04/25/24
December 16, 2009
SportsFilter: The Wednesday Huddle:
A place to discuss the sports stories that aren't making news, share links that aren't quite front-page material, and diagram plays on your hand. Remember to count to five Mississippi before commenting in anger.
Another solid week for The Hoser, although Kurt Warner deciding to turn back the clock and help his team become the Arizona Turnovers cost us the Trifecta.
Lock of the Week: San Diego
Trifecta: New York Jets, San Diego, Arizona
2009 Week 14 Hoser Picks:
2009 Season Hoser Picks
Straight Up: 12-4
Against The Spread: 10-6
Lock of the Week: 1-0
Trifecta: 0-1
Money: $740
Straight Up: 148-59
Against The Spread: 114-94-2
Lock of the Week: 8-6
Trifecta: 3-11
Money: $+2,730
posted by wfrazerjr at 12:32 PM on December 16, 2009
"The first thing to put down is that Randy Moss did not take one play off. Not one play." - Merrill Hodge
posted by yerfatma at 01:05 PM on December 16, 2009
yerfatma: Well, jeez, who are you going to believe?
Moss' coach, his quarter back and Merrill Hodge or angry players Moss' team just beat?
posted by Joey Michaels at 02:22 PM on December 16, 2009
Maybe I'll go with a theoretically impartial NFL exec: "Before the snap, the Panthers removed Randy Moss from the game, that's why he wasn't targeted, not because he 'shut it down.' That had nothing to do with anything."
Oh, wait.
posted by yerfatma at 02:49 PM on December 16, 2009
Moss played hard when the Vikings were title contenders during his first couple of seasons there, but he took plays off towards the end of his stint with the Vikings. Then they traded him to the Raiders and he took plays off, there, too. Now that the Patriots' dynasty looks like it's starting to fade, I would not be surprised if the same thing happened.
posted by kirkaracha at 02:59 PM on December 16, 2009
The Pats did not replace McDaniels when he left for Denver, so they have no true full time OC at the moment.
I think that explains a lot, including how bad the Pats offense has looked at times this year.
They may be overly relying on Brady's football IQ and experience to make up the difference. "Like having a coach out there on the field..." as the talking heads always like to say.
Hard to understand why they would want to wing it without a full time OC.
And if there's a bit of a vacuum in the chain of command, it is likely not doing Moss any good. He's not one to step up and circle the wagons if there's any sort of absence of organizational structure or authority. He didn't major in responsibility initiative.
They need to bring in a full time real OC for next season. Whether Moss is there or not.
posted by beaverboard at 03:26 PM on December 16, 2009
Alabama lawyers file a motion to postpone trial conflicting with BCS title game.
posted by holden at 03:29 PM on December 16, 2009
6. Attempts to resolve this conflict directly with the Plaintiffs has been unfruitful as the reply has been that they are for the other great team in this State who did not make the playoffs. Unfortunately, that response remains short-sighted as they may one day find themselves in the same position that the Defendant attorneys are in and, unfortunately, the BSC Title Game is no longer scheduled on January 1st, but has been moved to January 7th
My favorite part.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 03:51 PM on December 16, 2009
I would not be surprised if the same thing happened. They need to bring in a full time real OC for next season. Whether Moss is there or not.
My last post on this tired subject lest I sound like more of a homer than I already do, but take a peek at the links: the foundation for the house of speculation you're building is sand. There doesn't seem to be any visual evidence to suggest what the Carolina DBs said is actually true.
posted by yerfatma at 03:51 PM on December 16, 2009
There doesn't seem to be any visual evidence to suggest what the Carolina DBs said is actually true.
Really? I think the argument is legitimate in either direction, and only Moss himself knows the answer. I have no opinion, but since the subject has been analyzed for three days now, I've seen plenty of visual evidence that Moss was having a lazy game. On the first pick, he made a lazy break on the route and stopped short of the sideline. Whether you choose to blame Brady or Moss for the pick is inconsequential. A guy struggling to make a team in the preseason makes that cut and he's on his way home the next day. Same thing with at least one pass that he alligator armed. He may have played every other play-I don't know, I didn't watch the game-but there is definitely visual evidence that would lead a reasonable person to believe that he was going less than all out on Sunday.
posted by tahoemoj at 04:17 PM on December 16, 2009
On the first pick, he made a lazy break on the route and stopped short of the sideline.
From the Merill Hodge link: "The interception that so many people are talking about . . . when you list things out in order, number one, it's a bad throw based on pressure. Number two, you look at the way the corner is playing and you can see why it's not the most decisive route. I'm not making excuses for him -- it was a bad route -- but when I look at the play the route is number three on the list."
I'm not saying Moss couldn't have played better or harder (my initial reaction to his effort here on Spofi was to question a block he set for Welker), but I think the "plenty of visual evidence" is a mirage of media hype. I don't know that I buy Hodge's assertion that TV broadcasts are useless and only the coach's tape shows Platonic Truth, but I think it has more merit than the wailing talk radio hosts here in New England.
I'm making multiple points using Merrill Hodge as a reference. Kill me now.
posted by yerfatma at 04:47 PM on December 16, 2009
I'm with yerfatma. Where I grew up, it sounds even worse if the team members of the team that beat you are not playing at their peak WHEN they beat you. Or is this an attempt to blame the Pats' woes this season on Randy Moss?
posted by yzelda4045 at 04:51 PM on December 16, 2009
I'll reiterate from my previous post that those two plays are absolutely all I have seen of the game; I really don't have an opinion on it. I think Moss is a hell of a player, and there isn't a single wide receiver in the game who goes all out every play. There's just a difference between not any evidence and insufficient evidence, which there is here.
O.K. evidence exam in 2 1/2 hours. And citing to Hodge is better than citing to Theismann any day
posted by tahoemoj at 06:36 PM on December 16, 2009
Bengals receiver Chris Henry involved in serious accident Bengals WR Chris Henry was involved in a serious accident and suffered life threatening injuries on Wednesday in Charlotte after what police are describing as a "domestic situation" between the fifth-year player and his fianc, Loleini Tonga.
posted by tommybiden at 07:13 PM on December 16, 2009
The thing about Moss is that he lulls the opposition in; what looks like dogging it isn't. He runs the first bit of the route slow and then breaks on them. That's what makes him a great deep threat. He'll also run the occasional bad route and isn't the best blocker, but most deep threats aren't Hines Ward; they're not necessarily good physical players.
A guy like Welker is a totally different player; crisp cuts, hard running and short routes. He's a bulldog. Moss is at his best when the defensive back thinks he's running "another" lazy route. Ideally, he runs 8-10 great routes and the rest are lulling the defensive back into resting on his laurels. It's a good style, it's just easy to target when things are going wrong.
posted by dfleming at 07:29 PM on December 16, 2009
DaMarcus Beasley had a nice little goal in the Rangers-Dundee Utd. match yesterday. Found via US Soccer's Twitter.
And there's lots of furor over Wolves' team selection against Man Utd. yesterday, as Mick McCarthy switched out 10 of the 11 players who'd started in a win against Tottenham on the weekend for a supposed "B" team.