing for 256 yards and four touchdowns on 15-of-27 passing. And there were plenty of good signs beyond the numbers that the Chiefs brass took from the 38-28 win over the Chargers. There’s what they knew—Mahomes’ touchdown throw to Tyreek Hill was the kind rope that made him the 10th overall pick in the draft in the first place.
And there’s what the Chiefs are still learning—how good he is extending plays in live action. He showed that part of his game in converting a third-and-13 to Hill for 34 yards late in the third quarter. Mahomes is going to be fun to watch from here on out.
5. What I liked about the Eagles on Thursday: It was ugly for a while, and they rode their defense, until the offense got the running game in gear, and they just found a way—which illustrates how they’re a team that wins by a lot of different means. That’s a great sign for Philly, and coach Doug Pederson agreed when I asked him about it on Thursday. “There are a lot of ways to win a football game.
That’s a great thing, because until all three phases catch up and click, it’s great to see the defense step up, and it’s great to see the offense make some plays in the second half, the special teams cover some kicks, [punter] Cam [Johnston] kicked the heck out of the football tonight. It’s coming. it’s a slow process, but we’ve got some time and we’ll keep working.”
6. Kirk Cousins looked very comfortable in Week 1, and his numbers reflected that—and he looked a player who doesn’t feel like he has to do everything to win. Vikings safety Harrison Smith wound up as the star of the afternoon, with a fumble recovery, a sack and game-clinching interception, and the run/pass breakdown was pretty close to 50/50, with the Vikings running the ball 32 times for 116 yards. I think all of that is just find with the $84 million man.
7. I wouldn’t worry too much about Jimmy Garoppolo’s worst day as a Niner. I don’t think anyone paying attention expected John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan to have the team fixed in 20 months, so it should come as no surprised that the roster isn’t quite where they need it to be yet.
8. Case Keenum threw three picks, so his Broncos debut certainly wasn’t perfect. But you have to like the way Keenum kept swinging. His teammates certainly did. “We’re not going to get down, that’s Case, that’s some of us other players as leaders on this team,” receiver Demaryius Thomas told the Denver media. “Forget those things and play on. That’s going to be our personality. We’re not going to carry all that negative stuff around with us.” On the game-winning drive against Seattle, Keenum was nails: 4-for-4 for 39 yards and the clinching touchdown.
9. I can’t believe I’m saying this in 2018: Adrian Peterson looked really, really good in Week 1. His performance—166 yards from scrimmage (on 28 touches)—was one of the better surprises from Sunday.
