New storylines emerge every week. Some are reasonable, most are not. "The Week in Overreactions" focuses on the latter. Those items that offer a cursory "How do you do?" as they blow past reality straight for THIS IS THE MOST AMAZING THING EVER! We're here to keep everything in perspective. Questions, comments, casserole ideas? Hit us up on Twitter at @ryanwilson_07.
Do we need to revisit Tom Brady's 'I'll retire when' comments?
Tom Brady is old. Tom Brady is slow. In the season opener Sunday against the Dolphins we were reminded of both. We were also reminded of something Brady said last week: "When I suck, I'll retire. I don't plan on sucking for a long time."
At his advanced NFL age, "a long time" is relative.
We're kidding, but Brady didn't resemble the usually efficient quarterback we've seen running the Patriots offense for more than a decade. Instead, he looked hurried and out of sorts because he was under constant pressure from the Dolphins' front seven.
Brady finished 29 of 56 for 249 yards with a touchdown, but he was sacked four times and his fourth-quarter totals -- while trying to lead the Patriots back from a 13-point deficit -- were truly Tebow-ian: 6 of 20 for 31 yards. The Dolphins scored 23 unanswered points in the second half, and when it was over Miami had a 33-20 victory.
Tom Brady's average of 4.4 yards a pass yesterday was his lowest since the '09 playoff loss to Baltimore. Lowest in regular season since '06
— Michael David Smith (@MichaelDavSmith) September 8, 2014
According to ESPN, Brady was pressured on 13 of 37 dropbacks in the second half (35 percent). He was pressured on 21 percent of dropbacks last year, fourth lowest in the league.
This is where you point out that the Patriots traded Pro Bowl guard Logan Mankins 14 days ago, presumably because of his advanced age (32) and big contract (Mankins carried a $10.25 million cap charge in 2014). But it wasn't just the offensive line getting manhandled; the defense was incapable of stopping a Dolphins offense that had little trouble stopping itself a season ago. New offensive coordinator Bill Lazor has quarterback Ryan Tannehill playing quicker, and free-agent acquisition Knowshon Moreno (24 carries, 134 yards) ran all over a New England defense that was supposed to remind us of those mid-2000s units -- key cogs during those Super Bowl runs -- not the hapless bunch that was regularly steamrolled in recent years.
"You can’t go out there and play the way we played today and think you will win a game this season," Brady after the game. "There is nothing positive to really take from the things that we were doing.
"It was a good example of if you do the things that we did today, you will get beat. We played a good football team at home. I would say we had a decent first half, but you have to put 60 minutes together if you are going to beat them."
In 2008, the Dolphins beat the Patriots in Miami in Week 3, 38-13, but that was because of two things: the wildcat offense and the absence of Tom Brady, who was injured against the Chiefs in the season opener. Miami went on to win the division and New England missed the playoffs.
This time was different; the wildcat has been dead for years and Brady hasn't missed a game since he returned in 2009. But at 37, is Brady closer to the end than he thinks? No one's making the case that he "sucks," but it's reasonable to wonder if he's something less than one of the NFL's best quarterbacks. Of course, we asked this question in mid-December after the Patriots lost to -- wait for it -- the Dolphins in Miami. Brady threw the ball 55 times that afternoon and was constantly harassed in the pocket. Sound familiar?
But unlike last season, when that Week 15 loss in Miami had playoff bye-week implications, we're one game into the 2014 season. It's way too early to panic, even if the Patriots are currently alone in last place in the division.
"It's tough losing, but at the same time, I'm not going to hold my head down," nose tackle Vince Wilfork said Sunday. "... It's a long season, and this is one game of many. It's not how you start; it's how you finish. We started shitty, I'll tell you that. But we'll get it together."
And there's no reason to doubt him.
I was on '03 Bills team that beat Pats 31-0 in Week 1. They went 14-2 & won Super Bowl. We went 6-10. Everybody chillax.
— Ross Tucker (@RossTuckerNFL) September 8, 2014
There's also this: A week after that loss to the Dolphins last season, Brady, doing very Brady things, beat the Ravens and in the process reminded us all of one simple mantra: As long as Belichick and Brady are around, New England has a very good chance to win.
That remains the case now, even after an uninspiring performance Sunday, and even if it turns out that Brady isn't the player he once was.
'Nick Foles is overrated' ... After throwing 27 touchdowns and two interceptions last year, Nick Foles had three turnovers in the first half of the Jaguars-Eagles game. Philly trailed 17-0 at the break and it got so bad Mark Sanchez was seen warming up on the sidelines. We still don't know if that was a motivational tactic on Chip Kelly's part or if he legitimately thought that Sanchez was the spark the Eagles needed, but Foles didn't wait around to find out. He picked it up in the second half, and helped lead Philly to 34 straight points, which was good enough for an easy win and a comfortable cover.
Foles isn't a franchise quarterback -- not yet, anyway -- but he can capably run Kelly's offense. He almost certainly won't do it as efficiently as he did a season ago, but in the NFC East, where three teams consider mediocrity a realistic goal, Foles doesn't need to.
About those Packers Super Bowl predictions ... Aaron Rodgers. That's the answer to just about any question concerning the Packers' chances this season. As long as he's upright, Green Bay is going to the playoffs, and that still holds after his indifferent effort in Thursday's loss to the Seahawks.
Like the Patriots, the Packers' issues have little to do with quarterback and almost everything to do with the offensive line. And for Green Bay, the mysterious case of the disappearing linebackers, a group that was summarily abused in Seattle.
But the Packers play in a division where every team has huge questions about its defense. And it's not like the Bears looked like world-beaters in their no-show performance at home against the Bills on Sunday. Yes, the Lions destroyed the Giants, but the Giants are the worst team in New York. Think about that for a moment.
What to make of the Bucs, Titans
... Here's what we've been saying about the Buccaneers for weeks: Without an offensive line, this team won't look much different than the group that got Greg Schiano run out of town. The defense could be special, sure, but Josh McCown won't make it to Halloween behind a patchwork front five that saw Mankins go down against the Panthers. Put differently: On paper, the Bucs made out in free agency and the draft, but rarely do perceived offseason successes translate immediately. Just look at any Washington Redskins offseason for proof.
Exacerbating things for Tampa: They've already lost to the Panthers -- who were without Cam Newton -- and they're a game behind the Falcons after Atlanta's big win against the Saints. We usually don't hear the "this is a must-win game!" nonsense until Week 3, but if the Bucs can't beat the Rams on Sunday, that's the conversation we'll be having when they travel to Atlanta.
... Great win for the Titans over what isn't a very good Chiefs team (something we said during the preseason). But here's our concern: Even if coach Ken Whisenhunt gets out of Jake Locker what he's previously gotten out of Ben Roethlisberger, Kurt Warner and Philip Rivers, then what? Locker is in the last year of his rookie deal -- the Titans chose not to pick up his fifth-year option -- and there's no way Tennessee will franchise him this offseason, even if Locker breaks every one of Peyton Manning's single-season passing records in the next four months.
So that means even if the defense continues to play well, even if Locker has a breakout season and even if the Titans win 10 games, they'll be in the market for another quarterback this offseason. It's why we remain confused at Whisenhunt's decision to take the Titans job when the Lions (who have Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson) wanted him. (Yes, we know, Tennessee reportedly offered more money.)
