Thursday, December 29, 2011

Big Week for Tebow & The Broncos


I want to establish right away that I am not a Tebow hater.  I do not hope for his failure.  I think he is a genuine person who is very sincere in his beliefs and faith.  I have no problem with him as a human being.  In my opinion, this whole Tebow phenomenon is silly and much to do about nothing.

Tim Tebow as a team leader seems to have what it takes to be successful.  He is fiery and has a never give up attitude.  He believes he can win any game and that is necessary to win ball games in the NFL.  The problem is that it takes the ability to be able to throw the ball on a consistent basis to be a quarterback who can have success year after year.  This is why I don’t think Tim Tebow is the quarterback of the future for the Denver Broncos.  He simply isn’t a good passer.

Tebow is, however, the quarterback of the present for the Denver Broncos.  He has a very big game for his team coming up this weekend.  He faces the Kansas City Chiefs this weekend and if they win, Denver will win the AFC West and will go to the playoffs.  If they lose, they will go home and face an off season full of questions about their quarterback.

Tebow has a completion percentage of 48%.  That just isn’t very good.  He only had two games over 50%.  It is very difficult to be successful with those numbers.  The last time he faced the Chiefs, he was a whopping 2-8 for 69 yards.  Despite these horrific numbers, the Broncos won the game.  The Broncos as a team have had success and it seems to me that Tebow has received more than his share of the credit.  In many of the games, Tebow has not played well for most of the game but the Denver defense played well enough to keep the game close, setting up opportunities for Tebow to be the star.  To his credit, Tebow has taken advantage of these opportunities.  In one game, the opposing running back made two horrible mistakes, once at the end of regulation and once in overtime, setting up Tebow with chances to tie, and then win this game.  Another game, the Broncos’ defense came up with a late turnover giving Tebow a very short field to produce a late comeback.  Part of being a winner is taking advantage of every chance you get to win games and Tebow has down that thus far.

 Tebow is also very good on his feet.  He is big and strong and he runs without fear.  He creates with his legs and he has enjoyed a lot of success.  Over an extended period of time, how will he hold up taking punishing hits from aggressive defenders trying to take his head off?  My guess is not for long.  In my opinion, Tebow needs to spend a lot of time this off season really working on his accuracy and improving his passing within the pocket.  I’m not saying he can’t improve; he certainly can – and he must.  To me, it would be a bigger story if he came into next year as a better quarterback than his tough performances covering up pedestrian stats this season.

If Tebow and the Bronocs lay an egg this Sunday against the up and down Chiefs, it could be a long off season for Tebow and the Broncos.  Questions about his ability to be The Guy will follow them everywhere for the long winter months and into next summer.  If Tebow performs well and leads his team to victory and a divisional championship, he will be considered The Guy, until the following week that is.  That is what I fear is Tebow’s future in the NFL.  He will always be only as good as his last start.  This is kind of the life of most quarterbacks in the NFL anyway – I think it will always be worse for Tim Tebow.  For whatever reason, there is a large group of people out there who cheer for his failure and will be the most vocal when he doesn’t perform very well.  I think in the end, this just may be his fate in the NFL, for better or worse.

Read movie and television reviews at jawsrecliner.blogspot.com and get updates @jawsrecliner

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Wouldn't Yu Darvish Look Good in Powder Blue?

While the rumor mill is churning out the word that Toronto is the heavy favorite to win the bid for Japanese sensation, Yu Darvish, I'm not convinced.  I've read that Darvish's bid was higher than Dice K's 51.1 million.  I have also read that Toronto's bid was 48 million.  This would lead me to believe the heavily rumored Blue Jays did not win the bid. 

I am not saying the following is a fact or even a rumor.  I have NOT heard or read anything anything about this.  I just want everyone to know that it would not surprise me at all if the Kansas City Royals submitted the winning bid for Darvish. 

I know some of you are thinking, "Dude is crazy!"  While this statement is undoubtedly correct, I have several reasons for believing this to be possible:

1) I have not read anywhere that the Royals did NOT submit a bid.

2) Dayton Moore plays things very close to the vest.  Many (most) of his moves are big surprises.  The Royals run a tight, quiet ship under Moore - very little is ever leaked.

3) Moore is convinced it is nearly impossible to lure a big name free agent to sign KC.  I have heard him say this. 

4) Moore believes the price in prospects is too high for a team like the Royals to make a trade for the likes of Gio Gonzalez, Jair Jurrjens, etc. Just look at the hall for Matt Latos.

5) Former Royals manager Trey Hillman, who also managed in Japan for several years, is a huge Darvish fan.  I'm sure Moore knows this very well.

6) I think Moore believes the Royals are one top-of-the-rotation pitcher away from being a serious contender for the AL Central.  I can't disagree.  Moore may consider this the only way for Kansas City to get a top starting pitcher without giving up several top prospects.


We all will find out within the next few days what team submitted the highest bid.  I'm not saying it is the Royals.  I am saying it is very possible and I won't be surprised in the least.  This is all speculation on my part based on rumors I have read on the internet, for goodness sake.  I know those rumors aren't worth a red penny.  They just made me stop and analyze the situation,  And, as a Royals fan, it has allowed me to dream a little, even if it is just for a few days.


Thanks for reading.  Check out my movie and tv review page at jawsrecliner.blogspot.com and get twitter updates @jawsrecliner

Thursday, December 8, 2011

JAW's Raw Topics


I originally was going to write a two page rant on the continued ridiculousness of the BCS but I’m just not mentally prepared to get that fired up right now.  Instead, I will comment on a few topics that have me riled up in general, the BCS just being one of them.


THE BCS
Once again, I think it has come to the point where this system doesn’t work.  It’s not that I think Alabama is undeserving.  They are deserving.  So is Oklahoma State and Stanford.  That these teams don’t get a shot is just stupid.  This is the only sport where the national champion is crowned on opinion and not on the field of play.  If LSU should beat Alabama again (hopefully this time at least one team can score a touchdown), LSU will be crowned champ without them having to play either of the other top teams.  That the BCS should take the coaches’ poll into account in their standings is enough to make their system illegitimate.  Coaches have their own agendas and they are so busy, how can they have the time to make educated decisions on the votes.  It is a stupendously stupid system.

The crazy part is that they could use the BCS bowls as the quarterfinals games.  Each bowl would be guaranteed two premium teams.  The NCAA then could pick a location for the semifinals and final game much like the Final Four.  Think about the money that would pour in for that spectacular event.  It would be gigantic.  One more thing – use the top eight teams.  There will always be those 9th, 10th, etc. teams that are left out and that will lead to great discussions every year, much like the NCAA tournament.  This is a win-win situation.  Plus, these games would take place during the winter break and the players wouldn’t even have to miss school.  No-brainer!


THE HOT STOVE LEAGUE
I love this week in December because it brings baseball back into the limelight, even for just a few days.  What I hate though, is the irresponsible spending from some of these teams.  Some of these contracts are ridiculous.  I understand how good Albert Pujols is.  I get it.  I do not understand how the Angels, or any team, can give a player who is going to be 32 years old by Spring Training a ten year contract.  No matter how good he may be over the first 5 or 6 years, what can they expect as a return for the last few years, especially from a player who has had a few nagging injuries accumulating over the last few seasons.  This doesn’t even touch upon the $254 million involved.  The market, which may have involved 5 teams, dictated this amount but that doesn’t make it any less silly.

It also sucks that mainly just two teams, the Marlins and Angels, have made most of the big splashes this winter.  It just shows how far apart the teams are in baseball.  The new CBA will hurt the small market teams, in my opinion, in the long run and it will make baseball have an even bigger competitive imbalance.


THE NBA WILL RESUME SOON
Does anyone really care?  That’s not fair.  The NBA has lots of fans.  Just don’t count me in their number.  In my opinion, the NBA is the worst evolution of the game of basketball.  The court and lane need to be larger and the rim should be higher.  The players are so much bigger than they were even 20 years ago and the bodies are too big for the space, leading to a brutal style of play I think is unwatchable.

I have an interesting fact.  Since 1980, only 9 teams have won the NBA championship, three of those only won once.  Six teams have won the other 28.  There is no balance in the NBA.  Many perennial losers have only themselves to blame for their woes because year after year they are lottery teams and year after year they draft players with potential and leave the proven and talented players to the already successful franchises.  It has been happening for decades now and it drives me crazy.  The young high schoolers and one-and-done college players that are big impact players are the exceptions, not the rule.  This league needs a huge make over and the new CBA isn’t the answer.  If one sport was in desperate need of contraction, it is the NBA.  I don’t know exactly which teams should go but there are too many teams.


THE QUARTERBACK PROBLEM
If every NFL team has three quarterbacks on its roster, this means there are 96 quarterbacks in the NFL.  If Peyton Manning ever returns, there are 4 elite qbs (Manning, Brady, Rogers, and Brees).  There are about 15 to 16 average or slightly above average qbs and another 12 to 16 or so below average or pedestrian field generals out there.  You do the math.  That leaves around 60 quarterbacks on rosters that really aren’t good enough to play in the NFL.  Yet the teams have little choice.  Quarterback is easily the shallowest position in football.  Now you understand why having a good to great quarterback is essential to continued success in the NFL.  There is no real solution because there just isn’t enough talent to fill the out the rosters.  Teams just have to hope their starters don’t get hurt and if they do, the back up doesn’t kill their chances of winning games.  Players like Tyler Palko and Caleb Hanie are forced into service and their teams have little or no chance of success.  This position, so important to teams’ success, just isn’t deep enough for every team to have one good quarterback, let alone 2 or 3.  Teams just have to get lucky and strike gold here. 

Thanks for reading my rants and letting me vent a little.

Check out my movie and tv review blog at jawsrecliner.blogspot.coma and get twitter updates @jawsrecliner