Posts Tagged ‘NFL’

« Older Entries

Tim Tebow: Five Questions Raised From His Rib Injury

August 23rd, 2010

Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos learned the tough lesson that toughness is a rite of passage in the NFL, earned through hard shots that aren't intended for the faint of heart.

One day, Tebow is blasting through defenses at will, parting the sea on his way to touchdown glory. The next, the walls come tumblin' down and take Tim Tebow with them.

Church practices every Sunday, but the hits are as unholy as they come.

Tebow's injury may be disheartening for Denver fans, as there are several questions now at hand.

Begin Slideshow

No comments »

Posted in AFC West, NFL, Opinion, Tim Tebow, denver broncos

Tags:

Tim Tebow Bruised Ribs: Why They’re a Big Concern for Denver Broncos

August 23rd, 2010

Denver Broncos rookie quarterback Tim Tebow has many worried and concerned about his ribs that got bruised on his first NFL touchdown against the Cincinnati Bengals one week ago.

Tebow took a snap from shotgun and ran toward the endzone while getting sandwiched by two Bengals defenders just beyond the goalline.

He did not play in Saturday night's loss to the Detroit Lions due to his ribs still being sore and the Broncos' medical staff playing things safe by taking the precaution to not have Tebow play.

Reports from the Broncos say that Tebow will be back on the field in the third game of the preseason when the Pittsburgh Steelers visit Denver on Sunday August 29 in prime time.

Running the ball is not a new thing for Tebow, since he did not often and was very successful in doing so while playing college ball in Florida, but that was when he was as big or bigger than many of the defenders that were pursuing him.

Now in the NFL, Tebow's 6'3" and 245 pound frame is still rather large for quarterback standards, but he is dwarfed by most defensive lineman and many linebackers too.

With this being said, Tebow needs to be more cautious when running with the ball and looking for contact because the last thing the Broncos want for their precious first round pick.

There are also whispers that some NFL defensive players are looking to hit Tebow as hard as they can possibly hit him due to the high status of his celebrity that he has already attained due to his impressive college performances.

One of those defensive players includes Indianapolis Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney told the media that he wants to hit Tebow really bad when he faces him on the gridiron.

Both Tebow and Broncos coaches need to take notice and be aware that there may be a few who are looking to really hit Tebow and hit him hard.

Even though Tebow is a fierce competitor and will sacrifice his body for the good of the team, he also needs to remember that it is better to have him healthy and able to play over injured and on the Injured Reserve list.

Hopefully, Tebow has already gotten this message because the pro game is much faster and the players are much bigger so the pain received will be a bit more than Tebow is used to receiving.



No comments »

Posted in AFC West, Football, NFL, Opinion, Tim Tebow, denver broncos

Tags:

What To Watch For In the Second Cleveland Browns Preseason Game

August 21st, 2010

The Cleveland Browns host their first game of the new season facing the first overall draft pick Sam Bradford and his St. Louis Rams. As training camp comes to a close the preseason games are still on full throttle, so this should be a good one.

The Browns offense, and new starting quarterback Jake Delhomme, impressed in their first game at Green Bay last week. Coaches and fans will look for them to keep up that pace along with improvements on the defensive side. 

The things the coaches will be watching for most in the second preseason game will be the continued development of defensive rookies Joe Haden and TJ Ward. Also they will keep an eye on an offensive line dealing with injuries and how Marcus Benard looks in the starting lineup.

Starting with the latter, the linebacker corpse of this years team has been the center of most peoples attention in training camp. With an injury to starter and team leader D'Qwell Jackson, Browns coaches are shuffling around bodies to try to find the best fit.

The starters for tomorrow's preseason showdown will go as follows: Marcus Benard and Matt Roth on the outside and newcomers Scott Fujita and Chris Gocong starting as the middle linebackers. 

Marcus Benard, who was an undrafted free agent signee last season, spent most of his rookie year on the practice squad. He burst onto the radar when he was activated in a home win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in which he had 2 sacks of Steelers quarterback Ben Roetheislberger. 

As the season continued Benard showed he could be used as a pass rusher in the NFL, but to be a starter in Mangini's defense you can't afford to be just a specialist. On Saturday, Benard will try to show everyone he can be a complete player and deserves to start.

In their first action in a NFL uniform rookies TJ Ward and Joe Haden impressed the coaches. TJ Ward led the team in tackles and showed potential to be the safety this team has been searching for years. Cornerback Joe Haden got the start in place of injured Eric Wright and looked nervous but played better as the game went on.

For the rookies to keep impressing Ward will have to show improvement in coverage and Haden will have to lose the nerves early, especially since he's fighting for a starting spot.  

The right side of the offensive line has been a mystery ever since tackle Ryan Tucker was injured a few years ago. Projected starters for the start of the season were Floyd Womack and Tony Pashos. Womack got hurt early preseason and wont be back until the season starts. Rookie draft pick Shawn Lauvao played well in his absence but has left the team for an unknown personal reason. At tackle Pashos has shown an inability to stay healthy for more then a couple of days but may be available for this weekends game.

With options warring down it will be interesting to see how they perform. Although it's just a preseason game for a rebuilding team such as the Browns these games still have importance. And it will be important to see how these things shake out. 

Comments Off »

Posted in Cleveland Browns, NFL, Preview/Prediction

Tags:

NFL Preseason: New York Giants Sign Pro Bowl Guard Shawn Andrews

August 21st, 2010

The New York Giants have added depth to their offensive line with the signing of Shawn Andrews, a former two-time pro bowl guard.

After having basically not played since 2007 due to injuries, the Eagles gave up on the struggling former star and the Giants decided to take a chance. Andrews is exciting about being in New York, so maybe the change of scenery will rejuvenate his career.

He can’t wait to get back to battling in the NFC East again.

“I guess they kind of picked me, but I picked them as well,” Andrews said. “I just like the atmosphere. The guys that I met, I can tell genuine people when I see them. And it’s right up the road in the NFC, same division where I come from and it’s real intense and I like that.”

General Manager Jerry Reese is real excited about the prospect of having another Pro Bowler on the team, and gives all the credit in the world to his staff for noticing his desire to play again and seeing that he is ready to come in and work hard no matter what the position.

“Our personnel staff has been monitoring Shawn’s progress for awhile now,” Reese said. “He looks great and had a very good workout for us yesterday. He can play both guard and both tackle positions. We just have to take him slow for the rest of the preseason to get him into game shape. Shawn is very excited and grateful for this opportunity to play for the New York Giants.”

This move comes most likely in direct correlation to both Chris Snee and Rich Seubert—the starting guards—being out due to an injury. Both are expected to miss the second preseason game this Saturday, but neither injury is considered serious.

The universal theme from both Andrews and the organization is that they see he is eager to get back out on the field and prove to everyone that he is still the same player. He is very hungry.

They also notice that for being out for two seasons, he is in surprisingly great shape, so playing in the third preseason game may not be out of the question.

One thing the Giants will have to be careful of is not to overwork is back. The Eagles claimed Andrews failed a physical back in march and that was the reasoning for the termination of his contract.

Now we all wait in limbo to see how coach Tom Coughlin is going to shuffle the offensive line around, a unit that took much flack in 2009 for falling off in their run blocking.

Hopefully Andrews provides the solution.


Find the article here as well at NY Giants Central, a product of Rant Sports

Follow Jeff on Twitter @NYG_Central

Comments Off »

Posted in Breaking News, NFC East, NFL, Shawn Andrews, new york giants

Tags:

Altanta Falcons Show They’re Not on New England Patriots’ Level

August 20th, 2010

Take a look at this picture above, and think about the fact that this may have been the only highlight for the Falcons' first-string unit against the perennial NFL superpower New England Patriots in their preseason encounter last night at the Georgia Dome. 

Some may attribute Atlanta's lackluster showing on national TV to the fact that it is still preseason, and teams are still using vanilla offenses while veterans are not playing nearly as hard. However, this was more than just a glorified scrimmage. 

For the past three years the Atlanta Falcons organization has built itself in the mold of the Patriots by bringing in their former college scout Thomas Dimitroff to become their general manager.  They also hired a defensive-minded coach in Mike Smith and drafted a quarterback who is similar in design to Tom Brady while bringing in tough-minded players who make the clutch plays, from Michael Turner to Kroy Biermann.

For the first unit, this was a game to make an early statement that it would live up to the hype and that Atlanta was ready to step up against the big boys of the NFL.  When the dust settled, it was the Patriots that showed Atlanta that it still has a long way to go in order to get to that next level.

Yes, Matt Ryan was solid, completing eight of 13 for 76 yards, and Turner did rush eight times for 32 yards, but once again the first-team offense did not find the end zone. 

In the meantime QB Tom Brady led the Patriots to two touchdowns on the Falcons' first-team defense (although one of those drives was continued because of a dubious roughing the kicker call) ,and they proved that the young Atlanta defense will need to have its starters healthy in the secondary to stop the league's power teams.

There were some bright spots.  Kroy Biermann continues to make an impact each time he steps on the field, and John Parker Wilson made his case to be the backup for Ryan. 

However, allowing Fred Taylor to run for a 28-yard TD was something I'm sure Coach Smith will let the team know about before its next game against the Dolphins.

My greater concern is the offense, because outside of a few plays in the no-huddle Atlanta's offense seemed to be stuck in neutral. Once it crosses the 50-yard line, there seems to be a lull that takes place. 

Even though TE Tony Gonzalez did drop a pass, the point is that in two postseason games the Falcons haven't seen the end zone, a point not lost on Ryan:

“We’ve moved the ball really well,” Ryan said. “We just haven’t been able to capitalize on many drives.”

Championship teams capitalize; contenders merely settle for field goals.  If Atlanta wants to ever have its name mentioned among the elite, it must learn to capitalize on every opportunity, preseason or not.

 

Comments Off »

Posted in Game Recap, NFL, atlanta falcons, nfc south

Tags:




eXTReMe Tracker