NFL owners will be meeting soon to vote on possible changes to the rules concerning overtime play. I hope they do the right thing and amend the overtime rules . They have a chance to make overtimes more exciting and more interesting.
Too often the most important decision made by teams in OT is whether to call heads or tails. I would like to see teams do more than win the toss and then run conservative plays so that they can get in field goal position. It just doesn't seem right to me that 2 teams battle for 60 minutes and it all comes down to a coin toss and a kick.
Guaranteeing each team one possession in OT or declaring that the first team to score a touchdown (rather than a field goal) is the winner would add much more strategy and drama to the game. I'm not really sure what changes to overtime would be the best ones, but I do believe that something should be done to add a little more drama , excitement and integrity to OT.
NFL owners have a tendency to be old school and slow to adopt change, but I hope they take a good look at improving the overtime format. Do you like the current overtime system, or does the NFL need to change it?
Monday, March 22, 2010
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Browns Still Looking For Franchise Player
Now that Mike Holmgren has released Derek Anderson and traded Brady Quinn I am wondering how much better the Browns actually are. By replacing Anderson and Quinn with Seneca Wallace and Jake Delhomme the Browns have made themselves marginally better if at all.
Wallace has started only 12 games in his 5 year career. It's hard to imagine that he will suddenly blossom into a top caliber NFL quarterback. Delhomme is 35 years old with a troublesome arm, and he is coming off the worst year of his career. Even if he suddenly regains his form his age and surgically repaired arm will leave the Browns looking to replace him sooner rather than later.
While I don't find fault with Holmgren for overhauling the position it seems clear that neither Delhomme nor Wallace is a franchise type of player at this time. I have to believe that both have been brought here as back-ups or insurance policies. The thought here is that Holmgren will have his eye on a quarterback in the upcoming draft.
The Browns organization needs to finally find a QB who will be the foundation of the team for the next 7 to 10 years or more. The are questions that linger. Will the Browns target a QB with their first pick with so many needs at other positions? Will they be able to position themselves to get the player they value the most? Most importantly, if they grab a QB in the draft will it be the right one? If the Browns invest in a quarterback that doesn't pan out it will once again set the franchise back several years. Let's hope Holmgren gets it right. Rebuilding every 2 or 3 years is something the fan base has seen enough of.
Wallace has started only 12 games in his 5 year career. It's hard to imagine that he will suddenly blossom into a top caliber NFL quarterback. Delhomme is 35 years old with a troublesome arm, and he is coming off the worst year of his career. Even if he suddenly regains his form his age and surgically repaired arm will leave the Browns looking to replace him sooner rather than later.
While I don't find fault with Holmgren for overhauling the position it seems clear that neither Delhomme nor Wallace is a franchise type of player at this time. I have to believe that both have been brought here as back-ups or insurance policies. The thought here is that Holmgren will have his eye on a quarterback in the upcoming draft.
The Browns organization needs to finally find a QB who will be the foundation of the team for the next 7 to 10 years or more. The are questions that linger. Will the Browns target a QB with their first pick with so many needs at other positions? Will they be able to position themselves to get the player they value the most? Most importantly, if they grab a QB in the draft will it be the right one? If the Browns invest in a quarterback that doesn't pan out it will once again set the franchise back several years. Let's hope Holmgren gets it right. Rebuilding every 2 or 3 years is something the fan base has seen enough of.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
MYOS "Quick Hitters"
A short list of topics for you to comment on:
Has "Big Ben" Roethlisberger been hanging around Tiger? Where there is smoke there is fire.
Is Ohio State's Evan Turner the player of the year in NCAA Hoops?
Does the Browns signing of QB Seneca Wallace mean the end of the line for D.A. or is the Brady Quinn experiment over in Cleveland?
Has "Big Ben" Roethlisberger been hanging around Tiger? Where there is smoke there is fire.
Is Ohio State's Evan Turner the player of the year in NCAA Hoops?
Does the Browns signing of QB Seneca Wallace mean the end of the line for D.A. or is the Brady Quinn experiment over in Cleveland?
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
NFL Combine Can Be Misleading
Although I do have to confess to watching some of the NFL combine over the last few days I wonder how relevant the whole thing really is. Some of the drills and measurements that the players are put through don't seem applicable to their football skills.
One of the standard tests for all players is the standing broad jump. I don't see how this translates specifically to the game of football. There is a pretty good chance that the person who holds the world record in the broad jump is a really bad football player. The vertical leap is another standard at the combine. I can see how it might be relevant for a receiver or defensive back to be tested in vertical leaping, but I don't get why offensive linemen are required to test their vertical. In 35 years of watching football I can't recall one time where a guard or center failed to make a play do to poor leaping ability. As a matter of fact if my offensive lineman is leaping vertically at the line of scrimmage he is probably getting in my quarterbacks way as he tries to throw a pass. And they are not going to get any leverage to run block if they are jumping in the air. Maybe it's best if my offensive line can't jump at all. The 40 yard dash might be the most watched event at the combine. Many players have had their draft position altered do to their 40 time. I suppose that checking backs and receivers in the 40 holds some merit, but why is it so important how fast my defensive tackles run a 40 yard dash? If my nose tackle needs to run 40 yards to make a tackle I've got bigger problems than checking my stop watch. And what difference does it make if my receiver does 12 bench presses instead of 16? I would rather that my receiver can recognize coverages, make the proper route adjustments at the line of scrimmage when my passer is being blitzed, and actually catch the ball when it's thrown to him. The growing number of dropped balls by receivers over the last several seasons makes me wonder if teams are emphasizing the wrong qualities at draft time (see Darrius Heyward-Bey).
For every hidden gem discovered at the combine there is a player who rockets up the charts only to disappoint at the NFL level (see Akili Smith). While it's not entirely a bad thing to have coaches and scouts get a first hand look at potential draft picks it's the intangibles that can't be measured that can be the most important.
One of the standard tests for all players is the standing broad jump. I don't see how this translates specifically to the game of football. There is a pretty good chance that the person who holds the world record in the broad jump is a really bad football player. The vertical leap is another standard at the combine. I can see how it might be relevant for a receiver or defensive back to be tested in vertical leaping, but I don't get why offensive linemen are required to test their vertical. In 35 years of watching football I can't recall one time where a guard or center failed to make a play do to poor leaping ability. As a matter of fact if my offensive lineman is leaping vertically at the line of scrimmage he is probably getting in my quarterbacks way as he tries to throw a pass. And they are not going to get any leverage to run block if they are jumping in the air. Maybe it's best if my offensive line can't jump at all. The 40 yard dash might be the most watched event at the combine. Many players have had their draft position altered do to their 40 time. I suppose that checking backs and receivers in the 40 holds some merit, but why is it so important how fast my defensive tackles run a 40 yard dash? If my nose tackle needs to run 40 yards to make a tackle I've got bigger problems than checking my stop watch. And what difference does it make if my receiver does 12 bench presses instead of 16? I would rather that my receiver can recognize coverages, make the proper route adjustments at the line of scrimmage when my passer is being blitzed, and actually catch the ball when it's thrown to him. The growing number of dropped balls by receivers over the last several seasons makes me wonder if teams are emphasizing the wrong qualities at draft time (see Darrius Heyward-Bey).
For every hidden gem discovered at the combine there is a player who rockets up the charts only to disappoint at the NFL level (see Akili Smith). While it's not entirely a bad thing to have coaches and scouts get a first hand look at potential draft picks it's the intangibles that can't be measured that can be the most important.
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