WEEK 5 IN THE NFL, WHAT I SAW
There were 12 games yesterday & with the exception of the Cincinnati-Jacksonville game, I saw them all. Here's a little of what I saw.
Want to get out of the winless column? Give the ball to #28 & turn him loose.
That's exactly what the Minnesota Vikings did early & often in their first win of the season, a 34-10 victory over Arizona. Adrian Peterson ran over,around & thru the Cardinals, especially in the first quarter when he had 6 carries for 64-yards & three touchdowns. Even Donovan McNabb ran for a score as the Vikes jumped all over the Cards with 4 touchdowns in the 1st quarter. The Kevin Kolb era isn't starting well for Arizona.
West coast teams traveling cross country & playing early almost never win, unless it's against the Giants. Worst loss of the day, not even close.
Here's one I didn't see comin'. The Seattle Seahawks rallied with 20 4th quarter points to upset the New York Giants. Once again Giants' QB Eli Manning reverted to the turnover machine that has plagued New York for over a year now. He threw three picks & lost a fumble. To be fair, the last interception was a bobble & two tips before Brandon Browner latched onto it & took it back 94-yards for the final score. The Giants had another lost fumble, took a safety in addition to Mannings' mistakes.
Big Ben ought to have a sprained foot every week.
The Steelers looked like the Steelers yesterday as QB Ben Rothlisberger threw a career-high 5 touchdowns as Pittsburgh shellacked Tennessee 38-17. They'd been having difficulty getting to the QB & the Titans had done an excellent job protecting Matt Hasselbeck, but not yesterday at Heinz Field. Pittsburgh recorded 3 sacks & 7 QB knockdowns. That was without OLB James Harrison, NT Casey Hampton & DE Aaron Smith, all inactive due to injuries.
Once again Cam looks good, but the Panthers lose.
Tho Carolina is 1-4, you can see some light at the end of the tunnel. I'm speaking of Cam Newton, who continues to play very well for a rookie on a fairly bad team. He threw for a pair of touchdowns & ran for another. His ability to avoid the rush & keep plays alive is amazing sometimes. DeAngelo Williams added 115-yards & a score on just 9 carries. Ahead late in the game, the Panther defense wasn't up to keeping Drew Brees out of the endzone. The Saints move to 4-1, winning 30-27. The league office will be sending Saints safety Roman Harper a bill for hitting WR Steve Smith with a vicious shot long after Smith was in the endzone. I'm thinking something in the range of $15,000.
As bad as the Eagles are playing, Andy Reid could be gone.
The so-called "Dream Team" is melting down week by week. Yesterday, they made so many mistakes(5 turnovers & easily the stupidest penalty I've seen this season) & lack sound fundamentals, Reid officially is in serious trouble in Philly. The Buffalo Bills are the exact opposite, they tackle well, don't commit a lot of penalties & stay focused down to down. They beat Philadelphia 31-24 to remain in a first place tie with the New England Patriots. Michael Vick threw four interceptions, one was Jason Avant's fault as he juggled a throw & Vick is taking a helluva beating, I don't see him playing 16 games this season. He did pass Randall Cunningham as the all-time leading rusher among quarterbacks with a career total of 4,948-yards. With less than 2-minutes remaining in the 4th quarter, the Bills offense lined up on 4th & 1 at their own 47-yard line, obviously trying to draw the Eagles offside so they could kill the remaining clock. I'm guessing everyone in the stadium, all 69,803 of them, knew the Bills were never going to snap the ball. If the Eagles didn't jump, Buffalo would call timeout & punt it. You see where this is going right? Philadelphia DE Juqua Parker jumped offside giving the Bills a 1st down & the Eagles never got the ball again. This team is in serious trouble & so is their coach.
Just when it looked like the Raiders would lose, Al Davis' spirit saved the day.
Or at least that's what it seemed like. The Houston Texans, who are not a good team, they choke way too often to be classified as a "good team," managed to torture their hometown fans on yet another Sunday. Despite being outgained by the Texans by 200-yards, the Raiders held on all day on the strength of 4 Sebastian Janikowski field goals, a record 3 of them from over 50-yards. Texans QB Matt Schaub threw a pair of picks, the last one on the game's last play. Houston had time for one play from the Oakland 6-yardline but as Schaub escaped the pocket & set sail for the endzone, he saw his path was blocked so he flipped a pass intended for WR Jacoby Jones & it was picked by Raider safety Michael Huff. More bad news for the Texans came in the form of a torn pectoral muscle to Pro Bowl linebacker Mario Williams. He will miss an extended period of time, Williams is Houston's best pass rusher. Everyone connected to the Raiders showed how much Davis' death meant to them after the game. Mark Davis, Al's son, stood crying in a suite while head coach Hue Jackson knelt on the field for about 5-minutes overcome with emotion.
Too bad the Jets don't play as well as they talk.
I told you the Jets were giving the Patriots plenty of bulletin board material. It did nothing but motivate the Pats to roll New York 30-21. The jets wanted to run the ball, but it was New England's BenJarvus Green-Ellis who ground up the Jets with 136-yards & 2 touchdowns. The Jets plan to cover New England's best receiver Wes Welker with Darrelle Reavis didn't work out too well either. Welker caught 5 passes for 124-yards. This game gave us an amazing stat. patriot TE Aaron Hernandez bobbled a Tom Brady pass at the goal line & it was picked by Antonio Cromartie for the Jets. The interception marked the 1st redzone pick thrown by Tom Brady at Gillette Stadium in his entire career. Holy crap, that's 12+ years.
I picked the Niners to win, but did anyone see a 48-3 blowout coming?
First let me say Jim Harbaugh's Forty-Niners are a 51-yard field goal by the Cowboys away from being undefeated. QB Alex Smith threw three touchdown passes, Frank Gore & rookie Kendall Hunter combined for 190-yards rushing & the Niner defense got 3 takeaways. The one glaring mistake Harbaugh made was having his leading wide receiver in the game late in the 4th quarterand throwing him a bomb. Josh Morgan caught the pass & set sail for the endzone only to be pulled down at the one, breaking his ankle. Why was this guy in the game coach?
It appears the Tim Tebow era has begun in Denver.
After a half of three-and-outs, the booing at Mile High was deafening, they wanted no more of QB Kyle Orton. The Broncos didn't have 60-yards of total offense in the first half. So coach John Fox, went right by 2nd teamer Brady Quinn & sent Tim Tebow into see if he could provide a spark. Behind 26-10, Tebow led Denver to a pair of 4th quarter touchdowns, one he ran for the other he threw for, plus a 2-point conversion on the first TD. But after San Diego kicked a field goal with just 24-seconds remaining, it was all but over for Denver. But the fans stayed & after two long completions to the Charger 30-yardline, Tebow got one shot at the endzone to win the game. After scrambling around for 8-10 seconds, he flung a pass into the endzone that was batted down. But the fans were thrilled Tebow got into the game, cheering loudly for a few minutes after the game was final. Fox has a tough decision to make over Denver's bye week, to Tebow or not to Tebow.
Patient Packers are just better than everybody else.
Usually the defending Super Bowls champs have a bit of a hangover, a lapse, if you will. Not these Green Bay Packers, not up till now anyway. Going back to late last season, the Pack has won 11-straight games(no, not preseason). They were without right tackle Bryan Bulaga & left tackle Chad Clifton suffered a hamstring injury in the first half, but the Packers don't rattle. They just move people around & adjust. Down 14-6 at half, they score 19 unanswered 2nd half points to defeat the struggling Atlanta Falcons 25-14. Aaron Rodgers was spectacular throwing for 396-yards & both Packer touchdowns. His accuracy, especially on the move, is something to behold. He's playing at a higher level that any other QB in the NFL. Twelve different receivers caught passes for Green Bay last night, that is simply unreal. He has the best group of receivers in the league & as long as they're getting passes thrown in their direction, they'll continue running good patterns looking for their share. Since Barry Sanders retired, the Thanksgiving Day games in Detroit have been pretty much unwatchable. Not this year, Green Bay comes to Motown, the division rivals don't have their first meeting until late November. The Rams will be this week's cannon fodder for the Champs as St. Louis travels to Lambeau looking for their first win of the season. Don't think so.
Want to get out of the winless column? Give the ball to #28 & turn him loose.
That's exactly what the Minnesota Vikings did early & often in their first win of the season, a 34-10 victory over Arizona. Adrian Peterson ran over,around & thru the Cardinals, especially in the first quarter when he had 6 carries for 64-yards & three touchdowns. Even Donovan McNabb ran for a score as the Vikes jumped all over the Cards with 4 touchdowns in the 1st quarter. The Kevin Kolb era isn't starting well for Arizona.
West coast teams traveling cross country & playing early almost never win, unless it's against the Giants. Worst loss of the day, not even close.
Here's one I didn't see comin'. The Seattle Seahawks rallied with 20 4th quarter points to upset the New York Giants. Once again Giants' QB Eli Manning reverted to the turnover machine that has plagued New York for over a year now. He threw three picks & lost a fumble. To be fair, the last interception was a bobble & two tips before Brandon Browner latched onto it & took it back 94-yards for the final score. The Giants had another lost fumble, took a safety in addition to Mannings' mistakes.
Big Ben ought to have a sprained foot every week.
The Steelers looked like the Steelers yesterday as QB Ben Rothlisberger threw a career-high 5 touchdowns as Pittsburgh shellacked Tennessee 38-17. They'd been having difficulty getting to the QB & the Titans had done an excellent job protecting Matt Hasselbeck, but not yesterday at Heinz Field. Pittsburgh recorded 3 sacks & 7 QB knockdowns. That was without OLB James Harrison, NT Casey Hampton & DE Aaron Smith, all inactive due to injuries.
Once again Cam looks good, but the Panthers lose.
Tho Carolina is 1-4, you can see some light at the end of the tunnel. I'm speaking of Cam Newton, who continues to play very well for a rookie on a fairly bad team. He threw for a pair of touchdowns & ran for another. His ability to avoid the rush & keep plays alive is amazing sometimes. DeAngelo Williams added 115-yards & a score on just 9 carries. Ahead late in the game, the Panther defense wasn't up to keeping Drew Brees out of the endzone. The Saints move to 4-1, winning 30-27. The league office will be sending Saints safety Roman Harper a bill for hitting WR Steve Smith with a vicious shot long after Smith was in the endzone. I'm thinking something in the range of $15,000.
As bad as the Eagles are playing, Andy Reid could be gone.
The so-called "Dream Team" is melting down week by week. Yesterday, they made so many mistakes(5 turnovers & easily the stupidest penalty I've seen this season) & lack sound fundamentals, Reid officially is in serious trouble in Philly. The Buffalo Bills are the exact opposite, they tackle well, don't commit a lot of penalties & stay focused down to down. They beat Philadelphia 31-24 to remain in a first place tie with the New England Patriots. Michael Vick threw four interceptions, one was Jason Avant's fault as he juggled a throw & Vick is taking a helluva beating, I don't see him playing 16 games this season. He did pass Randall Cunningham as the all-time leading rusher among quarterbacks with a career total of 4,948-yards. With less than 2-minutes remaining in the 4th quarter, the Bills offense lined up on 4th & 1 at their own 47-yard line, obviously trying to draw the Eagles offside so they could kill the remaining clock. I'm guessing everyone in the stadium, all 69,803 of them, knew the Bills were never going to snap the ball. If the Eagles didn't jump, Buffalo would call timeout & punt it. You see where this is going right? Philadelphia DE Juqua Parker jumped offside giving the Bills a 1st down & the Eagles never got the ball again. This team is in serious trouble & so is their coach.
Just when it looked like the Raiders would lose, Al Davis' spirit saved the day.
Or at least that's what it seemed like. The Houston Texans, who are not a good team, they choke way too often to be classified as a "good team," managed to torture their hometown fans on yet another Sunday. Despite being outgained by the Texans by 200-yards, the Raiders held on all day on the strength of 4 Sebastian Janikowski field goals, a record 3 of them from over 50-yards. Texans QB Matt Schaub threw a pair of picks, the last one on the game's last play. Houston had time for one play from the Oakland 6-yardline but as Schaub escaped the pocket & set sail for the endzone, he saw his path was blocked so he flipped a pass intended for WR Jacoby Jones & it was picked by Raider safety Michael Huff. More bad news for the Texans came in the form of a torn pectoral muscle to Pro Bowl linebacker Mario Williams. He will miss an extended period of time, Williams is Houston's best pass rusher. Everyone connected to the Raiders showed how much Davis' death meant to them after the game. Mark Davis, Al's son, stood crying in a suite while head coach Hue Jackson knelt on the field for about 5-minutes overcome with emotion.
Too bad the Jets don't play as well as they talk.
I told you the Jets were giving the Patriots plenty of bulletin board material. It did nothing but motivate the Pats to roll New York 30-21. The jets wanted to run the ball, but it was New England's BenJarvus Green-Ellis who ground up the Jets with 136-yards & 2 touchdowns. The Jets plan to cover New England's best receiver Wes Welker with Darrelle Reavis didn't work out too well either. Welker caught 5 passes for 124-yards. This game gave us an amazing stat. patriot TE Aaron Hernandez bobbled a Tom Brady pass at the goal line & it was picked by Antonio Cromartie for the Jets. The interception marked the 1st redzone pick thrown by Tom Brady at Gillette Stadium in his entire career. Holy crap, that's 12+ years.
I picked the Niners to win, but did anyone see a 48-3 blowout coming?
First let me say Jim Harbaugh's Forty-Niners are a 51-yard field goal by the Cowboys away from being undefeated. QB Alex Smith threw three touchdown passes, Frank Gore & rookie Kendall Hunter combined for 190-yards rushing & the Niner defense got 3 takeaways. The one glaring mistake Harbaugh made was having his leading wide receiver in the game late in the 4th quarterand throwing him a bomb. Josh Morgan caught the pass & set sail for the endzone only to be pulled down at the one, breaking his ankle. Why was this guy in the game coach?
It appears the Tim Tebow era has begun in Denver.
After a half of three-and-outs, the booing at Mile High was deafening, they wanted no more of QB Kyle Orton. The Broncos didn't have 60-yards of total offense in the first half. So coach John Fox, went right by 2nd teamer Brady Quinn & sent Tim Tebow into see if he could provide a spark. Behind 26-10, Tebow led Denver to a pair of 4th quarter touchdowns, one he ran for the other he threw for, plus a 2-point conversion on the first TD. But after San Diego kicked a field goal with just 24-seconds remaining, it was all but over for Denver. But the fans stayed & after two long completions to the Charger 30-yardline, Tebow got one shot at the endzone to win the game. After scrambling around for 8-10 seconds, he flung a pass into the endzone that was batted down. But the fans were thrilled Tebow got into the game, cheering loudly for a few minutes after the game was final. Fox has a tough decision to make over Denver's bye week, to Tebow or not to Tebow.
Patient Packers are just better than everybody else.
Usually the defending Super Bowls champs have a bit of a hangover, a lapse, if you will. Not these Green Bay Packers, not up till now anyway. Going back to late last season, the Pack has won 11-straight games(no, not preseason). They were without right tackle Bryan Bulaga & left tackle Chad Clifton suffered a hamstring injury in the first half, but the Packers don't rattle. They just move people around & adjust. Down 14-6 at half, they score 19 unanswered 2nd half points to defeat the struggling Atlanta Falcons 25-14. Aaron Rodgers was spectacular throwing for 396-yards & both Packer touchdowns. His accuracy, especially on the move, is something to behold. He's playing at a higher level that any other QB in the NFL. Twelve different receivers caught passes for Green Bay last night, that is simply unreal. He has the best group of receivers in the league & as long as they're getting passes thrown in their direction, they'll continue running good patterns looking for their share. Since Barry Sanders retired, the Thanksgiving Day games in Detroit have been pretty much unwatchable. Not this year, Green Bay comes to Motown, the division rivals don't have their first meeting until late November. The Rams will be this week's cannon fodder for the Champs as St. Louis travels to Lambeau looking for their first win of the season. Don't think so.
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