MIAMI 24 – CAROLINA 17
A mildly entertaining affair. All I can say sometimes is” “Ricky Williams, what could have been?” Would he have been the one to break Emmitt Smith’s rushing record? Could he have gone to 20,000 yards? What would have he had done if he had his depression under control early on in his career? Miami QB Chad Henne looked out of sync, and still has a ways to go to play in the NFL. Carolina is pretty much done for the year. Pretty much what you would get if you played this out with a Strat-O-Matic. This game was nothing special, but got us ready for an interesting week in the NFL.
DALLAS 7 – WASHINGTON 6
A poor entry into what use to be one of the NFL’s greatest rivalries. Now one team is awful and the division leader can’t find its offense. This one was ugly, with the Cowboys only finding their offensive groove under the most desperate of circumstances. Dallas did run the ball more, but made critical mistakes at key times while on the move. WR Roy Williams, whom Jerry Jones traded away plenty for, keeps killing this team. One time “genius” and Princeton-Man Jason Garrett has become the class room dunce, unable to generate points with an offense allegedly loaded with talent. As for Washington, they lose another starting running back, this time for the year, and can’t capitalize upon a game practically given to them. Interesting that Albert Haynesworth found his way out of the game where he would meet the man he kicked in the face years before.
DETROIT 38 – DETROIT 37
GAME OF THE YEAR ALERT. It’s official folks – Cleveland is on the clock! What an amazing game for so many reasons – You’ve got two terrible teams throwing haymakers at each other like it’s the playoffs, a big comeback, controversial coaching call, an injured hero making a legend for himself, and an amazing ending. Cleveland jumped out to a 24 point lead, only to watch QB Brady Quinn cool off completely, and young Matthew Stafford catch a spark. Then Classic Mangini, as he fakes a field goal, only to set up another field goal. But that was not the best part. With no time of the clock Stafford throws up an Eli-Manning-on-the-winning-Super-Bowl-drive throw, and pass interference is called in the end zone. So now we have the super-rare potential game winning play at 0:00. Stafford is carried off the field and must miss a play, so in comes back up Daunte Culpepper. Mangini screams there should be a five second run off, but it does not matter as there is no time left, and there must be a penalty play. Not getting this, he calls a time out to confer with the officials, and because of this now Stafford can return to the game. Five seconds later the rookie QB throws the game winning strike, then walks off the field grimacing in pain. What a classic! A game way better than it had any right to be.
GREEN BAY 30 – SAN FRANCISCO 24
The 49ers made this one interesting in the end, but Green Bay walked through a surprisingly poor tackling defense. This once solid defense let up 344 yards in the air, a 100 yard rusher and a 100 yard receiver. As for the Pack, remember, this is a team that gave Minnesota a lot of trouble at home, and walked all over first place Dallas. There are huge holes on the team’s offensive line, but they seem to be improving weekly, and could be a wild card team that no one wants visiting. As for the Bay team, the wheels are slowly coming off, and they seem to be going in the opposite direction. They were the sweethearts of the league, but now have lost their shine. Coach Mike Singletary must get his team to tackle better; shocking considering what his technique was like on the field.
KANSAS CITY 27 – PITTSBURGH 24
The Steelers gain almost 400 yards through the air, and another century on the ground, only to lose a real heartbreaker. The Pitt defense had no answer for WR Chris Chambers who made big plays at critical times, to bring the victory at home. Special teams will be the undoing of the defending champs as Jamaal Charles scored 16 seconds into the game with a 97 yard kickoff return against them. Hurting the Steelers even more was QB Ben Roethlisberger being knocked for a loop and right out of the game. Pittsburgh really should have never lost this game, but seemed to find a way to in the end. I just don’t see them competing with the Colts or Pats in the real season.
MINNESOTA 35 – SEATTLE 9
Brett Favre threw 88% in a scary, dominating performance by the NFC’s best team. This was no surprise at all, except for maybe the Seahawks complete inability to defend the slant route in the red zone. Over and over again the Vike’s receivers were able to get great positioning on their defenders and get separation. Seattle tried to make it interesting, but they were just so outgunned. As I stated last week, Seattle is quietly floating to the bottom, with no one making much noise about how bad they really are. NFL Guy thinks this is the best team in the NFL right now, and is built to beat the Saints and Colts. Will Favre become the NFL’s first 40 year old MVP?
NY GIANTS 34 – ATLANTA 31
It is apparent many people thought too highly of the Falcons coming into this year. I was not yet sold on Matt Ryan. Too many roll outs and half-field reads to think he was an elite player yet. He might be some day, I am not saying that, but the Falcons helped him out a lot last year; until he got exposed in the playoffs last year. The Giants needed a win with utmost desperation, and were able to win the thing with a field goal at 11:06 to stop a 14 point Falcons rally. Eli Manning had a banner day, throwing for the most ever yards in his career at 384. New York had to summon a Herculean effort to beat a middle of the pack team. Nonetheless, the skid is over, and they now must try to salvage a once golden looking season.
INDIANAPOLIS 17 – BALTIMORE 15
Every great team squeaks a few out – remember the Pats barely beating the Ravens is 2007? This was that type of game for Indy. It pretty much came down to Joe Flacco vs. Peyton Manning and the elder gunslinger just had too much for the young upstart. Unless the Texans upset them next week in Houston, I can see the Colts running the table against terrible Tennessee, the dying Broncos, myopic Jacksonville, an overrated Jets team and the woeful Bills in Buffalo. We go 25 years not seeing a perfect season, and now potentially three in 2 seasons. (Let’s not forget about the Saints now, but I think they’ll lose pretty soon).
ARIZONA 21 – ST LOUIS 13
Nothing to excite anyone but the hardcore fans of the two teams here. Kurt Warner got his bell rung, and was on the sideline trying to see if Matt Leinart ever develops. St. Louis is just so bad right now, and not at all fun to watch. I will say they brought some heat in the running game, but it is still painful to watch them play on both sides of the ball. Arizona is still impossible to figure out, and it seems they don’t really know what they are either. An identity crisis near the playoffs is a sure way to get sent home really early.
NEW ENGLAND 31 – NY JETS 14
You could practically hear Tom Brady thinking, “Who sucks now New York?” as he sliced apart the Jets’ defense at will. Defensive mastermind Rex Ryan had absolutely not one idea on how to stop Wes Welker in the slot, and the little big man picked up 192 yards underneath the confused NY zone. QB Mark Sanchez was no better, throwing five interceptions, one a pick-six. It was a revenge flavored beat down that the Pats administered, confusing the rookie QB into awful throws. The Pats D bent a little on the ground, but this one was out of reach for the Jets once they fell behind 7-0.
SAN DIEGO 32 – DENVER 3
Q: Is this the same Denver team that beat first place Dallas and New England? A: Nope. Denver surprised some people early, beat Cincy on a fluke, outcoached Dallas because anyone can, and beat the Pats because they knew all their tricks. There is plenty of film on these guys now, and they are too finesse based and a bit too old on defense. Their offense has dried up as teams have learned to attack them. Their collapse usually happens later in the season, As for the Chargers, they are now in the driver’s seat in the AFC West, and are heating up. QB Philip Rivers was accurate and deliberate in his throws, maintaining the victory for his team. I see the Chargers taking this division now, and the Broncos missing the playoffs. I picked them as the fifth worst team entering the season, and the fade seems to begin now.
OAKLAND 20 – CINCINNATI 17
For about 3 minutes the Bengals became their old selves. Unfortunately in those three minutes, the Raiders scored twice to win the game. Oakland stinks, but played tough. QB Bruce Gradkowski was decisive and played with energy, leading the team to an upset victory. NFL Guys says, the Bengals need to learn how to play in a vital game, like last week, and come back to knock off a bottom feeder like Oakland, in order to bang with the big teams. Something was off the whole game with Cincy, and you could tell by watching them – very flat play. As for Oakland, this could be the last win of the year. And if coach Tom Cable thinks they are headed in the right direction in their current state, he really needs to be canned.
NEW ORLEANS 38 – TAMPA BAY 7
Every week we seem to have a really predictable game play out really predictably. This was it. The Saints are very hot right now, but seemed to be poised to lose at least once this season. I am going to go with them dropping their game against Dallas in a few weeks. Either way, this no longer seems to be a team that can beat the Vikings. Minny might be too big and strong on defense to go up and down the field at will on, and the Vikes can go point for point with them. That’s why they play the game right? Tampa, well better luck next year. You still have college ball to fall back on down there, I guess.
PHILADELPHIA 24 – CHICAGO 20
Guess what, Jay Cutler stinks. Over and over last night he missed wide open receivers that journeymen QBs hit in stride. He pouts on the sideline, tantrums, and seems anything like a top notch gun slinging leader who was worth the princess’s ransom they paid to get him. Two weeks in a row he was asked to do what he was brought in and paid a ton to do – win them a tight game. Twice in a row he has failed. Philly looked good, but it seems better days are ahead for them with their solid group of young, dynamic playmakers they have at the skill positions. Donovan McNabb consoled Cutler last night, and Cutler seemed bothered and annoyed by this. It is not all the QBs fault, the defense is just average, and the running game, save one long run, is nonexistent, and should be something that is aiding the passing game.
