Fourth and Long: Dear A.J., I Was Wrong
Back in 2007 and 2008, I wrote a weekly online pro football column dubbed “Fourth and Long” for the late Football for Breakfast website. One hopes the gentle reader will enjoy this blast from 1/16/08…
A.J. Smith was right and I was wrong.
There’s really no other way to put it.
I have been highly critical of the Chargers general manager ever since he fired Marty Schottenheimer following their loss to the Patriots in the divisional playoffs last year despite having the best record in all of football at 14-2. I was even more critical when he hired Norv Turner as head coach on February 19 after all the top-notch coaching candidates had long been lured away. And when the Chargers opened the season 1-3, I let loose on A.J. Smith with both barrels.
Even last week after the Chargers came from behind to beat a wounded Titans club and earned their first playoff victory since 1994, I reminded everyone that the only thing that mattered was the divisional playoff game against the Colts. That earning a berth in the AFC championship game was the only measure of success for the Chargers last season according to A.J. Smith. So a win over the Colts and a berth in the title game should be the only measure of success this season.
Well, beat the Colts they did.
So no mealy-mouthed mea culpa from me. Not the ‘I’m sorry if I offended anyone’ non-apology. Nor my personal favorite, the less-than-apologetic admission, ‘I’m sorry you are offended.’
Let me say it without equivocation.
I was wrong. Spectacularly wrong.
Norv Turner has proven to be the right man for the job leading the Chargers to a 5-0 December and a 2-0 January this season. His Chargers beat the defending champions 28-24 without the leading rusher in the league for three quarters and without his starting quarterback for the final 15 minutes. They punished the #3-ranked defense on the road with Billy Volek at quarterback, Michael Turner in the backfield and a hobbled Antonio Gates at tight end. In fact, Norv is 2-0 against the Colts this season and you don’t beat the Colts twice in one season or force Peyton Manning into 8 interceptions in two games by accident.
Now let’s look at the two coaches who A.J. let get away last year. His offensive coordinator Cam Cameron went 1-15 in Miami and was so ineffective that he is already looking for another job. And his defensive coordinator Wade Phillips just dropped his playoff record to 0-4 after watching his Dallas Cowboys lose to the Giants at home despite a 13-3 record and the top seed in the NFC.
Coaching selections notwithstanding, A.J. Smith has also demonstrated the Midas touch by keeping the aforementioned Michael Turner when everyone wanted to trade him, stealing WR Chris Chambers from the Dolphins for a second-round draft pick and selecting an injured Antonio Cromartie in the draft, a gem who has rewarded the Chargers with a league-high 10 interceptions and three touchdown returns in only six starts.
In fact, about the only decision that hasn’t worked out for A.J. Smith is kicker Nate Kaeding who has run his field goal statistics in the playoffs to a woeful 2-for-6 including a missed game-winning 40-yard field goal in an overtime playoff loss to the Jets in 2005 and missed game-tying 54-yard field goal on the final play of the game against the Patriots last season.
So congratulations A.J. Smith and Norv Turner. Enjoy your victory over the Colts. And if you happen to knock off the unbeaten New England Patriots in the AFC championship game, I’ll be sure to serve myself up an extra large slice of humble pie.
‘Larry King’ Ramblings
With the success of Norv Turner and the Chargers in the playoffs, the media has reminded everyone incessantly of Marty Schottenheimer’s playoff record (5-13 despite being the sixth winningest coach in the NFL with 200 regular season victories).
But it seems rather odd that Wade Phillips has gotten off largely unscathed for his 0-4 playoff record because while some of those losses have been spectacular, Wade has made a few controversial decisions prior to at least two of those losses.
Against the Giants this past weekend, Phillips started Marion Barber at running back for the first time this season. Not that Barber isn’t a terrific back (he rushed for 129 yards against the Giants), but why make the change in the playoffs? Why mess with the continuity and chemistry that gave you a 13-3 season and the top seed to begin with?
Especially when it backfired so horribly the last time you used it.
Phillips’ previous playoff appearance (and loss) as head coach was with the Buffalo Bills back in 1999 when he decided to start Rob Johnson over Doug Flutie, even though Flutie had led the Bills to the playoffs for the second straight year with an 18-8 record over two seasons.
This would be tantamount to Romeo Crennel starting unproven but highly-regarded Brady Quinn over Derek Anderson if the Browns had made the playoffs.
But the gamble seemed to pay off when the Bills went up 16-15 on a field goal with only 16 seconds remaining. However, it was then that the football gods smiled upon the Tennessee Titans and the play now known as the Music City Miracle gave them a dramatic 22-16 victory.
So if I were Wade Phillips and the Giants were coming to town, I would do everything in my power to not tempt the football gods. And that includes stopping Jerry Jones from distributing tickets to players for the NFC championship game the night before you actually earn the right to play in it.
Perhaps Wade Phillips didn’t believe in karma when he coached the Buffalo Bills.
But perhaps, just perhaps, he does now.
‘Heidi’ Chronicles
With the regular season over and the playoffs coming to a close, I feared that the ‘Heidi’ Chronicles would need to go on hiatus until next season.
That is until I watched the Chargers-Colts game Sunday. Not because of anything that occurred during the game, but because Peyton Manning (who has made a second career of hawking nearly every product known to man) unveiled his latest commercial endeavor. And this time he brought along Eli, Archie and Olivia (his mom) for the ride.
Bear in the mind that Peyton Manning makes for a pretty good pitch man.
The Mastercard Priceless Pep Talks, before that Peyton the gushing fan for Mastercard, the Sprint NFL Mobile commercial complete with cheesy mustache, the Manning family touring the ESPN digital center while Peyton and Eli fight, and my personal favorite, the Shop NFL commercial with Peyton, Eli and Archie taking turns quarterbacking everyday household tasks and, “Checking to pancakes.”
All pretty funny.
But Sunday saw Peyton teaming up with Oreo for the Double Stuff Racing League.
I know it was supposed to be funny, but the commercial fell horribly flat even with Archie shaking his head the whole time. And when Eli asks Peyton, “Hey bro, are we making a huge mistake?” — all one can think is, yes. Yes you did.
‘Playoffs?!? Don’t Talk About Playoffs?!?’
Long-time readers will remember I predicted back in November that the Colts would shock the undefeated Patriots in the AFC championship game rematch.
Call me crazy, but I have a hunch that’s not going to happen.
San Diego Chargers at New England Patriots – 3:00PM Sunday (CBS)
Storyline: Can the surprising Chargers with a banged up LT and the prospect of Billy Volek at quarterback gain revenge over the undefeated Patriots? Do the Patriots need to be worried when all-world Tom Brady completes 26 of 28 passes, Laurence Maroney rushes for over 100 yards and they still barely pull out a victory against the Jags?
Prediction: It’s really hard to pick against a team as good and as undefeated as the Patriots. New England wins a hard-fought battle with points to spare.
New York Giants at Green Bay Packers – 6:30PM Sunday (FOX)
Storyline: Eli, not Peyton, plays in a championship game against the biggest surprise of the year, the young Green Bay Packers with veteran gunslinger Brett Favre at the helm. Forecasts call for one of the coldest championship games since the Ice Bowl.
Prediction: If you see Brett Favre grinning on the sideline early in the game, Packers win. If he looks anxious and tight, I’ll go with the Giants.
‘John Madden’ Wayback Machine
With the Patriots upping their record to 17-0 and facing the very real prospect of 18-0 by weekend’s end, it seems apropos to examine the 1942 undefeated Chicago Bears team that fell just short of perfection in much the same way the franchise did back in 1934.
But to fully understand the 1942 Chicago Bears, one needs to start with the 1940 season when the 6-2 Bears lost to the Washington Redskins 7-3. The following day, the Redskins owner, George Preston Marshall, was quoted in the newspaper as having called George Halas and his Bears ‘quitters’ and ‘crybabies.’
As fate would have it, the Bears and Redskins would meet again that season in the NFL championship game and Halas made sure to remind his team of Marshall’s quotes. Reminded they were as the Bears annihilated the Redskins 73-0, the largest margin of victory in NFL history.
The Bears won the championship again in 1941 with only one loss and by 1942, World War II was thinning the NFL talent pool through the military draft. The Bears continued to operate that season, but other teams merged to survive such as the Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers temporily forming the Phil-Pitt Steagles.
But nothing seemed capable of stopping the Bears, not even when owner and coach George Halas joined the Navy during the season. The newly-dubbed ‘Monsters of Midway’ outscored their opponents 376-84, marched to a perfect 11-0 record on top of an 18-game winning streak and headed into their third straight NFL championship game.
But the NFL’s first perfect season was not to be as the Washington Redskins led by Sammy Baugh avenged their blowout loss from two years previous by stunning the Sid Luckman and the Bears 14-6.
