Anthony Stalter columns

In his first four games of the 2009 season, Atlanta Falcons second-year quarterback Matt Ryan had a QB rating of 98.0, 122.2, 82.3 and 110.0. He was off to a fantastic start and people started to assume that he would have Tom Brady-like numbers every game.

But in his last three outings, Ryan has QB ratings of 68.4, 66.1 and 46.6 and now all of a sudden he’s drawing comparisons to Rex Grossman. (Okay, so Ryan has never been compared to Grossman, but you get my feeble attempt at exaggerating my point.)

After his three-interception game last Monday night against the Saints, I've read at least two articles from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution about how Ryan doesn’t look like the same player he was as a rookie. The overall tone of the articles was that the Falcons should be worried, because “Matty Ice” hasn’t played well in three games.

But people need to take their hand off the ejection button, because Ryan is fine – he’s just going through typical growing pains. He had one of the best (if not the best) rookie season of any quarterback to ever play in the NFL, while leading what many believed was a 3-13 team to an 11-5 record and a playoff berth. Entering his second season, the expectations were sky high and now that he’s not playing well, some want to question whether or not last season was a fluke.

I’ll admit that following his performance in New Orleans on Monday night that he hasn’t looked like the same player he was last year or at the beginning of this year. He seems to be rushing his throws more and making bad decisions. His cool, calm pocket presence has turned into a rushed dance where he doesn’t always work through all of his progressions and set his feet to throw. He also seems to be locking in on Tony Gonzalez or Roddy White and therefore throwing a high number of interceptions. (He’s thrown eight in his last four games.)

But all of this doesn’t mean the young man is doomed or that what he accomplished last year was a fluke. Normally it takes a quarterback two or three full years before they start performing at a high level, so it’s understandable that Ryan is suffering a bit in his development. Plus, he has already shown that he has great work ethic, sound technique and can go through all his progressions while hitting a receiver in stride. He's a good player and truth be told, his protection hasn’t been that great the past two weeks, which also aids in him rushing his throws and being off the mark.

Don’t forget that Michael Turner took a lot of pressure off Ryan last year and outside of his 151-yard performance against the Saints, he hasn’t been the same player either. But if Turner can get going, the offense will become more balanced and teams can’t pin their ears back and pass rush Ryan knowing that the Falcons have to throw.

Through all of this, Ryan has the Falcons at 4-3. If his O-line can give him a tad more protection and Turner can build some momentum off the New Orleans game, I have a feeling we’ll start to see better play out of "Matty Ice."

Here’s how I see things 1-32 in the NFL after eight weeks in the books:

1. New Orleans Saints (7-0)
The Saints have the most balanced offensive attack in the NFL, have been a more aggressive and opportunistic defense under new coordinator Gregg Williams and are off to their best start in franchise history. There is a lot of season left, but this team has a Super Bowl-feeling about them.

2. Indianapolis Colts (7-0)
I don’t know if the 49ers necessarily laid out a blueprint on how to stop Peyton Manning and the Colts, but they at least showed how to contain the potent Indy offense for four quarters.

3. Minnesota Vikings (7-1)
I bet Brett Favre and Jared Allen wish they could play the Packers every week, because they’ve owned Green Bay in two games this season.

4. Denver Broncos (6-1)
Teams always learn more from losses than they do wins, so it’ll be interesting to see how Josh McDaniels and his coaching staff adjusts heading into Monday night against the Steelers.

5. New England Patriots (5-2)
We’ll see what kind of team the Pats are over their next five games: vs. Miami, at Indy, vs. the Jets and at New Orleans. Is Tom Brady back to his usual self or did he just benefit from putting up outrageous numbers against two bad teams in the Titans and Bucs the past two games?

6. Cincinnati Bengals (5-2)
The Bengals should be fresh coming off their bye, but they face two opponents in the Ravens and Steelers in the next two weeks that are looking to avenge losses to Cincinnati earlier in the season. Can the Bengals at least earn a split to stay atop the AFC North?

7. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-2)
The Steelers are feeling good after beating the Vikings two weeks ago and then getting Week 8 off. But they travel to Denver and then host Cincinnati the next two weeks, so we’ll see whether or not their record isn’t just a byproduct of facing bad teams like the Titans, Lions, Browns and the ever-inconsistent Chargers.

8. Dallas Cowboys (6-2)
Wade Phillips’ defense is starting to do a better job of creating turnovers and getting pressure on the quarterback. In the Cowboys' last two games, they’ve racked up five takeaways and seven sacks. It’s no surprise that Dallas won both of those games and they’ll need more of the same when they travel to Philadelphia on Sunday night.

9. Philadelphia Eagles (5-2)
What an impressive win last Sunday as the Eagles thumped the Giants in every facet of the game. Can they do it again this week in another big divisional test?

10. New York Giants (5-3)
I don’t know what to make of this team – are they suffering from injuries or have the last three weeks been the norm? To date, the G-Men only have one win against a winning team, which came in Week 2 against the Cowboys. Their four other victories came against the Redskins, Bucs, Chiefs and Raiders. Yikes.

11. Atlanta Falcons (4-3)
If the Falcons can combine their offensive effort from the first half on Monday night, with their defensive effort in the second half they’d be one hell of a football team. But at this point, I think this team is going to continue to suffer some growing pains on both sides of the ball.

12. Baltimore Ravens (4-3)
The Ravens obviously figured out a few things during their bye week, because they looked like a different defensive team Sunday then they had in their previous three games (all losses). But they have a rough five-game stretch coming up, which includes games against the Bengals, Colts, Steelers and Packers. Their only gimmie is a Week 10 date with the Browns.

13. Arizona Cardinals (4-3)
Just when you think the Cards are ready to turn the page and build some momentum, Kurt Warner throws 17 picks in a loss to a bad Panthers team at home.

14. Houston Texans (5-3)
The Texans’ defense has played better of late, even if the stat sheet doesn’t suggest it. But they’re going to be tested this Sunday in Indianapolis and you know Peyton Manning will want to atone for only scoring 18 points against the 49ers last week.

15. San Diego Chargers (4-3)
The Chargers are like a poor man’s Steelers in that they find ways to win sloppy games, yet aren’t as talented as Pittsburgh to get away with it every week. How San Diego only beat the Raiders by eight points last week is staggering.

16. Green Bay Packers (4-3)
Before their loss to the Vikings, I was ready to jump back on the Packers-are-a-sleeper-contender bandwagon. Now I’m back on the, who-the-hell-has-this-team-beaten?...bandwagon.

17. Chicago Bears (4-3)
The Bears’ victory over the Browns last Sunday was one of the more unimpressive 30-6 wins I’ve ever seen.

18. Miami Dolphins (3-4)
Holy sh*t, somebody found Ted Ginn Jr.

19. San Francisco 49ers (3-4)
If the Niners had anything resembling an offense in the second half last week, they would have probably beaten the Colts.

20. New York Jets (4-4)
Does anybody watch the demeanor of Mark Sanchez when he makes a poor decision? It’s like watching a little kid make a mistake in a Pop Warner game: He sulks, he hangs his head, he’s looking for someone to help cheer him up. Toughen up a little, Mark.

21. Carolina Panthers (3-4)
Even though I’m not a fan, I must admit that John Fox’s teams never quit. Just when you think they’re ready to concede the fact that they’re a bad team, they go to Arizona and beat a pretty good Cardinals squad.

22. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-4)
I guess we shouldn’t be surprised that the Jags lost last week in Tennessee. Jack Del Rio has a young team on his hands and inconsistency is going to be a theme in 2009.

23. Buffalo Bills (3-5)
Holy sh*t, somebody found T.O.

24. Seattle Seahawks (2-5)
I think a Jim Mora-coached team will always be an unprepared team. He just isn't a good enough schemer to help his team overcome their limitations.

25. Washington Redskins (2-5)
Apology not expected, Daniel Snyder.

26. Tennessee Titans (1-6)
Wow, now there’s a shock – Vince Young comes off the bench and provides a spark. I realize VY isn’t the answer in Tennessee, but at least that team showed signs of life. Jeff Fisher made that move two weeks too late.

27. Oakland Raiders (2-6)
Al Davis might as well make it 2-for-2 in firing head coaches in the middle of the season the past two years.

28. Detroit Lions (1-5)
If you threw any kind of money down on the Rams or Lions this week, I must question your sanity. And if you’re Detroit, how the flip do you lose to St. Louis at home? Ah yeah, Calvin Johnson didn't play...

29. Kansas City Chiefs (1-6)
Let the Jamaal Charles era begin in KC.

30. St. Louis Rams (1-7)
Congratulations to Steve Spagnuolo for earning his first win as a head coach. I checked with the NFL and yes, it still counts even though it was against the Lions.

31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-7)
Well, let’s see what you’ve got, Josh Freeman.

32. Cleveland Browns (1-7)
The Browns have to have the worst offense in the history of the league. I’ve never seen a team so inept and the funny thing is that Derek Anderson was supposed to be an upgrade over Brady Quinn in the passing game despite his penchant for throwing interceptions. If Cleveland goes 1-15 and Eric Mangini isn’t fired, then I’m calling shenanigans and the behalf of George Kokinis.

Brett Favre told SI.com’s Peter King that he wasn’t sure if he was going to be able to play against the Packers yesterday because of a groin injury. Favre claims he suffered the injury last week in practice and then re-aggravated it in pregame warm-ups.

“I told T-Jack [backup Tarvaris Jackson] and [offensive coordinator] Darrell Bevell I may not be able to do it,'' he said. "I didn't know if I'd be able to drop back very well. After I aggravated it, there was no way I was going to be able to move around in the pocket very much. We never called one bootleg the whole game. But we made it through OK.''

And now, I wondered, how was the groin four hours and a lot of lost adrenalin later?

"It's throbbing right now,'' he said.

Oh…come…on. Look, I don’t doubt that Favre injured himself in practice (he is 60 years old after all) and then re-injured himself during pregame warm-ups. I also don’t doubt that he told Jackson and Bevell that he was hurt and might not be able to play.

But I don’t buy for a minute that he was going to hold himself out. He wasn’t going to allow a groin injury to get in the way of beating the Packers at Lambeau and if anything, I’m willing to bet that he wanted people to know that he was hurt just so he could build the moment up even more.

Some are going to look at this as the “gritty” Brett playing through pain; I’m sure ESPN is already salivating thinking about the story. But I think this guy has a lot of people fooled.

Maybe I’m being to cynical and over thinking this, but it’s Brett’s comments that bug me the most. If King asked him how he was feeling and Brett said, “Well Pistol Pete, I’m a little sore because of a groin injury I suffered last week,” then I wouldn’t question him because the comment would have been more fly-by.

But no, Brett made damn sure to note that he might not have been able to play. To me, that’s just another prima donna move by one of the more underrated prima donna athletes of all-time.

The Vikings’ 38-26 win over the Packers wasn’t even an hour old yet and I got an e-mail from my partner in crime here at The Scores Report, John Pauslen, who happens to be a huge Green Bay fan and is/was an active Brett Favre supporter.

I won’t share what John wrote in case there are women and children reading, but he wasn’t kind to Brett. And I can’t imagine that John is the only one who feels angry with Favre after what transpired on Sunday.

Brett walked into Lambeau Field, a place where he was known for being a legend, a hero and an icon, and essentially burned the place down. He completed 17-of-28 passes for 244 yards and four touchdowns, while also spending most of the game pumping his fists wildly in celebration of his accomplishments.

Many people still want to blame Ted Thompson for why Favre currently wears purple and white. But the fact of the matter is that there are 32 teams in the NFL and he wanted to be a Viking. If he just wanted to play football, he could have returned to the Jets. Hell, if he wanted to play football, he could have returned to the Packers two years ago because they said yes to him twice. It was the one “no” that has fans blaming Thompson, yet they should blame Favre for his indecisiveness and his desire to play in Minnesota before blaming the GM that eventually committed to Aaron Rodgers and decided to move forward.

I hope that Brett is satisfied with the outcome from today, because while he once again got his revenge on Thompson and the Packers, he also torched a lot of loyal Green Bay fans in the process. There will always be people that player worship and will root for Favre no matter what color jersey he wears, but there no doubt are many who watched the game today and said, “You know what? To hell with Brett Favre.”

The funny thing is, Brett’s true fans will always be in Green Bay. Unless he helps the Vikings win a Super Bowl, Minnesota fans will forget about him the moment he’s done playing for them and you’re kidding yourself if you think otherwise. So while he may feel good about the way things have transpired so far this season, he’s hurting his legacy in the long run by accomplishing exactly what he wanted in beating the Packers.

Was it worth it, Brett?

Following the Browns’ ugly 30-6 loss to the Bears on Sunday, running back Jamal Lewis said that he plans to retire after the season.

While he claims it wasn’t just a statement made in the heat of the moment, nobody would blame Lewis if it were. Lewis is 30, has seen his play drop quite a bit this year and he’s stuck on a morbid franchise. So why stick around?

I honestly don’t know how the Browns have won a game this year. Their defense is bad, but it pails in comparison to how atrocious Derek Anderson and the offense is, which turned the ball over five times on Sunday. Chicago’s secondary has been shredded at times this season, yet Anderson found a way to only complete 6-of-17 pass attempts for a measly 76 yards. Oh, and he also threw two interceptions and fumbled once.

I’m sure someone will raise the question of whether or not Brady Quinn should resume the starting spot over Anderson next week. But Quinn has already shown that he’s just as incapable of running the offense as Anderson is, so does it really matter? If I were a Cleveland fan (and I just threw up a little at the mere thought of that), I’d rather see Brett Ratliff given a chance to start before Quinn is given a second opportunity.

About the only reason to watch the Browns these days is to see whether or not defensive coordinator Rob Ryan will get in a fight with anyone on the sidelines. He and Jay Cutler went at it (verbally, of course) on Sunday and it was the only entertainment Cleveland provided all day.

In the past two weeks, Frank Beamer's Hokies have seen their season implode. After winning five straight to get to 5-1 on the season (they dropped the opener to Alabama), Virginia Tech was soundly defeated by Georgia Tech last Saturday and then was shocked last night by North Carolina, 20-17.

How do the Tar Heels walk into Blacksburg and earn a victory you ask? Well it helps when quarterback Tyrod Taylor starts the game 3-for-9 passing and finishes with only 161 yards and no touchdowns. He was highly inaccurate all night and often put the Hokies in third-and-longs by taking unnecessary sacks instead of getting rid of the ball.

That said, North Carolina’s defense deserves credit for pressuring Taylor the entire night and not allowing freshman running back Ryan Williams to run wild. He finished with 96 yards on 23 carries and no touchdowns, which is certainly respectable, but a far cry from some of his previous outings.

The Tar Heel defense stepped up big time in the first half while their offense sputtered, and then held on in the second half when the Hokies tried to make a run. Jheraine Boyd’s 13-yard touchdown pass from T.J. Yates right before the half gave North Carolina the momentum and confidence it needed to compete with the Hokies in the second half.

Not to crap on North Carolina’s accomplishment, but this wasn’t a favorable outcome for the ACC. VA Tech’s loss will likely drop them out of the top 25 and probably out of the top 15 of the BCS standings. That leaves Georgia Tech as the only ACC team in the top 15, and chances are the conference won’t have two BCS bowl teams.

But as they say: Oh, well. For a struggling North Carolina team to upset Virginia Tech on the road is quite an accomplishment and the bigger picture in the ACC shouldn’t tarnish what the Tar Heels did last night.

According to ESPN.com, the Titans will start Vince Young at quarterback this Sunday against the Jaguars. Young will replace Kerry Collins, who is 0-6 this season as a starter.

This move is long overdue. I’ve been writing for weeks how Young isn’t the answer, but Jeff Fisher had to do something because Collins just flat out couldn’t move the offense. Nobody should expect Tennessee to magically turn around its season now that Young is under center, but maybe he’ll give the team a spark.

The next thing Fisher should do is scale back the playbook and exploit Young’s athletic abilities. For Fisher and the Titans, now is about winning games and not trying to develop Young as a passer. So if that means he only attempts 15 passes and runs the ball 10 times, so be it.

It’s time for Young to prove everyone wrong. Obviously Fisher doesn’t have a ton of confidence in his abilities or else he would have been starting over Collins two weeks ago, so now it’s up to Young to produce. He showed in his rookie year that he could win in the NFL, so now he needs to rekindle some of that magic and win a couple ballgames to prove that he can be a starting quarterback in this league.

These next couple weeks are crucial for Fisher and Young. Winning is the only thing that will help them retain their current jobs, or at the very least ensure that they will find employment elsewhere.

For the past couple days, I’ve been racking my brain trying to figure out why in the world the Panthers would stick with Jake Delhomme at quarterback.

To say that Delhomme has struggled this year would be a gross understatement. He is 2-4 as a starter, is leading the league in interceptions and has somehow found a way to make explosive receiver Steve Smith non-existent. So why stick with him instead of giving A.J. Feeley or Matt Moore an opportunity?

One reason is because the Panthers have so much money invested in Delhomme after they signed him to a five-year, $42.5 million extension in April. They thought Delhomme would shake off his brutal performance in last year’s playoffs and at the very least, be able to turn around and hand the ball off to DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart.

But Delhomme has been a disaster thus far and head coach John Fox is taking a huge risk in sticking with him. If Delhomme continues to struggle and Fox doesn’t make a move, then he’s basically saying to upper management that he can’t evaluate his own players Neither Feeley nor Moore would come in and light the world on fire, but as long as they didn’t turn the ball over they’d be more efficient than Delhomme.

Fox better hope Delhomme turns things around or else they both could be gone at the end of the year. The Panthers have been a model organization for inconsistency under Fox and I highly doubt management would stick with a head coach that can’t make a change when one is needed. Fox is essentially putting all his eggs in the Jake Delhomme basket and that’s a risky endeavor to say the least.

No. 5 USC at No. 10 Oregon, 8:00PM ET ABC
The game of the week is in Eugene this Saturday, as the Ducks host the Trojans in a battle for Pac-10 supremacy. The last time the Trojans traveled to Eugene, they were beaten 24-17 and if they don’t want to suffer defeat again this year, they better sure up their defense. Oregon ranks 14th in the nation in rushing and could take advantage of an aggressive USC front four that doesn’t always play disciplined. Running back LaMichael James has enough burst to bounce runs outside if the Trojans’ defensive ends are too quick to crash inside in efforts to take away runs between the tackles. On the flip side, Oregon’s O-line must protect quarterback Jeremiah Masoli better or else the Ducks’ passing game could be non-existent. Although the Trojans’ offense is starting to take shape under freshman Matt Barkley, Oregon has the sixth best pass efficiency defense in the country and are holding opponents to less than 17 points a game. I like the home team getting points in this matchup and am calling the outright upset.
Odds: USC –3.5.
Prediction: Oregon 27, USC 24.

No. 3 Texas at No. 14 Oklahoma State, 8:00PM ET
When I first looked at the point spread for this game, I was surprised to see that a good Oklahoma State team was getting nine points at home. But history doesn’t favor the Cowboys in this matchup and the Longhorns definitely have the overall edge. Although OK State has had its opportunities over the years, Texas has won the last 11 games in this matchup and Colt McCoy has owned the Cowboy defense. He has completed 79.4 percent of his passes for 1,019 yards and is 3-0 lifetime against OK State, including owning a 38-35 win in Stillwater in 2007. The Cowboys have won five straight, but they’ve feasted on teams like Rice, Grambling State, Baylor and inconsistent squads like Texas A&M and Missouri. This is a game that should be close throughout, but I actually like Texas to earn a sound victory. No. 2 Alabama is idle this week and the Longhorns will take this opportunity to thump a quality opponent in order to prove to the voters that they deserved to be ranked higher.
Odds: Texas –9.
Prediction: Texas 35, Oklahoma State 20.

Georgia vs. No. 1 Florida, 3:30PM ET
The Gators have lacked explosion on offense all season, but it’s high time they lay a beating on an opponent and it comes this Saturday at “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.” Tim Tebow and company need to prove that they deserve the top spot in the polls and although the Bulldogs should be well rested coming off their bye, I expect Urban Meyer to open things up and breathe some life into Florida’s passing game. Georgia hasn’t played well defensively this season and was lit up by a Tennessee team that also lacks offensive explosion. UGA has one of the least productive pass defenses in the country and while Florida’s passing game has been stagnant, I think it’ll have some success this Saturday in Jacksonville. I expect the Gator defense to play inspired and cause a few turnovers, which will lead to points and instill confidence in UF’s offense. Opponents have played Florida close for most of the season, but the Gators roll in this one. It’s time for Tebow and the rest of the UF offense to wake up.
Odds: Florida –15.
Prediction: Florida 33, Georgia 13.

No. 19 Miami at Wake Forest, 3:30PM ET
The Hurricanes need to bounce back after losing to Clemson at home last week, but they might not find things much easier this Saturday in Winston-Salem. Miami has won five straight against Wake, but the Demon Deacons are tough to beat at home and should keep things close. I don’t expect Wake to pull off an outright upset, but I like them getting 7.5 points at home and think they’ll cover. Miami just suffered an emotional loss at home last week and now has to go on the road to play in a tough environment. Canes win, but Deacons cover.
Odds: Miami –7.5.
Prediction: Miami 24, Wake Forest 20.

With all due respect to Tim Tebow and the No. 1 defense in the nation, Alabama is the best team in college football right now – not Florida. Yet when the BCS recently released its standings for the first time in 2009, the Gators were ranked No. 1 and the Crimson Tide were No. 2.

I realize at this point in the season we might be splitting hairs when it comes to which team should be first in the standings. After all, both Florida and Alabama are undefeated and the Gators were the preseason favorites so it makes sense that Urban Meyer’s squad would hold onto the top spot.

That said, who is the BCS fooling? The Crimson Tide has beaten two ranked opponents the past two weeks and also beat a ranked Virginia Tech team in their opener. Alabama has also gone eight straight quarters without allowing a touchdown and Mark Ingram is running like a man possessed. (He rushed for 246 yards in Saturday’s win over South Carolina.)

Florida, meanwhile, did beat LSU in Baton Rouge two weeks ago, but barely survived a potential scare against unranked Arkansas in The Swamp on Saturday. The Gators were also the beneficiaries of a couple questionable calls in the fourth quarter that probably saved them from their first defeat.

‘Bama has been far from perfect this year, but the Tide are the most complete team in college football right now. The Gators may be undefeated, but their offense hasn’t been as explosive this year as it has the past two seasons and the offensive line is having issues keeping Tebow’s uniform clean. (The Razorbacks sacked Tebow six times on Saturday.)

I’m not surprised that Florida is No. 1 in the standings, but it would be nice if the BCS grew a pair for once and recognized which team actually deserves to have the top spot in the standings. I’m fully aware that Nick Saban’s bunch had the opportunity to beat Florida in the SEC title game last year and failed to do so, but that was last year.

This is this year and Alabama deserves to be in that top spot right now.

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