Different starter, same finish. Reminds me of the early part of the sixth season of Beverly Hills, 90210 when they gave Luke Perry's character a story arc that would see him get married to the daughter of the man who killed his father-- only to see her get killed the next day (I called that twist 15 minutes away- like Mandy Moore having cancer in A Walk to Remember). The focus on this arc took one's attention away from other issues and B-plots that once Perry's character rode off into the sunset you couldn't help but avoid. The "Rex or Beck?" question was resolved, if only for the moment-- but now one can't help but notice the other deficiencies on the team. The shine of the 3-1 start is gone and we notice that the leap from rebuilder to pretender (let alone contender) may not happen until the leap year. It's not exactly Steve Sanders dating Claire Arnold, but it'll be an interesting ten games.
Beck's Debut, or the Temporary Longterm Solution-- the new starting quarterback threw for 279 yards and a touchdown while running for another score. He also threw an interception and lost a fumble...proving that losing the ball wasn't just a Rex thing. Just one three and out with reasonable movement on half of his drives (Skins had 11 possessions- we won't count his end of first half kneeldown). Not a bad first effort, but the NFL doesn't grade on a curve... and coach Mike Shanahan was asked in the postgame press conference if Beck would start against Buffalo. Can we give the guy a little bit more of a leash?
Running aground, or Injury Part I-- after tallying 83 yards on 18 carries in the first half, the Burgundy and Gold ran the ball just 5 times after intermission for 9 yards... and no rushing attempts in the fourth quarter. Part of the reason behind the move was Tim Hightower going down with a knee injury-- an MRI is pending with concerns it may be an ACL tear.
D earns one, or Injury Part II-- another reason why the Skins abandoned the run was the fact that they were trailing by double digits for most of the time they had the ball after halftime. The Panthers produced three touchdowns on their first three possessions of the second half and had the ball for over 18 minutes. Cam Newton was tough to contain, passing for 256 yards and a touchdown while running for 59 yards and a score. It didn't help that defensive linchpin London Fletcher went down with a hamstring injury.
Feeling Fredtastic, or Injury Part III-- Mr. Davis represents the famed triumvirate in fine fashion (he's the only one to have a catch since 2009) with 6 grabs for 80 yards and a touchdown. Now he did get some flak for celebrating his score that made things 30-20... but claims he was trying to get his team pumped up-- and with the crazy comebacks we've seen this year, a ten point deficit with 5:05 left is by no means a hopeless cause. Don't look now, but #83 is slowly putting together a monster season-- his current numbers prorate to 75 catches for 1128 yards (he entered the season with 72 career catches for 853 yards). Good thing Davis is playing well... because Chris Cooley won't be back anytime soon and now Santana Moss has a broken hand. Moss is currently second on the team with 25 receptions... with Jabar Gaffney the only other WR to have more than 5 catches this fall. So much for single coverage from here on out..
Slipping into the Time Zone-- San Diego jumped out to an early lead before the New York Jets rallied in the second half. I was impressed that the Chargers played well at all. You see, the game was slated for 1pm Eastern Time-- meaning San Diego was playing at 10am local time. ESPN did a full fledged report in 2008 about how over time Pacific Time Zone teams don't do well when playing that early. My problem is you're expecting their fan base to get up and watch football at 10am. I've been to California. It's a fun state. There's a lot to do late out there-- and by having games kick off at 10am you're killing the guys who want to take their girfriends out to Sunday Brunch before ignoring them for the rest of the day. I know the league likes to have the Giants and Jets play at different times on Sunday (same with Baltimore and Washington as well as San Francisco and Oakland) to maximize viewership, but can't they just as a rule have Pacific Time Zone teams play no earlier than 4pm EST? How tough is this?
Dissecting the Division-- the NY Giants' bye paired with Philadelphia's week off keeps the NFC East leader and cellardweller the same... and Dallas' win over St. Louis propels the Cowboys into second place ahead of the Skins. Big picture: the Redskins are currently 10th in the NFC... with the Cowboys, Tampa Bay, Atlanta and Chicago standing in their way of the last playoff spot.
Norths Rise Again-- the bull market for the AFC and NFC North continues... heading into the Monday Night game Baltimore's bunch is 16-8 while Green Bay's gang is 17-11. With both divisions currently supplying both wildcards in their respective conferences. Now there's plenty of football to be played, but still...
Colts past is present-- Indianapolis' collapse reminds me of the late 70's when the Baltimore Colts were coming off three straight AFC East titles but a little wobbly and getting older...and needed help to make the 1977 playoffs. Then Bert Jones injured his shoulder and he missed 13 games in 1978... and the Colts collapsed, finishing 5-11. Move ahead to 2011-- and that's the end of the run we're witnessing in the Circle City. Take away a franchise quarterback, and blemishes become faulty cracks in the foundation. Franchise QB's are something special. That's why Mike Shanahan wanted to trade up to get Sam Bradford. That's why Vinny Cerrato wanted to trade up to get Marc Sanchez. And why 90210 completely blew once Dylan left.
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