When LB Thomas Davis went high to catch an onside kickoff by the Seattle Seahawks (photo on right) with 1:11 remaining in the game on Jan. 17 and still had possession of the ball when he hit the ground, effectively clinching the Carolina Panthers' 2nd round victory over the Seahawks, the streak of Super Bowl losers failing to return to the Super Bowl the following season grew one year longer. The Seahawks, heartbreak losers to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl 49 at the end of the 2014 season, should have been eliminated a week earlier. But after they somehow defeated the Minnesota Vikings in round 1, there was no miracle finish this time, as the Panthers hung on for a 31-24 victory to make them the 22nd straight Super Bowl loser not to get back the next year.
Losers to the Seahawks at home the last three seasons in a row (by a total of just 13 points), the Panthers seemingly had gotten that monkey off their back with a 27-23 win at Seattle this season in Week 6; but that monkey would have been right back if they had let the Seahawks come and beat them on their home field again. They wasted no time making sure that didn't happen.
The Seahawks had the NFL's #1 ranked run defense this season, allowing 81.5 rushing yards per game; but after taking the opening kickoff, the Panthers went 75 yards - all on the ground - in only 4 plays to take the lead. Veteran RB Jonathan Stewart gashed the Seahawks for a 59-yard run on the first play from scrimmage - the third longest run of his career - and on the next play the Seahawks already got a hint that maybe it wasn't going to be their day. With Stewart getting a breather after his long sprint, rookie Cameron Artis-Payne got the ball and promptly fumbled it at the 14-yard line, giving the Seahawks a chance to keep Carolina from getting on the board. But not only did the Seahawks not recover the fumble, the Panthers actually gained an additional 6 yards on the play, as the ball rolled directly to FB Mike Tolbert, who scooped it up at the 10-yard line and advanced it to the 8. Two plays later Stewart scored the first of his 2 TD to make it 7-0. The Panthers would go on to rack up 144 yards rushing for the day, with Stewart becoming the first RB to gain over 100 yards rushing against the Seahawks' D since Week 11 in 2014.
http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-game-highlights/0ap3000000624440/Seahawks-Russell-Wilson-sacked-by-Panthers-Tre-Boston
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-football/25452684/panthers-sack-russell-wilson-troll-him-in-the-meanest-way-possible
Still clueless on defense, the Seahawks then allowed another TD, with the Panthers going 54 yards in 9 plays and making the score 31-0 with 6:26 still to play until halftime. This was supposed to be the triumphant return to the lineup for RB Marshawn Lynch, back in uniform after missing the previous 8 games due to an injury to his abdomen. But already down by 31, the Seahawks weren't going to be able to feature the run for the rest of the game, and Lynch finished with only 6 carries for 20 yards (the last of which in photo below on right was an 8-yard gain to the Carolina 7-yard line in the 4th quarter) and 2 catches for 15 yards.
With the score still 31-0 at the half, I thought to myself that at least I'd be able to take a quick nap before the game I really wanted to see - Pittsburgh vs. Denver - started. But then I looked up and it was already 31-14, after the Seahawks scored on drives of 35 and 63 yards on their first two possessions of the 3rd quarter. I dozed off anyway, waking up just in time to see the Seahawks' 3rd TD, making it 31-21 with 6:04 remaining in the game. And I thought - and I bet a lot of Seahawks fans thought too - that this comeback would be a whole lot more interesting if they had just kicked that FG earlier. Still needing two scores, the Seahawks got one of them, a FG, on their next drive. But by then there was only 1:12 on the clock, and they had no choice but to try an onside kickoff, which the Panthers recovered, ending their attempt to three-peat as NFC champs.
.
The Seahawks ended up with a 403-295 advantage in total yards, and that was something that kept repeating in all of the 2nd round games: the visiting team had more yards, but they all returned home with the L. In the other NFC semifinal it was the Green Bay Packers with a 386-368 edge in total yards, but the Arizona Cardinals getting the win 26-20 in overtime in the most exciting finish of the weekend. WR Larry Fitzgerald, one of two players to make the dread stars list this week, scored the game winning touchdown (photo below) on a 5-yard reception just 65 seconds into overtime, capping a 3-play, 80-yard drive after the Packers had tied the game with a TD on the last play of the 4th quarter.
Trailing for the first time, the Cardinals turned to Fitzgerald, who got going in a big way after a quiet (1 reception) 1st half. Fitzgerald had gains of 4 yards (top photo on right) and 32 yards on the first 2 plays of Arizona's next drive and then a 19-yard catch three plays later to move the ball to the 7-yard line. But on the next play Larry was called for a 15-yard penalty for an illegal blindside block, and the Cardinals ended up settling for a FG to make it 13-10. Fitzgerald started the next drive with a 22-yard reception (bottom photo on right) to the Green Bay 47, but the Cardinals failed to score because QB Carson Palmer threw a bad INT on 1st and goal 6 plays later on the second play of the 4th quarter. The Cardinals finally regained the lead on their next drive though, scoring a lucky 9-yard TD on a pass that deflected off a defender at the 3-yard yard and went straight to WR Michael Floyd 5 yards deep in the end zone. That made it 17-13 with 3:44 remaining. Fitzgerald's only contribution on that 14-play, 80-yard drive was an important 13-yard catch on 2nd and 13 on the 4th play of the drive.The Packers appeared to be dead after going four-and-out on their ensuing possession and giving the Cardinals the ball at the GB 25 with 2:38 to play. But the Cardinals failed to put them away, settling for a FG 4 plays later to make it 20-13 and in the process doing them a great big favor by throwing a clock-stopping incomplete pass on 2nd and 8. The end result was that the Packers got the ball back with 1:50 on the clock instead of 1:10. And sure enough, with the extra time they shouldn't have had the Packers pulled off a miracle. As the clock hit :00 - and 3 plays after getting burned deep for a 60-yard completion on 4th and 20 - the Cardinals allowed a 41-yard completion for a TD, as star CB Patrick Peterson got outjumped by WR Jeff Janis on a jump ball pass in the end zone (photo below). The successful extra point after the TD sent the game into OT.
DE Ed Stinson had 3 tackles (3-0) for Arizona, including 1 TFL, and rookie LB Markus Golden finished with 2 tackles (1-1). RB Andre Ellington rushed 3 times for a total of 3 yards, including a 5-yard gain on his first carry of the night (photo above left) in the 1st quarter. For Green Bay LB Julius Peppers got a sack on his only tackle (1-0) of the game.
.
After it took 22 years for the Kansas City Chiefs to finally win a playoff game, you didn't think they were going to win another one 7 days later, did you? Well, actually I thought they would. They crushed the New England Patriots 41-14 the last time the teams met (Week 4 in 2014); and although I obviously wasn't expecting that kind of domination again, I did expect their defense to play well enough to allow them to maybe eke out a close victory in a low-scoring game. But unlike last season (when they had 3 sacks against the Patriots) and unlike last week (when they had 3 sacks in their 30-0 win at Houston) the Chiefs got no sacks and very little pressure on the QB at all, and the Patriots rolled to a fairly comfortable 27-20 victory.
With the score 7-3 in the 2nd quarter the Chiefs had New England backed up to their own 3-yard line after a punt, only to have the Patriots drive 97 yards to increase their lead to 14-3. The big play that helped that drive get going was a 42-yard reception by WR Keshawn Martin on 1st and 15 all the way to the KC 49-yard line. The Chiefs reached the red zone on two of their 4 drives in the 1st half but settled for FGs both times, making it 14-6 at halftime.
And as history tells us, every time (well, almost every time) a team led by QB Alex Smith trails by 14 or more in a game, that game is over because that team ain't coming back. Actually Smith played about as well as he can, and the Chiefs never did go away, finally scoring a couple of touchdowns to pull within 21-13 late in the 3rd and 27-20 with 1:13 remaining in the 4th. But after it was 21-6, the Chiefs were two scores behind on each of their last 4 possessions of the game. Whether it was because they were on the road, or bad luck, or they simply weren't good enough, they didn't rise to the occasion, and the result was their 11-game winning streak came to a frustrating end.
Although he wasn't at full strength, QB Ben Roethlisberger was healthy enough to play for the Pittsburgh Steelers in their 2nd round game at Denver, having survived Vontaze Burfict's attempt to cripple him a week earlier. But star WR Antonio Brown wasn't as fortunate, having not recovered enough from the concussion Burfict gave him a week earlier. That meant there would be three WRs with dreads instead of the usual two playing prominent roles in the team's game plan. Joining Martavis Bryant (#10 in photo below, from practice on Jan. 14, three days before the game) and Markus Wheaton (#11) on the field would be Sammie Coates (#14), who had a rough time of it during his rookie season after being selected in the 3rd round of the draft, being declared inactive (even though he was healthy) for 9 of the Steelers' 16 games and catching only 1 pass in the 7 games he played in.
The Broncos made a total of only one 1st down on their first three possessions of the game but took a 6-0 lead anyway - because two of those possessions began with them already in FG range. The first FG was set up by S Omar Bolden, who returned the first punt of the game 42 yards to the 30-yard line; and the second came after a poor, 27-yard punt. On a play in between those two field goals Bolden unfortunately had to leave the game with what turned out to be a season-ending knee injury. After the Steelers went three-and-out on their opening drive, Coates picked up their 1st first down on their second drive on a 37-yard catch and run that converted a 3rd and 8. But the Steelers failed to score, as a deep pass intended for Wheaton 4 plays later on 4th and 1 was broken up by star CB Aqib Talib (photo on left above), the first of two huge PBU he had in the game.
After the 2nd Broncos FG, the Steelers struck quickly to take a 7-6 lead, driving 80 yards in 5 plays, with Bryant accounting for 63 of the yards - a 23-yard reception and a 40-yard run on a reverse on back-to-back plays - to move the ball to the 16-yard line. The TD came two plays later. Little did I (or any Steelers fan) suspect it, but it would be the Steelers' only TD all day. A touchdown-saving tackle by Roby on the Steelers' next drive - a tackle that was necessary because he blew the coverage on the play, resulting in a 58-yard gain - caused the Steelers to have to settle for a FG that made the score 10-6. The Broncos later got that FG back, making it 10-9 on the final play of the 1st half after driving 62 yards in 11 plays - their only decent drive of the half.
Wheaton just about gave every member of Steeler Nation a heart attack early in the 4th quarter when he tried to catch a punt but muffed it at the 7-yard line; but disaster was averted when CB Ross Cockrell recovered the ball (photo above on right) for Pittsburgh. And since he recovered it on the goal line, the play was ruled a touchback, actually giving the Steelers better field position than if Wheaton hadn't muffed it. The Steelers quickly (3 plays) drove to the Broncos' 34-yard line, with one of the plays being a 13-yard catch and run by Wheaton for his biggest gain of the game. It looked like the Steelers were heading for another score until Roby made his big play on the 4th play of the drive, fighting off a block by WR Darrius Heyward-Bey and punching the ball out of the hands of Toussaint (photo below - you can't see Roby's dreads but this is the best shot I could find of the play) on a run on 2nd and 4 that would have given Pittsburgh a 1st down inside the 30-yard line.
I didn't see it, but I read somewhere that the loss caused Coach Tomlin to shed some tears after the game. Probably because he knew that his team had a pretty good shot at winning it all this season. But in the NFL, you not only have to be good, you need to stay healthy; and that's something the Steelers just could not do. Injuries kept coming up, conspiring to keep them from being as good as they could have been. Oh well, maybe next year.
.
DREADS FOCUS
NFC NORTH
Best player with dreads: Ezekiel Ansah
Player with best dreads: Rashean Mathis
==============================================================================
CHICAGO BEARS
For the 2nd straight year Bears finished with 0 TD scored by players with dreads - but it wasn't from a lack of trying. They drafted Kevin White, who had 10 TD catches as a senior for West Virginia in 2014, in the 1st round; but he suffered a stress fracture in his leg during offseason practice, and after it failed to heal on its own he had to undergo surgery and ended up missing the entire season. I'm not including a photo of White, but you can see his sick dreads here in an interview he did right after the season ended: http://www.chicagobears.com/multimedia/videos/White-on-coming-back-healthy/c7747c7e-dd9e-4944-8cd2-0d189adab2c1 ..... They also signed Jacquizz Rodgers (top photo on right) as a free agent, but he also missed most of the season, rushing for 41 yards and 0 TD before going on IR with a broken arm suffered in Week 5 ..... And Senorise Perry, who likely would have been the #1 kickoff returner, spent the whole season on IR after injuring his foot during the 3rd preseason game .....Willie Young (#97 in bottom photo on right) and free agent signee Pernell McPhee (#92) had a nice competition for the team's player with dreads with the most sacks. Young won 6.5-6, but only because McPhee was slowed by a knee injury the 2nd half of the season ..... Will Sutton (23 tackles, 4 PBU, 0 sacks) takes crown for longest dreads on the team (photo below), although White might have something to say about that next season ..... Jason Weaver spent whole season on IR too ..... After his play slipped noticeably in 2014, there was no 2015 for former Pro Bowl CB Tim Jennings, who was cut near end of training camp ..... David Bass still had his dreads when Bears cut him too at end of training camp ..... Rookie WR Ify Umodu started season on PS but was let go after only 2 weeks despite scoring 2 TD in the preseason ..... DE Lavar Edwards signed as free agent after Week 1 but released a week later.
LB PERNELL McPHEE
RB Senorise Perry (IR)
RB Jacquizz Rodgers (IR)
DT WILL SUTTON
OT Jason Weaver (IR)
WR Kevin White (PUP)
LB WILLIE YOUNG
GRADE: B-
===========================================================================
DETROIT LIONS
I remember the first time I had ever heard of him (during the 2011 preseason) you needed to see Joique Bell with his helmet off to see that he had dreads. Now those dreads are long enough that anybody can grab onto them to tackle him (which happened during the Week 10 game at Green Bay). Joique thought he would be cute and keep his dreads reduced this season, but all that did was cause the Lions to get off to a 1-7 start. Once he quit reducing them in mid-November the team quit losing every game. After 597 total yards and 4 TD in 2015, there may not be a 2016 for Bell (top photo on right), who recently was released. A Michigan native, hopefully he'll re-sign with the Lions, even if he has to take a pay cut ..... There definitely won't be a 2016 for Rashean Mathis, who had to go on IR after suffering a concussion in Week 7. He finished the season with 30 tackles, 1 FF, 3 PBU, and 1 INT.
I'm guessing that he wanted to come back next season but decided to announce he was retiring after the team told him they were going to release him. After 13 NFL seasons (all with dreads), Rashean not surprisingly had arguably the longest dreads in the league (middle photo on right), and we're really going to miss seeing them ..... As his 2-year-old dreads are just now starting to be visible outside his helmet, Ezekiel "Ziggy" Ansah (#94 in bottom photo on right) is turning into a superstar. His 14.5 sacks ranked #3 in the league - and #1 among players with dreads.Devin Taylor, who had a touch of blue in his dreads last year but changed to the Lions' other color - silver - this season (#98 in bottom right photo), also becoming a very good player, finishing with 7 sacks in a reserve role ..... With starting LB DeAndre Levy out due to injury, Josh Bynes (photo below, warming up for a preseason game on Aug. 28) got the chance to play a lot and finished with 80 tackles and 5 PBU ..... Darryl Tapp had 27 tackles, 2 sacks, and 2 FF in a reserve role ..... Brandon Pettigrew started 8 games but finished with career low 7 catches before going on IR with a torn ACL after Week 14 ..... After being released by Packers and Patriots, Khyri Thornton (#67, on the left in bottom photo on right above) signed and had 5 tackles in 6 games ..... OT LaAdrian Waddle played 8 games, starting 6, but played so poorly he was released in mid-December ..... 3rd round rookie Alex Carter on IR all season with ankle injury ..... Rookie WR Kaelin Clay signed to PS after Week 2 and stayed there until signing with Ravens in Week 11 ..... Rookie Tyrus Thompson signed to PS in November ..... Free agent CB Bill Bentley signed just before Thanksgiving and then released just after Christmas ..... Rookie free agents, WR Jarred Haggins, DE Erik Williams, and TE Deon Butler, along with free agents, DT Roy Philon and LB Julian Stanford, all released at or near end of training camp.
RB Joique Bell
LB JOSH BYNES
CB Alex Carter (IR)
CB RASHEAN MATHIS (IR)
TE BRANDON PETTIGREW (IR)
LB Darryl Tapp
DE Devin Taylor
OT Tyrus Thompson (PS)
DT Khyri Thornton
GRADE: A
==============================================================================
GREEN BAY PACKERS
DT Josh Boyd (IR)
RB EDDIE LACY
LB JULIUS PEPPERS
GRADE: D+
=============================================================================
MINNESOTA VIKINGS
At least Cordarrelle Patterson is earning his keep as the best kickoff returner in the league; but he contributed next to nothing (25 total yards on 4 touches) on offense this season, Maybe it's time for a position switch to RB, You know, if he can't run routes well enough to get open, just hand the ball to him ..... Jarius Wright (top photo on right, celebrating with Patterson after Cordarrelle's TD at Oakland in Week 10) played all 16 games for 3rd straight year and had 34 catches, but none of them went for a TD ..... With Phil Loadholt going down with a season-ending torn Achilles in the 2nd preseason game, rookie T.J. Clemmings took his place in the starting lineup for all 16 games but apparently didn't play all that well ..... After cutting off his dreads for his final college season (Florida in 2012), I welcomed Sharrif Floyd back to the house this season, after double checking to make sure that those are dreads he has and not braids. Floyd, one of the Vikings' 1st round draft picks in 2013, finished with 34 tackles, including 2.5 sacks, in 13 games ..... After spending 3 months on the practice squad, attrition forced rookie Anthony Harris (bottom photo on right) into the lineup. He started twice during final month of season, finishing with 15 tackles and 2 PBU ..... With Rashean Mathis soon to be out of the picture, Trae Waynes (photo below) becomes the frontrunner in consideration for the best dreads in the division. Expected to become a star, the #11 overall pick in the draft got his career off to a shaky beginning, starting only 1 game in his rookie season and finishing with totals of 22 tackles and 4 PBU. At least he still has high hopes for himself, so hopefully maybe someday in the future we'll see him in the Pro Bowl. Here's more on Trae from the Vikings Journal blog: http://vikingsjournal.com/articles.html/_/minnesota-vikings-news/trae-waynes-embracing-familiar-role-of-the-villain-r932 ...... I'll be keeping an eye next season on TE MyCole Pruitt, who might be thinking about changing his hair to dreads after letting it grow longer as a rookie this season ..... Isame Faciane, converting from D-line to O-line, on practice squad all season ..... 6th round rookie OT Tyrus Thompson, DT Chigbo Anunoby, and RB DuJuan Harris cut at end of training camp.
OT T.J. CLEMMINGS
G Isame Faciane (PS)
DT SHARRIF FLOYD
S Anthony Harris
OT Phil Loadholt (IR)
WR Cordarrelle Patterson
CB Trae Waynes
WR Jarius Wright
GRADE: B
==============================================================================
==============================================================================
NFC SOUTH
Best player with dreads: Devonta Freeman (*)
Player with best dreads: Tre Boston
==============================================================================
ATLANTA FALCONS
I have the * next to Devonta Freeman's name because actually he was my 2nd choice for the honor. I was planning to put Julio Jones' name there. But Jones can't seem to make up his mind if he's going to keep his hair in dreads or not, so I can't officially welcome him back to the house - yet. I got all excited when he debuted his partial dreads for the Week 7 game at Tennessee (top photo on right). But then he untwisted them back to normal the next week - only to bring them back again for the last 7 games of the season, causing me to think they were back for good. That turned out to be premature optimism though, as he was back to normal hair for the Pro Bowl in Week 21; and that created a lot of doubt for me whether or not he's really serious about growing dreads again. I just don't know. Hopefully he's planning on growing dreads as long as they were when he was a rookie in 2011. But I wouldn't at all be surprised if he shows up at training camp next season clean cut. We'll have to wait and see. Here's a little article from the Falcons' website chronicling Julio's hair in 2015: http://www.atlantafalcons.com/news/blog/article-1/The-Evolution-of-Jones-Hairstyles/73fbc52a-ddb0-4379-aa7f-9de047dc879f .....
Without Jones, Falcons' total of 13 players with dreads on roster falls one short of Bills for league lead; but these dreads have a lot more issues than those on the Bills, starting with Adrian Clayborn. After playing his first 4 seasons in Tampa, Clayborn signed as a free agent and had 3 sacks in 16 games. As you probably know by now his dreads are potentially among the best in the league; but they never reach that potential because he keeps them (seriously) reduced (second photo from top on right, from Week 8) all the time. Maybe you like this look; but me? Man, this almost brings tears to my eyes. What a waste ..... Clayborn alone prevents the team grade from being an 'A', and the same can be said about Vic Beasley. If you didn't know any better, you'd swear that Beasley has his hair in braids, not dreads. Indeed the only reason I've welcomed him to the house is that when you unbraid his braids, it turns into a bunch of dreads and not a mass of normal hair. So technically he's got reduced dreads that look like braids. Mercy, Vic, it'd be nice to see you with dreads every now and then.Drafted #8 overall last April to boost the team's pass rush, Beasley managed just 4 sacks (incredibly those 4 were the most on the team), although one of them did clinch a satisfying victory over Carolina in Week 16 ..... Jonathan Babineaux (30 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 1 INT) seemed to also have his dreads reduced too often (but at least not for every game), but Tyson Jackson (31 tackles) had his flowing at full blast more often than in previous years ..... 4 of the 13 players with dreads are DBs, including sick safeties Kemal Ishmael and Charles Godfrey. Godfrey, who was released twice and re-signed twice, was on roster long enough to play 8 games, while Ishmael finished with 42 tackles and 1 INT in 16 games ..... Desmond Trufant (second photo from bottom on right) played in his 1st Pro Bowl (as a replacement) after recording 42 tackles, 1 sack, 2 FR (one of which he took to the house), 10 PBU and 1 INT ..... But 2nd round rookie Jalen Collins was a disappointment. Collins made even less of an impact on defense than Trae Waynes did with Vikings, leading some to already label him as a bust (patience, people). Sporting ultra long dreads during his college career at LSU , Jalen cut them short enough (but still easily visible) that at least he no longer has to fold them in half. Here's more on Collins' rookie season in a postseason article from ESPN.com (give it a chance to load - it will eventually): http://espn.go.com/blog/atlanta-falcons/print?id=18728 .....With the roster getting thin at LB, Philip Wheeler and his awesome dreads were signed in mid-October. He finished with 29 tackles and 1 sack in 9 games. You may notice I didn't list Philip (on right in bottom photo on right, celebrating his sack with Collins (#32) in Week 15) as having the best dreads in the division. That's because that while his dreads are still very long, they aren't any longer than they were 3 years ago; so he must have trimmed them at some point ..... One of the most pleasant surprises of the season was the season Freeman had (1,056 yards rushing, 578 yards receiving). Who ever woulda thunk that he would lead the league (tied actually) in touchdowns (14). Devonta unfortunately had his dreads reduced almost every week (although not in Week 15 at Jacksonville, photo below) ..... Roddy White, on the other hand, had just 43 catches and 1 TD - his lowest numbers since 2006. This may have been the end of his 11-year career with the team ..... After being released by Cowboys, Gus Johnson signed to PS at end of October. Terrance Parks and his super long dreads signed to PS in December ..... But S Dezmen Southward and his super long dreads unfortunately were released in early November ..... Sick LB Terrell Manning, WR Carlton Mitchell, and DE Cliff Matthews cut at end of training camp.
LB VIC BEASLEY
DE Adrian Clayborn
CB Jalen Collins
RB DEVONTA FREEMAN
S Charles Godfrey
S Kemal Ishmael
DE TYSON JACKSON
RB Gus Johnson (PS)
S Terrance Parks (PS)
CB DESMOND TRUFANT
LB Philip Wheeler
WR RODDY WHITE
GRADE: A-
==============================================================================
CAROLINA PANTHERS
I may have missed him, but evidently the Panthers didn't miss Kevin Benjamin, who wasn't able to follow up his outstanding 2014 rookie season with another one this season because he tore his ACL in training camp and spent the entire season on IR ..... Rookie Shaq Thompson (top photo on right) started 10 games and finished with 48 tackles, 1 sack, and 2 PBU ..... Playing in his 13th season - and his 1st not in a Bears uniform - Charles Tillman started 12 games but missed out on the team's playoff run after tearing his ACL in Week 17. Tillman had 2 more FF this season, upping his career total to an astonishing 44 FF, along with 5 PBU and 2 INT ..... It had me confused for a while, but there were two different players with dreads in jersey #91 - veteran DT Colin Cole until he was cut at end of September, and then rookie Ryan Delaire, who was signed from the PS the same day Cole was released. Delaire (bottom photo on right), who joined the PS after being cut at the end of the Buccaneers' training camp, had 2.5 sacks in 9 games as a reserve ..... You won't find many dreads in the league better than those on the head of Tre Boston (photo below). But so far in his career he's better known for those dreads than for his play on the field - although he did have a couple of big plays in the playoffs after finishing the regular season with 21 tackles and 0 PBU in 16 games as a reserve ..... Chris Scott, who played 13 games as a reserve on the O-line, a close second to Boston for best dreads on the team ..... Playing in his 9th season (all without dreads), Ted Ginn decided he wanted in on this partial dreads craze going on in sports, debuting his during the team's first playoff game (as was mentioned earlier) ..... Sick Marcus Ball would have been contender for best dreads in the division had he not stayed on the PS after signing in late September ..... Rookie Arthur Miley on IR all season ..... Sick S Robert Lester would have contended for best dreads in the division had he not been cut at end of training camp ..... WR Mike Brown and rookie OT Terry Redden also cut at end of training camp.
S Marcus Ball (PS)
WR Kelvin Benjamin (IR)
S Tre Boston
DE Ryan Delaire
WR TED GINN
DE Arthur Miley (IR)
G Chris Scott
LB SHAQ THOMPSON
CB CHARLES TILLMAN
GRADE: B
==============================================================================
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS
Saints acquired Dannell Ellerbe and his sick dreads in an offseason trade, and he had a big impact on the team's defense - when he was on the field, that is. Unfortunately that wasn't very often. Injuries limited him to only 6 games, during which he made 39 tackles. His FF on a run by RB Tevin Coleman in Week 6 (left photo below) was the play that got the Falcons started on their free fall after they had gotten off to a 5-0 start ..... Playing his 1st season with dreads, Cameron Jordan a strong contender for best player with dreads in the division, finishing with 45 tackles, a team high 10 sacks, 1 FF, and 5 PBU ..... Along with Jordan are two other D-linemen with dreads - John Jenkins (#92 in right photo below, with Jordan in the foreground), who had 49 tackles in 14 games, including 12 starts; and rookie Tyeler Davison, who had 18 tackles and 1.5 sacks as a reserve.
Khiry Robinson (photo below) rushed for only 180 yards (3.2) but did score 4 TD before going on IR with a broken leg suffered during Week 8 ..... Wonderful news: The Dixon twins ride together again! After being cut at the end of Buccaneers training camp, Brandon Dixon signed to the PS in early November and stayed there the rest of the season, rejoining his brother, Brian Dixon, who finished with 13 tackles and 1 FF in 16 games as a reserve. The twins had been on different teams for the first time in their careers as rookies in 2014. No, I do not approve of them both keeping their dreads reduced, but at least they're back together, hopefully for good this time (although that's highly doubtful). More on the Dixon reunion in this article from the New Orleans Advocate: http://www.theneworleansadvocate.com/sports/saints/13911738-148/saints-are-twinning-with-the ..... I guess you can say Travaris Cadet came full circle. Let go during the offseason after playing his first 3 years with Saints, he signed with Patriots but was released after playing only 1 game, then signed with 49ers but was released after playing 4 games, and finally ended up right back in New Orleans for final 2 games of season, during which he scored his only TD of the season ..... Injured rookie WR Malcome Kennedy cut before start of training camp ..... S Pierre Warren, TE Orson Charles, and LB Ronald Powell all were cut at end of training camp.
RB Travaris Cadet
DT Tyeler Davison
CB Brandon Dixon (PS)
CB Brian Dixon
LB DANNELL ELLERBE
DT JOHN JENKINS
DE CAMERON JORDAN
RB Khiry Robinson (IR)
GRADE: B-
==============================================================================
TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS
There's no truth to the rumor that Coach Smith lost his job due to lack of dreads on the team. 11 players with dreads were trying to make team during training camp, but that number was down to 2 on the active roster when season ended ..... Rookie free agent longshot Donteea Dye (top photo on right) beat the odds - but had only 11 catches (including 1 TD) in 10 games after being signed off PS in Week 5 ..... Mike Jenkins (bottom photo on right) made a nice comeback after suffering a season-ending torn pectoral in the 2014 season opener, playing 14 games (5 starts) and finishing with 14 tackles and 5 PBU ..... And that's it - Jenkins and Dye were the only 2 players with dreads on team's 53-man roster when the season ended ..... Josh Allen, cut near end of training camp, signed to PS just before Thanksgiving ..... Rookie C.J. Roberts, cut at end of Cardinals training camp, out of the league until signed to Bucs PS after Christmas ..... After being cut by Saints, Ronald Powell signed to PS in early November then put on injured list a week later ..... After being released by Bears, CB Tim Jennings (photo below) signed and lasted 6 games before Bucs also realized that he's done. I'd be shocked if he plays another game in the NFL ..... G/C Jeremiah Warren played in 3 games (the first 3 of his career) before being let go after Week 6 ..... After signing as a free agent during offseason, S D.J. Swearinger played 7 games before being dumped a week before Thanksgiving (and landing with Cardinals) ..... 6th round rookie WR Kaelin Clay (cut from PS after Week 1) and free agent rookie DE Ryan Delaire (cut at end of training camp) also found life elsewhere after Bucs decided they weren't good enough ..... LB Julian Stanford signed to and cut from PS a couple of times, the last of which was in early November ..... CB Brandon Dixon, rookie S Derrick Wells, and rookie DE Jamal Young all were cut at or near end of training camp.
C Josh Allen (PS)
WR DONTEEA DYE
CB Mike Jenkins
LB Ronald Powell (IR)
CB C.J. Roberts (PS)
GRADE: D
==============================================================================
.
DG
.
.
3. On a Chiefs punt following a three-and-out drive that began at New England's 36-yard line during 2nd quarter, CB Jamell Fleming gets clobbered and flattened on a cheap shot by WR Danny Amendola. Fleming was setting up to catch the punt on the fly to down it inside the 5-yard line when Amendola tried to prevent that by spearing him in the chin. Amendola was flagged for unnecessary roughness and a few days later learned he was being assessed a $23,000 fine. Fleming staggered to his feet but was back on the field the next time the Chiefs punted (in 4th quarter). The penalty cost the Patriots all of 2 yards, moving the ball from their 4-yard line to the 2. And they didn't stay backed up to their goal line for long .....
.
4. ..... On the 6th play of the ensuing drive S Ron Parker tackles Danny Amendola in the open field at the KC 35-yard line, holding him to a 2-yard reception on a 1st and 10 play.
.
5. 4 plays later Ron Parker wins this duel of the 38's, dropping RB Brandon Bolden at the 11-yard line for a 3-yard loss (with an assist from CB Marcus Peters) on a poorly-executed screen pass on 1st and goal. The pass was thrown before the blockers were in position to block, leaving Bolden no chance for success. But it didn't matter because the Patriots got the TD 2 plays later (see next photo). This was the only time Bolden touched the ball on offense in the game. He also had 2 tackles (1-1) on special teams. This was the only one of Parker's 6 tackles (4-2) that was a TFL.
.
.
.
.
.
10. On the 7th play of the Chiefs' ensuing possession WR Chris Conley has CB Justin Coleman beaten over the middle on 3rd and 10 and braces for a collision with S Devin McCourty while trying to secure the ball .....
.
With starting WR Jeremy Maclin slowed by an ankle injury and unable to play every down, Conley had his busiest game of the season. 9 passes were thrown to him; but none of them were deep passes, and although he finished with 5 catches, they were good for only 33 yards, with the biggest gain being just 16 yards.
.
.
.
Stinson finished with 3 tackles (3-0), including a TFL of his own earlier in the game.
.
15. Eddie Lacy has another unsuccessful close encounter with Tony Jefferson early in 3rd quarter. After making the catch in the right flat on the first play of a drive Lacy puts out a stiff-arm, but Jefferson still makes the open-field tackle for a 2-yard loss at the GB 17-yard line.
But .....
.
16. ..... 2 plays later on 1st and 10 Eddie Lacy, after converting the 2nd and 12 on the previous play with a run that would have been much bigger than a 14-yard gain had he not fallen down without being hit, takes the handoff on the same play up the middle and doesn't fall down this time, breaking into the clear for a huge gain .....
.
17. ..... Lacy makes it all the way to the Arizona 12-yard line before being caught from behind by S Rashad Johnson, who eventually gets him on the ground at the 8-yard line. The 61-yard run was by far the biggest gain of the season for Lacy, who had nothing longer than a 30-yard run in the Packers' first 17 games. Lacy accounted for 73 of the 81 yards on the drive but didn't get the TD, which came on an 8-yard pass 3 plays later and put Green Bay in front for the first time 13-7.
.
18. On the 2nd play of Cardinals' next drive WR Larry Fitzgerald beats CB Damarious Randall up the right sideline on 2nd and 6 and makes the catch in stride at the ARIZ 43-yard line, hanging on as Randall tries to grab his arm. Fitzgerald picked up 9 more yards after the catch before Randall knocked him out of bounds at the GB 48 after a gain of 32 yards .....
.
But the drive stalled after Fitzgerald was called for an illegal blindside block on the next play, and Cardinals ended up settling for a FG to make it 13-10 with 5:05 remaining in 3rd quarter. After catching just 1 pass in 1st half, Fitzgerald made 3 receptions on the 74-yard drive.
.
The drive continued, however, and ended with a lucky TD 9 plays and more than 6 minutes later as Cardinals regained the lead 17-13.
.
21. With Cardinals leading 20-13 and :05 on the clock, QB Aaron Rodgers rolls away from pressure by Ed Stinson and LB Markus Golden on 2nd and 15 from the ARIZ 41-yard line and lofts a desperation pass up for grabs in the end zone. Incredibly the ball came down in the hands of WR Jeff Janis with no time remaining; and after the Packers kicked the extra point, the game was tied at 20 and heading into overtime.
Golden finished the night with 3 tackles (2-1).
.
.
.
.
.
.
27. ..... Ryan dives and misses as Fitzgerald cuts to the right at the 13-yard line, and now Larry needs to make just one more move to get to the end zone; but as he cuts back to the left trying to get past Casey Hayward, Hayward reaches out and somehow is able to get both of his arms around Larry's legs to wrap him up and tackle him at the 5-yard line. It ends up being a 75-yard reception for Fitzgerald, but it doesn't end the game. Packers can still extend the game if they can hold Cardinals to a FG attempt.
But .....
.
.
29. ..... After making the catch and cutting through a big hole, Fitzgerald scores easily, as DT Mike Daniels tackles him way too late, giving the Cardinals the win 26-20 after just 65 seconds of overtime.
And talk about deja vu, the last time the Packers and Cardinals met in the playoffs (on the same field 6 years ago) the Cardinals won on the 3rd play of overtime after only 70 seconds, although that time it was a defensive TD that ended it.
.
.
Looking more like a FB or TE than a RB, Lacy has been told by the team he better lose at least 25 pounds before next season. And I sure hope he doesn't cut off his dreads, because those aren't the kind of pounds the coaching staff is talking about. Rumor has it that he'll have no problem making the weight; and if that's true, look for him to have a big season in a contact year in 2016.
.
32. The fireworks start early in the game between the NFC #1 seeded Panthers and defending NFC champion Seahawks at Charlotte. After taking the handoff on the the very first play from scrimmage, RB Jonathan Stewart breaks through a small hole and into the clear, with CB Richard Sherman being the only Seahawk with a chance to prevent a 75-yard TD .....
.
.
34. Seahawks begin their first drive in bad field position, as sick S Tre Boston drops WR Tyler Lockett at the 14-yard line on the ensuing kickoff after a return of only 12 yards.
.
.
36. ..... and very quickly finds himself swarmed by three other defenders, who very quickly put an end to his forward progress. Marshawn stayed on his feet the entire time but lost 3 yards on the play, with Lotulelei and LB Shaq Thompson getting credit for the tackle. It would be Thompson's only tackle of the day.
.
.
38. ..... Big mistake by Wilson, as Lynch, after finishing his route, turns around in time to see the pass be intercepted by All-Pro LB Luke Kuechly at the 14-yard line; and Kuechly takes the return to the house, giving Carolina a 14-0 lead not even 4 minutes after the opening kickoff.
.
.
Seahawks punted two plays later.
.
Sherman finished the game with 3 tackles (2-1) and 1 PBU.
.
.
43. Marshawn Lynch has a hug for Coach Rivera and a handshake for WR Ted Ginn after Panthers end Seahawks' 2-year reign as NFC champs with the 31-24 victory. Lynch and Ginn were never teammates but no doubt got to know each other at the 2007 draft, where Ginn was the 9th pick in the 1st round and Lynch the 12th.
Marshawn gained only 35 total yards in the final game of his career - 20 yards rushing on 6 carries and 2 catches for 15 yards. Two weeks later he announced he was retiring from the NFL after a 9-year career that might earn him a place in the Hall of Fame.
.
.
.
.
.
48. On the next play Steelers don't try a FG and they don't run the ball either on 4th and 1, instead going for the TD; but they come away empty on the drive, as CB Aqib Talib prevents Markus Wheaton from making the catch at the 2-yard line. Wheaton actually had Talib beat on the play, but QB Ben Roethlisberger had to throw off his back foot, and the pass was underthrown, giving Talib a chance to catch up and get the PBU.
.
But Toussaint scored the TD on the next play, completing a 5-play, 80-yard drive and giving Pittsburgh a 7-6 lead.
.
You know, after watching the play over several times, I'm thinking it possibly was a safety who blew the coverage and not Roby. But whoever messed up, nobody was within 10 yards of Heyward-Bey when he made the catch, and the Broncos were fortunate that he didn't score on the play. 4 plays later Steelers kicked a FG to make it 10-6.
.
.
.
.
54. With the ball at the 10-yard line five plays later, Aqib Talib comes to the Broncos' rescue again, making his 2nd TD-saving PBU of the game, this time blanketing Martavis Bryant on a back-shoulder pass into the end zone on 3rd and 5 and knocking the ball down. Steelers settled for a FG on the next play at the end of their 69-yard drive to make the score 13-9.
.
.
.
57. On the first play of Steelers' next drive Sammie Coates, after making the catch on a short crossing route, turns upfield and goes 7 yards after the catch before encountering Chris Harris at the PIT 40-yard line. Despite taking a stiff-arm to the face, this time Harris successfully gets Coates out of bounds at the 44, but it's still a good gain of 24 yards.
It was the second and last reception of the game for Sammie. The 2 catches were good for 61 yards.
.
.
.
2 plays later .....
.
This obviously was the highlight of the day for Roby, who had those two blown coverages and a PI penalty earlier and also finished with 3 tackles (3-0).
.
Broncos finished the 65-yard drive with a TD (and 2-point conversion) 7 plays later, taking a 20-13 lead on their only TD of the game with 3 minutes remaining.
.
.
64. The mood was more somber on the other sideline, and slightly less happy than it was one week earlier for Martavis Bryant, who is consoled by Darrius Heyward-Bey (on right) before they head to the losing locker after the tough defeat. Bryant had a fantastic game in defeat, finishing with 9 catches for 154 yards and also 40 yards rushing on 2 reverses. But it just wasn't meant to be for the Steelers, who might have gotten that AFC championship I predicted for them had they stayed a little healthier. Maybe next year.
Of course, there might not be a next year for Bryant. It's both disturbing and disappointing to me to hear the recent reports about him. Hopefully they'll turn out to not be true. But if they are, it'll be a while before we see Martavis back on the field again.
.
NEXT
I have to apologize for taking so long to finish this report. I never intended to leave you waiting for nearly 2 months since the last one. But for real, once we get past January all I want to do in my free time is watch basketball; so I have not been spending as much time as I should working on the blog.
I still have three more reports to do on the 2015 season, and I promise to get them finished (eventually). But just don't try to hold your breath until I do.
No comments:
Post a Comment