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Getting ready for Week 9
By Pat Kirwan
NFL.com Senior Analyst
Nov. 3, 2006) -- The league personality for the 2006 season has taken shape. Those in trouble have to battle back (if they can) and those in great shape have to defend what they have built. Sixteen teams have winning records and 16 teams do not. The Patriots, Colts and Bears are the only teams with 3-0 road records, and only the Patriots have four divisional wins so far this season. As one NFL head coach said to me this week, there seems to be a bigger gap between the haves and have nots in the league this season. Twelve teams have two or less wins, and even though there were 10 new head coaches in the NFL last year, this year is setting up for major changes again. Time will tell on that front, but for now, here are a few observations to keep in the back of your mind for this week's games.
It is so frustrating to coaches when they beat themselves, so I like to look at penalty yardage given up -- as always, I'm surprised by the teams doing the most damage to themselves. The Commanders lead the NFL in penalty yards with 510, even though Joe Gibbs is a great coach and a stickler for detail. The penalty situation has to be so frustrating to him, but he's not alone in the NFC East. In fact, as a division, the NFC East has lost the most yardage in penalties so far this season, and it's not close for second place. The NFC East teams -- Commanders, 510; Eagles, 491; Cowboys, 457; and Giants, 387 -- have combined for 1,845 penalty yards. The second-worst division in the league is the NFC North with 1,565 yards, followed by the NFC West with 1,557 yards.
You would think coaches named Gibbs, Parcells, Coughlin and Reid would have a better handle on the penalty yardage. I'm sure they harp on the subject all the time, but something has to change before the playoffs if some of these teams don't want to beat themselves.
Here's another frustrating stat that drives coaches crazy. The Raiders have been sacked 35 times for a loss of 200 yards. That's 5.7 yards per sack, and when you consider Oakland only averages 234 yards of offense a game, the Raiders have practically given back a full game of offense in sacks alone. The Dolphins have "only" been sacked 26 times, but they surrender an average of 7.4 yards per sack for 194 yards. The difference between taking a sack and making it a third-and-7 situation versus not taking a sack and keeping it a third-and-short situation is very significant in the NFL.
How about the emphasis Bill Parcells has always put on holding on to the ball at all costs? Coach Parcells is well known for going for it on fourth down throughout his career. This year is no different, and coaches from the Parcells tree are thinking just like the old boss. Dallas is second in the NFL, converting 5 of 8 fourth-down situations. Bill Belichick's Patriots are second in the league, converting 6 of 9 fourth downs. Nick Saban, a direct descendent of Belichick, has won 5 of 8 times on the last down. Not bad, because when you group these three guys together, you realize they moved the chains on 16 of 25 attempts, or 64 percent of the time.
I took a look at the Vikings schedule after the Patriots came to town and dismantled a very good Minnesota defense with a spread offense. The good news for the Vikings is only one of their remaining opponents, the St. Louis Rams, have the offensive talent to consider the New England offensive strategy.
If I were on the competition committee, I would make one proposal this offseason. I would consider every play that takes place in the end zone reviewable for replay. I understand the "can of worms" that would be opened up if every judgment call was up for replay review, but it's important we make sure scoring plays get a second opinion from a qualified person with full access to all of the technology available. Getting it right is what counts.
Finally, I tip my hat to Jeff Fisher and his captain, Keith Bulluck, for the way they handled the situation surrounding Adam "Pacman" Jones. Coach Fisher did not let a great game performance by Jones last Sunday deter him from suspending Jones for an off-the-field incident. Fisher has placed Jones at a crossroad in his career. It's time to make the right turn. I talked with the coach this week about his decision, and he knows he's doing the right thing for the team and the player. Jones needs to grow up, and it's a shame an NFL head coach has to be the one to teach him how to. As for team captain Bulluck, he made sure to let Fisher know the team supports the decision and expressed how much he personally counts on Jones to be responsible so that the team has the best chance to win. In the old days, veteran players always took the time to make sure young players didn't jeopardize the team's chances to succeed with stupid behavior. I'm glad to see Bulluck has some "old school" in him. Fisher is an optimist by nature, and he believes Pacman will live up to his responsibilities going forward, and all I can say is Jones is fortunate to be on a team run by Jeff Fisher and captained by Keith Bulluck.
http://nfl.com/news/story/9775578
NFL.com Senior Analyst
Nov. 3, 2006) -- The league personality for the 2006 season has taken shape. Those in trouble have to battle back (if they can) and those in great shape have to defend what they have built. Sixteen teams have winning records and 16 teams do not. The Patriots, Colts and Bears are the only teams with 3-0 road records, and only the Patriots have four divisional wins so far this season. As one NFL head coach said to me this week, there seems to be a bigger gap between the haves and have nots in the league this season. Twelve teams have two or less wins, and even though there were 10 new head coaches in the NFL last year, this year is setting up for major changes again. Time will tell on that front, but for now, here are a few observations to keep in the back of your mind for this week's games.
It is so frustrating to coaches when they beat themselves, so I like to look at penalty yardage given up -- as always, I'm surprised by the teams doing the most damage to themselves. The Commanders lead the NFL in penalty yards with 510, even though Joe Gibbs is a great coach and a stickler for detail. The penalty situation has to be so frustrating to him, but he's not alone in the NFC East. In fact, as a division, the NFC East has lost the most yardage in penalties so far this season, and it's not close for second place. The NFC East teams -- Commanders, 510; Eagles, 491; Cowboys, 457; and Giants, 387 -- have combined for 1,845 penalty yards. The second-worst division in the league is the NFC North with 1,565 yards, followed by the NFC West with 1,557 yards.
You would think coaches named Gibbs, Parcells, Coughlin and Reid would have a better handle on the penalty yardage. I'm sure they harp on the subject all the time, but something has to change before the playoffs if some of these teams don't want to beat themselves.
Here's another frustrating stat that drives coaches crazy. The Raiders have been sacked 35 times for a loss of 200 yards. That's 5.7 yards per sack, and when you consider Oakland only averages 234 yards of offense a game, the Raiders have practically given back a full game of offense in sacks alone. The Dolphins have "only" been sacked 26 times, but they surrender an average of 7.4 yards per sack for 194 yards. The difference between taking a sack and making it a third-and-7 situation versus not taking a sack and keeping it a third-and-short situation is very significant in the NFL.
How about the emphasis Bill Parcells has always put on holding on to the ball at all costs? Coach Parcells is well known for going for it on fourth down throughout his career. This year is no different, and coaches from the Parcells tree are thinking just like the old boss. Dallas is second in the NFL, converting 5 of 8 fourth-down situations. Bill Belichick's Patriots are second in the league, converting 6 of 9 fourth downs. Nick Saban, a direct descendent of Belichick, has won 5 of 8 times on the last down. Not bad, because when you group these three guys together, you realize they moved the chains on 16 of 25 attempts, or 64 percent of the time.
I took a look at the Vikings schedule after the Patriots came to town and dismantled a very good Minnesota defense with a spread offense. The good news for the Vikings is only one of their remaining opponents, the St. Louis Rams, have the offensive talent to consider the New England offensive strategy.
If I were on the competition committee, I would make one proposal this offseason. I would consider every play that takes place in the end zone reviewable for replay. I understand the "can of worms" that would be opened up if every judgment call was up for replay review, but it's important we make sure scoring plays get a second opinion from a qualified person with full access to all of the technology available. Getting it right is what counts.
Finally, I tip my hat to Jeff Fisher and his captain, Keith Bulluck, for the way they handled the situation surrounding Adam "Pacman" Jones. Coach Fisher did not let a great game performance by Jones last Sunday deter him from suspending Jones for an off-the-field incident. Fisher has placed Jones at a crossroad in his career. It's time to make the right turn. I talked with the coach this week about his decision, and he knows he's doing the right thing for the team and the player. Jones needs to grow up, and it's a shame an NFL head coach has to be the one to teach him how to. As for team captain Bulluck, he made sure to let Fisher know the team supports the decision and expressed how much he personally counts on Jones to be responsible so that the team has the best chance to win. In the old days, veteran players always took the time to make sure young players didn't jeopardize the team's chances to succeed with stupid behavior. I'm glad to see Bulluck has some "old school" in him. Fisher is an optimist by nature, and he believes Pacman will live up to his responsibilities going forward, and all I can say is Jones is fortunate to be on a team run by Jeff Fisher and captained by Keith Bulluck.
http://nfl.com/news/story/9775578
