The following list is a list of coaching changes and a quick blurb on fantasy impact for the respective team. I've only listed coaching changes that I feel will have a significant impact.
ATL: Mike Smith, new HC... At least they have a coach now, but it remains to see which, if any of their players, will be viable fantasy options.
BAL: John Harbaugh, new HC
Cam Cameron, new OC... Both of these are good hires for Baltimore, and overall, their coaching staff seems very well put together. Cam Cameron's offense should increase the value of Willis McGahee, regardless of the QB situation.
DET: Jim Colleto, new OC... The impact here is more about Mike Martz leaving- The Lions should have a more balanced attack next year, so temper your expectations for Kitna and the receiving group.
JAX: Greg Williams, new DC... Mike Smith left to coach ATL, and the Jags got a better defensive coordinator to replace him with. Williams did a solid job with the Redskin's defense the past couple seasons. Jacksonville already has a great D-Line in place, and if they bolster their defense in free agency and the draft, Williams might turn them into one of the top defensive units in the league.
SF: Mike Martz, new OC... People are saying Mike Martz won't work in San Francisco because of the lack of talent. However, people forget that the "Greatest Show on Turf" revolved around Marshal Faulk, a versatile back who ran and caught balls out of the backfield. He also developed Kurt Warner into a Super Bowl MVP. It may not seem like a good fit at first, but Martz can definitely improve QBs, and the Niners need that more than anything. The offense will probably revolve around Gore more than people think, and I expect Martz will do what he can to get SF to acquire a good receiver or three. I think Gore makes a great value fantasy draft selection if he falls to the late first round.
STL: Al Saunders, new OC... The offense can't do much worse than it did last year. I don't expect Saunders to work any miracles, but hopefully he can get the offensive unit in order and keep them from staging a mutiny against head coach Scott Linehan. The Rams should have a bounce-back year in 2008.
Washington: New everything... What a debacle this whole situation was. Jim Zorn seems to be respected around the league, and studied under Holmgren, so maybe there's some residual Bill Walsh in him. It's a big leap from QB coach to head coach, though. Not really sure how everything will pan out in Washington.
Miami: New everything... The talking heads on TV seem to think Bill Parcells will be coaching the Dolphins, when it in fact is Tony Sparano. Miami has a lot of rebuilding to do, though, and I think they're in for a long season regardless of the coaching staff. The only player worth considering from Miami is Ronnie Brown, and generally RBs coming off a torn ACL don't do so well.
That's it for the coaching changes. We have free agency coming on the 29th, so I'll probably post some updates on that in the near future.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Monday, February 4, 2008
The Aftermath
That, my friends, was one of the best Super Bowls in a long time. Regardless of who you were rooting for, having a game of this magnitude come down to a drive inside the finally two minutes is as exciting as it gets. "The Play" or "Third and Five" or "Eli's Escape", whatever moniker that play ends up with, is the stuff of legend. if you haven't seen the highlight yet, look up "David Tyree catch" on youtube. Simply amazing for something like that to happen in that situation, but that's what it takes to beat the Patriots.
The Giants owe this victory to their defense. They did a great job of pressuring Brady and disrupting his timing. Five sacks is the most Brady has been sacked in any one game, and he'd only been sacked 21 times all season. They also did a great job of bottling up Maroney, who had been emerging more as a real running threat recently in the season. The decision to spy Kevin Faulk with a linebacker the whole game was critical as well.
In my pre-game post, I said it'd take an almost perfect game from the Giants to pull off the upset, and they managed to do it. They survived their own mistakes, including a terrible int, stalled drives, and a painful 12-men on the field penalty. Manning played a great game, and hopefully will have the New York media off his back for a little bit.
I hope everyone enjoyed the Super Bowl, I know I did. We'll be lucky if there's another one this good in the next decade. The focus of this blog will switch gears now. In a couple weeks I'll post the key off-season coaching changes and their fantasy impact, followed by any free-agent activity. Posts will be few and far between until the draft.
Hope everyone had a great season. Check back here periodically in the off-season and stay frosty for fantasy football- drafts aren't too far away (Anybody else want to do a June league?).
The Giants owe this victory to their defense. They did a great job of pressuring Brady and disrupting his timing. Five sacks is the most Brady has been sacked in any one game, and he'd only been sacked 21 times all season. They also did a great job of bottling up Maroney, who had been emerging more as a real running threat recently in the season. The decision to spy Kevin Faulk with a linebacker the whole game was critical as well.
In my pre-game post, I said it'd take an almost perfect game from the Giants to pull off the upset, and they managed to do it. They survived their own mistakes, including a terrible int, stalled drives, and a painful 12-men on the field penalty. Manning played a great game, and hopefully will have the New York media off his back for a little bit.
I hope everyone enjoyed the Super Bowl, I know I did. We'll be lucky if there's another one this good in the next decade. The focus of this blog will switch gears now. In a couple weeks I'll post the key off-season coaching changes and their fantasy impact, followed by any free-agent activity. Posts will be few and far between until the draft.
Hope everyone had a great season. Check back here periodically in the off-season and stay frosty for fantasy football- drafts aren't too far away (Anybody else want to do a June league?).
Friday, February 1, 2008
Super Sunday
Sadly, football season is nearing an end. We'll now have a February-August of coaching changes, draft, free agency, trades, and speculation regarding all of the above. The current Collective Bargaining Agreement between the Owners and NFLPA will likely draw some attention this offseason, with current speculation that the owners may opt-out. As important as some of the offseason news is, it can't really fill the void that will now exist on Sundays.
As for this Sunday, I'm hoping we have a good game on hand. In recent years, there haven't been many blowouts in the Super Bowl. In 2001, The Ravens slaughtered the Giants, and in 2003, the Bucs crushed the Raiders. Aside from that, the games have been highly competitive this decade. I like the Giants and the points (currently +12) for this one on the virtue that since the week 17 game, the Giants have improved while New England seemingly has declined.
The Giants seem like a longshot to win it, but they've been a longshot every weekend since the Wildcard round. Their game plan has to be sustaining drives that lead to TDs, not FGs (just ask the Chargers what happens if you don't get TDs), and maintaining a good mix of defensive schemes in an effort to contain the Pats, just as San Diego did. If they can do that, they'll have a chance, but they will need to play virtually perfect football.
On the other side, you have to wonder if the Patriots are saving their best for last. They enjoyed destroying opponents and breaking records this year, so I wonder if we'll see them pull out all of the stops and try to get every Super Bowl record they can - points, passing TDs, margin of victory, etc. The two weeks off certainly benefited them a lot more than the Giants as they had extra time to get their veteran defense rested up and an extra week to game plan. Nonetheless, I feel like the performances we've seen from them since week 17 are a trend, and they are not playing on the same level they were when the season began.
Regardless of the outcome, history will be made this weekend. Either the Patriots will be 19-0, the best single season performance of any team in the history of the NFL, or the Giants will thwart them and become a footnote in the history books for doing so. This is the most historically significant Super Bowl since the 1990 game, when Joe Montana and the Niners won their 4th. That should make it a treat to watch regardless of who you're rooting for.
The pick for this game is made mostly off the basis of playoff momentum and watching both teams play the past few weeks. I don't really feel the need to break into much statistical analysis as it seems sort of moot. On the basis of statistics, the Giants have no business being in the Super Bowl, yet here they are. However, Eli has played great in the post-season, and I think they can give the Patriots a run for their money just like they did in week 17.
The Pick: Giants +12
Happy Super Bowl. If you don't like football, then enjoy the food and excuse to throw a party. Nothing like having a barbeque and deep fryer on hand to cook up some glorious game-day food. I've got Wings, Sausages, and home-made Chimichangas (with BBQ'd carne asada) on the menu for Sunday, so if the game isn't good, I'll just focus on eating.
As for this Sunday, I'm hoping we have a good game on hand. In recent years, there haven't been many blowouts in the Super Bowl. In 2001, The Ravens slaughtered the Giants, and in 2003, the Bucs crushed the Raiders. Aside from that, the games have been highly competitive this decade. I like the Giants and the points (currently +12) for this one on the virtue that since the week 17 game, the Giants have improved while New England seemingly has declined.
The Giants seem like a longshot to win it, but they've been a longshot every weekend since the Wildcard round. Their game plan has to be sustaining drives that lead to TDs, not FGs (just ask the Chargers what happens if you don't get TDs), and maintaining a good mix of defensive schemes in an effort to contain the Pats, just as San Diego did. If they can do that, they'll have a chance, but they will need to play virtually perfect football.
On the other side, you have to wonder if the Patriots are saving their best for last. They enjoyed destroying opponents and breaking records this year, so I wonder if we'll see them pull out all of the stops and try to get every Super Bowl record they can - points, passing TDs, margin of victory, etc. The two weeks off certainly benefited them a lot more than the Giants as they had extra time to get their veteran defense rested up and an extra week to game plan. Nonetheless, I feel like the performances we've seen from them since week 17 are a trend, and they are not playing on the same level they were when the season began.
Regardless of the outcome, history will be made this weekend. Either the Patriots will be 19-0, the best single season performance of any team in the history of the NFL, or the Giants will thwart them and become a footnote in the history books for doing so. This is the most historically significant Super Bowl since the 1990 game, when Joe Montana and the Niners won their 4th. That should make it a treat to watch regardless of who you're rooting for.
The pick for this game is made mostly off the basis of playoff momentum and watching both teams play the past few weeks. I don't really feel the need to break into much statistical analysis as it seems sort of moot. On the basis of statistics, the Giants have no business being in the Super Bowl, yet here they are. However, Eli has played great in the post-season, and I think they can give the Patriots a run for their money just like they did in week 17.
The Pick: Giants +12
Happy Super Bowl. If you don't like football, then enjoy the food and excuse to throw a party. Nothing like having a barbeque and deep fryer on hand to cook up some glorious game-day food. I've got Wings, Sausages, and home-made Chimichangas (with BBQ'd carne asada) on the menu for Sunday, so if the game isn't good, I'll just focus on eating.
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