Mostly NFL Notes: Talking Colin Kaepernick and a look around the league in Week 6
Colin Kaepernick threw for 343 yards, got 9.5 YPA and posted a 120.5 QB Rating with a 3:0 TD:INT ratio. He also added 37 yards on three carries (he leads the NFL with 242 rushing yards among quarterbacks), and his day could’ve been even bigger had this not happened. Kaepernick was terrific, and his touchdown pass to Anquan Boldin was ridiculous…Austin Davis is an intriguing player, and he and the Rams looked good early on (San Francisco had allowed 20 points during the first quarter in the previous five games combined before yielding 14 on Monday night), but a questionable offensive PI penalty and an ensuing 80-yard TD catch by Brandon Lloyd on third down with 14 seconds left in the first half helped propel the 49ers to a comeback victory…Brian Quick had three touchdowns over the past two games and had seen at least nine targets in three of the team’s four games this season before disappearing Monday, when he hauled in one of four targets for just 10 yards…I wouldn’t worry too much about Quick, but owners of Zac Stacy certainly have reason to panic. His 2.1 YPC can be excused facing a tough 49ers run defense, but Stacy’s eight rushing attempts were just one more than Benny Cunningham (who scored at the goal line during the team’s opening drive) and also just three more than Tre Mason, who wasn’t inactive for the first time in his career. Stacy has been given more than 12 carries in just one game this season and is no longer a reliable weekly starter…Lloyd got 80 yards per target in this game…The Rams are the first team ever to record just one sack through five games. This is a team that had 53 sacks last year (the third most in the NFL) and added Aaron Donald with the No. 13 pick in the draft. Chris Long is hurt, but this is still pretty bizarre. Three of St. Louis’ five games have been at home, and after racking up 19.0 sacks last season, Robert Quinn has yet to record a single one this year…The 49ers were the only team yet to score a touchdown in the fourth quarter before their pick-six with 53 seconds left.
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Last year C.J. Spiller had the excuse of an ankle injury for his poor performance, but there’s no explanation for his horrendous 2014. After carrying the ball 10 times last week in which none went for more than two yards, Spiller had six rushing attempts for 19 yards and a fumble lost Sunday. He’s averaging 3.4 YPC on the year and played 12 snaps in Week 6…Rob Gronkowski bounced back from an injury scare and continues to look better and better, while someone named Brian Tyms looked like the Patriots’ best deep threat in recent memory…I apologize for my Shane Vereen recommendation, as I expected him to be targeted more as a receiver…I’d probably rather own Brandon LaFell than Julian Edelman moving forward, although that depends on if you play in PPR formats…Brandon Bolden produced just 10 yards, but he’s the biggest beneficiary from Stevan Ridley’s injury and should be added in the majority of fantasy leagues…The Bills have allowed an NFL-low 2.8 YPC (next lowest is 3.1) and zero rushing touchdowns this season…Tom Brady got 5.8 YPA with a 4:5 TD:turnover ratio over the first four games of the season. Over the past two, he’s gotten 9.1 YPA with a 6:0 TD:turnover ratio.
This fake sonogram prank by Jimmy Kimmel was pretty funny.
Cam Newton had a decent day passing but the real news was him rushing 17 times for 107 yards and a score. You never want to overrate one game, but in this case, it’s a big deal since it suggests Newton is feeling healthier now than at any point in the season. His 17 carries matched the amount the rest of Carolina had, only he outgained the Panthers’ running backs by 67 yards…Andy Dalton completed 76.7 percent of his passes and got 7.5 YPA with two touchdowns, which is impressive without A.J. Green, even if Carolina’s defense has taken a big step back this season…This TD run by Giovani Bernard was one of the best plays of the week…Mohamed Sanu looks like a top-15 fantasy wide receiver as long as Green is sidelined…Adam Jones’ 97-yard kickoff return was the longest that didn’t go for a score in Bengals history (not surprisingly). It set up a TD run by Jeremy Hill, who celebrated doing the Ickey Shuffle. Hill later had another touchdown run taken away by a penalty, although fantasy owners could no longer salivate once Bernard unexpectedly returned to the game…With 7:08 left in the fourth quarter, Riverboat Ron lived up to his name, going for it on 4th-and-2, picking up a crucial first down that led to a touchdown later in the drive…The Panthers allowed 15.1 points-per-game last season, which was the second fewest in the NFL. They’ve yielded 26.2 ppg this year, which is the ninth-most…The first sack in this game didn’t come until overtime…There’s little question Kelvin Benjamin is a star in the making, but he’s gotten just 4.6 YPT (on 19 looks) over the past two games…Since 2011, Mike Nugent had been 26-of-27 on field goals inside the 40 before missing the 36-yard attempt to end Sunday’s game in overtime…After winning NFL Defensive Player of the Year last season while recording 156 tackles and two sacks, Luke Kuechly is on pace to finish with 197 tackles (which would be an NFL record) and three sacks this year.
We all know things are done differently in Russia, but here’s a policeman commandeering a pedestrian’s car to give chase to what appears to be a drunken driver.
Ben Roethlisberger entered with a career 18-1 record against the Browns before losing to Cleveland 31-10 (it was 31-3 until a meaningless TD late in the fourth quarter)…The Browns won convincingly with Brian Hoyer completing just eight passes. It helps if you get 27.1 yards per completion though. Kyle Shanahan’s game plan deserves a ton of credit…Markus Wheaton got 3.3 YPT. That’s not good…Nice to see Jordan Cameron back with a pulse, and he could’ve had another TD had Hoyer not underthrown him during his 42-yard catch (that was brilliantly drawn up)…Cleveland’s lost fumble in the fourth quarter was just the team’s second turnover of the season…The Browns’ offensive line has been nothing short of fantastic, so it’s too bad to see Alex Mack go down with a season-ending injury. Ben Tate is one of the bigger candidates to get hurt, but while healthy, he’s a legitimate top-10 fantasy RB. Isaiah Crowell might be even better if Tate were to go down…Le’Veon Bell is on pace to finish with 2,115 yards from scrimmage yet he somehow hasn’t scored a touchdown since Week 1.
This segment on John Oliver’s show about civil forfeiture was both eye opening and infuriating. (Warning: some language.)
Maybe Toby Gerhart’s poor season wasn’t exactly all his fault. While Storm Johnson scored an early TD, his debut as the team’s feature back was more like a light drizzle…Bishop Sankey didn’t overly impress either, gaining just 61 yards on 18 carries (3.4 YPC) at home against a Jaguars defense that entered having allowed the second-most fantasy points to opposing running backs this seasons. It was at least encouraging to see him dominate the work (no other back saw more than two rushing attempts), although Jackie Battle stole a GL touchdown during his second carry of the season…Coming back from an injury, Cecil Shorts immediately saw a whopping 16 targets. He’s always a threat to leave mid-game while reinjuring his hamstring, but Shorts is clearly Jacksonville’s No. 1 wideout, and if he continues to be targeted at anything close to this rate, he’s going to be a fantasy factor…Delanie Walker’s 10 broken tackles are the second most among tight ends. He had six all of last season. On the flip side, a league-high (among TEs) three passes intended toward Walker have been intercepted this year…..After recovering an onside kick after a beautiful backdoor cover, the Jaguars had a chance to win a game for the first time this season, only to see it fade after having a 55-yard field goal attempt blocked.
Headlines of the Week: Swarm Of 300,000 Bees Kills Landscaper In Arizona...Red Bull Agrees To Pay $15 Million For Falsely Claiming To Provide Superpowers…Houston Radio Station Fires All 47 Employees To Play Beyonce 24/7...Student Responds To Bullying With Positive Post-Its, School Punishes Her For Littering...JetBlue Removes Mom After Three Tweets About Flight Delay...Man Sues Burger King After Onion Ring Incident…Elderly L.A. Woman Vanishes, Is Found Alone In Maine Four Years Later...Scottish Woman Had 3-Inch Leech Living In Nose For A Month After Vietnam Trip…Google Hires Camel For Desert Street View...Ebola Comment Gets Passenger Hazmat Escort From Plane.
As a Joique Bell owner, it was a little frustrating seeing Theo Riddick dominate work on the opening drive, culminating in a TD catch, especially with Reggie Bush out. But Bell ended up leading Detroit with 18 carries (no other back had more than five), hitting pay dirt himself as well. He’ll be a top-15 type fantasy RB option as long as Bush is sidelined, although it sounds like that won’t be the case in Week 7…Not only did Jerrick McKinnon lead Minnesota with 11 carries, but incumbent Matt Asiata tallied negative five rushing yards. McKinnon also secured all six of his targets for a team-high six receptions and 42 yards. He’s an exciting talent who needs to be unleashed. Asiata can safely be dropped…More was expected of Golden Tate, who managed just 44 receiving yards on 12 targets with Calvin Johnson out…Teddy Bridgewater struggled badly, taking eight sacks with a 0:3 TD:INT ratio, but in fairness this Lions defense appears to be extremely legit…Before Matt Prater made a 52-yarder, Detroit’s kickers were a combined 1-of-10 from 40+ yards. They remain an ugly 5-of-15 on the year collectively…Cordarrelle Patterson got 15 yards on eight targets. I’m not going to lie to you, I expected him to be slightly better this season. Despite seeing just 29 targets (54 wide receivers have seen more this year), four passes intended for Patterson have been picked off, which is tied for an NFL-high.
Here’s a hawk attacking a quadcopter.
This fake spike by Aaron Rodgers was pretty cool, but if Cortland Finnegan cuts off the sideline (he had safety help in the middle), the game might have ended. Of course, far be it from me to criticize Rodgers, who also did this and then this and was the sole reason the Packers won this game…Lamar Miller has totaled as many touchdowns (three) over the past two weeks as he had over his previous 32 games of his career. But he’s still yet to see more than 15 carries in a game this season…Randall Cobb, who’s 5-10, 192, somehow is on pace to finish with 19 touchdowns on 77 receptions…Eddie Lacy continues to be a massive disappointment and now finds himself sharing snaps with James Starks. Lacy has averaged 3.3 YPC or fewer in five of six games this season. Ugh.
Here’s a horse walking into a police station, no big deal.
Julius Thomas’ seven TDs were the most ever by a tight end through four games. He added two more Sunday and is on pace to finish with a modest 29 scores this season. “It’s so easy!”...Ironically, Thomas has yet to record a single broken tackle this season…Chris Johnson, Chris Ivory and Bilal Powell combined for 20 yards on 13 carries. That’s not ideal…C.J. Anderson didn’t get a touch, although Ronnie Hillman is one of only two backs to see 100+ snaps this season who’s yet to record a broken tackle…After getting off to a slow start, Demaryius Thomas has racked up 18 catches for 350 yards and three touchdowns over the past two games…Meanwhile, Wes Welker’s first target of the game came with 2:07 left in the fourth quarter…The Jets had the ball midway through the fourth quarter down one score, so this game was actually competitive, even if it didn’t totally feel that way…New York has just three takeaways this season and have ceded a 15:1 TD:INT ratio...Geno Smith has thrown the ball away an NFL-high 16 times. Peyton Manning has done so twice. It’s almost as if one is better than the other.
Here’s a ‘Price Is Right’ contestant bidding $7,000 on a hammock.
With 13:57 left in the second quarter, Joe Flacco was 10-of-13 for 195 yards (15.0 YPA) with a 5:0 TD:INT ratio. Is that good? You’ll rarely if ever see a more impressive 16 minutes of football (only one other QB had ever thrown four TDs in the first quarter)…Baltimore attempted a 64-yard field goal up 38-0 at the end of the first half (not that there’s anything wrong with that)…Austin Seferian-Jenkins has yet to reach 60 receiving yards, but he looks good to me and is someone I’d want on a dynasty team…Torrey Smith had twice as many touchdowns in the first quarter Sunday than he had during his previous nine games combined…Every time Bobby Rainey enters the game, he looks noticeably better than Doug Martin (other than when fumbling). Martin has broken three tackles on 48 carries this season. Rainey has broken 16 (tied for the seventh-most among RBs with LeSean McCoy) on 54 rushing attempts...Justin Forsett has averaged 6.4 YPC and is the Ravens’ best back by a wide margin (I’d say the same if Ray Rice were still playing). I understand health is a concern, but I see little reason why he’s not given 18-22 touches per game. Forsett is tied for the league-lead with six carries that have gone for 20+ yards…To say the Lovie Smith hire hasn’t worked out would be an understatement…The Buccaneers have allowed a 111.9 QB Rating to opposing passers this season. Peyton Manning’s current QB Rating is 110.5.
This Key & Peele text message skit is brilliant, but it’s definitely NSFW (language).
Branden Oliver totaled 124 yards and a score, and yet, it almost felt like a letdown, given the opponent. He’s highly impressive…It’s time to start worrying about Keenan Allen, who’s gotten 55 yards or fewer in five of six games while yet to score this year. His one good game came against a Jaguars secondary that has allowed the second-most YPG to wide receivers this season. Allen being such a bust is especially crazy considering he entered his sophomore campaign healthier than last year and flashing more speed in the preseason while playing for a Chargers team that has averaged the fifth-most ppg (27.3) in the NFL…Philip Rivers and Derek Carr had combined for a 7:0 TD:INT ratio before the rookie was picked off with 1:13 left in the game, resulting in the first turnover of the day. This was a fun game if you like offense…I’m normally all for aggressive play calling, but I found it curious when San Diego called for a fake punt on 4th-and-35 (in a tied game in which they were seven-point favorites). Eric Weddle’s pass went incomplete, and he later took blame for the audible…Despite winning its fifth straight game, Sunday marked the first time San Diego scored a touchdown in the fourth quarter this season…The Raiders have somehow averaged the second fewest ppg (15.8) yet have taken the second fewest sacks (four) this year.
Here’s dramatic footage of a train crashing into an 18-wheeler stuck on the tracks. “Holy mother of moo moo!” (There were no casualties).
The Falcons/Bears game had a league-high over/under (53.5 points) this week, so naturally the score was 3-3 with six minutes left in the second quarter. The scoring picked up thereafter but still finished with a modest 40…Matt Forte had a big game, totaling 157 yards and two scores. He also saw a game-high 13 targets, which seems like a lot for a running back…Since the Falcons won 56-14 in Week 3, they’ve been outscored 98-61 against teams with a collective 8-20 record…While Alshon Jeffery, Brandon Marshall, Matt Forte and Martellus Bennett saw 37 of Jay Cutler’s 38 targets with zero touchdowns, it’s only natural Josh Morgan scored on his lone look of the game…Antone Smith’s seven career touchdowns have all gone for at least 38 yards...Over their last four games, the Falcons have totaled zero points in the fourth quarter…Atlanta has allowed just six touchdown passes on the year, but they’ve also yielded an NFL-high 8.6 YPA while recording just seven sacks. That’s not good, but it’s really bad when you consider they also entered Week 6 allowing the most fantasy points to opposing running backs. They’ve ceded 12 rushing scores in 2014, which is five more than any other team. That’s not exactly a great combo.
Here’s a new Tesla that’s capable of driving itself.
Here’s my Fantasy Fallout regarding Kevin Durant’s injury.
Kirk Cousins has committed eight turnovers over the past three games. To put this into perspective, the Seahawks, who were unanimously drafted as the No. 1 fantasy defense this season, have five takeaways total this season…Over the last four weeks, DeSean Jackson has somehow produced 398 yards and three touchdowns on just 14 catches…Nice to see Michael Floyd score for the first time this season, as the return of Carson Palmer surely helped…Speaking of which, it was pretty odd to have all three Arizona QBs active and participating in pregame rituals, although it’s hard to argue with the results, as the Cardinals won by 10 points (this included a late pick-six, which helped me cover my “best bet” of the week)…Jordan Reed returned to action and wasn’t 100 percent yet still saw a team-high 11 targets on limited snaps. He’d be a monster if he were ever able to stay healthy…Despite having to use three different quarterbacks, the Cardinals are the only team in the NFL yet to throw an interception. Having said that, I’d argue Brian Orakpo had the worst drop of the week during this game, and yes, I realize defensive players can’t catch…After leading the NFL with 3.2 YPC after contact last season (minimum 110 rushing attempts), Andre Ellington ranks No. 54 among 56 qualified backs this year, getting just 1.6.
Police Blotter: Accidental 911 Call Leads Deputies To Active Meth Lab…Cop Tries To Search Car Because ‘Everybody That Plays Frisbee Golf Smokes Weed.’…Fake Policeman Caught After Stopping Real Cop…Man Shot 15 Minutes After Serving 15-Year Jail Term…Fan With Tom Brady Helmet Tattooed On His Head Is Jailed On Felony Narcotics Charge…Police: Man Climbs Out Of Grate, Throws Bombs In Greenwich Village Restaurant…Police Sorry For Telling Wrong Family Of Death…Police: Man On Acid Demanded Homeowners Make Him Sandwich, Take Him To McDonald’s Drive-Thru...Desperate Darwen Burglar Violated Teddy Bear…Arrest On Arson Charges For California Wildfire That Scorched 157 Homes…Georgia Parents Give 2-Year-Old Son Brandy And Coke; Tot’s Blood Alcohol Content 3 Times Legal Limit.
I’m a 49ers fan who hates the Seahawks, so naturally, the week in which I pick Seattle in my survivor pool they lose just their second game at home in the Russell Wilson era...This blocked punt was the result of some good coaching, but they also benefitted from a Cowboys lost fumble during a fair catch attempt. In other words, the Cowboys should’ve won this game by a more comfortable margin. The Seahawks continue to be the bane of my existence…Seattle hadn’t allowed a 40-yard rusher this season before Sunday. Both DeMarco Murray and Joseph Randle had 40+ rushing yards midway through the second quarter…Murray became the second player to rush for six straight 100-yard games to open a year, with Jim Brown the only other to do so back in 1958…Murray is without question one of the best running backs right now (he has 471 yards after contact this season. The next most is Le’Veon Bell with 299), but I’d argue the Dallas offensive line is the single best unit (this includes offense, defense, special teams) in all of football. What a dominant group that absolutely manhandled a Seattle defense that entered as the league’s No. 1 rush defense (Tony Romo took a big hit early on, but he enjoyed a clean pocket for much of the rest of the game).
Almost everyone expected the Cowboys’ defense to be historically bad. Instead they have allowed the eighth-fewest ppg in the league so far and pressured Seattle’s offense greatly (it didn’t help center Max Unger was out). It’s unclear if Rod Marinelli deserves some kind of prize or if Monte Kiffin was just that bad. The answer is probably somewhere in between, although I would give Marinelli the coach of the year award right now…Dallas had 10 first downs versus zero for Seattle during the second quarter…Dan Bailey made a 56-yard field goal, which helped keep his FG% the best in NFL history (minimum 100 attempts)…Richard Sherman’s pass interference penalty was Seattle’s first of the season…This catch by Terrance Williams during a crucial 3rd-and-20 late in the fourth quarter was the play of the game (if not year).
Longreads of the Week: “The Human Factor: Should Airplanes Be Flying Themselves?” and “At Florida State, Football Clouds Justice.”
The Giants entered having taken a modest seven sacks on the year over five games yet suffered six Sunday night, as the Eagles’ defense continued to impress, recording six, although their terror on special teams scoring touchdowns ended…Actually, the Eagles entered Week 6 having allowed the most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks, so while Philly’s D may not have reached pay dirt it did hold a hot Eli Manning to just 6.6 YPA and no touchdowns. They also held hot pickup Andre Williams in check, as New York’s new feature back was limited to just 58 rushing yards on 16 carries…LeSean McCoy, meanwhile, finally broke out, running for 149 yards on 22 totes, although it was Darren Sproles who got the team’s lone score on the ground (he also left with a knee injury)…Jeremy Maclin averaged 11.4 targets over the first five games yet saw just three during his team’s 27-0 victory Sunday night...Larry Donnell had as many touchdowns (three) in Week 4 as he’s had targets during the two games since then…Hate to see the Victor Cruz season-ending injury, in which he left on a cart crying. Brutal.
