Pro Buckeyes! Scarlet & Gray Standouts from Week 3

It was a historic day in NFL for a former Buckeye great on the defensive side.

Linebacker James Laurinaitis collected 8 (4 solo) tackles and became the St. Louis Rams all time leading tackler in the Rams 12-6 loss against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The “Lil’ Animal” now has 759 tackles in his 7 year career.

In the same game, safety Will Allen had 7 (4 solo) tackles, a pass deflection, and a key interception and return late in the 4th quarter to set the offensive up for a key field goal to help salt away the game.

Offensively, a couple of former Buckeye burners at wide receiver had big days. Ted Ginn Junior had 4 receptions and 93 yards for the Carolina Panthers in their 27-22 win over the New Orleans Saints to remain undefeated at 3-0. Brian Hartline of the Cleveland Browns had 5 catches for 96 yards in their 27-20 loss to the Oakland Raiders.

Running back Carlos Hyde had another rough outing for the San Francisco 49ers. Hyde had 15 carries for 51 yards and 1 catch for 10 yards in the 49ers 47-7 loss at the Arizona Cardinals. Since his career high 168 yard 2 touchdown performance in week one on Monday night football, Hyde has only rushed for a total of 94 yards on 28 carries in two losses for San Francisco.

A couple of other former Buckeyes contributed on Sunday…

Rookie wide receiver Devin Smith of the New York Jets made his season debut grabbing 3 catches for 39 yards in “Gang Green’s” 17-24 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. On the other side of the ball in the same game, safety Malcolm Jenkins had 8 (7 solo) tackles and 2 forced fumbles to help the Eagles get the victory.

Linebacker A.J. Hawk had 6 (5 solo) tackles to help the Cincinnati Bengals beat division rival Baltimore 28-24. His teammate, kicker Mike Nugent, made 4 extra points to help the Bengals stay undefeated. They’re now 3-0.

On the injury front, Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier sat out Sunday’s game with his right arm in a sling, he’s expected to return to the lineup Thursday night when the Steelers host the Baltimore Ravens.

 

Steelers Lose Ben; Bell & D Step Up

Bell made his first appearance of the 2015 season after serving a two game suspension. Photo Credit: Steelers.com

A win never hurt so bad. Extending a two game winning streak never looked uglier.

The Killer B’s offense lost their sting Sunday when quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was carted off the field in the second half, after sustaining an ugly left knee injury.

Roethlisberger carried his hot start in 2015 into the game, when he connected on his first 7 passes for 71 yards on the opening drive that led to a field goal. He was 20-24 for 192 yards on the day, before doom came midway through the third quarter, when Rams safety Mark Barron sack Roethlisberger low on his left knee.

Right now all the Steelers are saying is #7 will have an MRI when the team gets back to Pittsburgh. The Steelers All-Time leading passer was completing 72.3 percent of his passes for 720 yards and 4 touchdowns in the first two games.

It was a weird day all around. The way the pre-game ended should’ve signaled something gloomy would eventually happen. The opening kickoff was delayed for over twenty-five minutes after the fireworks from the Rams pregame entrance caught the Edward Jones dome turf on fire.

https://twitter.com/xmasape/status/648182338099134464

Before the Roethlisberger injury, the defense was the story of the game. Defensive Coordinator Keith Butler’s group held quarterback Nick Foles and the Rams offense to 2 for 12 on 3rd and 4th down conversions. They also got 2 sacks and an interception of Foles, while holding St. Louis to 258 total net yards. I said after last week’s game, that against teams that prefer to run the ball first to set up the pass, this defense will be alright. Even without emerging star at Linebacker, Ryan Shazier, who sat out Sunday’s with a shoulder injury.

Brown extended his NFL Record 5+ Receptions, 50+ yards streak to 35 games. Photo Credit: Steelers.com

The loss of Big Ben also overshadowed another outstanding performance by my vote as the NFL’s best wide receiver, Antonio Brown. Brown extended his NFL record 5+ catches, for 50+ yards streak to 35 games on the first drive. He finished the game with 11 receptions and 108 yards.

Bell wasted no time showing how valuable he will be, especially if Roethlisberger misses significant time. Photo Credit: Steelers.com

Le’Veon Bell returned from his two game suspension and reintroduced the League to the guy many considered the “best all-around running back” in the NFL last season. Bell finished with 62 rushing yards on 19 carries and 7 receptions for 70 yards, but had several spectacular plays that showed his explosiveness and superb agility. Without Roethlisberger, you can expect Bell’s number to get called more.

Last week I was critical of the offense for losing the time of possession battle almost 2 to 1, this week the Steelers won what I believe is one of the top keys to every game, 32:19 to 27:41. Going forward, regardless of Roethlisberger long term prognosis, this will need to be the norm in order for the Black and Gold to get W’s. Having Bell back in the fold, along with DeAngelo Williams should help tilt this in their favor week after week.

Next up for the Steelers, the Terrell Sugg-less Baltimore Ravens Thursday night by the banks of the Three Rivers in Pittsburgh. Baltimore is 0-3 for the first time in franchise history.  A.J. Green of the Cincinnati Bengals exploded on that defense for 227 yards and 2 touchdowns, Steeler Nation can only hope Antonio Brown can expose that weakness, even without his main gunslinger.

Week 4 College Football Takeaways

Let’s overreact to another week of College Football.

It’s Sunday, so here’s my overreaction to week four of the college football season.

• The B1G should replace a few of its schools with teams from the MAC, and would become a better overall conference. Northern Illinois got all the headlines for playing the defending National Champion Buckeyes close last week, but several of their conference brethren have given Power 5 schools headaches. Bowling Green has two wins against B1G schools (Purdue & Maryland) and played Tennessee out of the SEC close until succumbing 59-30. The Ohio Bobcats pushed the Minnesota Gophers to the final seconds this week, before losing 27-24. Kent State also only lost to the Golden Gophers by 3 points a week ago.

It’s clear the top teams in the MAC have caught up. My guess is that many of the top recruits from the Midwest who don’t accept or receive scholarships to power 5 schools–where they’ll have to sit for two years, behind upperclassmen who are also former top recruits–are getting on the field sooner at the mid major program’s, and it’s finally paying off for those programs. Illinois, Maryland, Rutgers, Purdue are a few that come to mind that don’t help the B1G case when it comes to football. Check back with those schools later this fall when hoops tips-off.

• TCU is not a top 5 team. Look at their defense. They gave up 52 points and 607 total yards, and needed a fluke tip drill to score a touchdown on 4th down in the following seconds to beat Texas Tech. Last week they gave up 37 points and 508 total yards to SMU. Minnesota, a mid level team in the B1G, gave them a scare in week one. The Horned Frog defense will have circles ran around it against their major in conference challenger, Baylor. Who, by the way, just put up 70 points against Rice on Saturday. Number fifteen ranked Oklahoma, number twenty-three ranked West Virginia and number twenty ranked Oklahoma State may dash their playoff hopes soon enough.

Which brings me to this point, if the College Football Playoffs started today, the top 4 teams would be from the B1G Champion (Ohio State or Michigan State), the SEC champion (Georgia or LSU), Notre Dame and Utah. To me those are the four teams playing the best football, even though they aren’t ranked that way in this week’s Associated Press Top 25 Poll.

This means the Big 12 would get left out of the playoffs again. The Big 12 has become Arena Football with their focus on high volume passing offenses. Any champion from that conference would be physically dominated by the top teams in the B1G, SEC and PAC-12. The PAC-12 winner could have two losses because they best teams in conference and beating up on each other. However, the champion from the PAC-12 would still be highly impressive with two losses.

• The Heisman Trophy race is a now two-man race between LSU’s Leonard Fournette and Georgia running back Nick Chubbs. I said last week Fournette should win hands down, but Chubbs is making a case while chasing history at Georgia. He just tied 1982 Heisman winner Herschel Walker’s school record for most consecutive 100 yard rushing games. The winner of the 2015 Heisman may be decided the night these two face off in the SEC Championship game. That is, if both teams continue winning.

• Michigan just made the B1G a three team race. The “Fighting Khakis” are back in the Associated Press Top 25 at number 22. The FPI gives head coach Jim Harbaugh’s team a 25% chance of entering the bowl season with 10+ wins and a 56% chance to beat in state rival Michigan State. It was only 34% in the preseason. The Spartans and Buckeyes schedule just got a little more difficult. You happy Brett Bielema? I’m going to stay on his case all season.

The Razorbacks are 0-3 since Bielema called out the Buckeyes schedule.

Week 3 B1G Takeaways

The NFL has overreaction Monday, in college football its overreaction Sunday. Here’s the biggest takeaways from week three in the B1G.

Michigan State is the best team in the country. Sure the Buckeyes are ranked number one in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll, but after stealing two first place votes last week after their victory over then ranked #7 Oregon, the Spartans once again showed why they deserve more consideration this week.

The Green & White earned 7 first place votes this week after their victory over Air Force (Ole Miss got 11 first place votes).

The 35-21 score might not reflect it, but Sparty was dominant in the win, especially in the passing game. Connor Cook went 15-23 for 247 yards and 4 touchdowns, 3 of them to Aaron Burbridge to go along with 156 yards. The defense also forced 3 Air Force turnovers.

Next up, Central Michigan of the MAC in East Lansing. Hopefully for MSU fans, they can avoid a similar scare as Ohio State did this past week.

The B1G Conference as a whole isn’t as bad as original thought.  For the first time since November of 2006, the top two teams in the AP poll hail from the B1G.

The Northwestern Wildcats came into Saturday ranked #23 in the nation and improved to #17 after their 19-10 victory over Duke. Also, with Stanford’s win over then ranked #6 USC, the Wildcats win over Stanford week one looks even more impressive.

The B1G conference went 9-3 in non-conference games. Penn State beat Rutgers 28-3 in the only game between conference opponents on the schedule.

Matter of fact, the B1G has 4 teams in the top 25 this week (OSU, MSU, Northwestern & # 22 Wisconsn). What do you think about that Brett Beilema?

Bielema’s Arkansas Razorbacks on 0-2 since he called out Ohio State’s schedule. Photo Credit: Wesley Hitt

None of the Buckeyes quad of Heisman Trophy candidates will win the award. The internet exploded week one when Braxton Miller made his case for the “Bronze Stiff Arm” with the spin seen around the world against Virginia Tech. Ezekiel Elliott and Cardale Jones, fresh off their performances in the College Football Playoff, entered the season as heavy favorites for the award. But, after three weeks, the stats and signature moments aren’t there.
Plus, there’s this guy in Baton Rouge, named Leonard Fournette, who has the stats and enough Heisman moments that producers of the award show won’t have enough time to show highlights of the other candidates.

J.T. Barrett is the better option for OSU at quarterback. Barrett didn’t play on Saturday like folks in Columbus are used to seeing him play in 2014 (11-19, 97 yards, 1 INT). However, he did throw a touchdown pass and led a drive to get the offense somewhat going.

But, it’s now clear why Barrett, not Cardale Jones, got the call last season when Braxton Miller went down to injury. On Saturday, Jones was 4-9 with 2 interceptions against Northern Illinois before he was pulled. 

If you really watch the game film from the first two games, he showed signs of erratic play then, especially not setting his feet on several throws. It just didn’t show up in the results because his teammates made great plays for him.

The time is now for Coach Urban Meyer to choose one QB to start, and allow that guy to take the majority of practice snaps. After Saturday’s game, Meyer said he didn’t know who would be his quarterback to start next week. I think that non answer says it all.

Jones even changed his Twitter bio that might signal what’s to come…..

He later took this update to his bio down, but the firestorm has already begun. Trouble in Buckeye-land?

Steelers D Steadily Improves; Offense Looks Unstoppable

Steelers offense leads the way to first W in 2015. Photo Credit: Steelers.com

What a difference a week makes, or in this case ten days. The Steelers defense looked like they had no clue against Tom Brady and the New England Patriots opening night. On Sunday afternoon against the San Francisco 49ers, they looked similar to what Steeler Nation is accustomed to seeing in “Blitzburgh.”

Defensive Coordinator Keith Butler’s D forced one turnover that set up a touchdown, while also sacking Colin Kaepernick 5 times. Most importantly they only gave up one score on four tries in the red zone, while causing the 49ers to go 7/17 on 3rd down.

My biggest take away from the defensive performance is that they should play very well against teams built on power running. They held Carlos Hyde down to 43 yards on 14 carries, coming off his career high 168 yards and 2 touchdowns on Monday night against the Minnesota Vikings. 

The D also showed they can contain dual threat quarterbacks, like Colin Kaepernick, who aren’t going to sit in the pocket and throw 30-40 times a game, like Tom Brady or Drew Brees. The style of play of the offenses in the AFC North should benefit this defense. Joe Flacco of the Baltimore Ravens is the only QB in the division that could possibly take advantage of this secondary. Pittsburgh won’t face an elite QB who likes to sling it around until October 12th at Philip Rivers and the San Diego Chargers; then the following week at home against Carson Palmer and the Arizona Cardinals, and Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts on December 6th. One would hope they’ll have their passing defense figured out by then.

Meanwhile, Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown and the offense got their 30 points they hope to average per game this season. 43 to be exact. Roethlisberger was 20/26 for 369 yards and 3 touchdowns, and no turnovers. 4 of Big Ben’s completions were for over 40 yards. Brown hauled in 9 receptions for a career high 195 yards and a touchdown.

Roethlisberger passed for 369 yards and 3 TDs. Photo Credit: Steelers.com

The Killer B offense looks as unstoppable as Bo Jackson on Tecmo Bowl. My only knock is they lost the time of possession battle 36:59 to 22:21. Even with the huge splash plays leading to points, you don’t want to continue to put a young inexperienced defense with a new play caller on the field so much.

Brown is successfully making his case as best WR in the NFL. Photo Credit: Steelers.com

This offense will continue to keep the Black & Gold in games. If the defense can bottle up this performance and carry it week to week, the Steelers will have a better shot at holding on to their division title from 2014.

Next up for Pittsburgh, the Rams in St. Louis (1-0); they lost to Washington 24-10. A bonus for the Black & Gold, All-Pro running back Le’Veon Bell returns from at 2 game suspension.

Buckeyes in the NFL (week 2)

Roby returned the fumble for a TD to complete the Broncos stunning comeback. Photo Credit: AP photo/Ed Zurga

It was a big weekend in the NFL for OSU Alumns. Especially on defense where a couple of Former Silver Bullets made the biggest splashes in week two.

Thursday night Denver Broncos cornerback Bradley Roby returned a Jamaal Charles fumble 21 yards for a touchdown with 27 seconds in the fourth quarter to break a 24-24 tie against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Sunday, the former Silver Bullets duo of Cam Heyward and Ryan Shazier, led a much maligned Steelers defense after their poor performance in the season opener at the New England Patriots, to victory in Pittsburgh.

Heyward had 5 (4 solo) tackles and a sack of Colin Kaepernick, while Ryan Shazier was the star of the game for the Steelers D with 11 (7 solo) tackles, 1 sack and a fumble recovery to help the Steelers get their first win of 2015, 43-18 over San Francisco.

In that same game, Carlos Hyde of the 49ers came back down to earth after his career night on Monday. He only had 43 yards on 14 carries, and 4 catches for 18 yards before leaving the game with a leg contusion.

Another Buckeye duo helped the Carolina Panthers move to 2-0. Wide receivers Ted Ginn Jr. and Corey “Philly” Brown each caught at touchdown from Cam Newton to help the Carolina Panthers beat the Houston Texans 24-17. Ginn Jr. caught 4 passes for 41 yards, while Brown caught 3 passes for 57 yards.

Donte Whitner of the Cleveland Browns also represented well for the former Silver Bullets. He had 8 (4 solo) tackles and half a sack to help the Browns cool off Tennessee Titans QB Marcus Mariota, beating them 28-14.

Tight end Jake Stoneburner of the Miami Dolphins, just got promoted from the practice squad this week and caught two passes, one of them a 5 yard touchdown in the Dolphins 23-20 loss at the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Kicker Mike Nugent scored 6 points on 3 extra points and one field goal to help the Cincinnati Bengals beat the San Diego Chargers 24-19. The Bengals are 2-0 and in first place of the AFC North division.

Monday night, 4 more Buckeyes face off when the Indianapolis Colts host the New York Jets; running back Boom Herron and offensive lineman Jake Mewhort for the Colts, center Nick Mangold and rookie wide receiver Devin Smith of the Jets.

Buckeyes on Sunday (Monday & Thursday)

It’s a special fraternity for former Bucks. Photo Credit: elevenwarriors.com

The National Football League is filled with talented players from “THE” Ohio State University. The program has produced the second most first round draft picks in the NFL History (USC is number one). 32 former Bucks began the 2015 season on the active roster. Here’s a look at some of the top performances from Buckeye pros in week one.

Running back Carlos Hyde started his second season in the league taking over for departed San Francisco 49ers franchise leading rusher Frank Gore. And Hyde did his best impression of his former teammate at OSU, Braxton Miller….

  
Hyde overshadowed Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson in his first game after a suspension ended his 2014. The former Buckeye bruiser earned the first—of many—100 yard rushing game with 26 carries for 168 yards and 2 touchdowns to help the 49ers beat Minnesota 20-3.

Safety Will Allen of the Pittsburgh Steelers had 8 tackles and a sack against the New England Patriots Thursday night. His Steeler teammate, linebacker Ryan Shazier, also had 7 tackles against New England.

Cornerback Chimdi Chekwa had 16 (15 solo) tackles and 2 passes defended for the Oakland Raiders in their 33-13 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

7 year pro Malcolm Jenkins of the Philadelphia Eagles, had 7 (6 solo) tackles and 3 passes defended in their 24-26 loss at the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night. 

Another 7 year pro, linebacker James Laurinaitis, had 7 (4 solo) tackles to help the St. Louis Rams beat the defending NFC Champion Seattle Seahwaks 34-31. 

Mike Nugent scored 9 points on 2 field goals and 3 extra points to help the Bengals rout the Raiders 33-13. 

Strong Safety Donte Whitner made 10 (4 solo) tackles in the Cleveland Browns 10-31 loss at the New York Jets.

Some other notable Buckeyes in the NFL; All-Pro Center Nick Mangold started his 10th season for the New York Jets. Kettering native, linebacker A.J. Hawk, had 4 tackles in his 10th and first season opener for his home area team the Cincinnati Bengals. Another Ohioan, Canton native Brian Hartline, started at wide receiver for the Cleveland Browns and had two catches for 20 yards.

OSU QBs Giving us a Lesson in Unselfishness

Barrett and Jones are great friends who support each other. Photo Credit: Getty Images

Sports are often touted as being a great way to learn about teamwork, leadership, hard work and sacrifice among other key values. What happens between the lines many times is a microcosm of reality.

But lately, with the 24 hour news cycle, we’ve been inundated with the ugly side. Millionaires arguing with billionaires leading to contract holdouts—in the professional ranks—court cases of unfair labor practices—in the collegiate ranks—and criminal acts across the board ranging from domestic violence, sexual assaults, DUIs, drug and weapon possession and alleged in-game cheating tactics.

But at Ohio State, amidst the most unusual quarterback battle in recent college football history, we are seeing a great example of unselfishness.

First, two-time Big Ten Player of the Year Braxton Miller, as a quarterback, turns down opportunities to leave Columbus as a graduate transfer and immediately star as a quarterback at another high-profile program.

Then in July, Miller bowed out of the QB competition with his 2014 replacement J.T. Barrett and National Championship winning QB Cardale Jones, to become an H-Back/Receiver to help the team. We saw a fantastic preview (2 catches for 78 yards and a TD; 6 carries for 62 yards and a TD) of just how well that might turn out for the team and Miller at the next level.

Then when Urban Meyer sent Jones out with the first team offense Monday night in Blacksburg Virginia, it was Barrett, who accepted the backup role graciously by supporting Jones, greeting him on the sidelines to discuss what was going on out on the field when a drive ended, and mostly sharing smiles with high fives after touchdown drives that eventually blew the game wide open.

Barrett was by Jones’ side all night breaking down offensive possessions. Photo Credit: Getty Images

Monday night was Barrett’s turn to show he’s was a team player with his focus on what’s best for the team, not himself. All offseason, when asked by the media, Barrett and Jones each repeatedly said they were friends and would be happy for the other guy if they weren’t the one to win the starting job.

At the Wednesday press conference after the Buckeyes got revenge Monday for their only loss in 2014 to Virginia Tech, Coach Urban Meyer said “I’ve never seen a situation like that; where they’re both pulling for each other. It’s great to see” when speaking about his quarterbacks.

Remember, these are early 20 something year old kids. Who would blame them for outwardly showing their disappointment? Especially in Barrett’s case, who is the reigning Big Ten Player of the Year with several school and conference records on his resume, and only lost his job because of a fluke injury. He could claim that Jones and the Buckeyes wouldn’t have even had a chance at getting into the College Football Playoff and subsequently winning the 2014 National Title without his performance all season.

What we are seeing with the Buckeyes—and OSU fans hope to continue seeing—in the unselfishness of Miller and Barrett should serve as an example of what we all can do/be if we implement some of the same unselfishness in our society, communities and workplaces. We, like the unanimous number one ranked team in the nation, could be viewed as the very best and virtually unbeatable.

Steelers Will be Alright

Only Steelers can stop their own offense. Photo Credit: Steelers.com

I hear you Steeler Nation, “How can you say that after that defense got abused by Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski?”

Yes, Brady connected on 19 straight passes at one point on a secondary, that looked like it never played defense before. He finished with 288 passing yards and 4 TDs, and “Gronk” had 94 receiving yards with 3 TDs. But, it was week one for a new regime on defense with a new play caller and several new faces in new roles.

Plus, they won’t be playing Tom Brady every week, or a QB of his style until week four on October 1st at Heinz Field against Joe Flacco and the Baltimore Ravens.

However, the Black & Gold defense did force the Patriots offense to punt 4 times and sacked Brady twice.

The biggest caveat for the Steelers going further is an offense that was highly impressive without All-Pro running back Le’Veon Bell and emerging star wide receiver Martavis Bryant.

Ben Roethlisberger led the Steelers to 21 points—should’ve been 27 if Kicker Josh Scobee hits two make able FGs—on 26-38 passing, 351 yards and 1 TD. Antonio Brown did what he always does, 9 catches for 133 yards and a TD. Bell’s back up DeAngelo Williams surprised many as he ran for 127 yards on 21, proving that his 32-year-old legs will be a formidable one-two punch with Bell that will wear defenses down.

Williams gashed the Patriots for 127 yards. Photo Credit: Steelers.com

The offensive line continues to keep #7 standing up right, even in the absence of their injured All-Pro center Maurkice Pouncey. Although they did give up 3 sacks.

This team may very well score the 30 points a game they hope. Especially if they if they continue to move the ball up and down the field for 464 yards a game like on Thursday night. They definitely had their opportunities.

Steelers D had several blown coverages, but showed a little potential. Photo Credit: Steelers.com

The defense just needs to get in position to not allow a QB to complete 78 percent of his passes with a 143.8 QBR. The Killer B’s offense has everything it needs to be a championship driving force, if the D gives them a tad bit more.

The other good news for Pittsburgh, only Cincinnati won in the division. Next up for the Steelers, the San Francisco 49ers in the home opener.

The Super Bowl Host Curse

The new football season brings new hope for 32 teams and their fans who believe this will be the year their team will add another Lombardi trophy to their case or in the case of thirteen teams, their first.

But I believe there is one fan base who shouldn’t get their hopes up to high, and it’s not the Cleveland Browns. It’s the San Francisco 49ers, the host team for the milestone Super Bowl 50.

In the history of the big game, teams that have hosted the Super Bowl are 0 and 30. And, since the 1993 season, when the NFL began playing the Super Bowl only at NFL stadiums, no host team has even played in the game.

Don’t believe in sports curses? Just look at the 2014 Arizona Cardinals, the most recent victim and host of Super Bowl XLIX.

The Cardinals lost their best defensive player and emotional team leader in defensive end Darnell Dockett for the season with a torn ACL in preseason. Sure the team went on to a league best start with a 9-1 record, losing their only game at defending AFC Champion Denver, no shame there. But, more key injuries kept coming. Quarterback Carson Palmer went down for the season with a season ending knee injury without being touched; his back up Drew Stanton, who was playing admirable in his absence, went down week 15 with a sprained MCL and ACL in his knee  and an infection from surgery kept him out of the playoffs. In all they used four quarterbacks, rookie Logan Thomas played a series at Denver and Ryan Lindley started in the playoff. Even though the Cardinals made the post season—which as you’ll read later hasn’t been easy for Super Bowl host teams—they lost 27-16 in an ugly turnover field game to the 7-8-1 Panthers.

The 49ers started the offseason ahead of the curse schedule. The constant conflict between head coach Jim Harbaugh and general manager Trent Baalke has been cited as to why Harbaugh left for Michigan to become the head coach at his struggling Alma Mater. All-Pro defensive cornerstones Patrick Willis and Justin Smith, along with Willis’ potential replacement, linebacker Chris Borland and offensive lineman Anthony Smith have retired. The franchise’s leading rusher Frank Gore and his Hall of Fame resume are now in Indianapolis with the Colts.

I could stop there, but, on August 6th, defensive end Aldon Smith was released by the team after being arrested on suspicion of DUI, hit and run, and vandalism.  There’s also this, they’ll be missing eight players who played over 600 snaps during the 2014 season. Mike Lupati, Perrish Cox, Chris Culliver, Michael Crabtree, Ray McDonald, Johnathan Martin along with the aforementioned Justin Smith and Frank Gore.

Meanwhile, starting quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who in the run to Super Bowl 47 looked like he was on the verge of redefining the position, has regressed worse than a new popular TV sitcom that gets cancelled before the end of its first season. I’m looking at you “Bad Judge” and “Mixology.”

I know you see the writing on the wall. No Super Bowl for you!

Still don’t believe this curse is real? Look at the result from just the past five host teams.

Super Bowl 48 hosts, the 2013 New York Giants and New York Jets. The Giants went 7-9 and began the season 0-6. The “G-Men” became the first team in NFL history to win a Super Bowl in year three of a five-year span, yet missed the playoffs the other four seasons. Adding insult to injury, two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning led the league in interceptions with 27 and added 7 fumbles.

The Jets went 8-8 and missed the Playoffs for the third consecutive season, this after competing in two consecutive AFC Championship games at the beginning of Rex Ryan’s tenure in 2009.

Super Bowl 47 hosts, the 2012 New Orleans Saints. “Bounty-gate”, the scandal from the 2009 season, was brought to light. Head coach Sean Payton, the architect of their high-powered offense that led to them to their only Super Bowl win at number XLIV, was suspended for the season for his role in the scandal. Veteran defensive leaders, defensive end Will Smith and linebacker Jonathan Vilma we’re suspended for significant time during the season. Anthony Hargrove and Scott Fujita, the other players suspended were already signed to other NFL teams. The end result, a 7-9 record and no playoffs.

Super Bowl 46 hosts, the 2011 Indianapolis Colts. Peyton Manning missed the entire season with a neck injury. It was the first time the “Sheriff” ever missed a game. Before that season he played in 227 consecutive games, second only to Brett Favre’s 297. I don’t need to say more, but I will. The team went on to have a 2-14 record, losing their first 13, and got the number one pick to select Andrew Luck. So, I guess it wasn’t all bad. One more thing, Peyton’s little brother won his second Super Bowl in Peyton’s house. That had to sting a little.

Super Bowl 45 hosts, the 2010 Dallas Cowboys. Year two in “Jerry’s World” was a step back. After winning the NFC East in the previous season, the Cowboys went 6-10 in 2010 and missed the playoffs. At one point they were 1-7, which led to the firing of head coach Wade Phillips and paved the way for the new man in charge Jason Garrett.

Super Bowl 44 hosts, the 2009 Miami Dolphins. The ‘Phins went 7-9 and missed the playoffs after going 11-5 and winning the AFC East title the season before.

Super Bowl 43 hosts, the 2008 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Buccaneers went 9-7 and missed the playoffs one season after winning the NFC South Division title. Head coach Jon Gruden and general manager Bruce Allen were surprisingly fired at the end of the season.

Super Bowl 42 hosts, the 2007 Arizona Cardinals. The Cards went 8-8 and missed the playoffs by one game. Two of their loses came to the 5-11 San Francisco 49ers. The Cardinals finished 2nd for the NFC West title. The injury bug hit them as well. 2006 Top 10 draft pick quarterback Matt Leinart, the team’s hope to be a franchise player, went down midseason with a fractured collarbone; the injury paved the way for former NFL and Super Bowl Most Valuable Player quarterback Kurt Warner’s career revival.

In a weird twist, the injury propelled the 2008 team to their first and only Super Bowl appearance the next season in Tampa Bay. They lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-23 in one of the most dramatic Super Bowl’s in recent history.

Want to know how a few of the other hosts fared?

• SB VIII hosts: 1973 Houston Oilers finished 1-13 for the second consecutive season and missed the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season.

• SB XVI hosts: 1981 Detroit Lions finished 8-8 and missed playoffs.

• SB XVIII hosts: 1983 Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished 2-14, missed playoffs and lost quarterback Doug Williams to the USFL after team couldn’t come to terms on a contract. Williams later became the first African-American quarterback to win a Super Bowl and the MVP with Washington.

• SB XXII hosts: 1987 San Diego Chargers finished 8-7 and missed the playoffs after starting the season 8-1. Hall of Fame cornerstones, quarterback Dan Fouts and tight end Kellen Winslow retired after the season.

• SB XXV hosts: 1990 Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished 6-10 and missed playoffs after starting the season 4-2.

• SB XXVI hosts: 1991 Minnesota Vikings finished 8-8 and missed playoffs. This was the season their first and second round picks were made by the Dallas Cowboys as part of the Herschel Walker trade in 1989. One pick was wide receiver Alvin Harper, who helped the Cowboys win two Super Bowl titles in the 1990’s. Vikings head coach Jerry Burns retired at the end of the season.

• SB XXVIII hosts: 1993 Atlanta Falcons finished 6-10 and lost future Hall of Famer Deion Sanders to free agency.

• SB XXX hosts: 1995 Arizona Cardinals finished 4-12 and missed playoffs after winning 8 games the previous season.

• SB XXXII hosts: 1997 San Diego Chargers finished 4-12, missed playoffs and had 4 less wins than the year before.

• SB XXXIV hosts: 1999 Atlanta Falcons finished 5-11 just one season after making the Super Bowl.

• SB XXXV hosts: 2000 Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished 10-6, but fell to the #5 seed after losing the NFC Central Title, and a first round bye in the final game of the season in overtime to the Green Bay Packers. The Bucs lost in NFC Wild Card round 21-3.

• SB XXXVII hosts: 2002 San Diego Chargers finished 8-8 and missed playoffs after starting the season 4-0 and were 6-2 midseason.

• SB XXXVIII hosts: 2003 Houston Texans finished 5-11 and missed playoffs.

• SB XXXIX hosts: 2004 Jacksonville Jaguars finished 9-7 and missed playoffs.

• SB XL hosts: 2005 Detroit Lions finished 5-11 and missed playoffs.

If the Niner fans are looking for any good omen to break this curse, they are the only franchise to play in a Super Bowl when it was played in their region. The 1984 49ers won Super Bowl XIX 38-16 over the Miami Dolphins at Stanford Stadium on the University of Stanford’s campus. The only other team to come close, the Los Angeles Rams lost Super Bowl XIV 19-31 to the Pittsburgh Steelers at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, rather than their home stadium the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.