NFL Best Bets 2011 season, Divisional Playoffs

by | Jan 12, 2012 | NFL Gambling

The largest over/under in the history of the NFL playoffs wasn’t too high for Detroit and New Orleans, as predicted by yours truly.

Unfortunately it was the only bet I got right last week. I thought the underdogs would fare better in the Cincinnati v Houston and Atlanta v New York Giants games. And I sure as hell didn’t see Denver knocking off Pittsburgh.

So it goes, I guess. The beauty of it in the imaginary world of blogging is regardless of how much mythical money I lost on last week’s games, I can always try again this week. (more…)

In depth: St. Louis Rams

by | Jan 12, 2012 | 2011 season, 2012 season, NFL Draft, NFL Free Agency, NFL Random Thoughts

After several tough seasons, the St. Louis Rams went 7-9, finishing one game from the playoffs in 2010. They had a new quarterback in rookie Sam Bradford and, seemingly, all the momentum in the world. I thought they had the best chance in the division of winning the NFC West.

I was way, way wrong. For our second post-season, in-depth segment, Ryan Van Bibber, editor of Turf Show Times, joined Zoneblitz this week to share his thoughts on what went wrong in 2011 and what has to happen for the Rams to turn things around again in 2012.

Zoneblitz: After 2010 I believed St. Louis would be in the mix for the NFC West championship. What happened that derailed that so dramatically? (more…)

You’re doing a great job, Jonesie

by | Jan 11, 2012 | 2011 season, NFL Random Thoughts

Good news, Cowboys fans. Jerry Jones plans to look in the mirror and “make some changes,” according to a story on the WFAA-TV website.

Not sure what those changes are going to be, since he pretty much said after the season he wasn’t hiring a general manager.

It’s a poor comparison with regard to the importance of the issues at hand, of course, but I’ve always sort of envisioned Jones’ mirror talking to him similarly to how President George W. Bush spoke to Michael Brown during a press conference when the latter was getting criticized for FEMA’s questionable response to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans: “You’re doing a great job, Jonesie.”

Jones’ self-assessment that he is providing the coaching and the player personnel as the team’s general manager rings as hollow considering the team’s performance over the years.

The Dallas Cowboys might be the most valuable team in sports and Fortune may have named Jones the National Football League’s fifth-best owner, but the team  with the billion dollar stadium is far from the top of the list when it comes to fielding competitive teams over the last 20-some years. (more…)

In depth: Indianapolis Colts

by | Jan 10, 2012 | 2011 season, 2012 season, NFL Draft, NFL Free Agency, NFL Random Thoughts

It’s hard to stay completely up to date on every detail of each of the NFL’s 32 teams. So we’ve decided to try and reach out to the blogger community to help provide some insight.

Over the next few weeks we’re going to get in touch with someone who covers each team to get their thoughts on how the 2011 season went, how they see the draft and free agency playing out and what they expect and hope for in 2012.

The plan is to do a post every couple of days in the same order as the draft. As such, we start with the Indianapolis Colts.

Few teams went from penthouse to outhouse as quickly as Indianapolis did, thanks in large part to the neck injuries that afflicted Peyton Manning all season. So was this a one year aberration? Or are there deeper problems the Colts must address before they can think of being competitive again?

We asked Brett Mock, managing editor and head writer at The Colts Authority, for his thoughts on that and much more. Here’s what he had to say:

Zoneblitz: Peyton Manning’s injuries were obviously a large reason for the Colts’ struggles in 2011, but I was stunned by the level to which the team fell apart. What else factored in?

(more…)

Hall of Famer Ward? Hines looking at retirement

by | Jan 9, 2012 | Hall of Fame, NFL Random Thoughts

This could be turning into a pretty good year for big-name retirements. There’s Jason Taylor for sure. Seems LaDainian Tomlinson is considering hanging it up. And if reports from around the Interwebs are true, Steelers wideout Hines Ward is about to say goodbye to the NFL, as well. (EDIT: Or perhaps not …)

Taylor and Tomlinson would seem to be sure thing inductees into the Pro Football Hall of Fame at this point. But Ward is an interesting case. He’s close — right on the borderline either way. His numbers were very, very good, but was he that good? Or did he benefit from playing in the NFL as the game — and the long-time run-heavy Steelers — transitioned more and more toward the pass? (more…)