Tom Savage opens possibilities for Texans' offense

Two-time Super Bowl winner Jimmy Johnson believed the worst stance an NFL head coach could take was a refusal to admit a mistake -- because then he has to confront it every day.

After two months of watching Brock Osweiler hold the Houston Texans' offense hostage, coach Bill O'Brien is no longer looking at his mistake. Cheap Jerseys

O'Brien confirmed Monday that Tom Savage will take over as the starting quarterback after the 2014 fourth-round draft pick replaced an ineffective Osweiler in Sunday's stirring comeback victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Savage led the offense on five scoring drives in the game's final 32 minutes, leaving O'Brien with little choice but to ride the hot hand at the sport's most valuable position. Wholesale Jerseys

Sporting an easy, natural throwing motion with a stronger arm and a softer touch, Savage re-opened possibilities outside the numbers and down the field.

Whereas Osweiler had left those all-important areas abandoned in favor of a compressed, tight end-centric aerial attack that rarely challenged opposing defenses, Savage finally unlocked Pro Bowl wideout DeAndre Hopkins' potential while incorporating speedy rookies Will Fuller and Wendall Williams on deep balls.

As a concession to Osweiler's obvious limitations, O'Brien had compromised the offense to reduce costly mistakes and rely more heavily on an overburdened ground attack. Cheap NFL Jerseys

The contrast in trust level was evident when O'Brien called for a shotgun pass attempt on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line on Savage's 2016 debut drive. Allowing the inexperienced signal-caller to develop a rhythm, O'Brien proceeded to dial up 10 consecutive pass attempts on one fourth-quarter field-goal drive.

Although Savage lacks Osweiler's mobility, he's noticeably calmer and more compact in the pocket. Pro Football Focus tracked Osweiler with a 0.0 passer rating on four dropbacks under pressure compared to Savage's 101.7 mark on 12 such attempts.

To be clear, no one is painting Savage as the savior. He entered the game in an ideal situation, afforded the green light to lock and load against a defense with no substantial game tape to take away his strengths and exploit his weaknesses. Osweiler paid for his two errant passes over the middle while Malik Jackson dropped Savage's interception ball in a similar spot. Wholesale NFL Jerseys

On the bright side, Savage displayed traits lacking in Osweiler's skill set, allowing Houston to shed a one-dimensional offense that had grown stale over the past two months. On the other hand, the Texans are now set to enter a do-or-die stretch against the spoiler-minded Cincinnati Bengals and surging Tennessee Titans with a quarterback preparing to make his first NFL start.

Slugging Sanchez leads Yanks' youth movement 
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Big Ten fines Michigan, reprimands Harbaugh for ripping refs

Michigan has been fined $10,000 by the Big Ten Conference for coach Jim Harbaugh's criticism of officiating from the Wolverines' 30-27 loss to rival Ohio State on Saturday.

The Big Ten also reprimanded Harbaugh for what it classified as a violation of Big Ten Conference Agreement 10.01, which in part states that the league "expects all contests involving a member institution to be conducted without compromise to any fundamental element of sportsmanship. Such fundamental elements include integrity of competition, civility toward all, and respect, particularly toward opponents and officials."

The Wolverines' second-year coach complained in his postgame news conference about several officiating decisions, including a 15-yard penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct called on Harbaugh himself, and a controversial spotting of the ball in overtime that resulted in a crucial first down for OSU. A pass interference call against Michigan, and another play that Harbaugh believed should have drawn a pass interference flag against the Buckeyes, also drew his ire. The first-down spot probably was the most costly play for the Wolverines; it came after a fourth-and-1 run by OSU QB J.T. Barrett that would have resulted in a Michigan win had the spot measured short.

The stakes for the game couldn't have been much higher. Michigan was likely knocked out of College Football Playoff contention with the loss, along with its hopes of a Big Ten Championship. Penn State and Wisconsin will play in Saturday's Big Ten title game while Ohio State (11-1) will wait in hope of being the first team to receive a CFP berth without winning a conference championship.


Michigan (10-2) has lost to the Buckeyes in five consecutive seasons.

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Ravens best Bengals to stay tied atop AFC North

A brilliant afternoon from kicker Justin Tucker paved the way for Baltimore's 19-14 win over the flailing Bengals (3-7-1). Here's what we learned from Sunday's pivotal victory for wholesale jerseys and the Ravens (6-5):

1. Tied with Pittsburgh atop the AFC North, Baltimore's playoff hopes rest on a rough-and-tumble defense that made life hell for Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton on Sunday. The NFL's second-ranked unit shut down passing lanes, pressured the pocket and clogged up a Bengals backfield that couldn't run the ball when it mattered. It was wild to watch the Ravens tip four of Dalton's final nine attempts before Elvis Dumervil's strip-sack of the signal-caller ended the game with a minute-plus to play. Ravens fans were also treated to a pair of strip sacks from the ageless Terrell Suggs, whose eight takedowns leads the team heading into Week 13.

2. Call Justin Tucker what he is: Baltimore's unquestioned MVP in 2016. While Bengals kicker Mike Nugent missed his third PAT in two weeks, Tucker immaculately pegged field goals of 52, 54 and 57 yards before the break -- making him the first player in NFL history to hit three kicks of 50-plus yards in the first half of a game. Worth every penny (and more) of his four-year, $16.8 million deal, Tucker's money-in-bank leg has repeatedly saved this touchdown-averse offense. Sunday's heroics made Tucker a perfect 27-for-27 on field goals and 14-14 on PATs on the year.cheap hockey jerseys

3. At 3-7-1, Cincinnati's season is over. Who to blame? Let's start with a shaky offensive line that struggled to open holes in the run game and botched a snap to Dalton that wound up in the arms of Dumervil. Sunday was another reminder that wideout A.J. Green fits the mold of Dave Dameshek's "Jenga Theory" to a tee. Without Green in the lineup, Cincy's offense lacked any semblance of a true downfield element.

4. Baltimore's second drive was tainted by an unnecessary roughness penalty on Ravens receiver Steve Smith. The veteran pass-catcher was flagged for jumping to his feet and using the crown of his helmet to knock Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict to the ground. Smith was understandably piqued about Burfict tossing him to the ground on the play, but it was hardly a poised response.wholesale jerseys

5. More balance on offense is critical if the Ravens plan to keep pace with the explosive Steelers. Baltimore's schedule down the stretch includes Miami, New England, Philadelphia and a critical showdown with Pittsburgh before facing the Bengals again in the regular-season finale. Not an easy slate.