TriggPack: SPECIAL WORLD CUP EDITION!!!!

So "football" isn't the only sport I watch -- I also watch (and played) "futbol" so I am taking advantage of the NFL off-season to write a special World Cup Edition of TriggPack.  I should note, however, that I'm not really qualified to offer an opinion on US Soccer, being an admittedly fair-weather fan.  That said, here's my analysis of our World Cup appearance this year.

Bottom Line: It wasn't good enough.

Twenty years ago, we were content just to make it to the World Cup.  But expectations are higher now. Multiple generations of US players have grown up playing the sport, and it feels like we've been knocking on the door of World Cup legitimacy for too long.  Here's a brief recap of our World Cup history:

• 1930: Finished 3rd in the inaugural tournament -- our best finish ever.  Never mind the rest of the world was mired in poverty, famine and intermission between two world wars.  We'll take it.
• 1950: Memorable only for the US defeat of England 1-0 -- the "shot heard round the world" (except in the US).  A big deal in England.  Largely un-noticed here since ESPN 8 "The Ocho" did not exist yet.
• 1950-1990: Sloppy journalism and poor record-keeping cause the US to think "Football" is a game played with helmets and pads… and your hands.  Soccer is born.  The rest of the world doesn't care.
• 1990: First US appearance at the World Cup in 40 years.  Immediately eliminated with losses in all three games to Czechoslovakia, Italy and Austria.  For years after, Czechoslovakian children burst into laughter at the mere utterance of the words "American soccer."
• 1994: Redeem ourselves for being selected as host country for the 1994 World Cup with several wins leading up to the tournament (i.e. we probably would have qualified even if we hadn't gotten the sympathy pass as host).  Fueled by home-field patriotism and a desire to trigger drug-related assassinations, the US advanced to the knock-out round for the first time since 1930, with a tie against Switzerland 1–1, victory over Colombia 2–1 (sorry Andrés Escobar), and a loss to Romania 0-1.  The US went on to put up a decent fight in a 1-0 loss to eventual champion, Brazil.  Overall, a very respectable World Cup.  Maybe we are good at this sport after all.
• 1998: Crapped the bed with three straight losses in group stage.  In what was then known as the "I'll take famous dictatorships for $200" group, we lost to Germany 0–2 (could happen to anyone), lost to Iran 1–2 (whose team, it was later discovered, was unable to practice because every sports field in the entire country was in use to stash weapons-grade plutonium), and lost 0–1 to Yugoslavia (were they even still a country then?).  The US finished a humiliating 32nd… of 32.  Not so good.
• 2002: Our best outing since the Great Depression.  Defeated Portugal 3–2, tied South Korea 1–1, and lost to Poland 1-3 in group play.  Advanced to knockout round, where we beat Mexico 2–0.  We then lost to Germany in the quarterfinals 0-1, who went on to lose in the championship game against Brazil.  Re-calibrated the bar for future World Cup expectations.
• 2006: Big disappointment.  Kicked things off with a 3-0 loss to the Czech Republic (who were still laughing since 1990, and beat us with only half their country).  Then teased us with a tie against Italy 1-1 before being ousted in a 1-2 loss to Ghana 1-2.  Sound familiar?

World Cup 2010

Expectations leading up to the 2010 World Cup were high.  In the 2009 Confederations Cup the US team defeated Spain 2-0 (then #1 in FIFA rankings), and made it to the final game which it lost 2-3 to Brazil.  The US then proceeded to win its World Cup qualification bracket at CONCACAF, with victories over Mexico 2-0 and Honduras 2-1.  The US drew one of the easiest groups in the World Cup -- surely we'd defeat Slovenia and Algeria and advance along with England to the round of 16.  Although US coach, Bob Bradley, and his players were not overly vocal about it, advancing out of group play was a minimum expectation, not an achievement.  As Alexi Lalas observed, elimination in group play would have been a major failure.  (By the way, is it just me, or did Alexi Lalas the player seem a hell of a lot cooler than Alexi Lalas the commentator??)

As it turned out, that major failure was one minute away before Landon Donovan saved our asses.  As glorious and memorable as that goal was, getting eliminated against Ghana was painful.  The same factors that cost us that game were prevalent throughout the first-round games:

• Giving up goals early -- the US gave up a goal 5 minutes into the Ghana game, and 3 minutes into the overtime period.  The entire tournament, it was as if they needed to be behind to be motivated.  In fact, apart from the last minute of the third game, the US never led a match in this World Cup.  At the end, there were only so many come-from-behind miracles the US could pull out. 
• Poor ball movement -- apart from Donovan, our midfield play was shaky at times.  They just didn't control the ball well, move it authoritatively, or set up viable plays.  Too many balls were stereotypically kicked forward as a long ball, rather than methodically worked forward as the best teams do.
• Inability to finish -- we had plenty of chances, but just could not convert.  We have not had a goal scored by a forward in two World Cups.  You only get so many chances at this level, and you need to take advantage of them.

The first place finish in group play had the US poised for a deep run in the tournament.  Ghana was no push-over but a hell of a lot easier than Germany.  Had we won, only Uruguay would have stood between us and the semi-finals.  This was an opportunity missed -- rarely will there be an easier path to the semi-finals. US Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati admitted the team did not meet his expectations.  "The problem is that our expectations have risen pretty sharply and there have been some performances where we didn't play as well as we would have liked," said Gulati.  Bob Bradley's job is likely in jeopardy.  Bradley himself acknowledged he was "very disappointed" with the team's outcome.


Where do we go from here?

The sad thing is I'm not really sure how the US makes it to the next level.  What would you do if you were Gulati?

1. Fire the coach -- I'm not sure Bradley really is the problem.  Granted, his starting roster in the Ghana game was not the best idea ("you never change a winning side" was the critique), but there were no obvious gaffes.  There's been talk of bringing on an international coach with World Cup experience, former German star player and coach Juergen Klinsmann being most frequently named.  But do we really want a German coach?  I think there's something to the motivation of national pride that only an American coach could conjure up.  As Gulati said, "Having someone who understands the mentality of Americans and American players is a plus. I don't think there's any doubt about that.  On the other side of that, it's also a plus to have played in a World Cup final and coached in a World Cup final, and we don't have anyone that fits that in the United States."
2. Improve player training -- unfortunately, this almost necessitates playing abroad.  It's like international basketball players who have to play in the NBA.  We just don't have the level of competition here that EPL and other top leagues have.  But that, of course, creates a viscious cycle -- US players play abroad, US fans don't see them play, MLS teams are inferior, nobody cares when World Cup comes around, etc.
3. Focus on player development -- seems like we've been doing this for over 20 years.  Go to any suburb anywhere in the US and you can see how ubiquitous the sport has become.  Are there really not enough quality athletes taking up soccer out of a 300-milion-plus population that we can't field 11 quality guys?  Or, as Klinsmann suggested in his post-game analysis, is it that we aren't recruiting the right kids into the sport?  Is soccer too much of an upper-class game in the US with players who aren't hungry enough, while the best athletes from lower-income families go into basketball and football.  Regardless, this option doesn't fix a team in 4 years.

Preparing for Brazil 2014

To be competitive in Brazil in 2014, we need dramatic improvement in a few key areas.  Here's my breakdown by position:

Keeper: Tim Howard played well throughout the tournament and is a leader for the entire defense.  He'll be 35 in the next World Cup, but, if he comes back, he's a legitimate World Cup calibre player.

Defense: Clearly a major priority for improvement.  The defense seemed wobbly all tournament, and their best starters, Bocanegra, Cherundolo, and DeMerit are all in their early 30s.  Oguchi Onyewu was supposed to be a big-time player, but he gave up two goals in the Slovenia game and didn't start again after that.  Hopefully, he returns fully from his injury to contribute to the next Cup.  There are a handful of up-and-coming defensemen, including Jonathan Spector (who's just 24 and plays for West Ham in EPL) Clarence Goodson (who plays for IK Start in Norway), Chad Marshall (who has won consecutive MLS defensive player of the year awards with the Colombus Crew), and Omar Gonzalez (who won MLS Rookie of the Year in 2009 for the Los Angeles Galaxy).  There's some good raw talent here that can, hopefully, be crafted into a solid back line by 2014.

Midfield: Probably the strongest group on the current US roster.  All five US goals at this World Cup were scored by midfielders: three by Donovan, one by Dempsey and one by Bradley.  Both Donovan and Dempsey will be in their early 30s in 2014, but both should be back.  Bradley is just 22 and, accusations of nepotism aside, showed great potential and gained tremendous experience in this year's World Cup.  We also saw outstanding play from Benny Feilhaber (25) and Maurice Edu (24), who should be able to augment this crew in 2014.

Forward: Feels weak.  There have been no goals from US forwards in the World Cup since 2002.  Jozy Altidore seemed promising and he is still only 20, but he just didn't come on as much as we'd hoped.  He didn't seem to have the skills to get the ball down and finish.  Robbie Findley showed nothing, and Herculez Gomez, apart from a few powerful but off-target shots, showed little as well.  And there don't seem to be as many promising up-and-coming players at the forward position.

For an excellent analysis of the US team's needs see this article.

As discouraged as I feel right now, perhaps we're not as far away as I think.  The reality is the US is a competitive squad, and, were it for a few lucky breaks, we could easily still be in it right now.  If we can just improve a bit in a few key areas, maybe we'll finally be able to break that upper echelon of the world's sport.  The US has a shot at hosting the 2018 or 2022 World Cup.  Maybe that will be the catalyst to finally bring home the trophy that will cement soccer's... sorry, football's place in the hearts of American sports fans.

Texas Stadium Imploding

Cool video, submitted by a TriggPack reader, from inside Texas Stadium as it was reduced to a pile of rubble. 

http://www.immersivemedia.com/live/stadiumlive/

With a Name Like Bulaga He's Gotta Be Good (or at least big)

The 2010 draft is under way, and the first round went down about as expected.  And, as Packer fans, I think we should be happy with the pick.  Certainly O-line, particularly left tackle, was a need, and it seems like we got a top prospect without having to trade up.  As expected, Trent Williams and Russell Okung were off the board early (by the 6th round, in fact), and Anthony Davis went in the 11th.  But no more OTs were selected until the Packers scooped up Bryan Bulaga from Iowa with the 23rd overall pick.

I have to admit, despite my Big 10 loyalty, that I'm a little skeptical of players coming out of that conference.  A.J. Hawk comes to mind as an example of a guy who looked dominant against the lower talent bar of the Big 10, but has only been decent as a pro.  Generally prefer SEC kids.  But Bulaga was widely regarded as a top 15 pick, is named after a whale, and looks like an East German body builder.  So I guess that's all promising.

As Thompson said, "We were a little surprised when Bryan was still available, and we felt like it was a very good value pick for us."  I just hope his neck width is attributable to his workout regimen, not a thyroid the size of an airbag (he had thyroiditis).  With Ndamukong Suh going to the Lions, the importance of getting help at O-line was even more critical.  So I'm glad we got a guy at that position without having to over reach.  (By the way, the Lions also scooped up Jahvid Best, who was still on the board when the Packers picked and I was secretly kind of hoping for just so we could have 2 Cal Bears in the backfield.)

So on to round 2 (in which the Packers have the #24 pick, #56 overall) and round 3 (with pick #22, #86 overall).  The priority now shifts, in my opinion, to defensive backs.  Unfortunately, the pickings are slim.  Eric Berry and Earl Thomas both went early as expected.  Taylor Mays, safety from USC is still available, but I don't know if he's any good.  There was a bit of a run on cornerbacks in the first round, with 5 of them (Joe Haden, Kareem Jackson, Devin McCourty, Kyle Wilson, and Patrick Robinson) selected.  Since that was basically all the CBs I'd ever heard of, I'm not sure whether there's anyone left at that position worthy of a look.

I still look at running back as a possibility, with only Spiller, Matnews and Best picked up so far.  But I think Thompson's most likely next move is an OLB.  With Kampman gone (and not particularly effective while he was there), it's certainly a need.  The JS Online broke down some of the top players at this position who could fit into the Packers' 3-4 scheme -- many of them are still on the board.  So that's my prediction on the next pick.

Draft Day!!!

Hard to believe the NFL draft is already upon us.  I have been saving clips and links to breakdown the Packers draft strategy for months, but the clock has simply run out on my doing anything comprehensive.  So, instead, all I can offer is my quick and simple analysis: O-line and D-backfield.  That simple.

Most of the mock drafts and expert analysts I've read assume that the Packers will try to shore up their league-worst-sacks-allowed offensive line with their first round pick.  The trouble is, will they be able to get someone good at the #23 spot?  The glamor pick is a left tackle, and the best guys in the draft at that position are:

1. Russell Okung, Oklahoma State
2. Trent Williams, Oklahoma
3. Bryan Bulaga, Iowa
4. Anthony Davis, Rutgers
5. Charles Brown, USC

Most of the experts think the top 4 are a cut above and will be off the board by the Packers pick.  Leaving us facing the unfortunately named Charlie Brown, the most mocked wannabe cartoon football player of all time.  There's speculation in the blogosphere that Thompson might try to move up in the first round to get more of a franchise guy.  But my guess is that he won't do that -- instead taking a more versatile offensive lineman (a la T.J. Lang) to back up the older guys like Clifton and Tauscher.  Not sure that's worth a first round pick though, so I could see them going a different direction.

Which brings us to the Packers second big need: defensive backfield.  I almost think this is a more acute need than O-line, just because of how exposed they were went they went into nickel/dime last year and the situation with Harris (although I'd probably be looking for safeties first).  Of course, I'd love to see them get a top tier guy like Eric Berry from Tennessee or Earl Thomas from Texas.  Lots of versatility.  If they're there, take 'em.  But hard to imagine them dropping that far.  A name that's been thrown around is USC's Taylor Mays.  I don't know much about any of these guys, but again I think Thompson will go for versatility.  He doesn't necessarily need a first-year starter here -- just someone who won't suck in nickel/dime coverage, and who has the possibility of developing into a starter in a couple years as the veteran guys age out.  If he can compete for Bigby's job, great, but that's not a prerequisite at this position.

They could also go for a cornerback with the first round pick -- some names floated include Rutgers’ Devin McCourty, Florida State’s Patrick Robinson, Alabama’s Kareem Jackson, and Boise State's Kyle Wilson.  With Woodson at age 33 and Harris at 35 (and coming off a knee injury), picking a corner -- and giving him a season or two to develop under these veterans -- could certainly make sense.  I don't know that it matters that much if the guy is a safety or a corner, though, given the need.  I hope they get one of each.

The other position I hear talked about is an outside linebacker.  But I'd be a little disappointed to see Thompson go that direction in the first round.  With Clay Mathews in there and a decent LB corps overall, I see this position as less urgent for the Packers.  Some of the possibilities at this position include Texas’ Sergio Kindle, TCU’s Jerry Hughes and Michigan’s Brandon Graham.  But it seems like there's decent depth at the OLB slot in this year's draft, so if the Packers pick one, I'd rather see them do it in a later round.

Finally, the "sleeper" pick in my opinion could be a running back.  Ryan Grant has been serviceable (and I think in many ways greatly under-appreciated), but the trend in the league is to get a young, versatile back and cut guys who have more than about 5 years on their tires.  I also think, given the needs of the teams ahead of them, there could be some quality RBs on the board that you'd take under a "best player available" philosophy.  One mock draft I looked at had only two RBs going before the Packer's pick at #23 (C.J. Spiller from Clemson at 14th overall, and Ryan Mathews from Fresno State at 20th overall).  If that's true, that leaves some potential stud RBs, including Jonathan Dwyer from Georgia Tech, Jahvid Best from Cal (go Cal!), Charles Scott from LSU and others.  If I were Thompson, I'd give serious thought to any of those guys.

So those are my thoughts.  Last year's draft class was fantastic.  Hope we do as well this year.  This is Thompson's forte, so I look forward to seeing what he does.

Ground Hog Day

With Punxsutawney Phil looking for his shadow this week, it seemed like appropriate timing for a Favre post.  It’s now 10 days after the Vikings lost the NFC Championship game, and, shockingly, no word from Favre yet about whether or not he will retire.  It’s amazing how much passion and opinion #4 still provokes among Packer fans.  Many despise him – feel he has ruined his legacy and will never forgive him for going to the Vikings.  Many still love him – feel Thompson and McCarthy made the greatest mistake ever letting him go.

I mostly was the former.  After the first un-retirement, I was not sorry to see Brett leave.  I thought Packers management, though they created a PR mess, made the right decision to transition him out of the organization.  I was appalled when Favre un-retired a second time and signed with the Vikings.  I wanted him and the team to fail there, and was frustrated that he had one of his best seasons ever – beating the Packers twice.  If he was still capable of playing like that, why didn’t he do it his last 5 seasons in Green Bay?

But Sunday’s game really gave me a new adjective to describe Brett’s career: tragic.  I firmly believe that all the drama, the flip-flopping, the back-stabbing, the waffling, the un-retirements, the angst-laden press conferences, the incredible will to win this season, etc. was driven by one thing: Brett couldn’t stand that the last play of his NFL career was an interception that cost his team a trip to the Super Bowl.

This play, which is etched on the brain of every Packer fan, is chiseled from granite, outlined in spray paint, burned by blow torch, and filled in with blood in Brett Favre’s brain.



It was his chance to go out on top.  His chance to do what John Elway did to him – win a Super Bowl and ride off into the sunset.  And it was gone in one play; one under-thrown pass.  It was a play that set off a series of events that ended his career in Green Bay.

Two years later, in the face of all the prognosticators and haters who never thought he could do it again, he managed to reach that same precipice of opportunity.  He burned every bridge.  He betrayed the city that made him who he is – all for that last shot.  And in the end, the final result was the same: his last play was an interception that cost his team a trip to the Super Bowl.



Tragic.  As desperately as I wanted the Vikings to lose that game, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for Favre.  In the same game, he reminded us why he was so great – his toughness, his competitiveness, his will to win – and why he was so flawed.  Whether he finally calls it quits or not this year, his legacy is increasingly written as the guy who cost his team the big game.

Of course, Favre has done innumerable great things in his career.  And he could follow the lead of Kurt Warner and retire gracefully.  I’m not sure he can – not sure if his own compulsive drive and the ghosts of those two games will let him.  But I hope he does.

All I know is our quarterback started the Pro Bowl this year, and the Vikings quarterback next year could be starting Sage Rosenfels.  Good luck with your off-season Vikings fans.

And... Cut!

It seems so abrupt.  The end of a season, that is.  One play and it's all snuffed out.  The months of preparation, hardship, anticipation -- all, in the end, feels like it didn't matter.  It still feels surreal that we won’t be playing next weekend.  I guess I really can go get that haircut now.

Rather than my usual “three observations”, I thought I’d go with something that Packer fans will, hopefully, find therapeutic in the aftermath of this devastating loss.  So I give you my seven stages of Packer playoff grieving, as a template for how you might cope with this tragedy yourself.  At the very least, through the telling of my experience, you can take comfort in the fact you're not alone.

7 Stages of Packer Playoff Grieving

Stage 1: Shock – There is no better word to characterize my reaction to that final play.  Pure, slack-jawed shock.  My brain literally couldn’t process what my eyes had just seen.  I was so certain, after Rackers shanked the field goal in regulation, after winning the coin toss to receive the ball, after nearly hitting Jennings for a TD on the first play of OT, that we were going to win that game, that I just couldn’t accept, for several minutes, what had just transpired.

Stage 2: Denial – With my Tivo remote clenched in my hand, I rewound the final play, whispering “no, no, no…”  That didn’t just happen.  This is a bad dream.  They must have missed something.  Wasn’t there a penalty somewhere?  Shouldn’t there have been an instant replay??  Wasn’t there something that was going to reverse what I had just witnessed!?!?  The Packers were supposed to win that game.  Everyone thought so.  Last weekend, the Cardinals themselves looked like they'd ceded a loss.  Hell, many of the experts were picking Green Bay to go to the Super Bowl.  This couldn’t have happened!

Stage 3: Anger – As I prepared to hurtle the remote control through our 40” plasma, my wife gently reminded me to “model good behavior” for my two sons who were lagging behind a little in the Shock and Denial phases.  (By the way, it's very difficult to calmly answer the question, “Daddy, does this mean the Packers are out of the playoffs?”).  So, with a clenched, maniacal pseudo-grin, I proceeded to explain to my offspring why daddy was “disappointed” in the following people:

• Dom Capers who seemed to think a game-plan was un-necessary and evidently lost his notes on the back of a Southwest cocktail napkin from the week earlier.  His so-called #2 defense got rung up for 531 yards, 45 points (I won't count the defensive TD), and managed to force only one punt.  Embarrassing.
• Aaron Rodgers for throwing an interception on the opening play, over-throwing Jennings twice on a pass that “daddy could have thrown”, and assisting Karlos Dansby with the final interception with his foot.
• Tramon Williams, Jarrett Bush, Josh Bell, some guy named Giordano, and anyone else they threw out there to play in the defensive secondary for failing to get within 5 yards of an open receiver.  When someone named Early Doucet snags 6 catches for 77 yards and 2 TDs, someone "didn't do a very good job."
• The entire defensive line for getting zero pressure on Warner all day and allowing 156 rushing yards, including an 18-yard scramble by some dude named Stephens-Howling.
• The entire offensive line for giving up 5 sacks, including the game loser.
• Every NFL analyst who picked the Packers to go to the Super Bowl and got my hopes up
• Troy Aikman for relentlessly mis-pronouncing our city Green Bay and the razor-sharp insight that “The Packers defense needs to show they can stop the Cardinals here.”
• Brett Favre, just because.
• Myself for wasting many late-night person hours this fall writing this dumb ass blog.
  

Stage 4: Bargaining – Then, it occurred to me, the real reason the Packers lost was due to blown calls by the officials.  It was so obvious!  First, there was Fitzgerald’s overt shove of Woodson to free himself up for a touchdown.  Then, of course, in the final series of overtime, the refs missed a blatant helmet-to-helmet hit on Rodgers that should have drawn a personal foul.  And on the final and fateful play of the game, they inexplicably missed a facemask on Rodgers which helped force the fumble, which is obvious in this photo.  Interesting analysis of these missed calls here.

This was simple.  We’d just call up Roger Goodell, and politely point out that the refs may have possibly over-looked some penalties that could have changed the entire outcome of the game.  He would, very rationally upon seeing the review, agree and declare Green Bay the winner.  Does anyone have Roger's number?

Stage 5: Guilt – My anger phase was coming back to haunt me.  How could I have said that about Aaron Rodgers!?  The guy went off for 422 yards and four touchdowns – setting a team playoff record for passing yards and tying it for touchdowns.  Better than Brett ever played.  What an ungrateful fan I was for expecting him to shoulder even more than he already had.

I also felt guilty that I had infected my own children with this disease, this obsession.  I’d set them up for disappointment.  I couldn’t stand the looks on their faces, huddled quietly on the couch in their Packers jerseys.

Stage 6: Depression – The futility of my emotional roller coaster set in on Monday morning.  This season just felt like such a lost opportunity – such a promising team that was tragically cut off before their time.  It was like euthanizing your dog you’ve played fetch with every Sunday afternoon.  You know there’s going to be this big empty void, as you eagerly reach for the remote next weekend only to remember… they’re gone.  Will they be able to field a team this good next year?  How will they fill the gaps?  What if Rodgers or Woodson gets injured next year and they tank?  You need to seize opportunities like this when you get them, and we didn’t.

I was bitter about the in-authenticity of Cardinal fans, gloating over the victory of their transplanted team under their retractable roof.  I was sullen about the other teams who were advancing while the Packers cleaned out their lockers.  I was sickened by the thought of reading, listening or watching any news about the Packers.  I do this every year – over-indulge in every bit of Packers news I can get my hands on like a Minnesota truck driver at Old Country Buffet, and then, when the Packers season ends, I’m suddenly repulsed by it.  Packer news that was so titillating two days ago looks no more appealing than the crusted over day-old lasagna at Sbarro.  I can’t eat another bite, and I regret my gluttony in the first place.

Stage 7: Acceptance – I’m not sure “acceptance” is a stage I’ve ever been able to fully achieve with the Packers playoff losses.  The overtime loss to the Giants in the 2007 NFC Championship game, the Randy Moss mock-moon in the 2004 wild-card loss to the Vikings, the infamous “4th and 26” loss to the Eagles in 2003, the Michael Vick-led blow-out by the Falcons in 2002, Favre’s six interceptions in the Rams dismantling of the Packers in 2001, the last-second catch by Terrell Owens to propel the 49ers past us in 1998, and, of course, the Super Bowl loss to Denver in 1997.  All these games are etched on my brain like they were yesterday.  Losing seasons aren’t as painful or memorable for some reason.  It’s getting your hopes up, as mine were each of those playoff years, only to have them shattered that makes them so hard to accept.

But it’s time to pick up the pieces of the 2009 season and look forward to 2010.  We have a great, young nucleus of a team.  There are certainly several holes that need to be filled (more on that later), but I believe this will be a learning experience for the team – and one they will come back to avenge next year.

Devastated

Many frustrated thoughts going through my head, but emotional state still too fragile to write.  The prevailing question: how does the #2 offense in the NFL give up 500+ yards of total offense, 51 points, and only force one punt.  Ridiculous.  More to come once I regain my composure.