The Game That Got Away

The New Orleans Saints battled the Miami Dolphins in Week 7 of the 2009-2010 season. Everyone, including me, thought that the Saints were going to absolutely pumble the Dolphins with there high powered offense and the game was going to be a complete blowout. That however, was not the case. For the most part... In the first half, the Saints offense was struggling big time because of the pressure the Dolphins defense was putting on quarterback Drew Brees. This forced Drew Brees to throw costly interceptions, along with a few forced fumbles deep in the Saints territory. These miscues by the Saints led to Dolphin touchdowns. The Dolphins were also able to shut down Pierre Thomas and the Saints running attack. It was 24 to 3, Dolphins on top, with about 2 minutes to go before the half, I thought to myself that the Dolphins could pull this one off and get a win. The tables began to turn in favor of the Saints after a crucial fumble by wide receiver Devon Bess. From there, the Saints started to throw the ball more effectively and they finished the half with a touchdown. There were a lot of bad things still to come for the Dolphins. Scenarios reversed in the second half. The Dolphins were now the ones struggling to get anything going on offense and the Saints were forcing turnovers and converting them into touchdowns. Both Darren Sharper and Terry Porter had interceptions returned for a touchdown. The Dolphins defense absolutly imploded in the 2nd half by allowing 22 points in the 4th quarter and 36 points overall in the second half. Dolphins were outscored 36 to 10 in the second half and went on to lose 46 to 34. Talk about throwing a game away.

Broxton Blow's Game 4

The Phillies picked up right here they left off in the 1st inning of Game 4 by scoring two early runs off of Dodgers starter Randy Wolfe. In Game 3, The Phillies got off to a hot start by scoring 4 runs off of Hiroki Kuroda. Randy Wolfe settled down after that, only allowing a 3rd run in his six innings pitched. On the contrary, Joe Blanton, starting pitcher for the Phillies, allowed 4 runs and left the game in line for the loss. Blanton gave up a 3 run homerun to the Dodgers #8 hitter Matt Kemp. The Phillies scratched back late by adding 1 run in the 7th inning off of Dodgers reliever, Bellasario. What many people forget about that inning was Manny Ramirez making a shoe top catch on a sinking line drive off the bat of Raul Ibanez. Had that hit fallen, it would have tied up the game at 4 a piece. So on came Dodgers closer, Jonathon Broxton, who had been solid throughout the regular and postseason, struggled in Game 4. Could it have been the pressure being built up or his nerves getting the best of him? It sure could have been a combination. Broxton allowed pinch hitter Eric Bruntlett and catcher Carlos Ruiz to reach base. Shortstop Jimmy Rollins stepped up and delivered a walk off 2 run double. Game over, Phillies win. Broxton had just blown Game 4 and possibly the entire series.

Phillies vs. Dodgers: Game 1

The anticipated ideas or thoughts of this series was to expect the Phillies to score on the Dodgers 3rd, 4th, and 5th starters who have been struggling so far in the post season. However, we did not see the Phillies putting up 8 runs on the Dodgers ace and #1 starter Clayton Kershaw. Kershaw cruised through the first three innings only allowing two hits as well as throwing shut out ball. The Phillies were still productive in their at bats, despite not getting base hits, as they made Kershaw throw a lot of pitches during that span. Phillies hitters were working the counts as well as fouling off a lot of close pitches. When the top of the 5th inning rolled around, Clayton Kershaw was beginning to tire from all the pitches he had thrown in the previous 4 innings. In that inning, Kershaw could not find the strike zone early in the count which lead to him throwing batting practice like fastballs on 3 and 0 counts. Kershaw was also not getting any break on his curveball and the Phillies hitters took advantage by putting up a 4 spot in that inning. after Ryan Howard's two run double, Kershaw was yanked from the game. Just 6 and a third innings pitched and 5 earned runs. The Dodgers responded with a solo shot from James Loney and a 2 run blast from Manny Ramirez. The Phillies bullpen continued to struggle as they gave the Dodgers a myriad of opportunities to get back in the game. The Dodgers failed to take advantage. The Dodgers had their work cut out for them after Raul Ibanez hit a three run homerun to stretch the lead to 8-4. The Dodgers bounced back in the 8th inning by loading the bases with no outs. Phillies reliever Ryan Madson had some troubles but managed to get out of the inning with littile harm donw; two runs scored. Jonathan Broxton shut down the Phillies in the top of the 9th and on cam Brad Lidge, closer for the Phillies. Lidge got Casey Blake to line into a game ending double play. Lidge got the job done. I'm sure Phillies fans were relieved.

Pretenders or Contenders

The Denver Broncos have really shocked the world with there quick and unexpected 5-0 start. However it is still early in the season, do you ask the question: Are the Denver Broncos for real? I guess for now they are with their impressive close game wins against the New England Patriots with Tom Brady and the Dallas Cowboys with Tony Romo. The Broncos have the #5 overall defense in the NFL and last year they had one of the worst. Is this all because of new head coach Josh McDaniels, former offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots, or is it new starting quarterback Kyle Orton. I can for sure tell you that WR Brandon Marshall has positively impacted this team in a huge way since his return. He basically won the game for the Broncos against the Cowboys along with steller red zone defense by the Broncos. Brandon Marshall has accounted for a total of 4 touchdowns in his last two games against some pretty solid secondaries. This Broncos team will really be challenged Week 6 on Monday night when they take on division rival, The San Diego Chargers. Will they be able to contain quarterback Phillip Rivers? This defense will be tested, it won't be easy, but they sure have the confidence. So, Denver Broncos, prtenders or contenders? Well just have to wait to find out if this streak continues and if this Mile High City magic is for real.

An Old School Rivalry

The Dolphins squezzed out a fantastic win over the heavely favored Jets. I was sick and tired of hearing about how great Mark Sanchez has been and how Rex Ryan is the "Defensive Specialist" and can stop the wildcat offense like its his job. May be last year, but this is a new team with now high powered playmakers on both sides of the ball. Dolphin fans were worried about the Dolphins not being able to run our wildcat offense and that we would have to dreadfully rely on our quarterback Chad Henne who was making just his second NFL start. Little did everyone know that we had a new and improved game plan for Rex Ryan. The offense was able to keep the Jets secondary off balance the entire game by mixing up the run and the pass. We really got them thinking when on the first drive RB Ronnie Brown threw a pass out of the wildcat formation. Throughout the game it almost seemed as though we were nt only playing against the Jets, but also the Referees. They were horrible..... it was as if our cornerbcks couldn't even breathe on the wide receivers without getting called for a penalty. The Refs also bailed out the Jets on a few drives by calling garbage pass interference calls on 3rd and long situations. I have to tip my hat off to the Refs, the didn't completely blow the game. What a drive the dolphins put together with 5 minutes remaining in the 4th quarter. The play calling by Head Coach Tony Sparano was genius. The whole scheme of just "running the ball down their throat" really paid off and wore the defense out completely. Chad Henne really stepped up in just his 2nd game as a starter. He made so really clutch throws when he needed to like the two 3rd down conversion throws to Greg Camarillo. In the end, Ronnie Brown barreled it in to the end zone and we won. Take that Rex Ryan and the Jets! Well see you in New York. This time well just make it a blowout.