Duane Sampson
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Midterm evaluations for all 32 teams Adam Schein FOXSports.com, Updated 3 hours ago The NFL season is heading into November, so let's look at the grades for the first two months of the season. Remember — this is not a power ranking. I don't believe the Lions are better than the Chargers. It's not a look into the crystal ball. I don't think the Eagles are done. It's a grade report based on play in the first half. Now for the grades — the good, the bad, and the New York Jets. A+ New England: Bill Belichick's team is just drubbing the opposition. It's almost unfair how amazing they are. Tom Brady is enjoying a season for the ages and clearly the leader for league MVP. The dominance of the passing attack, including the magic of Randy Moss, the skill of Wes Welker, the speed of Donte' Stallworth, and the power and cohesiveness of the offensive line, was on display against Cleveland, Dallas, Miami and especially Washington in the second quarter of the season. Oh yeah — if you have a problem with the Patriots scoring so much in the fourth quarter, why don't you play some defense? Indianapolis: Center Jeff Saturday summed it up best when he told us, "We are more complete than at any point during the Super Bowl run." Peyton Manning's accuracy and decision making is pinpoint. Bob Sanders is the leading candidate for defensive player of the year. And how about the role players? Dallas Clark is a touchdown machine. Kenton Keith has emerged as a legit No. 2 back. Undrafted rookie Ed Johnson changed the Week 7 statement win in Jacksonville when he sacked David Garrard. Marlin Jackson has become an impact corner. Tony Dungy's bunch won at Tennessee, Houston and Jacksonville in the first half after losing every game on the road in the division last year. And the Colts still face all three teams in Indy. This is highly impressive. A Dallas: A sign of great teams is winning when you don't play your best. This was certainly the case for 6-1 Dallas on Monday Night Football against the Bills in the game of the year so far. The Cowboys hung with New England for three quarters in their only loss. Dallas, propelled by Tony Romo, Terrell Owens and Jason Witten, is clearly the best team in the NFC in this first half of the season. The Cowboys also secured their future by giving Romo a hefty extension. Packers: Is there a better way to end a first half? Brett Favre throws a game-winning bomb to Greg Jennings on the first play from scrimmage in overtime to beat the Broncos in majestic fashion. It was simply classic. Mike McCarthy's Packers are a highly impressive 6-1, fueled by great play from the defense all season long. Tennessee: Jeff Fisher's Titans are so supremely coached and poised. It's why they survived sweaty games against the Texans in Week 7 and Raiders in Week 8. Tennessee is simply dominant up front on both offense and defense, fueled by Kevin Mawae and the underrated offensive line, while Albert Haynesworth leads a reborn defensive line. Behind Mawae and Co., and with an improved work ethic, LenDale White has strung together back-to-back 100 yard rushing games in dominant fashion. New York Giants: Tom Coughlin's outfit is enjoying a six-game win streak. They have been extraordinary in the trenches on both sides of the ball. Osi Umenyiora has been one of the best players in the league. Please don't over analyze the strength of schedule for New York. In the past, the Giants would've lost some of the games against Philadelphia, Atlanta, San Francisco and Miami. A perfect second quarter is a perfect quarter. Detroit: The Lions are 5-2. Rod Marinelli's opportunistic bunch made game-changing defensive plays in statement wins against the Bucs at home and in Chicago. End Dewayne White is thriving. Mike Martz has made the proper adjustments by using Kevin Jones to pound the rock. Jon Kitna is the classic leader who keeps it all together. Who knows? Maybe we shouldn't have laughed at Kitna's 10 win prediction! So far the joke is on the critics, like your's truly. Pittsburgh: Just like I didn't fault Pittsburgh for losing in Arizona in the first quarter of the season, I won't criticize Mike Tomlin's 5-2 Steelers for dropping a road game in Denver by three points in Week 7. Pittsburgh, propelled by Ben Roethlisberger, Willie Parker and Hines Ward, bounced back nicely with a huge division road win in Cincy in Week 8. Jacksonville: They bounced back from the Week 7 disaster on national TV against the Colts to go on the road and beat the Bucs with Quinn Gray, starting for an injured Dave Garrard. Jack Del Rio's defense frustrated Jeff Garcia, forcing the quarterback into his only picks of the season. It was a classic Jaguar effort. Second quarter wins in Kansas City and the pounding of rival Houston were impressive. Rashean Mathis, Paul Spicer, and Mike Peterson are big reasons why this team is 5-2. A- Cleveland: Here's the beauty of this unpredictable 4-3 start; you now expect consistent excellent play from Rob Chudzinski's offense. Derek Anderson is enjoying success behind Joe Thomas, Eric Steinbach and this vastly improved offensive line. As a result of all of the above, Kellen Winslow and Braylon Edwards have become difference makers. B+ Kansas City: The 4-3 Chiefs are one of the true pleasant surprises of the first half. Whenever you can register division road wins in both San Diego and Oakland, that's impressive. A different defensive hero continuously emerges for Herm Edwards' outfit. And despite their offensive inconsistencies, Damon Huard, Larry Johnson, Tony Gonzalez and rookie Dwayne Bowe have done just enough in the wins against the Chargers, Raiders, Bengals and Vikings. B San Diego: This team has rebounded brilliantly from its 1-3 start to sweep the competition in the second quarter. And San Diego won all three games this quarter by double digits. The Chargers' shellacking of the Broncos in Denver in Week 5 before the bye week was the biggest win of the season. Previously maligned Norv Turner deserves credit for keeping this 4-3 ball club together after the 1-3 start. Carolina: The Panthers have dealt with adversity well, losing Jake Delhomme for the season. John Fox's 4-3 team won games in the second quarter it had no business winning in New Orleans and Arizona. C+ Tampa: Sure, Jon Gruden's team has awful luck with injuries at the running back position. But the last two weeks were blown opportunities to take the next step in should-win spots in Detroit and at home against Quinn Gray and the Jaguars. The Bucs left a lot of plays on the field in both games. The 4-4 record might ok for the Bucs if you base it on preseason expectations, but not good enough during the ebb and flow of the season. Washington: Trust me. This grade isn't a reaction to 52-7 against the Pats. It's a reaction to 52-7 after looking bad against Green Bay in a game Santana Moss threw away. It's a reaction to 52-7, the Packers debacle and Washington nearly squandering a game at home against the Cardinals. The run game and the defense have been flat out bad in the second quarter of the season. Washington, at 4-3, just hasn't looked the part the last 3 weeks. New Orleans: The Saints lost their first four, followed immediately by a three- game win streak. And at no point did you see or hear dissention or criticism from anyone on Sean Payton's ball club. Reggie Bush and Scott Fujita have both cited that as a major reason for the turnaround. In blowout road wins against Seattle and San Francisco, we've seen the Saints team we expected all season. The comeback in the second quarter has been pronounced. Drew Brees is finally getting pass protection and was phenomenal against the Niners in Week 8. Seattle: How do you figure out the Seahawks? They got totally smoked in Pittsburgh in Week 5 and bombed by a then-winless Saints team at home in Week 6 on national television. They salvaged the second quarter with a win against the Rams to improve to 4-3. Shaun Alexander has been stuck in the mud and totally ineffective. The defense was much better in the first quarter. Matt Hasselbeck misses Deion Branch. C Buffalo: Dick Jauron consistently gets his team to play hard. And with all of the bad luck, injuries and blowing the Dallas game, somehow Buffalo is 3-4. The wins against the Ravens and Jets were gutsy, sparked by clutch play from the defense. Marshawn Lynch is enjoying a very productive rookie season. And Jauron handled the Trent Edwards appointment to the starting quarterback job with aplomb, keeping the team together. And credit Losman for not giving up as he stepped in late for an injured Edwards and threw a game-sealing bomb to Lee Evans against the Jets in Week 8. Baltimore: The 4-3 Ravens have yet to look the part. The offense, ravaged by injuries at quarterback, tight end, and all over the offensive line, has been a major disappointment. The defense has been good, but not dominant. Matt Stover is arguably the team MVP. The Week 7 loss to the Bills, where Brian Billick's play selection was horrible and the team committed 11 penalties, was an eye sore and can come back to haunt Baltimore. Arizona: Injuries to both Matt Leinart, who's out for the year, and Kurt Warner have been a factor for Ken Whisenhunt's 3-4 squad. Tim Rattay was wretched replacing Warner and it resulted in a Week 6 loss for the Panthers in Arizona. But my Whisenhunt didn't help himself with the Anquan Boldin two-point conversion try to tie the game in the loss to Washington in Week 7. Darnell Dockett and Adrian Wilson are playing brilliant ball for the vastly improved Cards D. Broncos: Denver's second quarter highlight was a win on Sunday Night Football against the Steelers. But Mike Shanahan's 3-4 team couldn't follow it up with a win against Green Bay, with the two outstanding corners getting beat for long touchdowns. The second quarter of the season was marred by a lopsided home loss to the Chargers. C- Philadelphia: It's been a roller coaster first half for Andy Reid's 3-4 Eagles in every possible way, from false reports Reid was going to quit, to foolish newspaper columns telling him to take a hike, to the laundry list of injuries, to Donovan McNabb recovering on the fly from major knee surgery. Look at the last 2 weeks. The quarterback looks rusty and club gives up a game-winning drive in the two-minute drill to Brian Griese in Week 7. Then this weekend, McNabb looked healthy and more effective in Week 8 win against the Vikings. Every week is a grab bag. Oakland: The Raiders didn't win a game in the second quarter of the season. While the defense showed improvement in losses against Kansas City and Tennessee, Lane Kiffin's 2-5 squad can't seem to put together a complete game. Houston: Sure, Andre Johnson is hurt. But that's no excuse to fall behind 32-7 in a loss to the Titans. That's no excuse to miss possible plays in a road loss to Jags. That's no excuse to let the coin toss prove to be the turning point in San Diego. Gary Kubiak's Texans are 3-5 and should be at least 4-4, if not 5-3. D Minnesota: The 2-5 Vikings are a tough watch. They cannot complete the forward pass. They cannot stop the forward pass. These are problems. San Francisco: Nothing is working for Mike Nolan. Or more specifically, offensive coordinator Jim Hostler. His play selection has been peculiar. Holding for a long Joe Nedney field goal and not throwing the ball killed the Niners in a Week 5 loss to the Ravens. And if you don't believe me, ask Frank Gore, who's been vocal. Trent Dilfer didn't help matters filling in for an injured Alex Smith. The Niners just got humiliated the last two weeks against the Giants and the Saints. F Chicago: The Bears are 3-5. Losing at home to the Lions in Week 8 after beating the Eagles in Week 7 is totally unacceptable, and yet typifies the 2007 season. Losing at home to the Vikings is unacceptable. There is no consistency for this team in any phase (other than the brilliance of Devin Hester). Cedric Benson has been a bust. The passing attack is spotty. The defense, stunningly, is ordinary and beatable. Just ask the Lions, who swept the season series. Cincinnati: Marvin Lewis doesn't go for a 4th-and-1 against the Steelers down 14-3 in the second quarter? This team has lost its bite. It's always something. And right now, from the state of the linebackers, to Levi Jones getting abused by Jared Allen in Week 6, to Chad Johnson telling us it is fishy that the organization leaked stories to reporters he might be traded, it all stinks in Cincy for the 2-5 Bengals. St. Louis: Just for good measure, to end an atrocious first half, the winless Rams blew a double-digit lead to the Browns. And they did it at home. Just when you thought you couldn't find anything worse on TV than "Cavemen," you sit through a Rams game. Start working on a short list to replace Scott Linehan. New York Jets: "The Mangenius" has rapidly shifted from nickname to punchline. The Jets should've put in Kellen Clemens after the first Buffalo loss. Thomas Jones rarely gets the appropriate number of carries. I expected a fall off from 10 wins last year, but not a plummet to this horrible 1-7 start. Eric Mangini is very lucky the Yanks need a new manager and A-Rod opted out or else he would be getting blistered on the back pages of the New York tabloids. Miami: Ronnie Brown is out for the year. He was the lone bright spot for Cam Cameron's outmatched, winless wreck. The Chris Chambers trade makes it official that the Dolphins are playing for 2008. Atlanta: The starting quarterback was pulled. The No. 2 had surgery. The club cut a productive defensive tackle for no reason. The star cornerback and star tight end have called out the coach. The offensive line is beat up. The receivers can't catch with consistency. The defense is weak. Other than that it has been a good first half of 2007 for Bob Petrino and the Falcons.
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