NFL: News, Notes, and Observations for Tuesday
Is there about to be a new starting quarterback in Tennessee? The Niners will be taking the field with new signal caller under center this weekend. Find out who JaMarcus Russell is beginning to remind me of. Larry Johnson finally gets his wish. And just who do I think is the most explosive player in the league right now?
Vince Young to Start?
Bud Adams has been making it known that he wants to see Vince Young get more playing time and now it is being reported that the Titans’ owner is through waiting for Fisher to pull the trigger. He reportedly told his head coach last week that he wants to see Vince Young start the upcoming game against the Jaguars.
I had always assumed Fisher would make the decision to yank Collins in favor of Young after the Titans dropped to 0-6 following the Patriots game. Honestly, what does Fisher have to gain by running Collins out there for the rest of the season?
At 36 years of age Collins is obviously not the long term solution for the Titans at quarterback, nor has he ever been a consistently good quarterback over the course of his career to begin with. One can easily understand why the Titans brought Collins back to be the starter this season. After all he led them to a 13-3 record last season. He deserved the chance to come back and try to do it all over again, but, it has not worked out this year and Fisher just needs to cut his losses and go with Young.
The Titans are coming to a crossroads with Young and need to decide whether he is going to be the long term solution for them at quarterback or not. He is only 26 so he theoretically has another 8 to 10 good seasons in front of him provided he stays healthy. With the team potentially looking at a pick in the top six next April they need to know if they need to consider taking a quarterback or not.
Action Jackson
The popular opinion circulating around mainstream media these days is Adrian Peterson is the best football player in the league. While it is tough to argue Peterson is the best I am here to tell you that Philadelphia’s DeSean Jackson is the most dynamic player in the league. Consider that he has three touchdown catches, one rushing touchdown, and one punt return for a touchdown.
He leads the league with six plays from scrimmage of 40 yards or more including five receptions and one rushing play. He has touchdown catches of 71, 64, and 57 yards, a 67-yard touchdown run, and an 85-yard punt return for a touchdown. It simply incredible how much speed he possesses and when he gets into the open field it does not seem as though anybody can catch him. He just seems to have an extra gear that nobody else in the league has.
Alex Smith Gets the Nod in San Fran
On the heels of almost leading the Niners back from a three touchdown deficit head coach Mike Singletary announced Monday that Alex Smith would get the nod under center against the Colts this weekend. It is a somewhat interesting move considering Shaun Hill was given the job despite not having an overwhelmingly strong pre-season this summer. It was widely believed that Singletary was not keen on Smith being his quarterback and the team would look deal him this spring.
It appears that the shoe is now on the other foot in San Francisco. After a lackluster six quarters of football in which the Niners offense generated just 10 points Hill was yanked at the half against the Texans this past weekend. Given that Singletary is seeing the season slip through his fingers one wonders if this is a move desperation by him. Since starting the season 2-0 the Niners have dropped 3 of their last four games and the offense has struggled to put points on the board and the team has had to rely on the defense to put points on the board.
Is it an act of desperation or is the fact that Smith has developed a better rapport with rookie wide receiver Michael Crabtree? Smith reportedly worked out with Crabtree the most during the off season and worked with him the most since he signed his deal since he initially was not getting any reps with the regular offense while he got his feet under him.
The presence of Crabtree in the lineup definitely makes the passing game more dynamic. It gives teams someone they need to think about on the outside and they can no longer stack the box against the run or dedicate a safety to covering Vernon Davis. Is it co-incidence that Davis grabs three touchdown passes in Crabtree’s first game of the year?
JaMarcus Russell = Michael Vick
The Raiders moved closer to pulling the plug on the JaMarcus Russell experience when head coach Tom Cable yanked him in favor of Bruce Gradkowski Sunday. One has to wonder what the team is waiting for in naming Gradkowski the starter. Granted, Gradkowski is likely not the long term solution in Oakland but it is becoming painfully obvious that Russell is not either and leaving him out there seems to be stunting the growth of the rest of the young players on offense.
The kicker of it all is Russell does not seem to really care that much. He offered up suggestions after the game that it was not his fault and that he was playing as well as he could. Haven’t we seen this act before? It reminds me of how Michael Vick chose to play in Atlanta. Vick decided early on that he was so superior from an athletic standpoint that he did not need to put in the extra work necessary to be an elite quarterback in the NFL. He had always gotten by with his athletic ability up until now so why change. Just like Russell has always gotten away with having a superior arm and not having to actually read and react to defenses prior to playing in the NFL.
There are those who keep suggesting that if Russell had better receivers and got better protection from his offensive line then he would be an elite quarterback. The Raiders have spent the last two drafts giving Russell the skill players he needs to succeed and he still is not getting any better. Why is it that I cannot help but think that doing off season film work for Russell consists of sitting his fat butt in front of the TV playing the latest version of Madden for three months? It would explain why he showed up at camp this summer carrying almost three bills on his frame. What Russell really needs is a coach who is going to kick him in the butt and force him to be more disciplined in terms of his off-the-field regimen.
Larry Johnson Exiled
Kansas City’s may have finally got his wish: Banishment from the Kansas City Chiefs. After posting a disparaging remark about head coach Todd Haley and using a gay slur on his Twitter account the other night the team has told him to stay at home pending an internal investigation. Which is probably fine by Johnson considering he really has not wanted to be there since the middle of last season.
He has been rumored to be in Haley’s dog house most of the season and it has been reported on more than one occasion that Haley was leaning towards benching Johnson in favor of backup Jamaal Charles. Given how poorly Johnson has played this season one wonders why Charles has not been inserted in the lineup already. Considering how bad the offense in general has been this season for the Chiefs they have nothing to lose by starting Charles. Many believe this will be Johnson’s last year in Kansas City and this latest stunt could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.
