Month: October 2012

Buffalo Bills: Week 7 NFL Power Rankings (#20)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Power Rankings, 2012 Week 7 NFL Power Rankings, Bills

Last week: 20 (+0)

Record: 3-3

I take schedule into account with these power rankings, which is why I always have the Bills higher than most of higher than their level of talent. They’ve be fortunate enough to be in the AFC East and play their non-divisional games against the AFC South and the NFC West, as well as Kansas City and Cleveland, who they’ve already played. Of their final 10 games, 8 are against Miami, the Jets, Tennessee, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Seattle, and St. Louis. Only Houston and New England are “tough” opponents. They would make the playoffs if they were even an average team, which is what I thought they were before the season, but they aren’t. They rank 30th in both yards per play differential and rate of sustaining drives differential. Unfortunately for them, all their easy schedule will do is hurt their draft position and keep them from the top-5 pick and potential franchise quarterback they deserve.

Studs

RG Chad Rinehart: Did not allow a pressure on 39 pass block snaps, run blocked for 21 yards on 6 attempts

RB CJ Spiller: Rushed for 88 yards (60 after contact) and 1 touchdown on 12 carries, 7 broken tackles, allowed 1 quarterback hurry on 2 pass block snaps, caught 4 passes for 22 yards on 5 attempts

FS Jairus Byrd: Allowed 1 completion for 9 yards on 1 attempt, 2 interceptions, 5 solo tackles, 2 stops

CB Justin Rogers: Allowed 1 catch for 2 yards on 3 attempts, 2 solo tackle, 1 stop

RE Kyle Moore: 1 quarterback hit and 6 quarterback hurries on 25 pass rush snaps, 1 missed tackle

RE Chris Kelsay: 1 sack and 4 quarterback hurries on 24 pass rush snaps, 3 solo tackles, 2 assists, 4 stops

LE Mario Williams: 2 sacks, 1 quarterback hit, and 3 quarterback hurries on 45 pass rush snaps, 1 solo tackle, 3 stops

DT Marcell Dareus: 6 quarterback hurries on 39 pass rush snaps, 3 solo tackles, 2 stops

Duds

QB Ryan Fitzpatrick: 18 of 32 for 153 yards, 1 batted pass, 1 spike, 2 drops, 67.1 adjusted QB rating, pressured on 9 of 37 drop backs (2 sacks, 2 of 7)

WR Donald Jones: Caught 1 pass for 9 yards on 4 attempts on 35 pass snaps, 0.0 YAC per catch 1 drop, 1 interception when thrown to

WR TJ Graham: Caught 1 pass for 6 yards on 3 attempts on 34 pass snaps, 4.0 YAC per catch, 1 drop

TE Scott Chandler: Caught 1 pass for 4 yards on 3 attempts on 28 pass snaps, 0.0 YAC per catch, allowed 1 quarterback hit on 5 pass block snaps, run blocked for 1 yard on 1 attempt

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Arizona Cardinals: Week 7 NFL Power Rankings (#21)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Power Rankings, 2012 Week 7 NFL Power Rankings, Cardinals

Last week: 16 (-5)

Record: 4-2

It was also a matter time before Kevin Kolb broke. An injury prone behind that offensive line with an offense that passes that often, it was inevitable. Fun fact about that offensive line (or not so fun if you’re a Cardinals fan): offensive tackles D’Anthony Baptiste and Bobby Massie have combined to surrender 19 sacks this year. No other team’s offensive tackles have surrendered more than 8 combined. They’ve each down that individually. Those two combined with right guard Adam Snyder give them 3 starting offensive lineman ranked worst at their position by ProFootballFocus.

It might sound weird to say, but they will miss Kevin Kolb when it’s out. He was the superior quarterback last year in turns of yards per drive, but only had a worse record than Skelton because of tougher competition and inferior defensive play supporting him. This year, he did a decent job of keeping things together despite little supporting cast, better than Skelton would have done. Oh, and those idiots who put Arizona 1st in their Power Rankings (like Michael Silver) when they were 3-0 or 4-0 are frantically trying to delete every trace of those articles. Yeah, because Kevin Kolb was going to win the Super Bowl…

Arizona Cardinals

Studs

LOLB O’Brien Schofield: 2 sacks, 1 quarterback hit, and 1 quarterback hurry on 27 pass rush snaps, 4 solo tackles, 1 assist, 5 stops, 2 missed tackles

Duds

RG Adam Snyder: Allowed 2 quarterback hits and 5 quarterback hurries on 48 pass block snaps, run blocked for 3 yards on 1 attempt

LT D’Anthony Baptiste: Allowed 1 sack, 1 quarterback hit, and 6 quarterback hurries on 48 pass block snaps, 1 penalty, run blocked for 6 yards on 2 attempts

WR Andre Roberts: Caught 2 passes for 18 yards on 4 attempts on 42 pass snaps, 0.0 YAC per catch, 1 drop, 1 penalty

WR Early Doucet: Caught 1 pass for 1 yard on 3 attempts on 30 pass snaps, 0.0 YAC per catch, 1 drop

LE Darnell Dockett: Did not record a pressure on 35 pass rush snaps, 1 solo tackle, 1 stop

MLB Paris Lenon: Allowed 1 catch for 22 yards on 1 attempt, 4 solo tackles, 1 assist, 1 missed tackle, 1 quarterback hurry on 11 blitzes

ROLB Sam Acho: 1 quarterback hit on 19 pass rush snaps, 1 penalty, 2 solo tackle, 1 missed tackle

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Detroit Lions: Week 7 NFL Power Rankings (#22)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Power Rankings, 2012 Week 7 NFL Power Rankings, Lions

Last week: 23 (+1)

Record: 2-3

The Lions finally won last week, but the NFC is loaded. The NFC is 19-9 against the AFC this year. You’re going to have to assume, as an NFC team, that you’ll have to at least win 10 games to get into the playoffs and maybe 11 to be safe (10 opens up the possibility of a tiebreaker keeping you out). In order to go 10-6, they’d have to finish 8-3 and they’d have to finish 9-2 to go 11-5, thanks to their strong start and while the important stats say they are better than their record, none say they’re the type of team that can rip off 8 or 9 wins in an 11 game stretch like that. I still feel good about my preseason prediction that this team will miss the playoffs with 7 wins.

Studs

RG Stephen Peterman: Allowed 1 quarterback hurry on 52 pass block snaps, run blocked for 11 yards on 2 attempts

SS Louis Delmas: Allowed 3 catches for 20 yards on 6 attempts, 1 interception, 9 solo tackles, 2 missed tackles, 4 stops, 2 quarterback hurries on 8 blitzes

MLB Stephen Tulloch: 8 solo tackles, 5 stops, 1 quarterback hit on 7 blitzes, allowed 2 catches for 17 yards on 4 attempts

LE Cliff Avril: 2 sacks and 3 quarterback hurries on 42 pass rush snaps, 2 solo tackles, 3 stops, 1 missed tackle

RE Kyle Vanden Bosch: 1 sack, 2 quarterback hits, and 3 quarterback hurries on 41 pass rush snaps, 3 solo tackles, 2 stops

Duds

LT Jeff Backus: Allowed 2 quarterback hits and 2 quarterback hurries on 52 pass block snaps, 2 penalties, run blocked for 3 yards on 1 attempt

RT Gosder Cherilus: Allowed 2 quarterback hits and 5 quarterback hurries on 52 pass block snaps, 1 penalty, run blocked for 18 yards on 7 attempts

WR Titus Young: Caught 2 passes for 6 yards on 4 attempts on 41 pass snaps, 1.0 YAC per catch, 1 drop

CB Chris Houston: Allowed 7 catches for 159 yards and a touchdown on 8 attempts, 1 interception, 2 solo tackles, 1 assist

CB Dwight Bentley: Allowed 5 catches for 43 yards on 6 attempts, 1 penalty, 5 solo tackles, 1 missed tackle

LE Willie Young: 1 quarterback hurry on 19 pass rush snaps, 1 penalty, no tackles

DT Sammie Lee Hill: Did not record a pressure on 23 pass rush snaps, no tackles

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Cincinnati Bengals: Week 7 NFL Power Rankings (#23)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Power Rankings, 2012 Week 7 NFL Power Rankings, Bengals

Last week: 21 (-2)

Record: 3-3

My preseason pick to be this year’s team that goes from in the playoffs to 5 wins or fewer, the Cincinnati Bengals, took another step forward towards that last week, losing to the Browns. Their 3 wins have come against Washington (3-3), Cleveland (1-5), and Jacksonville (1-4) and the latter two might be the two worst teams in the entire NFL

The Bengals have never beaten a playoff team in the Andy Dalton era (unless Washington, Cleveland, or Jacksonville make the playoffs) and 8 of their final 10 games are against teams that could make the playoffs this year (Giants, Cowboys, Eagles, Ravens, Steelers twice, San Diego, and Denver). Could take go 2-8 the rest of the way? It’s not completely ridiculous the way they’ve played the last few weeks.

Studs

LG Clint Boling: Did not allow a pressure on 54 pass block snaps, 1 penalty, run blocked for 20 yards on 1 attempt

C Jeff Faine: Did not allow a pressure on 49 pass block snaps, run blocked for 35 yards on 10 attempts

RG Kevin Zeitler: Did not allow a pressure on 54 pass block snaps, run blocked for 7 yards on 2 attempts

WR AJ Green: Caught 7 passes for 135 yards and 2 touchdowns on 11 attempts on 54 pass snaps, 2.1 YAC per catch, 1 penalty, 2 interceptions when thrown to

Duds

WR Armon Binns: Caught 2 passes for 12 yards on 5 attempts on 29 pass snaps, 1.0 YAC per catch, 1 penalty

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Week 7 NFL Power Rankings (#24)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Power Rankings, 2012 Week 7 NFL Power Rankings, Buccaneers

Last week: 29 (+5)

Record: 2-3

I had the Buccaneers as a preseason underrated team for reasons I’ll repeat in a minute, but I had them overrated and picked against them last week because they ranked dead last in the league in yards per play differential. Now, after just one week, they rank 22nd because of their blowout victory over the Chiefs and they also rank 26th in rate of sustaining drives differential. I hate to put too much stock into one game, but I did think the Buccaneers were underrated to begin with.

This doesn’t really matter in the long run because I don’t think they’ll make the playoffs either way, but it matters by my picks purposes. Last year, they had a poor turnover differential. Teams tend to bounce back after that type of season. They won 6 games fewer than the year before, also is often a precursor to a bounce back season. They also fired their Head Coach, who the team quit on in the middle of a 10 game losing streak that took them from 4-2 and in 1st in the division to last place. Finally, they added several talented players through free agency and the draft and got several key players back from injury. We’ll see how they do going forward.

Studs

QB Josh Freeman: 15 of 26 for 328 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 1 interception, 3 drops, 1 thrown away, 1 batted pass, 100.1 adjusted QB rating, pressured on 5 of 28 drop backs, (1 scramble, 1 sack, 3 of 3)

LT Donald Penn: Did not allow a pressure on 29 pass block snaps, run blocked for 4 yards on 1 attempt

LG Carl Nicks: Did not allow a pressure on 29 pass block snaps, run blocked for 51 yards on 6 attempt

WR Mike Williams: Caught 4 passes for 66 yards and 2 touchdowns on 8 attempts on 28 pass snaps, 4.3 YAC per catch

WR Vincent Jackson: Caught 4 passes for 113 yards and a touchdown on 5 attempts on 28 pass snaps, 13.0 YAC per catch, 1 drop

CB Eric Wright: Allowed 3 catches for 21 yards on 6 attempts, 2 pass deflections

FS Ronde Barber: Allowed 2 catches for 13 yards on 3 attempts, 1 interception, 1 pass deflection

SS Mark Barron: Allowed 1 catch for 19 yards on 1 attempt, 1 interception, 3 solo tackles, 1 assist, 3 stops

Duds

RG Jamon Meredith: Allowed 2 quarterback hurries on 29 pass block snaps, run blocked for 13 yards on 5 attempts

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New York Jets: Week 7 NFL Power Rankings (#25)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Power Rankings, 2012 Week 7 NFL Power Rankings, Jets

Last week: 28 (+3)

Record: 3-3

The Jets’ win last week was impressive, which is why I’m moving them up, but it’s important to look at how they won. They won by running the ball and playing great defense. The defense I expect will continue to be at least decent. Darrelle Revis is gone, but Antonio Cromartie has done a good job as the new #1 cornerback and other guys have stepped up in his absence. However, it’s their running game’s performance that I doubt can continue. Their running game didn’t do anything remotely resembling that in their first 5 games and the Colts’ run defense is pretty bad, especially with all of the injuries they have.

Mark Sanchez, meanwhile, was once again less than impressive, averaging 4.6 YPA against a defense that is surrendering 7.6 YPA all season. He passed for just 82 yards and is on pace for only 3000 yards. I made a prop bet at the beginning of the season that he wouldn’t get 3200, expecting him to be benched. Even if he doesn’t get benched, I still might win that. He’s gone under 200 yards in 3 of his 6 games.

Studs

C Nick Mangold: Did not allow a pressure on 19 pass block snaps, run blocked for 92 yards and a touchdown on 12 attempts

LG Matt Slauson: Did not allow a pressure on 16 attempts, run blocked for 47 yards on 8 attempts, 1 penalty

RB Shonn Greene: Rushed for 161 yards (82 after contact) and 3 touchdowns on 32 carries, 8 broken tackles

SS LaRon Landry: Allowed 1 catch for 12 yards on 5 attempts, 2 pass deflections, 5 solo tackles, 1 stop, 1 quarterback hit on 4 blitzes

Duds

RT Austin Howard: Allowed 1 quarterback hit and 2 quarterback hurries on 19 pass block snaps, run blocked for 6 yards and a touchdown on 3 attempts

LOLB Calvin Pace: Did not record a pressure on 31 pass rush snaps, 1 assist

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Tennessee Titans: Week 7 NFL Power Rankings (#28)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Power Rankings, 2012 Week 7 NFL Power Rankings, Titans

Last week: 26 (-2)

Record: 2-4

The Titans move down despite a “surprising” home upset victory of the Steelers because two teams previously ranked below than (NY Jets and Tampa Bay) had more impressive victories last week and because none of the teams previously ranked right above Tennessee lost this week. New Orleans and Carolina move down 2 spots on their bye for this same reason. Tennessee’s home victory was not that impressive. Oakland did the same thing against Pittsburgh and they suck. Pittsburgh just sucks on the road and weird things happen on Thursday nights. Tennessee stills ranks 29th in yards per play differential and 31st in rate of sustaining drives differential.

Studs

C Fernando Velasco: Did not allow a pressure on 50 pass block snaps, run blocked for 31 yards on 7 attempts

LE Derrick Morgan: 1 sack, 2 quarterback hits, and 3 quarterback hurries on 38 pass rush snaps, 1 pass deflection, 1 penalty, 2 solo tackles, 3 stops

RE Kamerion Wimbley: 9 quarterback hurries on 42 pass rush snaps, 1 assist

P Brett Kern: 5 punts for 261 yards, 3 inside 20, 4 returns for 17 yards, 44.8 net yards per punt

Duds

MLB Colin McCarthy: 6 solo tackles, 1 assist, 3 stops, 2 missed tackles, allowed 4 catches for 76 yards on 5 attempts

ROLB Akeem Ayers: Allowed 3 catches for 37 yards on 3 attempts, 1 penalty, 2 solo tackles, 3 assists, 2 stops, 3 missed tackles

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Oakland Raiders: Week 7 NFL Power Rankings (#29)

stevenlourie 2012 NFL Power Rankings, 2012 Week 7 NFL Power Rankings, Raiders

Last week: 30 (+1)

Record: 1-4

The Raiders move up, not because I was impressed with their near win in Atlanta, fluky things like that happen all the time in the NFL and I rarely put much stock in them, but because I think Kansas City proved that they sucked more this week with their epic stink bomb performance in Tampa Bay. This is still not a very good Raider team. Their blowout losses in Denver and Miami are more indicative of their level of talent than a home win over Pittsburgh (not looking so impressive now that Tennessee did it too) and last week’s showing in Atlanta.

Studs

LG Cooper Carlisle: Did not allow a pressure on 38 pass block snaps, run blocked for 3 yards on 5 attempts

WR Denarius Moore: Caught 5 passes for 104 yards and a touchdown on 9 attempts on 22 pass snaps, 7.2 YAC per catch, 1 interception when thrown to

CB Michael Huff: Allowed 5 catches for 62 yards on 12 attempts, 1 interception, 3 pass deflections, 3 solo tackles, 1 stop

Duds

RB Darren McFadden: Rushed for 79 yards (48 after contact) and a touchdown on 27 attempts, 2 broken tackles, 1 fumble, caught 3 passes for 28 yards on 4 attempts, 1 drop, allowed 1 quarterback hurry on 8 pass block snaps

LT Jared Veldheer: Allowed 1 sack, 1 quarterback hit, and 1 quarterback hurry on 38 pass block snaps, 2 penalties, run blocked for 22 yards on 4 attempts

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