Clarion Content

15 games into the 2007 NFL season, we offer you a few retrospective thoughts on this NFL season, as well as the Clarion's analysis of playoff games yet to come.

The season started with the Clarion predicting a Patriots-Panthers Super Bowl; in hindsight one accurate pick and one homer call. The Clarion also railed against the Brett Favre era in our pre-season divisional breakdowns, throwing shovel after shovel of dirt on what we thought was the grave of Favre's career. But like a zombie rising from the loamy earth, Favre proved us wrong. In fact, until yesterday we looked terrible.

Today, if we offered you to start the playoffs with any of the quarterbacks of the NFL's 2007 division winners, who would you take Favre ahead of? Surely not Tom Brady and Payton Manning! But what about Tony Romo, Matt Hasselback and Big Ben Rothelsberger. If the playoffs started tomorrow for your team, would you rather have Favre at the helm than any of those three? And what about the consummate game manager down in Tampa Bay, Jeff Garcia? Would you rather have Garcia capably, carefully guiding your offense or Brett slinging the ball all over the field in one last vainglorious attempt to seal his legacy? The Clarion would take Garcia, any day of the week, but especially on Sunday. It should be noted that we do rate Favre ahead of Rothelsberger, though remember they have won the same number of Super Bowls, exactly one. Do we take back our pre-season obituary for Favre? Guess we have to at this point. Do we think he is leading his team to big wins in January? No, not so much. (Recall in Favre's last home playoff game, Michael Vick thumped him.)

Speaking of big late season wins, oh, pity the poor Browns fans. Cleveland spit the bit yesterday against underachieving, in-state rival, Cincinnati. The Browns QB Derek Anderson threw two interceptions late in the first half that led to Cincy points. His final desperation bomb at the end of regulation was nowhere near a Brown receiver. Now after what looked like a season long feel good revival for Cleveland and head coach Romeo Crennel, they will need help from a coasting Indianapolis Colts squad to get into the tournament. As the suffering continues in eastern Ohio, at least someone, somewhere is consoled this holiday season.Yes, Philly fans, you can look at
the mistake on the lake and say,"At least we're not Cleveland."

And while no Philly, you're not Cleveland, the only major sports city with a longer championship drought, this season has been a mess for you, too. Once again, the silly front office powers that be failed to provide Donovan McNabb with offensive firepower. Working his lemons to lemonade magic, McNabb helped average wideout Kevin Curtis earn the first 1,000 receiving season of his career, yesterday. The one season Philly provided McNabb with a star wideout, albeit the mercurial T.O., McNabb led his team to the Super Bowl. One of these years, he is going to get sick of Philly management's callous attitude towards his career and his supporting cast.
Panthers fans can only hope it will be sooner rather than later. (Dreaming of McNabb pairing up with Steve Smith right now...)

The Panthers are obviously in desperate need of a quarterback. The team and the Panthers' fans are hoping for a full Jake Delhomme recovery from injury, but have been treated to a parade of horrors this season, from the Ryan Leaf-esque David Carr to the geriatric Vinny Testeverde to the unknown Matt Moore. This Panthers supporter would love to see Carolina pursue Chad Pennington if McNabb isn't available this off-season. Word is though, if the Chiefs keep Pennington's former coach, Herm Edwards, after a bitter season in Kansas City, they will be after Pennington, too.

In the Clarion's view, the Jets are crazy. Last year's mad genius, Eric Mangini, is looking more and more like the Cleveland version of Bill Belichick. His pre-season vengeful dismissal of guard Pete Kendall, following the ousting of outspoken center Kevin Mawae, demonstrate at this point in his career, he values for subservience over talent. It won't work. College coaching is better for megalomaniacs, right Bobby Petrino? Dick Saban? Doesn't work so much with the paid to play big boys. They're called professionals and you're shtick won't fly.

It took Belichick two head coaching jobs to slowly apprehend the same lesson: talent rules in the NFL. Belichick learned and compromised bringing in formerly thought of as miscreants types like Corey Dillion and this year, Randy Moss. Mangini will have to learn, too, coaching is important, leadership is necessary, but talent trumps all in the NFL. Right now, Mangini is relishing in his Napoleonic authority, and until he gets his comeuppance he will continue to be his own worst enemy.

His attitude decimated his offensive line, rendering QB Pennington and leading off-season acquisition, running back, Thomas Jones ineffective. He banished the team's second best defensive player, Jonathan Vilma. Now because the whole league knows of their mutual enmity, he and player personnel guru, Mike Tannenbaum, are going to be unable get much in return for an All-Pro linebacker. Mangini is now moving to dispose of the team's best receiver. He dislikes the reliable and tough, Pennington favorite, Laveranues Coles for much the same reason he black-balled Kendall and Mawae, too outspoken in the locker room.

It says here that Mangini's dictator act and attitude, along with his Soviet style secrecy and degrading treatment of the New York area media will wear thin quickly. Already, there are questions post the Vilma affair of him "losing" the locker room. Mangini will be out on the street looking for work by the end of next season. (And he may get it, go someplace else and succeed wildly, but not in New York, not with the Jets.)

Final note, wanted to recognize an excellent under the radar season by Jets wideout and N.C. State alum Jerricho Cotchery.

Still sticking with the Patriots to obliterate the NFC Super Bowl representative.

Labels: NFL, Predictions, sports