Jean Fugett’s Week 5 NFL Recap
By Jean Fugett; thanks to Charlie Campbell – @draftcampbell
WalterFootball.com is proud to partner with former Redskins and Cowboys tight end Jean Fugett, Jr. Esq. Fugett grew up in Baltimore, Maryland and attended Amherst College. He was the last pick of the 13th round in the 1972 NFL Draft. Fugett made the Cowboys as a backup to future Hall of Famer Mike Ditka. Fugett eventually became a starter for Tom Landry’s Cowboys and started in Super Bowl X. He made the Pro Bowl in 1977.
As a free agent, Fugett went from being the lowest-paid starting tight end to the highest-paid with the Washington Redskins. While playing for legendary Redskins coach George Allen, Fugett attended law school at George Washington University at night.
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During and after his playing days, Fugett worked with CBS, the Washington Post and other media. He went on to serve as Director and Vice-Chair of the McCall Pattern Company Management Committee, founded a Baltimore law firm and partnered with Fanfone in Europe. After the death of his brother Reginald F. Lewis in 1993, Fugett took over TLC Beatrice International Foods, the largest black-owned and black-managed business in the world at the time. Fugett has served on committees with the NFL Players Association and on the Leadership Council for the American Diabetes Association Maryland Chapter. |
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WalterFootball.com would like to thank Redskins general manager Bruce Allen and senior vice president/executive producer of media Larry Michael for connecting us to Fugett. Now, let’s let Jean take over.
Week 6 NFL Picks
Raiders at Chiefs (KC – 8.5) Oakland to cover and could win in division battle
Eagles at Bucs (Phi -1) Eagles cause the Bucs are infected
Packers at Ravens (Packers -3) Ravens with the points are tough at home
Lions at Browns (Detroit -2.5) Browns tough at home and too much for Lions
Panthers at Vikings (Vikings -2.5) Interesting game; going with the home team
Rams at Texans (Texans -7.5) Texans continue to implode; Rams cover
Steelers at Jets (Jets -2.5) Steelers Finally!
Bengals at Bills (Bengals -7) Bengals barely
Titans at Seahawks (Sea -13.5) Titans to cover
Jaguars at Broncos (Broncos -26.5) Spread looks like the halftime score here
Cardinals at 49ers (49ers -11) Arizona to cover; 49ers too inconsistent
Saints at Patriots (Patriots -2.5) Pats in trouble here Saints win AGAIN
Redskins at Cowboys (Dal -5.5) Dallas has been waiting A YEAR for this game
Colts at Chargers (Colts -1.5) Chargers showed last week who they are. Colts
Week 5 NFL Recap
The NFL never wanted to be known as a low-scoring league. The NFL never wanted to be confused with the international sport of “football,” or soccer as it is known here in the United States, or hockey or even baseball, our national pastime. Why did the football gods decide to award six points for a touchdown? Only one point for a conversion after a touchdown; two points for a non-kick conversion or for a defense score of a safety; and three points are awarded for a field goal? What happened to four-point and five-point awards? Where was the logic unless … the idea was a game with high scores.
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I wonder if some study showed that American fans have trouble paying attention to a game unless lots of points are scored. Look what MLB did because fans became bored: Baseball designed a new rule to produce more scoring in the American League with the invention of the DH (designated hitter), which allows a batter to bat instead of the pitcher – in the American League only. The NFL always wants to be the smartest league and wants to always make sure the offense has the advantage in every game. Now, favorable rules coupled with good quarterbacking produce a lot of points on Sunday. With rules that do not permit defenders to touch the opponent, we are seeing high scores as the outcome. Every game, the veteran quarterbacks take advantage of the rule that receivers can only be touched one time as they leave the line of scrimmage and cannot be touched downfield. What a crazy rule. How can any athlete, even Deion Sanders, run all over the field with today’s very fast, shifty receivers without any contact? It is virtually impossible and harder to do than hitting a baseball! Soon, the NFL may have to make an adjustment. MLB made an adjustment after the 1968 season. Bob Gibson’s record-breaking performances convinced the baseball gods that the pitching mound was too high and it was lowered. Some NFL adjustment is needed to help the defense. |
Former Redskin and Cowboy tight end Jean Fugett was a Pro Bowler in 1977 and a starter in Super Bowl X. |
We can’t let these little small players change our national game. The NFL has become the national game because of high scoring and tough physical play. Back in the day, you had to be big, physical and tough all over the field. The league has changed and now an NFL player does not have to be big, physical or tough, even at the line of scrimmage.
The track meet last week between Dallas and Denver is a perfect example of what is to come in the NFL future. More like a seven-on-seven drill than tackle football, after many games fans will wonder “Were there any defensive players in the game?”
It is tough to win in the NFL if you don’t have a quarterback like Peyton Manning or Drew Brees and a head coach who understands that with fast receivers going down the field, any throw could easily result in a penalty on the defense. If you saw the Dolphins-Ravens game, you saw that the Ravens used that strategy and benefited from calls downfield. Once the ball is in the air, the receiver already has an advantage, and if grabbed or touched in any way, a penalty is usually called. Defenders hold on almost any play and it is remarkable that more penalties are not called. I think some of the officials must have poor vision or watch the wrong things. I would not be surprised if this season is one of the highest-scoring seasons in league history. For my friends in Las Vegas, I suggest the over in NFL games.
AFC
Dallas showed that teams can be competitive and play the Broncos closely. Denver is always one play away from being equal to the rest of the league with an injury to Peyton Manning. Can Denver continue to protect him for the remainder of the season, and can he continue to get rid of the ball that quickly to open receivers? The Broncos have already had a great season. However, quietly perhaps, Kansas City is also 5-0 and tied for the division lead.
Denver has scored 230 points this season, while Kansas City has scored more than 100 points fewer with 128. Yet both are 5-0. As for points allowed, the Broncos has given up 139 points which is 11 more than the Chiefs have scored! On defense, Kansas City has given up only 58 points this season. The Chiefs have an excellent defense and pass rush, something Denver has to be concerned about that.
The AFC North is interesting and astonishing all at the same time with three teams tied at 3-2. The Bengals showed it is possible to win with defense and fundamentals. They look like the old George Allen teams with Billy Kilmer at quarterback. We didn’t always score a lot of points, but the defense would keep us in every game. That is the kind of team that Marvin Lewis has built in Cincinnati. The Bengals are very tough at home.
In the AFC East, Miami, the New York Jets and Buffalo all look about the same to me, though the Jets are starting to emerge with better quarterback play. As for the Patriots, when was the last time that Tom Brady was held without a touchdown?
In the AFC South, many were surprised to see the Colts beat Seattle this week, but the Seahawks are a different team when playing on the road. Tennessee is 3-2 and many are surprised that the Texans are 2-3. Jacksonville is just not competitive and will be playing for pride this week against Denver as a HUGE underdog, but they say on any given Sunday … and after all the Jaguars are pros too!
NFC
In the NFC West, Seattle is winning at home, but lost to the Colts on the road, which means the Seahawks are only one game ahead of the 49ers. Surprisingly, Seattle is only one game ahead of Arizona too! I must admit that I did not have the Cardinals being 3-2 at this stage, and it must be attributed to the new coach Bruce Arians.
The NFC North is interesting with Detroit and Chicago being up and down. Green Bay is trying to find its stride and faces a tough test this week on the road at Baltimore. The Vikings still have a chance to compete in the division if they can stay healthy late in the season, especially now with the signing of Josh Freeman.
New Orleans will continue to cruise in the NFC South with Atlanta’s poor start destined to get worse with the injury to Julio Jones. Tampa Bay is futile and Carolina’s loss to Arizona was a setback. The Saints will have an easy march to the playoffs. They may have the best quarterback in the league. I know we talk a lot about Peyton Manning, but Drew Brees ain’t bad.
Finally the NFC Least, I’m sorry, the NFC East. As a former player in this division, I never thought we would be calling the NFC East the NFC Least, but it looks pretty weak this year.
Dallas played well last week but lost; the Cowboys played, shall we say, well enough to lose. The Eagles showed some ability, but who were they beating, the Giants? How can you really gauge Philadelphia’s progress? The woeful New York Giants make you wonder if we are seeing the end of the Coughlin era or the end of Eli Manning with the Giants. The media in New York can portray players and coaches in a harsh light when they lose as the fans constantly demand excellence. There is already a lot of pressure on the Giants.
As for the Redskins, they had the week off and many in Washington think the bye will help the team against Dallas this week. We can only wonder if we will see Robert Griffin run the read option. If Griffin can stay healthy, he will get stronger every week. The Redskins have a history of finishing strong under Coach Shanahan, as they won seven straight last year to end the regular season.
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Jean Fugett's Week 13 NFL Picks and NFL Week 12 Recap - 11/29
Jean Fugett's Week 12 NFL Picks and NFL Week 11 Recap - 11/22
Jean Fugett's Week 11 NFL Picks and NFL Week 10 Recap - 11/15
Jean Fugett's Week 10 NFL Picks and NFL Week 9 Recap - 11/8
Jean Fugett's Week 9 NFL Picks and NFL Week 8 Recap - 11/1
Jean Fugett's Week 8 NFL Picks and NFL Week 7 Recap - 10/27
Jean Fugett's Week 7 NFL Picks and NFL Week 6 Recap - 10/17
Jean Fugett's Week 6 NFL Picks and NFL Week 5 Recap - 10/10
Jean Fugett's Week 5 NFL Picks and NFL Week 4 Recap - 9/30
Jean Fugett's Week 3 NFL Picks and NFL Week 2 Recap - 9/19
Jean Fugett's Week 2 NFL Picks and NFL Week 1 Recap - 9/15
Jean Fugett's 2013 NFL Season Preview - 8/31
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