NFL Quarterly Report: Is your team peaking? Well then STOP IT!
__________________________________________________________________________Here in The Big Nasty Athletic Dept., we like to integrate a business overtone into our analysis from time to time. Corruption Business and sports, as we all know, go hand in hand.
So it is only fitting, now that we are one quarter of the way into the NFL season (4/16=.25=George Washington), that we issue our first NFL Quarterly Report. In this, the first of four quarterly and fiscally responsible meetings designed to assess teams as if they were fortune 500 companies, we will place NFL teams into the following categories (in no particular order):
Who’s Peaking: Top of the food chain, cream of the crop, rulers of the roost, tried and true, future playoff/Superbowl BUSTS (see below).
In The Black: Profitable, under the radar, playing within themselves, a great investment for your money.
Don’t Sell this stock just yet: Not moving any units but there’s potential. They haven’t peaked yet (most of them haven’t come close) but should they peak at the right time, look the hell out.
See what you can get for ‘em: SELL! SELL! SELL! SELL! Does it sound like I’m on Wall Street, yet? SELL! SELL! SELL! You get it.
Who’s Peaking?
- Minnesota Vikings (4-0): Strong running game, passing game coming along, no complaints.
- Indianapolis Colts (4-0): Peyton Manning is doing his part, and defense is holding up their end of the bargain. Strong work
- New York Giants (4-0): Same as Vikings except with 1.5 Adrian Peterson’s and 1/2 of Brett Favre at starting quarterback as the passing game blossoms.
- New Orleans Saints (4-0): Big play offense AND defense. However a big play defense should not be confused with a GOOD defense.
- New York Jets (3-1): The only team in this group with a loss on its record and we believe they are peaking. What does THAT tell you? (Hint, NOT good).
In The Black
- San Francisco 49ers (3-1): Shaun Hill to Vernon Davis isn’t exactly ‘The Connection’…but it works! So does that defense.
- Houston Texans (2-2): Dynamic offense, and that pass rush is too talented for them to keep getting lit up. Hold on to their stock.
- Jacksonville Jaguars (2-2): See: Houston Texans.
- Atlanta Falcons (2-1): Good young quarterback, and that running game will slowly come along.
- New England Patriots (3-1): With Wes Welker at 100%, this team will be as dangerous as they come.
- Cincinnati Bengals (3-1): They keep winning, and just to clarify, they DO have a loss on their record whether it ‘should have been a win’ or not.
- Chicago Bears (3-1): Tough, smart, could be had on defense at times, but solid quarterback play (the exception being week 1) will allow them to slowly blossom which is the exact type of ‘company growth’ we like to see.
- Philadelphia Eagles (2-1): Donovan’s back. Westbrook’s back. Kolb (700+ yards in 2 starts) is backing Donovan up. Vick is backing Kevin up. Vick should only get better after a bye week filled with rest and preparation. What’s there not to like?
- Denver Broncos (4-0): The only unbeaten team on this list, meaning we don’t think they’ve peaked yet. Now that’s a GOOD thing.
- Pittsburgh Steelers (2-2): Troy Polamalu will be back soon, and if Willie Parker can ever get healthy, this two-headed rushing attack should save big Ben some sacks.
- Baltimore Ravens (3-1): Profitable and such, but that defense has problems. The only team they’ve held under 20 points this quarter is the Browns.
Don’t Sell Their Stock Just Yet:
- Tennessee Titans (0-4): It’s only a matter of time before we see Vince Young. With a guy who can make more plays on offense to help that terrible defense, this team can get back into the mix. Even at 0-4.
- Green Bay Packers (2-2): Their main problems: Offensive Line and Defense. The solution: Key players are injured at lineman and safety, and a bye week will only help the cause.
- Dallas Cowboys (2-2): The Cowboys have a lot of talent, but have played a tough schedule and are learning to adapt to life without T.O. You’ve probably never heard this before but: We think The Cowboys are UNDERrated.
- Detroit Lions (1-3): Likely won’t be favored in a single game this month, but depending on the extent of Matt Stafford’s injury, they will beat people.
- Arizona Cardinals (1-2): Rough schedule that jerks them around East and West and provides no consistency as far as start time, but they are in a sub par division and they play some pretty bad defenses this season.
- Miami Dolphins (1-3): New quarterback, no book to read on him, strong running game, tricky offense. The fish could quietly make a small run.
- San Diego Chargers (2-2): Barely made the list. JUST barely made the list.
SEE WHAT YOU CAN GET FOR…
- Oakland Raiders (1-3)
- Kansas City Chiefs (0-4)
- Washington Redskins (2-2)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-4)
- St. Louis Rams (0-4)
- Seattle Seahawks (1-3)
- Carolina Panthers (0-4)
- Buffalo Bills (1-3)
- Cleveland Browns (0-4)
*For those of you excited about your teams appearing in the ‘Who’s Peaking’ section, you really shouldn’t be. Not much good can come from peaking early in the season. Peaking this early only gives opposing teams and coaching staffs, in today’s NFL where coaches study film instead of sleeping, more chances to key on to why particular teams are peaking and stop the peaking process…at its peak!
Don't get too comfortable penciling The Giants into another Superbowl just because of their strong play early.
Remember when The 2003 Kansas City Chiefs won their first 9 games, only to go one-and-out in the playoffs? Or how about the 2005 Colts, who almost went undefeated and were 13-0 at one point, getting bounced at home in the divisional round of the playoffs? We can’t forget about last season’s Titans (one-and-out) or even The New York Giants (one-and-out) who were both peaking at this time last year?
We’re not discouraging ‘peaking’, how could we? If you’re playing football at a high level this early, well then more power to you. But to those of you who may soon be reading all that hype of a Giants/Colts Superbowl, be veeeeery careful. It’s not out of the realm of possibility that The Colts and Giants very well may have already peaked by the time the playoffs come around. The world is no stranger to a Manning struggling in the playoffs.
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Tags: Eli Manning, Indianapolis Colts, Kansas City Chiefs, New York Giants, NFL, NFL Quarterly Report, Peyton Manning, Tennessee Titans
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[...] Superbowl contender. You have to peak at the right time, as we’ve already addressed in our NFL Quarterly Report, but you also need a quarterback who can legitimately step up in the playoffs and get your team to [...]