For the past ten years the New England Patriots have been the definition of a NFL powerhouse. Five Superbowl appearances and three wins are not anything to laugh at. But this year, things are different, even if their 2 and 0 record does not show it. Sloppy play in the first two games are not a good sign. Dropped passes and sloppy turnovers haunt this New England team, and the off-season issues are to blame. Drama. That is the only way to sum up what we've seen since January to September with this team. Gronk and Hernandez are both out for the time being. This has impacted Tom Brady. Brady has no receivers. There is no Randy Moss or Brandon Loyd there. He has no Tight Ends, Gronk and Hernandez were (in my opinion) the best TE duo in the entire NFL. But the sky is not falling for the New England Pat's. Tom Brady is still under center, and Belichick is still their coach. That should be enough to escape the season with AFC East, but will it be enough for a playoff push?

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The Philadelphia Eagles captivated the nation on Monday night with a hurry-up offense that had Washington Redskins players and fans gasping for air. Well, that fun is spilling over to the sidelines as well. 

It seems Eagles fans will get more bang for their buck this season as Philadelphia aims to run a remarkable number of plays. Everything is flashier with this team, even the play cards. 

ESPN spotted this peculiar image and tweeted it out to fans on Monday: 

If you are wondering, the images are indeed real and just one of the myriad of ways Kelly is bringing a fresh new look to the league. 

The Oregon Ducks used a similar scheme under Kelly's watch. Back in 2011, ESPN'sPatrick Hruby wrote about the zany images plastered all over the sidelines during Ducks games. 

Unique, as in each placard displays silly, seemingly nonsensical pictures of—among other things—a battleship, a shamrock, a Cincinnati Bengalslogo, the words "MAGIC" and "GLYCERINE," a map of New Hampshire and (Lee) Corso's dome, alongside the guillotined visages of various other television sports personalities.

Photo Credit: Brock Ameele (via ESPN)

Thankfully, we will still get the usual array of WTF coming from Kelly's play-callers. It seems this time around the Eagles are honoring Philadelphia's more memorable pop culture icons—at least that's what For the Win's Chris Chase noted. 

Chase also spotted a report from USA Today's Jason Wolf, who is just the latest person to try to crack a seemingly unbreakable code: 

In order to play at a high speed, the Eagles need to communicate at a high speed. Kelly's system of communication renders the huddle nearly obsolete.

It has traditionally incorporated poster boards divided into quadrants, with four pictures, logos or words on each, and hand signals that are instantly recognizable to exhausted 20-somethings. These signs and signals relay all necessary information, including formation, motion, snap count, play direction, routes and play type.

Good luck trying to crack this thing, because the report offers that some of these images may be nothing more than inside jokes that would really only hold meaning for those on the field. 

If you still aren't sold, Wolf quotes Eagles tight end Brent Celek who has great things to say about the team's communication system: 

From a communications standpoint, it's going to change the league. I'm not going to tell you guys how, but it will. Just the way that they can communicate plays in and get us the stuff, it's pretty cool. It's something that I never even thought was possible in the NFL. Seeing the stuff he's doing, he has a reason why he does everything that he does, and a reason why each play is called what it is. And it all makes sense.

I can't say that we're going to be super successful, but from a communications standpoint, it's insane. I think it's awesome.

We will give up trying to decipher what Rocky and the Phillie Phanatic mean in the grand scheme of things. 

All that matters is something exciting is about to take place on the field, and that should be enough for a nation to consider the Eagles a must-see TV event for the season. 

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If we need any more reasons to get excited for Sunday Night's game between the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks, there was a wager between the two QBs. Whoever loses, they have to shave an eyebrow. And you are the witness; they shook on it. 

Who do you think will end up losing his eyebrow? 

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A late hit on quarterback Colin Kaepernick led to a scuffle between the Green Bay Packers and San Francisco 49ers early in the marquee game between the two top teams.

The 49ers had a third-down play deep in Green Bay territory in the second quarter, and Kaepernick scrambled to his left in an effort to reach the first down. While he went out of bounds short of the marker,Clay Matthews didn't let up on the play.

After Kaepernick had stepped out of bounds, the Packers linebacker brought him down to the ground hard:

Via Fox Broadcast

This led to a fight between the two sides as several 49ers players came in to protect their quarterback:

Via Fox Broadcast

Via Fox Broadcast

San Francisco offensive lineman Joe Staley was the first to grab Matthews, and in turn was given a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. This offset the 15-yard penalty by Green Bay for a late hit.

The teams then replayed the down, which resulted in a 10-yard touchdown pass to Anquan Boldin.

One concerning part of the play was the fact this was something Matthews appears to have planned coming into the game. According to Vinnie Iyer of the Sporting News, the veteran player told ESPN's Mike and Mike that his team will try to put as many hits on Kaepernick as possible.  

This led to some concern from San Francisco coach Jim Harbaugh, who was afraid that the Packers were going to target his quarterback.According to ESPN, he said:

You're hearing a lot of tough talk right now. You're hearing some intimidating type of talk, the same thing we were hearing a couple years ago. It sounds a lot like targeting a specific player. You definitely start to wonder.

A man will usually tell you his bad intentions if you just listen. You know what's being said publicly, not what's being said privately. You hope that their intent isn't going to be anything that's not within the rules.

The late hit shows that he was correct to an extent. Hopefully, this does not lead to any serious injuries as the game continues.

At the very least, though, this incident is the latest development in a budding NFC rivalry. San Francisco got the better of Green Bay last year on more than one occasion. Clearly, Green Bay is anxious to turn the tables. 

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While several teams could probably use wide receiver help, and might start looking at veterans starting in week two when salaries are no longer guaranteed for vested players, one intriguiing option is apparently ready to hang up his cleats.

Brandon Lloyd, who played last year with the New England Patriots and played for six teams in a 10-year career, is planning to retire from football, according to Jason LaCanfora.

If this is the end for Lloyd, then he leaves with 385 receptions and 35 touchdowns in a career that took him from the 49ers, to the Redskins, Bears, Broncos, Rams and Patriots.

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Robert Griffin III will be close to the player who won the Offensive Rookie of the Year with theWashington Redskins in 2012, but coming off an ACL tear, subtle differences should be expected from the quarterback on Monday Night Football against thePhiladelphia Eagles.

RG3 went bonkers in the two games against his green-clad NFC East rivals last season, as he completed 30 of 39 passes for 389 passing yards with six touchdowns and only one interception. He also ran the ball 14 times for 88 yards. Washington won the first meeting 31-6 and the second 27-20. 

In what should be a downright fun game to watch, one loaded with offensive fireworks, innovative sets and an uptempo pace, here's what we should look for from Griffin III.

 

Fewer Designed Runs

Rob Carr/Getty Images

RG3 ran the football 120 times in 2012 and ran it rather successfully. He totaled 815 yards on those carries for an 6.8 yards-per-rush average and scored seven touchdowns on the ground. 

However, Griffin III exposed himself to far too many hits in the open field during his debut NFL season. 

Coming off his second knee-ligament tear in three years, the former Baylor quarterback undoubtedly has to be more careful when he leaves the pocket with the football in his hands. 

Actually, many of the hits RG3 took last year came on designed runs, not scrambles:

RG3's 2012 Rushing Breakdown

Designed Runs	72	Scrambles	44
Hits Taken	55	Hits Taken	19
Yards Per Carry	6.0	Yards Per Carry	9.4

ESPN Stats & Info and SportsCenter

Based on those numbers, don't be surprised if Mike Shanahan saves most of the designed runs for Alfred Morris and Roy Helu Jr. this evening and throughout Griffin III's sophomore campaign. 

 

Sliding 

There's only so much the Redskins coaching staff can do to keep their franchise quarterback healthy. RG3 is a world-class athlete who's going to make plays with his legs; there's no doubting that. 

Although he demonstrated amazing accuracy and efficiency from the pocket last season, he often reminded the masses how much of a bonus his athleticism can be. 

Ask the Minnesota Vikings.

Even if the Redskins scale back the amount of designed runs for their 6'2'', 217-pound signal-caller, he'll still need to be more intelligent carrying the football. 

Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

On more than one occasion in Week 1, San Francisco 49ers quarterbackColin Kaepernick slid or found the sideline before he saw a big hit coming against the Green Bay Packers. He took what was there and wasn't afraid to get down if a major hole didn't materialize on read-option keepers and improvisational runs to the outside. 

Both quarterbacks are fierce competitors and aren't fond of backing down to any opponent, but Griffin III has to understand that sliding a yard short on a third-down scramble is better than risking injury by staying upright in an attempt to move the chains. 

 

Impressive Stat Line

Some are worried about a rust factor with RG3 against the Eagles, and rightfully so. 

After all, he didn't take a snap in the preseason. 

Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

But the former Heisman Trophy winner practiced for much of the offseason and had plenty of time to continue formulating rapports with his pass-catchers. 

Furthermore, the Eagles secondary is a weak point of their defense. Chip Kelly's offense will accumulate yards and score points against Washington, but Philadelphia's defense appears to be much stingier than it was last year. 

Here's how the team's offseason additions were graded by Pro Football Focus (subscription required) in 2012: 

2012 Play of Eagles' 2013 Additions

Name	Position	2012 PFF Grade (Positional Rank)
Connor Barwin	OLB	-12.1 (30 of 34)
Cary Williams	CB	-2.2 (69 of 113)
Isaac Sopoaga	DT	-12.0 (82 of 85)
Patrick Chung	S	+.9 (38 of 88)

ProFootballFocus

Obviously, the Eagles defense can improve from a rather disappointing effort a season ago, but RG3 shouldn't have much trouble moving the football efficiently, especially if Washington's offense is on the field often. 

 

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Since being released by the New England Patriots prior to the 2013 NFL regular season, there has been plenty of speculation about where quarterback Tim Tebow could potentially land. If rock-and-roll legends Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley have their way, though, he could be joining their new Arena Football League team.

According to Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times, the L.A. KISS have offered Tebow a three-year contract.

As incredible as Tebow playing in the Los Angeles market for a team named after one of the greatest bands of all time would be from a media perspective, it doesn't seem likely that it will come to fruition.  

According to Mike Garafolo of USA Today, Tebow still wants to play in the NFL, so he is not prepared to accept an offer from an AFL team or even a Canadian Football League team for that matter at this time.

Upon being cut loose by the Pats, Tebow made it abundantly clear on Twitter that he is not done chasing his dream of being an NFL quarterback.

Based on how poorly Tebow performed during the preseason, though, playing a year in another league may not be a terrible option. After all, there is little doubt that the KISS will start Tebow and give him every opportunity to succeed. It means that there would be plenty of eyeballs on Tebow and his performance.

After damaging stints with the Patriots and New York Jets, Tebow needs to show talent evaluators that he can still get the job done. The AFL is certainly a far cry from the NFL, but future NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner is one of many players who successfully made the jump from the Arena League to the NFL.

Despite that, Tebow appears to be set in his ways. Perhaps that will ultimately prove to be a good thing, though, since he doesn't seem like the type of guy who likes to rock and roll all night, and party every day.

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Every Monday, former NFL defensive back Matt Bowen breaks down the top performances from Sunday and goes inside the X’s and O’s of the game. Here are his 10 takeaways from Week 1.

Anquan Boldin Lights Up the Packers Secondary

Boldin isn’t going to create separation because of his speed. That’s never been his game. Instead, the wide receiver is going to finish at the point of attack and make plays consistently in the middle of the field.

That’s what we saw on Sunday from Boldin (13 receptions, 208 yards, one touchdown) versus the Packers. He ran the seam route, the shallow crosser, the curl, etc. Plus, I always go back to his ability to come down with the ball in traffic.

The Packers leaned on zone-based coverages in their game plan to limit the read-option. That also allowed second-level defenders to drop to a landmark with eyes on the quarterback in passing situations. However, Colin Kaepernick (412 yards passing) and Boldin were able to expose those coverage looks by working the ball inside the numbers in the 49ers' opening-day win.

Saints' Fourth-Down Stop Versus the Falcons

I loved the call from defensive coordinator Rob Ryan on the fourth-down stop to close the win in the end zone for the Saints. Let’s take a look.

This is only a three-man rush scheme from the Saints, but focus on the secondary. New Orleans is essentially playing “bracket coverage” (two-on-one) versus Matt Ryan’s prime targets: Julio Jones, Tony Gonzalez and Roddy White. It's playing physical on the release, getting a jam at the point and taking away inside breaking route schemes.

The Falcons were trying to run an inside hi-lo combination (two-level read) with Jones and Gonzalez. However, because the Saints forced some pressure with their three-man rush, rookie Kenny Vaccaro was able to get a piece of this throw and tip the ball to veteran safety Roman Harper for an interception. I expected zero pressure (blitz with no safety help) in this situation, but Ryan made the right call to limit options in the middle of the field.

Cowboys Defense Produces Five Turnovers

This is a different Dallas defense compared to what we watched in 2012. It plays fast and looks to take the ball away. That’s coaching and establishing a defensive culture that leads to turnovers.

The Cowboys will have to make some corrections off the film from the win over the Giants—no question about that after seeing Victor Cruz produce some big numbers.

But I’m more focused on the Cowboys’ ability to create turnovers. Defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin, Rod Marinelli and this defensive staff in Dallas have done a good job changing the way this unit plays football. The five turnovers created last night are a perfect example of a defense that finishes plays and looks to get the ball out.

Tom Brady, Danny Amendola and the Patriots' Game-Winning Drive

Rick Stewart/Getty Images

Let's go back to the two third-down conversions in the Patriots' final drive to set up the winning field goal with Tom Brady and Danny Amendola.

What did the Patriots run? Short, inside breaking concepts that allowed Brady to look up his wide receiver in the middle of the field—the shallow drive route (underneath crosser) plus the angle route (or “follow” route) where Amendola worked to the numbers and broke back inside.

Remember, it doesn’t have to be complicated or exotic when the Patriots wide receiver can create leverage in the middle of the field. That sells for Brady and this New England offense when Amendola can produce in crucial game situations just like we saw in the win over the Bills.

Bears Create a Matchup with Brandon Marshall

Jay Cutler and the Bears used a good mix of play-calling in the second half to create matchups during Marc Trestman’s debut win over the Bengals. Here is an example using Cutler’s game-winning touchdown pass to Brandon Marshall.

The Bears are running a smash-seven (corner) combination with Marshall aligned in the slot to the open (weak) side of the formation. With the Bengals sending five-man pressure (Will ‘backer on the edge rush), safety Reggie Nelson will roll down on Marshall in coverage. That matchup favors the Bears because of Marshall’s size and ability to create leverage on an outside-breaking route.

Because Marshall wins at the top of the route stem, he can pin Nelson inside and work to the corner. That allows Cutler to put this throw on the upfield shoulder—away from the defender’s leverage—for the score. Pressure always looks good on the chalkboard. But if you don’t get home, NFL quarterbacks will find the matchup they want.

Geno Smith and the Jets Get the Win 

The Jets caught a break when Tampa linebacker Lavonte David hit Smith out of bounds to set up the winning field goal. As a defensive player, you have to show some discipline and know the game situation—can’t give up a free 15 yards there.

However, let’s talk about Smith. Did he look like a rookie on specific plays? Of course he did, and that should have been expected in his first career start. There were some panic throws early in that game.

But Smith (24-of-38, 256 yards, one touchdown, one interception) also displayed the ability to move the ball and put his team in positive situations. The rookie can build on that when he watches the tape. As I said last week, if you want a young quarterback to develop, give him game reps in the regular season. That’s how he will improve.

Reggie Bush’s Impact in Detroit

During the preseason, I broke down Bush’s role in the Lions offense when the running back was used as a target in the passing game. In the win over the Vikings, Detroit used the middle screen (or “shoot screen”) to get the ball to its running back in the open field.

The Lions are set up before the snap because of the defensive call. With the Vikings in Cover 2—and the nickel walked out over Calvin Johnson in the slot—this is a six-man box. Detroit can release the tight end to the Mike ‘backer and work Bush back into the middle of the field on the screen.

This is trouble for the Vikings. Look at the lane being created for Bush once he makes the catch. The Lions running back can square his pads, get vertical and work into the second level of the defense with blockers in front of him.

This is how you draw it up on the chalkboard: perfect execution from the Lions on the middle screen that allows Bush to split the two-deep half safeties and showcase his open-field speed for a touchdown.

Steelers' Protection Issues

With Gregg Williams back in the NFL, opposing offenses should expect pressure on game days from the Titans. That’s the focus when Williams puts the game plan together, and he will look to expose protection schemes with a variety of different fronts/blitz packages.

On Sunday, the Titans racked up five sacks versus Ben Roethlisberger and shut down this Pittsburgh offense. Plus, the Steelers lost starting center Maurkice Pouncey for the season with a knee injury.

Should there be concern already in Pittsburgh? I’m not going to write off a team after one week in the NFL. No chance. But this offense needs to make some corrections and fix its protection issues moving forward—because this tape is now out there for everyone to see.

Andy Reid’s West Coast Concepts

Andy Reid’s core schemes haven’t changed for a decade. These are the same West Coast concepts that lean on the three-step passing game and inside-breaking routes. Let’s check out an example using Alex Smith’s touchdown pass to Junior Hemingway.

There's some window dressing by Reid based on formation alignment (Slot Open), but the concepts are the same. To the closed side of the formation, the Chiefs are running the tare combination (quick out plus-flat) with the hi-lo to the open side.

Smith wanted to work the tare combination as his primary read, but he comes backside to look up Hemingway on the dig (square-in) once the receiver gains separation. That’s a route you will see all season from the Chiefs out of multiple personnel groupings and alignments.

Terrelle Pryor’s Production

I don’t want to take anything away from Andrew Luck and the Colts in their win on Sunday. The second-year QB once again displayed accuracy and ball placement in the passing game and also showcased his ability outside the pocket. He is a special talent.

However, the Raiders might have an answer at quarterback if Pryor can continue to develop with more playing time.

The Raiders opened up their playbook, showing the read-option, the boot game, movement passes, etc., and they put together a game plan that catered to Pryor’s skill set. Plus, the quarterback showed the ability to extend plays—and that allows receivers time to convert routes.

Even in a loss, that was an impressive day for Pryor in only his second pro start. I’m looking forward to watching him play next week. 

Andy Lyons/Getty Images

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