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Michael Rand started RandBall with hopes that he could keep lies from conquering the minds of the weak. So far, he's only succeeded in using the word "redacted" a lot. He welcomes suggestions, news tips, links of pure genius, and pictures of pets in Halloween costumes here, though he already knows he will regret that last part.
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Posts about Professional football
The Packers' Increasingly Lost Season, Volume 12: Failing to heed lessons of the past
Posted by: Michael Rand Updated: January 3, 2013 - 11:43 AM
Stu?
-------
As noted in this space last week, a Packers victory was very unlikely at the Metrodome last Sunday. True to form, this overhyped bunch of insurance pitchmen was unable to stop Adrian Peterson, keep Christian Ponder from beating them, or fully exploit a Vikings secondary missing Antoine Winfield for the balance of the game. That injury no doubt helped wee Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers keep the score close, but in an increasingly lost season, are moral victories enough?
The answer to that question, as the playoffs now begin, is a self-evident “no.” With the (admittedly small) chance to snipe a bye week from the much better San Francisco 49ers, the Packers tried their level best. And it just wasn’t good enough. Now, the spectre of another cold-weather game in the House of Daunte looms on Saturday night.
Which leads me to my key to a Packers upset this weekend: change of venue.
It sounds nuts, and the logistics are no doubt nightmarish, but the numbers don’t lie: the Vikings don’t lose playoff games in Green Bay, and the Packers just can’t win in Lambeau with Aaron Rodgers on his tippy-toes at quarterback. In Minnesota’s own recent lost season, they played home games in a college stadium and at Ford Field, and a road game on a Tuesday in Philadelphia. The stakes for those games were much lower than an elimination game, so shouldn’t the team and its stockholders move heaven and earth to play somewhere, anywhere but a place where failure is, perhaps, the only option?
For many years, Green Bay split their home games between Lambeau Field and tradition-rich Milwaukee County Stadium. The latter has been replaced by Miller Park, America’s premier terrarium. The chance to play a game indoors, in Wisconsin, should be a done deal. Taking the elements away can only help the Flutie-style heroics of Rodgers and the unreliable leg of Mason Crosby. Frankly, that this hasn’t already been arranged is a baffling failure of imagination on the part of what is supposedly one of the NFL’s model franchises. It may turn out that Ted Thompson’s refusal to see what Graham Harrell can do won’t be his most glaring mistake this season.
Let’s assume that Green Bay unwisely chooses the path of least resistance and plays Saturday night’s game at Lambeau Field. It’s still preferable to the Metrodome, where the Pack would no doubt get steamrolled by a red-hot Vikings team that took their best shot. Can Green Bay and Lil’ Aaron, for one week at least, cast off the chains of their many past failures and win a home playoff game before getting flattened by San Francisco? In an increasingly lost season, don’t count on it.
TFD: Rob Parker suspended 30 days by ESPN
Posted by: Michael Rand Updated: December 20, 2012 - 4:53 PMPer ESPN.com:
ESPN has suspended commentator Rob Parker for 30 days for comments he made about Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III during a Dec. 13 episode of "First Take."
The suspension comes one day after Parker issued an apology on his Twitter account. On the show, he was discussing Griffin's answer to a question about Griffin's role as an African-American quarterback, and Parker questioned Griffin's "blackness," citing that the player has a white fiancée and is rumored to be Republican.
Among his comments, Parker, who is black, said: "Is he a brother or a cornball brother?"
In his apology, Parker said he reached out to Griffin's agent with the hope of apologizing to Griffin directly.
"I blew it and I'm sincerely sorry," Parker posted on Twitter. "I completely understand how the issue of race in sports is a sensitive one and needs to be handled with great care."
ESPN issued a statement Thursday announcing the suspension.
"Our review of the preparation for the show and the re-air has established that mistakes both in judgment and communication were made," said Marcia Keegan, vice president of production for ESPN who oversees "First Take." "As a direct result, clearly inappropriate content was aired and then re-aired without editing. Both were errors on our part. To address this, we have enhanced the editorial oversight of the show and have taken appropriate disciplinary measures with the personnel responsible for these failures."
Thursday (If J.J. Watt had kept his Gophers commitment) edition: Wha' Happened?
Posted by: Michael Rand Updated: December 20, 2012 - 9:49 AM
This is one of those facts that has somehow slipped through the cracks of our consciousness for a good six years or so, and we're not sure if it had ever been printed in the Star Tribune until now: J.J. Watt, now a dynamite pass rusher with the Houston Texans -- who face the Vikings on Sunday -- was once committed to play for the Gophers. However ...
"I was committed to Central Michigan, then Brian Kelly left, so I committed to Minnesota. Then Glen Mason was relieved, so I ended up back at Central Michigan." Watt transferred to Wisconsin in 2008.
Watt had a couple of nice seasons in Badgers-land, became a first-round pick, and is now tied for the NFL sack lead with the 49ers Aldon Smith. They both have 19.5 and are in the hunt to break Michael Strahan/Brett Favre's single-season record of 22.5.
Would things have been different for Watt and the Gophers had Mason not been fired? Well, he played tight end at Central Michigan before transferring. There's no telling what role the Gophers would have found for him.
Still, it's one of those curious little what-if moments -- and will only continue to grow if a FORMER GOPHERS COMMIT ends up breaking the sack record.
Wednesday (An odd Adrian Peterson stat -- and theory) edition: Wha' Happened?
Posted by: Michael Rand Updated: December 19, 2012 - 12:22 PM
Want to know something weird about Adrian Peterson -- other than the fact that he's the best running back on the planet and he's still less than a year removed from major knee surgery?
His two best years in terms of yards per carry -- 2007 and 2012 -- came in seasons when teams very rarely had to worry about the Vikings throwing the ball (at least for much distance).
The QBs for the 2007 Vikings -- three of them started games, led by T-Jack with 12 -- combined for a 74.2 passer rating and just 12 TD passes. Christian Ponder has a 78.6 -- and it has generally gone down as AP has shot up.
His worst season in terms of yards per carry -- 2009 -- came when the Vikings had their best season offensively under Brett Favre. Peterson also fumbled seven times during the regular season.
Logic would dictate his best year was 2009, when defenses would have needed to pay more attention to the passing game.
This leads us to three separate theories, some or all of which might contain a shred of truth:
1) The 2009 Vikings were simply built better to pass block than run block, helping Favre and a potent passing attack excel.
2) Peterson likes the idea of being "the man" and focuses more when the offense depends on him.
3) Peterson actually does better against defenses stacked up against the run because he's a "home run hitter" and once he gets by the initial wave of an eight- or nine-man front he has fewer defenders to beat to go the distance.
Or maybe it's just coincidence.
Thoughts?
TFD: 'Immaculate Reception' and other past plays with modern technology
Posted by: Michael Rand Updated: December 18, 2012 - 5:11 PMThe NFL on Fox asks an interesting question on Facebook -- the time peg being that Sunday is the 40th anniversary of "The Immaculate Reception."
If instant replay was used in 1972, the Immaculate Reception would have been ruled:
A catch, Steelers win.
Incomplete, Raiders win.
The play has long been controversial because of an obscure rule about which team touched the ball first (a rule that was later undone).
In any event, the catch/no-catch query is interesting in and of itself. What we are wondering in the comments is: What are some other great moments in sports history that might have gone the other way/been overturned if modern technology and rules were in place?
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