Happy New Year, everybody. While the calendar may have turned to 2016, the 2015 NFL season is still very much underway. New Year’s is always a time for introspection and reflection, and with that said it seems like the perfect time for some deep analysis of what’s going on in the sport. Let’s take a trip around the league and take a look at some NFL New Year’s observations.
NFL New Year’s observations
The Panthers’ Tough Loss Could End Up Being a Big Win
Let’s start with the Carolina Panthers. Heading into Week Sixteen at a perfect 14-0, they seemed poised to complete only the second 16-0 season in NFL history, and head into the playoffs a heavy favorite. One shocking 20-13 defeat in Atlanta later, and a perfect season is out of the question, and the Panthers must win on Sunday to guarantee home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.
This may sound like a negative development, but in reality, it may be the best thing that could have possibly happened to Cam Newton and company. The quest to complete the perfect season takes it’s toll on a team. When winning a Super Bowl seems less important than compiling a perfect record, something is wrong. Hoisting a Lombardi Trophy is the goal of every single NFL season and when we lose sight of that, bad things happen.
On Football Night in America last Sunday, former Patriots safety Rodney Harrison echoed this sentiment. As a member of the 2007 New England Patriots, Harrison knows exactly what he’s talking about. The Pats won every game that season, only to be upset in the Super Bowl by the New York Giants. The loss was devastating for the franchise and its fans. Two of my best friends are Patriots die hards, and I’ll never forget the looks of dejection on their faces after that game as long as I live. The Super Bowl had taken a back seat to the quest for 19-0, and it proved to be a distraction and an added pressure. Yes, the Panthers may no longer have a shot at 19-0, but they still have an excellent shot at winning a Super Bowl, and that is much, much more important.
The NFL is the Most Reactionary League in Sports
Okay, this isn’t exactly news, but it needs to be emphasized. The decision-making in the NFL is the most emotional and reactionary in all of professional athletics. The firings of NFL coaches really typifies this point. I understand that the NFL is a short-term results driven league with an emphasis on parity. I understand that with only sixteen games in a season, every contest is hugely important. But at some point, we have to give these coaches some degree of leeway.
The latest reports indicate that barring a playoff run, the Colts plan to fire Chuck Pagano. This is the same Chuck Pagano who has taken the Colts to the playoffs in all three of his seasons in Indianapolis, including the AFC Championship game just last year. This is the same Chuck Pagano who has three playoff victories, and is an emotional leader to his team, both on the field and off it.
Yes, it’s been a rough year for the Colts and at 7-8, they are likely to miss the playoffs for the first time during Pagano’s tenure. Maybe some of that has to do with the fact that franchise quarterback Andrew Luck has hardly played this year, and when he’s been active, he has clearly played through significant injuries. How can a head coach with the track record of Pagano lose his job when his franchise passer is hardly on the field? It doesn’t seem fair at all. I have no doubt that Pagano will land on his feet, but one bad season after years of sustained success should not cost the man his job.
And that brings me to Chip Kelly. Just this week, Kelly received his walking papers from the Philadelphia Eagles, with one game still remaining on the 2015 slate, even though he won ten games in both of his first two seasons in Philly. Unlike Pagano, there seems to be a personality issue at the core of this dispute. Kelly has rubbed some of his players the wrong way over the years, and it appears that this move was motivated by all of the controversial roster moved Kelly made in the off-season en route to leading to a disappointing season. I’m not inside the Eagles’ building, so I can’t say for certain what’s going on, but ten win seasons aren’t easy to come by in the NFL. Kelly, like Pagano, figures to land on his feet in short order.
A final note on coaching firings is that the Bills announced that Rex Ryan would be back next year. This statement alone is an indictment of the current NFL landscape. A team hires a high-profile head coach, he has a slightly disappointing first season (although the Bills can still finish .500), and there has to be an announcement made that said coach will retain his job for next season? There should be no question about Ryan’s job security. Yes, the defense had a tough year, and the Bills are going to miss the playoffs, but you don’t hire Rex Ryan for a one-and-done. The Bills (and Ryan) shouldn’t have to even address these questions. I feel like the media tends to treat coaches (and players) like commodities, and not people with feelings and families. Losing one’s job is a horrible personal tragedy, and not something to be taken lightly.
Arizona Cardinals Are Getting Hot at the Right Time
I want to end on a positive note, and the Arizona Cardinals seem like the topic to do so with. In short, this team is on fire right now. Remember early in the season, when people weren’t impressed by their success, because they supposedly hadn’t beaten any contenders? Well, they’ve beaten plenty of them now, and in dominant fashion. Over the course of the last two weeks, they’ve scored 78 points and allowed only 25. They’re scoring points on both sides of the ball, and generally playing mistake-free football. Carson Palmer is having an MVP-caliber season, the defense just sacked Aaron Rodgers eight times while causing him to turn the ball over three times (Rodgers just doesn’t do that), and rookie running back David Johnson is looking like one of the steals of the 2015 draft.
If the Cardinals defeat the Seahawks in Week Seventeen, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers upset the Panthers, the Cardinals would lock up the top seed in the NFC. Heading into the playoffs, this might be the hottest team in the National Football League, and the timing couldn’t be any better if you’re a Cardinals fan. The timing, however, could be a lot worse if you’re a fan of any other NFC playoff team. Things are about to get interesting.
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – DECEMBER 20: (NEW YORK DAILIES OUT) Cam Newton #1 of the Carolina Panthers in action against the New York Giants on December 20, 2015 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Panthers defeated the Giants 38-35. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
