Article published November 01, 2009
Today's NFL has some really bad teams
While most of the country will be tuned in today for Brett Favre's return to Green Bay, very few onlookers will be offended by the sight of the St. Louis Rams' visit to Detroit. Ford Field figures to be half filled and the game is blacked out everywhere except for the St. Louis market. And heaven knows why anyone there would want to watch it.
The Vikings-Packers game should be a dandy. The Giants-Eagles game is always a battle. Denver at Baltimore has some cachet as the surprising Broncos try to improve to 7-0.
But Rams vs. Lions reminds us that there is an awful lot of bad football in the NFL this season.
Of course, that's no bulletin to fans in these parts that regularly keep tabs on the Lions and the Browns. Our heroes are a combined 2-11 and we can only imagine what their records will be like when they square off in Detroit on Nov. 22.
But we are not alone with such futility.
St. Louis and Tampa Bay are both 0-7 and Tennessee will match that unless Vince Young breathes life into the Titans during today's game against Jacksonville.The Lions, Browns and Kansas City are all one-win teams. Oakland is likely to drop to 2-6 today at San Diego and Seattle, picked by some to contend in the NFC West, will likely be 2-5 after today's game in Dallas.
And then there are the Washington Redskins, whose season has evolved into something between soap opera and slapstick.
The Skins have a bye today, which means it's 50-50 they won't lose. Despite a 2-5 record, you could make the case that they are equally as bad as any team in the league considering their record has come against the softest schedule to open a season in memory. Washington, which has not scored more than 17 points in any game, has provided the so-called opposition in the only wins for the Lions and Chiefs. The Redskins' two victories have come by 9-7 over the winless Rams and 16-13 over the winless Bucs.
Of all the bad teams in the league, the Rams may be the very worst. No team has scored fewer points (60) or surrendered more points (211) and, despite the presence of running back Steven Jackson, they are the only team not to have posted a rushing touchdown.
"We don't know how to win a game right now," Jackson said, lending some priceless insight into St. Louis' season to date.
The Rams have lost 17 straight, the league's longest losing streak since the Lions snapped their 19-game skid against Washington. Detroit, meanwhile, is 2-28 since midway through the 2007 season and no team in NFL history has posted a worse record over any 30-game stretch.
Matthew Stafford will likely return to quarterback the Lions today - we don't yet know the status of his top receiver, Calvin Johnson - after missing two games with a knee injury. But the Lions' defense is so bad it might not matter. Jackson, who had a 134-yard rushing performance last week against Indianapolis, might break out against Detroit, which would provide Marc Bulger with some play-action passing opportunities and, poof, the Rams' drought could end.
The NFL is built for rapid ascent or descent around salary cap, the draft, and free agency. It is why Denver can go from 8-8 one year to 6-0 the next and it is why Tennessee can go from 10-0 at the start of last season to 0-6 this year and to the owner dictating to a veteran coach who should start at quarterback.
Of course, team officials have to be fairly proficient when drafting or enticing free agents. That may be why the Lions, Browns, Chiefs, and Raiders, just to name a few, have managed to string so many bad seasons together.
Roughly one-third of the NFL's teams have won two or fewer games thus far in 2009. Of those 11 teams, seven have head coaches who are in their first full seasons on the job. So, maybe, there will be some turnarounds in the near future.
For now, though, there is an astonishing amount of rotten football being played. And along comes St. Louis vs. Detroit to help make that point.
At least it's blacked out. It will be safe to let women and children near the TV today.
Contact Blade sports columnist
Dave Hackenberg at:
dhack@theblade.com
or 419-724-6398
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