Listen, I know the NFL preseason games aren't very exciting. A lot of people, myself included, could easily stand not having preseason games at all, and I'm sure life would continue on as normal. However, preseason games do have a few purposes. The most notable uses of this past preseason was the inagural tossing of rookie QB's to the wolves (a.k.a NFL defenses). This year, they performed basically to expectations, which were poor to begin with. Andy Dalton and Cam Newton failed to put up encouraging numbers, all the while playing against the 2nd or even 3rd stringers of four different NFL teams. Now lets look at numbers from a few quarterbacks in the league right now and compare their stats.
QB A: 37-56 (66.1%) 413 Yards 3TD-0Int
QB B: 62-88 (70.5%) 713 Yards 4TD-4Int
QB C: 48-75 ( 64%) 514 Yards 4TD-3Int
QB D: 52-83 (62.7%) 854 Yards 3TD-4Int
Obviously, there are several different ways one can approach this data. What we see out of QB A, TCU product Andy Dalton, is an accurate quarterback who hasn't taken a whole lot of risks, has thrown only the throws he knows he can make, and has taken care of the ball. QB's B and C (Phillip Rivers and Matt Ryan, respectively) are proven winners in this league, and while we see the yard totals, they also have had issues throwing away the ball to this point. And finally, QB D, rookie quarterback Cam Newton, who has two consecutive 400 yard passing games in his two starts in the league, but with 4 interceptions has proven he has been somewhat careless as well.
So what can we make of these numbers? How well do they translate to wins? Ryan, Rivers and Dalton are all 1-1 as starters this season, so its a bit early to tell how they will do this season as a whole. Newton, however, has lost both of his starts, games in which he threw for 400+ yards each time. He certainly had his chance to win Sunday, getting out of the gate early on Green Bay 13-0. However, Cam Newton had no answer from then on, as Green Bay scored 23 consecutive points en route to taking the win away. So how does one throw for so many yards but not win football games? Newton has made the Panthers one dimensional, a pass heavy team with no run game. The teams leading rusher is Cam Newton. I mean, you have DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart on the roster and the QB is the leading rusher?
Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Phillip Rivers, Aaron Rodgers and Peyton Manning. All of these quarterbacks can throw for 400 yards in a game, every game. Why don't they? Because their teams have a run game. These quarterbacks win because they can make the throws they need to, keep interceptions to a minimum and keep the run game going. Cam Newton is putting up gaudy numbers, but his legacy will depend on his ability to win football games, something he needs to learn how to do in this new league.
Charles Injury looks bleak for Chiefs
Jamaal Charles left Sunday's game against the Lion's prematurely after landing awkwardly on his outstretched left knee. He becomes the third big name Chief to go down with the injury, joining promising TE Tony Moeaki and star safety Eric Berry on the IR list. Tough luck for the Chiefs. Todd Haley and his team are defending AFC West champions after going 10-6 last year. So far, they have been blown out in two straight losses, getting outscored by a margin of 10-89 in those two games. Charles has become a star for this team, having an excellent campaign in 2010. He rushed for 1,467 yards last year at a 6.4 YPC average, carrying the team and allowing Matt Cassel to get the passing game in order. Now, with Charles gone, the Chiefs will most likely look to aging workhorse back Thomas Jones for RB duties, which will in turn increase their reliance on the currently defunct passing game. With both their offense and defense down their best playmaker, Kansas City has a lot of work to do if they hope to salvage this season and defend their AFC West title this year.
Romo fights through injury to win.
Needles, scissors, steak knives, rib bones. These are the sorts of items that can puncture your lung and impede your ability to do; well just about anything. Tony Romo suffered a fractured rib on Sunday, which is likely the cause for the punctured lung he also has. Romo left the game for a time after the injury, but returned at a crucial time late to win the game for Dallas. Romo will recover, but the action went a long way towards earning him the respect he has not seemed to have from the media and around the league as of late. After Sundays game several Cowboys voiced their support for Romo, and he finally appears to have the full support of his locker room and front office.
Week 2 Fantasy observations
1. Fred Jackson is the feature back in Buffalo and an underrated fantasy talent. Jackson runs well and also is a threat to catch the ball as well, and if he is available in your league, is worth a roster spot. The emergence of Ryan Fitzpatrick as a reliable QB has taken defensive pressure off of Jackson and his numbers have increased because of it. He destroyed the Raiders defense this past weekend, which had been solid against the run in heir first game of the season. Claim him as a free agent if you can or trade for him, possibly for sell high candidate Dwayne Bowe?
2. A.J Green seems to be profiting immensely from the success of Andy Dalton in Cincinnati. Green finished with a ridiculous 14 targets, 10 of which he caught for 124 yards and a score. Over two games with Dalton as QB, Green has 165 yards and two scores. Green isn't an every week starter until he is more consistently putting up these numbers, and Dalton is certainly a matchup play QB, but Green could be primed for some big games this season, if you are willing to risk an occasional goose egg on a bad day.
3. Roy Helu- Before the season started, I stated that Helu was one Tim Hightower injury away from fantasy relevance. Apparently the Redskins would rather not wait for that moment to involve Helu, as he received a third of the teams carries on Sunday. He rushed for 74 yards (7.4YPC) and also turned four targets into 38 yards receiving, mostly coming on a big 33 yard gain. Helu is a speedy, explosive back who has shown some real talent.
4. Toby Gerhart- A bit of a deeper pick here, but Gerhart is a tough guy to hate. He had some real gaudy stats in college, and I'm convinced that if he weren't stuck behind Adrian Peterson in Minnesota he'd be putting up some real good numbers in the NFL too. On Sunday, he touched the ball 3 times and had a big run and a big catch. Now, Peterson isn't known for missing games, but f he does, or if Minnesota decides to involve Gerhart a bit more in the offense, he's worth a look.
Defensive Matchups
Through the first two games of the NFL season, here are the teams that are weak against either the pass (P) or the run (R), or both. Either way, its good to know when matching up your star players to a favorable defensive matchup.
Oakland: P and R. See Fred Jackson
Kansas City: P and R. Eric Berry is on the IR. Enough said.
Tampa Bay: R. Two games. 300 Rushing Yards allowed.
New England: P. 700 yards allowed in two games.
Atlanta: 600 yards allowed in two games.
Arizona: R and P. 240 yards and 700 yards through to games. Ouch.
San Diego: R and P
Oh Hey, I didn't see you there: Jaguars QB Luke McCown didn't bring his A-game against the Jets and their top ranked pass defence on Sunday, going 6-16 for 59 yards, 4 interceptions and a 1.8 passer's rating. Ouch.
Back from the dead player of week 2: Denver RB Willis McGahee experienced his first useful start in a while Sunday, rushing for 101 yards in the Bronco's win. Since a career year in 2007, McGahee has struggled to stay relevant in this league, but proved Sunday that he has still got it.
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