Quarterbacks to Knock Tom Brady out of the Playoffs

Since New England defeated the Philadelphia Eagles to win Super Bowl XXXIX, the Patriots have now gone 9 seasons with Tom Brady and no more rings (and yes, one of those seasons saw Brady get hurt in Week 1 and missed the final 15 games). Here's a list of the eight quarterbacks who have knocked Brady and the Patriots out of the postseason and kept him from winning a 4th Super Bowl ring.


1. January 14, 2006 - Jake Plummer - Denver Broncos

Photo Credit: http://content.usatoday.com/communities/thehuddle/post/2011/11

Plummer threw for 197 yards and a 4-yard touchdown pass to Rod Smith as the Broncos took advantage of five New England turnovers in a 27-13 win. Brady threw for 341 yards and a touchdown, but was intercepted twice, once in the end zone.


2. January 21, 2007 - Peyton Manning - Indianapolis Colts

Photo Credit: http://nypost.com/2010/01/26/ryan-blusters-big-after-bitter-defeat/

Manning rallied the Colts from a 21-3 first half deficit as Indianapolis came away with a stunning 38-34 victory. Brady threw for 232 yards an a touchdown to Jabar Gaffney, but he was intercepted by Marlin Jackson after driving the Pats into Colts territory with 24 seconds remaining sealing the win for Indy. Peyton Manning threw for 349 yards and a touchdown and also ran for a score in the come-from-behind win.


3. February 3, 2008 - Eli Manning - New York Giants

Photo Credit: http://www.yardbarker.com/nfl/articles/

New England's bid to go 19-0 went up in smoke when Eli Manning completed a 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress with 35 seconds remaining to give the Giants a 17-14 win in Super Bowl XLII. Brady threw for 266 yards and a fourth quarter touchdown to Randy Moss, but he was sacked five times. Eli Manning finished with 255 yards and a pair of touchdowns.


4. January 10, 2010 - Joe Flacco - Baltimore Ravens

Photo Credit: http://mediagallery.usatoday.com/Joe+Flacco

Joe Flacco threw for just 34 yards, no touchdowns and an interception as the Ravens rode their running game (234 yards and four touchdowns) to a 33-14 win. Brady, in his first playoff game since his knee injury in Week 1 of the 2008 season, threw for more than four times the yardage amassed by Flacco, but was intercepted three times and lost a fumble.


5. January 16, 2011 - Mark Sanchez - New York Jets

Photo Credit: http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/sports/index.ssf/2011/01/new_york_jets_upset_new_englan.html

Sanchez threw for 194 yards and completed touchdown passes to Braylon Edwards, Santonio Holmes and LaDainian Tomlinson as the Jets defeated the Patriots 28-21. Brady threw for 299 yards and two touchdowns, but one of those came with 24 seconds remaining; too little too late.


6. February 5, 2012 - Eli Manning - New York Giants

Photo Credit: http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/sports/index.ssf/2011/01/new_york_jets_upset_new_englan.html

Super Bowl XLVI ended up the same way that Super Bowl XLII did with Eli Manning leading the Giants to a come-from-behind win capped by a touchdown in the final minute of the game. Brady finished with 276 yards and a pair of touchdowns despite his biggest weapon during the regular season - Rob Gronkowski - getting injured in the AFC Championship Game and being rendered completely ineffective (2 catches 26 yards). Manning completed 30 of 40 passes for 296 yards and a touchdown and won his second Super Bowl MVP Award.


7. January 20, 2013 - Joe Flacco - Baltimore Ravens

Photo Credit: https://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2012/matchup/_/teams/ravens-patriots

Flacco was much better this time around throwing 3 second half touchdown passes as he rallied the Ravens from a 13-7 deficit to a 28-13 win and the AFC Championship. Brady threw for 320 yards in a losing effort, but was intercepted twice in the Red Zone in the fourth quarter.


8. January 19, 2014 - Peyton Manning - Denver Broncos

Photo Credit: http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2014/01/24/nfl-bad-lip-reading-is-back-video/

This time it was Brady's defense that let him down in the AFC Title Game as Peyton Manning threw for 400 yards in a 26-16 win. Brady threw for 277 yards, most of them late, and ran for a score in the fourth quarter. Denver led 23-3 with ten minutes left in the game, but Manning ensured New England never got the ball back after Brady cut the deficit to ten points.

Weekly Top Tens - 1/22/14

POSTSEASON SINGLE GAME NFL PASSING LEADERS 

Photo Credit: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/early-lead/wp/2014/01/04/

1. Andrew Luck - Indianapolis vs Kansas City - 443 yards
2. Peyton Manning - Denver vs New England - 400 yards
3. Alex Smith - Kansas City at Indianapolis - 378 yards
4. Andy Dalton - Cincinnati vs San Diego - 334 yards
5. Andrew Luck - Indianapolis at New England - 331 yards
6. Drew Brees - New Orleans at Seattle - 309 yards
7. Tom Brady - New England at Denver - 277 yards
8. Cam Newton - Carolina vs San Francisco - 267 yards
9. Drew Brees - New Orleans at Philadelphia - 250 yards
10. Peyton Manning - Denver vs San Diego - 230 yards

POSTSEASON SINGLE GAME NFL RUSHING LEADERS 

Photo Credit: http://www.concordmonitor.com/sports/10179912-95/

1. LeGarrette Blount - New England vs Indianapolis - 166 yards
2. Marshawn Lynch - Seattle vs New Orleans - 140 yards
3. Colin Kaepernick - San Francisco at Seattle - 130 yards
4. Marshawn Lynch - Seattle vs San Francisco - 109 yards
5. Colin Kaepernick - San Francisco at Green Bay - 98 yards
6. Mark Ingram - New Orleans at Philadelphia - 97 yards
7. Frank Gore - San Francisco at Carolina - 84 yards
8. Knowshon Moreno - Denver vs San Diego - 82 yards
9. Eddie Lacy - Green Bay vs San Francisco - 81 yards
10. LeSean McCoy - Philadelphia vs New Orleans - 77 yards
10. Ronnie Brown - San Diego at Cincinnati - 77 yards

POSTSEASON SINGLE GAME NFL RECEIVING LEADERS 

Photo Credit: http://www.ibtimes.com/

1. T.Y. Hilton - Indianapolis vs Kansas City - 224 yards
2. Dwayne Bowe - Kansas City at Indianapolis - 150 yards
3. Marques Colston - New Orleans at Seattle - 144 yards
4. Keenan Allen - San Diego at Denver - 142 yards
5. Anquan Boldin - San Francisco at Carolina - 136 yards
6. Demaryius Thomas - Denver vs New England - 134 yards
7. Marvin Jones - Cincinnati vs San Diego - 130 yards
8. Michael Crabtree - San Francisco at Green Bay - 125 yards
9. Doug Baldwin - Seattle vs San Francisco - 106 yards
10. Ted Ginn Jr - Carolina vs San Francisco - 104 yards

2014 NFL DRAFT ORDER

Photo Credit: http://torotimes.com/2013/12/29/houston-texans-14-consecutive-losses-pictures/3/

1. Houston Texans (2-14)
2. St. Louis Rams (7-9) - From Washington
3. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-12)
4. Cleveland Browns (4-12)
5. Oakland Raiders (4-12)
6. Atlanta Falcons (4-12)
7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-12)
8. Minnesota Vikings (5-10-1)
9. Buffalo Bills (6-10)
10. Detroit Lions (7-9)

Who Beat the '85-'86 Celtics at the Garden?

It's a well known fact that the '85-'86 Celtics own the record for the best home record in a single NBA season going 40-1 at the Boston Garden en route to an NBA Finals win over the Houston Rockets. So who beat the Celtics on their home floor? That would be the Portland Trail Blazers on December 6th, 1985 by a score of 121-103. So who were these guys? Let's take a look at the eleven Blazers who saw the floor that night:

Jim Paxson - Paxson made two all star teams in his career and actually finished his career in Boston where he played his final 2 1/2 seasons. The 6'6" swingman averaged 14.3 points per game in his career and had 16 points and 5 rebounds in this one.

Photo Credit: http://www.iamatrailblazersfan.com

Clyde Drexler - This would be the first of ten All-Star seasons for "Clyde The Glide". An original Dream Teamer, Drexler was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2004 after scoring 22195 points in 16 NBA seasons. Drexler had 19 points, 6 assists and 5 steals in the game.

Photo Credit: http://hoopshabit.com/2013/04/05/top-10-portland-trail-blazers-of-all-time/

Mychal Thompson - Drafted #1 overall by the Blazers in 1978, Thompson was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team in 1978, but was never an All-Star. Thompson joined the Lakers in 1987 at the Trade Deadline to back up Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and play kryptonite to Kevin McHale. As a Laker, Thompson won two NBA Championships. Thompson had 13 points and 6 rebounds in the game.

Photo Credit: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/409162-nba-draft-ranking-the-number-one-picks/page/20

Sam Bowie - Bowie is most famous as being the player the Trail Blazers selected 2nd in the 1984 NBA Draft when they could've had Michael Jordan who went third. The 7'1" Center had his number 31 retired by the University of Kentucky, but he averaged just 10.9 points and 7.5 rebounds in his career. That other guy Jordan won six NBA Championships. Whoops. Bowie had 18 points, a game-high 13 rebounds, 5 assists and blocked three shots.

Photo Credit: http://articles.latimes.com/2012/dec/12/sports/la-sp-sn-sam-bowie-1984-nba-draft-20121212

Darnell Valentine - Portland's starting Point Guard would get traded to the Clippers later during the '85-'86 season. His best all-around season was the previous one where he averaged 11.6 points and 7 assists while shooting a career best 47.3% from the field. Valentine scored just 2 points in the game, but had 7 assists.

Photo Credit: http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2009/11/trail_blazers_top_40_no_33_dar.html

Steve Colter - Colter was the starting Point Guard for Portland by the end of the '85-'86 season, but was in a Bulls uniform before the next season started. This would be Colter's best season as he averaged 8.7 points, 3.2 assists and 1.4 steals. Colter had a monster game off the bench scoring 22 points (12 of them at the free throw line) and dishing out 5 assists while turning the ball over just once in 27 minutes.

Photo Credit: http://www.iamatrailblazersfan.com/MessageBoardRoot/tabid/158/aff/488/aft/3781/afv/topic/Default.aspx

Jerome Kersey - A second round pick in 1984 (46th overall), Kersey was an overachiever sticking around for 17 seasons, and finally winning a ring in 1999 with San Antonio. Primarily a reserve during the '85-'86 campaign, Kersey averaged 8.5 points and 3.7 rebounds. His best season came two years later when he averaged 19.2 points and 8.3 rebounds. Like Colton, Kersey had a monster game off the bench hitting 11 of 15 field goals and finishing with 22 points. He added four rebounds and five steals in just 22 minutes.

Photo Credit: http://kicksoncards.tumblr.com/post/239427983/jerome-kersey-nike-big-nike

Caldwell Jones - One of the legendary Jones brothers, all four of whom starred at Albany State and in the NBA, Caldwell Jones was an ABA All-Star in 1975 and was a 2-time NBA All-Defensive First Team member. Standing 6'11", Jones tallied over 10000 points and 10000 rebounds between the ABA and the NBA. Jones came up with 7 points and grabbed 3 rebounds off the bench.

Photo Credit: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/914567-50-greatest-second-round-nba-draft-picks-of-all-time/page/3

Kenny Carr - A member of the 1976 Gold Medal winning U.S. Olympic Men's Basketball Team, Carr was drafted sixth overall in 1977. The 6'7" Power Forward averaged 11.6 points and 7.4 rebounds a game in his career, but had just 2 points and 2 rebounds in 9 minutes in this game.

Photo Credit: http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2009/10/trail_blazers_top_40_no_36_ken.html

Terry Porter - Porter was a two-time All Star for the Trail Blazers and averaged at least 17 points a game for 5 straight seasons at his peak. As a rookie during the '85-'86 season, Porter primarily came off the bench and averaged 7.1 points and 2.5 assists. Now an assistant coach for the Minnesota Timberwolves, Porter missed all three of his shots in this game and turned the ball over three times in nine minutes. He did have two rebounds and two assists.

Photo Credit: http://apacktobenamedlater.blogspot.com/2010/10/2010-upper-deck-basketball-greats-of.html

Ken Johnson - This would be the only season of Johnson's career. He appeared in 64 games off the bench averaging 4.1 points and 3.8 rebounds. The 6'8" Power Forward from Michigan State saw just two minutes of action in this one and did not otherwise figure into the box score.

Photo Credit: http://isportsweb.com/2012/05/17/michigan-state-basketball-all-time-10-best-power-forwards/

Weekly Top Tens - 1/15/14

WORLD GOLF RANKINGS (1/12/14)

Photo Credit: http://3jack.blogspot.com/2009/04

1. Tiger Woods (USA)
2. Adam Scott (Australia)
3. Henrik Stenson (Sweden)
4. Justin Rose (England)
5. Phil Mickelson (USA)
6. Zach Johnson (USA)
7. Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland)
8. Matt Kuchar (USA)
9. Steve Stricker (USA)
10. Sergio Garcia (Spain)

NBA LEADING SCORERS (PPG)

Photo Credit: http://origin.nba.com/2011/news/features

1. Kevin Durant - Oklahoma City - 29.8
2. Carmelo Anthony - New York - 26.0
3. LeBron James - Miami - 26.0
4. Kevin Love - Minnesota - 25.5
5. James Harden - Houston - 24.6
6. LaMarcus Aldridge - Portland - 23.6
7. DeMarcus Cousins - Sacramento - 23.5
8. Stephen Curry - Golden State - 23.0
9. Paul George - Indiana - 22.8
10. Blake Griffin - LA Clippers - 22.3

NBA LEADING REBOUNDERS (RPG)

Photo Credit: http://www.rantsports.com/fantasy/2014/01/02

1. DeAndre Jordan - LA Clippers - 13.4
2. Kevin Love - Minnesota - 13.1
3. Dwight Howard - Houston - 12.7
3. Andre Drummond - Detroit - 12.7
5. DeMarcus Cousins - Sacramento - 11.6
6. LaMarcus Aldridge - Portland - 11.0
7. Zach Randolph - Memphis - 10.6
7. Joakim Noah - Chicago - 10.6
9. Blake Griffin - LA Clippers - 10.4
10. Andrew Bogut - Golden State - 10.3

NBA LEADING ASSIST-ERS (APG)

Photo Credit: http://www.tcscomedy.com/category/sports/page

1. Chris Paul - LA Clippers - 11.2
2. Stephen Curry - Golden State - 9.3
3. John Wall - Washington - 8.6
3. Ty Lawson - Denver - 8.6
5. Brandon Jennings - Detroit - 8.5
6. Ricky Rubio - Minnesota - 8.2

7. Jrue Holiday - New Orleans - 7.9

8. Jeff Teague - Atlanta - 7.8
9. Kyle Lowry - Toronto - 7.3
10. Michael Carter-Williams - Philadelphia - 7.0

Remembering the 1995-96 Bulls

As it becomes more evident that yet another NBA season is going to go by where the Chicago Bulls record of 72 regular season wins won't be matched, I figured we'd take a moment to look back at that team and see who actually beat them.

Loss #1 - Game 6 - Orlando Magic 94 Chicago Bulls 88

Photo Credit: http://hoops-nation.com/community/topic/

Even without the injured Shaquille O'Neal, the defending Eastern Conference Champion Orlando Magic were a force to be reckoned with. While starting center Jon Koncak (career average of 4.5 points per game) didn't make anyone forget about Shaq, Penny Hardaway scored 36 points and the Magic overcame 24 turnovers to defeat the Bulls in Orlando 94-88. The Bulls shot just 39% from the field and missed nine of nineteen free throws in a losing effort. Despite the absence of Dennis Rodman, the Bulls won the rebounding battle 44-38 and grabbed 19 offensive rebounds, but ultimately their poor shooting doomed them, particularly in the third quarter when they scored just 14 points. Michael Jordan led the Bulls with 23 points, Scottie Pippen added 17 points and 10 rebounds and Toni Kukoc scored 16 off the bench. The Bulls would face the Magic three more times during the regular season and again in the Eastern Conference Finals winning all seven match-ups.

Loss #2 - Game 12 - Seattle Supersonics 97 Chicago Bulls 92

Photo Credit: http://www.hoopglobal.com/2013/09/top-10-alley-oops-gary-payton-to-shawn-kemp/

In a Preview of the 1996 NBA Finals, the Bulls took a 64-51 lead into the intermission, but mustered just 28 points in the second half, falling on the road to the Supersonics 97-92. Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp combined to score 51 points on 20 of 29 shooting and Seattle as a team shot 56% from the floor. Michael Jordan led the Bulls with 22 points but hit just 6 of 19 field goals and Scottie Pippen missed 9 of his 11 free throws. Starting center Luc Longley was one of the few bright spots for Chicago on offense as he had a season high 21 points in 28 minutes. Perhaps the toughest match-up for the '95-'96 Bulls, the Sonics would also take two games from Chicago in the NBA Finals before ultimately falling in six.

Weekly Top Tens - 1/8/14

SCOTTISH PREMIER LEAGUE LEADING SCORERS

Photo Credit: http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news

1. Billy McKay (Northern Ireland) - Inverness Caledonian Thistle - 14
2. Kris Boyd (Scotland) - Kilmarnock - 12
2. Kris Commons (Scotland) - Celtic - 12
4. Steve May (Scotland) - St. Johnstone - 11
5. John Sutton (England) - Motherwell - 10
6. Niall McGinn (Northern Ireland) - Aberdeen - 9
7. Steven Thompson (Scotland) - St. Mirren - 8
8. Kris Doolan (Scotland) - Partick Thistle -  7
8. Henri Anier (Estonia) - Motherwell - 7
10. 5 tied with 6

PORTUGUESE LIGA LEADING SCORERS

Photo Credit: http://forzaitalianfootball.com/2013/11

1. Fredy Montero (Colombia) - Sporting Lisbon - 9
2. Jackson Martínez (Colombia) - FC Porto - 7
3. Evandro (Brazil) - Estoril - 5
3. Derley (Brazil) - Maritimo - 5
5. 9 tied with 3

RUSSIAN PREMIER LEAGUE LEADING SCORERS

Photo Credit: http://en.ria.ru/sports/20130729/182474388.html

1. Artem Dzyuba (Russia) - FK Rostov-Na-Donu - 10
2. Miguel Danny (Portugal) - Zenit St Petersburg - 9
3. Yura Movsisyan (Armenia) - Spartak Moscow - 8
4. Georgi Peev (Bulgaria) - FK Amkar Perm' - 7
4. Andriy Voronin (Ukraine) - Dinamo Moscow - 7
4. Dame N'Doye (Senegal) - Lokomotiv Moscow - 7
4. Hulk (Brazil) - Zenit St Petersburg - 7
8. Spartak Gogniyev (Russia) - Ural - 6
9. 9 tied with 5

Top Tens - 1/1/14

FRENCH LIGUE 1 LEADING SCORERS

Photo Credit: http://www.hiilkubad.com

1. Zlatan Ibrahimović (Sweden) - Paris Saint-Germain - 15
2. Edinson Cavani (Uruguay) - Paris Saint-Germain - 12
3. Vincent Aboubakar (Cameroon) - Lorient - 11
4. Radamel Falcao (Colombia) - AS Monaco - 9
4. Alexandre Lacazette (France) - Lyon - 9
6. Filip Đorđević (Serbia) - Nantes - 8
6. Emmanuel Rivière (France) - AS Monaco - 8
8. André-Pierre Gignac (France) - Marseilles - 8
9. Darío Cvitanich (Argentina) - Nice - 7
9. Cheick Diabaté (Mali) - Bordeaux - 7
9. Nelson Miguel Castro Oliveira (Portugal) - Stade Rennes - 7
9. Bafétimbi Gomis (France) - Lyon - 7

ITALIAN SERIE A LEADING SCORERS

Photo Credit: http://www.ilcatenaccio.es/es/2013

1. Giuseppe Rossi (Italy) - Fiorentina - 14
2. Carlos Tévez (Argentina) - Juventus - 11
3. Rodrigo Palacio (Argentina) - Internazionale - 10
4. Alessio Cerci (Italy) - Torino - 9
4. Gonzalo Higuaín (Argentina) - Napoli - 9
6. José María Callejón (Spain) - Napoli - 8
6. Ciro Immobile (Italy) - Torino - 8
8. 6 tied with 7

DUTCH EREDIVISIE LEADING SCORERS

Photo Credit: http://www.sc-heerenveen.nl/nieuws

1. Alfred Finnbogason (Iceland) - Heerenveen - 17
2. Graziano Pellè (Italy) - Feyenoord Rotterdam - 13
3. Lucas Piazón (Brazil) - Vitesse Arnhem - 11
3. Aron Jóhannsson (USA) - AZ Alkmaar - 11
5. Luc Castaignos (Netherlands) - Twente Enschede - 10
6. Quincy Promes (Netherlands) - Twente Enschede - 8
7. 8 tied with 7