Spectator Sporting

At the beginning of the 4^th quarter, the New England Patriots were struggling against the Jaguars 3^rd ranked defense while trailing 20 – 10 in the AFC Championship game.  Therefore, Bill Belichick and friends resorted to some trickery to gain some momentum.  Tom Brady threw a lateral to wide receiver Danny Amendola then he passed the ball across the field by the line of scrimmage to running back Dion Lewis.  The trick play worked, as Lewis had some blockers in front of him and ran 20 yards up the field as the Gillette Stadium crowd blustered with excitement.  But the Pat’s fans were silenced when Jacksonville’s phenomenal linebacker Myles Jack tackled Lewis, forced him to fumble, recovered the fumble and began running for a touchdown with no Patriots around to stop him.

In that moment, it looked like New England’s reign on top of the football world would end. It looked like the young Jaguars would take a 27 – 10 lead on the Patriots in the 4^th quarter to give themselves a legitimate shot at their 1^st Super Bowl appearance in franchise history.  But the trickiness would not end with the Patriots play calling as the referee blew the play dead while Myles Jack was running down the sideline.  Jack was highly upset about his opportunity to score being taken away due to the unnecessary stoppage of play by the referee.

The only explanation that one could give in defense of that ref’s blunder is that maybe he thought Jack was down by contact after tackling Dion Lewis before he rose up to run for a score. However, that referee should have let the play continue then by rule he would have reviewed the replay after Jack scored, since all turnovers and touchdowns are automatically reviewed.

This play was the turning point of the game as the Jaguars went 3 and out after having a potential touchdown taken away from them. Danny Amendola scored 2 touchdowns to the delight of the refs to put New England up 24 – 20 with just under 3 minutes left.  Unfortunately for Jaguar fans, Blake Bortles could not orchestrate a touchdown drive to send them to Super Bowl LII.  Instead of jogging off the field like most refs do after the final play, a referee made sure to congratulate Tom Brady as he made it to his 8^th Super Bowl.

But the question remains unanswered. Why Did ‘They’ Help the Patriots?  Belichick and Brady has the best NFL dynasty of all-time and teams need to be damn near perfect to beat them.  The Patriots need help like a shark needs help catching a baby seal!  When that referee prematurely blew the whistle during Myles Jack fumble recovery return, he unintentionally or intentionally (We’ll never truly know) helped continue the Patriots domination of the NFL.

Before the kickoff of the 2017 regular season: Seattle earned playoff berths in 5 consecutive seasons, with 2 Super Bowl appearances and 1 Super Bowl ring.  Plus, all of their heavy hitters were back to make another championship run.  This team was stacked with household names: Michael Bennett, Jimmy Graham, Richard Sherman, Doug Baldwin, Bobby Wagner, Kam Chancellor, Earl Thomas and top tier QB Russell Wilson.

Also, Seattle’s AFC West rivals were looking bad and mediocre coming into 2017.  Arizona was coming off an underachieving season after winning under 10 games and missing the playoffs for the first time since 2012.  The 49ers 2016 season was one that San Francisco would love to forget as they only won 2 games in Chip Kelly’s first and last season as head coach.  The Rams were coming off a 4 win season, had not made the playoffs since 2004, Jeff Fisher was fired for the youngest head coach in NFL history in 31 year old Sean McVay and Jared Goff was looking like a bust.  Comedian HaHa Davis would say, “Seattle’s quest to win another NFC West crown is going to be a breeze…”

Week 13 vs Eagles: The Seahawks were having a decent season with 7 wins and 4 losses but a huge test was coming to CenturyLink Field in Seattle as the red hot 10 – 1 Eagles were arriving with MVP candidate Carson Wentz and that smothering Philly defense.  In the 3^rd quarter, the Eagles had the ball down 10 – 3 facing 2^nd and goal to go at the 6 yard line.  The phenomenal Carson Wentz decided to scrabble up the middle for a touchdown but Legion of Boom safety Earl Thomas forced Wentz to fumble the ball out of the back of the end zone for a touchback.  That huge play led to a 47 yard bomb pass from Wilson to Doug Baldwin to contribute to a 17 – 3 Seattle lead.  Those sequence of plays is the main reason why the Soaring Eagle’s 9 game winning streak came to an end on that Sunday night.

Russell Wilson was magnificent versus Fletcher Cox and that elite defense by throwing for 227 yards, 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions.  Also, The Seahawk defense contributed with an excellent performance despite losing Richard Sherman and Kam Chancellor to season ending injuries.  The Seahawk defense recorded 3 sacks, 2 takeaways and held the Eagles to their least amount of points scored under Carson Wentz in the season.

Weeks 14 – 16 Getting Kicked Out, Blown Out and Bizarre: It seemed like Seattle was hell-bent on forming another playoff push but they would lose 3 out of their next four games.  They followed that dominating victory over the Eagles with a loss in Jacksonville and lost their cool at the end of that game as Michael Bennett and Quinton Jefferson were ejected.  The Seahawks followed that loss by getting annihilated 42 – 7 by the surprising Rams in Seattle with the 12^th Man crew watching in disbelief.

However, the Hawks bounced back from that humiliating loss by pulling an upset in Dallas to spoil Ezekiel Elliot’s return from his 6 game suspension.  But despite earning a victory over the Cowboys, television cameras caught Seahawk’s safety Earl Thomas entering bizarre land by trying to convince the Cowboys to sign him up.  After the game, Earl Thomas chased down Cowboy’s coach Jason Garret and said, “Come get me.”  Now that had to be extremely disappointing for Seahawk fans to see.  Even after a win, things were looking discouraging for Seattle but they could rectify everything in the final regular season game versus the mediocre 7 – 8 Arizona Cardinals in Seattle.

Week 17 vs Cardinals: Seattle knew a loss in their season finale against Arizona and their backup QB Drew Stanton would eliminate them from the playoffs.  The rowdy 12^th Man crowd was stunned as the Cardinals jumped out to a 20 – 7 halftime lead.  Russell Wilson’s offense was dominated as the only Seattle score in the 1^st half came off a 99 yard Tyler Lockett kick return touchdown.

But the Seahawks wouldn’t go quietly in the night as they erased that Arizona lead after Wilson threw a perfect 29 yard touchdown pass to Doug Baldwin to put Seattle up 24 – 23.  On the ensuing possession, the Cardinals had the ball with 6 minutes left in the ballgame.  They faced a 3^rd and 7 from their own 17 yard line then Stanton threw an incomplete pass to JJ Nelson as Seattle’s 12^th Man could feel another playoff berth coming.  But wait… roughing the passer on Bobby Wagner to deliver the 1^st down to the Cardinals.  That penalty was an immaculate representation of the Seahawks season as they led the NFL in penalties per game.  That egregious penalty led to a 42 yard field goal by Phil Dawson to give Arizona a 26 – 24 lead with 2 minutes and 20 seconds to left.

Seattle fought back with big yardage receptions by Jimmy Graham and Doug Baldwin to put the Seahawks in field goal range with 20 seconds left.  But Blair Walsh’s 48 yard field goal sailed wide right and assured that the Seahawks would be home for the playoffs for the first time since the 2011 season.

Where do they go from here?  The intimidation of Seattle’s raucous 12^th Man crowd at CenturyLink Field has subsided as the Seahawks lost half of their games at home (their most losses since 2011).  The Hawks still hasn’t recovered from Marshawn ‘Beast Mode’ Lynch’s decision to leave the team after being shunned by Pete Carroll in their infamous failure to hand him the ball at the goal line in the 2015 Super Bowl.  And Eddie Lacy as his replacement was an epic fail, as he only played in 9 games and gained only 19.8 yards per game.

The Seahawks tried to make offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell the scapegoat by firing him at the end of the season.  But Seattle needs to give a long critical look at general manager John Schnieder.  The Seahawks was the 3^rd worse team in the NFL in QB hits allowed and Russell Wilson led his squad in rushing yards.  If Schnieder and friends wants to decrease the incredible amount of hits Russell Wilson takes, they will find some solid offensive linemen and legitimate running backs through free agency and the draft to lighten load for their franchise quarterback.

Before the kickoff of the 2017 regular season In David Carr’s 3^rd NFL season and Jack Del Rio’s 2^nd year as the Raider’s coach, the 2016 Oakland Raiders finally broke their 13 year playoff drought.  The Raiders 6th ranked offense produced 2 receivers (Michael Crabtree and Amari Cooper) to gain over a 1,000 yards.  Before a week 16 matchup with the colts, the Raiders were emerging as a legitimate Super Bowl contender with an 11 – 3 record.  Unfortunately, MVP candidate Derek Carr broke his leg during that game.  The Raiders would not win another game that season and they lost in the wild card game to Houston 27 – 14.  But hope was restored during the offseason as Derek Carr fully recovered from his injury and Marshawn ‘Beast Mode’ Lynch came out of retirement to help his hometown team make a run for that Super Bowl ring.

Week 6 vs Chargers: The Raiders won their first 2 games but now they were trying to avoid a 4 game losing streak.  In the 3^rd quarter, Oakland had the ball in the red-zone with a 10 – 7 lead.  David Carr passed to Beast Mode but it landed in the hands of Charger’s linebacker Hayes Pullard for Carr’s 2^nd interception of the game.  The Raiders would gain the momentum back in the 4^th quarter after an electrifying 48 yard rushing score by wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson to put Oakland up 16 – 14 but kicker Giorgio Tavecchio missed the extra point.  Towards the end of the game, Phillip Rivers orchestrated a 4 minute Charger drive to set up a 32 yard game winning field goal by Josh Lambo with 3 seconds left.  Oakland lost this game by an extra point in front of the Black Hole Raider Nation 17 – 16.

Weeks 14-15 Keeping Hope Alive: However, Oakland climbed back into the playoff race after a 24 – 17 victory over the Giants to even their record at 6 – 6.  In the following week, the Raiders had a shot to take the lead in the AFC West vs a 6 – 6 Chiefs team that they beat earlier in Oakland’s Black Hole.  But this game was being held in Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium where the Raiders haven’t won since 2012.  Oakland’s losing ways in The Show Me State continued as the Chiefs carried a 26 – 0 lead into the final quarter and ended the Raider’s quest to gain their 1^st AFC West crown since 2002.

Despite that loss to the Chiefs, Oakland still had a shot for a wild card berth if they won their last 3 games of the season.  But first, they had a must win game in Oakland versus a 7 – 6 Cowboys team that was missing their main man Ezekiel Elliot due to a suspension.

Week 15 vs Cowboys: Dallas jumped out to a 10 – 0 lead in the 2^nd quarter after a TD by their backup running back Rod Smith.  Oakland’s kicker Tavecchio blew an opportunity to cut the Cowboy’s 10 point lead right before halftime by missing a 39 yard field goal.

In the 4^th quarter, Dallas had possession with 5 minutes left and decided to go for it on 4^th and 1 from their own 40 yard line with the game tied at 17.  Surprisingly, the 1^st down chains could not determine if Dallas QB Dak Prescott got the 1^st down after his quarterback sneak.  Then came the controversial index card measurement, which convinced the refs that the Cowboys got the 1^st down to keep the drive alive.  That led to a 40 yard bomb reception by Dez Bryant into the red-zone which led to a short Dan Bailey field goal to give Dallas a 20 – 17 lead.

With 1 minute left, Oakland had possession and was facing elimination from the playoffs on 4^th and 10 from their own 45 yard line.  A long pass to Michael Crabtree led to a pass interference penalty on Dallas rookie Jourdon Lewis at the 15 yard line.  The Raiders were in position to win the game or at least send it into overtime on 3^rd and 3 from the 8 yard line with 39 seconds left.  David Carr scrambled towards the corner of the end-zone, dove towards the pylon with the ball in his left hand as Cowboy safety Jeff Heath hit him then Carr fumbled the ball onto the pylon to put the worse rule in sports into effect.  Touchback, Raiders lose possession, Cowboy’s ball at the 20 yard line.  The game and season was now over for Raider Nation.

Where Do They Go From Here?  Freezing that moment when David Carr fumbled the ball onto the pylon was the perfect picture to define the Raider’s disappointing season.  Every QB stat from Derek Carr’s amazing 2016 season regressed, especially interceptions which more than doubled up from 6 to 13.  Oakland’s wide receivers didn’t help much by recording the 4^th most drops in 2017.  The Beast Mode addition was not as effective as advertised, the Raiders were 25^th in the NFL in rushing yards.  Despite having All-Pro DE Khalil Mack, that Oakland defense is still a weakness for this team.  They recorded the 2^nd fewest takeaways and were 6^th in the NFL in most yards allowed per play.

Now Oakland fired Jack Del Rio for Monday Night Football broadcaster and former Raider coach from 1999 – 2001 John Gruden who hasn’t coached since 2008.  Now Oakland’s general manager Reggie Mckenzie must answer 4 vital questions as they head into the 2018 offseason: Is kicker Giorgio Tavecchio the right replacement for the 39 year old Sebastion Janikowski who was placed on injured reserve due to back issues? Is it time to end Marshawn Lynch’s short tenure in Oakland?  Can they find a few stud defensive players to take the load off perennial pro bowler Khalil Mack? And most importantly, Can Derek Carr have a bounce back 2018 season and return to his 2016 MVP candidate type of play?  If Mckenzie and Derek Carr can provide the correct answers to these questions then John Gruden will be able to make the Raider Black Hole Nation a legitimate Super Bowl contender again.

Before the 2017 Regular Season Kickoff: The New York Giants were coming off a season where they won 11 games, ended a 4 year playoff drought and swept the NFC East Champion Dallas Cowboys.  The Giants also returned 10 out of 11 of their starters from their #2 ranked scoring defense in the NFL.  General Manager Jerry Reese also added 6 time pro bowl Wide Receiver Brandon and first round rookie tight end Evan Engram to help Odell Beckham JR and Eli Manning improve that 26^th ranked scoring offense.  Expectations were high for the Big Blue fan base and a 3^rd championship ring for Eli Manning seemed like an attainable goal.

Week 5 vs Chargers: The Los Angeles Chargers and Giants were both disappointing and winless at 0 – 4 coming into this game but New York was favored at home in MetLife stadium.  In the beginning of the 4^th quarter, the Giants were trailing 16 – 17 then Odell Beckham JR showed why he’s a superstar.  Beckham JR lost pro bowl cornerback Casey Heyward with a slant and go route and caught a 48 yard touchdown to put New York up 22 – 17.

The turning point of the game and the Giant’s season came with 4 minutes left to play as New York was holding on to a 22 – 20 lead.  Beckham JR tried to catch a high pass from Eli Manning but was hit by Casey Heyward, fell down awkwardly and fractured his ankle.  Devastation filled MetLife stadium as he was carted off the field as that was his final play of the season.  To make matters worse, newly signed WR Brandon Marshall injured his ankle earlier in the game and was also out for the season. 

On the play after Beckham JR got injured, Eli Manning lost a fumble after being strip sacked by linebacker Melvin Ingram.  That turnover led to a 10 yard touchdown reception by Charger’s running back Melvin Gordon to give Los Angeles a 27 – 22 lead with 3 minutes left in the game.  With 49 seconds left, the Giants faced a 4^th and 10 from the 48 yard line.  Eli Manning dropped back and threw a game ending interception to Giants safety Tre Boston to keep the Giants winless.

Week 10 vs 49ers: Before this game, it was clear the Giants were the most disappointing squad in the NFL with a 1 – 8 record.  The Big Blue fan base just wanted the G-Men to tank at this point for high profile QB draft prospects Sam Darnold or Josh Rosen to replace the aging Eli Manning.  However, New York was favorites in San Francisco mainly due to the fact that the 49ers were winless at 0 – 9 and they were starting 3^rd round rookie QB C.J Beathard.  But the Vegas odds makers did not know how far the Giants had fallen off the rails.

The Giants carried a 6 – 3 lead in the 2^nd quarter and they had possession close to the red-zone at the 22 yard line.  This New York drive would come up empty as Eli Manning lost a fumble after being strip sacked by defensive end Ronald Blair.  That giveaway led to an 83 yard home run touchdown catch by 49er’s wide receiver Marquise Goodwin as he burned 2016 pro bowl cornerback Janoris Jenkins.

San Francisco had a 17 – 13 lead in the beginning of the 4^th quarter then 49er QB C.J Beathard easily ran in for a 12 yard bootleg touchdown.  Later, 49er’s undrafted rookie running back Matt Breida ran straight through the middle of that lackluster Giant defense for a 33 yard touchdown to put San Francisco up 31 – 13.  That G-Men defense allowed the hapless 49ers to have a 66% 3^rd down conversion rate, gave up 474 total yards and made a huge contribution to the 49er’s 1^st win of the season.

Week 13 – Eli Benched, Coach McAdoo & General Manager Jerry Reese Fired: Before a week 13 match up versus the Raiders in Oakland, Coach Bob McAdoo decided to bench Eli Manning for veteran QB Geno Smith instead of 3^rd round rookie QB David Webb.  Benching one veteran QB for another makes no sense when your team has no shot at the playoffs and you have a rookie QB who needs to gain some valuable experience under center.  Geno Smith and the Giants went ahead and lost that game in the Black Hole and that’s also where Bob McAdoo and Jerry Reese lost their jobs.  Eli got his starting position back but the Giants lost 3 out of their last 4 games to end a disastrous season.

Where do they go from here?  The Giants finished the season with a 3 – 13 record which is their most games lost in a season since entering the NFL in 1925!  The most shocking part of their baffling season was the major decline of their defense that fell from the #2 scoring defense all the way down to #28.  Injuries did not play a significant role in the huge drop off as most of their core defenders played throughout the beginning and middle of the season.

The culprit is the inexplicable off the field drama that dismantled a once formidable defense.  Cornerback Rogers-Cromartie and Janoris Jenkins were suspended by Bob McAdoo for disrespecting him.  Towards the end of the season, cornerback Eli Apple was suspended for conduct detrimental to the team and his pro bowl safety teammate Landon Collins publically called Apple out as ‘a cancer’.  McAdoo’s players obviously tuned him out at some point during their soul crutching 0 – 5 start.

Now it’s up to a new general manager and coach to get the Giants back to their 2016 form.  President John Mara hired former Giant’s pro personnel director and former GM of the 2015 NFC Champion Carolina Panthers, Dave Gettleman to be the general manager.  Gettleman then hired Viking’s offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur.  Those guys have a tall task ahead of them to build some camaraderie amongst their players, end the off field commotion and focus on redeeming themselves in 2018.  With the #2 pick in the draft, the Giants are likely to select USC’s Sam Darnold or UCLA’s Josh Rosen as an understudy of the experienced Eli Manning.