Packer Venting

I've done plenty of venting on facebook about the outstanding Packers-Cardinals game yesterday, but what better way to get it totally out of my system than by writing a book about it in my blog?

If you like offense, this was a game for the ages. I am more of a defensive guy, so this was an ugly game in my eyes. Yes, it was filled with excitement and anxiety, but when punters only see the field when they have to hold for the extra point, then it's nothing more than arena football to me and we all know how many fans love that sport...not many.

Speaking of arena football...how about that game by Kurt Warner! More touchdowns thrown than incompletions. What's the big deal? I didn't hear announcers going nuts on Saturday when Michael Vick had 1 TD and only 1 incompletion. Maybe it's not such a great feat after all?

Warner obviously played great, but he has Dom Capers to thank for a lot of his success. Dom has a feeling that veteran quarterbacks who've seen it all, know how to beat the blitz, so he refuses to do so. Well Dom...they've also seen plenty of zone defenses and know exactly where the holes are and how to beat them. Every Packers loss this season was a result of getting beat in the air due to their weak secondary and no pass rush. Roethslisberger with 500+ yards...Favre with 7 TD's and no int's in 2 games...Rookie Josh Freeman throwing 3 TD's in his first NFL start. In all of those games, this vaunted 3-4 defense which is designed to confuse offenses with complex blitzes from all angles with different players, was played with a vanilla 3 or 4 person rush and a combination zone and man coverage. I will be even more upset if New Orleans blitzes him constantly and causes multiple turnovers and disrupts the offense that we could not stop.

I agree that guys like Favre and Warner can beat the blitz by getting rid of it quickly. However, both can be rattled and will turn the ball over if you get consistent pressure on them. If you sit back and let them throw, they will tear you apart, gain confidence and get very comfortable in the pocket. If you send 5 or 6 at them and play tight man coverage, you may get beat once or twice, but more often than not, you'll stop them.

Some fans had a problem with McCarthy trying a 54 yard field goal in the first half with the team down 24-7. At first I did, because I thought that distance was near the end of Crosby's range. However, seeing as he put the ball half way up the net and had the distance to make it from 60+, I have no problem with the call. McCarthy obviously was told my Crosby that his limit was 55-60. As long as it wasn't a stretch for him to get it that far, I'd rather take the 3 point opportunity than go for a 4th and 8.

One thing I will blame McCarthy for is not challenging the Hightower apparent fumble early in the 4th quarter. I think it was Jenkins or Jolly who made a great play and stripped the ball from him as he went to the ground. The initial replay appeared to show the ball was coming out before Hightower's knee/hip hit the ground. This would have been a huge turnover and let the Packers tie the game earlier. However, Arizona went on to get the second Fitzgerald push off a few plays later to go up 14. Would replay have over turned the on field decision that the runner was down? Probably. Even if they didn't, I felt the team needed momentum and it was definitely worth a time out if we did lose the challenge.

I don't want to be a sore loser, so I waited to discuss the officiating til now. It was horrible. Did it cost the Packers the game? Probably not, but it sure gave them a lot more to over come. The biggest issue seems to be a non facemask call on the last play which would have negated the final score. I don't mind that miss, because from where the ref was standing, he couldn't see the face mask even if he was looking right at it. The helmet to helmet hit on Rodgers the play before which would have kept it at 2nd and 7 instead of 2nd and 17 (Packers had a holding penalty on the play), that is also questionable as the Cardinal definitely led with his head, but I couldn't tell if it made contact with Rodger's helmet. So that one I won't argue about either.

The ones I have the most problem with involve Larry Fitzgerald. He's a great receiver, but Woodson owned him. However, twice Fitzgerald was allowed to put both hands on Woodson as if he was blocking him, then throw him to the ground leaving Fitz wide open for a TD. I can't argue star power because Woodson is one of the two favorites for defensive player of the year. These weren't minor push offs that receivers often get away with. Both were two hand grabs followed by a full extension push to the ground. One was even 5 feet in front of the back judge.

The other key call was when Cullen Jenkins got tackled on a 3rd down play and as he was going to the ground, his hand hit Warner in the head. This gave the Cards a first down and extended another TD drive. I agree that roughing had to be called because Jenkins made contact with the quarterback's helmet. However, the fact that he was tackled right in front of the QB and neither the ref or the umpire saw this is amazing. Assuming that is called, third down is replayed and the outcome could be different.

I assume that I'm not just being a homer in thinking we got the short end of the stick on a majority of the calls because even the Packer hater Troy Aikman was commenting on how the Packers weren't getting any breaks from the officials. And Karlos Dansby stated in his press conference when describing the last play that they 'got a break from the officials' when referring to the non facemask call. I've also had fans of other teams who had no interest in this game, tell me that they feel bad for Packers fans as the officials gave us a lot more to overcome.

Enough about the zebras. What rips my heart out the most is the fact that Rodgers missed Jennings on the first play of overtime. He not only had Rolle beat, but he was 5 yards past him! Rodgers said he misjudged the route Jennings was taking so he didn't put air under the ball. I'm sure that like me, he will be replaying that play in his head all off season!

As great as Rodgers played the final 3 quarters, he helped give Arizona life by making a terrible decision on the first play of the game. The tight end was not even open for a split second. It was a rookie type throw that was uncalled for. Any momentum the Packers had by kicking the Cardinals butt the week before was instantly lost with that play. If the Packers go down the field and score, then the Cardinals begin to realize that we own them. Instead they take advantage of it, make another play on the next drive by stripping Driver and before you know it, we're down 14-0 and they have swagger.

The only solace I can take with all this heartbreak is that the Packers have shown the past 9 weeks just how talented they are and what a bright future the organization has. Ted Thompson admitted earlier this year, that the team is rebuilding and year 3 (next year) is when they planned to be competitive again. The team is way ahead of the curve and with a few veterans mixed in to fill holes on the offensive line and defensive secondary, this could be a team that nobody wants to play in 2010 and 2011.

GO PACK GO!

ps> now my focus goes to my other favorite team...San Diego. If they lose to the Jets, I'll be more disappointed than this loss because the Jets have no business being on the field with the Chargers. Time to wipe Rex Ryan's smug grin off his face .

What could have been

I went through the week 16 rosters for the final 15 before I went to Vegas and made note of the line ups I would have started. Here's a list of some key performances and tough roster moves that each of the 15 made and how it affected the final standings.

Goonggoong29 ($1,000,000) - carried by McNabb and Chris Johnson. I would have started Stewart instead of LT because Tennessee is very good against the run and LT doesn't get the touches he used to, but LT came through with 2 TDs helping them to the million dollar first prize.

Beasts II ($100,000) - Adrian Peterson carried them to a late surge and Chris was one long TD run away from surpassing Detsinh. Made a great call by starting the Bengals DST (9 pts) against KC rather than the Giants (-6) against Carolina. If he would have started the Giants as I would have, he would have finished 6th and lost $95,000. It's also to be noted that Chris had the high week 16 score of the final 15 with 147.98.

Liquid HIppos ($40,000) - Jumped up 5 spots thanks to Peterson's big 2nd half Monday. I don't see any tough line up decisions he had. He started Vernon Davis at TE over Dallas Clark just as he had the previous 3 weeks, which was the smart move since nobody knew how long Indy's starters would play. Greg earned an extra $20,000 with the Bears getting a TD in OT versus a FG since NYTCxpress had the Vikings DST.

NYTCxpress ($20,000) - As stated above, Don ran into tough luck with the Vikings defense giving up a TD instead of a FG in OT which cost him 3 points and $20,000. However, Don was in this position by making some of the best lineup decisions in the field. He started Brent Celek (20.10 pt) over Dallas Clark (5.7) and Beanie Wells (15.30) at OP over Peyton Manning (7.68). He obviously felt that the Colts wouldn't play their starters more than one half. Don was let down by his receivers who scored a combined 18.7 pts. He had 2 wr's on the bench (Mason and Smith-nyg) who scored over 20 pts combined. I would have started Walker, Ocho Cinco and Miles as he did, but I couldn't argue using one of the other 2 receivers in place of Walker.

Pigskin McChickenz ($10,000) - They moved up one spot thanks to the last second Sidney Rice TD. This doubled their winnings and set them up to move up even higher. This offsets some of their bad luck from the noon game where Ricky Williams missed half the game with a shoulder injury while his replacement scored twice and racked up 90+ yards. They also were the only owners of Matt Schaub who scored 20 points in the first half and only .14 points in the second half. I feel Jerry's pain as I had Schaub in the Bellagio Bracket.

willboski3 ($5,000) - After a good start out of CJ on Thursday, Will was in position to win the million. He trailed only Goonggoong29 and the wheels were spinning in his head. When I talked to him on Friday, he had the right attitude....he was going to go for the million and didn't care if line up decisions back fired and made him finish 10th. Since he had many similar starters to Detsinh, he planned on putting Ward(3.7) or Mason(7.7) in for DeSean Jackson (9.0) and Indy DST (-2) for Philly (4). I also suggested Larry Johnson (1.1) for Moats (6.2) as I anticipated the Bengals winning easily and giving LJ a chance to get back at his former team. In the end, he only did the defensive change, which ultimately cost him 6 points and $35,000. It's easy to say now that you should just play your best players regardless, but he definitely needed to do something if he were to catch Detsinh. I'm the gambling type, so I admire someone who uses all their bullets and goes for it all rather than someone who plays cautious and concedes the top prize to try and settle for 3rd or 4th. Will...it's too bad you were unable to join us in Vegas because of your job. It would have been fun talking to you more about your decisions. Sounds like you had a great time back home with your friends watching the games. Too bad it didn't work out better for you.

w's marauders ($4,250) - no line up decisions that I see and nobody involved in the Monday night frantic finish to affect their standings

dream machine viii ($4,000) - Like Chris, Ron anticipated the Colts benching their starters so he sat Reggie Wayne (3.3). The decision was made easier by the fact he would have Darrel Revis guarding him when he did play. His replacement (Ward) only scored 3.7, but it was the smart move. He also had Donald Driver (3.3) as an option. I would have started Ward as well. Ron hit heartbreak in the early game when Derrick Mason dropped a wide open TD as he started Flacco. This extra 4+ points would have moved him up 1 more spot. The good news is that it would only have been an extra $250, so that helps lessen the pain.

Billy B's boys ($3,700) - Tytus decided to go with Peyton Manning. Probably going for the home run rather than play it safe. His other option was David Garrard, who's match up I liked. The extra 4.72 points that Garrard scored would have moved him up 2 spots for an extra $500. Had Peyton played the entire game, he surely would have outscored Garrard. I admire him going for it all, just as Will did with his team.

Skyt 2 hottie ($3,400) - In Scottie's case, I agree with starting Peyton Manning as his only other option was Mark Sanchez. Sanchez out scored Manning by .56, but I would never recommend starting Sanchez. Adrian Peterson helped move scottie up a few spots on Monday night.

shot caller10 ($3,000) - Only real lineup decision was Fred Davis or Brent Celek at TE. I would have gone with Davis as well since he's been hot. Both are good options and you couldn't fault him going either way. Had he started Celek, Matt would have vaulted up to 6th place and gained an extra $2000.

party @rapiddraft.com ($2,750) - Moved up 1 spot thanks to the Sidney Rice TD at the end of regulation. He also played Peyton Manning, but had no other QB's and would of had to put Moreno at OP. Playing Moreno would have moved him up a few spots and an extra $1,000, but I wouldn't have done it either.

The eraser ($2,500) - Dan went with his Colts (Wayne and Clark) where as I would have started Harvin and Finley. He also had Mason and Collie as an option at WR. Going with Finley and one of the other receivers would have moved Dan up 2 spots earning an extra $500.

boom goes my dynamite ($2,250) - Made a great move by starting Jonathan Stewart and his 20+ points. His other option was Jamal Charles. Unfortunately, even though he carried 3 defenses, John had terrible match ups with all of them. He went with Tennessee who had been playing well and was at home. I probably would have done the same, but they had -4. His other options were Chicago (5) vs Minnesota and Seattle (-9) at Green Bay.

Chateau 1 ($2,000) - Had a unique line up and I liked his chances to finish in the top 3. Ricky Williams getting hurt didn't help his cause nor did Minnesota's -3 on Monday night. His other defenses were at home with decent match ups (phil and Cin). Ron would have finished 9th if he started Philly and 7th if he went with Cincinnati. I would have gone with Philly, but I understand the Minnesota play. Cutler had been a turnover machine up until week 16.

Great job by all 14 owners to make it this far. I'm sure they had much tougher decisions in other weeks in which they made the right moves. You can have a great team, yet still make wrong moves and leave plenty of points on the bench. Fortunately, I don't see any tough decisions that ended up costing someone thousands of dollars. Fantasy football owners need short term memory just like NFL cornerbacks. If you always think about the move you could have made, you won't think clearly on your next move and it could cost you dearly.

Final 15 in Vegas

Twas the night after Christmas and all through the casino. The drinks were flowing and the final 15 hoped their players would hit home runs like the Great Bambino. They all had their eyes on the million dollar first prize. But the entire weekend everyone remained nice guys.

OK..enough with the cheese..time for the facts. Heading into the final weekend, the top 3 were Don, Detsinh and William. With the FFOC format of a cumulative score and week 16 counting for 1/3 of your score, it was anyone's game to win the million, but the teams at the top definitely had an advantage. I don't know how any of them got much sleep that week.

Saturday night after our Bellagio Bracket draft, all the finalists met at the Sportsbook bar for a champagne toast and some socializing. I met Ron and his son Ryan (below), who were the only owners with 2 teams in the finals. They had their whole family along to enjoy the experience and we had a great time talking about strategies and reflecting on the season that was. Like Ron, I felt his Chateu I team had a good chance to be the darkhorse winner because of his unique roster with good match ups. He was the only one with Grant and Ricky Williams who both had some of the best match ups for rb's. He was also the only team with Fitzgerald and his qb's (Favre and Big Ben) were only on one or two other teams. He definitely had the team to make up 16 points and vault from 9th to 1st. His family is full of great people and I wish them all the best in the future!

With Sunday came game day. Everyone found themselves a comfortable seat to watch their hopes for a million dollars either become reality or go up in flames. GoongGoongh29 and Willboski3 had an early jump on the competition thanks to good games by Chris Johnson and Ladanian Tomlinson on Friday night.

To be honest, I didn't pay much attention to the top 15 standings as I was more concerned in my Bellagio bracket. I couldn't really tell who was doing well because the room was awfully quiet during the games on Sunday. Either everyone was too nervous to cheer or hung over from the night before. For this reason, I don't really have any good stories from Sunday.

However, I did get a chance too meet Dutsinh and his 3 brothers (below). They drove 20 hours from Western Nebraska and got into town early Sunday morning. They encountered a lot of snow which made driving difficult and added 4 hours to their already long trip. Thankfully they made it there and were able to see their Jets win and get in the drivers seat for a playoff run. I also noticed they built a comfortable lead thanks to Donovan McNabb, and sat ahead of everyone with two games to go and they still had Romo, Austin and Peterson to go. I jinxed them by telling them I didn't see anyone who could catch them. That was assuming Romo and Austin put up at least 26 pts as I expected them to. All 4 of the brothers appeared in awe on how close they were to winning a million dollars, yet also very humble and sociable.

Going into Monday night's game, the GoonGoongh29's pretty much had first place wrapped up. The only hopes to catch them were Don with his NYTCXpress team which was 40 back with Peterson and Minnesota's DST and Chris aka Juggernaut (right) and his Beasts II team who needed a super monster, 4 TD type game out of Adrian Peterson. Neither was likely, but there's always a chance. Everyone else was battling to move up a few positions as other teams had Favre and Sidney Rice.

The first half was dominated by the Bears which made Dutsinh and crew much more relaxed. Peterson had only gained 30+ yards and the defense was not going to put up major points. The free alcohol started flowing more freely as it appeared that they had the top prize all wrapped up. They even had time to take a picture with one of the lovely waitresses, Rhonda (below). You can't tell from this picture, but her small referee's shirt was hiding her voluptuous FF's. Stan knows how to pick em! You can also see Jason and Matthew to the right enjoying the view.

The second half was a different story. Adrian Peterson was finally getting some touches and taking advantage of it. As he got his first touchdown, the crowd started getting into it. Chris (Beasts II), Don (NYTC), Scottie (skyt 2 hotty), Greg (Liquidhippos) and Matthew (shot caller10) all had ADP and were finally reaping the benefits.

At this stage, every little play can mean thousands of dollars difference for most of the teams. As the Vikings crept to within 7 at 30-23 and 5 minutes left, many owners started wishing for overtime so they could accumulate more stats. One team that didn't want overtime was Goongoongh29 who was only 11 or 12 points ahead of Beasts II after Peterson ran in his second score of the half. Now one long TD run of 40+ yds and we had a new leader! Because the Bears had racked up 30 points, NYTCxpress had fallen back because they owned the Minnesota TDS. Only a special teams TD could vault them back ahead of Beasts II into 2nd place.

As you know from my previous blog, Sidney Rice got a last second touchdown on a drive which should have ended many plays earlier when Zack Bowman dropped an easy interception. This was heartbreak for Dutsinh and crew as they were one catch from wrapping up the million dollar grand prize. Now they had to sweat out overtime. The Sidney Rice TD also gave Jeff (party @ rapiddraft.com team) and Jerry (pigskin mcchickenz) 7 extra points to move each up one spot and both were within a few yards of moving up another spot in OT. Jerry gained an extra $5000 with this TD and Jeff gained $250. The TD also allowed Joel (boom goes my dynamite) to move up one spot and get an extra $250. He was pretty vocal earlier in the game when Favre was struggling, but a big second half helped move him up.

In OT, Chicago got the ball first and had a chance to win it with a 44 yard FG. Instead, Robbie was fools Gould and the Peterson, Favre, and Rice owners had more hope. On the first play from the 30, Peterson caught a pass and was out in the open. I'm sure Dutsinh's heart sunk. He was corralled 16 yards later and fumbled! Chris's misery was Dutsinh's jubilation. When Cutler hit Aromashoduh for a TD on the next play, the game was over and the celebration began for the champions (above)! Unnoticed by most, is the fact that Don's NYTCxpress team lost 3 points on that play so the Gould missed FG also cost him $20,000 as Greg leapfrogged him in the standings. Had Gould made the FG, the Minnesota DST would have stayed at 0 points rather than drop to -3 by giving up over 34 points. As many bitter pills as I've had to swallow, nothing compares to Don's loss on this play. I feel your pain brotha!

This blog has run long enough, so I will use a separate blog to break down the final 15 and the big roster decisions they had to make and how it impacted them. Below are some more pictures from the final event to help you put some faces with the names in the contest.


Detsinh's brother cry out..."My brother's a F'n millionaire!"


The 2009 champ accepts his trophy and money.

Aaron and Stan chat in the doorway. I don't know what the conversation's about, but I'm sure it's full of humor. Aaron always looks to lighten the mood with his dry humor.

Scottie and his wife keep a close eye on the standings.


Korey (left) and Jim (right) watch the game in their usual calm and relaxed way. Both guys are very intelligent, super nice guys. Both understand this is a game and don't take it too seriously. Like everyone else in the contest, it was a pleasure talking with these guys and gaining some information as well.