NFL: Saints, Colts among 5 teams that will turn it around
By Eric Saar
We’ve only gotten through barely more than two weeks of the NFL season and already there are some teams that wish things were different. Who thought that at any point in 2014, the division leaders would be the Philadelphia Eagles, Carolina Panthers, Arizona Cardinals, Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals and the Houston Texans? We all knew Denver would be leading the AFC West. Weirdly, the teams of NFC North (Packers, Lions, Bears and Vikings) are all tied at 1-1.
So which teams will turn it around?
New Orleans Saints (0-2)
The Saints are 0-2. With that potent of an offense it sure seems unlikely, but there it is. However, it is a bit of a fluke. In their first two games, the Saints were leading until late in the game…but couldn’t hold on. Against Atlanta in game one, a field goal tied it up and they went to lose in overtime. Last week, a field goal as the clock struck zero sealed their 0-2 fate.
The Saints had two bad losses that with a call going another way or a dropped pass being caught could’ve had the Saints sitting at 2-0 going into week three. But that is not the case.
Quarterback Drew Brees has connected with his superstar tight end Jimmy Graham a few times for touchdowns since the start of the season, but Brees’ play overall has been underwhelming. The defense has been a disaster as they were stomped on by Atlanta to the tune of 37 points and somehow gave up 26 to Cleveland. Plus they lost running back Mark Ingram to an injury for a while.
They will turn it around though. They still have the core of a Superbowl-winning team with coach Sean Payton, quarterback Drew Brees, wide receiver Marques Colston and they added Jimmy Graham. They still get two chances to play the dumpster fire that is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who just lost a game 56-14 that wasn’t even as close as the score suggests (if that’s even possible). They’ll get back Ingram and get on a roll. They are too much a veteran team to be written off after two games.
Indianapolis Colts (0-2)
The Colts are also somehow winless after two games. In the first Sunday night game of the year, they were defeated by Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos by a narrow 31-24 margin. Then last week, they lost by a field goal (30-27) to the Philadelphia Eagles due to that massive Darren Sproles game.
It seems as though the problem is on both sides of the ball. Andrew Luck and the Colts couldn’t manufacture 30 points in either game when their offense is supposed to be their calling card.
While the defense is without Robert Mathis for the rest of the season due to injury, they played okay against two faced-pace offenses, but need to play better if they are to make the postseason.
The Colts can easily turn it around. Those two games were the hardest on their schedule against two teams seemingly destined to make the playoffs. The rest of the season, Indianapolis will probably be favored to win in all their games and say they lose a few they were supposed to win, they’ll end up 12-4 and make it into the “money round”.
Chicago Bears (1-1)
At least the Chicago Bears have a win. Compared to the Saints and Colts, the Bears don’t have it as bad, but they might as well. Chicago lost in overtime in a somewhat low scoring 23-20 game to the AFC East leading Buffalo Bills. In week two it took a late comeback with three touchdowns to wideout Brandon Marshall to close out the San Francisco 49ers. They have a slew of injuries to the defense and both of their best wide receivers are hobbled, though it didn’t really seem to matter for Marshall.
Fortunately, they seem to be starting to gain some momentum. They have a tough road ahead with their schedule, but with their electric offense and Jared Allen to anchor their defense and put pressure on opposing quarterbacks, they should be fine and be making a push for the playoffs come winter.
Detroit Lions (1-1)
The Lions seem to be inconsistent after just two games. They were completely different. On the back of a monster day for Calvin “Megatron” Johnson the Lions destroyed the New York Giants 35-14 putting up 346 yards through the air, four touchdowns and three field goals. In game two, they only scored seven points to Carolina’s 24.
If they are going to be an elite offense with Matthew Stafford, Calvin Johnson, Golden Tate, Reggie Bush and Joique Bell they will need to play better against good defenses, which should happen. Their schedule is not ideal, but they have what it takes to make the postseason this year.
New England Patriots (1-1)
Tom Brady seems off. In week one against the lowly Miami Dolphins he threw for only 249 yards and a single touchdown. The Pats lost 33-20 in a serious upset. Last game, New England got in the win column with a rout of the turmoil-ridden Minnesota Vikings 30-7, but Brady only threw for 149 yards and a touchdown. Some of that was New England’s ability to run the ball effectively to the tune of 150 yards, but overall those two performances were mediocre, especially for Brady.
He even has his favorite target tight end Rob Gronkowski in there. However, “Gronk” hasn’t really been himself. Eight receptions for 72 yards and one touchdown would be a bit sub-par for Gronkowski for one game, yet those are his totals for both games thus far this season.
They have gotten the run game going with Stevan Ridley and Shane Vereen so far and Brady will bounce back. Head coach Bill Belichick is legendary. With he and Brady at the helm, New England will be division leaders once again, as they have a decent schedule.
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