by Andy | Mar 25, 2017 | 2016 Season, 2017 Season, NFL Draft, NFL Free Agency, NFL Random Thoughts
Just a year after being 15-1 and going to the Super Bowl, Carolina struggled to a 6-10 record in 2016. Several things fell apart, including Cam Newton, who struggled through an injury- and inconsistency-riddled follow-up to his MVP season.
Can the Panthers get things back in order and make another deep postseason run? Or was the year as runner-up the outlier? Brian Beversluis, a staff writer with Cat Scratch Reader, joins us with some thoughts.
Zoneblitz: The Panthers followed up a Super Bowl season with a 6-10. How would you assess what went wrong in 2016?
Beversluis: Injuries were obviously a big deal. Losing Michael Oher to a concussion all year was a major issue that threw the offensive line into shambles. In 2015, Oher stabilized the line and left only right tackle Mike Remmers as a weak link. In 2016, Remmers had to play left tackle, something he’s definitely not cut out for long term. Remmers has value as a swing guy (why he got paid in Minnesota) but he has no business there at LT all the time. Then their back up RT Daryl Williams got hurt too, forcing Pro Bowl right guard Trai Turner to play RT. They also eventually lost Ryan Kalil and his back up at center. Obviously for an offense that likes to take shots down field, that’s a problem. It caused Cam to take a lot of hits and allowed teams to load the box.
On defense, losing Josh Norman and having to field two rookie corners and unproven commodities at nickel threw the secondary into disarray, and the front seven struggled to get pass rush early on due to teams taking advantage of that.
Zoneblitz: Cam Newton wasn’t terrible in 2016, but despite the return of Kelvin Benjamin, he didn’t come close to matching his magical 2015. What happened there? (more…)
by Andy | Mar 11, 2017 | Hall of Fame
I have made no secret of my lukewarm feelings toward the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s 2017 class. It enshrines a number of worthy players, but leaves several more decorated contenders on the outside looking in for another year.
That said, the enshrinement of one of those players – Terrell Davis – should be the best thing that ever happened to the case for one of the most dominant, but way too forgotten, dominant wide receivers of the late 1980s and early 1990s: one Sterling Sharpe.
I’ve seen his name come up a couple times in the comments section of our Hall posts. And I think it’s rightfully so. Here’s why:
A few years ago, we did a post looking at the then-stalled candidacies of Tim Brown, Cris Carter and Andre Reed. All three appeared deserving of consideration for the Hall, but their resumes seemed to be canceling each other out.
Now, they all eventually got in. And each of them warranted enshrinement. But in studying that post again and comparing each of their respective cases to the numbers posted by Sharpe during his injury-shortened seven years, I think if Sharpe had stayed healthy, he’d have been the best of the group. (more…)
by Andy | Mar 10, 2017 | Fantasy Football
It’s the offseason, but fantasy football never sleeps. As free agency starts and rosters get reshaped, the savvy fantasy player has a lot of reasons to pay attention.
John Tuvey, director of content with SportsHub Technologies, has long been one of the best in the business. He shared his weekly rankings with you here during the 2016 season and he’s agreed to share his thoughts on developments of interest to the fantasy crowd in the time since the Super Bowl ended.
Zoneblitz: Last year, for the first time in my memory, WRs went with the top two or three picks in most drafts. Was that an anomaly or is that the new fantasy normal?
Tuvey: After the seasons that David Johnson, Le’Veon Bell and Ezekiel Elliott had in 2016 I have to think they’ll be three of the first five players off the board—though with PPR becoming the scoring system of choice, a high-volume receiver like Antonio Brown will be in the mix as well.
As long as there are compelling backs touching the ball as frequently as Johnson, Bell and Elliott, they’ll remain atop the fantasy wish list. That list of sure things is dwindling, however, as committee backfields become the norm. In my mind that makes it even more vital to grab one if you can; it’s when you get to that next tier of less-certain backs that wideouts such as Brown, AJ Green, Julio Jones and Odell Beckham Jr. start looking like the smarter move.
Zoneblitz: What would you be looking at as your first round in a standard draft right now? (more…)
by Andy | Feb 23, 2017 | 2016 Season, 2017 Season, NFL Draft, NFL Free Agency, NFL Random Thoughts
The 2016 season was not kind to the Chargers, nor its fans. On the field, San Diego failed to finish games, resulting in a 5-11 record that included nine losses by one score. Off the field, the team, the league and the city were unable to come to an agreement on stadium issues.
So, the team’s long-rumored move to Los Angeles has commenced.
Will a new home and a new head coach help turn this team’s fortunes around? Or does Anthony Lynn’s team have more problems that need to be fixed to expect a one year turnaround?
Richard Wade, managing editor of Bolts from the Blue, shared his thoughts on those and other issues facing the soon-to-be Los Angeles Chargers.
Zoneblitz: We’ll focus primarily on the field, but the 800-pound gorilla in the room is the team’s move. What are your thoughts on the transition to Los Angeles?
Wade: As a native San Diegan and lifelong Chargers fan the transition to Los Angeles has been awful to experience. A big part of the enjoyment of sports is the shared experience with family, friends, and community. With the team packing up and leaving, that shared experience has been taken apart. Also, the manner in which the Spanos family has handled the move has been embarrassing to watch, so there is really very little to feel good about when it comes to supporting this franchise in 2017.
Zoneblitz: The Chargers were, in my opinion, one of the league’s more confusing teams in 2016. It went 5-11 but lost nine of those games by one score. How would you assess this team and what went wrong?
Wade: The Chargers’ inability to close out games can mostly be traced back to two things: terrible coaching and inadequate depth. Head coach Mike McCoy was one of the worst I have ever seen at managing the clock and understanding game situations. He directly cost the team multiple games. Also, the roster that general manager Tom Telesco put together had some very capable starters at most positions, but the depth was poor to nonexistent and that showed up in the second half of games early on and was even more exposed as injuries started to pile up. (more…)
by Andy | Feb 17, 2017 | 2016 Season, 2017 Season, NFL Draft, NFL Free Agency, NFL Random Thoughts
Expectations were high in New York, following a 10-6 2015 season. But pretty much right out of the gate, the 2016 season ended up being as bad as the previous season was good.
Injuries, age, poor QB play and suspensions, among other problems, decimated the Jets, dooming them to a 5-11 season.
Do Todd Bowles and his team have what they need to turn things around? What happens at the QB position? Can the Jets show that 2016 was the outlier instead of 2015?
Joe Caporoso, owner of Turn on the Jets, joined us to share his thoughts.
Zoneblitz: The 2016 season was as bad as 2015 was promising – what went wrong?
Caporoso: The quarterback play was the worst in the NFL and that started a domino effect of incompetence throughout the team. Todd Bowles regressed as a coach, young players like Calvin Pryor and Lorenzo Mauldin took a step back, the team’s red zone efficiency plummeted and they stopped being able to force turnovers. Throw in a few key injuries (Eric Decker, Nick Mangold) and you have the perfect recipe for 5-11.
Zoneblitz: Was retaining Todd Bowles the right move?
Caporoso: I think so. This team can’t keep flipping everything over every 2 years. At this time last year Bowles was coming off a solid 10-6 rookie year, one year after being the AP Assistant Coach of the Year, it is hard to think he has transformed into Rich Kotite and can’t coach anymore. He must improve his game management and ability to make quicker decisions on ineffective players but I am not surprised he got a third year. (more…)
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Paul totally but would you agree it would make a great book
Thought many times about writing one but would take inside knowledge from those who were there (voters) to really have…
I’m surprised no one has written a complete book about the Pro Football Hall of Fame one about the history…
Hard to say at this point, but I guess and recent finalist not elected in 2027 & 2028
If Aaron Donald comes back, it will help another player in 2029?