If I were a fan… St. Louis Rams
If I were a fan of the St. Louis Rams I would be feeling cheated. Just a few years ago they were the Greatest Show on Turf, going to the Super Bowl, setting records, winning games and were one of the most feared teams in the league. Now they are a laughing stock. With no real owenership, no coach, and their skill position players getting up in years it is time for some big changes.
Players I like: Steven Jackson - Jackson is a tough, strong runner who runs hard. You can’t ask for much more from a RB as far as running the ball goes. He was a bit hampered by injuries this year and with his running style that is to be expected. If the Rams can get someone to take some of the carries and some of the wear and tear away from him I think he should still have a couple more years as a top RB in the league. He battled injuries all year, missed 4 games, and played on a terrible team but still had over 1000 yards and 40 receptions.
Donny Avery - Avery showed some good promise for a rookie receiver. 53 catches and 674 yards is a good start for a first year receiver. Considering all the wide receiver busts over the last few years I would feel pretty encouraged by those numbers if I were a Rams fan.
Chris Long - His numbers don’t leap off the page compared to other big time D-ends but for a rookie his 40 tackles and 4 sacks are a good start. He will need to get the sack numbers up to double digits next year though. He also didn’t have a sack in the second half of the season which might be room for concern but it will take another year or two before we will see what he can really do.
A fan’s view: This team needs some leadership. They need an owner, a coach, a good GM, and some players in the locker room to step up. Right now this seems like a rudderless ship. For a coach I think they should be looking to give a top DC or OC a job. Somebody like Rex Ryan could get this team turned around and I don’t think a retread like Schottenheimer or Shanahan would be the way to go. I would need a reason to care about this team again and would need to see that the organization is committed to putting a winning team on the field every Sunday.
Where do we go from here? This team needs some toughness and that usually comes from the O-line and D-line. Andre Smith would be a very smart pick with the second pick in the draft and would help a weak O-line right away. I think it is also time to start replacing Marc Bulger and Torry Holt. Both of them (especially Holt) have had great careers but they are getting older and the Rams need to start looking towards the future.
What does the future look like? Right now I would say it is pretty bleak. If I were an opponent Steven Jackson is the only player that would really make me think about my gameplan. Most of the other players are pretty pedestrian. There are some decent pieces there but they need a few more impact players on both sides of the ball. Once the ownership situation gets settled this team can move forward so the quicker that can be settled the better.
If I were a fan… of the Detroit Lions
Man, where to start with this one. The best thing the Detroit Lions did this year was showing Matt Millen the door. Time to get someone in there who knows personell and can get a good foundation built in the next year or two. As Miami and Atlanta showed us this year it doesn’t take a lot to turn a franchise around and with some luck, good drafts, and some good free agent signings the Lions could be winning again in a couple years.
Players I Like: Calvin Johnson: Great receiver. Lots of his numbers were put up in garbage time but then again that was 95% of the time for the Lions this year. Even on a terrible team 1300+ yards and 12 TDs is a great season.
Ernie Sims and Paris Lenon: Solid pair of linebackers. Both posted 100+ tackles this year.
Kevin Smith: Smith had a solid rookie season once he was made the starter. He only lost one fumble on his 238 carries and will be a good RB to build on next season
Other than that there aren’t really any standout players. The O-line and D-line aren’t good and the secondary was horrible.
A fan’s view: Fed up. It has been to long since there was something to look forward to with the Detroit Lions. The Lions haven’t won a playoff game since 1991 and have only had 3 double digit win seasons since the league went to 16 games. There also haven’t been any “superstars” (Calvin Johnson has potential though) since Barry Sanders and Herman Moore. If I were a fan of the Detroit Lions I would be just fed up with how this team has been run. I would be asking for the league to step in and do something about the ownership. If the league can punish players for conduct detrimental to the team and for other indescresions shouldn’t they be able to punish owners who hurt their team and the league as a whole with their terrible mismanagement?
Where do we go from here: I am not sure Martin Mayhew is the answer at GM. If I were the owner I would do everything I could to get rid of nearly anyone associated with this season. I would have tried to get a big name GM in here that would at least give the fans some hope. I think they also need to get an exciting coach. A retread like Marty Schottenheimer or Mike Shanahan won’t cut it. Bring in a young guy or someone who hasn’t been given a shot like Josh McDaniels or Rex Ryan. This team needs some new blood.
As far as players I would really work on getting the best players available in the draft. If they can they should trade their first pick and pick up some more second or third round picks. It is gonna take a lot to turn this team around and spending a bunch of money on a #1 pick isn’t the way to do it. They should also avoid any high priced free agents. Yeah, they can pick up some pieces in free agency but there is no reason to spend millions on a big name player when they have so many holes to plug.
Maybe the fans would be temporarily excited about a big name player coming in but that would soon wear off as the losses continued to mount. If the management can give the fans hope that in 2 or 3 years this team can be competitive again I think that is all they can hope for. A turn-around for next year is very unlikely. Bring in a stop-gap QB option for a year or so and work on developing a young QB (Matthew Stafford, Graham Harrell, Chase Daniel, etc.) who they can get later in the first round or somewhere in the middle rounds of the draft. Build a solid O-line that will protect the young QB, get some energy players on the D-line, and build from there.
What does the future look like: Pretty bleak right now. But with a few shrewd moves, some good front office decisions, a solid coach, and a couple good drafts the Lions could easily be back to respectability within a couple years.
So what do you think? Agree or disagree? Who do you want as a coach? Who should they draft? Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts.
If I were a fan…
Over the next month or so I will be taking a look at each team in the NFL and giving my thoughts as to who I like, what should be done, how the team can be improved, etc. Some teams I will have a better feel for than others and some I will just be talking out of my butt. Feel free to leave comments about your favorite team and what you would like to seem them do in this offseason, what the general fan perspective is on the team, and what needs to be done to get your team in the playoffs and win a Super Bowl
Christmas gift ideas
So we are a month away from Christmas and it is time to get your shopping done. If you are looking for a gift for any sports fan (or just something for yourself) check out Sports-Fan-Gifts.com. Over 60,000 products to choose from for NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, and College teams.
Everything from sweatshirts, jerseys, hats and jackets to stuff for the home like blankets, lamps, and glassware to other items like watches, Christmas stockings, and pretty much anything you can slap a logo on. Check it out and get your shopping done early.
If the season ended today…
Yeah, I know it is only halfway through the season and there is a LOT of football to be played but it seems about time to start the whole “If the season ended today…” look at who is in the playoffs and who missed out.
Starting in the AFC: If the season ended to day our division winners would be the New York Jets (suprise), Pittsburgh Steelers (probably expected), Tennessee Titans (suprise), and Denver Broncos (suprise). Wild card spots would go to the New England Patriots (playoffs were expected), and the Baltimore Ravens (expected).
The San Diego Chargers, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Indianapolis Colts would all miss the playoffs and those were three of the teams with the highest expectations in the AFC. Before the season started a Super Bowl wasn’t too far fetched for any of those teams. But injuries and poor play have hit all three teams. It also seems to me that there isn’t a fire in any of those teams. Obviously the players still go out there and play hard every week but you look at a team like Tennessee or the Giants and everyone on the field seems to be going 100% on every play. Don’t really see that for Indy, SD, or Jacksonville.
Looking at the NFC we would have the NY Giants, Chicago Bears, Carolina Panthers, and Arizona Cardinals as division winners and Washington and Tampa Bay in as the wild cards. The only huge suprise in the Arizona Cardinals. I wouldn’t put a second half collapse past them but they seem to be playing good enough to win the NFC West. None of the other 5 playoff teams (maybe Chicago) is much of a suprise.
Missing from the playoff picture are the Dallas Cowboys, Seattle Seahawks, and Green Bay Packers. On paper the Cowboys have an impressive group of talent but just haven’t been able to put it together and the team seems like it is falling apart.
The Seahawks have been devastated by injuries to Matt Hasselbeck, Patrick Kearny, Lofa Tatupu, and any receiver who has put on a uniform for them this year. With such a precision offensive system it is hard to plug in receivers who haven’t had time to practice with their QB and this has really hurt the Seahawks this year. This makes it hard for them to pick up first downs and keep drives going. As such the Seahawks have the worst time of posession in the NFL this year. This in turn tires out the defense too much making it hard for them to stop anybody on third down. Bad stuff in Seattle right now. Being in the NFC West still gives them a very outside shot of making a run for a division title but one or two more losses and you can kiss that goodbye.
Not sure what is up with the Packers. The running game isn’t what it was last year but Aaron Rogers has done as good as can be expected. The Packers still have all the pieces needed to make a good run the rest of the year but they can’t afford too many more losses.
All in all it realistically looks like there are 25 teams that are still alive to snag a playoff spot (sorry Cleveland, Oakland, KC, Cincy, San Fran, St. Louis, and Detroit) but another loss or two could knock 5 or 6 teams off that list.
Let’s check back in a couple weeks and see where everyone stands.
Agree? Disagree? Leave a comment and let me know.
