Rams/Jaguars

Now that Mike Martz is all but gone for good do you think he roots for the Rams to win or just totally fall flat so he can claim they missed his guidance? If they suddenly go on a run without him it really gives anti-Martz guys like myself ammunition. I'm guessing if he decides to phone in his resignation that's one call the front office guys will let through. At any rate the Rams will never be an easy victory for teams when they are on their own turf as the Jaguars found out Sunday. Steven Jackson was huge and Kevin Curtis's 83 yard TD showed why he needs the ball thrown his way more often. If their defense and special teams don't give games away this could be a team that could make some noise in the second half of the season.

 

Giants/Redskins What a huge dump the Redskins took against the Giants. I think this game gave us some indication of who is the real beast in the East. If the Giants continue to play like this, they will wrap up the division by Thanksgiving. Tikki Barber continues to make big plays and Michael Strahan still has a gap in his teeth. Scary bunch.

 

Bengals/Packers

Brett Favre threw 5 interceptions and the Packers still had a shot at tying this this game up in the final minute. What does that say about the Bengals? Those folks on the Cincinnati Bandwagon might want to think about jumping off before they get hurt. I think this team is on the right track but they aren't ready for the big time yet. I heard Chad Johnson wanted to get a jersey signed by Brett Favre after this game. I wonder if the drunk guy who ran onto the field will ask Brett to sign his mug shot when he gets out of jail? I can see the autograph now, "Dear idiot, if you come within 50 feet of me again, I'll sick Bubba Franks on your ass. Best wishes. B.Favre"

 

Broncos/Eagles

 If Jake Plummer keeps playing this well he's going to screw up all my theories about him. He has shed the "So what if it's triple coverage" snakeskin and is (gulp) playing smart, efficient and validating Shanahan's trust in his ability. -----Donovan McNabb is not feeling well and this team is just not the same without him healthy. They face the Skins, Cowboys, and Giants in the next three weeks and if they don't get it together they could be out of the playoff hunt before December.

 

Chargers/Chiefs

Both of these teams needed to prove they could beat playoff caliber opponents. San Diego got the "W" in what is shaping up to be a chase for a Wild Card spot. Tony Gonzalez has to be ticked that Antonio Gates is being called the best Tight End in football now. Sorry Tony, Your still a Pro-Bowler but Gates is clearly the alpha male of the position right now. What were the Chargers thinking when they were dickering over his contract in the pre-season. Their basic holdup was that they didn't think he deserved Gonzalez-like money yet. This game pretty much settles that debate doesn't it? The Charger brass screwed themselves out of his services in the first game of the season and it cost them that game (remember that last minute red zone failure?). Hopefully they won't have another mental breakdown in the offseason and choose Rivers over Brees.

 

Patriots/Bills

 A late game collapse and a 4th quarter comeback. If you didn't see the game and I gave you that sentence as a clue to the victor, you could guess the answer in less than 2 seconds right? Bruschi's return is going to help the Patriots in the coming months (dammit) and this team is going to cruise to a division title.

 

 Panthers/Vikings

Fantasy owners who passed on Steve Smith have to be kicking themselves in the groin about now. This guy is on fire. When I saw him play at Utah I thought he was fast and had decent hands but I never guessed he would break out like this. The bonus part for Panther fans is that his name rolls off the tongue a little easier than Mushin Muhammad's does. Speaking of names, Mike Tice said this of Culpepper's possible season ending injury: "The quarterback doesn't appear to be in good shape" ----It's never a good sign when the coach addresses you by your position. It's too bad for Culpepper and the Vikings. They need a reset button on this season. On the plus side for Dante, he's got time for some recreational activities now....maybe a cruise?

 

Dolphins/Saints

Aaron Brooks has now officially replaced Jake Plummer (see Broncos post above) on my list of quarterbacks who I would never pick to win a big game if my life depended on their success. The Dolphins look like they have a running game and a good defense but still need a QB. So what's new?

Raiders/Titans

 I wonder if Norm Chow wishes he was still at USC?

 

49ers/Bucs

I was thinking this would be a nice game for Chris Simms to get his feet wet and really prep for some meaningful games coming up. Umm....not so much. Hey it's only one game though. He played all right last year until he got hurt so maybe he just needs a little time and fatherly advice. Does Dad Phil call up and give him the "what the hell were you thinking, you played like $#@" peptalk or does he give him a hug and a playful noogie? These are things I need to know.

 

Cowboys/Cardinals

 Barber looks good at RB for Dallas. Bledsoe managed to not lose the game which Parcells had to feel good about. I like the Cardinals receivers but not much else about their team. Only saw a few highlights of this game but any time Keyshawn Johnson is not on the sidelines screaming it's a good thing.

 

Texans/Browns

Capture the magic

 

Lions/Bears

Jeff Garcia played very Joey like today.  The Bears defense might score more this year than their offense.  These are not good things.

Slippery Little Buggers Aren't They?

Amazing comeback by UCLA. I flipped their game on with 8 minutes to go (how lucky was that, to turn it on just at the right time?) and I'm thinking, "ok so the USC/UCLA game might not be the event I thought it might be", and in a matter of 3 or 4 minutes I'm thinking, "I can't believe Stanford is going to blow this thing." The Bruins must have some kind of twisted sense of humor to let all these teams go into the 4th quarter ahead and then rip their guts out in the last few minutes. But they can't keep doing this can they? I mean it's like me continuing to watch Lindsay Lohan movies with my wife---At some point this has to end badly. (Note: it might have happened at the end of Herbie:Fully Loaded when she realized that I was only paying attention to the movie when Lindsay was in a tight shirt or showing some cleavage)......anyway.....UCLA needs to kick it into gear a bit sooner or they are going to be sleeping on the couch too.

 

Settle Down People

Before people start dusting off a seat for Brady Quinn at the Heisman ceremony coming off that 400 yard plus game last week, they should realize it came against a BYU secondary that gave up 5 touchdown passes to Air Force Saturday! Air Force has always been a running team but even these guys knew they could torch a defensive backfield that has to be one of the worst in the nation. Lucky for BYU, the Falcon's secondary might be worse. The Cougars hung 62 points on them.

 

Cut Em Some Slack

The Gators didn't wow me against Georgia (especially considering Shockley wasn't playing) but they are still in contention for the SEC and Urban Meyer has them playing tougher than Zook ever did. It will take another year (and better running of the option by the QB position) for his offensive system to click but I think they are headed in the right direction.

 

Taxi please?

Caught a little bit of the Oklahoma/Nebraska game. When does Bill Callahan start to get bricks thrown through his windows, or has that already begun?

 

Ok, Whatever

 This is how sad football is at Kansas. They tore down the goalposts after beating Missouri. Missouri? I mean, come on, they're no doormat but...please. That's the equivalent of Atlanta Hawk fans storming the court after beating the Toronto Raptors....in pre-season.

I thought that was a pretty good showing by VA Tech last night. Vick was as good as I've seen him this season. Yes, he does remind me of his brother but the guy he most reminds me of is Donovan McNabb when he played at Syracuse. Runs when he needs to but has decent touch on his passes. I think this kid as shot at being better than older brother Michael. That's saying a lot because the Falcons star may not be the best passer in the NFL but he's still a force at QB because of his legs. Brother Marcus has a ways to go but other than a few bumps this season he has played great for a first year starter. If he can keep his head straight and not be tempted by the draft after the season, he will return as a frontrunner for the Heisman with a legitimate shot at being the first player chosen in the 2007 draft. We'll get a better idea of how good Vick and the Hokies are this season after they play Miami and possibly Florida State (ACC title game).

I read Scoop Jackson's article today on ESPN's website about the split loyalties in Chicago for the Cubs and White Sox (and the bitterness that comes when the other team wins) and wondered why people can't root for two different teams, especially when they are in different leagues. This doubles your chance of having a team that might do well in a particular season and gives you twice the joy if they both do well. The only time you have to choose up sides is when they meet in inter-league play or if they meet in the World Series. I was a big Yankee/Mets fan back in my early teens (when Srawberry, Gooden, & Mattingly ruled NY) and had no problem with this idea. Why can't Angel fans have the Dodgers as a close second in their hearts or vice versa? It could be that because I don't come from a baseball city like Chicago or NY, I'm missing something here. Scoop tries to imply that race is involved with it in Chicago. I'm not buying that. I can understand a feeling that maybe the Cubs are your team and you just can't get into cheering for another team. That's one thing. It's the hatred, bitterness and openly rooting against the other team in your OWN city that I don't get. This post (http://www.gapersblock.com/airbags/archives/hate_hate_hate_the_white_sox/) by a White Sox fan is typical of this die-hard attitude. Another blog to check out that gives Cub's fan view is http://graceandwayne.blogspot.com/2005/10/sox-nation.html With the Red Sox and Yankees you have two teams from rival cities and there is a history of playing each other and ripping each other's hearts out (mostly one sided by the Yankees). It makes sense for these fans to hate each other and each other's teams. The Astros are in the Cub's own division for pete's sake. If Cubbies want to look for a rival, they might start with the team that helped prevent them from sniffing the post-season.

Some quick thoughts on the Monday night game:

- Warrick Dunn is a stud. I've always like the way this guy runs. He's quick and elusive with some Barry Sanders type moves, yet he will (as John Madden likes to tell us) run in between the tackles pretty well also. He is a consistent runner who you can count on to get you over 100 yards if you get him the ball 20 times. But what's with the dog collar chain he was wearing? If he's not horse collared with it by the Jets then he risks getting mugged for it on the way home.

- Mike Vick is absolutely fun to watch run and escape in the pocket but if your a Falcon fan you have to hold your breath every time he does for two reasons: First, he might get hurt, and second he might (and does many times) fumble the ball. He doesn't tuck the ball away at all until he's beyond the line of scrimmage (sometimes) and he tends to hold it down near his thigh when he's dodging defenders in the pocket. This leads to many cough ups. The Falcons just have to hope it doesn't happen in big games or critical series. He is who he is. Vick is a spectacular runner that can change a game with his legs. He is also a very mediocre passer (but with one of the prettiest spirals and strongest arms you'll ever see) due to his lack of touch and patience. All I know is I'm not a big Falcon fan but their games are set to record on my Tivo every week. Vick is the reason for that.

- You really have to feel for Jets fans this year. I mean they came into the year thinking they might contend for a division championship and they are at a point now where they're thinking (with some guilt) maybe a number 1 pick on draft day could bring them a quarterback. I really think Pennington is done. With the stuff that has happened to his arm he will be lucky if he gets back to form. Ever. And Vinny, what can you say about him. You have to admire that he is in the kind of shape at 42 to still play in the league. But like many NFL quarterbacks he is just not very good. Vinny has has occasional good years in his career. This won't be one of them.