Seattle Sport

New York Giants

The Giants struggled after their Super Bowl loss and Fassel was replaced by current coach Tom Coughlin in 2004. Although Collins had several solid seasons as the Giants quarterback, he experienced his share of struggles. In 2004, the Giants completed a draft day trade acquiring quarterback Eli Manning out of the University of Mississippi. Manning has been the team’s starting quarterback since the middle of the 2004 season, taking over for Kurt Warner. The early part of Coughlin’s tenure also produced inconsistent results (a 25–23 record and two playoff appearances—both losses, before the 2007 season) and spawned intense media scrutiny concerning the direction of the team. During this period in their history, standout players include defensive end Michael Strahan, who set the NFL single season record in sacks in 2001, and running back Tiki Barber, who set a team record for rushing yards in a season in 2005.

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Jacksonville Jaguars

Jacksonville looked like a team on the rise coming off of their 12-4 season, and was considered a playoff contender entering the season. But injuries plagued the team. Reggie Hayward, Greg Jones, Donovin Darius, Byron Leftwich, and Mike Peterson all suffered season-ending injuries. Marcus Stroud, Matt Jones, Paul Spicer, and Fred Taylor also faced injuries during the season. The team started off 2-0, defeating the Dallas Cowboys earning the NFL’s highest winning percentage on opening days at .750 with a record of 9-3), and shutting out the defending champs Pittsburgh Steelers. But the team lost its next two games, and suffered embarrassing losses to the Houston Texans over the course of the season. (Surprisingly, Jacksonville has struggled against the Texans since Houston entered the league in 2002.) They missed the playoffs with an 8-8 record, but there were some positives. Maurice Jones-Drew, the Jaguars’ second round draft pick, was one of the most surprising rookie sensations. He averaged 5.7 yards a carry, the highest in the league, and tied for 3rd in the NFL with 16 touchdowns.

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New York Jets

On January 7, 2007, the Jets played rival AFC East champion New England Patriots. The Jets had both beaten and lost to the Patriots in the regular season. While the Jets took an early 10-7 lead after a field goal and a 77-yard touchdown catch and run by Jerricho Cotchery, which was the second longest pass play in Wild Card history, the Jets were not able to score another touchdown, and the Patriots closed out the game after two turnovers by the Jets offense. The Jets postseason ended with a 37-16 loss. One notable aspect of the game was the rivalry between Patriot head coach Bill Belichick and Jet head coach Eric Mangini. The two were not on good terms, and their relationship was widely publicized before the game. Regardless, at games end, the two embraced.

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Detroit Lions

Millen has also received tremendous criticism for his draft failures. Three in particular stand out: quarterback Joey Harrington, chosen third overall in the 2002 draft, was traded to the Miami Dolphins for a conditional late-round draft pick after four unremarkable seasons in Detroit; wide receiver Charles Rogers, a caution on many pre-draft reports for his fragile physique, was nonetheless chosen second overall in the 2003 draft, and played sparingly in his three injury-plagued seasons before being cut before the first game of the 2006 season; Millen’s sixth first-round draft pick, Mike Williams (10th overall - 2005 draft), caught just 8 passes in eight games with the team before being traded along with Josh McCown for a 4th round pick in the 2007 NFL Draft.

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Green Bay Packers

Green Bay Packers released Mike Sherman after the 2005 season, because of having the Packers going 4-12. They went on the hunt soon after, and picked up Mike McCarthy, the former offensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers. He was also the former quarterbacks coach for the Packers in 1999.

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Carolina Panthers

The Panthers began the 2007 season as playoff contenders, and won their opener against St. Louis Rams for the first time since 2003. However, the next week at home against the Houston Texans the Panthers jumped ahead 14-0 but lost 34-21. In week three, Jake Delhomme was lost for the season with an injured elbow, which resulted in Tommy John Surgery. The Panthers went on a five game losing streak, including a last-minute loss to the Atlanta Falcons.

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New England Patriots

The Patriots current coach, Bill Belichick, was hired in 2000, and a new home field, Gillette Stadium was opened in 2002. Under Belichick, the team went to three Super Bowls in four years, and finished the 2007 regular season with a perfect 16–0 record, becoming only the fifth team in league history to go undefeated in the regular season, and the only one since the league expanded its regular season schedule to 16 games. After advancing to Super Bowl XLII, the team’s fourth Super Bowl in seven years, the New England Patriots were defeated by the Giants to end their bid at a 19–0 season. With the loss, the Patriots ended the year at 18–1, becoming only one of three teams to go 18–1 along with the 1984 San Francisco 49ers and the 1985 Chicago Bears. Those teams, however, incurred their single loss during the regular season.

Oakland Raiders

In an effort to bolster their offense, in early 2005 the Raiders acquired Pro Bowl wide receiver Randy Moss via trade with the Minnesota Vikings, and signed free agent running back LaMont Jordan of the New York Jets. After a 4-12 season and a second consecutive last place finish, Turner was fired as head coach. On February 11, 2006 the team announced the return of Art Shell as head coach. In announcing the move, Al Davis said that firing Shell in 1995 had been a mistake.[47]

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St. Louis Rams

The 1995 and 1996 seasons the Rams were under the direction of head coach Rich Brooks. Then in 1997 Dick Vermeil was hired as the head coach. He remained head coach until retiring after the Rams won Super Bowl XXXIV against the Tennessee Titans in early 2000. After that Mike Martz took over until his firing in 2005. Scott Linehan is the current head coach after replacing Martz in January of 2006. During this time some of the most important players have been Kurt Warner, Marshall Faulk, Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce. They were part of an offense dubbed “one of the fastest ever” and “The Greatest Show on Turf”. This offense has been under the direction of Kurt Warner (1999-2001) and Marc Bulger (2002-present).

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Baltimore Ravens

The 2006 Baltimore Ravens season began with the team trying to improve on their 6-10 record of 2005. The Ravens, for the first time in franchise history, started 4-0, under the leadership of former Titans quarterback Steve McNair.

The Ravens lost 2 straight games mid-season on offensive troubles, prompting coach Brian Billick to drop their offensive coordinator Jim Fassel in their week 7 bye. After the bye, and with Billick calling the offense, Baltimore would record a five-game win streak before losing to the Bengals in week 13.

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