The Tiger Report: 10/10/11

Monday, October 10, 2011

Nick Fairley will make rookie debut tonight

ALLEN PARK, MI - JULY 30: Nick Fairley #98 of the Detroit Lions walk onto the practice field during training camp at the Lions facility on July 30, 2011 in Allen Park, Michigan. (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images)

Source - ESPN

The Detroit Lions will have the services of their first round pick, Nick Fairley, for the first time this season. Fairley will be part of a 9 man defensive line rotation that the Bears will have to face all night long. The Lions are expecting him to play 15-20 snaps in his first game action.

Fairley has been sidelined since the preseason with a stress fracture in his foot.

Jared Allen a bright spot on a losing team

Posted by Michael David Smith on October 10, 2011, 4:28 PM EDT

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Derek Anderson is sacked by Minnesota Vikings defensive end Jared Allen in overtime in Minneapolis

In a year when multiple quarterbacks and wide receivers are threatening to re-write the NFL passing record book, there’s a defensive player who’s on pace to set a record of his own.

Unfortunately for Vikings defensive end Jared Allen, Minnesota’s lousy season has much of the NFL world overlooking the fact that Michael Strahan’s NFL record of 22.5 sacks in a season is within Allen’s reach: Allen has 8.5 sacks through five games and is on pace for a whopping 27 sacks this season.

Sacks are too unpredictable for anyone to have much confidence that Allen can keep this pace up. But Allen, who led the league with 15.5 sacks in 2007, has been remarkably consistent in his ability to get to the quarterback: He has 52.5 sacks in his last 55 games. It’s certainly possible that Allen could have 14.5 more sacks in him this season, which would be enough to pass Strahan’s mark.

Allen had two sacks on Sunday as the Vikings beat the Cardinals, and coach Leslie Frazier said afterward that Allen is having “a really unbelievable year.” Allen may be on a last-place team, but he’s one of the best players in football.

Quarterback leaves team to be by his girlfriend's side

By Maggie Hendricks via Yahoo! Sports

With QB controversy erupting in Denver, Quinn flies to girlfriend’s side

On Sunday, the quarterback controversy that had been simmering under the surface in Denver exploded.Kyle Orton (notes) was benched in favor of Tim Tebow (notes),who nearly engineered a comeback win over San Diego. His incomplete passes on a point-after attempt and a Hail Mary on the last play of the game ensured the Chargers' win, but Tebow's play was good enough to give Broncos coach John Fox some tough decisions to make. The Broncos have a bye this week, then will travel to Miami in Week 7 for their next contest.

The QB controversy is completely centered around Orton and Tebow. The Broncos depth chart says that their No. 2 QB is Tebow or Brady Quinn (notes), but Broncos fans weren't chanting "We want Quinn."

Since Quinn is being forced to take a backseat to the Tebow/Orton mess, he is at least using his time to be a good boyfriend. Quinn's girlfriend, elite gymnast Alicia Sacramone, ruptured her Achilles tendon while in Tokyo preparing for the world championships. She is having surgery Monday, and tweeted that Quinn will be by her side.

Best boyfriend award goes to @BQ9 for taking the red eye from Denver to be here for my surgery today...just another reason why I love him.

See? Quinn hasn't taken a snap in a regular-season pro game since 2009, and he has been completely marginalized in the Broncos' QB discussion, but he is the best boyfriend. That has to be worth something.

Joking aside, Quinn does have much more experience than Tebow, and that does count for something. While in Cleveland, Quinn played in 14 games and started in three. His performance wasn't that impressive. With a rating of 66.8, you can see why he's not Denver's starting quarterback. But with the team down, the Broncos could have used Quinn's experience.

Instead, Tebow was given the chance. The pressure for Fox to put Tebow in has been evident in Denver since preseason, taking the form of crowd chants, signs and even billboards. NFL Network's Albert Breer suggested that the Broncos are just giving Tebow the chance to sink or swim. Even if he doesn't work out, which Breer does not believe Tebow will, the Broncos are showing him off for a possible trade.

No matter what the depth chart says, that makes Quinn the odd man out. Since he can't compete to be the Broncos starting QB, he may as well earn the title of the best boyfriend.

Kevin Kolb suggests that Cardinals lack in their preparation

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal on October 10, 2011, 12:54 PM EDT

For three straight weeks, the Cardinals came up with creative ways to torture their fanbase, losing in different ways late in the fourth quarter.

Arizona put their fans out of their misery early Sunday against Minnesota. It has a lot of people in Arizona remembering the pre-Whisenhunt days for the franchise.

Starting quarterback Kevin Kolb suggested that the team’s professionalism could improve.

“That’s the problem. It’s not one person making a lot of mistakes; it’s all of us making one or two mistakes,” Kolb said via the Arizona Republic. “That’s where details come in. The head coach hit the nail on the head: We’ve got to get back to detail-oriented football.

“It starts with meetings. It starts with showing up to work on time, getting in early, getting your work done. All of the stuff that a professional is supposed to do.”

While he didn’t outright say it, Kolb is suggesting that his Cardinals teammates lack discipline in their preparation.

The calls for Whisenhunt’s head in Arizona seem silly, but the Cardinals coach has a mounting challenge in turning this season around. They can’t blame everything on Derek Anderson, John Skelton, and Max Hall this year.

Josh Morgan breaks ankle in garbage time

National Football Post - Brad Biggs

The San Francisco 49ers could be without their top wide receiver for some time after Josh Morgan suffered a fractured ankle on a 19-yard reception with four minutes to play Sunday and his team leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 41-3.

Morgan suffered a fractured right ankle, according to Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area, after he was tackled by Buccaneers cornerback Anthony Gaitor at the one-yard line. The 19-yard gain came on a fourth-and-3 play.

“You've got to play," 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh said of his decision process. "You can't take a knee with four minutes left in the game. It could have been a run. Josh was competing. I think he's going to be OK. (Colin Kaepernick) is competing. He's got to get the work. We're not taking a knee with four minutes left in the game."

Now, the 49ers have three healthy wideouts in Michael Crabtree, Ted Ginn Jr. and Kyle Williams. Braylon Edwards is still sidelined following arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.

Hopefully, the Niners come up with some good news for Morgan.

Texans suffer devastating loss

Mario Williams and David Garrard - Jacksonville Jaguars v Houston Texans

Mario Williams will have surgery on his torn pectoral this week, ending his season.

It's a crippling blow to the Texans' improving defense. Williams was sometimes dominant in Wade Phillips' 3-4 scheme, racking up five sacks, 11 tackles and one forced fumble in five games. They'll now have to turn to the likes of Brooks Reed and Connor Barwin to generate quarterback pressure. Houston's fantasy defense gets knocked down a peg while Williams now heads into free agency with an injury flag. Oct 10 - 10:51 AM

Source: John McClain on Twitter

Von Miller was benched during Broncos loss

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal on October 10, 2011, 9:39 AM EDT

Getty Images

Kyle Orton wasn’t the only big name Bronco to get benched Sunday.

No. 2 overall pick Von Miller was taken out of the team’s base defense throughout the loss to the Chargers. Miller was called “one of the bright spots in the whole league” by his coach John Fox last week, but Sunday was a humbling day for him.

“I didn’t play to the best of my potential. I’m pretty disappointed in myself,” Miller said via the Denver Post. “I’m going to come back tomorrow, keep working, keep taking steps to be the player I think I can be.”

Miller’s attitude and intelligence are among his best qualities. He’s already one of the best pass rushers in football; he recorded his fifth sack in five games against San Diego.

We’re guessing that blown assignments or some run defense problems attributed to the benching, which is still a surprise because Miller has received strong marks for his early run defense.

This is a good reminder that Orton isn’t the only problem in Denver. The defense is 30th in points allowed this year.

10/10 Monday morning one liners

Posted by Josh Alper on October 10, 2011, 9:04 AM EDT

WR Naaman Roosevelt stepped up for the Bills after Donald Jones left with an injury.

The play of Dolphins T Marc Colombo this season hasn’t given the impression that there’s much left in his tank.

A well-designed play sprung Patriots WR Wes Welker for a 73-yard gain.

WR Jeremy Kerley saw more time than Derrick Mason when the Jets went with three wide receivers.

Ravens DT Terrence Cody has shown much improvement over last season.

Brandon Tate’s punt returns helped set the Bengals up offensively in their winover the Jaguars.

Browns WR Greg Little hopes to be the team’s leading playmaker as the season moves on.

RB Jonathan Dwyer had the seventh-longest run in Steelers history on his way to 111 rushing yards overall.

Texans TE Joel Dreessen was a bright spot in Sunday’s loss.

Said Colts DE Robert Mathis, “Stopping the run, stopping the pass. It’s indescribable. I wish I could hit the re-set button. I don’t think we got any passing grades in Football 101. This is by far the angriest I’ve been after a game. By far.”

The end was ugly, but Jaguars QB Blaine Gabbert seemed to make some strides on Sunday.

Special teams blunders hurt the Titans more than once against the Steelers.

Broncos RB Willis McGahee topped 100 yards for the third time in the last four games.

WR Steve Breaston played a bigger role in the Chiefs offense.

Raiders K Sebastian Janikowski tied an NFL record with three field goals of 50 yards or more in Sunday’s win.

Said Chargers coach Norv Turner, “You don’t want to be in a situation where you feel like you’ve controlled a game and you let them back in. But if you win the game, and you use that to get better, I don’t know you can ask for more than that.”

Cowboys CB Orlando Scandrick is looking forward to getting back in the lineup this week.

G Chris Snee was taken to the hospital with a concussion he suffered in the Giants loss.

The Eagles missed 13 tackles by one count, with 11 of them coming in the secondary.

Are the Redskins for real or are they a mirage?

Bears CB Tim Jennings promises to be physical with Lions receivers on Monday night.

The return of the Lions to Monday Night Football fits in with a hot time in Detroit sports.

Packers WR James Jones made the most of his opportunities on Sunday night.

Chip Scoggins of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune writes that Vikings QB Donovan McNabb isn’t off the hook because of Sunday’s win.

The Falcons offense came crashing to a halt after two good drives to start the game.

Panthers RB DeAngelo Williams ran for more than 100 yards for the first time in almost two years.

Jimmy Graham became the first tight end in Saints history with three-straight 100-yard receiving days.

Gary Shelton of the St. Petersburg Times calls Sunday’s 48-3 Buccaneers loss as bad as any in franchise history.

The Cardinals’ road losing streak is now at 10 games.

Said Rams offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, “The focus has gotta always be onplaying our best in November and December. And if we can get to that point where we’re doing that, you never know. So we’ve got to continue to push and fight.”

49ers CB Carlos Rogers never had three interceptions in a season before coming to San Francisco, but he’s got three in his last three games.

Seahawks DT Anthony Hargrove, a Brooklyn native, made a big play when he dropped Giants RB D.J. Ware for a safety in the third quarter.

John Fox refuses to name a starting quarterback at this time

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal on October 10, 2011, 8:53 AM EDT

The Broncos have a bye this week, which is a good thing for coach John Fox.

If he makes the seemingly inevitable move to elevate Tim Tebow to the starting quarterback gig, Fox will have more practices to adjust the offense and get Tebow ready.

If Fox decides to keep starting Kyle Orton or goes to Brady Quinn, he will have longer to build a fortress around his house so that the citizens of Denver don’t attack Fox’s family.

Fox did not name a starter after Denver’s loss on Sunday. Tebow struggled with his accuracy and mishandled three center-snap exchanges, but his running ability helped put some points on the board for the Broncos. Mike Klis of the Denver Postexpects Fox to name Tebow the starter on Tuesday.

We’d expect that to happen too, but do not underestimate Fox’s ability to fly in the face of public demand. Fox held on to Jake Delhomme far longer than expected, including after one in-game benching. Still, Orton’s play has made life difficult for the 1-4 Broncos, among other things.

Orton is averaging 6.32 YPA, which is 28th out of 32 starting quarterbacks. He’s also 28th in passer rating. Orton says it’s not because he feels the pressure from Tebow.

“People’s opinion don’t matter to me, man,” Orton said. “I left that a long time ago. I’ve been through that before. I’m just frustrated with the way we were playing, myself included.”

Orton will earn nearly $9 million for 2011, but it seems likely that he’ll earn the rest of it from the bench.

The Tiger Report has reached two significant Milestones

Here at The Tiger Report we have spent the last 5 months working to bring you the best quality and and content from around the league, and people are beginning to notice. This morning when Technorati listed their updated rankings and TTR hit two new milestones.

As you can see with the two screen shots, we have broke into the Top 100 football blogs in the world and we are also ranked as one of the Top 10 rising football blogs.

I want to thank our newest writer/contributor Alex Welch for his help and to thank all of our fans that have helped this ranking happen.

Sincerely,
Tiger

Week 5 Scores

Week 5
Sun, Oct 09	Time (ET)	Top Passer	Top Rusher			Top Receiver
KC 28 @ IND 24	Final	IND Curtis Painter: 277 Yds	KC Jackie Battle: 119 Yds			KC Dwayne Bowe: 128 Yds
TEN 17 @ PIT 38	Final	TEN Matt Hasselbeck: 262 Yds	PIT Jonathan Dwyer: 107 Yds			PIT Mike Wallace: 82 Yds
SEA 36 @ NYG 25	Final	NYG Eli Manning: 420 Yds	SEA Marshawn Lynch: 98 Yds			NYG Victor Cruz: 161 Yds
PHI 24 @ BUF 31	Final	PHI Michael Vick: 315 Yds	BUF Fred Jackson: 111 Yds			PHI Jason Avant: 139 Yds
NO 30 @ CAR 27	Final	NO Drew Brees: 359 Yds	CAR DeAngelo Williams: 115 Yds			NO Jimmy Graham: 129 Yds
OAK 25 @ HOU 20	Final	HOU Matt Schaub: 416 Yds	HOU Arian Foster: 68 Yds			HOU Arian Foster: 116 Yds
ARI 10 @ MIN 34	Final	ARI Kevin Kolb: 232 Yds	MIN Adrian Peterson: 122 Yds			ARI Early Doucet: 92 Yds
CIN 30 @ JAC 20	Final	JAC Blaine Gabbert: 221 Yds	JAC Maurice Jones-Drew: 85 Yds			JAC Jason Hill: 118 Yds
TB 3 @ SF 48	Final	TB Josh Freeman: 187 Yds	SF Frank Gore: 125 Yds			SF Josh Morgan: 75 Yds
NYJ 21 @ NE 30	Final	NE Tom Brady: 321 Yds	NE BenJarvus Green-Ellis: 136 Yds			NE Wes Welker: 124 Yds
SD 29 @ DEN 24	Final	SD Philip Rivers: 250 Yds	DEN Willis McGahee: 125 Yds			SD Malcom Floyd: 100 Yds
GB 25 @ ATL 14	Final	GB Aaron Rodgers: 396 Yds	ATL Michael Turner: 56 Yds			GB James Jones: 140 Yds
Mon, Oct 10	Time (ET)	Stadium/Tickets	Network	DIRECTV	SIRIUS	Westwood One	Game Access
CHI @ DET	8:30 PM	Ford Field Tickets	ESPN

The Tiger Report

Pages