NFL Preseason Notes
By Big Al McMordie
The Jets and Ravens wrap up the Week 2 card Monday night. It is an interesting story there, too, typical of the changes that are taking place all over the NFL, with coaches putting in new strategies and players fighting for jobs. For the Jets, they have had two capable, veteran quarterbacks the last two years steering the offense: Chad Pennington and Brett Favre.
2009 is completely different. Both those guys are gone, so rookie Mark Sanchez, Kellen Clemens and even Erik Ainge are battling for the top job. New coach Rex Ryan implied that the starting job could be won this week, if someone had a strong game against the great Baltimore defense.
New York offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer wants to revert to the 2006 offense, which kept opponents off-balance with a myriad of formations, shifts and personnel packages, expertly orchestrated by Pennington. Schottenheimer scaled back in 2007 when Clemens replaced the injured Pennington, and he was forced to make it ridiculously simple last season because of Favre's late arrival to camp.
Probably of greater concern is a Jet defense that allowed the Rams to rush for 193 yards in the opener and is without NT Kris Jenkins (calf). Baltimore had the same kind of concerns the Jets are going through now one year ago. Rookie Joe Flacco ended up emerging from the group and 2009 is a more relaxed Raven camp with everyone knowing their roles. They certainly looked like a confident team in the opener, destroying the Redskins, 23-0.
The Baltimore defense is deep, with six defensive tackles who have starter potential. There are five linebackers on the bubble for the Ravens who might have already made the roster for other teams. The team's vaunted defense showed no signs of regressing under new defensive coordinator Greg Mattison.
The Redskins bounced back from that defeat with a 17-13 win over the defending champions, but don ' t be fooled: This offense looked shaky again. Jason Campbell completed one of seven passes for 10 yards. "I don't worry about numbers," Campbell said. He should; the first-team offense has been unproductive two straight games, both going under the total.
During five series in the preseason spanning about two full quarters, Campbell has completed four of 13 passes for 48 yards with no touchdowns. It was rookie quarterback Chase Daniel who got the offense going, with 2 second half TDs. After facing the Ravens and Steelers, perhaps the Redskins catch a break this week against a young New England secondary that has had some problems.
A battle of angry coaches on winless teams might be taking place this week, as the Jaguars play at the Eagles. Both teams have looked awful. Jack Del Rio has run a tough camp, pushing the players probably because his team was a bust at 5-11 last year. Yet, the offense was anemic in the opener, with 66 yards rushing in a 12-9 loss at Miami, and then they lost at home to rebuilding Tampa Bay, 24-23. The offense was better, but the defense was gouged for 159 rushing yards.
The Eagles like their camps quiet, organized and efficient. They have been anything but, with injuries, sloppy play and the Michael Vick bombshell. The Eagles are coming off an exhibition performance that Andy Reid called "embarrassing." Despite an 0-2 start, Jack Del Rio is 18-8 SU/16-9-1 ATS in preseason.
Have you noticed the Buffalo Bills are a perfect 3-0 over the total in preseason? This is not a shock as they are running the no-huddle attack often, something they intend to use all season. In a 31-21 loss at Green Bay, starter Trent Edwards was 7 of 11 for 45 yards and an interception, as the Bills were without injured receiver Terrell Owens. Bills backup Ryan Fitzpatrick threw a touchdown and an interception. He was 12-for-16 for 112 yards.
The Packers are making the transition to a 3-4 alignment under new defensive coordinator Dom Capers after the defense shouldered much of the blame for a disappointing 6-10 record in 2008. It was the second straight dominant defensive performance of the preseason, too. The defense had four interceptions in a 17-0 shutout of Cleveland in Week 1.
Finally, the game that should be the most fun for Week 3 is a Sunday night NBC battle as the Broncos host the Bears. Denver has looked awful and will finally be playing its first home game of the preseason. However, new Chicago QB Jay Cutler will be returning to Denver. He has looked better than the Broncos ' new quarterbacks of Kyle Orton and Chris Simms. Orton has 1 TD and 4 picks in preseason, though he finished the first quarter with a 131.8 passer rating by completing 9-of-11 for 92 yards and a TD. "I've got a lot of confidence right now," Orton said Saturday after the game. "This is the best offense I've ever played with. I've got a lot of talent around me." This is not going to be your ordinary, uneventful preseason tilt.