Today’s “Lunch Special” serves up a little Monday morning quarterbacking:
The Jaguars’ David Garrard, not to be confused with Peyton Manning or any other top-tier QB, tossed three touchdown passes. He was sacked just once and had plenty of time to dissect the Broncos’ secondary. Garrard had a career-high passer rating (138.9).
I think the Broncos losing Elvis Dumvervil is going to cripple the defense all season.
To wit: Coach Gary Kubiak’s Texans snapped a six-game losing streak to the mighty Colts by simply stuffing the ball down Indy’s throat. Undrafted running back Arian Foster ran for a team-record 231 yards and scored three TDs in the Texans’ 34-24 victory. Manning completed 40-of-57 passes for 433 yards and three touchdowns, and it wasn’t nearly enough.
One of my favorite passages describes Peggy Shanahan dealing with her husband’s exile from the NFL.
Wrote Jenkins: It was an awkward adjustment. With no job to go to, Shanahan turned his organizational skills toward home.
Peggy says, “He kind of got in my space.”
Peggy had always handled the family finances, but now Shanahan wanted to take care of the bills. He wanted to know every single thing “he never asked a question about for 33 years.”
When Peggy would grab the car keys, he’d ask, “Where are you going?” Then he’d suggest ways she could be more efficient with her errands.
“I was like okay, that is enough,” Peggy says.
Pretty soon she was ready for him to go back to work.
Trivia time
Who was younger when they first got hired for their first NFL head coaching job, Shanahan or the Broncos’ Josh McDaniels? (Answer below)
Quotable
Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has his go-to guy back. While others might be surprised by Wes Welker’s speedy return from knee surgery, Brady’s not.
Sunday marked Welker’s return to the field, just eight months after surgery. He caught eight passes for 64 yards and two TDs in New England’s 38-24 victory over the Bengals.
“I spent a lot of time with him this off-season and the determination that he has is pretty remarkable,” Brady told reporters. “He’s an extremely mentally tough person. I knew in February, as a matter of fact, or March, that he was going to be back out on the field opening day. It just shows what his mind is all about.”
In case you missed it
The NFL is looking into reports that some Jets players who harrassed a female TV reporter who was working the Jets practice on Saturday.
The reporter, Ines Sainz of TV Azteca, a Mexican television network, was reportedly harassed by players and coaches during practice and in the locker room, prompting the The Association for Women in Sports Media to ask the NFL to investigate.
The New York Post reported that during drills, Dennis Thurman, the team’s defensive backs coach, purposely overthrew passes that landed near Sainz on the sideline. The Post also reported that some players also made sexually suggestive comments in the locker room after practice.
But there is more to the story. It was Sainz, who, while wearing a wedding dress, proposed to Brady during Media Day at Super Bowl XLIV.
While there’s no excuse for the Jets harrassing a female reporter, there remains a real question whether Sainz qualifies as a reporter at all.
Trivia answer
McDaniels was younger. He was 32 years, eight months old when he was hired by the Broncos. Shanahan was 35 years, six months when he was hired by the Raiders.
Patrick Saunders: 303-954-1720 or psaunders@denverpost.com
