2012 NFL Week 15 'BIG UPS' 12-17-12

Bryant gets major props for playing with a broken finger.

Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys.
The Dallas Cowboys (8-6) came from behind in the 4th quarter to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers (7-7) 27-24 in overtime, and create a three-way tie for first place in the NFC East.  Dallas has won three in a row, five out of the last six, and controls its own playoff destiny.  Wide receiver Dez Bryant did his part to keep the postseason hopes alive finishing with four receptions for 59 yards and 1 TD while playing with a broken left index finger.
Seattle Seahawks.
For the second straight week, the Seattle Seahawks (9-5) put a 50-spot on the board (58-0 vs. Arizona Cardinals the previous week) after drumming the Buffalo Bills (5-9) 50-17.  Rookie quarterback Russell Wilson rushed for 3 TDs and running back Marshawn Lynch collected his 8th 100-yard rushing game of the season (10 carries, 113 yards, 1 TD) and is averaging 11.5 yards per carry in his last two outings.

Von Miller leads the 2012 version of the Orange Crush.

Denver Broncos Defense.
The Denver Broncos (11-3) go on the road and earn their 9th straight win, 34-17 over the Baltimore Ravens (9-5), who have dropped three straight.  The defense came up with the key play, as defensive back Chris Harris broke the game open with a 98-yard pick-6 late in the second quarter that put the Broncos up 17-0 right before halftime.

LaMichael James & Michael Crabtree, San Francisco 49ers.
The San Francisco 49ers (10-3-1) blew a 28-point 2nd half lead to the New England Patriots (10-4) but came up with big plays late in the 4th quarter to squeeze out a 41-34 victory.  After New England tied the game 31-31 on 28 unanswered points with under seven minutes to go in the 4th quarter, rookie running back LaMichael James returned the ensuing kickoff 62 yards, setting up a 38-yard TD jaunt by wide receiver Michael Crabtree who broke free after an intermediate pass from quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

BIGGEST UP
Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings.

Not even 8-man fronts have denied A.D. from getting his.

Peterson made his case for league Comeback Player of the Year and Most Valuable Player even stronger Sunday as he busted up the St. Louis Rams for 212 yards and 1 TD, including his second 82-yard touchdown romp of the season.  A.D. has 1,812 yards rushing on the season including 1,313 in the last eight games, which is the most rushing yards in NFL history during an eight game span. With two games left in the season, Peterson is on pace to become only the seventh player in NFL history to eclipse the 2,000 yard mark and is in striking distance of Eric Dickerson's single-season NFL record 2,105 yards.  All this coming after Peterson blew out his knee less than 12 months ago.

'Tinsley's Jazz Renaissance'

Tinsley is averaging 5.9 APG in only 19.5 minutes per game.

With Mo Williams missing games due to minor injuries this season, Utah Jazz head coach Tyrone Corbin has gone to Brooklyn-native Jamaal Tinsley as the replacement point guard, and the nine-year veteran has produced quality results.  Tinsley, 34, is coming off a 14-point (4-6 3PT), seven-assist performance in 31 minutes Nov. 24 against the Kings in Sacramento, and has been a solid contributor for the Jazz (7-7) as backup point man early this season.  He's only scoring 2.2 points per game (9.1 PPG career) but he's dishing out 5.9 assist per game while spending about 20 minutes on the floor a night, putting him second in the NBA in assists per 48 minutes with 14.6, trailing only Rajon Rondo (17.1).  Main thing about a guy like Tinsley, you better watch the 5-hole whenever you're defending him.  He's still not too old to go 'Mel-Mel the Abuser' with the ball handling and put you on the YOUTUBE highlight reel.

2012 NFL Week 5 'BIG UPS' 10-9-12

Catch Harvin if you can...watch your ankles though.

Percy Harvin, Minnesota Vikings. Looking for the most explosive player in the NFL? Look no further than one William Percival Harvin, III, Vikings' receiver/runner/return specialist extraordinaire. Harvin diced the Tennessee Titans this past Sunday for eight catches and 108 yards with a touchdown, a rushing TD, and a few linebackers and DBs with broken ankles. Harvin leads the league in YAC with a 8.4 average and he's averaging 38.3 yards per kick return, including a 105-yarder for a score last week against the Detroit Lions.

Stevan Ridley, New England Patriots.  It wasn't a perfect night for Ridley but it was major looking ahead for his career.  The Patriots are a passing team with a stable of running backs, but Ridley is emerging as the starting back of the future for New England.  He had a career-high 151 yards on 28 carries and a touchdown against the Denver Broncos after 22 carries and 106 yards rushing against the Buffalo Bills the previous week.  Ridley has to do a better job of holding on to the football though.  He has fumbled four times in his last 118 touches, a rate that will not sit well with Bill Belichick no matter how well he's playing.

Ryan Tannenhill, Miami Dolphins.  Tannenhill dons No. 17 and is also the 17th different starting quarterback for the Dolphins since Dan Marino retired in 1999.  Through the Jay Fiedler's, A.J. Feeley's, and Matt Moore's, the thing that makes Tannenhill stand out the most is his size and confident Marino-like swagger.  He is athletic enough to scramble but chooses to stand in the pocket and make passes while taking big hits.  This will endear him to his teammates in the long run.  The No. 8 pick in the 2012 NFL Draft is not getting the hype that RGIII and Andrew Luck are getting, but it won't be long before Tannenhill really starts coming into his own.  Case in point, the Week 5 win against the Cincinnati Bengals put Tannenhill into an elite category.  He is now the only rookie in NFL history to pass for more than 1,200 yards in his first five games with at least two wins.  Add on the Week 4 performance against the Arizona Cardinals when he threw for a Dolphins single-game rookie record 431 yards and it's clear to see that Tannenhill is on his way.  BIG UP.

BIGGEST UP
Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints.
 

Records keep piling up for Brees.

As a Dolphins fan it's hard to give Brees the BIG UP because I still remember the 2001 draft, when Miami desperately needed a franchise QB after Marino retired, and Brees was still available for the Dolphins to pick and they passed over him to take CB Jamar Fletcher when they already had two Pro Bowl corners in Sam Madison and Patrick Surtain on the roster. But I digress. Brees has basically gone from a fringe elite NFL quarterback to a lock for the Hall of Fame in just the past four years. Super Bowl winner, 5,000 yard passer, and now consecutive games (48) with a passing TD record passing the great Johnny Unitas (although it's noteworthy that Tom Brady will likely eclipse the Unitas mark in Week 17 if he throws a TD in every game this season).

2012 NFL Week 2 'BIG UPS' 9-18-12

Week 2 NFL in the books.  What stood out the most to me were the upsets, close calls, and bad calls by the replacement officials.  RGIII is taking the league by storm and I'm happy because I'll gladly take the networks talking about him all the time over Tim Tebow.  No amount of words can really describe that Patriots/Cardinals game, but you could probably judge it by the amount of New Englanders who are just now waking up from alcohol induced comas.  Best thing that came out of B-More vs. Philly was Jacoby Jones crankin' the CHOPPA CITY JUKE and in OHIO, Trent Richardson for the Browns breaking out the #BEASTMODE on the Bengals. . . enough of that though, time to give props, Week 2 NFL BIG UPS.

Spiller + open field=GOODBYE.

C.J. Spiller, Buffalo Bills. All those Bills fans that were on the Fred Jackson-Top 5-running back-in-the-NFL-bandwagon better circle around 'cause one Clifford Spiller, Jr. is running roughshod on the league right now and if you blink you might miss him. The third year speed burner out of Clemson has come out the gates with some astonishing stat lines. Spiller racked up 123 yards and 2 TDs on 15 carries against the Kansas City Chiefs this week. Add in 14-169-1 in Week 1 vs. the New York Jets and Spiller is averaging 10.1 yards per carry.

Philadelphia Eagles Defense.  You can't turn the ball over nine times in your first two games and expect to win both of them.  A short field puts the defense in a bad spot because they generally lead to quick and easy scoring drives.  Hasn't happened to the Philly D so far this year.  Granted, they just barely edged the Cleveland Browns in Week 1, and forced rookie quarterback Brandon Weeden into 4 INTs, and definitely benefitted from a poor offensive pass interference call on a would-be Joe Flacco to Jacoby Jones touchdown pass against the Baltimore Ravens.  But when you look at the team record, it says two in the wins, zero in the losses.  Just what you need the D to do until Mike Vick and the O can get that machine rolling, because we all now the talent is there on that side of the ball. 

Danny Amendola, St. Louis Rams.  I remember this kid coming out of the now world famous little guy receiver factory that is Texas Tech and trying to make the Dallas Cowboys on HBO's Hard Knocks.  From the practice squad to one of the Rams most versatile threats to score, Amendola is very deserving of a BIG UP.  His 12 first-half catches against the Washington Redskins on Sunday tied the NFL record for most catches in an opening half.  Amendola finished the game with 15 catches, 160 yards, and 1 TD.

Reggie Bush, Miami Dolphins.  He's never gonna be a feature back in the league, they said.  He can't carry the ball more than 20 times a game, they said.  The longer Bush keeps at this pace, the more they say becomes irrelevant.  Bush, coming off his first career 1,000 yard rushing season in 2011, looks prime to honor his prediction of eclipsing 2K this season.  Wishful thinking on the young man's part but if he has games similar to the 26 carry, 172 yards and 2 TDs performance against the Oakland Raiders then the numbers start to pile up.
 

BIGGEST UP
Eli Manning, New York Giants.

Best 4th quarter QB of all-time?

He doesn't always start fast, but Manning has now become legendary for his play in comeback/game-on-the-line situations. Three interceptions in the first half, the Giants trailing 24-13 to the Tampa Bay Buccaners at the half while the home fans boo their Super Bowl winning quarterback off the field, finishes the game with a career-high 510 pass yards, including 234 of those in the fourth quarter, 3 TDs, including a bomb to Victor Cruz that went for an 80-yard TD, and a comeback 41-34 win to avoid the dreaded 0-2 start. Yeah, sounds just like a prototypical Eli game.

2012 NFL Week 1 'BIG UPS' 9-11-12

Moss swaggin' out in the end zone, per usual.

Week 1 NFL season in the books.  So much to talk about, so much to look forward to.  Time to give props where props are due. The players and teams that caught my eye or surprised me the most in the week of NFL....now without further ado, LEGGO!-Mr. AllDayEryDay



The San Francisco 49ers.  The Green Bay Packers were coming off a disappointing end to last season after going 15-1, and getting bumped from the playoffs early, and probably couldn't wait to knock the blocks off the Niners in Week 1 at Lambeau . . . Jim Harbaugh's boys weren't having at as they used a now trademark physical style of play to subdue Aaron Rodgers and the vaunted Packers offense 30-22.  I would be remiss if I failed to mention one Randy Gene Moss, who had a 14-yard receiving TD that was his first in the NFL since Oct. 24 2010.

Robert Griffin, III.  Andrew Luck, 3 INTS in a loss . . . Ryan Tannenhill, 3 INTS in a loss . . . Brandon Weeden, 4 INTS in a loss . . . RGIII, balled out for 320 yards on 19-26 passing, 2 TDs and 0 INTS in a road win against the New Orleans Saints.  A lot of screen passes early, and it's just one game, I know, but it was the first game that really mattered, and it came against a team that was probably amped up about the overturning of player suspensions from the 'Bounty Gate' incident.  It's too early for playoff talk or even 'Griffining', but you have to admire the young man's poise.

The Dallas Cowboys.  Spoiled that Super Bowl party for the New York Giants, Tony Romo and the 'Boys were oh so rude on the opening night of the NFL.  Romo found a rhythm making quick passes to avoid the Giants premiere pass rush and it eventually softened up the ground game for DeMarco Murray to run.  It had to be a sweet feeling for Dallas to start the year with a win like that, where you execute with precision against a division rival and a team that knocked you out of playoff contention in Week 17 last year.  Now the only question is do they make noise in January for the first time in what, like 15 years?

Julio Jones.  If Calvin Johnson is Megatron, then I can definitely see Quintorris Lopez 'Julio' Jones transforming into Optimus Prime this year.  Jones had six catches for 108 yards and 2 TDs in a season opening 41-24 Falcons win over the Kansas City Chiefs.  The numbers aren't what give Jones the BIG UPS nod.  It's the combination of speed, athleticism, and sheer strength and aggressiveness at the point of attack.  We all know Julio has game breaking potential but it really looks like he feels comfortable in the league now and has lost all the tentativity that young players experience.  Nothing but big things and more BIG UPS ahead for this kid, no doubt in my mind.


BIGGEST UPS
BALTIMORE RAVENS & ED REED.

Reed has 58 career interceptions and seven return TDs.

Reed, 34, set the NFL record for career interception return yards (1,497) after picking off Cincy's Andy Dalton on and returning it 34 yards for a TD.  Just another accolade to add that to the list of Hall of Fame-type play in Reed's illustrious career.  The Ravens rolled 44-13 over the Bengals and the defense looks dominant as ever.  Sack specialist and 'Ball So Hard' CEO Terrell Suggs will be out for a while after off-season knee surgery, but expect rookie OLB Courtney Upshaw to pick up the slack.  Joe Flacco gets better with every snap and has complete command of the Jon Harbaugh offense.