3121

They drafted him in the first round, they are stuck with him. If you think I as a Raider fan have any worries, you would be wrong :) Orton just hasn’t played well since those first six games. They need to do something to stop being the floor mat of the AFC West, might as well try Tebow Time ™.

3122

Bump and run, as I understand it, is still in. You can still jam the receiver as he comes off the line, and that’s a huge part of how to play the slighter slot receivers. But you can’t mug them down the field anymore.

3123

I was getting worried after nearly 10 years of being terrible while watching every other NFC West team march on to the Superbowl! I mean York was in danger of being Mike Brown-esque in his business decisions.

Also I’d give Stafford a break. Yeah he missed some throws but it was against the Bears. Not every QB is going to throw a perfect game.

BTW Alex Smith’s revised QB rating (under the new, terrible ESPN system) in the Tampa game was 98.2, the best recorded single game rating using the new system (which sucks).

3124

I’m glad Tebow is starting. He flops or he flies, but either way he will be more entertaining than Orton. And if Tebow is really bad, that just helps the Broncos in the “Suck for Luck” sweepstakes.

3125

That’s not a bump and run. You can still chuck a WR within 5 yards of the line of scrimmage, but the bump-and-run went out in the late 70s (the Mel Blount rule). If the QBs can’t be touched and the WRs can’t be hit hard, maybe we need to allow DBs to “mug them down the field” to even up the odds.

3126

I was not a believer but Harbaugh has made them a MUCH better team and Smith is actually playing good football.

3127

The Lions have been bad for a number of years, but people tend to act like the Sanders years were marginal. No, they weren’t. The Lions had some pretty good teams. In 1991 they went 12-4 and lost in the NFC title game to the Redskins, who won the Superbowl that year. In 1993, '94, and '95 they won 9 or 10 games each year and went to the playoffs each season. They didn’t win any of those games, but two were close losses to an up and coming Packers team. I’d hardly call that period in Detroit as “mediocre.”

It doesn’t make sense for Denver to trade Orton. He’s a free agent after the season so his value to the already done Dolphins is marginal. That would only be smart for the Dolphins if they were to sign him to a long-term contract, but why do that when you are likely making a coaching change anyway? And why do that if you have a shot at a very high draft pick with Luck and other (cheaper through the draft) QB options out there?

And from the Bronco perspective, giving Tebow a shot doesn’t mean you are necessarily walking away from Orton. If Tebow shows in four or five starts that he isn’t really going to be good enough to be a long-term starter then the Broncos can at least consider going with Orton again. Trading him away ends the possibility.

That ESPN rating system is a joke. Case in point and proof that we need not mention it again:

Aaron Rodgers on Sunday: 26/39, 396 yards, 2 TDs. 82.1 rating.
Tim Tebow on Sunday: 4/10, 79 yards, 1 TD. Rushing 6-38, 1 TD. 83.2 rating.

Any system that thinks Tebow was better then Rodgers on Sunday has no value in any discussion.

3128

Also that it’s almost impossible to earn a perfect 100 rating. And it rates you a better QB if you have to play from behind or with only a small lead. So, like, if you dominate you aren’t as good a QB which makes no sense.

3129

Unless you’re Alex Smith, then it rates you poorly even when you’re playing from behind. In the game against the Eagles he had a 28.something rating even though he led the Niners back from three scores down.

3130

Texans’ Mario Williams: Out for the season.

3131

Current Sports Illustrated writer and former Kansas City Star columnist Joe Posnanski wrote a really good piece about Al Davis. I miss reading Posnanski in the paper. I don’t miss reading Jason Whitlock in the paper, though.

3132

Posnanski is the best sports writer in the business.

I also miss the old, dominant Raiders. They were fun to watch.

3133

Tebow’s promotion got me wondering – what are examples of teams ever turning around due to a non-injury in-season quarterback replacement, i.e. the coach just tries changing quarterbacks as a magic fix?

All the examples I can think of always end up with a team just as bad before the original QB got scapegoated.

There are famous examples of injury replacements that turn out to be awesome (Warner, Brady), but I can’t think any successful non-injury replacements.

3134

Raiders with Plunkett taking over from Stabler. Plunkett was much much better. Steve Young taking over from Pastorini. It happened with the Rams too, I just can’t recall the QB’s involved.

3135

Who called the eagles a dream team and why? The first time I started hearing it was being used sarcastically after they lost a couple, but everyone acts like everyone was calling them the dream team at the start of the year. Maybe I just missed it.

3136
3137

Tebow is a joke. Guy goes 4/10 and he’s the messiah.

3138

Not just 4 for 10, but 4 for 10 with a quarterback rating of 101.7!. WTF?

3139

Huh. I’m pretty sure Steve Young took over from an injured Joe Montana. Too sleepy to look it up right now.

3140

You guys missed it: there was an actual NFL trade today!

The Jets sent Derrick Mason to the Texans for a conditional pick. Houston needs a wide receiver with the injury to Andre Johnson and the Jets suck. Well, that probably wasn’t the reason the Jets made the trade. Instead its likely related to the officiallly denied report last week that Mason and then fellow Jet receivers complained about their offensive coordinator in a meeting with Rex Ryan.

Mason’s has had a long career and always came across as a pro, but who knows.