Emergence of the gambling man
Michael Silver (who has become one of my favorite sports writers) has a good article on the return of Mike Shanahan.
The true significance of Sunday’s game was Shanahan’s gutsy decision to go all in and play for the win – a course that he and Cutler plotted as the Chargers went up by 7 with 4:22 remaining.
Strip it all away, and this was an "I’m Back" statement from a coach nearly a decade removed from his last Super Bowl victory who is coming off a losing season he found untenable.
It was a power move by a play-calling savant who knows he finally has the quarterback who can help the Mile High City get over its collective post-John Elway hangover.
And, let’s be honest, it was the act of a man who, despite recent rumblings to the contrary, is secure in his environment. Now in his 14th season, the league’s second-longest-tenured head coach was willing to risk the backlash that would have accompanied a failed conversion. Given that only six other coaches had pulled a similarly risky move (going for two while down a point in the final two minutes) since the advent of the rule in 1994 – and only two of those six had been successful – Shanahan had to be feeling mighty exposed.
Let’s be honest: He’s been waiting for a chance to expose himself in good conscience for a long time. And even in those tense moments before he knew how the outcome would play out, Shanahan loved every second of it.
"I think so," said Cutler, who completed 36 of 50 passes for 350 yards and four touchdowns in a performance that we may remember as the day he became a big-time NFL passer. "I think he’s comfortable being aggressive. We’re attacking a lot more this year. We’ve got so many weapons. Our receivers are stepping up, our tight ends are exciting and our backs are so versatile. And with the way our line’s playing, we feel like we can attack you any way you want."
Most of all Cutler, in his third season, has progressed to a point where Shanahan wants nothing more than the ball in his quarterback’s right hand with the game on the line.
"That’s why you go for it," Shanahan said afterward as he sat in the coaches’ locker room at Invesco, his face still flushed from the excitement. "I’ve always believed you get a good feel for a quarterback in his third year, and I knew going into this offseason that Jay was capable of doing what he’s done these first two games. If he keeps on playing at this level, good things will happen."
Week One
While my fantasy team is disarray, at least the Denver Broncos won big.
Cutler threw for 299 yards with long touchdown passes to rookie Eddie Royal and Darrell Jackson that helped the Broncos beat up on their AFC West rivals in a 41-14 victory over the Oakland Raiders on Monday night.
“There were a lot of questions about us, but we felt good about what we have,” Cutler said. “You have that little bit of doubt about what’s going to happen with the young guys when the lights come on, but they came through time and time again.”
Cutler showed why the Broncos made him a first-round draft pick in 2006, completing 16 of 24 passes and confidently picking apart Oakland’s rebuilt defense despite missing its best offensive playmaker to a one-game suspension.
How did the Raiders new acquisitions do?
The Raiders went on an offseason spending spree to try to reverse five straight seasons of double-digit losses. The early payoff was not good.
Receiver Javon Walker, who got $16 million in guaranteed money, missed the game with an injured hamstring. Hall, who got $24 million guaranteed, was frequently beat by Royal in coverage and committed the two personal fouls. Defensive tackle Tommy Kelly, who got $18 million in guarantees, was part of a line that failed to get pressure on Cutler all night.
The Jordon Cooper Voodoo Curse
It doesn’t matter who I pick in a hockey or football fantasy draft… they get hurt bad. My starting QB in the jordoncooper.com fantasy football league is… Tom Brady. Yeah, that Tom Brady. My apologies to all of the New England Patriot fans out there.
The legendary Jon Kitna
If Jon Kitna passes for at least 3,000 yards this season (he threw for more than 4,000 last year) will move ahead of such QBs as Joe Namath, Ken Stabler and Terry Bradshaw. Yeah you heard me right. Jon Kitna
The soap opera that is the Detroit Lions
According to a report from the AP.
Detroit running back Rudi Johnson said Wednesday that the player who was waived to make room for him on the Lions’ roster—Tatum Bell — took his luggage from team headquarters.
“All this happened when he got released,” Johnson said. “He came in to get some stuff out of his locker and that’s when he scooped up the bags.”
After being cut by the Cincinnati Bengals, Johnson came to Detroit to work out for the team and meet with Lions president Matt Millen on Monday. During the meeting, which ended with Johnson agreeing to a free-agent contract, the two Gucci bags that he had received as a Pro Bowl gift were taken from inside the team’s headquarters.
A message seeking comment was left Wednesday with Bell’s agent, Kennard McGuire.
Johnson met with the Detroit media for the first time Tuesday, and talked about Bell in a positive manner—saying they had discussed the Lions and that Bell, also a running back, had given him advice on the team and the city.
However, shortly after Johnson praised Bell, team security director Ricky Sandoval showed him footage from the team’s surveillance system.
It’s a rather odd story and how fitting that it happened in Detroit. Do you ever hear stories like this coming out of New England or Indianapolis? The Detroit Lions can’t even cut a player properly.
Random NFL stuff
Wow, the 147 year old Kurt Warner beat out Matt Leinhart for the Arizona Cardinals starting QB job. Around the jordoncooper.com headquarters we like both QBs but this was an unexpected development. It is the exact opposite approach that the Green Bay Packers did. Of course the other news of the day is that the Atlanta Falcons are making a big mistake in rushing along Matt Ryan. I would comment on the situation in San Francisco but does it matter who plays there? Also, if you are not going to play Alex Smith, why not cut Alex Smith? Before you get going on Alex Smith being drafted #1, it was a really weak class that year.
Just a reminder, the jordoncooper.com football fantasy league has a couple of spots left. The ID # is 441945 is and the password is stevedeberg. The fact that I chose Steve DeBerg as the password doesn’t mean anything folks, absolutely nothing. Sadly the league has Wendy in it. Sad for me as the last three drafts we have been in, she has beaten me soundly. Including the biggest disgrace in the Cooper family history, the hockey pool she almost won where she picked her team depending on how cute the name was. She finished in the top 100, I didn’t finish in the top 5000.
Giving Up in Cincinnati
I have always like the Cincinnati Bengals. Blame it on Boomer Esiason or even Herb Tarlick, I have had a soft spot for the Bengals. I also like Marvin Lewis as a coach and today I was feeling kind of sorry for him getting embarrassed by his owner when he signed troublemaker Chris Henry to a 2 year deal. As I was feeling sorry for him I realized that it is his choice to give up control of his locker room to his boss.
"Not interested," Lewis said a week ago, after Henry’s agent said he’d had talks with the team regarding his client. Lewis’ terse response came without qualifier. He didn’t say "Not interested, unless Chad messes up his shoulder.” He didn’t say, "Not interested, unless the owner says we are and cuts my legs off to bring back a guy as reliable as a 1979 Chevette.” Nope. Marvin was not interested.
Only now, he is. He’ll have to coach a guy he openly and forcefully didn’t want. He has to deal with a locker room that knows who’s boss, and it ain’t Coach.
If I was Marvin Lewis I would walk into the owner’s office and hand him my resignation. Could you imagine Bill Belichik taking a player he didn’t want? Don Shula? Tom Landry? Vince Lombardi? Of course they wouldn’t and players know that. Marvin Lewis is in a no win situation today. He could have taken a stand and gotten fired and walked out with his head held high instead he backed down and will be a coach of a talented team that will back down again and again and again this season until Lewis is fired.
Then, he brought him back despite the objections of coach Marvin Lewis, who had no interest in giving Henry another chance. The move reminded players who’s in charge of the Bengals.
“It’s the organization’s team,” quarterback Carson Palmer said after practice Wednesday. “It’s their team. They’re going to make decisions that they think are best, and Marvin and the players and all the coaches do the best with what we’ve got.”
It’s started already.
The jordoncooper.com Fantasy NFL Draft
Ahoy. I am thinking of playing a little fantasy football and since I have to beat someone, why not invite the readers of jordoncooper.com to get beat each and every week by me. If you are interested, it’s free and you can sign up at http://football.fantasysports.yahoo.com/league/jordoncooper. The ID # is 441945. You do need a password and it is the name of the greatest NFL QB of all time, stevedeberg. There is only spots for 11 other teams so sign up soon.
The 24 Hour Favre Network. All Favre, all the time.
So Brett Favre got traded to New York. Normally this would make someone really happy but I don’t know of any New York Jet’s fans so I can’t verify anything. Actually does ANYONE out there know of a New York Jets fan?
The bad news in all of this for me is that Favre gets traded to the world’s biggest media market. Wonderful. I get to hear more about a quarterback that I didn’t really like in the first place and respect even less right now. All I know is that someone at the NFL network hates me. Oh well, it will give me a chance to cheer for the New England Patriots, Miami Dolphins, and Buffalo Bills even more this year.
I hope the New York Jets know what they are getting, a 38 year old who has a reputation for contributing nothing to the locker room, who has a questionable commitment to the game, and could be setting back the organization’s young quarterbacks another season. My question is where does Chad Pennington end up? Miami? San Francisco?
Our Cabin Weblog- Recently listened to music
- David Gray – Be Mine October 19, 2008
- David Gray – December October 19, 2008
- David Gray – Knowhere October 19, 2008
- David Gray – Real Love October 19, 2008
- David Gray – Last Boat To America October 19, 2008
- Recently additions to my library
- Messy Faith: Daring to Live by Grace by A. J. Gregory October 28, 2008
- Rediscovering Church: The Story and Vision of Willow Creek Community Church by Lynne Hybels October 26, 2008
- The Teeth of the Tiger, A Novel by Tom Clancy October 26, 2008
- The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You by John C. Maxwell October 26, 2008
- The Sum of All Fears by Tom Clancy October 26, 2008
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