NFL TEAMS BETTER BE CAREFUL

Each year we see this in the NFL. A putrid team or player looks completely lost and then later in the season when all is decided, there are a couple good wins and suddenly a coach or a player is deemed worthy of getting another shot. Right now the NY Football Giants are having second thoughts about dumping Eli Manning because he has rattled off a couple wins against mainly the dregs of the league. They played the Redskins last week and are now excited, despite the fact that the Skins are now on their 4th QB in 3 weeks. Before that they beat the Buccaneers who have no idea who the QB is week to week and their only quality win was against a Bears team that was forced to start JP Morgan Chase Daniel at QB not Mitch Trubisky. BUYERS BEWARE.

Eli needs to be shown the door and don’t fool yourself again by thinking “we can sign and draft some players to surround him”. Same old song and dance was played last year and 1-7 was your reward once again. Some in NY advocate for drafting a young QB and letting him sit behind Eli for a year or two to learn from the old veteran. Why? Look around the league and rookie QBs and 2nd year players are having success all over the league. Why have a rookie QB sit and watch Eli get sacked over and over when he can learn on the job? Despite the obvious, if the G-men register another win or two you can bet there will be calls to let him have yet another chance to prove he isn’t over the hill. Remember that Barkley is a running back in the NFL which means Not For Long and the shelf life dries up very quickly. He was ridden pretty hard at Penn State and as a rookie this year. Don’t assume you have 7 years with him or with OBJ who is injury prone. The G-men are already 2 years behind on grooming a QB, don’t waste any more time with these studs in their primes.

Several other teams have had some recent success and seem to be overlooking the obvious. The Dolphins have been an up and down team all year but the “Miami Miracle” took place last week and suddenly they may be back in the Adam Gase and Ryan Tannehill business, despite 4 years of the same exact inconsistent play and coaching. When your team consistently is up and down it is a solid conclusion that your coaching staff cannot keep the players motivated week to week or come up with a solid game plan to win. Several other teams are in this same spin cycle in which they lather rinse and repeat and except a different result. In the closing weeks there will be teams like the Saints, Patriots, Chiefs and Chargers who will have sewn up their playoff position and will opt to sit their starters for a worthless week 16 or 17 game and one of these down trodden teams will get a win. This is where GM’s and Owners have to be on the lookout and not fall for a coach or team that won their last two games to finish at 6-10 or 7-9. November and December is when the most important games are played and playoffs are determined. If your team didn’t have a meaningful game in these two months, don’t be fooled by winning a couple games at the end of the year. Caveat Emptor!!

-BSB