Posts about RG3

Lingering questions, comments and concerns about the NFL’s wild-card weekend

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My initial plans were to post my comments yesterday, with the action from Sunday still fresh in my mind. Unfortunately, my body decided to get a flu sometime Friday night so I ended up watching the wild card games huddled in blankets. Now i’m back on track to 100% so I can post some thoughts that are still on my mind from Sunday’s games. Before I get to that, I know i’m not the first person to say that the games were a bit underwhelming as a whole. That changed Sunday so all is well that ends well.

How effective can the Texans be with Schaub? I picked the Bengals mostly because I thought the Texans were in a major rut, particularly at the QB position. Foster was much better (32 car, 140 yds, 1 TD) and defense was solid but even after all that, the Bengals still had a strong chance to win game at the end. Dalton and the Bengals weren’t able convert on 3rd down the entire game but it always felt like the Bengals were in. To Schaub’s credit, he did convert a nice pass to basically seal the game for Houston but how much further can they advance?

Are the Packers the scariest team in the NFC? Poor Adrian Peterson, I really feel bad that a RB of his caliber has to be stuck with such mediocre play at QB. The Packers threw absolutely everything at him, daring the Vikings pass game to keep up with the Packers and it ended up working for Green Bay. What surprised me the most about the Packers offense was how effective their running game was. The Packers used a Harris-Kuhn combo very well, particularly in the red zone to further open up the passing game of Aaron Rodgers and co. The result was Rodgers being able to find 10 different receivers. Scary.

Is Joe Flacco taking that next step? Flacco gets a lot of crap for calling himself “elite” and among the top quarterbacks in the league but he played very well against the Colts. It doesn’t hurt when his best receiver Boldin (145 yds, 1 TD) is able to catch any bomb that’s thrown his way. Yes, the Colts secondary isn’t known for shutting teams down but it’s the kind of game that any quarterback can use as momentum heading forward. Oh yeah, we get it Ray Lewis, it was your last home game. Stop dancing and save the energy for when you’re in Denver this weekend.

Should RG3 have kept playing? One of the hottest topics around the league yesterday and that was before it was being reported that he partially tore ligaments in a previously injured knee. The field was terrible and is part of blame but how much should land on head coach Shanahan and the rest of the Redskins staff? Chances are that this won’t be the only time RG3 is in the postseason so why would the Redskins risk a “do or die” playoff attitude right now? One of the biggest reasons people are questioning this decision not bench RG3 is because back up Kirk Cousins has shown the capability to lead them to a victory.

Ps. How great was it that Russell Wilson sprinted past Marshawn Lynch to block for him (pictured above) on the go ahead TD for the Seahawks?

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Taking a closer look at the wild card round: NFC

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Now it’s time to look at the better conference this round. No offense to the AFC but there’s a reason both of the NFC games were scheduled at the second game, they’re the match ups that are going to attract more viewers because they both hold potential to be classic games. Quick tangent: do fans realize that there’s a chance that the Packers and Seahawks can meet in the conference championship game? That’s pretty crazy considering what happened earlier in the season between those two teams. I’m getting a little ahead of myself but I just wanted to point that out. Let’s take a look at this side of the tournament.

Key match ups: In the Packers-Vikings game, the key to each team is pretty simple: how much can you stop the other team’s best player? Adrian Peterson is clearly the best RB in the league and Aaron Rodgers is arguably (definitely on Brady/Manning level) the best QB in the league so the defenses for each team will have their work cut out for them. This was the last game of the regular season and the Vikings won the game but this time it will be at Lambeau. It’ll be cold so who does that benefit more? Peterson breaking the record of rushing yards in a single playoff game (248) is definitely in play.

The final game this weekend will feature two rookie QBs that have been incredible for their own teams throughout the season. Redskins-Seahawks in the nation’s capital will surely have fireworks and i’m very excited for this game. These teams play a very similar style on offense. Both have an excellent running game, they take care of the football AND both RG3 and Russell Wilson are dual threat style QBs. How much will RG3′s injury hold him back? It was evident against my Cowboys that he’s not 100% but still remained somewhat effect on the ground. Can Seattle play at elite level when they’re on the road? They’re weren’t good outside of Seattle for most of the season but they did have a signature road win against the Bears in early December.

Prediction: This is a quarterback driven league and as much damage as Peterson can do, I don’t think it will be enough to overcome how good the Packers are at home. The Packers are going to throw everything at Peterson and dare Christian Ponder to carry more of the Vikings’ offense throughout the game. Would you bet on Ponder? I’m putting my money on Rodgers. Now the other game was harder for me to pick. Essentially the Redskins and Seahawks are the same team on offense with the exception of RG3 not being 100% healthy. The biggest difference is that Seattle has been playing MUCH better on defense than the Redskins have and I think that will be the determining factor in this game. I’m taking the Seahawks on the road but I think it will be a very close game filled with excitement.

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Playoff picture begins to take shape after week 13 in the NFL

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Carolina Panthers v Kansas City Chiefs

Amid impossible circumstances, the Kansas City Chiefs were able to take the field and come out with a victory. There was a question of whether or not the game would even be played but coaches and players decided among themselves that it would be best to play. If only to take their minds off the tragic circumstances even for a few hours. The Chiefs handled and responded as well as anyone could ask for but as always, the show must go on. This weekend featured upsets, great rookie performances and some of the more elite teams clinching division titles along with playoffs berths. We’ll start with the rookies because Andrew Luck and Russell Wilson were the the definition of clutch when their teams needed them the most, on the road. Both rookies weren’t exactly lighting it up but they were both able to manage the game and made the plays, both executing on the last play of their respective game. Of course, last night featured RG3 and while he didn’t dazzle by his terms, Griffin did enough to take a key divisional victory to keep the Redskins playoff hopes alive.

Teams that are officially in the playoffs (Falcons, Patriots, Texans and Broncos) with the Texans being the only one that didn’t clinch their division but odds are they will clinch eventually. Although, if you look at their schedule (Pats, Colts, Vikings and Colts again) there’s an outside shot that the Texans don’t win their division. However unlikely, it’s amazing that the possibility of the Colts winning the AFC south is out there. With the surprising victory of the Steelers, the AFC north just got much more interesting and even more so because out of the three contenders, the Ravens have the toughest schedule. The NFC north is just as interesting after Bears were upset at home and gave the division lead to the Packers so anything is possible with those two teams. And of course the Redskins won last night, making the NFC east a tighter race and giving Cowboys fans like myself false hope of making the playoffs. 

I fully expect the Broncos (-10) to annihilate the Raiders on Thursday. The Broncos continue to roll and the Raiders are one of the five worst teams in league with little improvement in sight.

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