Some Football Thoughts

Here are some football thoughts that have been on my mind as we head into Week 2 of the NFL season.

1. First-year head coaches were 0-7 in Week 1 debuts with their new teams. There's always another game, until there isn't, for Frank Reich, Mike Vrabel, Pat Shurmur, Steve Wilks, Matt Nagy, Matt Patricia, and Jon Gruden.

2. New quarterbacks in new places were 4-1-1 in Week 1. Kirk Cousins, Case Keenum, Alex Smith, and Sam Darnold led their new teams to wins, Sam Bradford didn't, and Tyrod Taylor did neither.

3. Most fans and talking heads lost their minds over the new helmet-targeting rule in the offseason and through a flag-filled preseason. I was, and still am, much more concerned about the new physics-defying rule that penalizes a defensive player for landing on a quarterback with his full body weight. The league's delicate handling of quarterbacks has really gone too far. I get the intent of the rule. The league doesn't want professional wrestling-like tackles to take their precious commodities off of the football field. The league doesn't want to lose Aaron Rodgers. Again. With this new rule, the league apparently forgot that there are natural laws that impact all tackles. Like gravity. When a defensive player hits a quarterback (legally!) gravity takes over and pulls both players to the ground. One often lands on the other. The league wants the defensive player to roll off of the quarterback as both are being pulled to the field at an accelerating rate. Maybe the league's decision-makers can see that happening in their minds but it really doesn't happen all that easily in reality. I can't think of a more ludicrous rule change in my 40-plus years of following the NFL.

4. Minnesota Vikings receiver Adam Thielen had six catches against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday. Six first downs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver Mike Evans had seven catches and seven first downs. Denver Broncos receiver Demaryius Thomas equaled Thielen's numbers. The difference being that Thielen runs more than one route. Just kidding!

5. The analytics of Pro Football Focus, and others, are great. The flaw in their work is that all plays aren't equal. A routine tackle on one play does not equal a blown coverage that gives up a touchdown on another play.

6. The New England Patriots receiver room (currently) looks like this:

Phillip Dorsett
Chris Hogan
Cordarrelle Patterson
Julian Edelman
Corey Coleman
Matthew Slater

Dorsett, Patterson, and Coleman are former first round picks that are trying to find their place with their second (Dorsett) and third (Patterson and Coleman) teams. Hogan and Edelman are at the other end of the athletic spectrum. They aren't even supposed to be in the league. Slater might one day enter the Hall of Fame as a special teams ace. The Patriots have an interesting receiver room.

7. So, Martavis Bryant is back with the Oakland Raiders. It's difficult not to wonder if Jon Gruden knows what he's doing right now.

8. One of the best things about Adrian Peterson's debut with the Washington Redskins last week was his 70 receiving yards on two catches. One catch went for 52. The other went for 18. Since he entered the league in 2007, talking heads have been saying that Peterson couldn't be a factor in the passing game. He was a receiving factor in 2009 when Brett Favre was flinging the ball around. His 43 receptions and 436 yards that season are proof of that. He's always made an impact when the ball was thrown to him. He's always made an impact with the ball in his hands.

9. "Yeah, he walks on water so I'm sure he's going to play."
           -Mike Zimmer on whether he expects Aaron Rodgers to play on Sunday.

10. Football's back!