Here we go!
Cincinnati @ Pittsburgh
The Line: Pittsburgh by 11
I don't see how Cincinnati could possibly lose this game (whoa, I almost posted this entry that way! Can you imagine? "I don't see how Cincinnati could possibly lose this game?" Are you kidding me? I think we both know I meant the other thing). Pittsburgh, under Mike Tomlin, has sometimes had trouble getting up for non-conference road games. They've had no problem whatsoever getting pumped for division road contests, and I expect this one to be a bloodbath because of it. Let's face it, here: if Pittsburgh wants to destroy the Bengals, they will. The Bengals will be powerless to stop them.
The only question, I suppose, is what kind of game it'll be. I find it extremely interesting that this game is getting by far the fewest total points from Vegas, something like 34.5. Is that because the Steelers are going to hang something hideous like a 31-3 on the Bengals? Let's see: 34.5 total points, 11 point margin, that would make it 22-11 or 23-12. I don't know, I see the Steelers putting a lot more than 23 points on the board. I'm looking for a blowout.
Steelers over Bengals, 31-13
Philadelphia @ Baltimore
The Line: Baltimore by 1
And really, who knows? This far into the season, it's still pretty hard to diagnose what kind of offensive performance you're going to get from the Ravens. To their credit, there's at least now the possibility of the Ravens putting a big number on the board, even against a decent defense.
And as for the Eagles, you can't really predict what kind of performance you'll get at all from them, especially on the offensive side of the ball. There's an increasingly likely chance that, in any given week, the Eagles are going to yawn their way through a game. I still don't really expect them to pull that act against as fearsome a defense as the Ravens, but on the other hand, would you necessarily even notice against this team? I mean, the Eagles could very well come out frothing at the mouth on offense and still not do a damn thing in this game. Let's face it: Philadelphia's offense isn't very special this season. They have no backfield depth, their receiving corps still isnt' worth a damn, and their quarterback has taken the concept of starting slow to previously unexplored depths. I'm not impressed at all by Philly's offense. In fact, I'm bumping every single one of their offensive players down a few notches (even Brian Westbrook) until they actually earn the label of "dangerous". For now, they're a bunch of strutting peacocks.
And because the Ravens could conceivably win this game even if Philly's offense shows up, I'm giving them the nod. I can't pick a team based on the possibility that they'll actually have a pulse on Sunday, especially not on the road. So there.
Ravens over Eagles, 20-17
New York Jets @ Tennessee
The Line: Tennessee by 5.5
Make no mistake about it, the Jets could win this game. And it pisses me off.
See, I gave the Packers a chance over the Titans in week 9 in Tennessee. They came close. I gave the Bears a chance in Chicago, to no avail. I picked the goddamn Jaguars over the Titans in Jacksonville in week 11. After they failed, I swore not to pick against the Titans again this season. Now we've got the goddamn contemptible Jets, riding a big win streak, headed into Tennessee with a stout run defense and a fluky big play tendency on offense, and I have that motherfucking feeling. I'm sick about it.
And here's the thing: if the Jets win this game, there will be no end to the gay orgasm the national sports media has over Brett Favre's "legend". And then I won't just be sick about it, I'll be literally sick about it.
I've got to believe the Titans will find a way. For a 10-0 team, this is what passes for a big game: hosting another division leader in week 12 with an opportunity to stomp their way that much closer to homefield throughout the AFC playoffs. And legitimacy is on the line, too! And pride, right?
C'mon, Titans. You won when I didn't pick you, I've come around, don't let me down.
Titans over Jets, 17-16
Tampa Bay @ Detroit
The Line: Tampa Bay by 8.5
Funny how I still haven't gotten to the point where I want to say the Lions will win a game this season. I don't know, man, I don't put it past them to go winless in 2008. They stink. Nothing is on the line. They've got nothing to lose, and at this point, they really have nothing to win, either. If you work for the Lions, the one reason to not toss yourself off a tall building might be the current state of the Oakland Raiders. If not for the Raiders, who have sunk to such incredible depths of dysfunction as an organization, this decade of Lions football would almost certainly be remembered as the worst of any team in NFL history. And it's still worse than Oakland's decade, but Oakland is in such once-in-a-lifetime bad shape, they almost make the Lions seem like a credible NFL franchise by comparison.
Detroit will need some big, big plays to shock the world and upset Tampa Bay. There's always the possibility that Tampa comes out flat and sleepwalks through a portion of this game, and if Detroit strikes early and often before Tampa recovers, they could conceivably make it a contest. I seriously doubt that will happen, but I have no faith in the Bucs or their crappy offense, so I guess I wouldn't be totally shocked to see the Lions pull the upset. You're crazy if you think I'm picking it that way.
Bucs over Lions, 21-7
Minnesota @ Jacksonville
The Line: Jacksonville by 2
Seriously, who knows.
Flip a coin. Which team is going to play like autistic paraplegics? Which team is going to suddenly and inexplicably abandon the run and go bomb-crazy? Which team will find a way to shoot itself not just in the foot, but in the knees and the groin?
These are two incompetent, poorly coached teams, make no mistake about it. Neither team has excuse one for being as mediocre as they are. Both teams have been as healthy as anybody, both teams have mostly the same cast of characters as last season (or better), both teams have relatively stable coaching staffs. Why do they suck? Why are they stuck in the middle of the NFL, puzzling their fans and frustrating the shit out of pick-making bloggers everywhere? Because they have terrible head-coaches who refuse to allow their offenses to establish an identity and constantly undermine their players.
How do you pick a game like this? It's like watching Dopey fight Dopey for the middleweight championship of the world: someone's going to win, only once it's over we won't know how they won, only how the other guys lost, and we won't know what it means for their next opponent. I get depressed even thinking about it.
So I'm giving a few points to the home team.
Jaguars over Vikings, 21-19
Buffalo @ Kansas City
The Line: Buffalo by 3
Friggin' Bills. Has any team gone from conference contender to all-but-officially eliminated from post-season contention in such short order? And is there any chance in hell the Bills swing this thing the other way? I say hell no.
The Bills need this win, they need it very badly. No matter how their season has swung, they're still so much better than the Chiefs. At every possible position, the Bills are superior. There's not an individual match-up the Bills shouldn't dominate. Ultimately, do the Bills still give themselves a chance? Are they still fighting for something? Because it'd be a very strong, very bad indictment of Dick Jauron if the Bills come out flat and manage to lose this game. So far, you could say the Bills have only lost to teams in their same tier; even the Browns have a lot of good players. A loss to the Chiefs is a horse of a different color.
So in a sense, this game is like a life raft and a microphone for the 2008 Buffalo Bills. Take care of business, and you're back above water, still looking at long odds, but continuing the struggle. Lose, and you've said a mouthful.
And as for the Chiefs, look, this is what you play for when you're absolute garbage and your coaching staff and front-office gave up on your season two months before it even started. The Bills are a struggling wannabe contender from a real NFL division: spoil 'em! Ruin their hopes! Schadenfreude, bitches!
There's only one team in this game I'm willing to pick in any game for the rest of the 2008 season. If they lose, there'll be two.
Bills over Chiefs, 23-20
Chicago @ St. Louis
The Line: Chicago by 8.5
Honestly, I don't give the Rams much of a chance, here. St. Louis is just awful. It's possible they're playing as bad today as they were the week Scott Linehan was fired. How does Jim Haslett feel about that "win 6 games and you're in" clause now? Maybe you could have talked 'em down to 4? 4 wins with this pile of shit is nothing to sneeze at!
If I'm Lovie Smith, I'm bundling the offense up and piling it on Matt Forte's back this Sunday. Kyle Orton looked like pissed on dog-shit last Sunday. Maybe he's healthy, maybe he's not. I know this much: quarterbacking had better not torpedo Chicago's season in 2008, or that might be it for Lovie Smith in Chicago. The Bears need to get back on track. They need to get rid of the taste from week 11. They need a win. This should be an easy win. Don't piss it away trying to get your quarterback back into a rhythm. Cram your ground game up the Rams' ass, knock Marc Bulger around, take the win.
And that's just what they'll do.
Bears over Rams, 20-14
New England @ Miami
The Line: Miami by 1
I honestly don't know how to call this game. I really don't. I feel like it's fair to point out, however, that though the Patriots will likely have something up their sleeves to account for the Wildcat, it wasn't the Wildcat that held the Pats offense to 13 points in New England last time these two teams met.
So I don't suppose it really even matters whether or not New England knows what to do with the Wildcat. Suppose they do. They've got bigger, badder fish to fry, because it's also extremely likely that Miami will have a wrinkle or two in their own defense to throw at the Patriots.
I don't think that earlier result was a fluke at all, either. I think the Miami Dolphins are a score or two better than New England, I really do. On the other hand, I have a hard time picking against the Patriots in any rematch, hence my confusion over this pick. I mean, last season these teams were at the extreme opposite ends of the whole "success" spectrum. How does a 1-15 team sweep the season series from a 16-0 team only one year later? Is that possible?
I really am having a hard time with this. Just when I start to settle on the Patriots, I suddenly have a very hard time picturing Matt Cassel getting the job done in Miami. I guess that's my problem: I want to pick the Pats, but I don't know how they'd do it. I think I know how Miami will do it, but I'm obviously not totally sold on them. Shoot.
Well, I guess you have to go with something that makes sense, and 38-13 is pretty damn convincing. Dolphins win! Dolphins win! Dolphins win!
Dolphins over Patriots, 27-17
San Franciso @ Dallas
The Line: Dallas by 10
I just love how gay the whole world is for this Dallas team. The second biggest spread of the week, over a team that just won by 19 points. Denver's favored by 9.5 at home over a team that has scored 1 touchdown in 5 games, and the Cowboys are favored by 10 at home over a team coming off a 35-point explosion. Interesting. Both Denver and Dallas are 6-4. Oakland is one of the worst teams in the history of football. San Francisco is bad, but . . . well, to recycle a joke I used a few weeks ago, they ain't horses. They may be whores, but they ain't horses.
Realistically, though, the Cowboys probably will beat up the Niners pretty good.
I guess you know who I'll be rooting for.
Cowboys over 49ers, 29-16
Houston @ Cleveland
The Line: Cleveland by 3
I'm pretty grossed out by this game. I'd rather not talk or think or type about it.
Well, pull up a chair!
Houston needs a pick-me-up. Their 2008 season got off on the way wrong foot, then they had a nice run, just long enough to peek at the wild-card picture, now it's gone totally off the rails. They've had the kind of run in their short existence that can really sour a group of fans. The Texans need to finish this season strong. They owe it to their fans.
As for the Browns, man, is the circus in town or what? Phil Savage is blasting off F-bombs in emails to fans now? What gives? First of all, why in the hell is he even responding to fan-mail? Second of all, man, put a leash on that puppy! F this and F that, your effing season has gone down the effing tubes, you waited too effing long to put your effing draft pick in, now everyone's effing yelling at you like you weren't the effing smart guy who effing picked him up in the effing first place! And you're effing pee-ed off!
This team is nothing if not one big distraction. If it isn't a quarterback controversy, it's a veteran accusing the team of quitting in the media, then the coach using the media to respond to the claim. Or it's the star tight end calling out the organization for not protecting its players from staph infections. Now the coach is having to explain to the media why the general manager is firing off obscenities in written correspondences with fans. Blimey!
I think both teams are about equally talented. Houston might be just slightly sharper and more professional. Cleveland has the home field advantage. What can that be worth, after you blast your fans with foul language? 3 points? 4 points? How much better is Houston? 2 points?
Browns win!
Browns over Texans, 31-27
Oakland @ Denver
The Line: Denver by 9.5
This game may not be meaningless, but I sure as shit don't give a damn.
Broncos over Raiders, 42-20
Carolina @ Atlanta
The Line: Atlanta by 1
What a huge, huge game!
Atlanta needs this game a lot more than Carolina, and they're lucky to have it at home. As wonderful and surprising as this Falcons team is, their playoff hopes could take a significant blow if they drop this one. It's a tight, tough NFC race, and there's a handful of veteran teams struggling along with this rookie group for a pair of wild-card spots.
I guess Atlanta's hopes ride on their ability to get in Jake Delhomme's face and force him into another nugget outing. Seriously, this guy's been dreadful for a few weeks now. He followed up one epic dog-shit performance with a 98-yard rat-puke outing last Sunday. Another performance like that this Sunday will almost certainly be too much for his team to overcome. The Falcons are not the Lions. If Delhomme stinks, the Panthers will lose.
A week ago, I was seduced by Atlanta's strong home record. I gave 'em the nod over Denver, and they burned me for it. This week, I'm having a much harder time giving them the same respect. Carolina would skewer Denver, chew 'em up, shit 'em out, feed the shit to a homeless man, light him on fire, and toss him out of the International Space Station. The Panthers are a different animal altogether. They're not a great team, but they're ferocious on defense and very balanced on offense, and Atlanta will need their A-game, even at home, to have a chance.
Atlanta is probably good for an A performance 4 out of 5 times at home. They didn't have an A performance against the Broncos. They're due, right? Sure! Because that's how statistics work! One coinflip has a direct probability effect on any subsequent coinflip! It's, like, Karma or something, right?
No, seriously, I do think you'll get an A performance from the Falcons. That'll give them a chance. It's a big game, so I like the chances of them getting a boost from their crowd. And I absolutely hate the way Jake Delhomme has been playing lately. I'm going with Atlanta. I don't feel great about it, but there it is.
Falcons over Panthers, 23-20
New York Giants @ Arizona
The Line: New York Giants by 3
What's this? Another huge game? No, really, this is a MONSTER!
Here's why: both of these teams have all but punched their tickets to the post-season. Right now, two games separate them in the standings. Carolina is going to Atlanta, they could lose. It's entirely possible that Arizona could come out of this home game right on New York's heals in the NFC and holding the all important tie-breaker should they finish with the same record atop the NFC. Consider that: this game, right here, could possibly determine where these two teams meet in the NFC Championship. Arizona will not play a more important game this regular season.
I really, really like Arizona's chances. In season's past, I'd expect any NFC West team to fold like an accordian in this match-up, but Arizona plays like friggin' Zeus at home. Kurt Warner is kind of a double-edged sword for them, too: he could very well kill them by going PTSD in the second quarter, but on the other hand, I expect him to give this team it's swagger headed into the game, and that confidence will be everything against a Giants team that spent the entire important part of last season going into other team's stadiums and rocking their worlds en route to the most clutch, unlikely upset in Super Bowl history. I guess what I'm saying is, the Giants will not be afraid of Arizona's home-field, they will not be discouraged if the Cardinals come out quickly, and there's no chance they play flat, get away from their game-plan, or implode because they're intimidated. There's always a chance the Giants will implode, but it will have nothing to do with Arizona. In all likelihood, the only way the Cardinals win this game is if they play the best game they've played all season.
And as for the Giants, barring the possibility of an unprovoked implosion, I suppose the formula is simple: run the hell out of the ball, keep a close eye on Adrian Wilson, pressure the be-Jesus out of Kurt Warner. It looks so simple, I'm very, very tempted to pick the G-Men.
I might have even talked myself into it.
On the other hand, I'm loathe to pick against the 7-3 Cardinals in Arizona, where they've been flat-out great this season.
The only kind of game the Cardinals probably can't win is a low-scoring trench-battle. New York's offensive and defensive lines are significantly better than Arizona's, that class will show up over the course of a full game. If it goes high-scoring, I could see Arizona winning. But New York could also win a shoot out.
There it is, the whole rationale for picking the Giants. Or, part two, anyway.
New York's formula is simpler, and they could win this game almost no matter what tempo it's played at. Therefore . . .
Giants over Cardinals, 34-24
Washington @ Seattle
The Line: Washington by 3.5
This is really just a continuation of my recap from week 11.
It's clear to me now that the Redskins really need a big-time upgrade at defensive end. It couldn't have been more plain against the Cowboys. Dallas didn't run between the tackles until their 12th running play, and they ran a total of 20 times outside the tackles to only 7 times between them. Simply put, Andre Carter and Jason Taylor cannot both rush the passer and defend the run. That means something even more distressing, namely that Carter and Taylor can neither rush the passer nor defend the run. At least in Carter's case, he's a high-motor player who knows the system. I'm still trying to talk myself into the Jason Taylor trade, and it's been a few months, and it's getting harder every week.
Still, I've gotta like Washington's chances against the Seahawks. The Skins are getting healthier, this is a must-win game, Seattle is bad, and former assistants almost always do better against their former bosses than those bosses do against their former assistants. Of course, I don't have any stats to back that up, but it makes sense, right? How in the hell would Mike Holmgren know Jim Zorn's playcalling style? How would he know what the inherent weaknesses of a Jim Zorn coached team are? But flip it around, Jim Zorn has been at Holmgren's right hand for 9 years, watching him actually call plays and actually coach guys and actually gameplan and scheme to his own ideal. It makes sense, right?
Look, no way I'm not taking the Redskins. There's no part of the Seahawks I'm afraid of. I'm even less afraid of them with Matt Hasselbeck's corpse under center than I was with Seneca Wallace, who has honest to goodness legs and a backbone with no elbows in it.
And you know what? I don't care if they look good! All I care about is enjoying watching my goddamn team on Sunday, and rooting for them to win. They've got a chance, I think they'll win, and if they do, it'll count just the same as whatever shallacking the Cowboys lay on the Niners.
Redskins over Seahawks, 21-16
Indianapolis @ San Diego
The Line: San Diego by 3
Hey, anybody else forget it was San Diego that lost in that shitfest in Pittsburgh last Sunday? God, you'd think the Steelers lost the game with as much attention as that final play is getting. Why isn't anyone talking about the fact that the "deep", "explosive", "dominating" San Diego offense lost a game in which their shit-ass defense held the goddamn Pittsburgh Steelers to only 11 points in Pittsburgh? The friggin' Redskins got effing SKEWERED for only putting up six against the Steelers, and they've got a new offensive system, a rookie head coach, and had an injured tailback, number one receiver, and left tackle on the field. What's San Diego's excuse? Why aren't they getting their shit owned by the national sports media? Oh, right, because San Diego has already been given a pass for 2008.
I really hope Indianapolis wins this game. We'll see.
Chargers over Colts, 24-23
Green Bay @ New Orleans
The Line: New Orleans by 2.5
I'm already sick of one of these teams. I'll be absolutely disgusted by both of them if the Packers don't pull this off. I'm sick of them dancing around the outside of the pack. Get in or get the fuck out already!
If New Orleans wins, I'm not putting any energy into any picks or recaps involving either of these teams again this season, not until one of them has at least a game lead in their division. I'm sick of the middling bullshit. Step up, for crying out loud!
Packers over Saints, 34-23
I might come back and post another NFL related thing this week, since I didn't do any rankings or anything else. We'll see!
Go Skynards!
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Week 11 Re-Crap
I really don't have any juice for this recap.
This is going to be a slim week, blog-wise. I farted away Tuesday because my car needed two new tires and I had a whole ass-load of responsibilities I'd been putting off for a while. The really sad, pathetic part is I was busy and active and didn't have time to do a week 11 recap on Tuesday because I wasn't at work. And the even more sad, pathetic part is I still pissed a significant part of the day away playing Madden.
Anyway, here's my uninformed recap of week 11. These will be pretty slim, and for that I apologize. That won't be the norm going forward, I swear.
But the truth is, I'm not very enthusiastic about the NFL today or this week. Obviously, the Redskins lost a big game, and that's part of it. But another big part is, frankly, the way the sports media reports the NFL. Really. The Jets put up a really good win in New England and Brett Favre played about his best ball of the season. I'm honestly impressed by their performance. But to hear the national media tell it, it was all Brett Favre, he worked his "magic", Brett Favre carried the Jets to a win. It's not true! At least part of the reason the Jets won the game was New England's hair-brained and overdue-for-maximum-exposure offense.
Well, wait, before we get into that, let's put it in the recap.
New York Jets over New England, 34-21
My Pick: New England over New York Jets, 21-17
Hey, great win for the Jets. They're looking like strong playoff contenders.
Now, as I was saying: the Patriots ran more offensive plays (79-75), had more yards (511-375), more first downs (26-23), and fewer punts (5-4). How, then, did they manage to lose time of possession by 11 minutes? By running that goddamn stat-padding Wes Welker no-huddle bullshit. I hate that crap. Matt Cassel racks up 400 yards passing, Welker gets to set NFL records for receptions, and really all they're doing is putting an unnecessary burden on their defense. New England's old, slow defense was stuck on the field for almost 40 minutes of night-time football in very cold weather. Really, the Patriots were bound to lose.
And honestly, that's all I have to say about that. I don't really like or care about either of these teams at all. At this point, I'm almost rooting for the Jets to go to the Super Bowl just so the Packers can get a higher draft pick for Brett Favre.
Denver over Atlanta, 24-20
My Pick: Atlanta over Denver, 30-24
And again, this one is being spun like it was Jay Cutler leading the Broncos to victory. Yes, Jay Cutler had a nice game. Nothing special, but okay. On the other hand, in Atlanta, somehow Denver's defense held Atlanta to only 20 points despite giving up 250 yards passing, 114 rushing yards, and losing the time of possession battle by 6 minutes. Denver's defense did the job here, Cutler was just a guy who didn't cost his team the game. Is this what has become of "elite" quarterbacks? Go on the road, throw for 216 yards and a score in an upset, and suddenly YOU led your team to victory? Gimme a break.
And if you're a Falcons fan, you're probably quite upset about this loss. You should be. Atlanta is a way, way better team than Denver, and with the way the Falcons have been playing at home, this one should have been a blowout. The Falcons gave up important room in the NFC South and dropped into the thick of the wild-card chase. It's a disappointment. There were bound to be some. Now they need a bounce-back win in week 12 against . . . (hold on, I'm looking) . . . oooohhhhhh, Carolina. At least it's in Atlanta. And what a statement game it could be!
Tampa Bay over Minnesota, 19-13
My Pick: Tampa Bay over Minnesota, 17-13
Minnesota only ran 52 plays in the entire game. They didn't have the ball long enough or do nearly enough with it to establish, really, a damn thing. Frankly, I'm not sure either team did enough to win this game. To take it a step further, I'm not even entirely sure this game actually took place.
New York Giants over Baltimore, 30-10
My Pick: New York Giants over Baltimore, 17-13
Yowza. The Ravens got absolutely flattened Sunday afternoon. They had absolutely no business being on that field. And if anybody thinks the Giants aren't the best team in the NFL, well, that's ridiculous. They're at least two times better than the Titans on offense, and the defenses are right there. I'd take the Giants in any stadium in any city, and I'd give 'em six points.
As for the Ravens, after this kind of ass-whupping, the most important thing is that guys don't start panicking. They were good enough to beat most teams handily before week 11, and they'll still be right there in week 12 if they just stick to the format. The worst thing that could happen to the Ravens would be to start second-guessing themselves. They've got a strong defense and a capable enough offense. The Giants are much better than them, that much is obvious, especially up I-95 in New Jersey, but then the Giants are much better than almost every team in the NFL.
Miami over Oakland, 17-15
My Pick: Miami over Oakland, 31-6
The Raiders scored their first touchdown in 13 years on Sunday, on a 9,000 yard punt return in the fourth quarter. They were perilously close to winning.
Let's be honest, here: did anyone anywhere watch this game?
New Orleans over Kansas City, 30-20
My Pick: New Orleans over Kansas City, 34-27
This was the first road win of the season for the New Orleans Saints. Read that again. Why have we been so hard on the Cardinals for their road woes, when this pansy ass team hasn't won but one road game all goddamn season, and it was a poorly played piece of crap over Kansas City? The Saints suck.
And it looks like Tyler Thigpen came back down to earth just in time for a bunch of morons to start him on their fantasy teams. Nice.
Carolina over Detroit, 31-22
My Pick: Carolina over Detroit, 27-10
How does a team commit only one penalty and dominate time of possession by almost 9 minutes without winning? Maybe by giving up 264 rushing yards on only 30 carries? Holy hell, the Detroit Lions might actually go winless in 2008.
As for Carolina, hey, they found a way to win. That's what matters. It was closer than it should have been, but they did the job at home. Good for them.
Philadelphia and Cincinnati, 13-13
My Pick: Philadelphia over Cincinnati, 41-17
What the fuck. What do you say about this train wreck? I honestly don't know who I'm more disappointed in. The friggin' Eagles are the most dependable piece of shit team in the world. For fuck's sake, if this team even had their helmets on sideways they would have won this game with a double-digit margin. What the hell has happened to the Eagles offense? Donovan McNabb looks like straight up garbage these days. Brian Westbrook is the diminutive Adrian Peterson: at any moment, he could break out. We're waiting for it. We know he's supposed to be dangerous, but it seems like only once or twice a season this guy actually makes a difference in a football game. 13 points? In Cincinnati? What a bunch of bullshit. With as much talent as the Eagles have on offense, they have to stand in their own way to come up with only 13 points against such a dismal defense.
And as for Cincinnati, God almighty. Two drives into Eagles territory in overtime. Two chances to win the game. When your quarterback is sacked 8 times, when you rush for only 56 yards, when the only reason you're in the game at all is because the opponent's Pro Bowl quarterback is imploding left and right, your goddamn veteran kicker really effing needs to connect on that field goal. You don't have a game gift-wrapped like that and squander it away. Look at the Rams in Washington a few weeks ago: outplayed left and right, but a few turnovers and just a few opportunities, and they found a way. Even the Rams can find a way. Not the Bengals, I guess.
Green Bay over Chicago, 37-3
My Pick: Green Bay over Chicago, 23-16
Holy hell, what a pounding. Good teams do not lose by 34 points to division foes. Not ever.
Sorry, Chicago, but you've got a pretender on your hands. A gutsy pretender, a troublesome pretender that could spoil a lot of playoff hopes down the stretch, but a pretender all the same. The Bears got obliterated in Green Bay. Any ranked D-1 college football team could have stepped in for the Bears and you might not have noticed.
As for Green Bay, is it too much to ask, when you put up 37 points, maybe your quarterback puts up some ungodly numbers? Christ, when the Jets score 14 points, somehow Brett Favre manages to come away with 4 touchdowns. Matt Cassel put up 400 yards and another 60 on the ground in a 20 point effort. The Packers score 37 and I get a measly 227 yards and 2 scores from Rodgers. Thanks a lot, asshole.
Indianapolis over Houston, 33-27
My Pick: Indianapolis over Houston, 34-27
Pretty close, right? One friggin' point.
And maybe it's not the media that's pissing me off. There's a poll on one of the major NFL sites that asks which 6-4 AFC team is best. The options: Indy, Miami, New England, Baltimore, Denver. The way I see it, this is a pretty close race. I'd probably pick New England, although Indy's resume is pretty nice. It turns out Indy won the poll. My problem, here, was that the Broncos came in second place. The Broncos? The horrible Broncos? The biggest pretender above .500 in the AFC? The best team in the NFL's worst ever division? The Broncos, with the NFL's fourth worst defense, no backfield, a turnover prone quarterback, and horrible team chemistry? Better than the plucky and always competitive Dolphins? Better than the sharp, always professional, well-coached, well-rounded Patriots? Better than a Ravens team with a top-5 defense and 3rd-ranked rushing offense? No fucking way.
What does this have to do with the Indy-Houston game? Nothing, I guess. But I'd rather talk about it than the game. I don't know what happened in this contest, even though I had a whopping 3 players on my fantasy team playing in the game.
San Francisco over St. Louis, 35-16
My Pick: San Francisco over St. Louis, 24-20
A totally meaningless game. I don't care who played well and who didn't.
Arizona over Seattle, 26-20
My Pick: Arizona over Seattle, 27-24
What little steam I had is running out fast. I have nothing to say about this game. In fact, I'll be back later to talk about the last four games. I'm totally out of juice.
Tennessee over Jacksonville, 24-14
My Pick: Jacksonville over Tennessee, 21-20
I'm back now, and I still have no juice.
This will be the last time I pick against the Titans during the regular season. I can't believe I've done it for two weeks in a row now. They don't have much left on their schedule, so with far less fanfare and general gayness from the national sports media, the Tennessee Titans are closing in on an improbable undefeated season. They really could do it. And all of a sudden, the dirty feeling we all got from the contemptible undefeated regular season of the 2007 Patriots would be washed away. We'd feel totally differently about the achievement if a team like this Titans group pulled it off, and for that reason, I'm very much hoping they will.
And I've probably just doomed them to lose next week. Ah well.
Pittsburgh over San Diego, 11-10
My Pick: Pittsburgh over San Diego, 28-23
I'm a lot like the San Diego Chargers, in that I no longer care whether or not they win or lose.
As for that debacle at the end of the game, it was some bullshit. I have a hard time figuring out where the forward pass was supposed to have taken place, too. It doesn't look to me like either of those laterals went forward, and I can't imagine how the refs ended up blowing it. In fact, I'd be willing to wager you could take a random handful of Steelers fans between the ages of 18-40, put striped uniforms on 'em, send 'em out there at the end of that game, and they would have gotten that call right. For as badly as Ed Hochuli blew that fumble call earlier in the season, this was so much more discouraging. Hochuli made a split-second call, got it wrong, and there was no possible recourse. In the case of these morons, they got the call right, then went out of their way to go back and get it wrong.
Now here's an interesting thing: the closing line for that game was Pittsburgh by 4.5. Before that last second touchdown, the Steelers were up one. After the play, when no flag was thrown, the refs went back and called a penalty that absolutely did not take place, then put the penalty in the wrong part of the timeline of the play, then screwed up the ruling about whether or not the penalty should have had any impact on the result of the play even if declined. So the margin went back to 1 instead of 7 or 8, thereby keeping the score within the spread.
I'm just saying.
Dallas over Washington, 14-10
My Pick: Washington over Dallas, 26-24
Yes, the Redskins lost.
Yes, the offensive line was bad in protection.
I fucking refuse to do the panic thing. I refuse. I swear to God, I'm not getting sucked into the bullshit.
I just went back and watched the highlights of that game on NFL.com, and I really did my best to watch them like another NFL fan from another NFL city might watch them, wanting to know what happened in the game Sunday night. Here's what I saw:
I saw a hard-hitting, sharp, professional Washington defense punishing Dallas ball-carriers left and right. That's a good thing.
I saw a unit that has been pretty under the radar this season come up with some big hits and two interceptions on one of the NFL's "elite" quarterbacks. That's a good thing.
I saw a rookie safety stay around the ball and generally impress the shit out of me. Good.
I saw Redskins corners thumping guys around the line of scrimmage and in the secondary. Good.
I saw an injured tailback race through Dallas' defense on fourth and one, setting up an early score. Good.
I saw a sharp, professional, accurate quarterback complete over 70% of his passes. Good.
I saw a good, solid, sharp team with a potentially great defense give themselves a chance to win.
On the other side of the ball, I saw a focused, desperate Cowboys team bringing as much heat as they could on any passing down, and doing a damn good job of disrupting the pocket and the timing of Washington's passing game.
I saw a quarterback shake off a few bad passes to come up with a couple of gutsy throws down the stretch, including a game-winner.
I saw a big offensive line and a hard-running tailback wear down a sturdy defense in the fourth quarter.
In short, I didn't see a bad thing in that game. I don't like the outcome, but c'mon. San Diego put ten up in Pittsburgh. Know what I'm thinking about, relative to San Diego? A) Their offense is better than that, obviously, and B) they have a 4-6 record. With the Redskins, if I were an impartial observer from another team, I guarantee right now I'd be thinking A) well, they're still perfecting this new Zorn offense, B) Dallas' defense played a great game, C) Washington's defense kept 'em in the game and looked friggin' monstrous, and D) hey, they're 6-4, they're still in good shape.
So for today only, I'm an outsider. They're 6-4. The defense is outstanding. It's a new offense. The tailback was banged up. Dallas' defense was great. The Redskins are a good team in good position to finish strong and make the post-season.
That's not to say there aren't some things they could improve upon.
It's important that they find a way to stretch the field, because teams are catching up to the short passing attack. If nothing else, teams have learned they can stack the box against the Redskins to hopefully slow down Clinton Portis, and it won't hurt them too badly when it comes to defending Washington's passing attack.
Pass protection is obviously a big problem. I have a feeling a large part of that could be solved by going back to draw plays, slants, and the occasional screen. I happen to think Washington's play-calling has gotten a bit predictable in the last few weeks, and I think that makes it easier get consistent pressure on Jason Campbell.
Laron Landry needs to be around the line of scrimmage more often. Against the Cowboys, both of Tony Romo's interceptions came when Laron Landry was either threatening to blitz or actually blitzing. On the second one, not only did Carlos Rogers blow up Terrell Owens, but Landry blew up Romo, one of the few hits Romo took on the night. Landy is Washington's most athletic defender, and he has a knack for creating havoc in the backfield when he's around the line of scrimmage. And if it can't be him, slide Chris Horton in there on every passing down. He also has a real knack for creating pressure.
Washington cannot continue having so many three-and-out possessions. The whole deal with Zorn's West Coast Offense is timing and rhythm. There's no way Jason Campbell can get in rhythm as a passer in such short possessions early in the game. The lack of rhythm contributes to the success of the opposing pass-rush; if Campbell has to take an extra half-second to find an open man, it gives the rush that much more time to disrupt him in the pocket, which either leads to sacks, hits, or rushed passes, all of which further disrupt his timing and rhythm. I'd like to see the Redskins come out with some can't-miss type of passes early in the game, like screens, slants, hitches, and play-action bombs. Generally, these have one option, and in the case of screens and slants, they're almost always good for a completion. With the way the Redskins are running the ball, they should be able to generate a few early first downs and get a little rhythm going if they go with the simple stuff early.
I'll be interested to see how they do in Seattle on Sunday. They look about as healthy as they've been in weeks and weeks, and they badly need a win to get back a little confidence. For my part, I'm not so down on the Redskins. I hate the Cowboys, I wish the game had gone differently, but if I'm Joe Dung from Missour-ah, and I only know what I sawon TV, I saw two professional, sharp, hard-hitting teams fight to the death, and the team that was able to convert one big play came away with a much-needed win. It happens.
Cleveland over Buffalo, 29-27
My Pick: Buffalo over Cleveland, 20-17
I'll be honest: I don't really know what happened Monday night. I know Trent Edwards was abysmal. I know Brady Quinn wasn't much better. I know Phil Dawson nailed a 56-yard bomb. I know Leodis McKelvin had a 98-yard touchdown return. I was glad to see Marshawn Lynch finally break out a little bit.
Mostly, it's clear to me neither of these teams is going anywhere this season and that makes this a meaningless Monday night game.
I don't have any rankings or anything like that for this week. I'll be lucky to get my picks out before tonight's game, for crying out loud. I might end up doing some sort of ranking or something later in the week. I remember last year I projected the playoff picture at about this point in the season and ended up getting all but one team correct. Maybe I'll give that another try this season. We'll see. For now, I'm going to get cracking on my week 12 picks. I did go 11-5 this week, and I think I went something like 10-6 last week. Maybe I'll compile my total win-loss record for next week's recap.
Peace!
This is going to be a slim week, blog-wise. I farted away Tuesday because my car needed two new tires and I had a whole ass-load of responsibilities I'd been putting off for a while. The really sad, pathetic part is I was busy and active and didn't have time to do a week 11 recap on Tuesday because I wasn't at work. And the even more sad, pathetic part is I still pissed a significant part of the day away playing Madden.
Anyway, here's my uninformed recap of week 11. These will be pretty slim, and for that I apologize. That won't be the norm going forward, I swear.
But the truth is, I'm not very enthusiastic about the NFL today or this week. Obviously, the Redskins lost a big game, and that's part of it. But another big part is, frankly, the way the sports media reports the NFL. Really. The Jets put up a really good win in New England and Brett Favre played about his best ball of the season. I'm honestly impressed by their performance. But to hear the national media tell it, it was all Brett Favre, he worked his "magic", Brett Favre carried the Jets to a win. It's not true! At least part of the reason the Jets won the game was New England's hair-brained and overdue-for-maximum-exposure offense.
Well, wait, before we get into that, let's put it in the recap.
New York Jets over New England, 34-21
My Pick: New England over New York Jets, 21-17
Hey, great win for the Jets. They're looking like strong playoff contenders.
Now, as I was saying: the Patriots ran more offensive plays (79-75), had more yards (511-375), more first downs (26-23), and fewer punts (5-4). How, then, did they manage to lose time of possession by 11 minutes? By running that goddamn stat-padding Wes Welker no-huddle bullshit. I hate that crap. Matt Cassel racks up 400 yards passing, Welker gets to set NFL records for receptions, and really all they're doing is putting an unnecessary burden on their defense. New England's old, slow defense was stuck on the field for almost 40 minutes of night-time football in very cold weather. Really, the Patriots were bound to lose.
And honestly, that's all I have to say about that. I don't really like or care about either of these teams at all. At this point, I'm almost rooting for the Jets to go to the Super Bowl just so the Packers can get a higher draft pick for Brett Favre.
Denver over Atlanta, 24-20
My Pick: Atlanta over Denver, 30-24
And again, this one is being spun like it was Jay Cutler leading the Broncos to victory. Yes, Jay Cutler had a nice game. Nothing special, but okay. On the other hand, in Atlanta, somehow Denver's defense held Atlanta to only 20 points despite giving up 250 yards passing, 114 rushing yards, and losing the time of possession battle by 6 minutes. Denver's defense did the job here, Cutler was just a guy who didn't cost his team the game. Is this what has become of "elite" quarterbacks? Go on the road, throw for 216 yards and a score in an upset, and suddenly YOU led your team to victory? Gimme a break.
And if you're a Falcons fan, you're probably quite upset about this loss. You should be. Atlanta is a way, way better team than Denver, and with the way the Falcons have been playing at home, this one should have been a blowout. The Falcons gave up important room in the NFC South and dropped into the thick of the wild-card chase. It's a disappointment. There were bound to be some. Now they need a bounce-back win in week 12 against . . . (hold on, I'm looking) . . . oooohhhhhh, Carolina. At least it's in Atlanta. And what a statement game it could be!
Tampa Bay over Minnesota, 19-13
My Pick: Tampa Bay over Minnesota, 17-13
Minnesota only ran 52 plays in the entire game. They didn't have the ball long enough or do nearly enough with it to establish, really, a damn thing. Frankly, I'm not sure either team did enough to win this game. To take it a step further, I'm not even entirely sure this game actually took place.
New York Giants over Baltimore, 30-10
My Pick: New York Giants over Baltimore, 17-13
Yowza. The Ravens got absolutely flattened Sunday afternoon. They had absolutely no business being on that field. And if anybody thinks the Giants aren't the best team in the NFL, well, that's ridiculous. They're at least two times better than the Titans on offense, and the defenses are right there. I'd take the Giants in any stadium in any city, and I'd give 'em six points.
As for the Ravens, after this kind of ass-whupping, the most important thing is that guys don't start panicking. They were good enough to beat most teams handily before week 11, and they'll still be right there in week 12 if they just stick to the format. The worst thing that could happen to the Ravens would be to start second-guessing themselves. They've got a strong defense and a capable enough offense. The Giants are much better than them, that much is obvious, especially up I-95 in New Jersey, but then the Giants are much better than almost every team in the NFL.
Miami over Oakland, 17-15
My Pick: Miami over Oakland, 31-6
The Raiders scored their first touchdown in 13 years on Sunday, on a 9,000 yard punt return in the fourth quarter. They were perilously close to winning.
Let's be honest, here: did anyone anywhere watch this game?
New Orleans over Kansas City, 30-20
My Pick: New Orleans over Kansas City, 34-27
This was the first road win of the season for the New Orleans Saints. Read that again. Why have we been so hard on the Cardinals for their road woes, when this pansy ass team hasn't won but one road game all goddamn season, and it was a poorly played piece of crap over Kansas City? The Saints suck.
And it looks like Tyler Thigpen came back down to earth just in time for a bunch of morons to start him on their fantasy teams. Nice.
Carolina over Detroit, 31-22
My Pick: Carolina over Detroit, 27-10
How does a team commit only one penalty and dominate time of possession by almost 9 minutes without winning? Maybe by giving up 264 rushing yards on only 30 carries? Holy hell, the Detroit Lions might actually go winless in 2008.
As for Carolina, hey, they found a way to win. That's what matters. It was closer than it should have been, but they did the job at home. Good for them.
Philadelphia and Cincinnati, 13-13
My Pick: Philadelphia over Cincinnati, 41-17
What the fuck. What do you say about this train wreck? I honestly don't know who I'm more disappointed in. The friggin' Eagles are the most dependable piece of shit team in the world. For fuck's sake, if this team even had their helmets on sideways they would have won this game with a double-digit margin. What the hell has happened to the Eagles offense? Donovan McNabb looks like straight up garbage these days. Brian Westbrook is the diminutive Adrian Peterson: at any moment, he could break out. We're waiting for it. We know he's supposed to be dangerous, but it seems like only once or twice a season this guy actually makes a difference in a football game. 13 points? In Cincinnati? What a bunch of bullshit. With as much talent as the Eagles have on offense, they have to stand in their own way to come up with only 13 points against such a dismal defense.
And as for Cincinnati, God almighty. Two drives into Eagles territory in overtime. Two chances to win the game. When your quarterback is sacked 8 times, when you rush for only 56 yards, when the only reason you're in the game at all is because the opponent's Pro Bowl quarterback is imploding left and right, your goddamn veteran kicker really effing needs to connect on that field goal. You don't have a game gift-wrapped like that and squander it away. Look at the Rams in Washington a few weeks ago: outplayed left and right, but a few turnovers and just a few opportunities, and they found a way. Even the Rams can find a way. Not the Bengals, I guess.
Green Bay over Chicago, 37-3
My Pick: Green Bay over Chicago, 23-16
Holy hell, what a pounding. Good teams do not lose by 34 points to division foes. Not ever.
Sorry, Chicago, but you've got a pretender on your hands. A gutsy pretender, a troublesome pretender that could spoil a lot of playoff hopes down the stretch, but a pretender all the same. The Bears got obliterated in Green Bay. Any ranked D-1 college football team could have stepped in for the Bears and you might not have noticed.
As for Green Bay, is it too much to ask, when you put up 37 points, maybe your quarterback puts up some ungodly numbers? Christ, when the Jets score 14 points, somehow Brett Favre manages to come away with 4 touchdowns. Matt Cassel put up 400 yards and another 60 on the ground in a 20 point effort. The Packers score 37 and I get a measly 227 yards and 2 scores from Rodgers. Thanks a lot, asshole.
Indianapolis over Houston, 33-27
My Pick: Indianapolis over Houston, 34-27
Pretty close, right? One friggin' point.
And maybe it's not the media that's pissing me off. There's a poll on one of the major NFL sites that asks which 6-4 AFC team is best. The options: Indy, Miami, New England, Baltimore, Denver. The way I see it, this is a pretty close race. I'd probably pick New England, although Indy's resume is pretty nice. It turns out Indy won the poll. My problem, here, was that the Broncos came in second place. The Broncos? The horrible Broncos? The biggest pretender above .500 in the AFC? The best team in the NFL's worst ever division? The Broncos, with the NFL's fourth worst defense, no backfield, a turnover prone quarterback, and horrible team chemistry? Better than the plucky and always competitive Dolphins? Better than the sharp, always professional, well-coached, well-rounded Patriots? Better than a Ravens team with a top-5 defense and 3rd-ranked rushing offense? No fucking way.
What does this have to do with the Indy-Houston game? Nothing, I guess. But I'd rather talk about it than the game. I don't know what happened in this contest, even though I had a whopping 3 players on my fantasy team playing in the game.
San Francisco over St. Louis, 35-16
My Pick: San Francisco over St. Louis, 24-20
A totally meaningless game. I don't care who played well and who didn't.
Arizona over Seattle, 26-20
My Pick: Arizona over Seattle, 27-24
What little steam I had is running out fast. I have nothing to say about this game. In fact, I'll be back later to talk about the last four games. I'm totally out of juice.
Tennessee over Jacksonville, 24-14
My Pick: Jacksonville over Tennessee, 21-20
I'm back now, and I still have no juice.
This will be the last time I pick against the Titans during the regular season. I can't believe I've done it for two weeks in a row now. They don't have much left on their schedule, so with far less fanfare and general gayness from the national sports media, the Tennessee Titans are closing in on an improbable undefeated season. They really could do it. And all of a sudden, the dirty feeling we all got from the contemptible undefeated regular season of the 2007 Patriots would be washed away. We'd feel totally differently about the achievement if a team like this Titans group pulled it off, and for that reason, I'm very much hoping they will.
And I've probably just doomed them to lose next week. Ah well.
Pittsburgh over San Diego, 11-10
My Pick: Pittsburgh over San Diego, 28-23
I'm a lot like the San Diego Chargers, in that I no longer care whether or not they win or lose.
As for that debacle at the end of the game, it was some bullshit. I have a hard time figuring out where the forward pass was supposed to have taken place, too. It doesn't look to me like either of those laterals went forward, and I can't imagine how the refs ended up blowing it. In fact, I'd be willing to wager you could take a random handful of Steelers fans between the ages of 18-40, put striped uniforms on 'em, send 'em out there at the end of that game, and they would have gotten that call right. For as badly as Ed Hochuli blew that fumble call earlier in the season, this was so much more discouraging. Hochuli made a split-second call, got it wrong, and there was no possible recourse. In the case of these morons, they got the call right, then went out of their way to go back and get it wrong.
Now here's an interesting thing: the closing line for that game was Pittsburgh by 4.5. Before that last second touchdown, the Steelers were up one. After the play, when no flag was thrown, the refs went back and called a penalty that absolutely did not take place, then put the penalty in the wrong part of the timeline of the play, then screwed up the ruling about whether or not the penalty should have had any impact on the result of the play even if declined. So the margin went back to 1 instead of 7 or 8, thereby keeping the score within the spread.
I'm just saying.
Dallas over Washington, 14-10
My Pick: Washington over Dallas, 26-24
Yes, the Redskins lost.
Yes, the offensive line was bad in protection.
I fucking refuse to do the panic thing. I refuse. I swear to God, I'm not getting sucked into the bullshit.
I just went back and watched the highlights of that game on NFL.com, and I really did my best to watch them like another NFL fan from another NFL city might watch them, wanting to know what happened in the game Sunday night. Here's what I saw:
I saw a hard-hitting, sharp, professional Washington defense punishing Dallas ball-carriers left and right. That's a good thing.
I saw a unit that has been pretty under the radar this season come up with some big hits and two interceptions on one of the NFL's "elite" quarterbacks. That's a good thing.
I saw a rookie safety stay around the ball and generally impress the shit out of me. Good.
I saw Redskins corners thumping guys around the line of scrimmage and in the secondary. Good.
I saw an injured tailback race through Dallas' defense on fourth and one, setting up an early score. Good.
I saw a sharp, professional, accurate quarterback complete over 70% of his passes. Good.
I saw a good, solid, sharp team with a potentially great defense give themselves a chance to win.
On the other side of the ball, I saw a focused, desperate Cowboys team bringing as much heat as they could on any passing down, and doing a damn good job of disrupting the pocket and the timing of Washington's passing game.
I saw a quarterback shake off a few bad passes to come up with a couple of gutsy throws down the stretch, including a game-winner.
I saw a big offensive line and a hard-running tailback wear down a sturdy defense in the fourth quarter.
In short, I didn't see a bad thing in that game. I don't like the outcome, but c'mon. San Diego put ten up in Pittsburgh. Know what I'm thinking about, relative to San Diego? A) Their offense is better than that, obviously, and B) they have a 4-6 record. With the Redskins, if I were an impartial observer from another team, I guarantee right now I'd be thinking A) well, they're still perfecting this new Zorn offense, B) Dallas' defense played a great game, C) Washington's defense kept 'em in the game and looked friggin' monstrous, and D) hey, they're 6-4, they're still in good shape.
So for today only, I'm an outsider. They're 6-4. The defense is outstanding. It's a new offense. The tailback was banged up. Dallas' defense was great. The Redskins are a good team in good position to finish strong and make the post-season.
That's not to say there aren't some things they could improve upon.
It's important that they find a way to stretch the field, because teams are catching up to the short passing attack. If nothing else, teams have learned they can stack the box against the Redskins to hopefully slow down Clinton Portis, and it won't hurt them too badly when it comes to defending Washington's passing attack.
Pass protection is obviously a big problem. I have a feeling a large part of that could be solved by going back to draw plays, slants, and the occasional screen. I happen to think Washington's play-calling has gotten a bit predictable in the last few weeks, and I think that makes it easier get consistent pressure on Jason Campbell.
Laron Landry needs to be around the line of scrimmage more often. Against the Cowboys, both of Tony Romo's interceptions came when Laron Landry was either threatening to blitz or actually blitzing. On the second one, not only did Carlos Rogers blow up Terrell Owens, but Landry blew up Romo, one of the few hits Romo took on the night. Landy is Washington's most athletic defender, and he has a knack for creating havoc in the backfield when he's around the line of scrimmage. And if it can't be him, slide Chris Horton in there on every passing down. He also has a real knack for creating pressure.
Washington cannot continue having so many three-and-out possessions. The whole deal with Zorn's West Coast Offense is timing and rhythm. There's no way Jason Campbell can get in rhythm as a passer in such short possessions early in the game. The lack of rhythm contributes to the success of the opposing pass-rush; if Campbell has to take an extra half-second to find an open man, it gives the rush that much more time to disrupt him in the pocket, which either leads to sacks, hits, or rushed passes, all of which further disrupt his timing and rhythm. I'd like to see the Redskins come out with some can't-miss type of passes early in the game, like screens, slants, hitches, and play-action bombs. Generally, these have one option, and in the case of screens and slants, they're almost always good for a completion. With the way the Redskins are running the ball, they should be able to generate a few early first downs and get a little rhythm going if they go with the simple stuff early.
I'll be interested to see how they do in Seattle on Sunday. They look about as healthy as they've been in weeks and weeks, and they badly need a win to get back a little confidence. For my part, I'm not so down on the Redskins. I hate the Cowboys, I wish the game had gone differently, but if I'm Joe Dung from Missour-ah, and I only know what I sawon TV, I saw two professional, sharp, hard-hitting teams fight to the death, and the team that was able to convert one big play came away with a much-needed win. It happens.
Cleveland over Buffalo, 29-27
My Pick: Buffalo over Cleveland, 20-17
I'll be honest: I don't really know what happened Monday night. I know Trent Edwards was abysmal. I know Brady Quinn wasn't much better. I know Phil Dawson nailed a 56-yard bomb. I know Leodis McKelvin had a 98-yard touchdown return. I was glad to see Marshawn Lynch finally break out a little bit.
Mostly, it's clear to me neither of these teams is going anywhere this season and that makes this a meaningless Monday night game.
I don't have any rankings or anything like that for this week. I'll be lucky to get my picks out before tonight's game, for crying out loud. I might end up doing some sort of ranking or something later in the week. I remember last year I projected the playoff picture at about this point in the season and ended up getting all but one team correct. Maybe I'll give that another try this season. We'll see. For now, I'm going to get cracking on my week 12 picks. I did go 11-5 this week, and I think I went something like 10-6 last week. Maybe I'll compile my total win-loss record for next week's recap.
Peace!
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