Sevvy

Recently, I saw a comparison of Jay Cutler to the NFL greats at the Quarterback position… Montana, Elway, Marino, Fouts, Johnny Unitas, etc.  Those are some enormous shoes to fill.  And I don’t really think it’s fair to compare a guy that’s played 37 games in the NFL, to guys that have been enshrined in the Hall of Fame.  Is this really how people are going to measure Jay Cutler right now?  Come on…

For one, some of those guys played in very different eras.  I fully believe that trying to compare a guy that played in the 1980s, to a guy that is playing now, is not a fair comparison.  Let alone comparing Jay Cutler to  Johnny Unitas.  I mean, that’s just ridiculous.  And another thing, their careers are over.  They played a full career.  They weren’t judged on their first 2 1/2 seasons of work.  They had an opportunity to learn, mature, grow, and of course, flourish as a QB in the NFL.  Has Jay Cutler had the opportunity to do all that in 37 games?  No.  These comparisons should never be made.  Not for any QB.

All of this was certainly thought provoking, though.  And it got me thinking about how Jay Cutler stacks up to current NFL QB superstars and how they started their careers.  That’s a fair comparison, in my opinion.  To me, the 3 best QBs in the league today are Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and Drew Brees.  It wouldn’t really be fair to compare them and Jay Cutler straight up.  So I did some research and some number crunching on the first 37 games of their careers. So without further ado, here are the passing stats of Jay Cutler, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and Drew Brees in their first 37 games.

Jay Cutler – 37 games
762 comp / 1220 att = 62.5%
9024 yards = 7.4 avg
54 TDs(4.4%), 37 INT(3.0%)
87.1 QB rating

Tom Brady – 37 games
739 comp / 1183 att = 62.5%
7680 yards = 6.5 avg
52 TDs(4.4%) / 33 INT(2.8%)
84.2 QB rating

Peyton Manning – 37 games
782 comp / 1305 att = 60%
9475 yards = 7.3 avg
63 TDs(4.8%) / 50 INT(3.8%)
82.4 QB rating

Drew Brees – 37 games
700 comp / 1151 att = 61%
7467 = 6.5 avg
47 TDs(4.1%) / 34 INT(3.0%)
81.1 QB rating

Now, I’m not going to tell anyone what to think.  I’m not going to say that based on these numbers, that it’s clear that Jay Cutler is on his way to having a better career.  I’m not that much of a Chicago Bears homer.  But what I will tell you, is to form your own opinion.  It’s clear that Cutler’s overall numbers are slightly better than Brady’s, Manning’s, and Brees’ over their first 37 games.  And what does that mean?  Probably not a whole lot.  But it means just as much as comparing Cutler to HOFers.  With the exception that this comparison is actually relevant.  Surely you agree with this assessment… right!?

With all that being said, why do I never hear the talking head analysts make comparisons like this?  Hmmmm?  Probably because most of the talking head analyst types half-ass their job.  And it’s more important to talk about angles and storylines, rather than actually discuss what’s going on.  Everything is a soap opera.  Even football.  What can you do?

The Orlando Tragic

Although I’m from Akron, and am ultimately a Cleveland Cavaliers fan, I can’t help but to pull for the Magic whenever they aren’t playing LeBron. But wow, it’s hard to get excited when they play.

How many times are we going to watch them build a double digit lead, then squander it in the 4th quarter with relaxed defense and questionable decision making? Apparently a lot. That’s exactly what happened last night. After dominating the Celtics from the 1st to the 4th, they let the Celtics go on a 13-0 run late in the 4th, to go up by 3 points. From there, the 2 traded fouls en route to a 92-88 Celtics victory.

Now let me touch on something here. When you’re up by 3 points at the end of a game, you intentionally foul a guy, he gets 2 Free Throws. Something just isn’t right about that. Some genius needs to come up with a good rule in that situation where you get a Free Throw and the ball if you’re intentionally fouled within the last 24 seconds of the game when you’re behind. Something! I don’t know.

Anyway, back on topic. You can’t choke against the Boston Celtics. Ask the Lakers. Garnett or no Garnett, it is inexcusable. The Magic got away with it against a sub-par 76ers team that was playing without its big man. But the Celtics are a whole different beast. Their bench is deep. And their playoff experience is even deeper. Even though many have questioned Doc Rivers’ coaching ability, after losing the team’s emotional and defensive leader in Kevin Garnett, he’s done a remarkable job of keeping his team focused and ready to battle.

The blame for all of this goes squarely on the shoulders of Orlando’s Head Coach, Stan Van Gundy. Why did Dwight Howard only attempt 10 field goals? Why did Rashard Lewis’ first points in the 4th quarter come on 2 Free Throws with less than 10 seconds remaining in the game, when he had the “hot hand” for Orlando? How do you allow your team to lose focus and intensity game in and game out? Especially in games when they should win by double digits. That’s bad coaching. And it didn’t go unnoticed by his own star player, Dwight Howard. Here is what Howard had to say after the game…

“Offensively I have to get the ball, I don’t think you are going to win a lot of games when your post player only gets 10 shots. It’s tough to get yourself going and get a lot of touches without a lot of shots. We have to do a better job with that.”

And he later went on to say…

“You’ve got a dominant player, let him be dominant.”

Can you believe the chickenbag on that kid? Questioning his coach? Yeah, I can. That’s what leaders do. They tell it like it is. They point out the problem. And they pro-actively try to fix it. When Dwight Howard publicly criticized Stan Van Gundy, he was well within his rights. Van Gundy is losing his team’s respect. He’s losing the league’s respect. He needs to fix this now. He’s making Shaquille O’neal smile, I can tell you that much. And I’m sure we’ll here all about it if the Magic lose this series.

If Dwight Howard’s words meant anything to The Orlando Magic, you’ll see an inspired team tomorrow night in Orlando. If not, they’ll be playing 18 holes at Bay Hill while LeBron and the Cleveland Cavaliers pound the Celtics’ smug faces in. And Stan Van Gundy just may get his walking papers. These epic playoff collapses have to put a sour taste into the entire city of Orlando’s mouth. Not unlike the taste of getting swept in 4 by the Houston Rockers in the 1995 NBA Finals.
Oh well, as it stands now, it looks like my Cleveland Cavaliers get a chance at revenge for last year’s Eastern Conference Semifinal. I’m okay with that. But I would have loved to walk down the street and watch the Cavs duke it out with the Magic. I might just have to deal with watching the series on my giant HD TV. Damn.

P.S. Paul Pierce, if you’re reading this, and I know you are, shave those “sideburns” off your face, please. They look like absolute garbage, man. Seriously. That’s what my sideburns looked like… in 8th grade.

That’s right.  ESPN has hired Matt Millen as an “expert” analyst.  Here is the link…

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4148926

Here is the problem I have.  With clowns like Mark “I WANT DENVER INSIDE OF ME” Schlereth and Trent “the worst QB in history to win a Super Bowl” Dilfer, ESPN has already become the laughing stock of sports television.  At least in regards to their NFL coverage.  In order to repair their already tarnished NFL reputation, what do they do?  They hire the worst GM in the history of football, and arguably one of the dumbest people on the planet(SEE: any time he has opened his mouth on television or radio.  Also SEE: his draft picks).  This is not going to fix the lack of credibility that ESPN has become famous for over the last few years.

Here is what I think of Mark Schlereth and Trent Dilfer…

Who’s next?  Brian Bosworth?  Tony Mandarich?  George W. Bush(another terrible GM)?  Maybe Lawrence Phillips to report on what Rae Carruth has been up to in prison?  I can see it now…

“The fact that he played receiver in the NFL serves as nothing more than an ironic daily reminder, seeing as it’s the same position he plays on his knees in prison.  For ESPN, I’m Lawrence Phillips.  And if you don’t get up out my way, I’ll run over yo ass with my Buick.”

I have a great idea.  Maybe they can get Ryan Leaf to do a segment on Quarterbacks and their mechanics problems.  It would be great to see him pick apart Peyton Manning.  That would be some expert analysis!  Here’s an analogy for you; Ryan Leaf is to QB as Matt Millen is to GM/expert on anything related to football.  I wouldn’t even hire Matt Millen to be my equipment manager.  Yeah, that’s right.  I wouldn’t want Matt Millen to taint my jocks!  Does that qualify as double entendre?

It’s a good thing ESPN doesn’t run this country.  They would make Bernie Madoff the Secretary of the Treasury, Osama Bin Laden the Director of Homeland Security, and Hillary Clinton the Secretary of State!  But I digress.

I never thought I’d say this, but boy am I going to miss Sean Salisbury.  Yikes.  o_O