The End of The Beginning

Well, that was a killjoy of a game. So much for momentum. So much for getting geeked up against an AFC West rival at home after crushing one on the road. So much for beating a team that had lost 19 of its last 20 games. So much for pride and poise. I was there, and it was much more pathetic than the score suggests. This team is literally sucking the blood out of the Coliseum. Failure is now the expectation in the stands and the culture on the field. No urgency. No energy. No nothing.

I'm all for changing things up, but what, exactly, was Janikowski going to do once he got that pigskin with 10 yards between him and a first down? Janikowsi got as many touches in the first half as McFadden got in the second half. Think about that for a second and try not to smash something. There's changing things up, and then there's insanity. This was the latter.

I keep hearing that Russell is young. Yes, well so are a lot of quarterbacks (Ryan, Thigpen, Flacco, blah, blah, blah) who don't overthrow every receiver, and who don't wear fur coats and sunglasses to press conferences. Please play (and train) like a star, then dress like one, not vice versa.

The defense doesn't get a pass, either. Exhibit A: Gibrill Wilson dropping a pass. Blitzing? Why blitz when you can get carved up like Thanksgiving leftovers? The toughest thing about Rob Ryan right now is his hair.