College Bowl Previews: The Final 14 Games of 2009
December 26th, 2009 by Ron Clements No comments »San Diego Chargers: Team Makes Statement in Potential Trap Game
December 26th, 2009 by Paul Preibisius No comments »While not a dangerous game as far as impact on the season, it was another great test of a game that the Chargers could easily have taken for granted. Tennessee was a 7-7 team desperate to preserve its playoff life. They were also a red-hot 7-1 following a disappointing 0-6 start, with the lone loss coming against the undefeated Colts.
The question was not if San Diego could beat the Titans; wins against several playoff-caliber teams across their now 10-game winning streak proved they can face off against anyone. The question instead would be their motivation having guaranteed themselves the AFC West crown while holding a two-game lead for the second seed in the AFC with two games remaining.
Paired with the notion of San Diego possibly letting off the gas was a tough matchup in Tennessee. San Diego’s defense, especially the run defense, had been a concern all year.
With (by far) the NFL’s best rusher in Chris Johnson, the Titans also feature a great running quarterback in Vince Young (over two-hundred yards without playing until week seven). There was the threat of Tennessee running over the heart of the San Diego line and dictate the game.
The team answered those predicting a letdown early on in the game. Three minutes before halftime the Chargers held a 21-3 advantage. They had scored through the air (twice) and on the ground (a one-yard Tomlinson run).
Tennessee kept the game from becoming a halftime runaway with a Vince Young touchdown just before the half. The halftime score of 21-10 was the closest Tennessee ever came to coming back.
The Chargers started the second half just as effectively as they ended the first, putting another 21 on the board before Tennessee could manage a lone garbage-time answer. The final score of 42-17 sent forth a statement to the rest of the AFC—San Diego is overlooking no one.
Philip Rivers had another near-perfect day going 21-for-27 with 264 yards and two touchdowns. The only thing preventing another three-hundred yard day was the team’s own tremendous lead, negating any need to throw the ball in the later stages of the game.
On the ground, San Diego running backs (the term used broadly to include fullbacks Hester and Tolbert) combined for 170 yards, led by Mike Tolbert’s 60 on eleven carries. With limited carries (25) Tolbert is now averaging 5.9 yards per carry this year, by far tops among Chargers ballcarriers.
Tennessee was as effective as expected on the ground (182 yards for Johnson and Young) but Tennessee was reduced to being one-dimensional. Young’s legs fared well (forty yards on six carries including a touchdown), but his arm did nothing for the team, going 8-of-29 for 89 yards with two interceptions. It was easily his worst performance since returning to the starting lineup.
Of all San Diego’s positives, they still had one point of concern. In the last seven games they have only two sacks from powerhouse duo Shawne Merriman and Shaun Phillips. They have been moderately effective getting sacks from alternative sources (safeties and middle linebackers), but after a brief midseason flurry have once again cooled on their overall pass-rushing effectiveness.
However, that one caveat does not detract from the team guaranteeing its best record in the Norv Turner era. At 12-3, the team secured a first-round bye with the second overall seed, and its accompanying home field advantage against every team but Indianapolis.
The extra week off should help considerably with the overall health of the team. Shawne Merriman (plantar fasciitis), Eric Weddle (knee), Shaun Phillips (ankle), Legedu Naanee (foot), and Quentin Jammer (knee) all played but were nursing injuries. Jacques Cesaire and Kevin Burnett both missed the game against Tennessee.
Now that the regular season is effectively over, with that second seed wrapped up going into the finale against a deflated Washington Redskins team, San Diego will look to return to the championship game for the first time in fifteen years. Good luck and go Chargers!
Tennessee Volunteers Blog: Welcome!
December 26th, 2009 by Joel Barker No comments »Welcome to the only site (that I know of) that features in-depth blogging/coverage of Tennessee Vols Athletics and the Atlanta Braves.
I am a rather successful blogger/writer for bleacherreport.com and I have decided to branch out a bit with this new venture.
You can read my new ramblings on this site twice a week. Every Monday I will post a Tennessee Vols related post. Every Friday will feature my Braves post. And of course if there's news on either I will be on top of that as it breaks.
Hopefully you will enjoy and continue coming back for more.
Thanks,
Joel Barker
Fantasy Football: Help Wanted
December 26th, 2009 by Mike D No comments »First, the disclaimer...
This might be the worst article you have ever read on Bleacher Report.
Unfortunately, desperate times call for desperate measures. This Sunday is the championship week for my Fantasy Football league. The difference in winning and losing is roughly $750, and to put it lightly, I NEED THAT CASH.
I have pulled out an unhealthy amount of hair on my head trying to figure out which two runningbacks I should start, and I'm sitting here with bald spots and less confidence than I had when I started.
Any helpful analysis would be greatly appreciate.
Steven Jackson vs. Arizona (at Arizona)
Brian Westbrook vs. Denver (at Philly)
Jamaal Charles vs. Cincinnati (at Cincinnati)
Jerome Harrison vs. Oakland (at Cleveland)
Jonathan Stewart vs. New York Giants (at NY— with DeAngelo Williams likely out)
Maurice Morris vs. San Fran (at San Fran— Kevin Smith = out)
If you're short on analysis, I have created a poll...you're vote would be appreciated
How The WWE Title Mess Could Have Been Avoided
December 26th, 2009 by Scott Manyard No comments »Note: This is a proposed scenario that could have prevented all of the controversy that surrounds the WWE Championship right now. Also this is my first article on BR and I appreciate the opportunity to express my opinion in an open forum. All feedback is welcome and let me know what you think.
It's October 25th in Pittsburgh at the Melon Arena. The clock strikes zero on the scoreboard and the crowd erupts as a new WWE Champion is crowned.
The new champion is a familiar face; I speak of none other than John Cena. In an epic battle Cena tamed the venomous viper Randy Orton to save his career on RAW. "The Champ," as he is often referred to, stood victorious once again.
Now fast forward almost two months later to TLC in San Antonio. Cena finds himself in another struggle for the WWE's most coveted prize against the "Celtic Warrior" Sheamus.
The two men engage in a brutal battle that lasts for at least a good fifteen minutes. The match finally culminates with a brief struggle at the top of the turnbuckle until "Crunch!"... as John Cena falls through the precariously set up table in the middle of the ring.
The entire WWE universe goes into shock as the unthinkable just happened: the relatively unknown Sheamus defeated Cena, who many considered the face of the WWE, for the most important prize in all of sports entertainment in just his first try! The next two weeks, controversy ensues over this shocking victory.
A lot of people, including me, felt that this was the wrong move and that there were plenty more deserving people then Sheamus to hold the WWE Championship. I could type a long list of people who I feel should be holding the gold. But instead I'll propose a scenario that could have avoided all of this mess while elevating Sheamus to a main event status at the same time.
-First, instead of having Cena's RAW career on the line for the match at Bragging Rights, have the same last shot rules that apply to Orton, go for Cena as well. If Cena loses than he cannot challenge Orton for the title as long as Orton is the champion.
-Secondly, have Sheamus start on RAW not ECW. Instead of having Sheamus start off on ECW, WWE should have given the Celtic Warrior a start on the "A" show, because if he truly is a monster, than he really shouldn't have a meaningful feud where losses are traded back and forth like he did with Goldust and Shelton Benjamin.
Creative was on the right track with having him destroy Jamie Noble and The King. Sheamus could have then moved on to the destruction of more meaningful stars to gain more heat on him.
-Third, at Bragging Rights have Sheamus cost Cena his shot at the belt. From what I remember of the Iron Man Match was a no DQ one. Having Sheamus cost Cena's last opportunity to thwart the viper would have gained him massive heat from the audience and would have allowed for a proper match between the two.
Then over the course of the next weeks, Sheamus and Cena could really start an intense feud over the fact that Sheamus is the reason Cena can't call himself the champion anymore and he wants payback. This would lead to fulfilling my next step.
-Finally, have Kofi Kingston go from a small feud with members of Legacy to a full-blown feud with Randy Orton for the WWE Championship. So far some of this has come true, and many believe that Kofi possesses that "it" factor and that showed in his brief feud with Orton. Subtle tensions were played up between Kofi and Cody Rhodes throughout Bragging Rights, which eventually led to him interfering in the middle of the Cena-Orton match.
So to sum it all up, you have Sheamus still feuding with Cena and maybe Kofi as your WWE Champion. In the end both Sheamus and Kofi would have been elevated to a main event status without all the controversy. Now I know that I am no Mr. Fix-It, but I certainly do believe that following those four simple steps could have saved the WWE a lot of grief.
