The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

Most of my family resides near Detroit, Michigan. Both of my parents were raised around the area. I travel there multiple times every year, especially around national holidays. Having been born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, Detroit was like a second home to me and continues to be to this very day. So, while I tend to play things in a rather neutral fashion when it comes to sports (yes, this is difficult having grown up around Nebraska football, having family pulling for Michigan and Michigan State, not to mention moving to Buckeye country), I quietly pull for the Detroit Tigers, Lions, Red Wings, and Pistons every season. When the Detroit Lions lost in the playoffs last year to the Dallas Cowboys, getting hosed by the referees down the stretch (http://thekind-heartedsmartaleck.blogspot.com/2015/01/theres-no-other-way-to-put-it-detroit.html), I found myself to be more upset than I typically am when it comes to sporting events. Having said all that, though, I'm finding it difficult ...

Following the game last night between the New England Patriots and the Carolina Panthers, which ended in a controversial fashion, where a referee threw an apparent flag for pass interference on a Panthers defensive back in the end zone, but got that call overruled, referee Clete Blakeman had this explanation for reporters: "So it was determined at that point in time that when the primary contact occurred on the tight end that the ball, in essence, was coming in underthrown and in essence it was [immediately] at that point intercepted at the front end of the end zone. So there was a determination that, in essence, uncatchability, that the ball was intercepted at or about the same time the primary contact against the receiver occurred." While I personally think the refs should have compromised on the matter, called defensive holding, and given the Patriots one more chance from the 13-yard line after the five-yard penalty, I love Blakeman's response. I wonder if he broke...

Whether or not Chip Kelly's style of offense is successful long-term, it's going to be awfully fun to watch, as the Philadelphia Eagles' 33-27 victory against the Washington Redskins last night indicated. Philly amassed over 50 plays, 300 yards, and 26 points in the first half of last night's game. A 34-yard touchdown run by standout running back LeSean McCoy early in the 3rd quarter put the Eagles up 33-7, where they took their foot off the gas, which played a large factor in Washington coming back to make the score more respectable. For the game, the Eagles ran 77 plays for 443 yards (5.8 per), including 180 passing on 25 attempts (7.2 per) and 263 rushing on 49 attempts (5.4 per). They also converted 26 first downs and hung on to the ball for 32 minutes 39 seconds. Quarterback Michael Vick looked a little pumped early in the game, which resulted in some overthrows, but overall, was very efficient. He completed 15 of 25 pass attempts (60.0%) for 203 yards (8.1 per...

It was another game and another loss for the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night, which dropped them to 3-8 on the season. One could just look at the final score and say, "Well, at least it was close." But then I'd have to point out their opponent. It's not like the Eagles lost 30-22 to the 10-1 Houston Texans or the 10-1 Atlanta Falcons. No, they fell by that very score to the 2-8 (now 3-8) Carolina Panthers. The Eagles did what they've been doing all year - turned the ball over three times, didn't force any turnovers, and developed a case of Alzheimer's when playing defense. To the offensive coaches' credit, I thought they came in with a solid gameplan on that side of the ball. They found ways to ease the pressure off the beaten up offensive line, open some holes for Bryce Brown and the running game, as well as limit the hits rookie quarterback Nick Foles took. They did all they could to limit pressure on the rookie Foles. In a statistic that is ...

I don't have a whole lot of time to write tonight. Let's just say that the Monday night game against the New Orleans Saints was just the continuation of a sad trend for the Philadelphia Eagles, as they fell to the Saints 28-13 to drop to 3-5 on the season. Philly totaled 447 yards on offense - 226 through the air and 221 on the ground, yet they only managed to come away with 13 points. In five red zone opportunities, they did not score a single touchdown - turning the ball over twice (one Vick interception and one Brent Celek fumble) and kicked two field goals. Along with those two key turnovers, Philly committed 7 penalties for 58 yards. Quarterback Michael Vick was sacked 7 times and hit many others. As I've been saying the past couple weeks, the Eagles' lines are killing the team. Philly now has four back-ups playing on the offensive line and as a result, Vick isn't getting any protection. Before tonight, minimal running lanes were being opened for LeSean McCoy...

While, in light of me fighting a cold, I knew I should have gone to bed early last night, but for some reason, I had a gut feeling that the end of the Monday night football game between the Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks was going to be one to remember. As seems to be typical, my gut was right.  Like many others, I have been rather critical of the replacement refs, but it didn't truly feel as if the referees had genuinely cost a team a game. There were a couple of games they potentially could have decided, but there wasn't that one game yet which stood out from the rest and provided such an uproar from players, fans, coaches and the media alike, that it basically demanded the league work something out with the regular officials. After Monday night's game, there can't be any questioning that potential consequence anymore, for the officials blew the game for the Green Bay Packers. It should be noted that I'm not a fan of either Green Bay or Seattle. Actual...

I don't have much to say about this game. It was like deja vu for the Eagles. In all five losses this year, it's been the same thing for them. They turn the ball over, commit untimely penalties, play awful red zone defense, give up chunks of yards via the run, abandon the running game, don't protect their quarterback, etc. This happened against Atlanta, New York (Giants), San Francisco, Buffalo and now Chicago. The Bears dominated both lines of scrimmage. Chicago quarterback Jay Cutler has been sacked more than any quarterback in the time he's spent with the Bears. Last night? He didn't get sacked once and rarely felt any pressure. The line also opened up several large holes for tailbacks Matt Forte and Marion Barber. Cutler was clutch on third down, especially in the red zone. The Bears defense also pressured Michael Vick all game and laid the wood to him on several occasions. Whether or not he's able to walk today is 50/50. Outside of that, Philly made too...