2016 NFL Week Three

@ New England Patriots 27, Houston Texans 0

• This is Week Three of the Absurd Tom Brady Banishment.
• The referee on this game was Walt Coleman, one of my favorites. For why, see Week Two.  He refereed the Colts-Broncos game.
• I was surprised that New England even had to challenge the fumble by Houston kick returner Charles James that occurred with 2:01 left in the first quarter. That looked pretty obvious to me.
• New England quarterback Jacoby Brissett’s 27-yard touchdown run with just under two minutes left in the first quarter was nothing short of electrifying. Wow!
• Houston has a cornerback named Kevin Johnson. Every time I heard his name, I thought of the former Phoenix Sun who was my favorite NBA player when I was growing up.[1]
• Houston did not even run a play from Patriots territory until there was 1:15 left in the 3rd quarter.
• Houston was its own worst enemy in this game, turning the ball over with regularity, but the Patriots also had an outstanding game plan. They shortened the game with a ball-control offense that only passed when they had to.  Kinda like the Giants did in Super Bowl XXV against the Bills.[2]
• New England punter Ryan Allen also had a great game: of his seven punts, six pinned Houston inside the 20.
• This win proves even more that New England is a team, not a quarterback.

@ Buffalo Bills 33, Arizona Cardinals 18

Note: I watched this game a few hours after it happened.  I hadn’t even finished watching half of Week Two’s games yet when I watched this game.

• The Cardinals never play well in Buffalo. It doesn’t matter who is on either team – they never play well here.  Their last win in Buffalo was in 1971, before Rich Stadium Ralph Wilson Stadium New Era Field, which opened in 1973 and is the 7th oldest stadium in the NFL, was even built.
• The Bills tend to be good at home, especially against the NFC, even when they’re having a bad season. A lot of it has to do with the strange wind patterns inside the stadium.[3]
• Arizona did not make a first down until there were 8:28 left in the second quarter.
• Huge point swing happened with 2:49 left in the 3rd quarter when Arizona went for it on 4th and 1 from the 7. They did not get the snap off in time and took a delay of game penalty.  On the ensuing field goal attempt, long snapper Kameron Canaday snapped the ball waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay over the holder’s head, and Buffalo safety Aaron Williams recovered it and returned it 53 yards for a touchdown.  So, instead of the score being either 23-14 or 23-10, it was 30-7.
• Why didn’t Arizona safety Tyrann Mathieu fall on the football instead of trying to be a hero with 8:44 left in the fourth?!??? He tried to run it back before securing possession of it (twice).  That was a golden opportunity that could have sparked a comeback.
• Arizona looked so bad. Quarterback Carson Palmer looked horrendous.  How embarrassing.  And yet they still very easily could have won.

Minnesota Vikings 22, @ Carolina Panthers 10

• After Carolina quarterback Cam Newton ran the ball in for his team’s first touchdown (with 5:20 left in the first quarter), his celebratory dance summed up why so many people don’t like him. MANY people take that as showboating – and few people like a showboat.[4]
• Another note about that touchdown – it was the 45th rushing touchdown of Newton’s career. That is the most by a quarterback in NFL history – and he’s only in his sixth season.
• On the ensuing kickoff, due to an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, Carolina kicker Graham Gano kicked off from the 50, and tried to boot the ball through the uprights as it went into something like the 20th row of the stands. I’ve always wondered why, in that situation, the kicker does that instead of trying to pooch kick it super-high in the air near the goal line.  Wouldn’t that make more sense strategically, especially with kickoff touchbacks putting the ball on the 25-yard line?
• When Carolina jumped to an early 10-0 lead, it looked to me like they were going to take control of the game early. Then Minnesota defensive end Danielle Hunter sacked Cam Newton in the end zone for a safety, and eeeeeeeeeverything changed.
• With 3:21 left in the second, Carolina punted out of its own end zone. I thought Minnesota punt returner Marcus Sherels was going to get creamed as the ball got there.  Instead, he caught the ball, ran through a nice running lane, cut left, and flew up the sideline untouched for a 54-yard touchdown.  That play was executed PERFECTLY.
• Minnesota tight end Kyle Rudolph made a spectacular catch to score his team’s second touchdown with 9:43 left in the third. He leapt up and grabbed the ball from above his opponent’s head, and tiptoed to keep his feet inbounds.  It was kind of weird, though – at first, it looked rather ordinary, and then with every replay it became more amazing.
• Carolina receiver Ted Ginn Jr. was upset that a pass interference penalty was not assessed on an incomplete pass thrown toward him with 7:31 left in the third. First thing, the ball was well out of his reach, and secondly, it looked like the players’ legs got tangled up, anyway.
• The announcing team seemed surprised that Minnesota wasn’t flagged for the hit on Newton when they sacked him with 11:30 left in the fourth. Then, when the replay showed, they weren’t surprised anymore.  The hit was as clean as a whistle.
• On the very next play, Carolina punter Andy Lee thundered an awe-inspiring punt out of the back of his own end zone[5] with 11:16 left in the 4th. Sherels caught it on his own 33, meaning that the ball traveled about 75 yards in the air.
• Minnesota receiver Adam Thielen made a slick one-handed over-the-shoulder grab with 6:53 left in the fourth.
• Minnesota sacked Cam Newton eight times. That’s amazing.  Do you know how hard it is to sack the elusive Cam Newton?  It’s like trying to sack a 6’5” version of Spider-Man.

Denver Broncos 29, @ Cincinnati Bengals 17

• Cincinnati cornerback Adam Jones just plain got torched by receiver Emmanuel Sanders on Denver’s first touchdown (13:57 left in the second quarter).
• I love the professionalism of Cincinnati running back Jeremy Hill. When he scores a touchdown, he goes over to the nearest official, hands him the ball, and then runs back to his team.  On his first touchdown in this game, he barreled over a Denver linebacker right after he crossed the goal line.  What did he do?  He reached down and helped him up.  Then he began what he normally does after scoring a touchdown.
• Blocked kicks always look cool, and the blocked extra point with 28 seconds left in the second quarter was no exception.
• I’m glad catch/no catch wasn’t over analyzed when Denver receiver Demaryius Thomas fumbled with 10:00 left in the third.
• Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton busted loose with a couple of nice scrambles in the third quarter. I didn’t realize that he can run as well as he does.
• After Cincinnati took a 17-16 lead in the third, either Denver turned it up or Cincinnati fell apart. I’m not sure which one.

@ Green Bay Packers 34, Detroit Lions 27

• Thom Brennaman called the play-by-play for this game. I always enjoy his broadcasts.  He’s one of my all-time favorite announcers.
• This was the Packers’ home opener.
• On Green Bay’s second touchdown, quarterback Aaron Rodgers scrambled out of trouble and ran toward the line of scrimmage, which was the 11. The Detroit defenders didn’t know what to do – run forward and tackle him or stay home and defend the nearby receivers.  As the linebacker started to move toward Rodgers, Rodgers fired a strike right into the chest of receiver Jordy Nelson for a touchdown.  What a great weapon the Packers have at quarterback.
• In the second quarter, Rodgers unleashed a long bomb for receiver Trevor Davis, who had Detroit cornerback Nevin Lawson staying with him stride-for-stride. Davis appeared to put out his left arm in an attempt to push Lawson away and ended up falling down.  The back judge threw a flag, and astonishingly called Lawson for defensive pass interference, when the foul clearly should have been offensive pass interference.  What a terrible call!
• …or so I thought. The replay, from a close-up view, showed that Lawson had a hold of Davis’ right bicep and had a hand in his back.  Davis didn’t try to push Lawson off of him – Lawson pulled on Davis’ right arm, which threw Davis off-balance and caused him to fall.  It was actually a great call by the back judge, who was right on top of the play.
• Detroit receiver Martin Jones, Jr. made a nice leaping grab in the second quarter.
• At one point in the second quarter, Fox showed a closeup of the Packers’ Ring of Honor. The name they focused on was John McNally, better known as Johnny Blood.  This is the greatest football nickname [6]
• With 30 seconds left in the first half, Jones, Jr. made an even more spectacular grab than the aforementioned one. He spun as he caught it and then left his defender in the dust, scoring a touchdown.
• The Detroit defense did not get a stop until 9:30 left in the fourth quarter.
• What an effort by Detroit to claw back into this one!
• Marvin Jones, Jr. was almost unstoppable in this game. The Packers couldn’t guard him.

Baltimore Ravens 19, @ Jacksonville Jaguars 17

• Before this game, I found out that Jacksonville quarterback Blake Bortles has thrown only three first-quarter touchdown passes in his entire career. That’s…I have no words.
• It’s not a good sign when a team muffs the opening kickoff – and that is exactly what Jacksonville did. Fortunately for them, they recovered it – and recovered from it.
• Jacksonville got a great punt return by Rashad Green with 5:45 left in the second.
• Did Baltimore get bailed out at the end of the first half or what? That silly 15-yard penalty (for leaping and landing on an opponent without touching the ball) gave Justin Tucker a second chance right after he had missed a 57-yarder – except now it was a much more doable 42-yarder, which, of course, he made. When that happened, I wondered aloud if that would have a difference in the game. Things like that usually do.
• I’m glad sanity prevailed on Allen Robinson’s touchdown catch.[7]
• Was anyone else as surprised as I was that Baltimore returner extraordinaire Devin Hester muffed that punt in the fourth?
• Crazy sequence in the fourth: interception by Jacksonville, interception by Baltimore, interception by Jacksonville, blocked field goal attempt by Baltimore,[8] field goal by Baltimore, interception by Baltimore.
• Jacksonville lost a golden opportunity to extend their lead when Baltimore blocked that field goal.
• Baltimore kicker Tucker kicked the go-ahead 53-yard field goal so calmly…wow. I was impressed.
• What a choke job by Bortles on second down of the attempted game-winning drive. He HAS to get rid of the football there!
• Jacksonville should have won this game. They only have themselves to blame.

@ Miami Dolphins 30, Cleveland Browns 24 (OT)

• This was Miami’s home opener. Their stadium has just been remodeled, and it is GORGEOUS.  Check out the website – it’s worth it.
• Cleveland wasn’t playing very well in the first half, so the Pick Six was HUGE.
• After Miami built an 11-point lead, they did not blow it. Cleveland fought hard and came back.
• Cleveland’s strip-sack to set up the potential game-winning field goal in regulation was an outstanding play. That was not a choke by Miami.
• Cleveland’s poor kicker had one of those days we all dread. Cody Parkey missed three field goals wide left – one from 41 yards, one from 42 yards that hit the left upright, and one from 46 yards that would have won the game.
• When Cleveland punted with just under 10 minutes left in overtime, Britton Colquitt didn’t kick it cleanly, and I had a feeling the Browns were in trouble. They were, since the Dolphins scored the game-winning touchdown on the ensuing drive.

Washington Redskins 29, @ New York Giants 27

• When this game started, I wondered why Fox put their #1 announcing team on this game. Then it turned out to be one of the best games of the season so far.
• That punt return by Jamison Crowder with 12:59 left in the second started off being risky, and then he turned it into a really nice return.
• What a lousy job of clock management at the end of the first half by Washington. I thought they made a good decision to spike the ball instead of using their last timeout when they neared the goal line, but then Kirk Cousins tried to do too much on what ended up being their last snap, and they came up empty-handed.
• What a great job on the wide receiver screen Washington ran with 9:45 left in the third! The offensive line made several key blocks, and Crowder did a nice job breaking tackles en route to a 55-yard touchdown.
• Washington got cheated out of an interception with 6:31 left in the third. That was an overanalysis.  He made a great play to intercept the ball, and I thought he kept his left hand on the ball the whole time.
• WOW! What a catch by Washington tight end Jordan Reed with 5:34 left in the third!
• That fake punt by Washington with 3:21 was gutsy – and executed well. Punter Tress Way threw a nice pass, and the receiver – cornerback Quentin Dunbar – made a spectacular catch.
• Washington had a lot to feel good about and be proud of in this game. It was a good win.

Oakland Raiders 17, @ Tennessee Titans 10

• Stat shown before the game: at home the past two seasons (plus this year), the Titans are 2-0 against Jacksonville and 0-15 against the rest of the league. Their last non-Jacksonville home win was December 29, 2013 against Houston.  That’s just plain sad.
• At one point in the game, mobile Tennessee quarterback Marcus Mariota ran a keeper to the left. When he got close to being tackled, he pitched the ball straight to the receiver on that side, but the receiver dropped it.  That receiver then fell on the ball.  The color commentator called it a “heads-up play” when he fell on it.  Uh, no.  A heads-up play would have been catching the ball and gaining more yards.  It looked to me like he dropped the ball due to not paying attention.
• Weird clock thing at the end of the half that kept Tennessee’s offensive stupidity from costing them three more points: Oakland safety Reggie Nelson intercepted a pass from Mariota at the Tennessee 46. He then returned the ball to the 34 and ran out of bounds with no time left on the clock.  Then, the referee turned on his microphone and instructed the clock operator to put three seconds on the game clock, giving Oakland kicker Sebastian Janikowski – who, moments earlier, had set the career record for most field goals from 50 or more yards out – a chance to kick a half-ending field goal.  Then the officials had a discussion and ended the half.  It turns out that the clock operator failed to start the clock when Tennessee snapped the ball, and the half really was over.
• Tennessee’s lack of discipline in crunch time cost them a golden opportunity to tie this game. With 1:02 left in the game, Tennessee receiver Tajae Sharpe caught a pass and ran the ball to the Oakland 3 for a 19-yard gain.  However, left tackle Taylor Lewan was called for a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty as the play ended when he clobbered an Oakland defender after the whistle, so the Titans had 1st-and-10 from the 18 instead of 1st-and-goal from the 3.  Three plays later, after Andre Johnson had caught the apparent 13-yard game-tying (if the kicker made the subsequent PAT) touchdown, Johnson was called for offensive pass interference for a blatantly obvious shove.  Two plays later, Tennessee turned the ball over on downs.
• Tennessee head coach Mike Mularkey had better be glad that I’m not his GM after his play-calling and his team’s lack of discipline in this game. That’s all I’ll say.

@ Seattle Seahawks 37, San Francisco 49ers 18

• Boy, Seattle started with a bang, didn’t they? They scored 42 seconds into the game, capped off by a long run.
• Seattle receiver Doug Baldwin made an incredible catch with 10:31 left in the first quarter.
• The first four penalties of the game were holding, and they all occurred within the first five minutes.
• That first half was a thorough whoopin’. Seattle dominated.
• Seattle punt returner Tyler Lockett made an electrifying 62-yard punt return with 11:20 left in the third. That was as exciting a punt return that I’ve seen that didn’t result in a touchdown.
• The Russell Wilson left knee injury with 10:11 left in the third was painful to watch.
• I thought that San Francisco would make a game out of this like they did against Carolina…but they didn’t. Seattle did a good job putting them away.

Los Angeles Rams 37, @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers 32

• The Great Dick Stockton called the play-by-play for this game. When I hear him announcing something[9], I half expect to start hearing Tommy Heinsohn follow up with some analysis of Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, or one of the other players for the 1980s Lakers or Celtics.[10]
• This was Tampa Bay’s home opener.
• It was a pretty idiotic move by Los Angeles linebacker Alec Ogletree to pile onto Jameis Winston after he was sacked with 3:00 left in the second.
• Tampa Bay looked to be taking control of the game in the second quarter – and then they turned the ball over, letting Los Angeles back into the game. It is sooooooo important to take care of the football.
• When the Rams were called for a false start with 43 seconds left in the half, the two running backs collided and fell down. High comedy.
• Gurley’s run with the stumble at the end with 1:50 left in the third quarter needed to be accompanied by a floor tom playing constant sixteenth notes, ending with three quarter note cymbal crashes/kick drum hits when he hit the ground.[11]. That would have made what already was a fun play to watch even better.[12]
• That missed tackle by Tampa Bay safety Keith Tandy that led to Los Angeles receiver Tavon Austin’s easy touchdown with 4:38 left in the fourth quarter elicited a groan and a disappointed head shake from me.
• Jameis Winston’s touchdown pass with just under 3:00 left in the fourth was pretty slick.
• This is one of the only two NFL games that I remember watching that was delayed by lightning.[13]
• Tough loss for Tampa Bay, and a lucky win for Los Angeles. Tampa Bay beat themselves with turnovers, dropped passes, missed tackles, a missed extra point, and a missed field goal.

@ Philadelphia Eagles 34, Pittsburgh Steelers 3

• Play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz mentioned that Ben Roethlisberger has never thrown a touchdown pass in this stadium.[14]
• I thought Pittsburgh was going to jump out to an early lead, since their offense started off so quickly. Then came the dropped touchdown pass, followed by the blocked field goal.  And I thought, “Nah…they’ll still be fine.”  Except they weren’t…
• What the heck was Pittsburgh linebacker Lawrence Timmons thinking with 2:23 left in the first? He thought that wouldn’t be called as a late hit?  Dumb!
• Eagles running back Darren Sproles’s catch followed by the weaving run for a 73-yard touchdown (with 12:54 left in the third) was nothing short of amazing.
• I have to tip my hat to the Philadelphia defense. They dominated Pittsburgh in this game.
• What a whoopin’. Everything went wrong for Pittsburgh, and everything went right for Philadelphia.

@ Indianapolis Colts 26, San Diego Chargers 22

• I got excited when I heard Kevin Harlan announcing this game.
• What a foolish play by San Diego defensive tackle Tenny Palepoi to get that 15-yard leverage penalty as Indianapolis kicker Adam Vinatieri made a 55-yard field goal with 4:39 left in the first. It turned three points into seven, since Indianapolis ended up scoring a touchdown.  When it happened, I wondered if it would affect the outcome.[15]
• San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers needs to stop missing wide open receivers.
• What a great strip-sack/fumble return for a touchdown by San Diego defensive tackle Caraun Reid with 55 seconds left in the first half!
• What a sloppy game. Turnover city…mistake after mistake by both teams.  Take, for example, the Indianapolis drive at the beginning of the fourth quarter where they ended up at 2nd-and-40 because they committed three ten yard penalties (one penalty, an incomplete pass, then two penalties in a row).
• After the penalty-laden drive, Indianapolis punted (of course), and for some bizarre reason, the San Diego punt returner, Travis Benjamin, did not call for a fair catch even though he needed to. Big mistake.  He got TATTOOED and fumbled, but a teammate recovered.
• The Chargers got a HUGE 43-yard gain on the ensuing drive when Rivers found Benjamin on a deep ball with 10:15 left in the 4th. Rivers, however, made a boneheaded taunt and knocked the Chargers 15 yards farther away from the goal line, so instead of 1st-and-goal from the seven, it was 1st-and-10 from the 22.  San Diego eventually had to settle for a field goal.
• Indianapolis receiver T.Y. Hilton’s 63-yard go-ahead touchdown showed a combination of lousy tackling by the Chargers and great juking/speed by Hilton.
• As San Diego drove to try and score the winning touchdown, the drive ended with a fumble by rookie tight end Hunter Henry with 1:11 left in the game. Henry did not secure the football well, and Indianapolis Clayton Geathers pounced on the opportunity, punching the ball out of Henry’s hands.  Safety Mike Adams fell on the ball, effectively sealing the victory for Indianapolis.  The Chargers had SOOOOOooooooo many opportunities to win this game.[16]

@ Kansas City Chiefs 24, New York Jets 3

• Going into this game, Kansas City had zero first half touchdowns.
• Great job by Kansas City to down Dustin Colquitt’s punt inside the one with 4:05 left in the first quarter.
• Fumbled kick returns hurt, but they’re made even worse when said fumble is returned for a touchdown, as New York demonstrated with 6:02 left in the second quarter.
• New York quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick had a nightmare of a game with those six interceptions, especially the three in the end zone, and Kansas City capitalized. New York also fumbled twice.  Eight turnovers.  And of those turnovers…Kansas City returned both a fumble and an interception for a touchdown.  Not much else to say.

@ Dallas Cowboys 32, Chicago Bears 17

• What a dumb challenge by Dallas with around 9:45 left in the first! Their player went out of bounds at the half-yard line for first and goal.  Why challenge that?  Is it worth giving up the challenge AND the timeout, especially when you’ll probably score anyway?
• I could tell very quickly that this game was a mismatch. I have no idea why it was even played on a Sunday night – you know, in the position reserved for the Game of the Week.[17]
• I have two friends who are Bears fans. They have already pretty much written off the season.  They also are upset with the Bears for releasing kicker Robbie “Good as” Gould – the best kicker in team history, and the Bears’ all-time leading scorer – because the team didn’t want to pay him the salary he had earned.
• Great job by Bears DB Jacoby Glenn to force the fumble with 12:04 left in the third quarter.
• This was the Cowboys’ first win at home since Week One of last season.

Atlanta Falcons 45, @ New Orleans Saints 32

• This game was fun to watch. Good win for the Falcons.
• Both teams have serious questions to answer on defense.
• The Saints have serious questions to answer about their football team in general. They can’t hold a lead.  They look like they couldn’t defend a high school team.  And quarterback Drew Brees is showing that he’s human.[18]  His streak of 309 consecutive passes without an interception ended in this game.

October 8, 2016, 11:35 am MST

[1] If you’re thinking, “Hey, the mayor of Sacramento is also named Kevin Johnson,” well…that’s because the former NBA player IS the mayor of Sacramento.

[2] The Giants’ offensive coordinator in that game?  Current New England head coach Bill Belichick.

[3] The basics: the field is 80 feet below street level.  All of the seats behind the end zones are, therefore, below street level.  The field is angled so that the west(ish) end zone is pointed straight toward Lake Erie, which is where the wind comes from most of the time.  The (often gusty) wind comes into the stadium and, because of the upper decks on the sidelines, dips down toward the field and swirls around.  When I learned this, I realized that Jim Kelly was an even greater quarterback than I thought, because he put up such great passing numbers playing in this nightmarish stadium for quarterbacks eight times per season.

[4] I personally think he’s an outstanding football player, and as long as he doesn’t go out of his way to humiliate an opponent in the process, he can dance and gesture all he wants.

[5] Fox announcer Chris Myers called it “a BOOMing kick.”

[6] He fully deserved his nickname.  The guy was a lunatic.  He sometimes would bust loose for a long breakaway touchdown run, stop short of the goal line, wait for defenders to catch up and try to tackle him, then drag them into the end zone.  He also was known for his off-field antics, which are too numerous to list here.  I’ll only list my favorite: after the Packers had won the NFL Championship in New York, they had a party on the team train back to Green Bay.  At one point, they had an impromptu towel fight.  Johnny snapped end Lavvie Dilweg with a particularly hard crack, which angered Dilweg, who chased Johnny through the railroad cars.  He trapped Johnny on the rear platform.  Johnny then vaulted up on top of the car and climbed across the moving train until he reached the engine compartment, where he rode out the rest of the trip.

[7] They tried to overanalyze it to see if he really REALLY caught the ball.

[8] That is, Baltimore blocked Jacksonville’s 52-yard field goal attempt.

[9] He currently announces football for Fox and baseball for TBS.

[10] Stockton and Heinsohn announced basketball for CBS back in the 80s – when every NBA Finals had at least the Lakers or Celtics in them – and continued until CBS lost the NBA contract to NBC after the 1990 Finals.

[11] Percussionists are laughing their heads off right now.

[12] You cannot deny this.

[13] The other one was a preseason game in Denver between the Cardinals and Broncos back in the early 90s.  I don’t know why I remember this.

[14] The game was played at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.

[15] As you can see from the final score, it did.

[16] And if the Chargers had won, we would be saying the same about the Colts.  Both teams were soooooooooooooooooo sloppy.

[17] Of course, I’ve heard some people claim that Sunday Night is reserved for “the Cowboys Game” because of the TV ratings that the Cowboys draw.

[18] Granted, he has little help around him, but still…