The Loss Column — Baltimore Sports Blog and Community

A few points on the week just passed and the week to come…

– Yes, the Patriots were running up the score, and yes it was a low-class move. This is news to who, exactly?

I was dead wrong in my prediction about the Redskins, but in fairness you have to grant that I didn’t know at the time they’d be without both starting corners for most of the game. I think pretty much any team in that position will struggle to hold the Pats under forty.

– The Steelers have not yet staked a claim as the class of the AFC North, but they’re close. Which means that this week’s game against the Ravens has as many postseason implications as any game in week nine possibly could.

The Ravens have a chance to take this one, but it’s just that: a chance. I put the odds at about 60-40 for the Steelers, but if the Ravens somehow do manage a win then we need to completely rethink our collective read on this team.

At the same token…they also have to watch their back for the Browns. Yup, the Browns. One Monday night game will find Billick’s boys either claiming a share of the division lead or scrambling with Cleveland to avoid a third-place finish. Weird.

– Look out for the Packers, man. Hell of a win last night.

– And, of course, there’s this Sunday’s Patriots-Colts tilt — a game I’m not sure I could possibly care less about. I try to avoid talking about things that are being talked about everywhere else, but I can’t really get away with not at least mentioning this, so here you go.

My sense is that the Colts will find a way to pull it out, but I’m not feeling any great conviction. What I’d really like to see is for Tom Brady to sprain an ankle and miss three or four weeks. Then we’d finally get a feel for just how good the 07 Patriots really are.

And you?

It’s safe to say that the AFC North is all about the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens. Odds are very good that one of them will win the division, and odds are slightly less good that the one who doesn’t win the divison will get a Wild Card berth. Some of you might call me crazy for saying that, but I still think the Ravens have a damn good shot.

Their bye week comes at exactly the right time, and even if they lose to Pittsburgh on Nov. 5th (by no means a sure thing) they’re still in position — assuming they’re a healthy 4-4 — to make a run. The New England and Indy games are both at home. I’m prepared to go on record saying they win one of them. I could also easily see this team beating both Seattle and San Diego. It’s far from far-fetched.

I’ve got plenty of issues with the Ravens organization, but I’m a smart enough observer to know that you simply don’t count them out at this stage. There’s more than enough ammo left in that clip.

Having said that, everybody right now (NFC teams included) is jockeying for third place behind the Patriots and Colts. If conventional wisdom holds, and injuries don’t rise up on either side, their matchup on Nov. 4th (at Indy) should serve as a preview of the AFC Championship game. But remember this much: conventional wisdom is usually wrong.

As good as the Pats look now they’re still just one key injury or scandal or locker-room issue away from falling back to the pack. We’re still only in week seven. Take a deep breath, folks.

On the NFC side, I think that Eagles-Bears game pretty much said it all: there’s talent all around and nobody is dominant. The Cowboys and Packers certainly look good, and will probably make the playoffs, but what then? Among the other teams (Redskins, Lions, Panthers, Bucs, Seahawks, Giants) who look like they have a shot, can you really pick a favorite?

Don’t be surprised if three teams from the East wind up in the dance.

As you consider all of this, take a moment to pity the Dolphins and the Rams. It’s not just that they’re both 0-7, it’s that they both should have been so much better. That’s gotta be a rough way to live.

I dig on the NFL as much as anyone, but last night offered up proof positive that it can be just as boring and predictable as any other sport, and that baseball (yes, baseball) can be a hell of a lot more exciting under the right circumstances.

Even if I did fall asleep before the end.

The New England Patriots dismantled the Bengals the same way they’ve been dismantling everyone else, and it wasn’t even fun to watch. It’s a performance that leaves little doubt, presently at least, about the Pats’ status as the league’s elite team.

That, of course, gives rise to “best ever” and “undefeated” talk. “Best ever” is the kind of thing only a moron would claim at this stage, but “undefeated” could be worth a look.

And after review: it’s not happening. With 12 games to go they still have to face the Cowboys (road), Redskins (home), Colts (road), Ravens (road), and Steelers (home). Any one of those teams has a chance, and those are just the obvious picks.

Look, the Pats are good. But beating up on the Bengals, Bills, Chargers, and Jets is one thing, while an undefeated season is quite another. They’ve hardly done enough for anyone to start prattling on about their status among the all-time greats. Give it time.

– With the Steelers’ loss to the Cardinals the Ravens and they have now played two common opponents. The Steelers eviscerated the Browns in Cleveland while the Ravens lost there, but the Ravens beat the Cardinals where the Steelers couldn’t. You can’t read too much into that (yet), but I think it’s becoming clear that those Baltimore-Pittsburgh matchups will be huge. First one comes on Monday, November 5th in Pittsburgh.

– The Bengals are now 6-11 in their past 17 games, and Marvin Lewis has reached the “call your players out” stage. It begs the question: is he really that great of a coach? His defenses before Brian Billick got here were average at best, and you know how much it pains me to admit anything that casts Coach Ego in a positive light.

But, really, shouldn’t Lewis be better than this?

– I doubt the Browns are for real, but they are 2-2. Still…they’re next on the Bill Belichick Hit List, and they’d better get their heads screwed on straight if they want to avoid total embarassment.

– The Skins celebrated their bye week by signing Keenan McCardell, a move designed to add depth on account of the possible absence this Sunday of both Portis and Moss. After what Detroit did to Chicago last week this could be bad news, indeed.

A few noteworthy items have built up over the past couple of days, so here you go:

– No NFL Inquest this week because, well, I didn’t get around to it and now it’s Thursday. I promise to bring back the keen insights and trenchant analysis next week and for (nearly) every football week thereafter.

– Get it while it’s hot: a full rundown of next year’s MLB uniform changes. There’s some really interesting stuff in there, including a new (and very weak) identity for the “Tampa Bay Rays” (above) and some wicked cool alternates for the Indians and the Blue Jays.

No changes for the O’s, but you knew that.

via Uni Watch

– Speaking of new identities, the details of Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s new sponsors/number have been made official.

I’m actually fascinated by auto racing paint schemes and numbering systems, so feel free to nerd out with me on this.

– Finally, don’t forget to cast your vote on what happens to Barry Bonds‘ record-tainting home run ball. Marc Ecko deserves major props for this little stunt. I can’t imagine a cooler way to handle it, an opinion that’s backed up by this article. Anything that annoys Bonds can’t be all bad.

For the record, I cast my vote in favor of branding the ball with an asterisk. Man I hope that one wins.

Remember the NFL Inquest? Many of you probably didn’t read the site during last year’s football season, so here’s the deal: each week I’ll present an entirely subjective wrapup of the weekend’s NFL action, the goal being a quick, one-stop shop for important angles and analysis.

This year, in particular, I’m going to put extra focus on the AFC North as a way of augmenting our Ravens coverage.

Ready? Good.

*The Steelers had the second largest win, points-wise, of any team this week. They looked real, real good.

Of course, it came against the Browns, so take it with a grain of salt.

*Cleveland Plain Dealer columnist Bud Shaw isn’t happy. I suspect this fairly represents most Browns fans.

*The Redskins pulled out an OT squeaker against the Dolphins, and I’m here to tell you right now: don’t sleep on this team. I’m not making any bold predictions, but I am saying they will absolutely be better than they were last year.

*I still hate injuries, but it’s so awesome that Jared Lorenzen will make some starts for the Giants. Viva la Hefty Lefty!

*Steelers coach Mike Tomlin isn’t surprised about the allegations of spying that have been leveled against the Patriots. Which begs the question: is anyone surprised by it?

I say strip them of next year’s draft if it’s true. Not because it’s so terrible an offense, but simply because Bill Belichick is who he is.

*The Chargers won with Tomlinson held to 25 yards. That should scare you if you’re a fan of any other team.

All of the above is noted with this one giant caveat: one game doesn’t mean a whole lot. Everyone’s still alive, even the Raiders.

Fantastic time on Michael Popovec’s Friday Forum earlier this evening. In addition to the host I had the pleasure of talking with Nelson Coffin (Patuxent Publishing) and Matt Palmer (the Examiner), both of whom do excellent work. It was one hell of a roundtable.

I also have a couple of site-related announcements.

I’ll soon be going away on business. In one of my other lives I write comic books/graphic novels, and the big nerd convention happens in San Diego next Wednesday-Sunday. I’ll follow that with a couple of days in Los Angeles for business/pleasure before returning home on Wednesday, 08/01.

I’ve asked Dan the Man to take the reins while I’m gone and he has graciously agreed. He’ll provide you with your daily Orioles news, gameday open threads, and thoughts/commentary on whatever else is going on. You might also see some posts from Chris, and I’ll probably check in with a post or two. But for the most part Dan will be…well, the Man.

Looking a bit further down the road, I have some good news for football season.

As you might or might not know, I’m not a Ravens fan. There are a lot of reasons for that, but it is what it is. So as I got to thinking about what to do with this site come fall/winter, I realized two things.

One, I don’t want the site to slow down or go dormant when baseball season ends. My plan is full steam ahead. Two, this is a Baltimore sports community and the content should reflect that.

So I’ve recruited a team of writers who happen to be big-time Ravens fans, and they’ll be handling Purple Bird content starting on Monday (training camp, believe it or not, is right around the corner). When the NFL season starts they’ll post regularly with Ravens thoughts from the fan’s perspective.

Concurrently, I’ll focus on the rest of the AFC North (Steelers, Bengals, and Browns). There will also be an increased level of Redskins, Wizards and Caps, coverage, though it probably won’t be fully comprehensive. And, of course, I’ll still provide my weekly “NFL Inquest”, along with Hot Stove coverage and whatever else comes up.

With any luck Chris, Staci, and Ryan will also keep checking in.

So things are rolling along. If anyone has any suggestions or would like to contribute, just let me know. Thanks as always for stopping by.

In the end, the Super Bowl was exactly what we all thought it would be. A highly entertaining first quarter gradually gave way to the kind of unspectacular, methodical beat-down that the Colts used successfully to vanquish the Ravens — a technique which, more than anything else, separated this team from their predecessors. They got over the hump by becoming consistent and complete when they most needed it. Even the haters will have to admit that it was a nice, solid effort. And, well, not much else.

So if you don’t feel like sifting through the coverage — and you probably don’t — I’ve taken the liberty of summing it up for you. Read these and you can comfortably put the matter to rest.

– John Kass at the (reg. required) Chicago Tribune doesn’t think you should blame Rex Grossman, which is mighty nice of him…

– …but Rick Morrissey feels less inclined to charity. And who can blame him?

– Read this piece by Bob Kravitz to get the Indy point of view. He hits all the relevant marks.

– For a slightly different take, some dude named Lynn Houser got his blog on, and it seems like it, too, is probably a fair representation of what Indy folks are feeling.

– Finally, Mike Imrem at the Daily Herald went the extra, extra mile, managing to use the word “matriculate” twice in one column. No doubt the editors of Best American Sports Writing 2008 are taking note.

Until next season…

I waited a little long to get to this week’s Inquest, but I figure that’s OK. We have a blank weekend after all.

As far as last week’s games, there’s nothing I can add here that hasn’t already been said. You watched ‘em. You know how incredible that Colts comeback was, and you know that the Saints had a great year and look set up to contend for several more to come.

Colts-Bears should be a good game, no?

My pick is the Colts, for what it’s worth (read: not much). Their defense is peaking at the right time, and I think they’ll manage to score enough to win. That doesn’t exactly qualify as trenchant analysis, but sometimes the obvious answer is also the correct one. I’d like to see the Bears win, but I don’t see it going down like that. Not this year.

The real news this week came on the coaching front. Let’s take them one by one.

Bill Parcells turned his back on “America’s Team”, and in doing so closed the book (hopefully) on an uninspiring career. How’s that, you say?

Imagine it’s 2017, and you’re looking back on football in the ’90s and early ’00s. How will you see him? Yes he won two Super Bowls with the Giants (XXI, XXV), but will he really be remembered for that? For my part, I’ll remember him as the guy that dicked around with the Jets and Patriots before taking the Cowboys all the way from terrible to not so bad. I’ll remember him as the guy who talked large game but never managed to show loyalty or see things through. He’s never done anything to impress me, and in fact I’d argue that his woeful inability to wrangle Terrell Owens speaks volumes. I can’t argue that he’s a terrible coach, but the word “overrated” comes to mind.

The Raiders, meanwhile, have officially moved into “I really feel bad for the guys on that team” territory. Orioles fans frustrated with Angelos can at least be thankful that Al Davis is out there to remind us that there are, in fact, worse owners.

Lane fucking Kiffin?? Just…wow.

If you want a young coach, you go the route the Steelers went with Mike Tomlin, which looks to be a great hire. Watching him command the room at his introductory press conference was incredibly impressive. If a coach’s job 1A is to lead, this guy looks like he can do it. Look for him to be next year’s Mangini, and for both of those guys to have long and successful careers.