The NFL Roundup 2019: Week 2 – What We Learned

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

​Normally, Week 2 in the NFL is a tad anti-climactic in nature. Because the comfort of football washes over us and everything we see on the field feels oddly routine. That’s not a bad thing by any means, it just means the sheen of Kickoff Weekend has worn off and we’re comfortable with just immersing ourselves in football and soaking up everything that it has to offer. But this weekend’s slate of games felt different and special in their own right. For these matchups offered up all kinds of twists and unexpected turns, the kind that have us buzzing this fine Tuesday as we reflect upon everything we learned and experienced from another wild weekend of football.
 
The Panthers need to bench Cam Newton.
Okay, I know what you’re thinking. I’m about to just tear into Cam Newton and pose all kinds of questions about his leadership and ability and so on and that’s just not the case in the slightest. While I, and so many others have taken issue with Cam’s attitude and decisions on the field in the past, my thought process when it comes to sitting him down is grounded in far different logic. Because the bottom line, is that it’s obvious that Cam is severely injured right now. He’s just not throwing the ball right; he doesn’t look physically comfortable on the field and he needs to be benched so that he can heal both his mind and his body. Because it cannot be easy for a guy that boasts the nickname ‘Superman’ to know that he cannot physically perform at this moment, and while the Panthers will likely head off any discussion of this kind by sticking to the usual lines about how they’re competing for a title and blah, blah, blah, you won’t compete in the slightest if your franchise QB cannot make a simple ten yard throw. So please, Carolina, sit #1 down and let him heal, you’ll be glad you did in the long run.
 
The Miami Dolphins need to fire Brian Flores.
So, I totally get the fact that the Dolphins are in full-on rebuild mode in Miami, since they continue to clear their roster of top-tier talent in the hopes of reshaping it in the draft, next year. But I have some concerns about who is going to prepare and teach this influx of new talent come 2020. Because the Dolphins have been outscored 102-10 in just two weeks of football, and they look listless and hopeless on the field, and they can barely execute a play and that… comes down to coaching. And while I understand Brian Flores is new to the game and hails from the Bill Belichick coaching tree, that’s honestly a tree that has borne little fruit in the NFL and seeing a team get beatdown like this two weeks in a row, means that they are not being coached right, and they are spiraling out of control and if ownership is serious about revamping the team from top to bottom in order to compete for the Lombardi Trophy, they need to fire Brian and bring in the right person to lead this team.
 
The Denver Broncos need to bench LT Garret Bolles.
While I fully understand that the Denver Broncos are thin at offensive tackle, a problem further compounded by RT Ju’wan James’ injury, they have a serious problem on the left side of the line that they need to deal with ASAP. Because Garret Bolles is continuing to make the same mistakes he’s made over the first two years of his career in Denver, despite having the best OL coach in the league at his disposal and well, I think that means the best course of action to solve this little quandary is to sit Bolles down. I mean look, the guy just isn’t getting it, and the fact that he says he ‘disagrees’ with some of these holding calls is outrageous to say the least. But the bigger question at hand, is how Denver pulls off such a feat when there really isn’t anyone to bolster the line. Which means, at this point, the Broncos either need to shuffle the line and let Mike Munchak work wonders or initiate a trade and bring someone in that can play at that position. Either way, this has to happen and quick because the longer #72 stays out there, the more he believes he won’t be held accountable to his job and worse, he’ll keep getting holding calls on crucial drives, costing his team yards and potentially points.
 
The Eli Manning era ends with a whimper.
There was a time when Eli Manning was the toast of the football town. For his magical throws managed to bring the New England Patriots to their knees in two Super Bowls, and his time with Odell Beckham Jr. led to some phenomenal highlight reels. But eventually, the game passes you by and after spending the last couple of years struggling to string together some success at the QB position, the New York Giants announced today that Daniel Jones will be the starter in New York going forward and well, while this is not exactly an unexpected move, it really does signal the end of an incredible era in the most bittersweet way imaginable. For Eli was the face of the franchise for fifteen years, and a hero in the Big Apple, and now we enter the twilight phase of his career, wherein he will have to decide if he wants to play for another team like his brother did, or walk away from a game he contributed so much to and it should be interesting to see what comes next for #10.
 
Lamar Jackson can ball.
Last year, I was admittedly quite harsh in my criticism of Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, simply because his rookie year was an up and down affair that made me question whether or not he would be able to play at the pro level, especially when one considers that he loved to run first and throw second. But clearly, he spent the offseason working on his craft and his game because he’s been stellar through the first two weeks. He’s completed 71.9% of his passes, thrown for 596 yards and 7 touchdowns with no interceptions, and that’s darn impressive when all is said and done. So, from the bottom of my heart, I apologize for questioning Lamar and his skills, because he clearly has made great strides and knows how to balance the run and pass nicely now and I wish him nothing but continued success in Baltimore.

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