Raiders take a Knapp

From the Associated Press via FoxSports.com:

"The Raiders hired former Atlanta offensive coordinator Greg Knapp to fill the same job in Oakland, giving first-year coach Lane Kiffin an experienced coordinator to ease his transition from college to the NFL.

Knapp spent the previous three seasons with the Falcons before being let go when coach Jim Mora was fired after the season and replaced by Bobby Petrino. Knapp ran a West Coast offense in Atlanta that struggled at times to work with quarterback Michael Vick."

Raider fans, the problem with Atlanta's offense was NOT Greg Knapp. He tried to do some innovative things there to take advantage of Mike Vick's skills. Unfortunately, he couldn't install a brain in his star quarterback.

In Knapp's previous stint as an offensive coordinator with the 49ers (2001-2003), he cannot be blamed for the salary cap issues that team was suffering through at the time.

So how good is Knapp? The truth is no one knows because both of his previous stints have come with asterisks. On the positive side, he has shown he can be innovative. For the time being, he gets the benefit of the doubt from me.

Wild Card plays and other NFL thoughts

Colts 23, Chiefs 8: This was a game neither team deserved to win.

For the Chiefs, Trent Green was ice cold, which meant the Colts defense could concentrate on stopping Larry Johnson without paying for it. I don't know who was calling the offensive plays for the Chiefs, but I suspect they were possessed by the ghost of some 1960's head coach. Run, run, pass, punt.

On the other hand, the Chiefs defense looked like they were possessed by the 1970's Steelers defense. They made life miserable for Peyton Manning, who threw three interceptions. The Chiefs also kept the Colts out of the end zone until the third quarter.

Nothing the Colts did impressed me, although Dallas Clark looked good. Joseph Addai looked good in the second half, although the Chiefs defense was worn down by that point, due to the ineptitude of the Chiefs offense.

Don't look for the Colts to last past the next round, against the Ravens.

Seahawks 21, Cowboys 20: Poor Tony Romo. He does everything he can to win this game for the Boys, then botches the hold on a chip shot field goal which would have won the game.

This was a game between two teams which won't last long in the playoffs, and it showed. After watching the great defensive performances in the Chiefs-Colts game, this game was a defensive mediocrity. The worst part was the offenses didn't seem good enough to take advantage of it. A good offense against either of these teams would have put 40 points on the scoreboard easily.

Unfortunately, the Seahawks don't have to worry about facing a good offense next week with the Bears. However, I cannot see the Hawks putting up 21 on the Bears defense.

Patriots 37, Jets 16: I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed watching the Pats out-coach and out-play the Jets. All I have heard is how I have been underrating the Jets this year. That cricket chirping sound you hear is all the Jets fans now.

The Jets didn't belong in the playoffs, and the Pats proved it.

The Pats-Chargers game next week should be a good one. I want to see if Belichick can figure out a way to stop the Chargers. It may be a classic if he can.

Eagles 23, Giants 20: I must admit the Giants fans aren't nearly as obnoxious as the Jets fans. I suspect it is because they know the Giants have problems. However, the Giants put up a much better effort than the Jets did.

For awhile there, I thought the Eagles would just beat the Giants in a snoozer. When the Eagles were up 20-10 in the third quarter, I expected the Giants to just cave in. But the Giants showed some heart and tied it up in the fourth quarter. Unfortunately for the G-men, they didn't get a botched field goal attempt at the end to save them.

The Eagles will have to put up a much better effort against the Saints next week. Even though I predicted the Eagles will represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, I was not pleased by what I saw from them against the Giants.

FALCONS HIRE PETRINO: My initial thought on the Falcons hiring Louisville's Bobby Petrino as their next head coach is "bad move". College coaches generally don't do well on the pro level (see Steve Spurrier and Nick Saban). For every Jimmy Johnson who does succeed, there are plenty of Butch Davis and Dennis Erickson failures.

But it really doesn't matter who the Falcons hire as head coach, since they are determined to continue with the failed Mike Vick experiment.

Let the coaching carousel begin!

With the NFL season just ended, two coaches have already met the chopping block: Jim Mora of the Falcons and Dennis Green of the Cardinals.

Jim Mora was the living embodiment of blown opportunities. Even when he tried something innovative like using Michael Vick in the option offense, he seemed to go away from it around mid-season (about the time the Falcons started looking like crap). Rumor has it that Arthur Blank was going to give the boot to Greg Knapp, the offensive coordinator, but that Mora wouldn't part with Knapp. Add in Mora's inheritance of foot-in-mouth from his father, and Mora was doomed.

Frankly, I never understood why Blank hired Mora. When Mora was defensive coordinator for San Francisco, his defenses were ok, but nothing special.

As for Dennis Green, he was the victim of a bad franchise. No one can save the Cardinals until they get new ownership. Green deserves another shot, although I don't think he can win the Super Bowl. But with the right ownership, I think Green could make most teams winners.