So, what do you suppose is playing in Robbie Gould’s iPOD?
Ah, Robbie Gould. Just hearing his name evokes feelings of rainbows, puppies, and movies in which Richard Gere and Diane Lane finally get out of their own way long enough to realize true love has been right under their noses all along.
It is really no surprise that the fun-loving kicker likes to frequent soft-listening, country concerts (ed. is there any other kind?) in his spare time. In fact, his pre-game playlist includes Keith Urban, Rascal Flatts, and Brad Paisley. What better way to pump oneself up then by blaring “Love You Out Loud” on your iPOD?
In defense of Gould’s musical tastes, I managed to find a few Rascal Flatts songs that could be related to the slightly much tougher NFL.
“Prayin’ For Daylight” – Devin Hester, after having a ridiculous 12 return touchdowns combined in his first two years, has none through six games so far.
“My Worst Fear” – Injuries are undoubtedly a part of the game, but we have all seen what can happen when too many happen to key players. And at once. Nathan Vasher, Peanut Tillman, Brandon Lloyd, and Tommie Harris are four such guys experiencing their share of hurt in 2008.
“Oklahoma-Texas Line” – Former University of Texas star and current NFL bust, Cedric Benson, was given walking papers in preseason. Old Oklahoma Sooner — I’m sure he was only their fourth wideout — Mark Bradley was also let loose. Can we stop recruiting skill positions from the Greater South?
“What Hurts The Most” – The Bears SHOULD COULD BE 6-0. And instead of watching the damn Dodgers vs. Phillies right now, I could be watching the Cubbies 1-4 hitters whiff at everything thrown within two feet each way of home plate.
Good stuff.
So damn frustrating. I’m still feeling sick. I couldn’t even eat a second meal today. I didn’t think I could be more upset than I was after James Loney hit the grand slam against the Cubs in game 1. Well… I’m much more pissed actually.
Yeah Hester’s return game is quite frustrating as well. He’s just not taking off and going like he used to. I really wonder if he’s heard so much shit about staying healthy to play WR that he’s just not going all out as a returner. Now he just normally stands back there and waits for some holes to develop, but before he can even accelerate to full speed he’s already tackled at the 18 yard line. He used to just go, without a juking really even, just quick cuts, and nobody can keep up with him when he does that. Oh well, at least he’s already looking like a more polished WR than I ever thought he’d be. Very nice routes and good hands.
And the injuries to the secondary are easily what worries me most. Peanut, Vasher, McBride, and Manning are all hurt. If I have to see Marcus Hamilton on the field for a lot of the game, I’ll effing lose it. He was the main reason that last pass was completed, as he came up to cover Jerious Norwood for the short underneath route instead of dropping back where he was supposed to be(where the pass was caught). THERE WERE 6 SECONDS LEFT! LET THEM HAVE THAT!
Positives though, yes they’re out there. We’ve found a QB, no doubt in my mind. What an absolutely outstanding drive by Orton. That’s one we’d be talking for years and as the defining moment of his career.
Corey Graham is a heck of a player, at least in terms of stopping the run. With him and Peanut on the field, we’re outstanding against the run. Hell, we’ve been great at that all year aside from Jonathan Stewart in the 2nd half at Carolina. Shut down the NFL’s leading rusher today, and I know they stacked the box, but that guy’s still a load to bring down. Big test next week against AP, but truthfully I’m more worried right now about Frerotte hitting our old friend Berrian deep a few times with our banged up secondary.
Like you said at the end, we could be 6-0. Yeah, the bottom line is we aren’t, but we’ve shown we can at least play with everybody it seems. This gives me hope, and I’m much more optimistic about our chances every week than I thought I would be just over a month ago.
And with that in mind, we have a very favorable schedule it appears the rest of the way. There’s not a game out there where I think, “well that’s a loss”. Teams like the Titans and Jags are very good, but they run the ball to death. If our run d keeps playing like this, we match up well with such teams. Winning this next game is an absolute MUST. We’re tied for first place, and you can essentially get a 2 game lead on them for the time being considering the head-to-head tiebreaker. Then, that’s followed by the Lions at home. I don’t want to call that a for sure win after the Vikes struggled with them today and the Skins lost to the Rams at home, but after how we looked against them last week, it’s pretty close to a guaranteed win if we are healthy going into that game.
Oh, and it hasn’t been our problem, but it will be nice to get the guy that looked like our best WR before getting hurt in Brandon Lloyd back soon. Just another weapon for Orton.
Alright, I’m done ranting for the moment.