With my Rams off this week I'll be rooting for the Vikings to upend the Seahawks at home. That and a TD-less game for T.O. It's not too much to ask for is it? ---On to the picks:


Jets over the Lions
I want to pick the Lions but I'm going with the Jets to pull one out at home.

Packers over Miami
Favre will have a good enough day to outshine Harrington. Wow. That statement shows you just how bad it's been for Bret Favre the past couple of years.

Eagles over the Bucs
McNabb and Co. are ready to roll again.

Chargers over the Chiefs
The Chiefs have been like Jekyll and Hyde this season while the Chargers should be undefeated.
Of course K.C. needs more of the Hyde personality because everyone knows Jekyll is a wuss.

Bengals over the Panthers
I'm thinking Cincy gets it in their heads this week that they're supposed to be good.

Patriots over the Bills
The Bills usually play the Pats tough. And maybe they will again. But they'll also lose again.

Steelers over the Falcons
Can Atlanta lose two straight at home? -- Yep.

Jaguars over the Texans
The Jags aren't getting much attention this year. A win over Houston won't really help.

Broncos over the Browns
If Plummer doesn't step it up then the cries for Cutler will only increase.

Colts over the Redskins
This may be the week the run defense kills the Colts. Portis could trash them. But I can't pick them with the way Brunnell and their defense played last week.

Seahawks over the Vikings
Seattle will roll at home against a so-so Viking team.

Cardinals over the Raiders
Leinart will live up to the promise he showed against the Bears.

Cowboys over the Giants
I hope I'm wrong about this one. I'm beginning to really hate the Cowboys. I'm talking Patriot level animosity here.

I know I've been neglecting college football in my posts. It's not that I'm not interested in the college game because I am. But I'll admit the passion is not there like it is for the NFL. I root for my in-state teams, Utah State (bad as usual) BYU (should be undefeated but blew what should have been an easy win at Arizona as well as handing a game to Boston College in double OT) and Utah (mediocre this year). But it's been tough to really get too interested these teams when a screwy television deal that the Mountain West Conference has put together prevents me from seeing almost all of the BYU and Utah games on tv. What idiots from the MWC decided that it would be a good idea to create their own conference sports channel (called the "Mountain") without securing deals with the major satellite companies (Dish and DirectTV)? It's moronic.

Other college football thoughts on my mind include:


-My J.C. alma mater, Snow College is undefeated and ranked #1 in the National Junior College Athletic Association poll this week. For a J.C. team Snow has always been able to produce some really good players. In recent years, Josh Heupel (led Oklahoma to a National Championship) Kevin Curtis (WR for the St. Louis Rams), and 7 other current NFL players have played for the Badgers. Not bad for a school with enrollment less than 3,000. I know it's only jr. college football but its been fun to follow.


- I was hoping Florida could go undefeated this year. The SEC is just too good and because of that they get hosed in regards to the National Championship.

- The dismissal of QB Rhett Bomar, Adrian Peterson's injury, and the Oregon game screw-job, have made OU a hard luck team this year. I'll be interested to see whether it all becomes too much for the Sooners.

- I'm really looking forward to the Michigan/Ohio St. game.

-Two teams in the top 25 that I really would like to see lose a game or two before the season ends: Notre Dame and Texas

-Two teams in the top 25 that I would like to see win the rest of their game this season: Boise St. and West Virginia

Bears 24/ Cards 23
Yeah that was one of the craziest games I've ever watched. But after we get finished dumping on the Cardinals and praising the Bears defense and special teams we still have to deal with the fact that the Bears offense really sucked. Specifically Rex Grossman sucked donkeys. I mean that had to be one of the worst games I have ever seen a QB play. Four interceptions and two lost fumbles and a 38% completion rate. He almost single handedly lost that game. Only luck, some outstanding Bear hits and a some incredible stupid plays by the Cardinals saved Rex's ass. He's played great so far this season so maybe a letdown game was inevitable. But it looked like he was going for the home run on every play. Yeah Rex, we get it, you've thrown a few 40 yarders this season. Now try the 10 yard hook. It works sometimes. When playoff time comes the long bomb is not always going to be there. 6 minute drives with a few dink passes here and there can be a QBs best friend to open up the middle of the field as well as the bomb. If it sounds like I'm bagging on Grossman, ....well, I am. But it's out of love. Ok...not love because I'm not into Rex that much, but you know, I like to watch him throw a football.
Anyway, I'm glad that game came out like it did. I don't want the Cardinals getting better anytime soon. The Rams have their hands full with the Seahawks.

I have to mention just a couple of things about the Cardinals last night. An angry Dennis Green in the interview room is always good for a laugh. Also, two mistakes by Cardinal players really stood out last night. One is the missed block by the Cardinal offensive tackle Oliver Ross that resulted in Leinart getting blindsided and losing the ball for the first of Chicago's gift TDs. He might want to miss the film session when that one is played. The other mistake was the missed tackle on Devin Hester's punt return for a TD. Watch the replay again if you can. There is a Cardinal player who has a direct line on Hester and yet he is so worried about the guy who's going to block him that he forgets he is actually running down the field to tackle Hester. Then when Hester runs by him, he turns and is like "oh shit, that's the dude I want". Another blood vessel will pop in Green's neck when he watches that one

You know what I'm having trouble with? Tivo. Specifically I'm struggling to keep from flipping to the end of games I've recorded but not seen. It takes all the fun out of watching games if you know the outcome, but I'll be honest, the temptation is almost killing me. So far I'm resisting. I'm a trooper and I don't know why my wife doesn't recognize this amazing display of self control as deserving of some kind of reward. Anyway I had a few observations from today's action:


Seahawks 30/Rams 28
Ouch. The Ram pass defense really let me down today. Tory Holt and Marc Bulger were on fire but they couldn't stop Hasselbeck when it counted. I really hate that bald guy. I mean I really really HATE that guy. I see now that having a Tom Brady voodoo doll is not enough. Believe me, Hasselbeck's effigy will be in the works tomorrow. Next time the Rams play the Seahawks this situation will be rectified. Seriously though, if they can't beat Seattle without Alexander I'm not sure they are ready to take the Seahawks division title away this year. And don't you just hate a turf field when you're praying for a missed field goal? arggg. I don't want to talk about it anymore. Excuse me while I go slam my fingers in a car door to ease the pain.


Giants 27/Falcons 14
If you like good running this was the game for you. Barber and Dunn were awesome and Vick had his usual spectacular play or two. But tell the truth, would you want Vick on your team if you fall behind and need a comeback? Playing with a lead is Vick's strength but once he's down, he's out. Also I thought more highly of the Falcon defense but I may have to rethink that after they gave up 259 yards rushing (185 to Barber) to the Giants. I only caught highlights of this one but it appears that despite early hiccups Elisha got it together for the second half. Still, Barber is the soul of this team. When he's on a roll the Giants usually win.


Saints 27/Eagles 24
It's not a total shocker with the way the Saints have been playing but it does merit a raised eyebrow or two doesn't it? I think the Saints defense is still a little suspect but their offense is for real. Brees, Bush, McAllister, Horn and some guy named Colston are bringing a little fire to the Superdome and it's kind of fun to watch. And by the way do you think Dolphin coach Nick Saban just sits at home at night giving himself paper cuts and wondering aloud, "Culpepper over Brees, Culpepper over Brees. What the hell was I thinking?!"



Cowboys 34/Texans 6
Yay. T.O. is back is scoring touchdowns and celebrating like the doofus he is.
We can all move on with our lives now.


Panthers 23/Ravens 21
McNair gets hurt again. Shocker. This guy is going to really feel it when he retires. I've got a father-in-law who punted in the NFL in the 70s and his body is a wreck now. I can't imagine how an NFL player who actually gets hit on a regular basis will feel after he's done playing. McNair may need a wheelchair. But his replacement, Kyle Boller played pretty decent actually. Still, I'm pretty sure the Raven fans aren't ready to start screaming for Boller. They've been down that road before and it was one of those winding suckers that get you lost in the middle of the night.
As for the Panthers; It's always nice to see Steve Smith get going again. When he does, Carolina is almost unbeatable.

Buccaneers 14/Bengals 13
What's up with Cincy? Their last two games have been absolutely mailed in and it's an embarrassment for a team that has Super Bowl dreams. You knew the Bucs would want that first win bad but I kinda figured the Bengals would show a little more spunk. Instead they ate a big bowl of bran flakes and laid a huge dookie on the field.


Denver 13/Raiders 3
I'm not sure which is more embarrassing, the Raiders winless season so far or the fact that the Broncos only put up 13 points on the Silver and Black. It's a toss up. The Bronco offense is not going anywhere in the playoffs (if they make it that far) unless Jake Plummer and that offense start playing better.


Jets 20/Dolphins 17
Did I already mention Nick Saban might be regretting the decision to sign Culpepper?. But hey Harrington is performing surprising well for the injured/benched Culpepper, and besides this was almost a win. That counts for...somethi......well....ok it doesn't mean squat but hey what about those Dolphin cheerleaders? A couple of them are really hot!


Detroit 20/Buffalo 17
At least they've got one of their touted wideouts picks playing well. Roy Williams is destroying cornerbacks at an alarming rate. Detroit may not be as bad as their record. They've botched some games they probably could have had. Sounds like something Mike Martz could have been involved in. But hey you know, a win is important for Detroit because they are starving for a winning team right now.......oh wait....


Titans 25/Redskins 22
Should I be surprised with this win after the Titans played Indy so tough last week? I'll admit it I'm still a bit shocked. I thought the Redskins would bounce back from last week's loss to NY. If Brunnell can't outplay an inexperienced Vince Young at this point then the Skins really are in trouble


Steelers 45/Chiefs 7
Ben Roethlisberger, Hines Ward, and Willie Parker all had an excellent game. No surprise with the results then. Said Roethlisberger, "I tried throwing to the guys in the black shirts rather than the guys in the white shirts." This man is a genius. Helmet, who needs a helmet?


Chargers 48/49ers 19
Does that score look like "marty ball"? After criticizing him early in the season, I'm willing to cut Schottenheimer some slack now. Two weeks in a row he's given Philip Rivers the green light to throw it and check out the result. Could the conservative coach rear his ugly head again come December and January? Of course but for now let's just enjoy the development of a star in the making. That'd be Rivers not Schottenheimer. I'll admit I was anti-Rivers the minute he held out for more cash when he was a rookie. Then when Brees became a Pro-Bowler as the kid from N.C. State sat on the bench I was further smugified (what? it's a word isn't it?) and I couldn't believe the Chargers were thinking of dumping Brees in favor of an untested 3rd year QB who hadn't shown much in the preseason games he had played so far. But as this year's preseason began I decided to not hold the past against Rivers anymore (very sporting of me don't you think?). I like the Chargers and I didn't want to root against them just because I had a beef with their general manager and precocious young QB. Granted if Rivers had stunk it up I probably would have hopped on my high horse and written nasty e-mails to Charger G.M. A.J. Smith. You know..because I'm sure he'd read them.... But rather than failing, Rivers has the gall to prove me wrong and the Chargers look like a title contender. And now I'm a gutless flipflopper and I'm riding the Philip River and San Diego Charger bandwagon. Hop on it's a fun!

I'm hoping to be able to see a few more games this week after a business trip limited my NFL viewing last week to the Charger/Steelers night game. How dare my work get in the way of a bag of chips and NFL football. It's not right. Anyway on to the picks:

Lions over the Bills
Detroit has found a way to blow games in imaginative ways. Finally this week they'll decide to win one for Matt Millen who has found imaginative ways to destroy an NFL franchise.

Panthers over the Ravens
The Ravens are home and should win this game. But McNair has looked worse than Delhomme and they'll lose by a field goal.

Giants over the Falcons
I know Vick is playing at home and their defense is swarming but the Giants showed me something last week.

Cowboys over the Texans
Houston is a perfect remedy for what ails the troubled Cowboys.

Redskins over the Titans
This pick is made tougher by the pooper that Washington laid last week and the tough game Tennessee played against Indy.

Bengals over the Bucs
Can Gradkowski put another good performance together? It's much easier to imagine Carson Palmer showing him how it's done.

Eagles over the Saints
The Eagles defense will harass Brees all day. Short passes won't cut it. Unless of course Bush takes a short pass all the way. Then I'll feel stupid.

Rams over the Seahawks
I know the Rams aren't as good as their 4-1 record but I'm going with my heart on this one.

Jets over the Dolphins
The Jets really stunk it up last week but they'll be at home and the Dolphins have stunk all season.

Steelers over the Chiefs
This is a tough one to pick. But Pittsburgh has got to start playing better sometime.---Don't they?

Chargers over the 49ers
It shouldn't be close

Broncos over the Raiders
Easiest pick of the week.

Bears over the Cardinals
Didn't Leinart pick apart the 1st string Chicago defense in the preseason? Of course the preseason also gave us a 3-1 Oakland Raider team....I'm just saying...

Last Week: 12-1 (92%)

Overall: 55-18 (75%)