My picks just continue tanking this season, I don't even know why I bother anymore. For whatever reason, maybe my work schedule preventing me from watching as much, I have not been able to figure things out this year after doing an outstanding job last season. Quite frankly, I'm embarrassed. And things aren't looking any easier this week, but let's give it a shot.
Denver Broncos (6-0) vs. Baltimore Ravens (3-3)
I'm just going to continue riding the Broncos until they give me reason not to. I took them last game on the road in a must win for the Chargers, and I will take them again on the road against a good Ravens team that needs to get back on track after three straight losses to good teams. The Ravens are usually known for a tremendous defense, but they have been lacking this year, while Denver has really stepped it up.
Houston Texans (4-3) vs. Buffalo Bills (3-4)
Both teams are coming off back-to-back victories, and a road trip to Buffalo is usually dangerous for warm-weather teams, but I have to go with the team that is looking a lot better right now. I just can't see the Bills beating a hot Texans team.
New York Giants (5-2) vs. Philadelphia Eagles (4-2)
I would be looking slightly better right now without bad bias-driven Giants picks the last two weeks, as I expected both losses but picked them anyway. I am picking them again though, and I truly believe they will come out on top. The defense will get to Donovan McNabb, who will be without Brian Westbrook. They just need to find a way to contain DeSean Jackson.
Miami Dolphins (2-4) vs. New York Jets (4-3)
I got burned picking the Jets in Miami, and while the Dolphins have been impressive lately, the Jets are coming off a 38-0 win in Oakland and will play the Dolphins very tough at the Meadowlands. Games between the two are usually very good matchups, and I'll just go with the home field advantage.
San Francisco 49ers (3-3) vs. Indianapolis Colts (6-0)
There is no reason to believe the Colts will take their first loss here. Alex Smith could surprise, but this Colts team is just too good on both sides of the ball to lose at home to the 49ers. Frank Gore couldn't get it going last week for San Francisco, and they need him big time.
Cleveland Browns (1-6) vs. Chicago Bears (3-3)
The Bears got humiliated last week against the Bengals, but luckily for them they host the Browns this week, so they will do some humiliating of their own. I'm pretty sure I would pick the Rams to beat the Browns on a neutral field at this point. I don't know if the Rams would win, but I would pick them.
Seattle Seahawks (2-4) vs. Dallas Cowboys (4-2)
The Cowboys might be as hot as any team right now with Miles Austin becoming a huge part of the offense. The Seahawks will not be able to match up with them in Dallas.
St. Louis Rams (0-7) vs. Detroit Lions (1-5)
I had to stop myself from thinking too deeply about this one. It was making my head spin. Both teams are awful, but the Rams are bottom of the barrel. Steven Jackson has been solid, but that's about it. The Lions offense has been much better than the Rams, although that is not saying much at all, but they are dealing with injury concerns to Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson at the moment. But a Rams pick here would simply be one for pity, as there is no reason to believe they can win a game right now, especially on the road and not against the Browns.
Oakland Raiders (2-5) vs. San Diego Chargers (3-3)
The Chargers absolutely must win this game. Philip Rivers will have to spread the ball to more receivers than Vincent Jackson though if he will be covered by Nnamdi Asomugha, but he is a good enough quarterback and the Raiders are a horrible enough team that the Chargers should be fine.
Jacksonville Jaguars (3-3) vs. Tennessee Titans (0-6)
I may have been leaning on the Titans to finally get in the win column with Kerry Collins, but I have gotten off of that since Vince Young was named starter. He may be an improvement over Collins at this point, but I cannot trust him yet, nor can I trust the winless Titans in the midst of a quarterback change fueled by their owner. Maurice Jones-Drew will have a huge game against this Titans defense, and the usually-solid David Garrard will continue to find Mike Sims-Walker for a big game. The Titans basically just have Chris Johnson. The Jaguars have been decent enough stopping the run this year and beat them easily earlier, and this should be about the same.
Minnesota Vikings (6-1) vs. Green Bay Packers (4-2)
Again, I'm just going with the better team here. Green Bay is usually a tough place to play, and the place will be fired up with Brett Favre coming in, but the Vikings have been a more solid, consistent team all year. I do not expect Adrian Peterson to let them shut him down again.
Carolina Panthers (2-4) vs. Arizona Cardinals (4-2)
The Cardinals are pretty good at stopping the run, and that's the only way the Panthers can move the ball. The pass defense hasn't been as good, but they have playmakers who will get their share of interceptions off Jake Delhomme.
Atlanta Falcons (4-2) vs. New Orleans Saints (6-0)
The Falcons looked bad last week in a big loss to Dallas, but putting that aside, this division always plays each other incredibly tough. But I am sticking by my opinion that the Saints are the best team in the league, and have to take them with the home field advantage.
Last Week: 8-5
Season: 67-36
Friday, October 30, 2009
World Series Notes: Series Tied 1-1
In a World Series featuring easily the best offensive teams of each league, the pitching has been the dominating factor thus far. Cliff Lee, who has been nothing but outstanding so far in the playoffs. put on one of the best World Series pitching performances in history in Game 1 facing C.C. Sabathia, who allowed just a pair of solo homers to Chase Utley in seven innings of work before the Yankees' bullpen suffered. In Game 2, A.J. Burnett out-dueled Pedro Martinez and Mariano Rivera picked up yet another two-inning save.
Up until the series started, I strongly believed that there was no possible way that I could root for the Phillies, even against the Yankees. I wanted absolutely nothing for the team and it's fans. But then, while I was breaking it down, I remembered that they already have what it is that I don't want them to have. Obviously, becoming back-to-back champions would make them much happier than if they were to lose in their defense of the title, but that joy and happiness and memories of winning the 2008 World Series will still be there. They would be upset over the lost opportunity, but that satisfaction will remain, especially for all those fans who were not yet born or were too young to remember going through a World Series championship, which the Phillies had only previously done in 1980.
I am currently experiencing this as a Giants fan. Prior to beating the Patriots in the Super Bowl, I was four years old the last time the Giants won the championship. Seeing them win Super Bowl XLII was such a tremendous moment. Of course I was upset when they lost in the playoffs the following year, especially to the Eagles. But I quickly got over it, but I still had great satisfaction after winning the previous year. It is perhaps the greatest fear of a diehard sports fan, to never have the experience of seeing your favorite team win the championship, and to see that great victory is a huge relief.
Of course, Yankee fans have seen their fair share of championships. At least the ones who really annoy me are old enough to have. But right now, they are in what they would classify as a long drought, nearing a full decade of losing. In a year where everything seems to be going right, where it seems like they may be destined to win this year, it would be heartbreaking for Yankee fans to see them lose.
Good. That's what I want. I want both teams and both fanbases to suffer from losing, but thanks to the Phillies winning last year, losing this World Series would hurt Yankee fans more than it would Phillie fans. If things had gone differently last year, I'm sure I would prefer the Yankees to win than to see the Phillies get any happiness and remain miserable. But now I can only hope for the misery of Yankee fans.
I know any Yankee fans who may be reading this are going to be mad at me for this post. Perhaps the reason Yankee fans love to annoy Mets fans so much is because of our loud hatred of the superior team. It is a vicious cycle. Yankee fans annoy Mets fans, who in turn hate the Yankees even more, so Yankee fans try even harder to show off their superiority. The bad blood between these two fanbases will never go away.
The point is, while I thought for sure I would root for the Yankees in this series, when I turned on Game 1 and saw the 1-0 score, I was happy. When the Phillies went on to win that game, I was happy. When the Yankees won Game 2, I was upset. I cannot believe I am saying this, but....
Let's Go Phillies
Up until the series started, I strongly believed that there was no possible way that I could root for the Phillies, even against the Yankees. I wanted absolutely nothing for the team and it's fans. But then, while I was breaking it down, I remembered that they already have what it is that I don't want them to have. Obviously, becoming back-to-back champions would make them much happier than if they were to lose in their defense of the title, but that joy and happiness and memories of winning the 2008 World Series will still be there. They would be upset over the lost opportunity, but that satisfaction will remain, especially for all those fans who were not yet born or were too young to remember going through a World Series championship, which the Phillies had only previously done in 1980.
I am currently experiencing this as a Giants fan. Prior to beating the Patriots in the Super Bowl, I was four years old the last time the Giants won the championship. Seeing them win Super Bowl XLII was such a tremendous moment. Of course I was upset when they lost in the playoffs the following year, especially to the Eagles. But I quickly got over it, but I still had great satisfaction after winning the previous year. It is perhaps the greatest fear of a diehard sports fan, to never have the experience of seeing your favorite team win the championship, and to see that great victory is a huge relief.
Of course, Yankee fans have seen their fair share of championships. At least the ones who really annoy me are old enough to have. But right now, they are in what they would classify as a long drought, nearing a full decade of losing. In a year where everything seems to be going right, where it seems like they may be destined to win this year, it would be heartbreaking for Yankee fans to see them lose.
Good. That's what I want. I want both teams and both fanbases to suffer from losing, but thanks to the Phillies winning last year, losing this World Series would hurt Yankee fans more than it would Phillie fans. If things had gone differently last year, I'm sure I would prefer the Yankees to win than to see the Phillies get any happiness and remain miserable. But now I can only hope for the misery of Yankee fans.
I know any Yankee fans who may be reading this are going to be mad at me for this post. Perhaps the reason Yankee fans love to annoy Mets fans so much is because of our loud hatred of the superior team. It is a vicious cycle. Yankee fans annoy Mets fans, who in turn hate the Yankees even more, so Yankee fans try even harder to show off their superiority. The bad blood between these two fanbases will never go away.
The point is, while I thought for sure I would root for the Yankees in this series, when I turned on Game 1 and saw the 1-0 score, I was happy. When the Phillies went on to win that game, I was happy. When the Yankees won Game 2, I was upset. I cannot believe I am saying this, but....
Let's Go Phillies
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
NFL Week 8 Power Rankings
How will the rankings shake up after one unbeaten lost, one had to pull off a huge comeback, and an unbeaten from two weeks ago has lost for the second straight week? Well, it's hard to make changes when the other good teams are beating up the awful tier of teams. It seems like you can look at so much of the top of the list and question their strength of schedule so far.
1. New Orleans Saints (6-0) [1] - Call me stubborn for keeping the Saints here after falling behind 24-3 to the Dolphins off a miserable start to the game by Drew Brees. But they showed great resiliency to come back and win 46-34 in beating a much better team than the Colts beat. Add another two interception returns for touchdowns for this New Orleans defense. We shall see how they handle the Falcons offense this week.
2. Indianapolis Colts (6-0) [2] - This Colts team is not letting up, with a 42-6 win over the Rams last week. Another three touchdowns for Manning and a solid performance by the defense. It's more like 1 and 1a between them and the Saints.
3. Denver Broncos (6-0) [4] - The Broncos move up during their bye week as they are now one of three remaining unbeaten. They face a tough road game in Baltimore this week though, but they have had their share of tests this year that they have passed so far.
4. Minnesota Vikings (6-1) [3] - The Vikings had a perfect opportunity to at least tie the game last week in the final minute if Chester Taylor catches that screen pass. Even though it was a loss, it was still a good effort playing in Pittsburgh. On a neutral field, the Vikings are the better team.
5. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-2) [8] - After a disappointing start, the Steelers are 4-0 since Rashard Mendenhall took over as the featured running back. Even without Aaron Smith, their defense had two huge touchdowns and held Adrian Peterson to 3.8 yards per carry.
6. New England Patriots (5-2) [6] - In a week full of blowouts, I expected the Patriots to do a bit better than a 35-7 victory over the Buccaneers. It would have been a bigger blowout if not for two interceptions thrown by Tom Brady. After the bye week, they face a rough five-game stretch against divisional rivals and unbeatens.
7. New York Giants (5-2) [5] - Two weeks ago the Giants defense did nothing against the Saints. This past week it was the offense that could not get anything going against the Cardinals. It is extremely important for them to work out these inconsistencies in time for their showdown in Philadelphia this week.
8. Cincinnati Bengals (5-2) [11] - After a disappointing loss to the Texans, who may not be so bad after all, the Bengals came back with a surprising 45-10 blowout over the Bears. Carson Palmer (five touchdown passes) and Cedric Benson (189 rushing yards) both had monster games. After the bye week, they have their division rematches against the Ravens and Steelers, which will go a long way in determining how the standings will shape out at the end of the season.
9. Philadelphia Eagles (4-2) [10] - Once again, Brian Westbrook is banged up. LeSean McCoy was less than stellar replacing him against a good Redskins defense, and will face an even tougher Giants defense this week. The Eagles have the big plays to DeSean Jackson, but don't seem to have much else on offense.
10. Baltimore Ravens (3-3) [9] - Baltimore had a bye week to think about the three-game losing streak they are currently on, and will now face the undefeated Broncos, with the Bengals after that. The three losses have all come against good teams though, but they need to beat some of these good teams.
11. Arizona Cardinals (4-2) [13] - The Cardinals defense was very impressive in shutting down the dangerous Giants offense last week in a big win at the Meadowlands. Anquan Boldin's health is again a concern, but this team is getting back to the level that brought them to the Super Bowl last season.
12. Dallas Cowboys (4-2) [16] - The running back trio of Marion Barber, Felix Jones, and Tashard Choice is returning to health, and they have found a dangerous receiver in Miles Austin. This team could continue rising fast after being kept down in the middle of the pack most of the way.
13. Atlanta Falcons (4-2) [7] - Perhaps this is too far of a drop for the Falcons, but while their offense is very good, they need to show more on the defensive side. I expected more from them last week but instead got a 37-21 beating.
14. Green Bay Packers (4-2) [12] - The Packers have outscored their opponents 57-3 in the last two weeks, but those opponents were the Lions (without Calvin Johnson) and Browns. They have a huge game this week at home against the Vikings after losing by a touchdown in Minnesota earlier.
15. Houston Texans (4-3) [17] - After a disappointing start, the Texans are starting to reach the potential that many predicted at the beginning of the season. They still have yet to face the Colts, and those two games will obviously be very important as the Texans are the only thing standing in the Colts' way of winning the AFC South.
16. New York Jets (4-3) [20] - The Jets get a redeeming win with a 38-0 blowout against the Raiders. Say what you want about the Raiders, but it was a huge win for the Jets' morale leading into the home rematch against the Dolphins.
17. Chicago Bears (3-3) [14] - We have seen the bad side of Jay Cutler the past two weeks with five interceptions in a pair of road losses. He returns home this week and should have no problem with the Browns, but the week after poses a bigger challenge with the Cardinals coming in. I would like to see him spread the ball around to his other receivers. Obviously, Matt Forte also needs to do a much better job, as he was held to under 30 yards rushing for the third time this season. Cleveland can be run on very easily, but the same cannot be said about the Cardinals. This is just a mediocre team right now.
18. Miami Dolphins (2-4) [19] - If they could have held on for the win against the Saints, it obviously would have been a huge win. They have perhaps the most dangerous rushing attack in the league and a decent enough defense, but it is hard to beat a great team like the Saints with the inexperienced Chad Henne at quarterback. They have a chance to win at least half of their remaining games this season depending on the play of Henne.
19. San Diego Chargers (3-3) [15] - It is a bit surprising to see them drop four places following a 37-7 victory, but the four teams jumping above them have shown more this season. Philip Rivers has been terrific, but LaDainian Tomlinson is clearly not the running back he used to be.
20. San Francisco 49ers (3-3) [18] - The quarterback change to former #1 overall pick Alex Smith provided a spark in last week's game with three touchdown passes to former first round pick Vernon Davis. Michael Crabtree had a decent enough first game as the most recent San Francisco first round pick. If these offensive weapons start clicking around Frank Gore, this will be a very dangerous offense, but that remains to be seen.
21. Seattle Seahawks (2-4) [22] - The Seahawks have the potential but have failed to find consistency this season. They will likely not be able to slow down the Cowboys this week, then the Lions will make them look like a great team again before going on the road to face the Cardinals and Vikings.
22. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-3) [23] - David Garrard has been solid and Maurice Jones-Drew is a great running back, but that's about all this team has. They can be thankful for an easy schedule with games that those two players alone can win for them.
23. Buffalo Bills (3-4) [24] - The Bills were dominated offensively last week but got four turnovers to set themselves up for the road win against the Panthers. I feel like the Bills have done nothing to be ranked as high as 23rd, but they have three wins and blew two more with special teams fumbles. It may be pretty ugly, but it is much more than the teams below them can say.
24. Carolina Panthers (2-4) [21] - I should have seen the loss to the Bills coming. The Jets could not beat the Bills despite a dominating running game, and even Mark Sanchez at his worst is much better than Jake Delhomme has been this season. Three interceptions doomed the Panthers. Unfortunately, they have very little reason to bother starting either of their backup quarterbacks.
25. Kansas City Chiefs (1-6) [26] - Larry Johnson just made a fool out of himself and will suffer the consequences, but it is about time the Chiefs got him out of the running game, because they were going absolutely nowhere with him. I don't know if Jamaal Charles can do any better, but he can't do much worse either.
26. Detroit Lions (1-5) [27] - It appears as though Calvin Johnson is still not ready to return this week as the Lions will try to avoid losing to the Rams. This will be the Rams' best shot at winning this season, and surely the Lions would like some company in the group of teams with an 0-16 season (although the Rams are not the last hope for this year).
27. Washington Redskins (2-5) [28] - The Redskins have lost Chris Cooley to injury as the season continues to worsen. Their defense is starting to play decently enough, but they appear to have no chemistry on offense. There is potential though.
28. Oakland Raiders (2-5) [25] - Things were surprisingly looking up after shocking the Eagles, but the real Raiders returned for a 38-0 loss. The current winless teams deserve the wins more than the Raiders do, but they are the ones sitting with two wins on their record. They rank ahead of only the Rams in points scored per game.
29. Tennessee Titans (0-6) [30] - The Titans move up a spot with the bye week to forget about the 59-0 loss to the Patriots as the three teams below them all got blown out this past week. Chris Johnson should be enough on his own to beat some of these teams, but the rest of his team has failed so far to give half an effort. They need to show up this week in a winnable home game against the Jaguars.
30. Cleveland Browns (1-6) [29] - So much for Joshua Cribbs. The only player worth watching on this team managed just one yard on one rush, -1 yards on one reception, and lost a fumble. The one victory against the Browns keeps them [perhaps wrongly] ahead of the Bucs and Rams.
31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-7) [31] - The Josh Johnson experiment is over after no positive results, and the Buccaneers will turn to third quarterback Josh Freeman. There is no reason to believe things will get any better though.
32. St. Louis Rams (0-7) [32] - The Rams are scoring an average of 8.6 points per game and are allowing 30.1 points per game. At least they have the Lions and their bye week coming up next, but then they have the pleasure of facing the Saints in Week 10.
1. New Orleans Saints (6-0) [1] - Call me stubborn for keeping the Saints here after falling behind 24-3 to the Dolphins off a miserable start to the game by Drew Brees. But they showed great resiliency to come back and win 46-34 in beating a much better team than the Colts beat. Add another two interception returns for touchdowns for this New Orleans defense. We shall see how they handle the Falcons offense this week.
2. Indianapolis Colts (6-0) [2] - This Colts team is not letting up, with a 42-6 win over the Rams last week. Another three touchdowns for Manning and a solid performance by the defense. It's more like 1 and 1a between them and the Saints.
3. Denver Broncos (6-0) [4] - The Broncos move up during their bye week as they are now one of three remaining unbeaten. They face a tough road game in Baltimore this week though, but they have had their share of tests this year that they have passed so far.
4. Minnesota Vikings (6-1) [3] - The Vikings had a perfect opportunity to at least tie the game last week in the final minute if Chester Taylor catches that screen pass. Even though it was a loss, it was still a good effort playing in Pittsburgh. On a neutral field, the Vikings are the better team.
5. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-2) [8] - After a disappointing start, the Steelers are 4-0 since Rashard Mendenhall took over as the featured running back. Even without Aaron Smith, their defense had two huge touchdowns and held Adrian Peterson to 3.8 yards per carry.
6. New England Patriots (5-2) [6] - In a week full of blowouts, I expected the Patriots to do a bit better than a 35-7 victory over the Buccaneers. It would have been a bigger blowout if not for two interceptions thrown by Tom Brady. After the bye week, they face a rough five-game stretch against divisional rivals and unbeatens.
7. New York Giants (5-2) [5] - Two weeks ago the Giants defense did nothing against the Saints. This past week it was the offense that could not get anything going against the Cardinals. It is extremely important for them to work out these inconsistencies in time for their showdown in Philadelphia this week.
8. Cincinnati Bengals (5-2) [11] - After a disappointing loss to the Texans, who may not be so bad after all, the Bengals came back with a surprising 45-10 blowout over the Bears. Carson Palmer (five touchdown passes) and Cedric Benson (189 rushing yards) both had monster games. After the bye week, they have their division rematches against the Ravens and Steelers, which will go a long way in determining how the standings will shape out at the end of the season.
9. Philadelphia Eagles (4-2) [10] - Once again, Brian Westbrook is banged up. LeSean McCoy was less than stellar replacing him against a good Redskins defense, and will face an even tougher Giants defense this week. The Eagles have the big plays to DeSean Jackson, but don't seem to have much else on offense.
10. Baltimore Ravens (3-3) [9] - Baltimore had a bye week to think about the three-game losing streak they are currently on, and will now face the undefeated Broncos, with the Bengals after that. The three losses have all come against good teams though, but they need to beat some of these good teams.
11. Arizona Cardinals (4-2) [13] - The Cardinals defense was very impressive in shutting down the dangerous Giants offense last week in a big win at the Meadowlands. Anquan Boldin's health is again a concern, but this team is getting back to the level that brought them to the Super Bowl last season.
12. Dallas Cowboys (4-2) [16] - The running back trio of Marion Barber, Felix Jones, and Tashard Choice is returning to health, and they have found a dangerous receiver in Miles Austin. This team could continue rising fast after being kept down in the middle of the pack most of the way.
13. Atlanta Falcons (4-2) [7] - Perhaps this is too far of a drop for the Falcons, but while their offense is very good, they need to show more on the defensive side. I expected more from them last week but instead got a 37-21 beating.
14. Green Bay Packers (4-2) [12] - The Packers have outscored their opponents 57-3 in the last two weeks, but those opponents were the Lions (without Calvin Johnson) and Browns. They have a huge game this week at home against the Vikings after losing by a touchdown in Minnesota earlier.
15. Houston Texans (4-3) [17] - After a disappointing start, the Texans are starting to reach the potential that many predicted at the beginning of the season. They still have yet to face the Colts, and those two games will obviously be very important as the Texans are the only thing standing in the Colts' way of winning the AFC South.
16. New York Jets (4-3) [20] - The Jets get a redeeming win with a 38-0 blowout against the Raiders. Say what you want about the Raiders, but it was a huge win for the Jets' morale leading into the home rematch against the Dolphins.
17. Chicago Bears (3-3) [14] - We have seen the bad side of Jay Cutler the past two weeks with five interceptions in a pair of road losses. He returns home this week and should have no problem with the Browns, but the week after poses a bigger challenge with the Cardinals coming in. I would like to see him spread the ball around to his other receivers. Obviously, Matt Forte also needs to do a much better job, as he was held to under 30 yards rushing for the third time this season. Cleveland can be run on very easily, but the same cannot be said about the Cardinals. This is just a mediocre team right now.
18. Miami Dolphins (2-4) [19] - If they could have held on for the win against the Saints, it obviously would have been a huge win. They have perhaps the most dangerous rushing attack in the league and a decent enough defense, but it is hard to beat a great team like the Saints with the inexperienced Chad Henne at quarterback. They have a chance to win at least half of their remaining games this season depending on the play of Henne.
19. San Diego Chargers (3-3) [15] - It is a bit surprising to see them drop four places following a 37-7 victory, but the four teams jumping above them have shown more this season. Philip Rivers has been terrific, but LaDainian Tomlinson is clearly not the running back he used to be.
20. San Francisco 49ers (3-3) [18] - The quarterback change to former #1 overall pick Alex Smith provided a spark in last week's game with three touchdown passes to former first round pick Vernon Davis. Michael Crabtree had a decent enough first game as the most recent San Francisco first round pick. If these offensive weapons start clicking around Frank Gore, this will be a very dangerous offense, but that remains to be seen.
21. Seattle Seahawks (2-4) [22] - The Seahawks have the potential but have failed to find consistency this season. They will likely not be able to slow down the Cowboys this week, then the Lions will make them look like a great team again before going on the road to face the Cardinals and Vikings.
22. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-3) [23] - David Garrard has been solid and Maurice Jones-Drew is a great running back, but that's about all this team has. They can be thankful for an easy schedule with games that those two players alone can win for them.
23. Buffalo Bills (3-4) [24] - The Bills were dominated offensively last week but got four turnovers to set themselves up for the road win against the Panthers. I feel like the Bills have done nothing to be ranked as high as 23rd, but they have three wins and blew two more with special teams fumbles. It may be pretty ugly, but it is much more than the teams below them can say.
24. Carolina Panthers (2-4) [21] - I should have seen the loss to the Bills coming. The Jets could not beat the Bills despite a dominating running game, and even Mark Sanchez at his worst is much better than Jake Delhomme has been this season. Three interceptions doomed the Panthers. Unfortunately, they have very little reason to bother starting either of their backup quarterbacks.
25. Kansas City Chiefs (1-6) [26] - Larry Johnson just made a fool out of himself and will suffer the consequences, but it is about time the Chiefs got him out of the running game, because they were going absolutely nowhere with him. I don't know if Jamaal Charles can do any better, but he can't do much worse either.
26. Detroit Lions (1-5) [27] - It appears as though Calvin Johnson is still not ready to return this week as the Lions will try to avoid losing to the Rams. This will be the Rams' best shot at winning this season, and surely the Lions would like some company in the group of teams with an 0-16 season (although the Rams are not the last hope for this year).
27. Washington Redskins (2-5) [28] - The Redskins have lost Chris Cooley to injury as the season continues to worsen. Their defense is starting to play decently enough, but they appear to have no chemistry on offense. There is potential though.
28. Oakland Raiders (2-5) [25] - Things were surprisingly looking up after shocking the Eagles, but the real Raiders returned for a 38-0 loss. The current winless teams deserve the wins more than the Raiders do, but they are the ones sitting with two wins on their record. They rank ahead of only the Rams in points scored per game.
29. Tennessee Titans (0-6) [30] - The Titans move up a spot with the bye week to forget about the 59-0 loss to the Patriots as the three teams below them all got blown out this past week. Chris Johnson should be enough on his own to beat some of these teams, but the rest of his team has failed so far to give half an effort. They need to show up this week in a winnable home game against the Jaguars.
30. Cleveland Browns (1-6) [29] - So much for Joshua Cribbs. The only player worth watching on this team managed just one yard on one rush, -1 yards on one reception, and lost a fumble. The one victory against the Browns keeps them [perhaps wrongly] ahead of the Bucs and Rams.
31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-7) [31] - The Josh Johnson experiment is over after no positive results, and the Buccaneers will turn to third quarterback Josh Freeman. There is no reason to believe things will get any better though.
32. St. Louis Rams (0-7) [32] - The Rams are scoring an average of 8.6 points per game and are allowing 30.1 points per game. At least they have the Lions and their bye week coming up next, but then they have the pleasure of facing the Saints in Week 10.
The Great World Series Dilemma
The World Series between the New York Yankees and the Philadelphia Phillies kicks off tonight at 7:57 PM. As a Mets fan, that is very painful to say. In a season where everything went wrong for our team, where they completely embarrassed themselves time after time, with absolutely no positives to take away from the season, Mets fans must now decide which of the two evils to root for. It's the rotten cherry on top of the worst season imaginable. It is only fitting that it comes to this.
Mets fans are split on the issue, and I'm pretty split myself. There are two ways to look at it: who can I root for, and who would I rather have win? Interestingly, the answer to both questions might not be the same.
Initially, I thought the answer was easy: I want the Yankees to win. There is no possible way that I can root for the Phillies to win. I want absolutely nothing for that franchise and nothing for its fans (apologies to my relatives in the Philadelphia area). As bad as the 2009 season was for the Mets on it's own, having the Phillies as the defending World Champions the whole time made it so much worse.
On the other hand, and I can't believe I am saying this, this Yankees team is the most likeable it has been this entire decade. I always had respect for the Yankees of the late 90s with the likes of Tino Martinez, Paul O'Neill, Bernie Williams, etc. Then they became despicable to me. But this team has gone out all season and had fun. A-Rod looks like a kid again. I love the A.J. Burnett pies to the face. C.C. Sabathia is just an amazing pitcher to watch. Deep down, I have been just a little bit on the Yankees bandwagon since the Mets became unwatchable, but I still had a strong desire to see it crash and burn; I never wanted to stay on for a World Series run.
The point is, if you put a gun to my head, I can root for the Yankees in this World Series. I cannot root for the Phillies. I can have fun talking to family, friends, and co-workers that are Yankee fans as they enjoy their run.
But it's these same Yankee fans who will turn around and constantly rub it in my face when it's all said and done. They have always rubbed it in my face, but this season has left me especially vulnerable. I can do nothing but just take the punishment and laugh with them instead of being laughed at. I cannot possibly wish for happiness and satisfaction for these fans.
Previously, I empathized with Yankee fans, saying that for having such high standards, their championship drought has been rough. Well, I want it continue. I don't want their drought to end. I want them to continue suffering. Yes, it would be more painful for me to see the Phillies win the World Series, especially to be able to gloat about back-to-back championships, but at least Phillie fans are already happy having won last season. If they lose again this year, it's no big deal. So now Phillie fans and Yankee fans are happy. I would rather have Phillie fans slightly happier and Yankee fans miserable than having both be happy. I love the misery of Yankee fans.
So when answering the question of who would I rather win, I have to say the Phillies.
But what does that mean when the games start tonight? I have to root for the Yankees, but I want them to lose. I want the Phillies to win, but I cannot possibly root for them. This is my nightmare.
Prediction: Yankees in 6.
Mets fans are split on the issue, and I'm pretty split myself. There are two ways to look at it: who can I root for, and who would I rather have win? Interestingly, the answer to both questions might not be the same.
Initially, I thought the answer was easy: I want the Yankees to win. There is no possible way that I can root for the Phillies to win. I want absolutely nothing for that franchise and nothing for its fans (apologies to my relatives in the Philadelphia area). As bad as the 2009 season was for the Mets on it's own, having the Phillies as the defending World Champions the whole time made it so much worse.
On the other hand, and I can't believe I am saying this, this Yankees team is the most likeable it has been this entire decade. I always had respect for the Yankees of the late 90s with the likes of Tino Martinez, Paul O'Neill, Bernie Williams, etc. Then they became despicable to me. But this team has gone out all season and had fun. A-Rod looks like a kid again. I love the A.J. Burnett pies to the face. C.C. Sabathia is just an amazing pitcher to watch. Deep down, I have been just a little bit on the Yankees bandwagon since the Mets became unwatchable, but I still had a strong desire to see it crash and burn; I never wanted to stay on for a World Series run.
The point is, if you put a gun to my head, I can root for the Yankees in this World Series. I cannot root for the Phillies. I can have fun talking to family, friends, and co-workers that are Yankee fans as they enjoy their run.
But it's these same Yankee fans who will turn around and constantly rub it in my face when it's all said and done. They have always rubbed it in my face, but this season has left me especially vulnerable. I can do nothing but just take the punishment and laugh with them instead of being laughed at. I cannot possibly wish for happiness and satisfaction for these fans.
Previously, I empathized with Yankee fans, saying that for having such high standards, their championship drought has been rough. Well, I want it continue. I don't want their drought to end. I want them to continue suffering. Yes, it would be more painful for me to see the Phillies win the World Series, especially to be able to gloat about back-to-back championships, but at least Phillie fans are already happy having won last season. If they lose again this year, it's no big deal. So now Phillie fans and Yankee fans are happy. I would rather have Phillie fans slightly happier and Yankee fans miserable than having both be happy. I love the misery of Yankee fans.
So when answering the question of who would I rather win, I have to say the Phillies.
But what does that mean when the games start tonight? I have to root for the Yankees, but I want them to lose. I want the Phillies to win, but I cannot possibly root for them. This is my nightmare.
Prediction: Yankees in 6.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
NBA Preview from a Born-Again Fan
Of the four major professional sports in the US, the NBA has always been by far the lowest on my level of interest. The games always seemed boring to me. I rather the dramatic low-scoring games that hockey and soccer provide (although I couldn't care less about the MLS, but soccer on the international level can be quite interesting). There just didn't seem to be enough excitement in the games for me. College basketball at least has March Madness, which might be the most exciting time of the year for me in sports, but I don't watch any of the regular season besides the occasional Duke game.
There have been a couple periods in my life where I have followed the NBA, but never a sustained interest. Two years ago, I didn't even bother to watch a single playoff game. However, when last year's playoffs rolled around, I decided I wanted to watch. I found myself getting excited. I made up my mind that from now on, I will follow the NBA.
But the big question for me is: What team do I follow? Perhaps the reason why I have never had a sustained interest in the NBA is that I have bounced around in regards to a favorite team, never settling on one that I could root for. Nobody in my family cared about the NBA either, so I had no direction to lean in that regard. Living in the state of New York, there are two local teams that I could choose between, but never had any reason to pick either side.
I initially became a San Antonio Spurs fan because David Robinson was my favorite player, if only because I got a Sports Illustrated for Kids magazine one day with him on the cover, and I said to myself, "He's a pretty good player and his name is David, he's my new favorite player!" I grew fond of him along with the young Tim Duncan, and was happy to see the Spurs defeat the Knicks in the NBA Finals some year.
But later on, a desire to root for a local team kicked in, one who's games I could follow on television. The Knicks seemed like a much better choice at the time., before the Byron Scott/Jason Kidd era in New Jersey. But soon after I became disinterested. Eventually, as the Nets brought in players such as Kidd, Richard Jefferson, and Kenyon Martin, I decided that I would root for them. At the least, they play in the same arena as the New Jersey Devils, so there's a positive (Knicks and Rangers? Ew.). Jefferson developed into my new favorite player with Robinson at the end of his career. I went to my first and only NBA game: Vince Carter's first game playing against the Raptors, which ended with a Toronto victory.
But disinterest settled in again. I shortly turned back to the Knicks, but they weren't worth rooting for. I bandwagoned the Spurs during their championship runs. A few years ago when my mom moved to North Carolina, just a short distance away from Charlotte, I spent some time with her there, and I became a Bobcats fan just for fun, because I didn't care about the other teams. But that was pointless.
So here we are on the verge of the 2009-10 NBA season. I want to be a fan, but I have no team to root for. Forget predictions of the upcoming season, because I don't know the teams well enough, and for the most part I'm still stuck on player evaluations from about five years ago. I just want to know what team I should root for, if any. Here are my five choices:
San Antonio Spurs - I still have a place in my heart for the Spurs. They have Tim Duncan, who I have always loved, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili who I've always liked, and now they have added my favorite player, Richard Jefferson. I put a lot of stock in this year's draft, and although they didn't get one of my big two, I was still excited by the DeJuan Blair pick. They are a top five team in the NBA while all my other choices are horrible teams. But I would rather root for a team I can watch on a regular basis, and I would feel a bit like a bandwagon fan if I went with the Spurs (although they were originally my favorite team for non-bandwagon reasons).
New York Knicks - They do have some nice talent that I can enjoy rooting for. They have former Duke Blue Devil Chris Duhon, the Italian Danilo Gallinari, along with David Lee and Nate Robinson. However, I think I prefer laughing at the Knicks' expense.
New Jersey Nets - If I were to choose between the local teams, I would rather the Nets, but they have stripped their roster since I last cheered for them, with Rafer Alston being the only one on the team now I really care about, and since the Devils moved into the Prudential Center, they no longer have that tie.
Charlotte Bobcats - They hit big in the draft for me with Duke's Gerald Henderson. I thought they had more Tar Heels, which was a big turnoff, but looking at the roster now, only Raymond Felton is left (not counting coaches). If they were to build themselves up and win a championship some day, it would be fun to say I rooted for them since they were at the bottom of the barrel, going back to my North Carolina days.
Golden State Warriors - My wildcard team. I've had absolutely no prior care for them until the 2009 Draft. When I was in North Carolina, I was also a short distance away from Davidson College. I had never heard of it before, but between the distance and the name, I became interested. When they burst onto the scene in the NCAA Tournament two years ago, I had to root for them. I fell in love with Stephen Curry. With no real NBA rooting interest, I had a desire to just root for whatever team Curry went to. With the Knicks on deck to pick, I was conflicted: it would be awesome for him to be on the Knicks because then I could follow him, but on the other hand, I really didn't want to have to root for them. But the Warriors took him at #7. Unfortunately though, there is no other reason for me to be excited about Golden State. They do have former Blue Devil Corey Maggette, but he was there before I became a Duke fan.
So there are the five teams I'm torn between. I am leaning towards the Spurs right now if only because they have more things going for them right now. I am worried if I am watching Knicks and Nets games constantly just because that's what is on, I will start to develop an interest in the Knicks (probably not the Nets). I am still excited by the prospect of following the Bobcats though (how fun would it be to walk around with a Bobcats hat), and still have a desire to root on Stephen Curry.
Alternatively, I could decide to follow no team, and just be an objective NBA fan. In all the other sports, there is always someone I am rooting for. It would be interesting to just put any bias aside and just enjoy what the league has to offer. Of course, I will always lean slightly towards those four teams plus whatever team Curry is on, but unlike other sports, in the NBA I have always cared more for the individual players than the teams.
Help me decide!
There have been a couple periods in my life where I have followed the NBA, but never a sustained interest. Two years ago, I didn't even bother to watch a single playoff game. However, when last year's playoffs rolled around, I decided I wanted to watch. I found myself getting excited. I made up my mind that from now on, I will follow the NBA.
But the big question for me is: What team do I follow? Perhaps the reason why I have never had a sustained interest in the NBA is that I have bounced around in regards to a favorite team, never settling on one that I could root for. Nobody in my family cared about the NBA either, so I had no direction to lean in that regard. Living in the state of New York, there are two local teams that I could choose between, but never had any reason to pick either side.
I initially became a San Antonio Spurs fan because David Robinson was my favorite player, if only because I got a Sports Illustrated for Kids magazine one day with him on the cover, and I said to myself, "He's a pretty good player and his name is David, he's my new favorite player!" I grew fond of him along with the young Tim Duncan, and was happy to see the Spurs defeat the Knicks in the NBA Finals some year.
But later on, a desire to root for a local team kicked in, one who's games I could follow on television. The Knicks seemed like a much better choice at the time., before the Byron Scott/Jason Kidd era in New Jersey. But soon after I became disinterested. Eventually, as the Nets brought in players such as Kidd, Richard Jefferson, and Kenyon Martin, I decided that I would root for them. At the least, they play in the same arena as the New Jersey Devils, so there's a positive (Knicks and Rangers? Ew.). Jefferson developed into my new favorite player with Robinson at the end of his career. I went to my first and only NBA game: Vince Carter's first game playing against the Raptors, which ended with a Toronto victory.
But disinterest settled in again. I shortly turned back to the Knicks, but they weren't worth rooting for. I bandwagoned the Spurs during their championship runs. A few years ago when my mom moved to North Carolina, just a short distance away from Charlotte, I spent some time with her there, and I became a Bobcats fan just for fun, because I didn't care about the other teams. But that was pointless.
So here we are on the verge of the 2009-10 NBA season. I want to be a fan, but I have no team to root for. Forget predictions of the upcoming season, because I don't know the teams well enough, and for the most part I'm still stuck on player evaluations from about five years ago. I just want to know what team I should root for, if any. Here are my five choices:
San Antonio Spurs - I still have a place in my heart for the Spurs. They have Tim Duncan, who I have always loved, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili who I've always liked, and now they have added my favorite player, Richard Jefferson. I put a lot of stock in this year's draft, and although they didn't get one of my big two, I was still excited by the DeJuan Blair pick. They are a top five team in the NBA while all my other choices are horrible teams. But I would rather root for a team I can watch on a regular basis, and I would feel a bit like a bandwagon fan if I went with the Spurs (although they were originally my favorite team for non-bandwagon reasons).
New York Knicks - They do have some nice talent that I can enjoy rooting for. They have former Duke Blue Devil Chris Duhon, the Italian Danilo Gallinari, along with David Lee and Nate Robinson. However, I think I prefer laughing at the Knicks' expense.
New Jersey Nets - If I were to choose between the local teams, I would rather the Nets, but they have stripped their roster since I last cheered for them, with Rafer Alston being the only one on the team now I really care about, and since the Devils moved into the Prudential Center, they no longer have that tie.
Charlotte Bobcats - They hit big in the draft for me with Duke's Gerald Henderson. I thought they had more Tar Heels, which was a big turnoff, but looking at the roster now, only Raymond Felton is left (not counting coaches). If they were to build themselves up and win a championship some day, it would be fun to say I rooted for them since they were at the bottom of the barrel, going back to my North Carolina days.
Golden State Warriors - My wildcard team. I've had absolutely no prior care for them until the 2009 Draft. When I was in North Carolina, I was also a short distance away from Davidson College. I had never heard of it before, but between the distance and the name, I became interested. When they burst onto the scene in the NCAA Tournament two years ago, I had to root for them. I fell in love with Stephen Curry. With no real NBA rooting interest, I had a desire to just root for whatever team Curry went to. With the Knicks on deck to pick, I was conflicted: it would be awesome for him to be on the Knicks because then I could follow him, but on the other hand, I really didn't want to have to root for them. But the Warriors took him at #7. Unfortunately though, there is no other reason for me to be excited about Golden State. They do have former Blue Devil Corey Maggette, but he was there before I became a Duke fan.
So there are the five teams I'm torn between. I am leaning towards the Spurs right now if only because they have more things going for them right now. I am worried if I am watching Knicks and Nets games constantly just because that's what is on, I will start to develop an interest in the Knicks (probably not the Nets). I am still excited by the prospect of following the Bobcats though (how fun would it be to walk around with a Bobcats hat), and still have a desire to root on Stephen Curry.
Alternatively, I could decide to follow no team, and just be an objective NBA fan. In all the other sports, there is always someone I am rooting for. It would be interesting to just put any bias aside and just enjoy what the league has to offer. Of course, I will always lean slightly towards those four teams plus whatever team Curry is on, but unlike other sports, in the NBA I have always cared more for the individual players than the teams.
Help me decide!
Monday, October 26, 2009
Sunday Notes
Last week, the Giants' secondary was severely exposed by Drew Brees and the Saints. This week, facing the great Cardinals passing team, the defense was able to play much better, getting the pressure on the quarterback that they needed. However, the offense was seemingly nowhere to be found all night. The score turned out to be a 24-17 loss, which doesn't look too bad, but take out one extremely lucky touchdown off a deflection to Hakeem Nicks and the score would be a very sorry 24-10.
Additionally, Jeff Feagles killed the Giants with very poor punting that constantly gave the Cardinals great field position after the offense failed to get anything going. Normally, Feagles is regarded as one of the best, if not the best, punters in regards to accuracy and consistency. If he makes a single bad punt in a game, I am shocked. I have never seen him have such a horrendous overall game before. I do not expect this to continue, but it was very disappointing as he kept giving the Cardinals the short field.
Suddenly, the Cowboys are just a half game behind the Giants in the standings after a big 37-21 win over the Falcons. Miles Austin has had an unreal first two starts, and if he can keep up just half of that production while Roy Williams and the running backs get healthier, this is a very dangerous team again.
The Eagles play the Redskins tonight also with a chance to move a half game behind the Giants, but they should be feeling pretty bad about themselves after seeing the Jets go into Oakland and completely dominate the Raiders just one week after the Eagles lost in Oakland. It was a much needed bounce back game for the Jets, but it comes with the loss of Leon Washington for the season who is a very important part to their offense and special teams play.
The Saints won 46-34 against the Dolphins, but there is much more to the story than just the score. The Dolphins jumped out to a 24-3 lead on some awful play by Drew Brees. But the Saints were able to fight back to trail 27-24 in the third quarter. Ricky Williams scored his third touchdown at the end of the period, but the Saints outscored the Dolphins 22-0 in the fourth to get the win. New Orleans picked off Chad Henne twice and returned them both for touchdowns. I don't know if this game showed weakness in the Saints to fall behind by so much early on, or strength and resiliency in coming back for the victory.
Cincinnati had the biggest surprise of the day, not necessarily for the victory, but for the complete blowout of the Bears. I predicted the Bears to win, but I expected it to be a close game that could easily go either way. Instead, the Bengals dominated in a 45-10 victory with five touchdown passes from Carson Palmer and 189 yards and a score for Cedric Benson. Matt Forte had just 24 yards on six carries for the Bears.
Once again, it was a big week of blowouts with great teams facing horrible teams. These included Green Bay over Cleveland 31-3, San Diego topping the Chiefs 37-7, the Colts over the Rams 42-6, and the Patriots beating the Buccaneers 35-7 in London.
Jake Delhomme threw for a season-high 325 yards but with three interceptions as the Panthers lose yet again. The 49ers benched Shaun Hill, and surprisingly, Alex Smith threw three touchdowns and almost led San Francisco to a comeback victory, but the Texans were able to hang on with another great game for Matt Schaub.
Not surprisingly, the most exciting game of the day may have been the undefeated Vikings going to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers. It was a good defensive game besides Brett Favre continuing to connect with Sidney Rice. With the Steelers winning 13-10 in the fourth quarter, Brett Keisel sacked Favre and knocked the ball loose for LaMarr Woodley to pick up and return it 77 yards for the touchdown and give the Steelers a ten point lead. However, on the ensuing kickoff, Percy Harvin went 88 yards on the return to bring the Vikings within three again.
Minnesota got the ball back with a few minutes left to give Favre a chance for yet another comeback victory. A big play to Adrian Peterson and another play to Chester Taylor had the Vikings at the Pittsburgh 19 ready to score with a minute left, but then Favre's screen pass to Taylor went off his hands and to Pittsburgh linebacker Keyaron Fox (replacing the injured Lawrence Timmons), who ran it back for the 82 yard touchdown to put the game away.
And of course, on Sunday, the nightmare that has been feared for months has now become reality. The New York Yankees will play the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series. God help me.
Additionally, Jeff Feagles killed the Giants with very poor punting that constantly gave the Cardinals great field position after the offense failed to get anything going. Normally, Feagles is regarded as one of the best, if not the best, punters in regards to accuracy and consistency. If he makes a single bad punt in a game, I am shocked. I have never seen him have such a horrendous overall game before. I do not expect this to continue, but it was very disappointing as he kept giving the Cardinals the short field.
Suddenly, the Cowboys are just a half game behind the Giants in the standings after a big 37-21 win over the Falcons. Miles Austin has had an unreal first two starts, and if he can keep up just half of that production while Roy Williams and the running backs get healthier, this is a very dangerous team again.
The Eagles play the Redskins tonight also with a chance to move a half game behind the Giants, but they should be feeling pretty bad about themselves after seeing the Jets go into Oakland and completely dominate the Raiders just one week after the Eagles lost in Oakland. It was a much needed bounce back game for the Jets, but it comes with the loss of Leon Washington for the season who is a very important part to their offense and special teams play.
The Saints won 46-34 against the Dolphins, but there is much more to the story than just the score. The Dolphins jumped out to a 24-3 lead on some awful play by Drew Brees. But the Saints were able to fight back to trail 27-24 in the third quarter. Ricky Williams scored his third touchdown at the end of the period, but the Saints outscored the Dolphins 22-0 in the fourth to get the win. New Orleans picked off Chad Henne twice and returned them both for touchdowns. I don't know if this game showed weakness in the Saints to fall behind by so much early on, or strength and resiliency in coming back for the victory.
Cincinnati had the biggest surprise of the day, not necessarily for the victory, but for the complete blowout of the Bears. I predicted the Bears to win, but I expected it to be a close game that could easily go either way. Instead, the Bengals dominated in a 45-10 victory with five touchdown passes from Carson Palmer and 189 yards and a score for Cedric Benson. Matt Forte had just 24 yards on six carries for the Bears.
Once again, it was a big week of blowouts with great teams facing horrible teams. These included Green Bay over Cleveland 31-3, San Diego topping the Chiefs 37-7, the Colts over the Rams 42-6, and the Patriots beating the Buccaneers 35-7 in London.
Jake Delhomme threw for a season-high 325 yards but with three interceptions as the Panthers lose yet again. The 49ers benched Shaun Hill, and surprisingly, Alex Smith threw three touchdowns and almost led San Francisco to a comeback victory, but the Texans were able to hang on with another great game for Matt Schaub.
Not surprisingly, the most exciting game of the day may have been the undefeated Vikings going to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers. It was a good defensive game besides Brett Favre continuing to connect with Sidney Rice. With the Steelers winning 13-10 in the fourth quarter, Brett Keisel sacked Favre and knocked the ball loose for LaMarr Woodley to pick up and return it 77 yards for the touchdown and give the Steelers a ten point lead. However, on the ensuing kickoff, Percy Harvin went 88 yards on the return to bring the Vikings within three again.
Minnesota got the ball back with a few minutes left to give Favre a chance for yet another comeback victory. A big play to Adrian Peterson and another play to Chester Taylor had the Vikings at the Pittsburgh 19 ready to score with a minute left, but then Favre's screen pass to Taylor went off his hands and to Pittsburgh linebacker Keyaron Fox (replacing the injured Lawrence Timmons), who ran it back for the 82 yard touchdown to put the game away.
And of course, on Sunday, the nightmare that has been feared for months has now become reality. The New York Yankees will play the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series. God help me.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Fixing the Mets, Part 2: Fire Omar Minaya
Previously, I advocated for the firing of manager Jerry Manuel. Next on the block is general manager Omar Minaya as I look at how the Mets can be fixed.
First of all, Minaya deserves a lot of credit for the job he did. After the Mets won the National League pennant in 2000, then-GM Steve Phillips began running the team into the ground with acquisitions such as Mo Vaughn and Roberto Alomar, as well as firing manager Bobby Valentine. Despite the World Series appearance, Phillips quickly wore out his welcome, and Mets fans were thrilled to see him get fired during the 2003 season.
Except he was replaced by Jim Duquette, who couldn't keep his job beyond 2004 after trading away Scott Kazmir for Victor Zambrano. Mets fans know all too well how that turned out.
After three straight horrible seasons in the Phillips/Duquette era from 2002-04, the Mets were in desperate need of saving. They turned to Omar Minaya, who signed Pedro Martinez and Carlos Beltran in his first offseason, promising a return to glory for the New York Mets. With these key acquisitions plus the emergences of David Wright and Jose Reyes, the Mets finished 2005 with an 83-79 record, after going 71-91 in 2004. The following season, Minaya added Carlos Delgado, Paul Lo Duca, and Billy Wagner, and the Mets would go on to win their first division title since 1988.
Then it all started to come crashing down. With the success of the previous two seasons came higher expectations and a continued push to get to the top. Fresh faces in 2007 included Luis Castillo, Moises Alou, and Shawn Green. The Mets were considered heavy favorites in the National League, but the regular season ended with the infamous Collapse as the Mets missed the postseason. Minaya made a huge splash in the following offseason to acquire ace pitcher Johan Santana, but again the team fell apart down the stretch and missed the playoffs despite leading the division in September.
And then 2009 happened. Details will be spared. We know them well enough already.
Sports are an interesting phenomenon in which the mighty can fall very quickly. Just a couple of years ago, a popular slogan for Mets fans was "In Omar We Trust," as if the man was some kind of genius who could do no wrong. Even if he made a move that looked sketchy, Mets fans would have faith that it would work out well. We do not have that kind of blind faith anymore. They may not all want him thrown out on the street like I do, but most certainly are worried about his ability to build a winning team.
The Yankees have taught us over the past decade that you cannot just pick up as many marqee names as possible and expect to win. You have to have the right group of players, which I believe they have found after picking up the likes of Mark Teixeira, C.C. Sabathia, and A.J. Burnett this past offseason. Omar is still learning the lesson.
Minaya put too much faith in the aging (Delgado, Castillo, Alou, Orlando Hernandez, to name a few) as well as the inconsistent (looking mainly at the 2008 bullpen and the 2009 rotation). Minaya brought in the offensively-challenged Brian Schneider because he valued his defense as a catcher, but he proved to be defensively-challenged as well. And he traded several pitching prospects for worthless pieces of junk in part of his work in demolishing the Mets' farm system and the Major League depth it brings.
Not to be forgotten, he has made himself look like a complete fool in the way he dealt with the firings of Willie Randolph and Tony Bernazard.
I am trying to see what might be the missing piece or the fatal flaw for a roster that is loaded with talent. One would think that with the players the team currently has, the fix should be relatively simple. But I just can't see there being one or two additions that will turn this team around. They could use a major shakeup, but at the same time, they cannot get rid of the stars they have in Wright, Reyes, Beltran, and Santana.
Instead, the shakeup must be in upper management. They need a fresh face with a new philosophy, one that can dig this team back out of being the laughing stock of baseball. They need the right players to compliment the stars on the team. They need to admit some wrongs and give up on some players they have given contracts to. They need to rework the rotation to get more consistency out of their starters.
Omar Minaya is not the man who will do these things, and frankly, like Jerry Manuel, I'm tired of seeing his face. It represents too much misery. He should get the Steve Phillips treatment before it's too late. I just hope he doesn't then go join ESPN and shove his inadequacies in our faces, then have an affair with a 22-year-old.
First of all, Minaya deserves a lot of credit for the job he did. After the Mets won the National League pennant in 2000, then-GM Steve Phillips began running the team into the ground with acquisitions such as Mo Vaughn and Roberto Alomar, as well as firing manager Bobby Valentine. Despite the World Series appearance, Phillips quickly wore out his welcome, and Mets fans were thrilled to see him get fired during the 2003 season.
Except he was replaced by Jim Duquette, who couldn't keep his job beyond 2004 after trading away Scott Kazmir for Victor Zambrano. Mets fans know all too well how that turned out.
After three straight horrible seasons in the Phillips/Duquette era from 2002-04, the Mets were in desperate need of saving. They turned to Omar Minaya, who signed Pedro Martinez and Carlos Beltran in his first offseason, promising a return to glory for the New York Mets. With these key acquisitions plus the emergences of David Wright and Jose Reyes, the Mets finished 2005 with an 83-79 record, after going 71-91 in 2004. The following season, Minaya added Carlos Delgado, Paul Lo Duca, and Billy Wagner, and the Mets would go on to win their first division title since 1988.
Then it all started to come crashing down. With the success of the previous two seasons came higher expectations and a continued push to get to the top. Fresh faces in 2007 included Luis Castillo, Moises Alou, and Shawn Green. The Mets were considered heavy favorites in the National League, but the regular season ended with the infamous Collapse as the Mets missed the postseason. Minaya made a huge splash in the following offseason to acquire ace pitcher Johan Santana, but again the team fell apart down the stretch and missed the playoffs despite leading the division in September.
And then 2009 happened. Details will be spared. We know them well enough already.
Sports are an interesting phenomenon in which the mighty can fall very quickly. Just a couple of years ago, a popular slogan for Mets fans was "In Omar We Trust," as if the man was some kind of genius who could do no wrong. Even if he made a move that looked sketchy, Mets fans would have faith that it would work out well. We do not have that kind of blind faith anymore. They may not all want him thrown out on the street like I do, but most certainly are worried about his ability to build a winning team.
The Yankees have taught us over the past decade that you cannot just pick up as many marqee names as possible and expect to win. You have to have the right group of players, which I believe they have found after picking up the likes of Mark Teixeira, C.C. Sabathia, and A.J. Burnett this past offseason. Omar is still learning the lesson.
Minaya put too much faith in the aging (Delgado, Castillo, Alou, Orlando Hernandez, to name a few) as well as the inconsistent (looking mainly at the 2008 bullpen and the 2009 rotation). Minaya brought in the offensively-challenged Brian Schneider because he valued his defense as a catcher, but he proved to be defensively-challenged as well. And he traded several pitching prospects for worthless pieces of junk in part of his work in demolishing the Mets' farm system and the Major League depth it brings.
Not to be forgotten, he has made himself look like a complete fool in the way he dealt with the firings of Willie Randolph and Tony Bernazard.
I am trying to see what might be the missing piece or the fatal flaw for a roster that is loaded with talent. One would think that with the players the team currently has, the fix should be relatively simple. But I just can't see there being one or two additions that will turn this team around. They could use a major shakeup, but at the same time, they cannot get rid of the stars they have in Wright, Reyes, Beltran, and Santana.
Instead, the shakeup must be in upper management. They need a fresh face with a new philosophy, one that can dig this team back out of being the laughing stock of baseball. They need the right players to compliment the stars on the team. They need to admit some wrongs and give up on some players they have given contracts to. They need to rework the rotation to get more consistency out of their starters.
Omar Minaya is not the man who will do these things, and frankly, like Jerry Manuel, I'm tired of seeing his face. It represents too much misery. He should get the Steve Phillips treatment before it's too late. I just hope he doesn't then go join ESPN and shove his inadequacies in our faces, then have an affair with a 22-year-old.
Friday, October 23, 2009
NFL Week 7 Picks
This could be a very interesting week, as it seems like nearly every game, the better team is on the road. However, all the really bad teams playing at home this week are playing very good teams that should still beat them easily, so I don't know if any of them can pull off an upset at home. I always have a bad feeling when looking over my picks and seeing mostly road teams, but sometimes, there's just no avoiding it. I need to bounce back though after a lousy Week 6.
Green Bay Packers (3-2) vs. Cleveland Browns (1-5)
The Packers should have this game pretty easily under normal circumstances. With reports that the flu has been running through the Browns' locker room this past week, this game will get ugly very fast.
San Francisco 49ers (3-2) vs. Houston Texans (3-2)
Frank Gore returns and Michael Crabtree enters the starting lineup for the 49ers, but I have been more impressed by the Texans in recent weeks than I have been with the 49ers all season. Matt Schaub has been tremendous, and their defense is rightfully starting to pick up. While those additions for San Francisco are great, they both may have some rust they need to shake off first.
Minnesota Vikings (6-0) vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2)
There's certain teams over the past few years that I just hate to pick against unless they're facing each other. The Steelers are one of those teams, along with the Giants, Colts, and Patriots (with a healthy Tom Brady). The loss of Aaron Smith greatly hurts their ability to slow down Adrian Peterson, but I will continue to trust in their defense. Ben Roethlisberger is having an amazing season, and Minnesota is struggling right now with their pass defense, which is being hurt even more now by injuries. Rashard Mendenhall is emerging at running back and has earned the starting job for Pittsburgh over Willie Parker. The Vikings have looked terrific so far, better than the Steelers have, but they have to lose sooner or later, and it will come at Heinz Field.
New England Patriots (4-2) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-6) [Game being played in London]
The Buccaneers "host" the Patriots in London, but no home field advantage would have saved them in this matchup. This will be another blowout for New England.
Indianapolis Colts (5-0) vs. St. Louis Rams (0-6)
Arguably the best team in the league (although I personally disagree) against the worst team in the league. Need I say more?
San Diego Chargers (2-3) vs. Kansas City Chiefs (1-5)
The Chargers will move the ball against the Chiefs much better than the Cowboys or Redskins ever did the past two weeks. The Chargers cannot overlook the Chiefs, especially after the loss to the Broncos, but they should be fine.
Buffalo Bills (2-4) vs. Carolina Panthers (2-3)
The Panthers wrap up a three game win streak against awful teams before facing the good teams again. Jake Delhomme is awful, but this game will be all about the running back combination of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart for Carolina. Then again, the Jets ran the ball all over the Bills last week and still managed to lose, and the Panthers are even less competent than the Jets right now. Still, I can't expect the Bills to win this one.
New York Jets (3-3) vs. Oakland Raiders (2-4)
I don't know what has happened to Mark Sanchez and the Jets recently. You can excuse the loss to the Saints, but they should have beat the Dolphins and could not lose to the Bills. This team is in a downward spiral right now. They will again be without receiver Jerricho Cotchery, so Nnamdi Asomugha can focus on shutting down Braylon Edwards. The Raiders are a better run defense than the Bills, if only because the Bills are worst in the league. But the Jets were playing the Bills at the Meadowlands, which is usually a pretty tough place for opponents to play (except for the Bills who are used to the weather), while this week the Jets make the cross-country trip to Oakland which is usually a very tough place for opponents to play. Three weeks ago, I couldn't imagine picking the Raiders to beat the Jets, but after the Jets' recent games and the Raiders beating the Eagles last week in Oakland, it has come to this.
Chicago Bears (3-2) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (4-2)
I have the Bengals over the Bears in my Power Rankings, but faced with this matchup, I see the better team winning, yet now I think that's the Bears. Perhaps there is a higher ceiling with potential for the Bengals which inflated their ranking after some big wins this season, but I think I'm still hanging on that close win against the Browns, and losing to the Texans last week hurt. I think the Bears are consistently a better team though. This game can certainly go either way depending on which Bengals team comes to play, but my gut is telling me to go with the Bears.
Atlanta Falcons (4-1) vs. Dallas Cowboys (3-2)
The Cowboys need to come out of their bye week with a big home win, but they will need to compete with the high-powered Falcons' offense. Dallas should have all three of their running backs involved again though, and they have bumped Miles Austin into the starting lineup, but there are still health concerns with Roy Williams and the running backs, and Tony Romo needs to play better. The Falcons are really clicking right now. I just need to see more from the Cowboys before I can trust in them again.
New Orleans Saints (5-0) vs. Miami Dolphins (2-3)
The Dolphins pulled off a couple impressive wins at home after losing Chad Pennington, but they face a daunting task with the Saints coming in. They will not be able to keep up with the offensive output from New Orleans.
Arizona Cardinals (3-2) vs. New York Giants (5-1)
After suffering their first loss on the road in New Orleans last week, the Giants are happy to return home facing a West Coast team, although the game being in primetime helps to offset the time zone difference. The Cardinals boast a very dangerous passing game though, and the Giants got killed last week by the Saints passing the ball, but hopefully the Giants will be able to get more pressure on Kurt Warner than they did on Drew Brees. The Giants should bounce back and win this game.
Philadelphia Eagles (3-2) vs. Washington Redskins (2-4)
The Eagles look awful following a loss to the Raiders, but the Redskins have been horrendous all season, including a loss last week at home to the previously winless Chiefs. The Eagles are too good of a team to lose consecutive games against awful teams.
Last Week: 7-7
Season: 59-31
Green Bay Packers (3-2) vs. Cleveland Browns (1-5)
The Packers should have this game pretty easily under normal circumstances. With reports that the flu has been running through the Browns' locker room this past week, this game will get ugly very fast.
San Francisco 49ers (3-2) vs. Houston Texans (3-2)
Frank Gore returns and Michael Crabtree enters the starting lineup for the 49ers, but I have been more impressed by the Texans in recent weeks than I have been with the 49ers all season. Matt Schaub has been tremendous, and their defense is rightfully starting to pick up. While those additions for San Francisco are great, they both may have some rust they need to shake off first.
Minnesota Vikings (6-0) vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2)
There's certain teams over the past few years that I just hate to pick against unless they're facing each other. The Steelers are one of those teams, along with the Giants, Colts, and Patriots (with a healthy Tom Brady). The loss of Aaron Smith greatly hurts their ability to slow down Adrian Peterson, but I will continue to trust in their defense. Ben Roethlisberger is having an amazing season, and Minnesota is struggling right now with their pass defense, which is being hurt even more now by injuries. Rashard Mendenhall is emerging at running back and has earned the starting job for Pittsburgh over Willie Parker. The Vikings have looked terrific so far, better than the Steelers have, but they have to lose sooner or later, and it will come at Heinz Field.
New England Patriots (4-2) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-6) [Game being played in London]
The Buccaneers "host" the Patriots in London, but no home field advantage would have saved them in this matchup. This will be another blowout for New England.
Indianapolis Colts (5-0) vs. St. Louis Rams (0-6)
Arguably the best team in the league (although I personally disagree) against the worst team in the league. Need I say more?
San Diego Chargers (2-3) vs. Kansas City Chiefs (1-5)
The Chargers will move the ball against the Chiefs much better than the Cowboys or Redskins ever did the past two weeks. The Chargers cannot overlook the Chiefs, especially after the loss to the Broncos, but they should be fine.
Buffalo Bills (2-4) vs. Carolina Panthers (2-3)
The Panthers wrap up a three game win streak against awful teams before facing the good teams again. Jake Delhomme is awful, but this game will be all about the running back combination of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart for Carolina. Then again, the Jets ran the ball all over the Bills last week and still managed to lose, and the Panthers are even less competent than the Jets right now. Still, I can't expect the Bills to win this one.
New York Jets (3-3) vs. Oakland Raiders (2-4)
I don't know what has happened to Mark Sanchez and the Jets recently. You can excuse the loss to the Saints, but they should have beat the Dolphins and could not lose to the Bills. This team is in a downward spiral right now. They will again be without receiver Jerricho Cotchery, so Nnamdi Asomugha can focus on shutting down Braylon Edwards. The Raiders are a better run defense than the Bills, if only because the Bills are worst in the league. But the Jets were playing the Bills at the Meadowlands, which is usually a pretty tough place for opponents to play (except for the Bills who are used to the weather), while this week the Jets make the cross-country trip to Oakland which is usually a very tough place for opponents to play. Three weeks ago, I couldn't imagine picking the Raiders to beat the Jets, but after the Jets' recent games and the Raiders beating the Eagles last week in Oakland, it has come to this.
Chicago Bears (3-2) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (4-2)
I have the Bengals over the Bears in my Power Rankings, but faced with this matchup, I see the better team winning, yet now I think that's the Bears. Perhaps there is a higher ceiling with potential for the Bengals which inflated their ranking after some big wins this season, but I think I'm still hanging on that close win against the Browns, and losing to the Texans last week hurt. I think the Bears are consistently a better team though. This game can certainly go either way depending on which Bengals team comes to play, but my gut is telling me to go with the Bears.
Atlanta Falcons (4-1) vs. Dallas Cowboys (3-2)
The Cowboys need to come out of their bye week with a big home win, but they will need to compete with the high-powered Falcons' offense. Dallas should have all three of their running backs involved again though, and they have bumped Miles Austin into the starting lineup, but there are still health concerns with Roy Williams and the running backs, and Tony Romo needs to play better. The Falcons are really clicking right now. I just need to see more from the Cowboys before I can trust in them again.
New Orleans Saints (5-0) vs. Miami Dolphins (2-3)
The Dolphins pulled off a couple impressive wins at home after losing Chad Pennington, but they face a daunting task with the Saints coming in. They will not be able to keep up with the offensive output from New Orleans.
Arizona Cardinals (3-2) vs. New York Giants (5-1)
After suffering their first loss on the road in New Orleans last week, the Giants are happy to return home facing a West Coast team, although the game being in primetime helps to offset the time zone difference. The Cardinals boast a very dangerous passing game though, and the Giants got killed last week by the Saints passing the ball, but hopefully the Giants will be able to get more pressure on Kurt Warner than they did on Drew Brees. The Giants should bounce back and win this game.
Philadelphia Eagles (3-2) vs. Washington Redskins (2-4)
The Eagles look awful following a loss to the Raiders, but the Redskins have been horrendous all season, including a loss last week at home to the previously winless Chiefs. The Eagles are too good of a team to lose consecutive games against awful teams.
Last Week: 7-7
Season: 59-31
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
NFL Week 7 Power Rankings
Internet problems have kept my blog inactive the past couple days, but I am back online now, so it is time for my Power Rankings, albeit a day late. I wrote them up while I had no Internet access, so I did not have as much information at my fingertips as I would like, and I apologize for any inaccuracies due to a lack of fact checking.
1. New Orleans Saints (5-0) [1] – I have gotten some opposition for putting the Saints at the top, saying that the Colts should be #1, but they got their big validating win last week against the previously undefeated Giants. Much is to be said about their playmakers on offense, but their offensive line just completely shut down a Giants defense that does a better job than any at getting pressure. And the Saints defense continues to make plays since they brought in the great defensive coordinator Gregg Williams this season. This team is a complete package with the most high-powered offense in the league.
2. Indianapolis Colts (5-0) [2] – The Colts still have the names on offense to compete with the Saints. Peyton Manning can beat anyone. Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark are terrific receivers, while Austin Collie and Pierre Garcon have stepped up as well, and Anthony Gonzalez may return soon. Joseph Addai and Donald Brown are doing well in the running game, and their defense has done a fine job. I understand anyone who wants to say the Colts are #1, but I have to go with the Saints.
3. Minnesota Vikings (6-0) [4] – Brett Favre continues to impress, and he seems to be in perfect rhythm with his receivers. Over the course of a full season though, I have to go with Drew Brees and Peyton Manning until Favre can prove last season’s dropoff won’t happen again.
4. Denver Broncos (6-0) [6] – It seems like no one can stop the Broncos at this point. They are winning at home and on the road. I cannot believe I am saying this, but Kyle Orton has been great this season. I am still a bit concerned about their defense though after the amazing start against weaker teams.
5. New York Giants (5-1) [3] – There should be no shame in losing to the Saints, but they got dominated. It was only a matter of time before their secondary got exposed. Their defensive line has been able to make up for it, but they got no pressure on Brees in this game, and the secondary suffered the consequences. Once again they are sorely missing linebacker Michael Boley.
6. New England Patriots (4-2) [8] – This team will just keep getting better as Tom Brady gets more and more comfortable. Well, maybe it doesn’t get better than 59-0. But it is time to start remembering that with a healthy Tom Brady, the Patriots are always one of the best teams in the league. It just took him a few disappointing weeks to get going.
7. Atlanta Falcons (4-1) [9] – The Falcons continue to look good as they pick up a win against the Bears. They have one of the better offenses, and their defense isn’t too bad either.
8. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2) [10] – Ben Roethlisberger is having an outstanding season so far. He has typically been a guy that is able to win most games but doesn’t put up the great stats, but this year he is getting the numbers up as well. The loss of defensive end Aaron Smith hurts though.
9. Baltimore Ravens (3-3) [12] – It has been a rough stretch for the Ravens losing three in a row, but I still believe this is a pretty good team. A loss is a loss, but they had a very good opportunity to defeat the undefeated Vikings in Minnesota. This team will bounce back from this losing streak.
10. Philadelphia Eagles (3-2) [5] – I don’t know what to think of their loss to the Raiders last week. Is it just a fluke loss, a result of a long road trip going into the rough environment in Oakland, or does this team have serious issues?
11. Cincinnati Bengals (4-2) [7] – Just when things were going so well for the Bengals, they get knocked back by the Texans at home. I kept waiting for them to make their comeback, but they never did anything. Cedric Benson had his worst game of the season, despite facing one of the worst rush defenses in the league. They may still be atop the AFC North for now, but they are still only the third best team in the division.
12. Green Bay Packers (3-2) [15] – Yes, it was against the Lions, but it was a needed dominating victory for the Packers. At times, they have looked like they could be better this season, and last week they showed their worth.
13. Arizona Cardinals (3-2) [18] – This team got off to a slow start, but the Cardinals may finally be getting back to the level that took them to the Super Bowl last season. If they put the second half where they gave up against the Texans behind them, they are outscoring opponents 48-3 in three of their last four halves.
14. Chicago Bears (3-2) [14] – I did not expect them to beat the Falcons last week, but they kept it close, which was good. Not good enough to move them up, but good enough to not drop them.
15. San Diego Chargers (2-3) [13] – I wanted to say the Chargers are still a better team than the Bears. They seem to be moving the ball better, but they are just not doing what it takes to win games. I called their game against the Broncos a must win, playing at home coming off a bye. But not surprisingly, they were unable to come through. The Broncos are a great team, but the Chargers should have been able to beat them under the circumstances.
16. Dallas Cowboys (3-2) [16] – As much as I would love to, I’ll refrain from dropping the Cowboys out of the top half following their bye. This team has the talent, and maybe they fixed things during the off week, which includes swapping Miles Austin into the starting lineup replacing Patrick Crayton, but I am still a bit doubtful that good things will come with this team.
17. Houston Texans (3-3) [21] – I have been extremely down on the Texans all season, but the win over the Bengals last week was a pleasant surprise. Andre Johnson continues to impress. This team has the talent to be a contender in any game they play if they can put it all together.
18. San Francisco 49ers (3-2) [17] – The 49ers will welcome Michael Crabtree to the starting lineup this week, and also welcome back Frank Gore. I don’t know if they will be enough to make up for Shaun Hill being their quarterback though when they take on the surging Texans this week.
19. Miami Dolphins (2-3) [19] – The Dolphins are on a two game win streak and have a home game this week following a bye, but it is the Saints they are facing. It should not be as bad a trip for them as it was for the Bills and Jets. But the Dolphins still have one of the better run offenses in the league, plus an intriguing young quarterback in Chad Henne.
20. New York Jets (3-3) [11] – The Jets sure did an amazing job tricking everyone into thinking they were a great team with the great start they had, but they have been humiliated in consecutive weeks by weak divisional opponents. Losing to the Bills in the Meadowlands is just incomprehensible. Mark Sanchez has seemingly lost everything that made him so successful to begin his career, and now his defense has lost perhaps it’s most important piece for the rest of the season with Kris Jenkins’ torn ACL.
21. Carolina Panthers (2-3) [23] – Jake Delhomme continues to be awful, but the Panthers finally got that tremendous running game going to beat the Buccaneers last week. They should return to .500 with another big running game this week.
22. Seattle Seahawks (2-4) [20] – Just when I thought the Seahawks had a good team, especially playing at home, the Cardinals embarrass them in Seattle. Julius Jones has been a surprising success running the ball this year, but managed just five yards rushing in the game. Hopefully it doesn’t get any worse than that loss, but the 41-0 win over the Jaguars two weeks ago seems like a very distant memory now.
23. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-3) [22] – There’s still a large tier of terrible teams that the Jaguars stay ahead of with their two big wins, but they are the bottom of the higher tier. I don’t even understand how they needed overtime to beat the Rams, especially with the huge game that Maurice Jones-Drew had.
24. Buffalo Bills (2-4) [28] – Imagine if the Bills didn’t fumble away the opener against the Patriots. Imagine they also don’t let the Browns come away with a 6-3 victory against them. This team could be 4-2. They lost Trent Edwards in beating the Jets last week, and I’m trying to figure out if that’s a bad or good thing for the Bills.
25. Oakland Raiders (2-4) [31] – How much of a difference does cross-country traveling make? Two weeks ago, the Raiders went to New York and could not have looked worse against the Giants. Last week, they go back home while the Eagles come from Philadelphia to play them, and the Raiders pull off the win. I don’t know how it happened, but that is a pretty impressive win either way. They needed Zach Miller to finally do something with the offense.
26. Kansas City Chiefs (1-5) [27] – Although he has still yet to find the end zone, Larry Johnson may have had his best game of the season so far. If he can get going, it would give this team a more balanced offense along with Matt Cassel passing to Dwayne Bowe.
27. Detroit Lions (1-5) [26] – The Lions could not get any offense going with Calvin Johnson sidelined. Daunte Culpepper was successful last week replacing the injured Matthew Stafford despite Johnson missing most of the game, but it was a different story against the Packers as Detroit got shut out.
28. Washington Redskins (2-4) [24] – As terrible as the Redskins have been all season, it is still hard to believe that they lost at home to the Chiefs, especially considering Clinton Portis topped 100 yards rushing. Coach Jim Zorn officially doesn’t know what he’s doing. He benched his quarterback Jason Campbell, but he’s still starting this week, although Zorn has had his play-calling privileges taken away from him, which can only possibly be a good thing, but time will tell.
29. Cleveland Browns (1-5) [29] – If there is one thing that Browns fans can still get excited about, it’s Joshua Cribbs.
30. Tennessee Titans (0-6) [25] – Is this still too high to rank them based on last season’s success and the fact that they have Chris Johnson? Letting Tom Brady’s Patriots score 59 points on you is somewhat excusable when both of your starting cornerbacks are out. But is the Pats’ defense really that good? I don’t even know what to say about Kerry Collins at this point, I feel like anything I could come up with would be an understatement.
31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-6) [30] – I tried to have some hope for them with the change to Josh Johnson, but he has yet to accomplish anything. He may be a different quarterback than Byron Leftwich, but he isn’t doing any better of a job.
32. St. Louis Rams (0-6) [32] – The Rams may have finally showed something in taking the Jaguars to overtime last week, but they remain winless and at the bottom of the rankings.
1. New Orleans Saints (5-0) [1] – I have gotten some opposition for putting the Saints at the top, saying that the Colts should be #1, but they got their big validating win last week against the previously undefeated Giants. Much is to be said about their playmakers on offense, but their offensive line just completely shut down a Giants defense that does a better job than any at getting pressure. And the Saints defense continues to make plays since they brought in the great defensive coordinator Gregg Williams this season. This team is a complete package with the most high-powered offense in the league.
2. Indianapolis Colts (5-0) [2] – The Colts still have the names on offense to compete with the Saints. Peyton Manning can beat anyone. Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark are terrific receivers, while Austin Collie and Pierre Garcon have stepped up as well, and Anthony Gonzalez may return soon. Joseph Addai and Donald Brown are doing well in the running game, and their defense has done a fine job. I understand anyone who wants to say the Colts are #1, but I have to go with the Saints.
3. Minnesota Vikings (6-0) [4] – Brett Favre continues to impress, and he seems to be in perfect rhythm with his receivers. Over the course of a full season though, I have to go with Drew Brees and Peyton Manning until Favre can prove last season’s dropoff won’t happen again.
4. Denver Broncos (6-0) [6] – It seems like no one can stop the Broncos at this point. They are winning at home and on the road. I cannot believe I am saying this, but Kyle Orton has been great this season. I am still a bit concerned about their defense though after the amazing start against weaker teams.
5. New York Giants (5-1) [3] – There should be no shame in losing to the Saints, but they got dominated. It was only a matter of time before their secondary got exposed. Their defensive line has been able to make up for it, but they got no pressure on Brees in this game, and the secondary suffered the consequences. Once again they are sorely missing linebacker Michael Boley.
6. New England Patriots (4-2) [8] – This team will just keep getting better as Tom Brady gets more and more comfortable. Well, maybe it doesn’t get better than 59-0. But it is time to start remembering that with a healthy Tom Brady, the Patriots are always one of the best teams in the league. It just took him a few disappointing weeks to get going.
7. Atlanta Falcons (4-1) [9] – The Falcons continue to look good as they pick up a win against the Bears. They have one of the better offenses, and their defense isn’t too bad either.
8. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2) [10] – Ben Roethlisberger is having an outstanding season so far. He has typically been a guy that is able to win most games but doesn’t put up the great stats, but this year he is getting the numbers up as well. The loss of defensive end Aaron Smith hurts though.
9. Baltimore Ravens (3-3) [12] – It has been a rough stretch for the Ravens losing three in a row, but I still believe this is a pretty good team. A loss is a loss, but they had a very good opportunity to defeat the undefeated Vikings in Minnesota. This team will bounce back from this losing streak.
10. Philadelphia Eagles (3-2) [5] – I don’t know what to think of their loss to the Raiders last week. Is it just a fluke loss, a result of a long road trip going into the rough environment in Oakland, or does this team have serious issues?
11. Cincinnati Bengals (4-2) [7] – Just when things were going so well for the Bengals, they get knocked back by the Texans at home. I kept waiting for them to make their comeback, but they never did anything. Cedric Benson had his worst game of the season, despite facing one of the worst rush defenses in the league. They may still be atop the AFC North for now, but they are still only the third best team in the division.
12. Green Bay Packers (3-2) [15] – Yes, it was against the Lions, but it was a needed dominating victory for the Packers. At times, they have looked like they could be better this season, and last week they showed their worth.
13. Arizona Cardinals (3-2) [18] – This team got off to a slow start, but the Cardinals may finally be getting back to the level that took them to the Super Bowl last season. If they put the second half where they gave up against the Texans behind them, they are outscoring opponents 48-3 in three of their last four halves.
14. Chicago Bears (3-2) [14] – I did not expect them to beat the Falcons last week, but they kept it close, which was good. Not good enough to move them up, but good enough to not drop them.
15. San Diego Chargers (2-3) [13] – I wanted to say the Chargers are still a better team than the Bears. They seem to be moving the ball better, but they are just not doing what it takes to win games. I called their game against the Broncos a must win, playing at home coming off a bye. But not surprisingly, they were unable to come through. The Broncos are a great team, but the Chargers should have been able to beat them under the circumstances.
16. Dallas Cowboys (3-2) [16] – As much as I would love to, I’ll refrain from dropping the Cowboys out of the top half following their bye. This team has the talent, and maybe they fixed things during the off week, which includes swapping Miles Austin into the starting lineup replacing Patrick Crayton, but I am still a bit doubtful that good things will come with this team.
17. Houston Texans (3-3) [21] – I have been extremely down on the Texans all season, but the win over the Bengals last week was a pleasant surprise. Andre Johnson continues to impress. This team has the talent to be a contender in any game they play if they can put it all together.
18. San Francisco 49ers (3-2) [17] – The 49ers will welcome Michael Crabtree to the starting lineup this week, and also welcome back Frank Gore. I don’t know if they will be enough to make up for Shaun Hill being their quarterback though when they take on the surging Texans this week.
19. Miami Dolphins (2-3) [19] – The Dolphins are on a two game win streak and have a home game this week following a bye, but it is the Saints they are facing. It should not be as bad a trip for them as it was for the Bills and Jets. But the Dolphins still have one of the better run offenses in the league, plus an intriguing young quarterback in Chad Henne.
20. New York Jets (3-3) [11] – The Jets sure did an amazing job tricking everyone into thinking they were a great team with the great start they had, but they have been humiliated in consecutive weeks by weak divisional opponents. Losing to the Bills in the Meadowlands is just incomprehensible. Mark Sanchez has seemingly lost everything that made him so successful to begin his career, and now his defense has lost perhaps it’s most important piece for the rest of the season with Kris Jenkins’ torn ACL.
21. Carolina Panthers (2-3) [23] – Jake Delhomme continues to be awful, but the Panthers finally got that tremendous running game going to beat the Buccaneers last week. They should return to .500 with another big running game this week.
22. Seattle Seahawks (2-4) [20] – Just when I thought the Seahawks had a good team, especially playing at home, the Cardinals embarrass them in Seattle. Julius Jones has been a surprising success running the ball this year, but managed just five yards rushing in the game. Hopefully it doesn’t get any worse than that loss, but the 41-0 win over the Jaguars two weeks ago seems like a very distant memory now.
23. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-3) [22] – There’s still a large tier of terrible teams that the Jaguars stay ahead of with their two big wins, but they are the bottom of the higher tier. I don’t even understand how they needed overtime to beat the Rams, especially with the huge game that Maurice Jones-Drew had.
24. Buffalo Bills (2-4) [28] – Imagine if the Bills didn’t fumble away the opener against the Patriots. Imagine they also don’t let the Browns come away with a 6-3 victory against them. This team could be 4-2. They lost Trent Edwards in beating the Jets last week, and I’m trying to figure out if that’s a bad or good thing for the Bills.
25. Oakland Raiders (2-4) [31] – How much of a difference does cross-country traveling make? Two weeks ago, the Raiders went to New York and could not have looked worse against the Giants. Last week, they go back home while the Eagles come from Philadelphia to play them, and the Raiders pull off the win. I don’t know how it happened, but that is a pretty impressive win either way. They needed Zach Miller to finally do something with the offense.
26. Kansas City Chiefs (1-5) [27] – Although he has still yet to find the end zone, Larry Johnson may have had his best game of the season so far. If he can get going, it would give this team a more balanced offense along with Matt Cassel passing to Dwayne Bowe.
27. Detroit Lions (1-5) [26] – The Lions could not get any offense going with Calvin Johnson sidelined. Daunte Culpepper was successful last week replacing the injured Matthew Stafford despite Johnson missing most of the game, but it was a different story against the Packers as Detroit got shut out.
28. Washington Redskins (2-4) [24] – As terrible as the Redskins have been all season, it is still hard to believe that they lost at home to the Chiefs, especially considering Clinton Portis topped 100 yards rushing. Coach Jim Zorn officially doesn’t know what he’s doing. He benched his quarterback Jason Campbell, but he’s still starting this week, although Zorn has had his play-calling privileges taken away from him, which can only possibly be a good thing, but time will tell.
29. Cleveland Browns (1-5) [29] – If there is one thing that Browns fans can still get excited about, it’s Joshua Cribbs.
30. Tennessee Titans (0-6) [25] – Is this still too high to rank them based on last season’s success and the fact that they have Chris Johnson? Letting Tom Brady’s Patriots score 59 points on you is somewhat excusable when both of your starting cornerbacks are out. But is the Pats’ defense really that good? I don’t even know what to say about Kerry Collins at this point, I feel like anything I could come up with would be an understatement.
31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-6) [30] – I tried to have some hope for them with the change to Josh Johnson, but he has yet to accomplish anything. He may be a different quarterback than Byron Leftwich, but he isn’t doing any better of a job.
32. St. Louis Rams (0-6) [32] – The Rams may have finally showed something in taking the Jaguars to overtime last week, but they remain winless and at the bottom of the rankings.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Sunday NFL Notes
The New York Giants (5-0) vs. the New Orleans Saints (4-0) was the big matchup of the week, but it turned out to be a pretty dominating showing by my #1 ranked Saints. I knew that the only way the Giants would win is if their defensive front could put pressure on quarterback Drew Brees throughout the game, because their secondary is extremely weak.
Well, give credit to the Saints' offensive line. I had no idea they were any good, I couldn't name a single player on that line, but they must be good if they allow the Saints to have such an amazing offense every week, and this week they completely shut down a Giants defense which may be the best in the league at pressuring the quarterback. JaMarcus Russell could probably throw for 300 yards against this secondary if he had the kind of time Brees had today. The Giants got absolutely no pressure on him, and as such, he moved the Saints offense at will, completely exposing the Giants' great weakness. C.C. Brown shouldn't even be on a football field.
The Saints defense also played very well again. They have had some doubters due to their strength of schedule, but this is a good defense led by defensive coordinator Gregg Williams. Most people were claiming the Colts as the better team, but I have had the Saints atop my Power Rankings, and after today I have no doubts about that.
If there had been one negative until this point for the Giants, it was the inability of Brandon Jacobs to bust off the big run, but his running may have been the only positive that the Giants could take away from this game. After a 3.55 yards per carry average through their first five games, Jacobs had 4.7 YPC against the Saints, including a rush of 14. Unfortunately, it was just in a small sample size (7 rushes for 33 yards) as the Giants were forced to pass for most of the game.
The Giants will face another high-powered offense next week when the Cardinals come to town. It will be important for them to get back on track with the Eagles following that game, although the Eagles have problems of their own after losing to the Raiders. I didn't watch any of that game, but how were they unable to find the end zone when they didn't even turn the ball over? Must be the Eagles continuing to ignore the running game. When will Andy Reid change this philosophy?
Speaking of horrible losses, I cannot comprehend how the Jets lost to the Bills today. They really played quite a trick on us getting off to their impressive 3-0 start. The loss of Jerricho Cotchery cannot possibly hurt this much, especially factoring in the addition of Braylon Edwards. Rex Ryan said he was embarrassed by his defense in the previous week against Miami, and I expected him to have his team fired up to win this week against the awful Bills, but apparently he was so focused on his defense that he forgot all about preparing his offense.
The Redskins continue to be impressively horrible, allowing the Chiefs to get their first win of the season, even with the game in Washington. The Buccaneers missed their opportunity to get their first win hosting the also disappointing Panthers. The Jaguars almost let the Rams get their first win on their home turf before pulling out the overtime victory. And the Seahawks brought absolutely no momentum from their 41-0 win last week, losing 27-3 to the Cardinals.
59-0. I don't know what to say about this game. How good are the Patriots, or how bad are the Titans? Well, that question can easily be answered when you look at Kerry Collins' line for the day: 2/12, -7 yards, 1 INT. Vince Young then came in and threw two passes, neither complete, with the first getting picked off. You can also mention the Titans' lack of their top two cornerbacks, as well as Bill Belichick's desire for running up the score. But either way you look at it, this was complete domination by the Patriots.
Lastly, the Bengals finally slipped up in losing to the Texans, who have been far from good this season. Cedric Benson, after five great games against defenses such as Denver, Pittsburgh, and Baltimore, somehow had his worst game of the season against one of the worst rush defenses in the league. Matt Schaub stole the show with 392 yards passing and four touchdowns. And the undefeated Vikings remained unbeaten, taking down the Ravens with a 33-31 victory.
Well, give credit to the Saints' offensive line. I had no idea they were any good, I couldn't name a single player on that line, but they must be good if they allow the Saints to have such an amazing offense every week, and this week they completely shut down a Giants defense which may be the best in the league at pressuring the quarterback. JaMarcus Russell could probably throw for 300 yards against this secondary if he had the kind of time Brees had today. The Giants got absolutely no pressure on him, and as such, he moved the Saints offense at will, completely exposing the Giants' great weakness. C.C. Brown shouldn't even be on a football field.
The Saints defense also played very well again. They have had some doubters due to their strength of schedule, but this is a good defense led by defensive coordinator Gregg Williams. Most people were claiming the Colts as the better team, but I have had the Saints atop my Power Rankings, and after today I have no doubts about that.
If there had been one negative until this point for the Giants, it was the inability of Brandon Jacobs to bust off the big run, but his running may have been the only positive that the Giants could take away from this game. After a 3.55 yards per carry average through their first five games, Jacobs had 4.7 YPC against the Saints, including a rush of 14. Unfortunately, it was just in a small sample size (7 rushes for 33 yards) as the Giants were forced to pass for most of the game.
The Giants will face another high-powered offense next week when the Cardinals come to town. It will be important for them to get back on track with the Eagles following that game, although the Eagles have problems of their own after losing to the Raiders. I didn't watch any of that game, but how were they unable to find the end zone when they didn't even turn the ball over? Must be the Eagles continuing to ignore the running game. When will Andy Reid change this philosophy?
Speaking of horrible losses, I cannot comprehend how the Jets lost to the Bills today. They really played quite a trick on us getting off to their impressive 3-0 start. The loss of Jerricho Cotchery cannot possibly hurt this much, especially factoring in the addition of Braylon Edwards. Rex Ryan said he was embarrassed by his defense in the previous week against Miami, and I expected him to have his team fired up to win this week against the awful Bills, but apparently he was so focused on his defense that he forgot all about preparing his offense.
The Redskins continue to be impressively horrible, allowing the Chiefs to get their first win of the season, even with the game in Washington. The Buccaneers missed their opportunity to get their first win hosting the also disappointing Panthers. The Jaguars almost let the Rams get their first win on their home turf before pulling out the overtime victory. And the Seahawks brought absolutely no momentum from their 41-0 win last week, losing 27-3 to the Cardinals.
59-0. I don't know what to say about this game. How good are the Patriots, or how bad are the Titans? Well, that question can easily be answered when you look at Kerry Collins' line for the day: 2/12, -7 yards, 1 INT. Vince Young then came in and threw two passes, neither complete, with the first getting picked off. You can also mention the Titans' lack of their top two cornerbacks, as well as Bill Belichick's desire for running up the score. But either way you look at it, this was complete domination by the Patriots.
Lastly, the Bengals finally slipped up in losing to the Texans, who have been far from good this season. Cedric Benson, after five great games against defenses such as Denver, Pittsburgh, and Baltimore, somehow had his worst game of the season against one of the worst rush defenses in the league. Matt Schaub stole the show with 392 yards passing and four touchdowns. And the undefeated Vikings remained unbeaten, taking down the Ravens with a 33-31 victory.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Shutout #102 for Martin Brodeur
I have yet to talk about hockey, and I still want to give a big post to the New Jersey Devils, but for now, just a quick mention about Martin Brodeur's victory tonight, a 2-0 defeat over the Carolina Hurricanes. The win was Brodeur's 102nd career shutout, which moves him just one behind Terry Sawchuk's NHL record of 103.
It has been amazing watching Brodeur over the years. At 37 years of age, he is still capable of playing at a very high level, and he rarely needs a game off to rest. It is hard to believe that he is getting to the age where there is not much life left to his career, but he still has some good years left. Now he continues to impress as he breaks NHL records. He passed Patrick Roy last season in all-time wins. Assuming he doesn't miss another large chunk of the season with an injury, he will also break Roy's all-time records for games and minutes played this season. And he does it all with just one team, and with complete class.
Every year, as long as the Devils have Brodeur in goal, they are contenders. They have failed to make the playoffs only once since Brodeur has been there, after the 1995-96 season, including three Stanley Cup championships. I cannot even think of the day that he retires, because he will leave such a huge void. So for now, I will just continue to enjoy his ride re-writing the record books.
It has been amazing watching Brodeur over the years. At 37 years of age, he is still capable of playing at a very high level, and he rarely needs a game off to rest. It is hard to believe that he is getting to the age where there is not much life left to his career, but he still has some good years left. Now he continues to impress as he breaks NHL records. He passed Patrick Roy last season in all-time wins. Assuming he doesn't miss another large chunk of the season with an injury, he will also break Roy's all-time records for games and minutes played this season. And he does it all with just one team, and with complete class.
Every year, as long as the Devils have Brodeur in goal, they are contenders. They have failed to make the playoffs only once since Brodeur has been there, after the 1995-96 season, including three Stanley Cup championships. I cannot even think of the day that he retires, because he will leave such a huge void. So for now, I will just continue to enjoy his ride re-writing the record books.
Friday, October 16, 2009
NFL Week 6 Picks
Obviously, the huge game of the week is Giants vs. Saints. The battle of two undefeateds, who hold two of the top three spots in my Power Rankings. There's a handful of other games that are intriguing this week, such as Baltimore/Minnesota, Arizona/Seattle, Bears/Falcons and Sunday Night, and Broncos/Chargers on Monday Night. On to my picks:
St. Louis Rams (0-5) vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-3)
The Jaguars are coming off the worst loss of the week, but they thankfully get to play the worst team in the league at home. A loss for the Jaguars would be quite embarrassing, though not a complete surprise. They did lose 41-0 last week, and Marc Bulger looked impressive coming off the bench last week for the Rams. However, the Rams have to show me a lot more before I even think about picking them to win a game.
Baltimore Ravens (3-2) vs. Minnesota Vikings (5-0)
If the game was in Baltimore, I might side with the Ravens here. They need to get back on track, but that will be pretty hard heading into Minnesota. The undefeated Vikings will ride the momentum in this game.
Detroit Lions (1-4) vs. Green Bay Packers (2-2)
Playing the Lions at home after the bye must seem like a waste of the extra week for Green Bay. They'll win easily here, especially if the Lions' biggest weapon is down.
Houston Texans (2-3) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (4-1)
The Texans have shown me very little this year, while the Bengals have been one of the biggest surprises. If Cedric Benson topped 100 yards rushing against the Ravens last week, there's no telling what he might do this week against Houston's defense.
Cleveland Browns (1-4) vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2)
The Steelers will not allow Derek Anderson to throw for 23 yards and win the game. They actually have a competent offense, unlike the Bills. Pittsburgh could score more in the first quarter than Cleveland will score all game.
Kansas City Chiefs (0-5) vs. Washington Redskins (2-3)
I'm tempted to pick the Chiefs here, but I think if they will win, it will have to come at home. This will be an ugly game, but Clinton Portis and the rest of the Redskins offense will do just enough to win.
Carolina Panthers (1-3) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-5)
I am done giving the Panthers the benefit of the doubt after narrowly escaping the Redskins last week in Charlotte. I picked the Bucs to upset the Redskins earlier and that didn't work out, but with a bit more experience for Josh Johnson, I figure I'll try again.
New York Giants (5-0) vs. New Orleans Saints (4-0)
Admittedly, this is a bias pick more than anything. The Saints have two big advantages with the game being in New Orleans and they are coming off a bye week. However, going on the road has been no problem for the Giants over the past few seasons. This could likely be the week that the Giants' big weakness in the secondary gets exposed, but they will try to counter by putting as much pressure on Brees as possible with their defensive line. The Saints' defense has been pretty impressive against lesser quarterbacks, but Eli Manning should be smarter with the football and not beat himself. This should be a close game, and the Giants have a decent chance of winning, although the Saints should be favored slightly. But I will not pick against my Giants.
Arizona Cardinals (2-2) vs. Seattle Seahawks (2-3)
If the Cardinals in the first half of last week's game show up, the Cardinals win. But if we see the team from the second half, the Seahawks will be all over them. Seattle will be riding high after the 41-0 victory last week, and they are again playing in Qwest Field where they always have a big home field advantage. I don't like the inconsistencies of the Cardinals, and I expect the Seahawks to come out and punch them in the face.
Philadelphia Eagles (3-1) vs. Oakland Raiders (1-4)
It doesn't get much than the Raiders last week game against the Giants, but they will be happy to return to the West Coast. However, a great Eagles team will be coming into town, and the home field advantage for the Raiders will not be nearly enough.
Buffalo Bills (1-4) vs. New York Jets (3-2)
There's no way you can take the Bills seriously after the 6-3 loss to the Browns last week. The Jets have lost their last two games, but I'm sure Rex Ryan is working them hard this week to bounce back after being "embarrassed" last week in Miami. There's no way the Bills will be able to match them.
Tennessee Titans (0-5) vs. New England Patriots (3-2)
The Patriots do not lose back-to-back games, and apparently this year, the Titans just plain don't win games.
Chicago Bears (3-1) vs. Atlanta Falcons (3-1)
The Falcons showed no ill-effects of traveling to the West Coast last week with the 45-10 win in San Francisco, and now they will return home to face the Bears. Chicago has been pretty solid this year, jumping out to a 3-1 record, but there is just too much firepower in this Falcons offense.
Denver Broncos (5-0) vs. San Diego Chargers (2-2)
This is a must-win for the Chargers if they have any intentions of keeping up with the Broncos in the AFC West. They cannot lose this game and expect to win the division, and beating out the East and North division teams for a Wildcard spot will not be easy. But needing to win and actually going out and winning are two different things. The Broncos have been playing solidly all season, and I don't see them being intimidated by the Chargers.
Last Week: 9-5
Season: 52-24
St. Louis Rams (0-5) vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-3)
The Jaguars are coming off the worst loss of the week, but they thankfully get to play the worst team in the league at home. A loss for the Jaguars would be quite embarrassing, though not a complete surprise. They did lose 41-0 last week, and Marc Bulger looked impressive coming off the bench last week for the Rams. However, the Rams have to show me a lot more before I even think about picking them to win a game.
Baltimore Ravens (3-2) vs. Minnesota Vikings (5-0)
If the game was in Baltimore, I might side with the Ravens here. They need to get back on track, but that will be pretty hard heading into Minnesota. The undefeated Vikings will ride the momentum in this game.
Detroit Lions (1-4) vs. Green Bay Packers (2-2)
Playing the Lions at home after the bye must seem like a waste of the extra week for Green Bay. They'll win easily here, especially if the Lions' biggest weapon is down.
Houston Texans (2-3) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (4-1)
The Texans have shown me very little this year, while the Bengals have been one of the biggest surprises. If Cedric Benson topped 100 yards rushing against the Ravens last week, there's no telling what he might do this week against Houston's defense.
Cleveland Browns (1-4) vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2)
The Steelers will not allow Derek Anderson to throw for 23 yards and win the game. They actually have a competent offense, unlike the Bills. Pittsburgh could score more in the first quarter than Cleveland will score all game.
Kansas City Chiefs (0-5) vs. Washington Redskins (2-3)
I'm tempted to pick the Chiefs here, but I think if they will win, it will have to come at home. This will be an ugly game, but Clinton Portis and the rest of the Redskins offense will do just enough to win.
Carolina Panthers (1-3) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-5)
I am done giving the Panthers the benefit of the doubt after narrowly escaping the Redskins last week in Charlotte. I picked the Bucs to upset the Redskins earlier and that didn't work out, but with a bit more experience for Josh Johnson, I figure I'll try again.
New York Giants (5-0) vs. New Orleans Saints (4-0)
Admittedly, this is a bias pick more than anything. The Saints have two big advantages with the game being in New Orleans and they are coming off a bye week. However, going on the road has been no problem for the Giants over the past few seasons. This could likely be the week that the Giants' big weakness in the secondary gets exposed, but they will try to counter by putting as much pressure on Brees as possible with their defensive line. The Saints' defense has been pretty impressive against lesser quarterbacks, but Eli Manning should be smarter with the football and not beat himself. This should be a close game, and the Giants have a decent chance of winning, although the Saints should be favored slightly. But I will not pick against my Giants.
Arizona Cardinals (2-2) vs. Seattle Seahawks (2-3)
If the Cardinals in the first half of last week's game show up, the Cardinals win. But if we see the team from the second half, the Seahawks will be all over them. Seattle will be riding high after the 41-0 victory last week, and they are again playing in Qwest Field where they always have a big home field advantage. I don't like the inconsistencies of the Cardinals, and I expect the Seahawks to come out and punch them in the face.
Philadelphia Eagles (3-1) vs. Oakland Raiders (1-4)
It doesn't get much than the Raiders last week game against the Giants, but they will be happy to return to the West Coast. However, a great Eagles team will be coming into town, and the home field advantage for the Raiders will not be nearly enough.
Buffalo Bills (1-4) vs. New York Jets (3-2)
There's no way you can take the Bills seriously after the 6-3 loss to the Browns last week. The Jets have lost their last two games, but I'm sure Rex Ryan is working them hard this week to bounce back after being "embarrassed" last week in Miami. There's no way the Bills will be able to match them.
Tennessee Titans (0-5) vs. New England Patriots (3-2)
The Patriots do not lose back-to-back games, and apparently this year, the Titans just plain don't win games.
Chicago Bears (3-1) vs. Atlanta Falcons (3-1)
The Falcons showed no ill-effects of traveling to the West Coast last week with the 45-10 win in San Francisco, and now they will return home to face the Bears. Chicago has been pretty solid this year, jumping out to a 3-1 record, but there is just too much firepower in this Falcons offense.
Denver Broncos (5-0) vs. San Diego Chargers (2-2)
This is a must-win for the Chargers if they have any intentions of keeping up with the Broncos in the AFC West. They cannot lose this game and expect to win the division, and beating out the East and North division teams for a Wildcard spot will not be easy. But needing to win and actually going out and winning are two different things. The Broncos have been playing solidly all season, and I don't see them being intimidated by the Chargers.
Last Week: 9-5
Season: 52-24
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Rooting for a team to root for.
It's seemed inevitable since mid-season somewhere. The Yankees were looking like a team that could not be stopped by anyone in the American League. There was just a certain buzz I felt about that team, that they were determined to put aside their 21st century failures, even destined, and noone was going to stand in their way.
It's hard to say this as a diehard Mets fan, but I think deep down I've been rooting for the Yankees to win it all this season. Maybe because I see the reactions of Yankee fans, the hope, excitement, and expectations, and as a Mets fan with somewhat Yankee-like expectations the past few seasons, I don't want to see those fans' crushed like I have been. It's just not right. That's not what we love sports so much for.
Of course, if you were to say those same Yankee fans deserve to be crushed, I would not blame you. A part of me would certainly be on that side of the fence. It's the same old argument. They have already won the World Series 26 times, let someone else share in the excitement, they don't need more, they buy their championships, etc. And the fans love to rub that number 26 in everyone's faces at every opportunity, and will simply call the haters jealous and inferior. I see t-shirts comparing the amount of Yankees trophies to Red Sox trophies. It's all fine and good to hate the Yankees and their fans.
But imagine yourself as a Yankees fan (unless you are one already). It's easy, even fun, to be a fan of the hated team when you're on top of the world, as they were from 1996-2000. But when you build yourself up as the Evil Empire, everyone is there to laugh at you when you fall. The Yankees have given their fans huge expectations and have failed to deliver the past eight seasons, including watching the Red Sox win twice.
You can point to teams such as the Cubs with longer World Series droughts and say Yankees fans have nothing to complain about, but no team gives as high expectations and promises of success as the Yankees do, and it's not even close. And Yankee fans are just as passionate about their team as anyone else, maybe more so. And don't give me the argument that you prefer to be a fan that wins less but is not "evil" like the Yankees, because if you were born a Yankee fan, you would still be a diehard Yankee fan today.
I can't believe I'm defending Yankee fans right now.
But I still hate them. I want them to lose. I do not want them to have a 27th to rub in all our faces and to be able to call themselves the defending champions.
I also hate the Phillies, and I want them to lose, too. And like the Yankees, it has seemed for awhile that they were destined to arrive in the World Series for the second consecutive year. It's just the final piece in the humiliation that Mets fans have to endure this season.
Am I saying that the Dodgers and Angels will lose their respective series'? No. Both teams dominated in the Divisional Series, and as I type this, the Dodgers have taken a 1-0 lead in Game 1. But I am saying I don't expect them to win. I just hope that at least one of them does, or this will be a very painful World Series.
It's hard to say this as a diehard Mets fan, but I think deep down I've been rooting for the Yankees to win it all this season. Maybe because I see the reactions of Yankee fans, the hope, excitement, and expectations, and as a Mets fan with somewhat Yankee-like expectations the past few seasons, I don't want to see those fans' crushed like I have been. It's just not right. That's not what we love sports so much for.
Of course, if you were to say those same Yankee fans deserve to be crushed, I would not blame you. A part of me would certainly be on that side of the fence. It's the same old argument. They have already won the World Series 26 times, let someone else share in the excitement, they don't need more, they buy their championships, etc. And the fans love to rub that number 26 in everyone's faces at every opportunity, and will simply call the haters jealous and inferior. I see t-shirts comparing the amount of Yankees trophies to Red Sox trophies. It's all fine and good to hate the Yankees and their fans.
But imagine yourself as a Yankees fan (unless you are one already). It's easy, even fun, to be a fan of the hated team when you're on top of the world, as they were from 1996-2000. But when you build yourself up as the Evil Empire, everyone is there to laugh at you when you fall. The Yankees have given their fans huge expectations and have failed to deliver the past eight seasons, including watching the Red Sox win twice.
You can point to teams such as the Cubs with longer World Series droughts and say Yankees fans have nothing to complain about, but no team gives as high expectations and promises of success as the Yankees do, and it's not even close. And Yankee fans are just as passionate about their team as anyone else, maybe more so. And don't give me the argument that you prefer to be a fan that wins less but is not "evil" like the Yankees, because if you were born a Yankee fan, you would still be a diehard Yankee fan today.
I can't believe I'm defending Yankee fans right now.
But I still hate them. I want them to lose. I do not want them to have a 27th to rub in all our faces and to be able to call themselves the defending champions.
I also hate the Phillies, and I want them to lose, too. And like the Yankees, it has seemed for awhile that they were destined to arrive in the World Series for the second consecutive year. It's just the final piece in the humiliation that Mets fans have to endure this season.
Am I saying that the Dodgers and Angels will lose their respective series'? No. Both teams dominated in the Divisional Series, and as I type this, the Dodgers have taken a 1-0 lead in Game 1. But I am saying I don't expect them to win. I just hope that at least one of them does, or this will be a very painful World Series.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Fixing the Mets, Part 1: Fire Jerry Manuel
Baseball is a funny sport, especially in New York. After the 2008 season, in which Jerry Manuel took over for Willie Randolph in June, I wanted to award him the title of National League Manager of the Year. Maybe if the Mets held on to win the NL East, instead of missing the playoffs after losing a September lead for the second consecutive year, he would have won, but he instead was second to Cubs manager Lou Piniella.
The Mets were in desperate need of a change when they made the decision to fire Randolph. In promoting Manuel from bench coach to interim manager, he stepped in and seemed to be an exact opposite of Randolph. His impact was immediate, as he had to deal with star player Jose Reyes after the first play in his first game as manager. Reyes led off the game with a single, but tweaked his hamstring (what else is new?). Manuel decided to play it safe and pull Reyes from the game, and Reyes went into a fit on the field before storming off into the dugout.
Reyes later came back and apologized, and from that point forward, this was a changed team. Whatever it was about Manuel, the players believed in him, and it gave them a spark that pushed them to the top of the division. But in the end, it was the same Mets playing in September as last year, and the same Mets that were not playing in October.
But Jerry had earned the right to be the manager of this team, and signed a two year contract to do so following the season. He gave hope that he could turn the Mets around.
One year later, I want him gone.
I don't think Manuel changed much between seasons. Perhaps it is just that the spark of change after the firing of Randolph brought on success, and success can mask the ineptitudes of a team or manager. Then, when 2009 brought complete failure, it seemed like all of Jerry's ways were wrong.
Maybe that is unfair to Jerry, especially considering how much the losing could be contributed to the insane amount of injuries this team suffered. But I can live with the losing. This team was an embarrassment this year, and it has nothing to do with the 70-92 record it finished with. It seemed as if noone was spared from injury, pitchers and position players, from the stars down to the lesser role players, and those that replaced them. But one constant remained on the 25-man rosters throughout all the DL stints and shuffled lineups: these are professional baseball players.
There was absolutely no excuse for the complete breakdown of fundamentals this season, which never got fixed. From the veteran with three Gold Gloves in his trophy case dropping a routine game-ending pop up, to Angel Pagan seemingly making a costly baserunning mistake at least once a week, to missing third base, to countless other things that I've tried so hard to force out of memory. I don't care how deciminated and demoralized and inexperienced at the Major League level the Mets' lineup became, but the fact remains that they were all professional baseball players, yet they continued to play at a level that even the most understanding of Little League coaches would have been shaking their heads at their 9-12 year old players.
Somebody has to be held responsible. I got tired of listening to Jerry after every game. One day he would say they need to play better, the next day they need to do this better, the next day they can't do this or that, the next he would make a bandhanded comment about his general manager not giving him a roster to deal with all the injuries. I felt so bad for David Wright, who has become the unofficial captain of this team, who took the abuse of playing for this team every day, but still talked to the media after every game, always with a tired, disgusted tone to his voice, but never making any excuses.
I just have no reason believe that anything will be different next year with Manuel still the manager. Omar Minaya will try to bring in some better pieces to give Jerry a better roster, and please God there better be a lot less injuries, but I have absolutely no faith in Jerry Manuel at this point, and I don't want to see him give one more post-game press conference.
Of course, a part of the reason I want him gone is that former manager Bobby Valentine is currently available. After coaching in Japan with great success and popularity, the team decided it could no longer afford his services. Valentine, who led the Mets to the 2000 World Series, is now working for ESPN, with a clause that would let him leave at any time if he is offered a managerial position. But the Mets appear adamant in sticking with Manuel for 2010. There's a good chance the great Bobby V will have already been hired by someone else by then.
So now I am prepared for another disappointing Mets season. And it's not only because Jerry Manuel still has a job. Omar Minaya will get a post of his own soon enough.
The Mets were in desperate need of a change when they made the decision to fire Randolph. In promoting Manuel from bench coach to interim manager, he stepped in and seemed to be an exact opposite of Randolph. His impact was immediate, as he had to deal with star player Jose Reyes after the first play in his first game as manager. Reyes led off the game with a single, but tweaked his hamstring (what else is new?). Manuel decided to play it safe and pull Reyes from the game, and Reyes went into a fit on the field before storming off into the dugout.
Reyes later came back and apologized, and from that point forward, this was a changed team. Whatever it was about Manuel, the players believed in him, and it gave them a spark that pushed them to the top of the division. But in the end, it was the same Mets playing in September as last year, and the same Mets that were not playing in October.
But Jerry had earned the right to be the manager of this team, and signed a two year contract to do so following the season. He gave hope that he could turn the Mets around.
One year later, I want him gone.
I don't think Manuel changed much between seasons. Perhaps it is just that the spark of change after the firing of Randolph brought on success, and success can mask the ineptitudes of a team or manager. Then, when 2009 brought complete failure, it seemed like all of Jerry's ways were wrong.
Maybe that is unfair to Jerry, especially considering how much the losing could be contributed to the insane amount of injuries this team suffered. But I can live with the losing. This team was an embarrassment this year, and it has nothing to do with the 70-92 record it finished with. It seemed as if noone was spared from injury, pitchers and position players, from the stars down to the lesser role players, and those that replaced them. But one constant remained on the 25-man rosters throughout all the DL stints and shuffled lineups: these are professional baseball players.
There was absolutely no excuse for the complete breakdown of fundamentals this season, which never got fixed. From the veteran with three Gold Gloves in his trophy case dropping a routine game-ending pop up, to Angel Pagan seemingly making a costly baserunning mistake at least once a week, to missing third base, to countless other things that I've tried so hard to force out of memory. I don't care how deciminated and demoralized and inexperienced at the Major League level the Mets' lineup became, but the fact remains that they were all professional baseball players, yet they continued to play at a level that even the most understanding of Little League coaches would have been shaking their heads at their 9-12 year old players.
Somebody has to be held responsible. I got tired of listening to Jerry after every game. One day he would say they need to play better, the next day they need to do this better, the next day they can't do this or that, the next he would make a bandhanded comment about his general manager not giving him a roster to deal with all the injuries. I felt so bad for David Wright, who has become the unofficial captain of this team, who took the abuse of playing for this team every day, but still talked to the media after every game, always with a tired, disgusted tone to his voice, but never making any excuses.
I just have no reason believe that anything will be different next year with Manuel still the manager. Omar Minaya will try to bring in some better pieces to give Jerry a better roster, and please God there better be a lot less injuries, but I have absolutely no faith in Jerry Manuel at this point, and I don't want to see him give one more post-game press conference.
Of course, a part of the reason I want him gone is that former manager Bobby Valentine is currently available. After coaching in Japan with great success and popularity, the team decided it could no longer afford his services. Valentine, who led the Mets to the 2000 World Series, is now working for ESPN, with a clause that would let him leave at any time if he is offered a managerial position. But the Mets appear adamant in sticking with Manuel for 2010. There's a good chance the great Bobby V will have already been hired by someone else by then.
So now I am prepared for another disappointing Mets season. And it's not only because Jerry Manuel still has a job. Omar Minaya will get a post of his own soon enough.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
NFL Week 6 Power Rankings
It's interesting starting Power Rankings after a few weeks have already played out. I have done Power Rankings before, but I started out at the beginning of the season. There's a lot of unknowns, which creates a lot of surprises, which leads to a lot of shakeups in the rankings in those first few weeks.
I didn't start at Week 5 intentionally, I just didn't think to do it before then, mostly because I lacked this venue. Starting in Week 1, you progress every week as you get a better understanding of the teams. But with the Week 5 start, that first one seems a lot like a rough draft to a paper that might need a bit of work to be ready. Then, after the Week 5 games, you see the glaring mistakes and you can make the necessary corrections.
Interestingly, the one I thought was the most glaring mistake, the San Francisco 49ers, turned out not so wrong after all, with the embarrassing loss to the Falcons. So now, I present my Week 6 Power Rankings, which should be much more solidified after the Week 5 rough draft (now with more bold!). The numbers in the brackets represents their spot in the previous weeks' rankings.
1. New Orleans Saints (4-0) [1] - No movement here with the bye week. The three teams behind them were all very impressive last week, but I can't penalize the Saints just because they had the week off. I still think this is the most dynamic team in the league.
2. Indianapolis Colts (5-0) [2] - No reason to move them down at all either. They faced a Titans team which has been pretty poor this year, but it was still a tough divisional road game that the Colts dominated.
3. New York Giants (5-0) [3] - The Giants had the most dominating performance last week, and it would've been even bigger if the referees didn't blow a call that should have went for a Giants' fumble recovery for a touchdown, but it kept the drive alive for the Raiders which eventually ended in a touchdown for their only score of the game. Then again, it was the Raiders, and the game was in the Meadowlands, so such a blowout was to be expected, even with a hobbling Eli Manning who thankfully did not even need to finish out the first half.
4. Minnesota Vikings (5-0) [4] - The Vikings round out the unchanged top four after their blowout victory over the Rams. Jared Allen brought back a fumble for a touchdown, and he is quickly becoming one of my favorite players in the league. Another solid day for their receivers, which I meant to talk about last week, but I forgot; of course Adrian Peterson had been the focus of the offense before Brett Favre arrived, and Favre can get the ball to anyone, but these Vikings WRs may be an underrated group of guys. Favre spreads the ball around, and it seems like they can all go and get it.
5. Philadelphia Eagles (3-1) [10] - My 5 through 8 last week all either lost or only beat the Lions by eight. Someone had to move up, and while the undefeated Broncos were at #9 last week, I'm going with the Eagles ahead of them. Their one loss was against the Saints while Donovan McNabb was out with an injury. McNabb showed that he's still got it in his return last week as the Eagles beat up on the Buccaneers. They still seem to be lacking in the running game, but their defense and passing game is enough to beat most teams.
6. Denver Broncos (5-0) [9] - The Broncos proved their worth last week with the big overtime win at home against the Patriots. I still find it near impossible to say that Kyle Orton is a good quarterback, but he's doing well with this team. After the questionable start, Brandon Marshall continues to get back to top form, and Eddie Royal finally had a big game. Knowshon Moreno also ran the ball well. Their defense allowed a season high 17 points (wow), but Tom Brady was off on some throws that he should have made, which would have turned this game around. Still, this is a team you better start believing in.
7. Cincinnati Bengals (4-1) [14] - I'm not sure how I feel about putting this team here. I still wouldn't have much confidence in picking them to beat some of these teams directly below them in the rankings, but the Bengals have simply done more this season, with wins against the Packers, Steelers, and Ravens, with a fluke loss to the Broncos in Week 1. Weeks 9 and 10 will be huge for them when they play the Steelers and Ravens again, but they will be coming off a Week 8 bye. Cedric Benson is no joke anymore.
8. New England Patriots (3-2) [8] - I wanted to put the Patriots at #7, but I'm having a hard time moving them up after the loss to the Broncos. Sure, a loss to a good team doesn't have to hurt, but the Patriots probably should have won that game. Tom Brady left a lot to be desired, as perhaps he still has not fully recovered from last season's injury. This team still has the talent to get it done though.
9. Atlanta Falcons (4-1) [11] - So much for Roddy White's disappointing start. After getting just 119 receiving yards and one touchdown in the first three games, he came back with a 210 yard, two touchdown performance in the 45-10 road victory over the 49ers, who were supposed to be pretty good. This is one of the most dangerous offenses in the league with Matt Ryan, Michael Turner, White, and Tony Gonzalez.
10. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2) [6] - It's hard to drop them four spots following a victory, but an eight point victory over the Lions doesn't look all that good. They host the Browns this week to boost their confidence, but they face a 14-1 combined record in their following three games against the Vikings, Broncos, and Bengals. They will be tested, and I'm not sure if they are up to it.
11. New York Jets (3-2) [7] - Coach Rex Ryan was embarrassed by his defense's performance last week, but the Dolphins may be better than expected. I was worried about the road trip to Miami, and indeed the Dolphins pulled off the victory. Huge debut in green for Braylon Edwards, but it wasn't enough as their defense got stopped. Ryan is taking this one personally though, and I expect their defense to be ready. They have a couple easy games against the Bills and Raiders before their rematch with the Dolphins at the Meadowlands.
12. Baltimore Ravens (3-2) [5] - After coming up short against the Patriots and Bengals, the Ravens fall to 3-2, with two of their wins coming against the Chiefs and Browns. Beating the Chargers in San Diego was nice, but not enough to warrant a top ten position. They also have a huge test in the upcoming weeks, facing a 19-1 combined record in four of their next five games. Their true colors will be shown, good or bad.
13. San Diego Chargers (2-2) [12] - Coming out of the bye week to host the Broncos on Monday Night, this might be the biggest game of the season for the Chargers. If they lose this one, they fall four wins behind Denver in the AFC West, and with their remaining schedule, that will be very difficult to come back from, especially giving a big advantage to the Broncos in the tiebreaker.
14. Chicago Bears (3-1) [13] - The Bears now face two very tough road games in Atlanta and Cincinnati. They could win, but they should be the underdog in both games. They still get to face Cleveland, St. Louis, and Detroit this season, but other than that, it's a pretty rough schedule.
15. Green Bay Packers (2-2) [15] - Third straight Week 5 bye team. The rough draft theory doesn't work too well if the teams don't play. They should easily win three of their next four games, but I'm still not convinced the Packers are that good of a team.
16. Dallas Cowboys (3-2) [17] - Dallas should probably fall in the rankings after needing overtime to beat the Chiefs, but they were already pretty low by their standards. That was an embarrassing win. I like the term "moral defeat" that Bill Simmons' reader Scott H. came up with in last week's mailbag on ESPN.com; the opposite of the popular phrase "moral victory," it certainly applies here. The Cowboys are 3-0 against teams with a combined record of 1-13, and 0-2 against eams with a combined record of 10-0. They have a week off to think about things, then they need to prove something against the Falcons.
17. San Francisco 49ers (3-2) [16] - After a 3-1 start with just a three point loss in Minnesota got almost everyone buzzing about this team (not me), but a 45-10 loss at home to the Falcons quieted that down. They head into their bye this week and will see the return of Frank Gore, though.
18. Arizona Cardinals (2-2) [18] - The Cardinals got off to a 21-0 lead in the first half, but then fell apart in the second half, getting just one first down against the lowly Texans defense as Houston came back to tie. An interception returned for a touchdown by Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie saved the Cardinals from embarrassment.
19. Miami Dolphins (2-3) [24] - After an 0-3 start and the loss of quarterback Chad Pennington, the 2008 AFC East division winners looked pretty dead. I don't care much for the Wildcat offense, but this team is not afraid to use it often and at any time, and it is effective almost every time. Mixing traditional runs and Wildcat runs between both Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams, Miami's running game is enough to make them contenders in just about every game. And new quarterback Chad Henne has quite an arm; amazing deep touchdown pass to Ted Ginn last night in the 31-27 victory over the Jets. The Dolphins host the Saints next, then leave Miami for the first time in over a month to travel to New York and New England for two tough divisional games, so it can all come crashing down after this two-game win streak, but this is still a good football team.
20. Seattle Seahawks (2-3) [22] - The Seahawks have outscored their opponents 69-0 in two games at home with Matt Hasselbeck. So, they were facing the Rams and Jaguars, but those wins were still very impressive. I can't commit to them winning any road games except against the Rams (although they certainly can win some of them), but Qwest Field in Seattle has historically been a huge home field advantage for them. This team can still be pretty good with Hasselbeck as their quarterback. It will be an important test this week hosting the Cardinals.
21. Houston Texans (2-3) [20] - The Texans were looking at further humiliation after a 21-0 halftime defecit to the Cardinals, but showed they still have some life in them after coming back to tie in the second half before eventually losing on the pick six. Andre Johnson reminded us that he's one of the top receivers in the league, but Steve Slaton continues to suffer from a sophomore slump.
22. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-3) [19] - After averaging 34 points in their previous two games, the Jaguars were shut out in Seattle last week, and their defense was no better in a 41-0 loss. They now have three consecutive games against 0-5 teams, however.
23. Carolina Panthers (1-3) [21] - I really want to drop the Panthers down even further, but the teams below them are so bad, I can't do it. Putting them at 21 last week was a generous benefit of the doubt. That game against the Redskins was the game that they were supposed to come out and prove they are better than their record. Sure they won the game, but just barely. I'm not even convinced they can beat the Buccaneers in Tampa next week anymore.
24. Washington Redskins (2-3) [25] - The Redskins move up a spot despite yet another loss. They'll have a chance to move back to .500 again hosting the Chiefs this week, but it is so undeserving. This team could be 5-1 after the Chiefs game with the schedule they've had, but instead they'll be 3-3 at best. After the Chiefs this week, the Raiders in Week 14 are the only bad team left on their schedule though.
25. Tennessee Titans (0-5) [23] - This is just a talent-based ranking here. They haven't really looked any better than the teams below them, but they have the players, and it's only a matter of time before they get a win.
26. Detroit Lions (1-4) [30] - The Lions are scoring some points this year, even after Calvin Johnson left the game last week against the Steelers, but it's still hard for them to pull off victories besides facing the awful Redskins. They have some potential though, you cannot just expect it to be an easy victory against them, or they will surprise you. It was Daunte Culpepper playing this week at quarterback though, who right now is an improvement over Matthew Stafford, but I would bet on them returning to their future quarterback when he's healthy again.
27. Kansas City Chiefs (0-5) [27] - They were able to push the Cowboys to overtime last week, and while I like to put that on the Cowboys' deficiencies, part of that was certainly the play of the Chiefs. Matt Cassel threw for 253 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions in the loss. Dwayne Bowe is an excellent receiver, and Bobby Wade could have some potential as well. However, Larry Johnson and that running game is absolutely horrendous.
28. Buffalo Bills (1-4) [26] - That 6-3 loss against the Browns was horrendous. But they still have talent on this team, it's just not coming together right now. They're probably held back more by Coach Dick Jauron more than anything; I'm amazed he's lasted this long. And they need to find some return guys who won't turn the ball over late in the game.
29. Cleveland Browns (1-4) [29] - Derek Anderson: 2/17, 23 yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT. A quarterback rating of 15.1. And he won. How is that even possible? Jamal Lewis running for 117 yards helps. So does facing the Bills. Roscoe Parrish fumbling a punt with three minutes remaining in a 3-3 game helped the most, as the Bills' special teams gift-wrapped another victory for the opposition. And they just traded away their best offensive player. Even though they finally won, this was their third game of the season scoring six or less points.
30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-5) [31] - The Buccaneers need to figure out something with this running game. They have three talented running backs, but it's just been a mix of up and downs so far this year. Quarterback Josh Johnson was their leading rusher with 40 yards last week against the Eagles. They do not have a rushing touchdown since Week 1. The potential is there for a big day running the ball, and they have a great receiver in Antonio Bryant, who has been slowed by injury this year, but they need to start doing better.
31. Oakland Raiders (1-4) [28] - Watching them last week against the Giants, the Raiders just looked like they have to be the worst team in the league. Then I remembered the Rams exist.
32. St. Louis Rams (0-5) [32] - I'm having a hard time coming up with a way to describe how bad the Rams are. I feel bad for Coach Steve Spagnuolo, who had great success as the Giants' defensive coordinator the past two seasons, including their Super Bowl victory in which he should get a lot of credit for the pressure his defense put on Tom Brady. I expected them to at least play better defense with Spagnuolo, but they have allowed at least 35 points in three straight games. There's just nothing he can do with this team right now.
I didn't start at Week 5 intentionally, I just didn't think to do it before then, mostly because I lacked this venue. Starting in Week 1, you progress every week as you get a better understanding of the teams. But with the Week 5 start, that first one seems a lot like a rough draft to a paper that might need a bit of work to be ready. Then, after the Week 5 games, you see the glaring mistakes and you can make the necessary corrections.
Interestingly, the one I thought was the most glaring mistake, the San Francisco 49ers, turned out not so wrong after all, with the embarrassing loss to the Falcons. So now, I present my Week 6 Power Rankings, which should be much more solidified after the Week 5 rough draft (now with more bold!). The numbers in the brackets represents their spot in the previous weeks' rankings.
1. New Orleans Saints (4-0) [1] - No movement here with the bye week. The three teams behind them were all very impressive last week, but I can't penalize the Saints just because they had the week off. I still think this is the most dynamic team in the league.
2. Indianapolis Colts (5-0) [2] - No reason to move them down at all either. They faced a Titans team which has been pretty poor this year, but it was still a tough divisional road game that the Colts dominated.
3. New York Giants (5-0) [3] - The Giants had the most dominating performance last week, and it would've been even bigger if the referees didn't blow a call that should have went for a Giants' fumble recovery for a touchdown, but it kept the drive alive for the Raiders which eventually ended in a touchdown for their only score of the game. Then again, it was the Raiders, and the game was in the Meadowlands, so such a blowout was to be expected, even with a hobbling Eli Manning who thankfully did not even need to finish out the first half.
4. Minnesota Vikings (5-0) [4] - The Vikings round out the unchanged top four after their blowout victory over the Rams. Jared Allen brought back a fumble for a touchdown, and he is quickly becoming one of my favorite players in the league. Another solid day for their receivers, which I meant to talk about last week, but I forgot; of course Adrian Peterson had been the focus of the offense before Brett Favre arrived, and Favre can get the ball to anyone, but these Vikings WRs may be an underrated group of guys. Favre spreads the ball around, and it seems like they can all go and get it.
5. Philadelphia Eagles (3-1) [10] - My 5 through 8 last week all either lost or only beat the Lions by eight. Someone had to move up, and while the undefeated Broncos were at #9 last week, I'm going with the Eagles ahead of them. Their one loss was against the Saints while Donovan McNabb was out with an injury. McNabb showed that he's still got it in his return last week as the Eagles beat up on the Buccaneers. They still seem to be lacking in the running game, but their defense and passing game is enough to beat most teams.
6. Denver Broncos (5-0) [9] - The Broncos proved their worth last week with the big overtime win at home against the Patriots. I still find it near impossible to say that Kyle Orton is a good quarterback, but he's doing well with this team. After the questionable start, Brandon Marshall continues to get back to top form, and Eddie Royal finally had a big game. Knowshon Moreno also ran the ball well. Their defense allowed a season high 17 points (wow), but Tom Brady was off on some throws that he should have made, which would have turned this game around. Still, this is a team you better start believing in.
7. Cincinnati Bengals (4-1) [14] - I'm not sure how I feel about putting this team here. I still wouldn't have much confidence in picking them to beat some of these teams directly below them in the rankings, but the Bengals have simply done more this season, with wins against the Packers, Steelers, and Ravens, with a fluke loss to the Broncos in Week 1. Weeks 9 and 10 will be huge for them when they play the Steelers and Ravens again, but they will be coming off a Week 8 bye. Cedric Benson is no joke anymore.
8. New England Patriots (3-2) [8] - I wanted to put the Patriots at #7, but I'm having a hard time moving them up after the loss to the Broncos. Sure, a loss to a good team doesn't have to hurt, but the Patriots probably should have won that game. Tom Brady left a lot to be desired, as perhaps he still has not fully recovered from last season's injury. This team still has the talent to get it done though.
9. Atlanta Falcons (4-1) [11] - So much for Roddy White's disappointing start. After getting just 119 receiving yards and one touchdown in the first three games, he came back with a 210 yard, two touchdown performance in the 45-10 road victory over the 49ers, who were supposed to be pretty good. This is one of the most dangerous offenses in the league with Matt Ryan, Michael Turner, White, and Tony Gonzalez.
10. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2) [6] - It's hard to drop them four spots following a victory, but an eight point victory over the Lions doesn't look all that good. They host the Browns this week to boost their confidence, but they face a 14-1 combined record in their following three games against the Vikings, Broncos, and Bengals. They will be tested, and I'm not sure if they are up to it.
11. New York Jets (3-2) [7] - Coach Rex Ryan was embarrassed by his defense's performance last week, but the Dolphins may be better than expected. I was worried about the road trip to Miami, and indeed the Dolphins pulled off the victory. Huge debut in green for Braylon Edwards, but it wasn't enough as their defense got stopped. Ryan is taking this one personally though, and I expect their defense to be ready. They have a couple easy games against the Bills and Raiders before their rematch with the Dolphins at the Meadowlands.
12. Baltimore Ravens (3-2) [5] - After coming up short against the Patriots and Bengals, the Ravens fall to 3-2, with two of their wins coming against the Chiefs and Browns. Beating the Chargers in San Diego was nice, but not enough to warrant a top ten position. They also have a huge test in the upcoming weeks, facing a 19-1 combined record in four of their next five games. Their true colors will be shown, good or bad.
13. San Diego Chargers (2-2) [12] - Coming out of the bye week to host the Broncos on Monday Night, this might be the biggest game of the season for the Chargers. If they lose this one, they fall four wins behind Denver in the AFC West, and with their remaining schedule, that will be very difficult to come back from, especially giving a big advantage to the Broncos in the tiebreaker.
14. Chicago Bears (3-1) [13] - The Bears now face two very tough road games in Atlanta and Cincinnati. They could win, but they should be the underdog in both games. They still get to face Cleveland, St. Louis, and Detroit this season, but other than that, it's a pretty rough schedule.
15. Green Bay Packers (2-2) [15] - Third straight Week 5 bye team. The rough draft theory doesn't work too well if the teams don't play. They should easily win three of their next four games, but I'm still not convinced the Packers are that good of a team.
16. Dallas Cowboys (3-2) [17] - Dallas should probably fall in the rankings after needing overtime to beat the Chiefs, but they were already pretty low by their standards. That was an embarrassing win. I like the term "moral defeat" that Bill Simmons' reader Scott H. came up with in last week's mailbag on ESPN.com; the opposite of the popular phrase "moral victory," it certainly applies here. The Cowboys are 3-0 against teams with a combined record of 1-13, and 0-2 against eams with a combined record of 10-0. They have a week off to think about things, then they need to prove something against the Falcons.
17. San Francisco 49ers (3-2) [16] - After a 3-1 start with just a three point loss in Minnesota got almost everyone buzzing about this team (not me), but a 45-10 loss at home to the Falcons quieted that down. They head into their bye this week and will see the return of Frank Gore, though.
18. Arizona Cardinals (2-2) [18] - The Cardinals got off to a 21-0 lead in the first half, but then fell apart in the second half, getting just one first down against the lowly Texans defense as Houston came back to tie. An interception returned for a touchdown by Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie saved the Cardinals from embarrassment.
19. Miami Dolphins (2-3) [24] - After an 0-3 start and the loss of quarterback Chad Pennington, the 2008 AFC East division winners looked pretty dead. I don't care much for the Wildcat offense, but this team is not afraid to use it often and at any time, and it is effective almost every time. Mixing traditional runs and Wildcat runs between both Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams, Miami's running game is enough to make them contenders in just about every game. And new quarterback Chad Henne has quite an arm; amazing deep touchdown pass to Ted Ginn last night in the 31-27 victory over the Jets. The Dolphins host the Saints next, then leave Miami for the first time in over a month to travel to New York and New England for two tough divisional games, so it can all come crashing down after this two-game win streak, but this is still a good football team.
20. Seattle Seahawks (2-3) [22] - The Seahawks have outscored their opponents 69-0 in two games at home with Matt Hasselbeck. So, they were facing the Rams and Jaguars, but those wins were still very impressive. I can't commit to them winning any road games except against the Rams (although they certainly can win some of them), but Qwest Field in Seattle has historically been a huge home field advantage for them. This team can still be pretty good with Hasselbeck as their quarterback. It will be an important test this week hosting the Cardinals.
21. Houston Texans (2-3) [20] - The Texans were looking at further humiliation after a 21-0 halftime defecit to the Cardinals, but showed they still have some life in them after coming back to tie in the second half before eventually losing on the pick six. Andre Johnson reminded us that he's one of the top receivers in the league, but Steve Slaton continues to suffer from a sophomore slump.
22. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-3) [19] - After averaging 34 points in their previous two games, the Jaguars were shut out in Seattle last week, and their defense was no better in a 41-0 loss. They now have three consecutive games against 0-5 teams, however.
23. Carolina Panthers (1-3) [21] - I really want to drop the Panthers down even further, but the teams below them are so bad, I can't do it. Putting them at 21 last week was a generous benefit of the doubt. That game against the Redskins was the game that they were supposed to come out and prove they are better than their record. Sure they won the game, but just barely. I'm not even convinced they can beat the Buccaneers in Tampa next week anymore.
24. Washington Redskins (2-3) [25] - The Redskins move up a spot despite yet another loss. They'll have a chance to move back to .500 again hosting the Chiefs this week, but it is so undeserving. This team could be 5-1 after the Chiefs game with the schedule they've had, but instead they'll be 3-3 at best. After the Chiefs this week, the Raiders in Week 14 are the only bad team left on their schedule though.
25. Tennessee Titans (0-5) [23] - This is just a talent-based ranking here. They haven't really looked any better than the teams below them, but they have the players, and it's only a matter of time before they get a win.
26. Detroit Lions (1-4) [30] - The Lions are scoring some points this year, even after Calvin Johnson left the game last week against the Steelers, but it's still hard for them to pull off victories besides facing the awful Redskins. They have some potential though, you cannot just expect it to be an easy victory against them, or they will surprise you. It was Daunte Culpepper playing this week at quarterback though, who right now is an improvement over Matthew Stafford, but I would bet on them returning to their future quarterback when he's healthy again.
27. Kansas City Chiefs (0-5) [27] - They were able to push the Cowboys to overtime last week, and while I like to put that on the Cowboys' deficiencies, part of that was certainly the play of the Chiefs. Matt Cassel threw for 253 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions in the loss. Dwayne Bowe is an excellent receiver, and Bobby Wade could have some potential as well. However, Larry Johnson and that running game is absolutely horrendous.
28. Buffalo Bills (1-4) [26] - That 6-3 loss against the Browns was horrendous. But they still have talent on this team, it's just not coming together right now. They're probably held back more by Coach Dick Jauron more than anything; I'm amazed he's lasted this long. And they need to find some return guys who won't turn the ball over late in the game.
29. Cleveland Browns (1-4) [29] - Derek Anderson: 2/17, 23 yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT. A quarterback rating of 15.1. And he won. How is that even possible? Jamal Lewis running for 117 yards helps. So does facing the Bills. Roscoe Parrish fumbling a punt with three minutes remaining in a 3-3 game helped the most, as the Bills' special teams gift-wrapped another victory for the opposition. And they just traded away their best offensive player. Even though they finally won, this was their third game of the season scoring six or less points.
30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-5) [31] - The Buccaneers need to figure out something with this running game. They have three talented running backs, but it's just been a mix of up and downs so far this year. Quarterback Josh Johnson was their leading rusher with 40 yards last week against the Eagles. They do not have a rushing touchdown since Week 1. The potential is there for a big day running the ball, and they have a great receiver in Antonio Bryant, who has been slowed by injury this year, but they need to start doing better.
31. Oakland Raiders (1-4) [28] - Watching them last week against the Giants, the Raiders just looked like they have to be the worst team in the league. Then I remembered the Rams exist.
32. St. Louis Rams (0-5) [32] - I'm having a hard time coming up with a way to describe how bad the Rams are. I feel bad for Coach Steve Spagnuolo, who had great success as the Giants' defensive coordinator the past two seasons, including their Super Bowl victory in which he should get a lot of credit for the pressure his defense put on Tom Brady. I expected them to at least play better defense with Spagnuolo, but they have allowed at least 35 points in three straight games. There's just nothing he can do with this team right now.
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