The Kickoff Special

Week 1 Game:

24-17: (1-0) Dallas at (0-1) New York Giants

 

Defending Super Bowl champions, the New York Giants lost their home season opener and the first game of the 2012 season to the Dallas Cowboys.

SundayNight Football on NBC broadcast the game in a special Wednesday edition. Fears about the replacement referees were not realized; the game ran smoothly and ended on time.

Both teams had good and bad plays (interceptions, dropped catches), and at times both teams looked like it was the first game of the new season. Training camp and pre-season games don’t replicate the regular season, and the final player roster has not been in place for long.

The Giants had two conversions on fourth down versus one failed attempt by the Cowboys. The Cowboys had 13 penalties for a total of 86 yards, compared to 4 penalties for 33 yards for the Giants.

At 2:36 in the 4^th quarter and needing a touchdown to tie the Cowboys, the Giants opted not to try an on-side kick; instead, they kicked off and apparently hoped to get the ball back on downs or via interception.

Neither scenario happened. Dallas kept the ball long enough to get to the two-minute warning, and then took a knee on the resulting downs to run the clock down and win the game.

The next game for both teams is Sunday, September 16: the Giants host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; the Cowboys travel to the Seattle Seahawks. With ten days to practice the current roster, both teams should look better in their next outing.

Week 1 continues with 13 games on Sunday, September 9. Two games will be played on Monday Night Football: the early game is Cincinnati Bengals at Baltimore Ravens; the late game is San Diego Chargers at Oakland Raiders.

Pre-Season Games

The 2012 NFL pre-season is almost over, and the regular season kicks off on September 5 with the New York Giants hosting the Dallas Cowboys.

The goal of pre-season is to work out new players, get players back in the rhythm of the game with new plays and teammates, and get the teams ready for the regular season.

Teams try out players at various positions, and have many more players at the beginning of pre-season (a maximum of 80). As the pre-season games progress, there are deadlines for the teams to get their roster sizes down to the regular season limit of 53 players.

Winning or losing in pre-season is no indicator of regular season performance. The pre-season game scores are not as relevant as the player stats.

Team starters typically don’t play the entire game, just long enough to get a workout and practice with new position players in a game situation.

Players hoping to make the team play long enough for coaches to make their decisions.

The four pre-season games don’t count in a team’s record; only regular season games do. Post-season games, should a team have any, are not included in a team’s record either.

 

 

Week 5 - Bye Week

Week 5: Bye weeks begin

BaltimoreRavens

ClevelandBrowns

DallasCowboys

MiamiDolphins

St. LouisRams

WashingtonRedskins

What is a bye week? The NFL regular season consists of 16 games played out over 17 weeks. The week a team doesn’t play a game is called a bye.

The bye week is a chance for teams to rest, regroup, and recuperate. Penalties and turnovers can have big impacts, particularly in close games, so the basic strategy for all teams is to protect the ball.

The Baltimore Ravens and Washington Redskins are both 3-1, and can enjoy a week off without needing to make major changes: what they are doing is working. As the saying goes, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

The Cleveland Browns and Dallas Cowboys are both 2-2. Coaches and players will use the bye week to see what tweaks need to be made to win games, and what errors need to be corrected so they don’t lose games.

In the case of the 0-4 Miami Dolphins and St. Louis Rams, it is a chance to have a week when they don’t have pressure to win a game. They can take a breath, see what adjustments need to be made going forward, and start to implement those changes.

Will an early bye week turn things around for the Dolphins and the Rams? We’ll find out when they play the New York Jets and the Green Bay Packers, respectively, in Week 6. Both are away games, with home field advantage to their opponents. Both teams need a win to get the season’s momentum swinging the other way.

Winning with Field Goals

Games played Sunday, September 25:

Jacksonville Jaguars (1-2) 10 at Carolina Panthers (1-2) 16

Houston Texans (2-1) 33 at New Orleans Saints (2-1) 40

San Francisco 49ers (2-1) 13 at Cincinnati Bengals (1-2) 8

Miami Dolphins (0-3) 16 at Cleveland Browns (2-1) 17

New England Patriots (2-1) 31 at Buffalo Bills (3-0) 34

New York Giants (2-1) 29 at Philadelphia Eagles (1-2) 16

Denver Broncos (1-2) 14 at Tennessee Titans (2-1) 17

Detroit Lions (3-0) 26 at Minnesota Vikings (0-3) 23 in OT

New York Jets (2-1) 24 at Oakland Raiders (2-1) 34

Kansas City Chiefs (0-3) 17 at San Diego Chargers (2-1) 20

Baltimore Ravens (2-1) 37 at St. Louis Rams (0-3) 7

Atlanta Falcons (1-2) 13 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-1) 16

Green Bay Packers (3-0) 27 at Chicago Bears (1-2) 17

Arizona Cardinals (1-2) 10 at Seattle Seahawks (1-2) 13

Pittsburgh Steelers (2-1) 23 at Indianapolis Colts (0-3) 20

Game played Monday, September 26:

Washington Redskins (2-1) 16 at Dallas Cowboys (2-1) 18

There were some exciting games played in Week 3, and the two biggest surprises with undefeated records so far: the Detroit Lions and the Buffalo Bills. Neither had a season last year that led fans to expect their excellent play this year. My husband is a Buffalo Bill’s fan, and there have been many happy texts after the games thus far among family members.

The Colts are struggling without Peyton Manning. When coaches and announcers refer to a “franchise player,” Peyton Manning is the type of player they are referring to. He is the heart of the team, a quarterback leading his team in the best sense of the word, and his team is struggling without him.

The Monday night game was between two NFC East teams, the Washington Redskins and the Dallas Cowboys. Touchdowns are exciting and get the fans on their feet, but field goals can win games and Dallas proved it. The lone touchdown came in the third quarter. The score at halftime was tied 9-9, and Washington went up 16-9 after their touchdown. Dallas scored two field goals in the fourth quarter to win the game. I heard something on the radio today that reminded me of winning a game scoring only field goals: “It ain’t flashy, but it gets the job done.”

What will Week 4 bring? Will the Detroit Lions beat the Dallas Cowboys in Dallas, fresh off a win, to go to 4-0? Will the Buffalo Bills beat the Cincinnati Bengals and remain undefeated? Can the Denver Broncos beat the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field and hand them their first defeat?

Stay tuned, football fans.

Two Minute Drill

Last night’s (8/15) Monday night game, broadcast live on ESPN:

New York Jets (16) at Houston Texans (20)

The score was 16-13, Jets ahead, with 4:46 to go in the fourth quarter. Houston punted the ball and the Jets caught it at their own 18 yard line.

The commentator said the Jets would go into their Four Minute Offense. All the Jets needed to do was three things: 

1.                Keep the ball in bounds, to keep the clock ticking (the clock stops when the ball hits the ground or goes out of bounds);

2.                Make 1^st downs, to keep the ball in their possession;

3.                Take time off the clock. In football time, 4:46 is an eternity of time. If you don’t think so, clock how much time it takes to actually play that amount of time.

The Jets did not achieve those three goals. Houston got the ball back, and went into their Two Minute Drill. This refers to the final two minutes in each half, when the team with the ball, or the team who gets the ball, tries to score in the final two minutes of the half. This does two things (three if it’s a home game):

1.          It scores points;

2.          It gives the scoring team momentum to carry with them into halftime (if they score at the end of the second quarter) or into the next game (if they score at the end of the game);

3.          If they are at home, it gives the home crowd something to cheer about and keep their enthusiasm for their team high.

Sunday night I watched the replay of the Denver Broncos at Dallas Cowboys game (originally played Thursday 8/11). The ending was more exciting to watch than it sounded, and it sounded exciting. Dallas was down 23-16 to Denver; if they had scored a touchdown and gone for the point after kick, they would have tied the game and gone into overtime. Already with the ball in a scoring drive, Dallas used their remaining two minutes wisely; they were able to convert on 4^th down to keep the drive alive, and scored the touchdown. Opting to win the game outright, Dallas quarterback Stephen McGee passed the ball for the Two-Point Conversion and the go ahead score with 15 seconds left on the clock. Total time of the scoring drive: 5:29; 12 plays. Dallas won the game 24-23.

For more information about football, Football Basics - How the American Football Game is Played is available as a Kindle ebook at Amazon. Click the book title to purchase, or visit my website www.FootballBasics.net to read an excerpt of the book.

Football is Back, Baby!

Football is back, baby!

Preseason started last night, with five games.

Jacksonville Jaguars (12) at New England Patriots (47)

Baltimore Ravens (6) at Philadelphia Eagles (13)

Seattle Seahawks (24) at San Diego Chargers (17)

Denver Broncos (23) at Dallas Cowboys (24)

Arizona Cardinals (24) at Oakland Raiders (18)

So what do we know so far?

The time spent since the lockout ended has been volatile, with free agents up for grabs and teams ready and willing to grab them. Training camps opened, and cuts have already begun. Team size must be down to 45 active players by September 8, when the regular season begins. Teams are also allowed 8 inactive players, for a total of 53 players.

The games last night, and the upcoming preseason games, are a chance for the teams to try out their new players and get them used to the team’s style of play.

In Denver Kyle Orton, Brady Quinn, and Tim Tebow are the quarterbacks. Kyle quarterbacked a few plays, then Brady and Tim played the rest of the game. Tim is the newest addition to the team, signing with the Broncos in 2010 and having his rookie season last year, and has the most need of seasoning. There has been a lot of talk about the “quarterback controversy” between Kyle and Tim; while Tim was a star at the University of Florida and won the Heisman Trophy, he needs to work on his game to get it to the level necessary for the NFL. To me, the biggest “controversy” is between those who think Tim is the next biggest thing to hit the NFL, and those who believe his college performance won’t translate into similar performance in the NFL.

The Dallas Cowboys beat the Denver Broncos with a touchdown pass and two-point conversion, with 15 seconds left in the game. The two-point conversion allowed Dallas to win the game outright with a total of 8 points scored, instead of the usual 7. If they had gone instead with kicking a PAT (Point After Touchdown) to tie the game, it would then have gone into overtime.

Teams are allowed one chance to get extra points after a touchdown. Most often, the ball is kicked through the uprights for one extra point. Sometimes the extra points come from a two-point conversion. In this play, the quarterback either passes the ball to a player in the end zone or hands the ball off to a runner. If the ball is caught in the end zone, or the runner crosses the goal line, two points are scored.

Five games are being played tonight:

Cincinnati Bengals at Detroit Lions

Miami Dolphins at Atlanta Falcons

Pittsburgh Steelers at Washington Redskins

San Francisco 49ers at New Orleans Saints

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Kansas City Chiefs