News, Notes & Rumors for week 2

nfl

 

News:

Injuries hit key players in the NFL again.  Ray Rice RB (BA) has a hip flexor.  WR Larry Fitzgerald (AZ) reinjured his hamstring but plans to play next week.  RB Reggie Bush (DT) has a knee sprain.  OT Ryan Clady (DV) has a Lisfranc strain and will be out several weeks.  WR Andre Johnson (HO) had a concussion but is expected to play next week.  RB Maurice Jones-Drew (JK) has an ankle sprain.  RB Eddie Lacy (GB) suffered a concussion. WR Malcom Floyd (SD) was carted off the field with a neck injury and is not expected to play any time soon.  NT Ian Williams (SF) broke an ankle and is out indefinitely.  S Eric Reid (SF) suffered a concussion.  S Tyvon Branch (OK) hurt his ankle and S Charles Godfrey (CR) is out for the year with an Achilles tear.  QB Brandon Weeden (CL) has a sprained thumb on his passing hand.

 

This Given Sunday site reports that three teams are in line for the first pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.  Those teams are 3) Tampa Bay 2) Cleveland and 1) Jacksonville.  The first pick will likely be QB Teddy Bridgewater QB of Louisville.

 

Another well known college QB  Johnny Manziel of Texas A&M, is undraftable according to Peter King.  I tend to agree with King.  I would not draft him at this point because he looks a lot like Ryan Leif to me.  Leif was a head case with a sense of entitlement he had not earned in the NFL.  Manziel seems to have that already in college.

 

The Seattle fans broke the world record for stadium noise level at 136 decibels.  That is similar to a jet engine.

 

An Orlando TV station apologized Sunday for broadcasting the Jaguars game rather than Manning vs. Manning.  By NFL rule they had to televise the local team.

 

 

Notes:

Chargers 33 Eagles 30 – SD won the game by holding the ball for over 40 minutes.  The Charger defense did a great job tackling which is the best way to slow down the Eagles.  The Eagle D got tired.  The Eagle O got back in the game and tied it late.  But the tired D gave up a long drive with less than 2 minutes remaining and the field goal to win it for SD.  Their primary issue on Defense seems to be blown coverages against the pass.

 

Raiders 19 Jags 9 – Raider QB Terrelle Pryor was solid again.  That opened the running lanes for the backs.  Jags have the worst O in the league (yes ever worse than the Browns).  The game between Cleveland and Jacksonville may determine the 1st overall pick.

 

Packers 38 Redskins 20 – It is clear to me that Robert Griffin III is not healthy.  He is not stepping into his throws.  That limits his power to just his arm and shoulder.  The Packers jumped out to a 24-0 lead and never looked back.

 

Bills 24 Panthers 23 – This game was back and forth until the Panthers lost 3 of their starting DBs.  Bills QB EJ Manuel drove the Bills down the field to win the game late.  The Bills D is really starting to come around.

 

Seahawks 29 49ers 3 – My pick of the 49ers+3.5 did not go well.  Colin Kaepernick could not get the O going.  But it was the running game that failed the team.  Gore and company did nothing and Kaep had to carry the load.

 

Ravens 14 Browns 6 – The issues with the Browns are the O line, QB, and D secondary.  Brandon Weeden was sacked 5 times and hit a bunch more.  For the details on this game check out my posting yesterday here on Fryingpansports.com.

 

 

 

Rumors:

I mentioned last week about the nasty jawing between teams going on around the league.  The NFL noticed that too and issued a “point of emphasis” on that issue.  We will see if that does any good.

 

The Bucs are in disarray.  At 0-2 it is unlikely that QB Josh Freeman will be back.  He and head coach coach Greg Schiano are not getting along.  The HC reportedly never liked Freeman.  The Bucs drafted QB Mike Glennon in the third round in 2013.  Freeman wants a trade but few teams will be interested in giving up a draft choice for a guy that will be a street free agent at the end of the season.  The Bucs players are getting tired of Schiano’s tactics and tough love.  There was the attempt to tackle the QB against the victory formation last year.  The bottom line is the team is 1-7 in their last 8 games.  A history of winning is necessary to make the players accept the tough coach approach.

 

The Browns may be looking for an excuse to bench Weeden in favor of either QB Jason Campbell or Brian Hoyer.  The Weeden injury will give the team a reason to make a change.  If nothing improves when Weeden is “healthy” he can start again.

 

According to ESPN there is a movement by the Jags fans to sign QB Tim Tebow.  The GM has said he is not interested in the free agent.  The movement was scheduled to start at 3:16 PM Monday.

 

 

 

That’s what I think.  Tell me what you think.

 

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He edits https://fryingpansports.com.  He has also published several novels on and a non-fiction work at http://www.merriam-press.com/.  Follow him on twitter @NNRonDSN to get the schedule of Special News, Notes and Rumors broadcasts.  You can hear the previous shows on https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/ and the live show Mondays at 6 PM Eastern time on The Bill Smith Radio Show.  

He also edits .  

To keep up with the News, Notes & Rumors podcasts, follow me on twitter @NNRonDSN.

 

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