Pigskin and Pine Tar

Well, that’s stupid, many of you are saying. Isn’t it obvious? Without Peyton Manning, they stink. That is obviously true, but with the complete dissary of the Colts, that just can’t be the only factor.

1. Peyton Manning: No duh. But besides his incredible passing skills, the Colts miss his presence to strike fear in opponents, make plays, and his veteran leadership that makes the Colts believe he’s going to make the play.
2. Curtis Painter: As we all know, Painter is no Peyton. But his inexperience and less than stellar performance so far, combined with -their 0-8 start leads the players to believe they cannot win without Peyton.
3. A Weak Running Game: Delone Carter is decent, but he’s only a rookie and their other two running backs are Donald Brown and Joseph Addai. Brown will never be an NFL star, and Addai is washed up and injury prone. The lack of a solid run game has also put the pressure on Curtis Painter to make plays, and he hasn’t responded well. To be fair, Painter must feel like he has to fill the enourmous shoes of Manning, and he doesn’t feel like he can just hand it off to the running back.
4. The Defense: Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis are actually pretty good, but any NFL O-line can contain two players if the rest are ineffective. Also, the secondary hasn’t been really any good since Bob Sanders had his last good season.
5. Special Teams: C’mon, is the Colts Special Teams really the reason of their horrid performance this year? Well, it certainly doesn’t help them much. The lack of explosive playmakers on Kick and Punt returns puts them in not great field position, and the Offense doesn’t drive themselves into Field Goal Range very often.

The last of Week 8 was played yesterday, a dramatic game between the Chiefs and the Chargers. That brings us to the midpoint of the season, with some big suprises and dissapointments in the first half. Here are some things to watch for in the second half.

1. How  far will young, upstart teams like the Niners and Lions go?
The 49ers and the Lions are in two completely different situations. Let’s start with the Niners. They are the second best team in the NFC, only behind Green Bay and just an overtime loss from being undefeated. Their division is horrible, and they have a very comfortable 4-game lead. However, their main weapon on offense is the run game with Frank Gore and rookie Kendall Hunter. Alex Smith has done an alright job this year, putting up numbers far from eye-popping but he’s been effective none the less. however, when push comes to shove, I doubt he can lead the Niners on game winning drives in the playoffs with his arm, and that’s the fastest way to move the ball. Realistacally, they go 12-4 but get eliminated in the 2nd round. The Liones have many explosive and dynamic playmakers on both sides of the ball, such as Javid Best, Matthew  Stafford, Calvin Johnson, and Ndamukong Suh. They play in the best division though, with teams like Green Bay and the Atlanta Falcons. The team is young and not playoff tested, but their playmaking ability will serve them well in January. Realistically:11-5.

2. Rookie QBs: Many teams have benched fading veterans to get their exciting young rookies a chance to play. The Bengals, Vikings, and Panthers are just 3 teams who have done this. How will Dalton, Ponder, and Newton fare down the stretch? The Bengals sit at 5-2, and with a talented squad, they have a shot at the playoffs. How far will Dalton lead them? will he falter in the clutch or will he step up and make a play, showing that he belongs in this league? The Vikings are 2-6. Will Ponder lead them to mediocry? (I know, less dramatic but it could provide a glimpse of the Vikings future). Newton has been a sensation, but his ablity to run with the football hides a huge weakness in the Panthers: Their running backs stink. I mean DeAngelo Williams and Jonathon Stewart? Come on. Plus , their defense doesn’t have anybody to strike fear in opponents. What about Blaine Gabbert? He was selected 10th overall in April, but he has been outshined by fellow  rookie Dalton, selected 25 picks later. Gabbert hasn’t played horribly (Well at least not in every game…) but he hasn’t done anything special, either.

3. Phillip Rivers’ Struggles: Phillip Rivers just can’t seem to have a good game. Yesterday he threw for 369 yards, but for no touchdowns and he commited 3 turnovers. (2 picks and a fumble.) This year, Rivers is just not feeling it. His passer rating is far below recent years, and with his inability to turn it around in 8 games, I forsee a lost season for Rivers. However, he is an excellent QB and I think he’s just having an off year and he’s young enough to come back better than ever in 2012.

So there you have it. 3 things may not sound like much, but they are complex issues with lots of conflicting evidence on what the future may bring. Who knows?

For all those caught up in the Tim Tebow frenzy, today was a disappointment as the Broncos lost by a big margin, 45-10. This game exposed Tebow’s biggest weakness-He doesn’t have the ability to lead a high-flying offense in order to keep up with prolific offensive team like the Lions. Don’t get me wrong. I like Tebow. He proved in college he could win and had great intangibles.He’s proven he can keep his head up through boos and play in the clutch. When the pressure’s greatest he’s at his best. But what about the first 3 quarters? Tebow was merely pedestrian today, and against Miami, the league’s worst team, he played poorly until the final quarter. To be fair, he is only one man, and the Bronco’s defense was the biggest culprit of today’s loss. However, you have to put up more than 10 points if you want to win consistently. My point is, Tebow is not going to be the franchise quarterback that GMs dream about. He’s not going to throw for 4,000 yards and 30 touchdowns. What he will do is grind. Gring for yards on the ground, and through the air, he wants it so bad that he makes himself make the throw. Grinding’s fine, but I believe that to be a truly successful quarterback in the NFL, you have to lead your offense to a reasonable amount of points so that you don’t need that 4th quarter comeback, because we all know sometimes you just come up short. So good luck, Tebow. I believe you have great traits. But sometimes it just isn’t enough. You have to MAKE it enough. Can he? I don’t know. I hope you can, but people need to realize Tebow’s not invincible.

While some of us Cardinal fans would have rested easier if Stanford had won the game without the drama, ultimately it was the best thing for Luck and Co. First of all, Luck reinforced the opinion of scouts the Luck should be the Number 1 overall pick. He has shown that he can lead a comeback win, doesn’t panic in the clutch, has good clock management skills, and he doesn’t dwell on his mistakes, such as the Pick-6 he thew towards the end of regulation. He didn’t quit, tried again, and was sucessful. Luck has all the elements of a franchise quarterback that  scouts love, and now he aslo has shown he has what it takes to lead a comeback win against a big rival. With Clemson losing, the win not only kept Stanford’s winning streak alive, it propelled them to the Number 4 spot. When a good team that seems invincible loses, like the Yankees, criticism is thrown everywhere. But when they prove that they can win even when it doesn’t come by the usual overpowering methods, they are elevated to the plateau of a great team. Winning is the name of the game, and thats what Stanford did. Much like Tim Tebow and the Broncos, it wasn’t pretty, but it worked. And if it works, that’s all we fans care about.