SteelerFanInStl
09-17-2011, 11:22 AM
I don't typically go to the ESPN website but I was browsing around today and found this article, which I thought was spot on. I really despise what's happening to the NFL with it becoming a pure passing league with no defense.
Just suppose for a second that one week after throwing for 517 yards -- the fifth-highest amount in NFL history -- Tom Brady does it again this Sunday.
He couldn't, you say?
Of course he could.
In the wake of the Week 1 passing assault, it should be increasingly obvious that a perfect storm of offensive innovation, Brady's own wizardry and what amounts to the NFL's ban on defense as we once knew it -- particularly when it comes to hitting the quarterback -- have made it so that he could pile up 400-yard games routinely this season. And not just Brady. Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Philip Rivers and others could do it, too.
The scary thing about Tom Brady's 517 passing yards last week? He might just be warming up.
Herm Edwards, the former NFL defensive back and longtime coach-turned-ESPN analyst, admits to getting angry at times when he watches pro football's defenses handcuffed now by a growing list of restrictive rules and at the mercy of the quarterback.
"You pay that quarterback $15 million, you're not paying him to hand it off," Edwards says. "You want him to throw it. So you've got to protect him. Clubs, when they make him the highest-paid player on the team by a lot, are saying, 'Once they kick this thing off, you are the CEO of the team.' When that happens, guess what? That guy's got to be standing. If he gets hurt, you're in a ton of trouble. Ask the Indianapolis Colts right now. Peyton Manning is getting, what, $26 million? You can't have that. The quarterback has to be protected. And that helps provide an advantage. Tom Brady, if he has a view of the field and he can step up, he's got you. Take the snap, pat it twice, step up, it's all over."
So, the question is put to Edwards: Can Brady throw for 500 yards again this week?
"He might," Edwards says. "He's got a damn good chance."
This isn't a case of one man wandering out on a limb to sell some hype. I had the same conversation with Darren Woodson, the former Cowboys All-Pro safety and now an ESPN analyst as well.
"Would it surprise me if Brady throws for 500 yards again this week?" Woodson says. "No, not at all."
Read more: Lost in America: The NFL's pass defense (http://espn.go.com/espn/commentary/story/_/page/wilbon-110915/tom-brady-chad-henne-top-alarming-first-week-pass-happy-offense)
Just suppose for a second that one week after throwing for 517 yards -- the fifth-highest amount in NFL history -- Tom Brady does it again this Sunday.
He couldn't, you say?
Of course he could.
In the wake of the Week 1 passing assault, it should be increasingly obvious that a perfect storm of offensive innovation, Brady's own wizardry and what amounts to the NFL's ban on defense as we once knew it -- particularly when it comes to hitting the quarterback -- have made it so that he could pile up 400-yard games routinely this season. And not just Brady. Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Philip Rivers and others could do it, too.
The scary thing about Tom Brady's 517 passing yards last week? He might just be warming up.
Herm Edwards, the former NFL defensive back and longtime coach-turned-ESPN analyst, admits to getting angry at times when he watches pro football's defenses handcuffed now by a growing list of restrictive rules and at the mercy of the quarterback.
"You pay that quarterback $15 million, you're not paying him to hand it off," Edwards says. "You want him to throw it. So you've got to protect him. Clubs, when they make him the highest-paid player on the team by a lot, are saying, 'Once they kick this thing off, you are the CEO of the team.' When that happens, guess what? That guy's got to be standing. If he gets hurt, you're in a ton of trouble. Ask the Indianapolis Colts right now. Peyton Manning is getting, what, $26 million? You can't have that. The quarterback has to be protected. And that helps provide an advantage. Tom Brady, if he has a view of the field and he can step up, he's got you. Take the snap, pat it twice, step up, it's all over."
So, the question is put to Edwards: Can Brady throw for 500 yards again this week?
"He might," Edwards says. "He's got a damn good chance."
This isn't a case of one man wandering out on a limb to sell some hype. I had the same conversation with Darren Woodson, the former Cowboys All-Pro safety and now an ESPN analyst as well.
"Would it surprise me if Brady throws for 500 yards again this week?" Woodson says. "No, not at all."
Read more: Lost in America: The NFL's pass defense (http://espn.go.com/espn/commentary/story/_/page/wilbon-110915/tom-brady-chad-henne-top-alarming-first-week-pass-happy-offense)