Mr. Destiny’s Week 14 NFL Recap
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By Mr. Destiny
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TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS 14 @ JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS 41
BUCS: Chalk this up as the game where Raheem Morris officially lost his job. Morris’ Bucs continued to be one of the most penalized teams in the league, adding 12 penalties for 97 yards, often putting themselves in third and unmanageable situations. While the blame does not solely lay with him, the lack of discipline and poor execution of such basics as tackling does. Tampa was the first team to allow the anemic Jags more than 20 points in a game this season, allowing 6 unanswered touchdowns after leading 14-0 and turning the ball over 7 times. The curtain has closed on this team and it is now a question of who will be the next coach called upon to straighten this talented team out and reach their young potential. Will the Glazer family finally open their check book, or will they continue to funnel all their profits into Manchester United? With many big name coaches available this off-season, they will be under the microscope with easy to read results based on their selection.
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JAGS: Maurice Jones-Drew set the franchise scoring record behind a 4 touchdown, 136 total yard performance. The Jags were able to score in all three phases of the game, notching a touchdown on special teams off a Preston Parker fumble, one on defense off a Freeman fumble and the plethora of offensive scores. Blaine Gabbert was able to throw his second straight 2 touchdown performance, finishing with 217 yards passing along with 2 interceptions on the day. Marcedes Lewis led the way with 77 yards receiving, torching the Bucs on a 62 yard play with one catch alone. Coach Mel Tucker received his first win as interim head coach and looks to have this team focused on getting back to basics.
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NEW ORLEANS SAINTS 22 @ TENNESSEE TITANS 17
SAINTS: Drew Brees overcame a slow start in the first half, throwing two touchdown passes to Marques Colston in the fourth quarter when it mattered most. Brees was forced to look short for most of the game, taking what little the Titans defense would allow. As the game progressed, the Titans secondary seemed to tire mentally and physically. Brees connected with Colston on the first score after Colston was able to find a gaping hole in the middle of the field for a 35 yard strike. Brees seized the momentum and scored on the next drive with a 28 yard hook up to Colston. This marks Brees’ 40th straight game with a touchdown pass, placing him 2nd all time behind Unitas’ 47 straight. Brees finished with 337 yards and 2 touchdowns on the day with a 110 QB rating. Despite Mark Ingram not playing, the Saints rush unit provided enough to help move the ball. Chris Ivory led all rushers with 53 of the Saints 108 total yards on the ground.
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TITANS: Jake Locker was substituted for an injured Matt Hasselbeck in the first half after Hasselbeck injured his left calf. Locker responded by leading the Titans on two scoring drives and coming up just short of the upset, getting sacked on the New Orleans 5 yard line as time expired. Locker posted the Titans longest offensive play of the season without Kenny Britt, completing a 54 yard pass to Damian Williams which set up the Locker rushing score. Nate Washington played through his ankle injury, posting 130 total yards and scoring late in the 4th on a 40 yard pass. With father time catching up with Hasselbeck and Locker as heir apparent, now is the time Munchak needs to make the move and name Locker the starter. Locker was able to use his younger legs to extend plays and take advantage when the Saints defense gave him lanes. These intangibles make the difference in games and leaves to question how this game could have turned out if Locker had received the start.
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ATLANTA FALCONS 31 @ CAROLINA PANTHERS 23
FALCONS: Matt Ryan and the Falcons relied on the long ball all game and though it cost them early, it would eventually be the difference maker. Four different receivers had catches of 20+ yards, Julio Jones leading the way with a 75 yard strike and 104yards with 2 touchdowns on the day. The reliance on the long ball padded Ryan’s stats,finishing with 320 yards and 4 scores with no interceptions. Three of his scores came in the second half after trailing 23-7, leading the Falcons to 24 straight unanswered points.While the win keeps the Falcons Wild Card hopes afloat, they can’t buy into the idea this is a strategy which will get them far. It has been a boom or bust type of season for the Falcons, either exploding on offense or failing to get anything working. They will need to find a healthy balance if they wish to have any chance should they make it into the playoffs.
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PANTHERS: The Panthers were able to take advantage of Atlanta’s focus on Newton early, gashing them with a Deangelo Williams 74 yard touchdown run. Newton also added 2 touchdown passes to both Olsen and Shockey, all scores coming in the first half.Despite the lead, the game was prototypical of the Panthers season, living and dying withNewton’s strengths and weaknesses. Newton tossed two interceptions on consecutive drives which turned the momentum the Falcons way and eventually led to the loss. Forall which Newton does so well it is easy to forget he is a rookie and come down on him when he errs. The bottom line is he is the sole reason the Panthers are even competitive in every match up and though his mistakes are costly, they are things which will be corrected with a full offseason to prepare. If Carolina can add a few key components,we can expect them to make the common NFC jump from one of the worst to first next season.
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HOUSTON TEXANS 20 @ CINCINNATI BENGALS 19
TEXANS: TJ Yates recorded his first road win and helped Houston clinch their first divisional title. Yates is now 2-0 as a starter, showing great composure and accuracy despite playing from behind all game. His 300 yard, 2 touchdowns with 1 interception performance was defined in the final six seconds when he connected with Kevin Walter for the winning score. This game was all about “next man up” and the Texans depth was put on display. Arian Foster was keyed on by the Bengals defense, totaling only 74 total yards. Ben Tate took over in the second half, banging out 97 total yards and pounding the Bengals in the fourth quarter, leading the Texans on their final two drives. Despite Andre Johnson being held out with injury, Kevin Walter and Owen Daniels racked up 176 yards between them, filling the void. This was Houston’s 7th straight win and gives them time to prepare for the playoffs and let Johnson heal.
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BENGALS: The Bengals rode Cedric Benson’s 91 yard first half performance to a 16-3halftime lead. Andy Dalton had chipped in with 17 yard pass to Jerome Simpson and all was as it should be. Unfortunately for the Bengals, it was all that would be. Benson was not able to total positive yardage throughout the second half and Andy Dalton was never again close enough to sniff the end zone. Adam Jones certainly helped the Texans cause on a holding penalty with 12 seconds left which put Houston on the 6 yard line and led to the winning score. In his defense, the Bengals were getting pounded by Ben Tate and you could see the exhaustion taking a toll. The Bengals may be out of the playoff picture but they have solidified themselves as a very young team with a ton of talent. Pittsburgh and Baltimore are both getting older so it won’t take much before we see the Bengals rise to the top of this division.
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MINNESOTA VIKINGS 28 @ DETROIT LIONS 34
VIKINGS: In what has become the norm for Minnesota, two Ponder turnovers had the Vikings playing from behind early. Ponder was hit from the blindside early, fumbling the ball into his own end zone which would be recovered by the Lions for a score. He then was intercepted on the ensuing drive which spotted the Lions 14 points. After two more interceptions, Ponder was replaced by Joe Webb in an effort to spark the team. Spark he did, running for a 61 yard score and connecting with Toby Gerhart for a touchdown.Webb finished with 109 yards on the ground and 84 passing, participating in the latest trend of run first quarterbacks. Though Ponder is the better long term option, the Vikes are best suited to let Webb play at least one more game. First, they can see what they really have in Webb and secondly, they can gain trade value if he performs well.The running quarterback is here to stay and teams will not be so hesitant to take a risk on a player like Webb. This team is better suited with a pocket passer to compliment the likes of run savvy vets Harvin and Peterson so adding another run wrinkle to the mistakes away the added dimensions these players can contribute to the pass game and keep defenses on their heels.
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LIONS: Already down Kevin Smith, the Lions lost Maurice Morris early with a chest injury, leaving Keiland Williams to carry the load. There really wasn’t a load to carry given the Lions scored on a pick six and fumble recovery, two of 6 Minnesota turnovers.All totaled, the Lions scored 24 points off takeaways and were handed the game early.Matt Stafford executed well, completing 20/29 for 227 yards and 2 touchdowns. Titus Young finished as high man with 87 yards receiving, 57 of them coming on a first quarter touchdown connection with Stafford. Young has for all purposes taken over as the number two option out wide and adds an extra weapon to this offense as they fight fora Wild Card birth. If Kevin Smith can get healthy, the Lions will have one of the most explosive offenses not named Packers.
Intangibles and winning won Cochrane the 1934 MVP award. Newly acquired by the Tigers from the disassembled Athletics, his immense leadership skills were utilized as player-manager. The move paid off — the Tigers, who weren’t expected to be better than average, won the pennant for the first time in quarter century, and the turnaround was attributed to the veteran backstop. Cochrane performed well behind the plate, throwing out 50 percent of base stealers, while hitting .320 with an .428 OBP. Gehrig, a great leader in his own right, not only won the Triple Crown, but led the league in OBP, SLG and OPS. He finished with a WAR that was more than six points higher than Cochrane’s, and his Yankees finished in second place with 94 wins. Not exactly an A-Rod-in-2003-like situation.
Williams’ adversarial relationship with the media is a major reason why his trophy case wasn’t nearly as stacked as it should’ve been. He attributes his first MVP snub to fighting with the draft board during World War II over his 1-A classification (available for unrestricted military service). He eventually won 3-A classification (registrant deferred because of hardship to dependents), but it cost him a sponsorship from Quaker Oats and many fans. Despite winning the Triple Crown, along with leading the league in runs, walks, OBP, SLG and OPS, he lost the award to Joe Gordon, who, although he had a phenomenal season, only led the league in strikeouts and GDP. The Yankees won the pennant, and the Red Sox finished in second place.
How many MVPs have Ozzie Smith or Omar Vizquel won? Marion was in that category defensively as a shortstop, and he actually had an MVP to show for it. The Cardinals were undoubtedly the best team in baseball in 1944, winning 105 games and the World Series over their cross-town foe, the Browns. But Stan Musial was the team’s best player — the franchise’s best player of all time — and his offensive production during the season reflected that, as he led the NL in hits, doubles, OBP, SLG and OPS. He also boasted a WAR of 9.1, more than five points higher than Marion’s WAR. And Musial wasn’t chopped liver defensively –he finished fourth in the NL in fielding WAR, so it’s not as though he was giving up a lot of runs in the field.
Stacked as always, the 1955 Yankees boasted the MVP winner and the player who arguably got hosed. Mantle finished fifth in MVP voting despite leading the AL in triples, homeruns, walks, OBP, SLG and OPS. Berra, the winner, didn’t lead the league in a single offensive category. Defensively, he wasn’t exactly stellar, committing 13 errors and accumulating one of the worst fielding percentages for a regular catcher. Mantle’s WAR of 9.5 far surpassed Berra’s WAR of 3.8, but, according to the writers, Berra’s intangibles were immeasurably better that season.
Finishing with the best record in the NL, the Pirates had the MVP winner, but the writers just needed to determine who. Roberto Clemente had a solid season, but it wasn’t his best, and some thought his ethnicity deterred some voters from placing him high on their ballots. Groat, a shortstop who led the league in average and played great defense, ultimately won the award, beating out Willie Mays, who tallied 190 hits, 29 homeruns, 103 RBIs with a .319 average, .381 OBP, .555 SLG and .936 OPS. And Mays, of course, wasn’t too shabby in the field either. His Giants, though, finished fifth in the NL, which probably wasn’t his fault.
There’s debate as to whether pitchers, let alone relief pitchers, should ever win an MVP — after all, they have their own award. Hernandez had a season to remember for the World Series-winning Tigers, tallying nine wins, 32 saves, 112 strikeouts and a 1.92 ERA in 140 innings pitched. During the entire season, he allowed just six homeruns and blew one save. But was he even the most valuable player on a team with Kirk Gibson and Jack Morris? Mattingly was the MVP of the Yankees — though they won 17 fewer games than the Tigers, which wasn’t his fault — and he had an even more impressive resume, leading the league in hits, doubles and average. His WAR was 1.5 points higher than Hernandez’s WAR. As it turned out, Mattingly would respond by having an even better 1985 season, securing his only MVP award.
Gibson’s incredible leaderships skills (intangibles) were best demonstrated during Game 1 of the 1988 World Series, when he blasted the game-winning homerun despite suffering from two injured legs and a stomach virus. He managed to remain healthy enough to win the MVP during the regular season, as he hit .290 with 25 homeruns, 76 RBIs, 106 runs and 31 stolen bases, helping the Dodgers rebound from a poor 1987 season. Darryl Strawberry of the 100-win Mets, who lost in seven games to the Dodgers in the NLCS, posted a superior stat line, leading the league in homeruns, SLG and OPS, while stealing 29 bases and driving in 101 runs. He came a close second in the voting.
An open hatred for the media cost Belle an MVP he easily should’ve won. He finished the season first in runs, doubles, homeruns, RBIs (tied with Vaughn), and SLG, most notably becoming the first player ever to post 50 homeruns and 50 doubles in a season — a strike-shortened, 143-game season, no less. Mo Vaughn’s statistics were also impressive, as he shared the league lead in RBIs, but, as a whole, they weren’t nearly as gaudy as Belle’s numbers. The Indians, who won 14-more games than Red Sox, reached the World Series.
At a meager 20 years of age, Rodriguez entered the 1996 season as a full-time starter. By the end of it, baseball fans knew he would someday be enshrined at Cooperstown. Incredibly, he led the league in runs, doubles, average and total bases, boasting a line of 141 runs, 215 hits, 36 homeruns, 123 RBIs, 15 stolen bases with a .358 BA (the highest for a right-handed hitter since Joe DiMaggio in 1939), .414 OBP, .631 SLG and 1.045 OPS. The Mariners were in the AL West race until September, when the Juan Gonzalez-led Rangers pulled away. Rodriguez just missed becoming the youngest MVP winner in history because of Juan Gone, who didn’t lead the league in a single category. Thus far in his career, Rodriguez has won three MVPs, four fewer than Barry Bonds.
