NFL Ones To Watch - Week Four.

Well, Week three made a lot of people look stupid, Ravens ruined accumulators, Browns were favourites to win, [and still found a way to lose] and most of my predictions turned out to be wrong. My total for predictions stands at : 5 - 9 [Better than I thought] !
Hopefully week four will be more regular, but it did prove that anything can [and usually does] happen on any given Sunday.

This week I'm focusing on the game between the Jacksonville Jaguars as they fly to take on the New York Jets.

Jacksonville arrive fresh off arguably the best result in franchise history, and have a winning record again although they will like to beat the Jets as the last time they faced, they had a narrow loss [23 - 28]. The Jags roll into this one with the 13th ranked offense, 2nd ranked defence, 23rd ranked passing unit and their rushing game is ranked 5th. With the Jets being particularly vulnerable to the rush [133 yards per game] and having achieved 140 [yards per game] on the ground The Jets seem to face a slight uphill battle as far as that goes. Marcedes Lewis TE had a huge game last weekend and will be looking to continue the momentum he looks to have accrued. Lewis only managed three touchdowns between 2014 [2] - 2016 [1] and has already equalled that total after last weekends outburst , although he looks far removed from his 10 TD campaign back in 2010 , there's no reason he shouldn't come close to that by the time this season has finished. Leonard Fournette RB is showing off some of the skills that convinced the Jags to pick him in the 1st round [4th] and has 57 carries for 199 yards [3.5 ypc] for three TDs. The yardage will likely come to the rookie the more he plays and gets comfortable within the system, but his real value should come in following seasons long term, the O line can be built around what they have now but for this week and the here and now's of it all, useful enough to keep the opponents guessing, and in short yardage plays will certainly provide more than enough first downs as they keep the chain moving.

The Jets meanwhile have struggled through their opening three games and enter at 1-2, and they have the 30th ranked offense, 24th ranked defence, 27th ranked passing game and their rushing is 23rd. Their decision to roll with Josh McCown to open the season, might have raised some eyebrows across the league, but so far he's been quite productive with 60/86 for 602 yards [an average of 7 yards per completion] with three TDs. The Jaguars D is the stingiest when it comes to passing yards allowed but Mccown is no stranger to facing against the odds as his early career playing time can attest to. When given a chance he's always performed quietly , solidly if unspectularly but sometimes in the pressure cooker of Quarterbacking, it's a sound strategy and could prove to be the deciding factor in this match up.
WR Jermaine Kearse has always been there or there abouts on receiving cores has largely struggled to make huge inroads week to week, but again has solid consistent numbers, and has 14 receptions for 165 yards on the season [averaging just shy of 12 yards per reception] with a pair of scores. It could be a breakthrough week for the duo in terms of cultivating an understanding but they badly need an end game this week to avoid a 1-3 start. Kearse also rushed twice in his career to date [back in 2014] but if the situation calls for it, he'd be more than capable of providing both a chance of pace from the backfield, and a different style.

Defence could take over here though, and it will be interesting to see how Jacksonville handled the journey back from London to New York as usually they'd have a bye week following such a game.



My picks for the week are: Dolphins, Titans, Jaguars*, Patriots, Lions, Falcons, Steelers, Bengals, Cowboys, Eagles, Buccaneers, Cardinals, Raiders, Seahawks and Chiefs.

Finally, my play of the week goes to Philadelphia Eagles K Jake Elliot for his 61 yard game winning Field Goal [against a bitter NFC East rival no less]. 

NFL Ones To Watch - Week Three

This week sees the first trip to England of the season and outside of that some fascinating inter conference battles take place on Sunday. The Giants take on the Eagles, the Dolphins will look to keep their opening win momentum as they tackle the Jets [good luck] and the Panthers face the Saints.

The game I'm going to be focusing on this week sees Oakland's Raiders take on Washington's football team.

Oakland [2-0] have been impressive in the early going and will look to continue on their upward trend and are clearly a better team with Derek Carr [QB] front and centre. The last time these teams faced each other, [2013] resulted in a Washington victory [24-14] but both franchises look very different from then as Robert Griffin III took on Matt Flynn [who was filling in for Terrelle Pryor] .
Oakland have the 4th ranked Offensive unit, 15th ranked defensive unit, 13th ranked passing game and 5th ranked rushing game. They also so far have averaged 35.5 points per game and as Washington allow less than 90 yards on the ground so far, this could be a sterner test. Their main chances will be to tackle the passing game and utilise the speed and quickness of Derek Carr [45/60 492 yards 5TDs] and will be keen to continue feeding Michael Crabtree [12 receptions 163 yards (at an average of 13.6 yards per catch) with 3 TDs. and with Washington allowing 266.5 passing yards this certainly appears to be the main weakness to exploit. It's not their only threat and if Marshawn Lynch who looks increasingly refreshed in Oakland goes into beast mode it could be a very long afternoon for Washington's defensive unit.

Washington's task is not made easier with the figures that Oakland allow 200 yards per game through the air and 110 on the ground perhaps former QB Terrelle Pryor [8 receptions for 97 yards averaging 12.1 yards per reception] can be found for some magic. On the ground Rob Kelley seems to be the workhorse as he's accumulated 22 carries for 108 yards [almost 5 ypc] although hasn't punched it in just yet. Those ground scores have gone to Chris Thompson from 6 carries for 81 yards scoring twice. Thompson also snagged a score through the air. Washington have managed 22 ppg, 324.5 total yards , 178 through the air and 146.5 on the ground (all on average).
Washington come into this week with one win and one loss.

For the first time, I'm going to add predictions for all games this weekend [only to win] and these teams are :
Ravens, Browns, Eagles, Dolphins, Broncos, Panthers, Steelers, Falcons , Buccaneers, Patriots, Titans, Packers, Chiefs and Cardinals.

The second play of the week honour goes to Aqib Talib and his 103 yard INT Pick 6. Honourable mentions go to Todd Gurley, Zack Ertz, Drew Brees 300 yard game, Aaron Rodgers 200th Career TD. and Kareem Hunt.

Enjoy Week Three and see you next time ! 

NFL Ones To Watch - Week Two

Week One is in the books and how sweet it is that Football has returned ! All the clubs around the league will be wondering if Week One was a sign of what's to come this season, or an outlier in terms of results that wont often happen.  For some it was a relief from their usual cellar dwelling experiences and they will be keen to explore more of this thing called Winning.

Anyway, the game I've chosen to keep an eye on this week is an intriguing [to me at least] battle between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Chicago Bears [0-1].

The Buccs will be keen to get off to a winning start following their week one Postponement, and I wish all the people caught up in Hurricane Irma the best at this time. The Bears however were inches away on several occasions from coming up with a W, but it wasn't to be as several 4th Quarter drops proved costly although last years beaten Super Bowl finalists Atlanta showed no Super Bowl hangover, it wasn't the same story over in Foxborough as Tom Brady's team scuffled out of the gate and eventually got turned over 42-27, there's still a long way to go yet.

Chicago had a few players that deserve recognition last week and RB Tarik Cohen was one of them. Cohen was all over the field and made 8 receptions for 47 yards and a TD [averaged 5.9 yards per reception] kept the chains moving through the air, while on the ground was even better with 5 carries for 66 yards [13.2 yards per carry] although didn't cross the end zone. Akiem Hicks was the shining light defensively however with 2.0 sacks from three total tackles [0 assisted]. The Bears also gave up 301 total yards last week with 125 coming via the rushing game, and as the Buccs somewhat struggled to punch it in via the ground last season, could serve as a building block that if the run game is stifled, Jameis Winston [TB QB] could be rushed which could force more turnovers.

Usually at this point, I'd highlight possible keys to victory to TB during their previous games [or season stats to date] but there aren't any to this point but their chances to win will be bolstered with Mike Evans being out there, and with Winston having another season of experience to call upon their understanding will be greater, and although not a 2 man team, will be relying heavily upon these two for any successes. Although they will also be hoping for more production from the running backs, as they only managed to get over the goal line a handful of times so to get double digits on the ground would add an extra dimension to the [by comparison] young O Line.

A new feature this season sees me pick a play of the week from the previous round of fixtures ,and the very first winner of this award goes to : Tashaun Gibson, as he snags an errant pass for a 67 yard interception return setting up a short field for the Jaguars to kill the game off with less than 4 minutes on the clock. Other great plays include a behind the back catch for Jason Witten of the Cowboys, Carson Wentz evading a sure sack for the Eagles and Mike Daniels strip of QB Russell Wilson which set up the decisive score in the Packers defeat of the Seahawks.

Week Two is sure to be a thrilling ride for many, for some they might want to get off and come back next week, but nobody really knows what is going to happen on any given Sunday [or Monday].

Enterprise. #MediaEnt

My Enterprise pitch was on Monday afternoon, and I am going to talk about my experiences of the whole process here.

On beginning the Enterprise unit, I felt a little confused about what I would have to do, but this was soon clarified. I began to use Twitter for market research into my idea and to gain interest. I was indecisive about which idea I wanted to use, but I understood that no matter what buisiness plan I was to put together, it would still apply in some way to my buisiness model. The first media idea I had was to have an independent production company which specialised in Media Production in the local area, and the second was a local media production company which was a non profit organisation helping to bring media production the local area. I settled on my first idea, as it could give me more mileage, and was easier to put into a three minute pitch. The reasons for this are: The weaknesses was really only one or two points, funding and opportunities, whereas the non profit organisation had a lot more weaknesses, namely in the funding area, as well as running costs, how I can run it after the initial set up, how to keep it fresh and who my client base would be. The process of doing a pitch really began when I had eliminated any doubts from my mind as to the best strategy, so I could really focus on an end product, as I had no clarity, up to week 5. I don't feel that I would have been able to perform well in the pitch, had I still had mixed feelings about an idea. Now, my company even had a name, which it had never had prior to pitch day. The only problems I was having now, was putting it down in such a way, that I could pitch without the use of Power Point, which would usually help me to speak for longer periods, but as this pitch was only three minutes, I was confident that I would be ok.

The Pitch.

While I felt supremely confident heading into the pitch, I knew that with a little tweak here and there from how I had performed in my Action Learning set, then I could get up to the 2 minute thirty mark, possibly 3 minutes. It has always been important to identify the weaknesses and threats, so that when pitching, you can be more confident of an idea with fewer weaknesses. On the subject of weaknesses, it is important to me, that if there are weaknesses, you know what they are, and state how you are going to eliminate them over a period of time, whether it be 3 months, or a year. This is something in which I briefly mentioned during my pitch, but as I was concious of time, I wanted to make sure I got everything in, and as a negative, I missed out my Market Research, and I should have given more detail to my current weaknesses, some of which were discovered through market research. The strengths of my idea were that I had a clear idea where I wanted my Enterprise buisiness to go, and When I wanted to get there by. I also spoke about the future goals in the short term, medium term and long term. I feel that I was clear and concise in getting my information across and did well selling myself as a current student with new ideas and that I was in the process of gaining a degree. The feedback I got was generally positive, although there were things I could improve on, such as "more detail in the Market Research and when saying I was getting a degree, why didn't I sell it, that I'd be awesome, I'm getting a first".  Other than that it was a pretty good performance. I mentioned a competitor to me in the pitch, Hello Hello Pictures. They produce a wide array of media ranging from short films and music videos to image design and audio work. These are based in the West Midlands also and are my biggest rival to date, given they only formed in latter 2011. The reason they are my rivals, is because my content would be short films, music videos, and as I have a current involvement with radio, I could do Radio work and promotion too. My next steps on my journey, are to form an even clearer vision, plan out a business plan in which my weaknesses mentioned above are addressed, and to begin gaining content for my portfolio. I would hope to accomplish this by the end of December 2012.

Checking In, one more time!

This has been one of the most enjoyable shoots I have been a part of, in my small media career. Professional throughout, and really well thought out, in terms of locations, story and structure to the schedules.

This stems from cast and crew to the facilities we were filming in. The staff of the hotel we were using, were very patient, and very accomodating. I want to here, [and have in person thank[ed] everyone for their hospitality, generousity and dedication. Appreciate, that we went into a working, hotel with legitimate people checking in (and out) of it while we ran about with a camera, some sweaty men, (and occasional females) lights and a microphone(s) on a pole. Some sight right? Well you'd be right! Unfortunately, due to copyright reasons [camera shy people] I cannot show you, so you will just have to trust me!

Trying to remember everything I did, is difficult so I won't mention individuals, as I Will have missed a few off, and that isn't fair ! :p It was great to work with new people, and also get to see people I worked with years ago back here. Full of awesome!

So much I could write here, but I will not.

Simply put, here's to Checking in , which will be viewable in 2013!

Matt. x

 

Issue of Debate #4 - BBC Birmingham

The factual production from BBC Birmingham, is in the summer months, relocating to Bristol.

Production work in BBC Birmingham currently takes place at The Mailbox. Programmes produced include output on both television and radio. Before The Mailbox, these productions took place at Pebble Mill.

The decision to move the production from Birmingham to Bristol, among other places, certainly on one hand creates a lack of employment opportunities in my area, but on the other hand, could open up a new opportunity to gain employment. With this coming out of the area, it could gain me employment with the job cuts closer to home, but also one on hand, could make the job market even more competitive.

Some radio and television products which will remain in Birmingham, include Midlands Today and Countryfile. For radio includes The Archers and BBC WM. 

Issue of Debate #3 - Twitter Interactivity.

The interactivity of Twitter, has helped reinvigorate the Television industry. A few years ago, viewers were not able to discuss their thoughts on a television show, as it was airing, but Twitter has allowed users of the social networking site, to share their opinions, by creating hash tags, or using ones provided by the programme in question. A popular one I have used in University, is #Drama, for the Television Drama module, and #Docs for the TV Documentary and features module in Semester one.

This allowed me to intearct with other members of my tutor group while watching in the comfort of my own home, and the following weeks scheduled class, saw us able to elaborate on what we liked about the programmes we had watched. Twitter can also be a bad thing for television, as over exposure to it, and forcing it down peoples throats could have an effect where people may not want to watch that particular TV show. An example of this, is recently on WWE Raw every week promoting Twitter, and a month ago, it was overkill, mentioning twitter at every opportunity. Luckily it has died down now, but Twitter is still seen with on screen graphics promoting various things to do with either the current show, or upcoming shows of WWE television.

Another example, where Twitter can help television programmes is on shows such as Unreported World. Unreported World is now in its 23 series, and has been widely watched throughout its run, and due to its unique nature of a different person doing an episode each week, adds a sense of danger, to me , that if they were in another place that they may not be as safe, as an "undercover, unreported" world. Twitter certainly opens the eyes to the world of the dangerous nature of some of the places, and the awful stuff which is happening.