Starting off the NFL season with a winning bet did little to change my mind about the Hall of Fame game – it was still a ridiculous, glorified practice that taught us little about the two teams. Things went pretty much as expected – Jim Zorn looked keen and eager to please, while Tony Dungy looked like his list of places he would rather be could have stretched over about three pages. Single-spaced. Making projections about players or changing opinions based on what is seen in a game like that is very dangerous – schemes are simplified, the players aren’t in game shape, and the real talent was on the sidelines (if they were in Canton at all). That being said, I do want to just take a minute or two to talk about two players that shone in their opportunities after not getting nearly the respect they deserved on draft day:
Colt Brennan – Brennan got knocked for all sorts of things, and that dropped him from a potential high first round draft spot before last season to an eventual spot in the sixth round. He’s still a big risk, but I have thought since draft day that he has the potential to be the big steal of the draft, and nothing I saw last night changed that. He was nine of 10 passing, and he threw two picture perfect passes – an arcing toss to avoid a defender on a long bomb, and a touchdown pass that was an easy catch but would have been almost impossible to pick off. He still had some sketchy footwork at times, and he probably should have made it harder for the Colts’ to sack him than he did the one time the pocket collapsed, but he looked like clearly the second best QB in the game behind Jason Campbell, and he was stronger than most third stringers look in their first action.
Brennan might look a bit funny when he throws, and he might be the product of a college system to some extent, but writing him off for that reason seems ridiculous. No matter the system, Brennan was clearly special. He completed 70 percent of his college passes, and he threw more touchdowns than any other player ever has. You don’t do that if you aren’t both hungry and talented. Brennan has more determination and ability than several of the pivots picked before, and I think that he’ll be motivated by the draft day slight as well. I’ll be watching his career with interest.
Mike Hart – Keep in mind, of course, that I am a massive Michigan fan so I am more than a little biased. That being said, it was absolutely ridiculous that Hart was the 202nd player chosen in the draft. He’s undersized, but he has two huge things going for him – he has more heart than any guy out there, and he’s football-smart. I watched Hart play a lot in his college career, and I always referred to him as Coach Mike. When he was playing he usually did the right thing without mistakes, and when he was on the sidelines he was learning, teaching and encouraging those around him. He’s the real deal.
Hart showed his chops in limited action yesterday. On three consecutive plays he ran for 19, 14, and 12 yards. He caught a couple of passes, too, and ran a bit more. He’s in a deep running back rotation, but Hart showed last night what I already knew – he’s going to make some noise and can’t be written off. He’s at least the third best running back that they have on their roster, and I expect him to continue to make it harder for the coaches to think otherwise.
