Sunday, October 06, 2002
Chargers, Bledsoe highlight NFL's first quarter
By BOB MATTHEWS
Rochester (N.Y.) Democrat and Chronicle
The San Diego Chargers and Buffalo Bills quarterback Drew Bledsoe get the highest marks in the NFL 2002 First Quarterly Report:
Best Team - San Diego. The Chargers have the league's only 4-0 record and proved it isn't a fluke with an impressive home win over the defending champion New England Patriots after easy wins over outclassed Cincinnati, Houston and Arizona.
San Diego started 3-0 and was 5-2 last year before losing its last nine games but this team has a better quarterback, a stronger defense and more depth. No team ever has participated in a Super Bowl in its home stadium but it looks like the 2002 Chargers have a legitimate chance.
Honorable mention - Oakland (3-0; 1st in total offense and 10th in total defense) and Tampa Bay (three impressive wins after a season-opening OT loss to New Orleans).
Most Valuable Player - Buffalo quarterback Drew Bledsoe: 116 of 165 (.703) for 1,345 yards and 10 TDs with only 2 interceptions. The defense and running attack are works in progress and the Bills (2-2) need Bledsoe to be sharp in every game to be competitive. So far, he's 4-for-4 for a team that could be 4-0 or 0-4.
2. QB Tom Brady (New England) - 129 of 185 (.697) for 1,326 yards and 11 TDs with 4 INTs. His showdown with Bledsoe Nov. 3 should be a blast.
3. RB Ricky Williams (Miami) - Acquired from the Saints, he has rushed for 460 yards (5.6-yard average) and 4 TDs plus 11 catches for 145 yards. He leads the NFL with 605 yards from scrimmage. The Dolphins finally have a solid and versatile running back and now are capable of winning games when the defense has a subpar performance.
4. QB Rich Gannon (Oakland) - Has completed 91 of 131 passes for 998 yards with 7 TD passes and 3 INTs. He can boost his MVP rating Sunday against the Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium.
5. QB Donovan McNabb (Philadelphia) - 92 of 153 (.601) for 1,050 yards with 9 TD passes and 3 INTs plus 21 carries for 141 yards (6.7-yard average) and 2 TDs. He's a bigger and more savvy version of Atlanta's Michael Vick.
6. RB LaDainian Tomlinson (San Diego) - Leads the NFL in rushing with 506 yards (5.0-yard average) and 5 TDs plus 13 catches for 96 yards. Now we know why John Butler made him the No. 5 overall pick in the 2000 draft.
Best coaching job - Carolina's John Fox. After finishing last year with 15 straight losses, rookie coach Fox's Panthers won their first three games this year and gave Green Bay all it could handle last week.
Honorable mention - Bill Callahan (Oakland) and Marty Schottenheimer (San Diego).
Most significant injury - St. Louis quarterback Kurt Warner's broken little finger on his passing hand. He'll be sidelined 8-to-10 weeks and that should wipe out any slim hopes the Rams had of recovering from a 0-4 start to make the playoffs.
Most disappointing team - Tie between St. Louis and the New York Jets. The Rams weren't sharp offensively even before Warner's injury and the defensive unit has regressed. The Jets, with an NFL-high $87.3-million payroll entering this season, were fortunate to beat Buffalo in overtime Week 1 and have been outscored 102-13 in three losses since.
Most exciting player - Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick. The No. 1 overall draft pick in 2001 was expected to struggle in his first season as full-time starter but he has been surprisingly consistent through three games: 48 of 77 (.623) passing for 549 yards with 4 TDs and no interceptions; 24 carries for 184 yards (7.7-yard average) and 2 TDs.
Honorable mention - McNabb.
Worst team - Cincinnati. The Bengals are a long-term embarrassment. Some observers figured this was the year Cincinnati finally would show significant improvement. Bad call. The Bungles are awful.
Dishonorable mention - Houston. The Texans are an expansion team so they at least have an excuse.
Most painful performance line - For Houston rookie QB David Carr: 44 of 98 (.449) passing for 519 yards with 4 TDs, 6 INTs, a 49.7 passer rating and 26 sacks.
Best comeback - Miami running back Robert Edwards clinched this honor for the season with his first carry Week 1. He sat out three full seasons after a horrible injury that nearly cost him a leg. For the season, Edwards has been an effective complement to Ricky Williams with 7 carries for 41 yards (5.9-yard average), 1 TD and 9 catches for 62 yards and 1 TD.
Honorable mention - Bledsoe and Kansas City QB Trent Green.
Unluckiest team - Cleveland. Subtract one thrown helmet and one or two plays against Pittsburgh and the 2-2 Browns could easily be 4-0.
Most underrated player - Kansas City's Priest Holmes. No running back in the NFL means more to his team. The Chiefs have to be sharp offensively to win because their defense has been awful (NFL-most 439.0 yards allowed per game). He has 97 carries for 438 yards and 7 TDs along with 22 catches for 132 yards and 1 TD.
Worst coaching job - Mike Martz (St. Louis). Counting last season's playoffs, this preseason and the first four games this regular season, the talent-laden Rams are 0-9.
Dishonorable mention - Minnesota's Mike Tice (buttering up Randy Moss hasn't worked).
Top defensive player - Tie between Baltimore wrecking machine Ray Lewis and Chicago linebacker Brian Urlacher. They're 1-2 in the NFL in tackles and the heart of their teams.
Top flop player - Minnesota receiver Randy Moss. The Vikings are 0-4 and Moss' poor attitude and performance are two major factors. He has 27 catches for 235 yards (only 8.7 yards per catch) and 2 TDs.
Dishonorable mention - New York Giants RB Ron Dayne (averaging only 2.4 yards on 31 carries) and Pittsburgh QB Kordell Stewart (from third in voting for NFL MVP last season to second-string this Sunday behind XFL MVP Tommy Maddox).
Worst coaching job - Herman Edwards. The Jets have too much talent to be this bad. But benching 38-year-old Vinny Testaverde in favor of Chad Pennington probably was the right move. The Jets need to find out if he can play.
Worst position on any team - Quarterback for Cincinnati. Gus Frerotte, Jon Kitna and Akili Smith are a combined 74 of 153 (.484) for 690 yards with 1 TD pass, 7 INTs, 14 sacks for 103 yards and a 44.3 cumulative passer rating.
They're all making (not earning) more than $1 million this season.
Player most likely to improve this quarter - QB Jeff Garcia of the 2-1 San Francisco 49ers. He's much better than he has performed early this season (2 TD passes, 3 INTS and a 72.8 passer rating).
Most disappointing rookie - Cleveland RB William Green. The Browns were hoping the No. 16 overall pick in the 2002 draft would be an instant impact player. He is averaging only 2.4 yards on 95 carries with no TDs and one lost fumble.
Most vindicated coach - San Diego's Marty Schottenheimer. He was fired by Washington owner Daniel Synder after last season despite finishing 8-3. Now his Chargers are 4-0. 12-3 in his last 15 games isn't too shabby.
Most memorable play - Tie between Cleveland's Dwayne Rudd throwing his helmet on what should have been the last play of the game (setting up Kansas City's game-winning field goal in Week 1) and Baltimore's Chris McAlister returning a missed field goal an NFL-record 107 yards for a TD (giving the Ravens a 31-3 halftime lead in a 34-23 upset victory over Denver Week 4).
Most disappointing unit - Tennessee's defense. The 1-3 Titans have allowed 128 points in four games. In 2000, they allowed 191 points in 16 games (13-3 record).
Super games in the next four weeks - Oakland at Buffalo and New England at Miami on Sunday; Cleveland at Tampa Bay and Miami at Denver Oct. 13; Tampa Bay at Philadelphia and San Diego at Oakland Oct. 20; and Denver at New England Oct. 27.
Home teams are warming up - Home teams were 12-2 Week 4 and are 35-25 overall. They were 10-6, 5-11 and 8-6 in the first three weeks.
Favorites taking a licking - The Las Vegas favorites are taking a beating.
They're a modest 33-27 straight up and a costly 22-38 against the point spread.
Biggest upset - Take your pick of many. Mine was 0-3 Detroit over 3-0 New Orleans last week. Baltimore over Denver Monday night wasn't far behind.
AFC still the best - The AFC has a 9-6 lead in interconference play and the AFC West is emerging as the NFL's best division (San Diego, Oakland, Denver and Kansas City are a combined 12-3).
Hold that ball - Teams winning the turnover battle are 43-6 and teams leading in time of possession are 38-22.
Working overtime - There already have been eight OT games (on pace for 32 this season). There were only 17 all of last season. The record is 21 in 1995.
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Dayton 41, Butler 0
No. 24 Iowa 31, Purdue 28
No. 5 Ohio State 27, Northwestern 16
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Yankees and Diamondbacks knocked out in first round
Angels 9, Yankees 5
Braves 10, Giants 2
Cardinals 6, Diamondbacks 3
Twins 11, Athletics 2
Playoffs notebook
Reds Q&A with John Fay
Indians hike ticket prices for big games
Edgewood 34, Franklin 6
Elder 47, Moeller 21
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Prep football scores & game results
How Enquirer poll teams fared
Soccer: Lakota West girls, boys seeded No.1
Boys Golf results
Cross country results
Girls Tennis results
Soccer results
Volleyball results
Groeschen: Move state playoffs
Schmidt: Kentucky preps
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Chargers, Bledsoe highlight NFL's first quarter
