The Blind Side

I guess I never revealed what a Blind Side actually is. For some people it might make a lot of sense, others who have seen the film starring Sandra Bullock about Michael Oher might have an understanding. But to others new to the game of American football I thought I would clarify what a Blind Side or to be Blind Sided actually means.

The Blind Side actually is the area outside the quarterback's vision. This is supposedly the most dangerous place for a quarterback to receive a tackle or a sack from a defender because he never has the opportunity to see the pressure coming.

Specific players on the offensive line are used to protect this side for the quarterback and it is the position the Baltimore Raven's Michael Oher plays.

Anyway I hope explains the term the Blind Side.

An Interesting Fact

With the upcoming Champions League final just a day away I started looking at facts about the matches. This then prompted me to look further into stats within the NFL, especially the Super Bowl. One of the facts that interested me the most was that so far if a team returns an interception for a touchdown at the Super Bowl, they have been the winning side proving that a sturdy defence can also win championships.

With further researching I stumbled across a fact that stated certain footballers have won the Champions League with different clubs. Clarence Seedorf was the first player to win the trophy with 3 different clubs, AC Milan, Real Madrid and Ajax.

I wondered whether this had then ever happened in the NFL. Most interestingly enough I discovered that no Quarterback has ever won a Super Bowl ring twice, with different teams and as a starter. It has however been done as a starter and backup quarterback. Kurt Warner was the closest in 2009 with the Cardinals. He had previously won a Super Bowl with the Rams narrowly when the Titans fell short on the one yard line in the dying seconds of the Bowl in 2000.

It seems that unlike football, most Quarterbacks stay very loyal with their teams. I wonder if this record will ever be achieved and if it is, by whom?

Josh Freeman - Mr Underrated

When someone mentions about top quarterbacks in the NFL, players like Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Matt Ryan, Ben Roethlisberger and Tom Brady come to mind.

They are certainly game changing quarterbacks with the ability to make even the most unlikely miracle happen. Many of the above have produced countless fourth quarter comebacks within the dying seconds of the match to snatch victories. This is what you would expect from a top quarterback, a leader in every circumstance. What you really need is consistency. What use is a quarterback that throws picks instead of completions when under pressure. You need a quarterback that delivers, and does so day in and day out.

The majority of the quarterbacks above have been to Super Bowls and back and proven themselves, but it doesn't mean they are immune from mistakes.

Take Eli Manning. Eli famously led the Giants to a third Super Bowl title against the previously unbeaten Patriots thanks to the help of David Tyree's helmet just three years ago. But the Giants have missed out on the playoffs for the last two seasons showing a dip in form. Last season, despite throwing for over 4,000 yards, 31 touchdowns, he also threw 25 interceptions, his most so far since being drafted in 2004. Maybe he was taking more risks, but the stats suggest they were unnecessary ones. The offensive line conceded just 16 sacks last season, just over half the season prior to that suggesting that they were buying the quarterback time, he was just making the wrong decisions.

Drew Brees, even more of a risk taker, threw 33 touchdown passes, but these came at a cost with the Saints leader being picked off by the opposition 22 times. Brees is an incredibly experienced quarterback and also has the luxury of experienced wide receivers surrounding him so 22 interceptions does come as a surprise.

Everyone raved about Peyton Manning - the 'Field General' producing results with his young team of receivers. The Colts struggled heavily with injuries but still managed to make the playoffs for a 9th consecutive season. He again threw well, for over 4,700 yards but this is always expected from a quarterback with such a high reputation. His quarterback rating overall for the season was incredibly poor in comparison with other top quarterbacks Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, Aaron Rodgers and Michael Vick.

A player in my eyes who deserves more recognition in the 2010-2011 is Tampa Bay's quarterback Josh Freeman. In what was only Freeman's second season, and his first full one he brought the Bucs from a team with a 3-13 record to a very impressive and positive 10-6 record. Unfortunately the Bucs narrowly missed out on the playoffs but Freeman threw for over 3,400 yards, and 25 touchdowns. And at what cost? Just 6 interceptions - equal with Michael Vick. Admittedly Freeman had a bumpy start to the season with 5 picks in the first 9 weeks, but he finished up throwing just 1 pick in the remaining 8 games showing that he is a quick learner and builds upon his mistakes. Freeman also led the Bucs to 4 remarkable comebacks last season which demonstrated his pose and matureness under pressure.

The Bucs are largely constructed on rookie players offensively, the same as the Manning situation. The most senior wide receiver is Maurice Stovall in his sixth year. What Freeman managed to achieve was definitely an impressive second season for such a young quarterback. For a side with very few consistent game changing wide receivers Freeman produced inspirational results and it is a wonder how this talent went so unnoticed amongst euphoria of Vick's comeback season success

Freeman has surely lifted what some fans believed to be a sinking ship in Tampa and the Bucs will be unfortunate to miss out again in the playoffs.

The Quarterback Conundrum

Many American football fans are trying to answer the biggest question of all at the moment - which quarterback will go where.

At the end of the 2010-2011 season it was obvious to see that many teams needed to iron our creases they had in the quarterback department.

The Cardinals struggled to find a quarterback they could depend on since the departure of Kurt Warner. They had previously pinned hope in Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart but he is still trying to find his feet in the big time.

It was a similar scenario with the Minnesota Vikings. Brett Favre is now retired leaving a gaping hole in a once formidable offence. The Vikings took the opportunity in the draft to select Chris Ponder from Florida State, a huge risk in many critics eyes judging by past accuracy and poor decision making. Will the gamble pay off though, only time will tell.

Despite being selected as in the second round of the 2010 draft, the Panthers feel that Jimmy Clausen is not the leader they were originally looking for. Many believe that Clausen wasn't given a fair chance but others believe a poor 2-14 record suggests an inability at the top level. They expressed great interest in quarterback Cam Newton from Auburn with there No.1 pick of the 2011 draft and got their man. I expect to see a intense 

battle for the No.1 spot at Panthers for the coming seasons.

The Titans will also be looking for a reliable leader after a bad attitude and disputes among players and coaches led to the departure of Vince Young. Vince, who led the Titans to the ever so memorable victory below in 'that drive' will feature in the free agency.

In the draft the Titans did select Jake Locker out of Washington as the new face of their franchise but even he has a history of injuries due to the way he plays the game and his consistency is arguable.

Lastly the Redskins have joined the market after last years controversial headline hitting QB Donovan McNabb was benched because of a string of poor performances. Donovan was let go by the Eagles after 10 seasons and the decision came back to bite them hard after a deflating defeat of the 2010 season in week 4 of 17-12.

It was the Eagles that had the last laugh however when Michael Vick returned to find form and emphatically thump the Redskins 59-28 recording four passing touchdowns, and running in two himself.

For those who missed out in the draft the opportunity comes in the form of the free agency which is scheduled as soon as lockout issues have been resolved.