Week 2 AFC Betting News and Notes
By Teddy Covers
Welcome to Teddy Covers’ unique look at the NFL. Teddy watches games all day on Sunday, typing furiously on his laptop while giving you the key info that the box scores and game recaps simply don’t have. This week: AFC Tidbits from Week 2.
Cincinnati-: The offensive play calling was downright stupid. Jay Gruden crashed and burned as an Arena Football coach; I was shocked he got the offensive coordinator job here. Gruden spent the first 40 minutes calling one predictable play after the next – running to the left side and throwing safe five-yard check down passes. Hello, Champ Bailey is hurt and you've got speedy downfield weapons!! The Bengals were completely inept in third-and-short situations – three times in the first half, they had 3rd-and-1 or shorter, three times they failed to convert. Their first and only third down conversion for the entire game came after the two minute warning. The Bengals didn’t attempt any downfield throws at all until they were down by two touchdowns. As soon as they started throwing downfield, they scored on four consecutive drives. You should KNOW that Cinci's two-point conversion attempt (way too early, in the 3rd quarter, of course) wasn't going to work – this team isn’t the Patriots when it comes to those attention-to-detail sort of things. Then, on their very next drive, they took the field goal on 4th and inches from inside the five-yard line when they had the Denver defense exhausted and on its heels. And the 4th-and-1 play call with the game on the line and less than a minute to go was laughably bad – leaving an unblocked man headed straight for Andy Dalton. Dalton was good here; his coaching was not.
Denver-: When this game started, Denver had an injury riddled defense, all kinds of first time starters. In fact, nearly half of their entire team payroll was on the inactive list, including RB Knowshon Moreno, WR Brandon Lloyd, WR Demaryius Thomas, DE Elvis Dumervil, LB D.J. Williams and CB Champ Bailey. By the time the game was over, it was far worse than that, with Tim Tebow forced into action as a wide receiver and a secondary that was as green as it gets at the NFL level. Denver won the game, despite a litany of errors during crunch time; gaining only one first down on their last six possessions. Two key things you won’t see in the box score. Punter Britton Colquitt nailed an 81 yarder with the game on the line in the fourth quarter, completely flipping the field. Of course, it was wiped out by a stupid unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. Next drive, Willis McGahee ran out of bounds, stopping the clock as they were desperate to let it keep ticking. Gutty win though it may be a while before this team gets another one!
Indianapolis-: Indy is trying to show a commitment to the run, after finishing in the bottom four in the NFL in rushing yards for the last three seasons. However, this offensive line was built for pass protection, not run blocking. Dallas Clark is a pass catching tight end, not a run blocking tight end. They didn't have a fullback on the roster until the end of training camp; not a natural fit for the offense. That's not an optimal scenario for a team trying to effectively run the football. They were stuffed repeatedly on third-and-short and settled for two red zone field goals. Meanwhile, this undersized linebacking corps looks particularly vulnerable. We saw another breakdown on special teams, giving up a long return in the fourth quarter when field position was paramount. They couldn’t get a single first down for most of the second half. One of their two returning offensive linemen from last year, guard Ryan Diem, limped off the field and didn’t return. I’m not going to rip Kerry Collins – just look at the box score. No surprise here that a 39-year old QB coming out of retirement trying to learn one of the most complex offenses in the NFL in three weeks is struggling. This team of veterans knows what's coming…
Miami-: This defense allowed more than 600 yards last week, the worst performance in the history of the franchise. The box score is going to say they played better this week. They didn’t. Miami was on defense for 23 plays in the first quarter alone. The pass defense got shredded repeatedly, and every time Houston needed points, it scored points. It's clear that Chad Henne does not inspire much confidence in his teammates and deservedly so. He’s not a clutch player, dating back to his tenure at Michigan (0-4 against Ohio State, for example). Where's the home field edge? Miami is now 1-11 SU in its last dozen home games. This was the quietest stadium in the NFL today, by a fairly wide margin. The special teams were horrific today – blocked field goals, dismal field position, starting seven drives from their own 20-yard line or worse. And Miami’s red zone execution continues to be problematic, scoring only one TD on their four red zone opportunities. No season is over after two weeks, but Miami has the feel of a sinking ship right now.
Jacksonville-: Luke McCown looks like a career backup. He was very tentative in the pocket, getting passes batted down at the line of scrimmage and repeatedly throwing into coverage. McCown’s safety on the Jags first drive was simply unconscionable – against a three-man rush, holding the ball for what seemed like half an hour, then dropping back into the end zone to try to escape, not knowing where he was on the field. It set the tone for the whole afternoon. McCown's INT before halftime was a real momentum killer, the type of throw that costs team's games. His INT in the third quarter was just as bad – staring down his receiver the whole way. And once this game went south, there wasn't a whole lot of spark for this team – they knew they were beat and simply quit.
Baltimore-: They forced seven turnovers last week, a team record. There was no such intensity this week, and no such turnover barrage. We saw lots of blown coverages; opposing receivers running wide open downfield against this secondary. They didn’t force a single sack, very little pressure in the backfield. But the biggest weakness of all was their inability to control the line of scrimmage on offense. There was no room for Ray Rice to run at all, and Joe Flacco was flushed from the pocket repeatedly. The lack of protection basically took Baltimore’s downfield threats out of the game – there were only five receptions by the wide receivers all afternoon.
Houston-: Cornerback Johnathan Joseph was truly an impact free agent signing, every bit as meaningful as Nnamdi Asomugha's signing in Philly without the same level of hype. Joseph notched his first pick as a Texan today, setting them up deep in Miami territory. Mario Williams is thriving as a linebacker in the new 3-4 defense – his pressure forced Joseph’s INT. Wade Phillips is not a good head coach (clearly) but his history of immediate turnarounds as a defensive coordinator is downright impressive. First round draft choice JJ Watt (DE, Wisconsin) was a monster today, and his blocked field goal changed the momentum of the game. Don’t even compare this year’s defense to last year’s sorry stop unit! The offense got out of sync for a while in the second half, but with the game on the line in the fourth quarter, Houston moved the chains and got in the end zone for the clinching TD. Then, trying to milk the clock, they executed eight straight handoffs to Ben Tate, killing more than five minutes of clock and effectively cinching the victory.
Tennessee-: This was an impressive defensive performance! Tennessee’s front four really dominated the line of scrimmage without needing to rely on the blitz! It was a similar story on the offensive side – complete control at the point of attack. Mike Munchak’s squad had a Jeff Fisher mentality today – physical football. I still can’t understand why Titans’ management violated one of the key rules of salary cap management. Running backs – even great ones – are completely replaceable. The $53 million man, Chris Johnson, does not look good. He didn’t have a carry longer than seven yards or a catch longer than six yards. Backup RB, Javon Ringer was every bit as good as the starter today, at about 1/25th the cost for 2011. Kenny Britt looks great, an emerging superstar among the NFL receiving corps. And this was an impressive showing from Matt Hasselbeck, one week shy of his 36th birthday. I personally did not think he could switch both offenses and coasts and still be effective. Eight different receivers had caught a ball by the midway point of the third quarter.