Rams over Chiefs 14-10 in the Governor's cup

It was a game George Allen would have loved. It fit him to a tee. Furthermore, it was the type of game that will garner praise from any old-school smash-mouther.

The Rams looked like they had acquired former Patriot OC Charlie Weiss from the Chiefs, not former Patriot OC Josh McDaniels from the Broncos. What the Rams showed us in this game was a perfect example of Erhardt-Perkins offense, not the Spread. We ran like hell between the 20s and in the Red Zone we took passing-shots at the end zone to score. That is Erhardt-Perkins folks: You run to win, and pass to score. You run between the 20s and take shots at the end zone when you get to the Red Zone.

This is the offense that garners the most praise from the stogie, stick in the mud, fuddy-duddy, old-time religious conservatives of the golden order of St. Vincent Lombardi. Did somebody just say Merril Hoge..?

Did I mention to you that I utterly detest the Erhardt-Perkins offence? It's my least favorite scheme in the whole wide world. It usually means boring, boring football.

Still, I rather enjoyed it last night. Once again, the Rams offensive line fired out and blew the defensive line 4 and 5 yards off the line of scrimmage. They opened some big holes and Steven Jackson rumbled through with ease. This is something we have seldom seen during his career. Usually, Steve has been responsible for blocking 3 and 4 defenders in addition to carrying the football... each and every time he carried the football.

It's nice to see him get some fucking blocking for a change, goddamnit! What took you so long?

It is nice to see a functional offensive line for a change. Just don't let Sam get destroyed again like you did last night. I know that only happened once, but that was a nasty looking sack. We don't need anymore of that.

With that said, the days of the Ram offensive line pissing me off just might be over. We just need the young tackles to stop jumping off sides. I had visions of Alex Barron for a a split second there in the first quarter.

What happened in this game was pretty obvious. We got Steven Jackson back, and we wanted to give him a tune-up behind our re-born offensive line. I am very pleased with what I saw. I am sure Steve was very pleased with what he saw. I am sure the rest of the NFC West was frowning deeply. I am sure they foresee problems in the future.

We all know that the game is won and lost at the line of scrimmage. Whether you run or pass makes little difference. The game is won and lost at the line of scrimmage. You can't pass or run unless you win at the line of scrimmage.

It was interesting to see the impact that this game had on the world of NFL analysts. Mark Schlereth, one of my favorite ESPN analysts [because of his brutal honesty] was downright sanguine about the Rams. He described us as the class of the NFC West. That's a little bit of a double entendre, but we'll take it. It's a lot better than where we've been all these years.

You just knew that all the old offensive linemen were going to love this performance.

There is something to be said for coming out on the first drive, punching the defense in the mouth relentlessly, and throwing a pretty pass into the end zone. You send a Sicilian message to enemy: I'm going to beat you up, take our lunch money, and make you cry. However, the ESPN guys do exaggerate this value.

A few other observations:

• We certainly aren't showing much of the spread offense Josh McDaniels is famous for. We're showing just a little, but not a lot.
• Why is this true? Is this because we are playing Vanilla? Is it possible we wish to conceal what we will really do in the first game of the year versus the Eagles? Or is it because Coach Spags wants something more like a Ground-Chuck offense. I frequently chastised Pat Shurmur for our Ground-Chuck offense in 2009. Maybe it's Spags after all?
• I'm going to hope we are setting an ambush for the Eagles.
• We scored all 14 of our points in the first quarter. They got nothing in the first quarter. Our starters whupped their starters pretty badly.
• As you might surmise, depth is a problem for our Rams. We weren't able to sustain anything after our starters split from the game. Compare and contrast that to the way the Chargers' scrubs came back and won the game against the Cardinals. Teams like the Chargers, whatever their ultimate status, are deeper than our Rams.
• Their scrubs scored all 10 of their points, both scores coming off turn overs. Sam threw a pretty ugly pick in the first half. This setup a field goal. We had a fumble later in the 2nd half which set up a pretty touch down pass. Nothing else happened for the chiefs.
• As ESPN taught us, the chiefs have had almost as many turnovers as points scored this preseason. They have scored 23 points and had 22 turnovers. The analysts were laughing at that statistic. That's ugly, ugly, ugly.
• Despite the fact that I have no confidence at all in the Chargers, I think I am going to have to pick them over the Chiefs in the AFC West race. It looks to me like the Chiefs have regressed mightily this year. I don't think the Chargers have improved, but that doesn't matter, they still look better than the Chiefs right now. This is the year the AFC West passes the NFC West as the worst division in football.
• The Rams now lead the Governor's cup series 7-5.
• As Packer CB Charles Woodson says, winning preseason games is not important... if you loose. Winning is important... if you win.
• Robert Quinn showed up in the clutch, blocking a key field-goal attempt that would have set up an on-side kick and the victory drive for the Chiefs. As it turned out, Quinn's block completely snuffed the Chiefs. You should have heard the KC crowd boo, hiss and boo. The Chiefs died quickly after the blocked kick. As you know, I didn't want to take this kid. That's the way to show up and prove your critics wrong, youngblood.

So the Rams have played their third and final preseason game [remember they canceled the Hall of Fame Game] so we have finished our preseason course. It's all looking pretty good. I think we are going to shoot it out with Cardinals for the title. The Cardinals looked damn impressive against the Chargers. I think they are going to represent problems for us. I still think the 49ers and Seahawks are going to trail far, far behind.

The two guys who have impressed me the most are DT Justin Bannan (#95) and TE Lance Kendricks (#88). Justin Banna has the biggest damn arms I've ever seen... setting aside Gary Gibson. These guys are going to have to establish the 30 inch python club. Hulk Hogan has nothing on these guys.

Lace Kendricks is acquitting himself nicely. We've only seen flashes, but they are good flashes. So far so good. It looks like we may have a tighend vertical threat (finally). It would be nice to see us run the Ghost to the Post. As you know, I wanted Greg Little, now with the Browns. What really bothers me is the assertions that we could have selected Little in the 2nd round and gotten Kendricks in the 3rd. If we had done this, I would have been fine with it.

I'm still a rather pissed about the draft, but it looks like we may get away with it.

The Ravens get it done 30-7

A you know, yesterday was a day of upsets, confirming that this is indeed a fluky year where anything can happen, and any goat can climb to the top of the mountain. Given the terrible news coming out of Raven camp, I wondered if Baltimore was next.

Nope, forget about it. The Ravens slapped the chiefs 30-7. It wasn't even that close. Believe me, it could have been a lot worse. KC got a temporary stay of execution on yet another horrendous tuck-rule fumble play. The Ravens could easily have walked away with a 37-7 victory.

Though it started slow, the second half was a complete run-away for the Ravens, literally and figuratively. The Ravens defense rose up and devoured Kansas City's fragile offense, creating 3 interceptions and 2 fumbles. It should have been 3 fumbles. The tuck-rule has got to go. Damn is that communist inspired bullshit!

The Ravens didn't just beat them. They beat the hell out of them. It looks like Steelers Ravens next and Jets Patriots. This will be the third time both pairs have met this year.

Which teams are most likely to turn it all around in 2009?

As we all know, Miami, Atlanta and Baltimore all experienced miracle filled revivals in 2008. All three of those teams went from worst to first... or second. The Ravens finished second in their division but finished higher than either Miami (whom they stomped) and Atlanta (who got jacked by the Cardinals).

These are all truly amazing stories. It used to be rare when a team like the 49ers in 1981 and the Rams in 1999 turn it all around in just 1 season and win the Super Bowl. Well... it still is rare as hell. In fact, these are the only two teams ever to do it.

Just yesterday, I intercepted a few interesting communications between some big shots. These are fellows who write for Yahoo! and ESPN.com. They have their little secluded and confidential meeting places on the web where they can speak to each other as fellow experts without noise from partisan idiots. They were working through some serious research problems. Which teams have a serious chance to turn it all around in 2009 in the same manner as Baltimore, Atlanta, and Miami?

They quickly eliminated certain contenders such as Cleavland, New Orleans, Buffalo, Jacksonville, and Washington. These are all easy picks. None of those teams should have finished at the bottoms of their respective divisions in 2008. They are all much better than that. Granted, it will be a shock if Cleveland takes the central away from Pittsburgh and Baltimore, but it is not that big of a stretch. It is not unthinkable. The same goes for Buffalo and Jacksonville. New Orleans & Jacksonville are both long overdue for great things.

I was quite shocked by what I read on the posts. When asked to pick a far-stretch guess who they picked?

1. Houston
2. Kansas City
3. St. Louis

This will bring great cheer to the hearts of those who live in Missouri for sure.

I considered Houston a cheaters pick because they were 8-8 last year and finished #3 in the AFC south. They were not at the bottom. The argument went like this:

1. Houston is still a new franchise.
2. They have no winning tradition yet
3. They are expected to finish dead last in what should be the toughest division in football in 2009. Nope it ain't going to be the NFC East in 2009.
4. With all due respect to Larry Fitzgerald, the Titans have the finest receiver in the league in Andre Johnson.
5. They have a lethal defensive end in Mario Williams.
6. They have a rookie of the year candidate in Brian Cushing
7. If Houston defeats Jacksonville, Indianapolis, and Tennessee for the South Crown, it will be a monumental achievement nobody expected.

It is an interesting case. Certainly, the Texans were no pushovers in 2008. They ripped up some unexpected victims for sure *Denver*. They have been getting better and better every year. They were executing like a machine last year. If Indianapolis falls down in their coaching transition (as expected) and if Tennessee's defense comes unglued without Albert Haynesworth (as expected) then it is a shootout between Jacksonville and Houston.

Of course, most people don't see it that way. This is why it would be so shocking if it does go down like this.

So why Kansas City?

1. Because they have been drafting extremely well now for 3 years.
2. They have a fantastic offensive mind in Todd Haley, and he is a he is tremendous disciplinarian also.
3. With a good, young, mature quarterback in hand, they should be a hell of a lot better in 2009.
4. Denver has collapsed.
5. The Raiders ain't going to be much better.
6. San Diego is long overdue and should be a hell of a lot better. Unfortunately, they have been going backwards not forwards.
7. Nobody has confidence in Norv Turner. Great coordinator. Terrible head coach.
8. They have a relatively open road to recovery.

This is an interesting argument. There has been little or no joy in Missouri for two years now. Maybe there is reason to crack a slight smile.

The last one really caught my eye. Of course, you know I am a 29-30 year fan of the Rams. Ever since SB XIV against the Steelers. So why are you picking my team guys?

1. The Seahawks are not going to be much better this year. They entered a rebuilding phase last year. It was not a simple injury situation as people thought. Nobody believes it, but is true. Expect things to be as bad or worse in 2009.
2. The Cardinals are going to be cut low by the Super Bowl jinx. If Warner gets hurt, it is quarterback transition time, which is seldom smooth. Just look at Green Bay last season.
3. The 49ers do not have a quarterback. Despite the tremendous force of their great coach, they are still among the worst run organizations in the league.
4. The Rams offensive line is not as bad as people claim it is (HA! I dispute that!). The off season upgrade to the Center and Left Tackle will be sufficient.
5. They've got the second best running back in the league in Steven Jackson.
6. They still have a former pro bowl QB in Bulger.
7. The Wide Receivers are the key weakness.
8. The defensive talent is good.
9. Spagnuolo will fix the defense with scheme alone.
10. Spagnuolo was the pick of the litter in terms of Head Coach material... until Shanahan got fired.

The last five points I can agree with. Those are basically objective fact. Everybody knows Steven Jackson has been amazing running behind piss-poor blocking. Bulger has been to the Pro Bowl twice. The defensive talent is far better than anybody knows. Spagnuolo can fix the defense with scheme alone. Spagnuolo was indeed the pick of the litter

I have to dispute some of these points. I don't know that the Seahawks are rebuilding just yet. It might be. However, I could just as easily see them getting up off the carpet and giving the Cardinals hell for the division. Much depends on Jim Mora Jr. We'll see how he does in his second go round as a head coach with a much better organization behind him.

The Super Bowl losers jinx is real and powerful and effective. No team has lost the Super Bowl and then immediately won the Super Bowl the next year except the Miami Dolphins of 1972. They were also the only undefeated team in the history of the game. That includes you New England. Statistically speaking, the team that looses the Super Bowl doesn't even make it into the playoffs the next year. That includes you New England. This is a ghastly thing to face down if you are the Cardinals.

However, objectively speaking, if there were any team likely to bust that jinx I think it is the Cardinals. I do not believe they were a fluke. I believe they are loaded with talent. I think they may have quietly had the best draft in the NFL. People are going to be eating shit when Chris Wells wins Rookie of the Year in 2009. I believe that team flamed-on last year. I think they are truly committed to going back and winning this year. They may not do it, but they have to be the prohibitive favorite to win the West.

An injury to Warner would be a setback, but I for one, do not believe that Leinart is a busted pick just yet. This is one of the most infuriating subjects for me. I am infuriated for both QBs in this dilemma. Everybody keeps asking why Matt hasn't moved out that old man Kurt. Do you realize that is a two time league MVP (and Super Bowl MVP) you are talking about? This is the man who just led them to within 3 minutes of the world championship. This is the QB with the second highest all-time efficiency rating in history behind Steve Young. Yep, the stats say he is better than Joe Montana.

When Leinart has been allowed to play, he has shown flashes of brilliance. The problem is he can't yet inspire enough confidence in his head coach to sit-down a future hall of famer. That is tough to do.

I'm a little worried about the 49ers, but maybe that is just a legacy thing. Singletary is perhaps the most respected dude in the league right now. That is true for good reason. I am concerned that he is rapidly whipping the bums into shape and making them a military force. Still, it is an objective fact that they do not have a QB. That will place serious limitations on their prospects.

Finally, there is the issue of the Ram offensive line... What have I been saying all along here? What have I been harping on? The Rams have had the worst OL in professional football two years running. Yes, we did upgrade the Center and the Left Tackle positions, and these are the two most important positions on the line. Yes we should be better. But who is going to play guard?

They say bums off the highway can play guard. I don't believe it. You need men like John Hannah, Gene Upshaw, Russ Grim, Dennis Harrah, Larry Little, Mike Munchak, and Tom Mack to get the job done right.

Anyway I am glad to see my Rams got mentioned =))

Denver is the new Wallstreet. The Broncos the new AIG.

The Denver Broncos are experiencing a meltdown of epic proportions. If there were any chance of them being sold in pieces to the rest of league, I would say that the Denver Broncos rivals AIG as the most dysfunctional corporation in the nation. Since there is no chance of the Broncos folding or being dismembered, I just can't make the AIG comparison... as much as I would like too.

Jaygate: just what the fuck happened?

A few weeks ago, FAF (Free Agency Friday) hit, and the New England Patriots traded Matt Castle to the Kansas City Chiefs. Looked fine on paper. Then all of sudden there is all this gossip circulating around the league from sources inside the Vikings', Chiefs', and Lions' headquarters that the Broncos were shopping Jay Cutler around, trying to trade him out of the Conference and Division. Why? To acquire draft picks. Why? Some of these picks were to be used to acquire Matt Castle, formerly of New England. Some were to be used to rebuilt Denver's sagging defense.

The deal never happened. Why?

Rumor has it that the Broncos were demanding too much of the Lions, who would have loved to build around Culter. Both parties would have liked to do the trade. They just couldn't agree to terms. More specifically, the Broncos wanted both of the Lions' 1st round picks, but eventually fell back to the #1 pick overall, and the 2nd round pick. Neither package was acceptible to the Lions. They felt the first overall pick was more than sufficient gold to seal the deal. Denver did not feel the #1 pick in the draft was good enough for Cutler. Then the Patriots completed their trade with the Chiefs, terminating the affair.

When this deal fell through, the Broncos became increasingly desperate, contacting the Vikings first, and then the Chiefs. This is the first clear-cut sign that the organization knew it had fucked up, and the relationship with Cutler was compromised.

Then the leaks started to flow. Sources inside the Broncos organization--loyal to Cutler--told Jay that the organization had been shopping him around, and trying to acquire Matt Castle. Jay Cutler, known for his passionate temper, hit the fucking roof. Rumor has it that he and his agent had a number of red-hot phone conversations with Pat Bowlen & McDaniels.

This is where the fun begins. Bowlen & McDaniels denied everything. They claimed the Chiefs & Lions contacted them with offers, inquiring if Cutler would be available if the price is right. Bowlen & McDaniels insisted that they told all would-be-bidders to fuck off. Cutler was never on the market, period.

That would have been fine except for the fact that Vikings, Lions, Patriots and Chiefs all broke THE MAN CODE. They confirmed Denver's infidelity to Cutler. They each confirmed that they had been contacted by the Broncos FIRST. None of them ever expected Cutler to be on the block. The whole affair might have died with a well-placed lie. Alas, such was not to be. That was when Cutler really got pissed. First, Bowlen fires his coach and mentor Mike Shanahan, then McDaniels give him a vote of no-confidence by trying to deal him, then they both lie to his face and try to cover it up.

Jay is now declaring that his days in Denver are over. His relationship with the Broncos is irrepairably busted, and he wants to be traded.

So who is right in all this?

I think I speak for the majority of NFL fans--not Bronco fans--when I say that I am absolutely flabbergasted by what has happened in Denver lately. This is almost inconceivable. If a gypsy woman had stared into a Crystal Ball and prophesied this, I would have laughed like hell at her and declared her a fraud.

Let's start with the facts: The Broncos had Mike Shanahan a proven offensive genius who had led them to back-to-back Super Bowl victories. They had Jay Cutler, the man touted as the most promising young Quarterback in the league. He is already a Pro-Bowl QB. Just a little more proof, and everybody was prepared to accept Cutler as an elite NFL QB. The Broncos had the #2 ranked offense in the league by points. I can tell you that they had a smooth rhythm moving down the field which was a true pleasure to behold. They looked like an offensive Juggernaut coming to life last year. Cutler looked totally confident and in control almost all the time. Yes, he had a few bone headed plays, but didn't Bart Starr, Bradshaw and Montana have some stupid plays early in their careers also? Hell yes they did!

Then it kinda collapses. The Broncos don't make the playoffs. The next thing we know, Mike Shanahan has been fired. He has a teary news conference where he declares that Pat Bowlen is still his best friend. Jesus... Speaking as a Ram fan, I was utterly shocked. I wanted to sign Mike Shanahan immediately.

Then Bowlen announces that he has hired Josh McDaniels, OC of the Patriots. Jesus... You fired Mike Shanahan to sign this esquinkly little 32 year old shit with absolutely no credentials to his name? You want Josh McDaniels, not Mike Shanahan? SHIT! Speaking as a Ram fan, I was pretty fucking surprised. I was wondering what the hell was going on in Denver. I thought for sure Bowlen would select a defensive coordinator like Steve Spagnolo, now the chief of my team, to be their head coach. Maybe we screwed them. Maybe they screwed themselves. What ever the case, I was sure that the new administration would leave the offense alone and work exclusively on fixing the defense.

Now Pat Bowlen, one of the most respected owners in the league, nay one of the pillars of the league, allowed this no-name dude McDaniels to break the one working part of his football team? OMG WTF? Unbelievable...

The majority of Hall of Famers on the NFL Network are pretty horrified by these events. They can't believe Denver would give up on Cutler. They have no idea what the hell Bowlen & McDaniels were thinking. Everybody is scandalized.

What every happened to if ain't broke don't fix it?

I really feel bad for the people of Denver. The Broncos were on the rise. I was certain they would win the division and be a contender in 2009. I believe the Chargers are vulnerable, and there is nobody else in the West. Oh yeah... I forgot that the Raiders and Chiefs are there... but that is still nobody. Now McDaniels has done it. He has effectively wrecked the team. He has set them back 5 or 6 years. I think they are toast in 2009.

So how would I fix it?

There are only two courses of action if you are Bowlen:

1. Complete a trade with Detroit for the #1 pick.
2. Rollback all the changes made since the season ended.

If you take option #1, expect the Lions to hold you over a barrel. They know you are despirate now. By taking this option, you announce your only real hope is to acquire Matthew Stafford... and pray he is as good as Cutler... eventually. Detroit can stick a gun in your ribs and demand that you give them a sweetener. Maybe one of your two WR. That would hurt like hell.

How the hell can Bowlen execute option #2? It is very simple:

1. Fire McDaniels
2. Go on bended knee to Shanahan (who claims you and he are BFFLs) and ask him to return.
3. Make him responsible for smoothing things over with Cutler
4. Publicly announce that you fucked up, and are rolling back changes.

Speaking as a computer programmer, I can tell you that we do option #2. When we accidentally write bad stored procedure which garbles data and messes up the DB, we rollback. We put the old data back in place. We put the old code back in place. We clean up the mess. We have to publicly announce that we fucked up. We restore the system. It hurts. Nobody likes to fuck up. Nobody likes to eat crow. Nobody likes to clean up the mess. Yet this is the only way to keep the organization healthy and on track. We gotta fix it.

Both are very difficult paths to trek. I really pity Bowlen. Never give a young fucktard this much control again. That was a serious error. I think the people of Denver will cheer option #2. If you are headed in the wrong direction, turn around