Projo Fantasy Sports Blog

December 3, 2007 Archives

By David Ferris

Herm Edwards was critiqued for his "Grandfather Clock" idea a few years ago. Perhaps he was just ahead of his time.

Edwards, as the story goes, felt his Jets were wasting too many timeouts and having problems with end-game strategy, so he brought Dick Curl in as a quality-control coach prior to the 2004 season. It made Edwards an easy target, and honestly, it didn't seem to improve New York's late-game strategy at the time, so the idea essentially was dismissed out of hand by the rest of the league.

Fast forward to 2007, where plenty of head coaches need a common-sense voice to save them from themselves. Week 13 provided several examples. Joe Gibbs cost the Redskins a win by not understanding the time-out rules. Sean Payton decided to run a double-reverse to a fumble-prone wideout while protecting a late lead; the subsequent turnover sparked Tampa Bay's comeback. Romeo Crennel didn't properly stack his timeouts before the 2-minute warning in Arizona, costing his offense time it desperately needed at the end. Andy Reid's team so routinely butchers the clock, he should be teaching the graduate class in how to squander points.

While I scratch my head and wonder why head coaches can't seem to manage the final five minutes of a ballgame, let's shift our focus back to the players on the field.

It's easy to see how Tony Romo's basketball background helps his quarterback play; he understands spacing so well. He's a master at sliding in the pocket, buying an extra second, finding an open lane to throw. Mobility in a quarterback is often misunderstood; the best quarterbacks use their feet as a way of extending plays and making downfield connections, not merely settling for a cheap scramble here and there.
Oakland's previous coaching staff slapped the "not durable" tag on Justin Fargas and never bothered to reopen the argument. Give credit to the new regime for giving Fargas a shot to handle a full workload, something he's done very well, thank you, over the last five weeks (137 touches, 669 total yards). And at this point in the show, I'm contractually obligated to mention that the shifty Fargas is the son of Antonio Fargas, "Huggy Bear" from the 1970s show Starsky and Hutch. Scores of fantasy owners have punched their playoff tickets over the last month due to the work of "Baby Bear."
If the Colts don't get a healthy Marvin Harrison back for January, I give them zero chance to return to the Super Bowl. Teams are blitzing Peyton Manning more than anytime in recent memory, a clear sign that clubs are less afraid of getting punished by the vertical passing game. Mind you, Manning was on his game the last two weeks and made the Falcons and the Jaguars pay anyway, but better defenses will cause him problems given how the Indy offense is currently constructed.

The Steelers are going to regret not having a physical back to compliment Willie Parker come playoff time. Parker's been ordinary at best as the featured back this year; he's not making as many explosive plays as we're used to seeing, and he's having problems with ball security.

Quick Hits:

Vinny Testaverde's success in Carolina reminds us that half of quarterback play is between the ears ... I know a lot of football fans, personally and professionally, but I can't produce anyone who's enjoying Bryant Gumbel's stumbling work on NFL Network games. The only thing that keeps me from the mute button is the timely insight from analyst Cris Collinsworth . . . I hope Jason Campbell put "pocket awareness" on his holiday list because he doesn't have any of it right now. There are too many negative plays in that passing game right now, and most of them are No. 17's fault ... Ladell Betts got all of two touches in Washington's most important game of the year Sunday. Why, exactly, was he signed to that healthy extension in the off-season? ... Vince Young is slowly starting to make strides in the passing game over the last month, and he's doing it with arguably the thinnest receiving corps in the league . . . A month of rest wasn't a magical cure-all for the plodding Shaun Alexander ( 3.3 yards a carry). He's slow to the hole and makes nothing on his own ... DeAngelo Williams routinely outplays DeShaun Foster whenever he's given a chance at extended work. Just how good are those Polaroids Foster has in his possession? ... Adrian Peterson can make any offensive line look good, but Minnesota's run-blocking is far and away the best in the league. The tip of the cap doesn't stop with the front five; Jim Kleinsasser is a blocking machine at tight end, and the receivers have all been coached very well in this area ... I was on the Earnest Graham bandwagon as early as anyone, but props also go out to Jon Gruden, who's doing his best coaching job since the Super Bowl year. When you make Luke McCown look like a Pro Bowler for three hours, you've worked a miracle.