Week 1 Afterthoughts

As Wentz Shines, Rams And Browns Look Foolish

Carson Wentz enjoyed a tremendous debut for the Eagles on Opening Day, the two teams that passed on opportunities to draft Wentz looked remarkably foolish for turning their noses up at Wentz.

I’m not sure which team looks more foolish.

There’s the Rams, who gave up a larger package than the Eagles to move up to the first overall pick in the draft to select Jared Goff, who many expected to be starting in Week 1. Instead, Goff is on the bench with no timetable to enter the starting lineup while Case Keenum, who probably belongs in the CFL, serves as the starter.

Then there’s the Browns, who have drafted four quarterbacks in the first-round since they came back to the league in 1999, and still don’t have an answer at the position. They not only passed up the chance to take Wentz, but openly insulted him in the week leading up to the game, decreeing that they didn’t see him as a top-20 quarterback. Oops.

Wentz’s success with the Eagles could ultimately have great consequences for the organizations that didn’t take him.

Josh Norman Represents Everything Wrong With “Shutdown” Corners

On Monday night, the Washington Redskins went down in flames in a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

During the game, star wide receiver Antonio Brown was allowed to run wild, and made mincemeat out of Breshaud Breeland. Before the game, the matchup was supposedly billed as a great battle between Brown and star corner Josh Norman.

However, Norman wasn’t interested in the challenge.

Norman has become the latest elite cornerback to declare that he’s only going to play on one side of the field. And the laughable strategy resulted in the Steelers simply keeping Brown on the opposite side, giving him a matchup that he exploited all night long on his way to a 126-yard, two touchdown effort.

I can’t stand corners like Norman that insist they’ll only play one side, and won’t shadow the other team’s top receiver. To me, that attitude is more diva-like behavior than anything a wide receiver has ever done. Corners that only play one side of the field essentially are admitting that they aren’t good enough to take on elite receivers; it’s the ultimate cop-out in my eyes.

If I were Breeland, I would resent Norman as a teammate. While Breeland was getting roasted by Brown, Norman got the pitifully easier challenge of taking on the likes of no-name wideouts like Sammie Coates.

Why pay a corner that kind of money if you can’t count on him to at least make the effort take away the other team’s top aerial threat?

Quick Thoughts

• Chip Kelly got a cute little win on Monday night against an absolutely woeful, pitiful organization in the Rams. I still fully expect the 49ers to be one of the worst teams in the league, but I underestimated just how terrible a job Jeff Fisher has done with that team.
• Not that impressed with Dak Presscot yet. He had trouble throwing the ball down the field, and considering the wealth of talent he has to work with on his offense? I don’t think the Cowboys are still going to be his team when Tony Romo returns from his back injury.
• Hate Bill Belichick all you want, but give him credit, he’s a hell of a coach. To go in to Arizona down not only Tom Brady, but Rob Gronkowski as well, and to have your best pass rusher now playing for the other team and you still come away with a win? That’s remarkable.
• The Minnesota Vikings game was the most frustrating outcome of Week 1. The stage was set for the Titans to win that game, but Marcus Mariota played poorly and the Vikings got themselves a win through defensive turnovers.
• As an aside, I can’t tell you how happy I am to be building around Carson Wentz instead of Mariota. I’ve always thought Mariota was a system-quarterback that wasn’t going to be great at the NFL level, and he’s only reinforced that belief.
• Meanwhile, the guy taken in front of Mariota, Jameis Winston, is on his way to becoming an absolute stud.
• I think Mike McCoy out in San Diego could end up being the first coach fired this season. Blowing that lead to Kansas City is a horrible tone to set for the year, and things could only get worse now that Keenan Allen has been lost for the season again.