The 3M Report: Week Five
Welcome to this week’s edition of the “3M Report” – a weekly look back at the mayhem, magic and mishaps from around the NFL, focusing on situations and players that caught my eye or made me scratch my head in either awe or disbelief. So, let’s take a look at week number five of the NFL season.
Considering a well prepared Christian Ponder under center is usually a recipe for disaster, playing him at quarterback on a short week with very little practice time must have felt entirely hopeless for the Minnesota faithful. At least the coaching staff made the right choice by keeping Teddy Bridgewater on the sideline to rest his injured ankle for one more week. It’s much easier to digest a humiliating loss than it is to get over a season ending injury to your new franchise quarterback.
Jordy Nelson certainly made the most of his one reception Thursday night – a 66 yard touchdown catch late in the first quarter. That catch averted what could have been a fantasy football disaster for Nelson owners in a 42-10 blowout. One more thought, as well as Nelson and Randall Cobb have played so far this season, Thursday night we also observed the two Green Bay wide receivers who could really make a big difference offensively for this club down the stretch – rookies Davante Adams and Jeff Janis.
Since Brandon Marshall‘s amazing three touchdown performance (while hobbling around on one leg against the 49ers back in week two), he’s managed to record just six receptions for 69 yards and one score in the past three games. Hopefully Marshall gets on track soon.
Earlier in the week Tennessee coach Ken Whisenhunt said rookie running back Bishop Sankey would likely see more action against the Browns. Well, protecting a 28-3 lead would’ve been a perfect time to utilize the most talented runner on the Tennessee roster, but unfortunately for the Titans, Sankey ended up with just eight carries for the game. That 25-point lead also evaporated, resulting in a 29-28 loss at home to Cleveland.
It would be really interesting to see what Atlanta running back Antone Smith could do with a full workload. It seems like every week Smith is creating something out of nothing or breaking a long run off for an impressive score.
We all knew Giants running back Andre Williams could pound the football between the tackles, but who knew he could catch two passes in one game?
In his first NFL game, rookie Odell Beckham Jr. looked explosive and created space easily against the Atlanta secondary. OBJ’s ability to get open quickly will only help quarterback Eli Manning as he continues to master Ben McAdoo’s quick hitting west coast offense.
Jimmy Graham exited the Saints’ week five game in the second quarter with a shoulder injury, but even before the injury Graham seemed to be playing with a lack of focus and without his normal intensity. I’m not really sure what was going on, but it wasn’t your typical Graham performance.
Tampa Bay’s new home uniforms have the color scheme of a box of melted Crayola crayons.
Someone needs to tell Ryan Fitzpatrick that “Duck Dynasty” beards are reserved for offensive and defensive linemen – NOT journeyman quarterbacks. Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Fouts is the only signal caller to ever pull that look off successfully.
A week of football wouldn’t be complete without a 100 yard performance (and a fumble or two) from Dallas running back DeMarco Murray. I wonder what Bill Belichick would do with Murray? Permanent residence in the doghouse, perhaps?
From a wide receiver perspective, Dez Bryant is the best at creating space by out muscling and pushing the boundaries of legal physical contact in the end zone.
Oh, Reggie Bush….you’re so good at disappointing whenever you’re in the spotlight and deemed “the guy” for a particular game. Shame on me for believing.
All teams have ups and downs during the NFL season. Some teams improve week-to-week while others regress and vice versa. The Eagles, however, seem to relish in making a microcosm of these season long tendencies, performing like “Jekyll and Hyde” from game-to-game, quarter to quarter. The Eagles may be 4-1, but they’ll need to find some consistency in their weekly execution if they’re going to take the next step as serious contenders.
An ankle injury is certainly the main culprit, but we’ve now had back to back weeks of abysmal production from Calvin Johnson. I’m pretty sure that’s a sure sign of an impending apocalypse.
I was certainly critical of Buffalo head coach Doug Marrone when he announced the benching of E.J. Manuel in favor of the much traveled Kyle Orton. Well, Orton did his best Alex Smith imitation, dinking and dunking his way up and down the field to the tune of 308 passing yards and a comeback victory on the road against a tough Detroit team. I seriously doubt E.J. Manuel could have brought his team back from a 14 point deficit yesterday.
Through five games, the Baltimore Ravens have a grand total of three interceptions – two by defensive lineman Haloti Ngata. Nata’s agent should be on the phone trying to get shut down cornerback money for his 330 pound client.
Please get well soon Carson Palmer, the Arizona offense really needs you back ASAP.
That sound you heard on Sunday afternoon was a collective sigh of relief from Demaryius Thomas owners across the country. It was only a matter of time until Thomas exploded with a thunderous performance and a stat line of 8-226-2 certainly qualifies. Demaryius….welcome to the 2014 NFL season!
On a personal note, sometimes I have to pump the brakes a bit and enjoy the greatness that is Peyton Manning. I never really took the time to savor Dan Marino and his exceptional mastery of the quarterback position. I won’t make the same mistake with Peyton.
I’m pretty sure Jamaal Charles‘ owner wish their star running back could face the Patriots defense every week. With the exception of one 26-yard run, Charles found very little room to operate against the 49ers defense yesterday.
Darren Sproles….err, um….I mean Branden Oliver did great job tearing up the top ranked run defense of the New York Jets in San Diego. Oliver, wearing number 43, scored twice and was a weapon running the ball (114 yards) and catching passes (68 yards) from Phillip Rivers out of the backfield. Oliver is built a little bigger than Sproles (checking in at 5’8″, 208 lbs.) and he doesn’t have Sproles’ break away gear, but Oliver is compact, elusive with a low center of gravity and does a great job sifting through any creases at the line of scrimmage. He should be a much bigger part of the San Diego offense as the season progresses.
If you look up the word “chemistry” in a dictionary, one definition you’ll find describes “the complex emotional or psychological interaction between two people.” I’m pretty sure you could simply replace that definition with a video loop of Philip Rivers throwing one touchdown pass after another to Antonio Gates. Those two are truly the definition of “chemistry” on a football field.
At this stage of his career, you can tell Michael Vick is perfectly happy getting a check and holding a clipboard on the sideline for the New York Jets. Facing gigantic defensive linemen and lightning quick linebackers every Sunday has to be near the bottom of his agenda.
One interesting tidbit concerning Washington quarterback Kirk Cousins – the longer he as to process information in the pocket, the more his mechanics seem to break down. Cousins’ judgment also seems to become more questionable the longer he holds the ball. It’ll will be interesting to see how Cousins handles the tough Seattle defense tonight.
That wraps up this edition of the 3M Report and a look back at week number five of the NFL season. Next Monday, I”ll be leaving the 3M Report in the very capable hands of another DLF writer. So until I’m back for week number seven of the NFL season, here’s hoping all your fantasy starters perform well and avoid those nasty injuries. Follow Leo Paciga on Twitter – @FFhoudini
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