Week 9's Final Drive
We have reached the midpoint of the 2006-2007 NFL season and this year, more than any other, has been the “Year of Parity.” There are only twelve teams above .500 and, astoundingly, only five out of sixteen NFC teams are above the break-even mark. The one positive that comes out of such parity, or, in the eyes of some, mediocrity, is that there will be plenty of competition during the push for the playoffs.
First Down - Top Stories from the Past Weekend
-The battle for AFC supremacy in Foxborough failed to live up to the huge amount of hype that was associated with the Sunday night match up between the Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots. Peyton Manning was as sharp as ever, continually marching the Colts offense up and down the field against a young Patriots secondary. His counterpart for New England, Tom Brady, had an uncharacteristically bad performance. Patriots head coach Bill Belichick also seemed out of sorts in this match up as he seemed to outthink himself at times.
-While very few people realistically expected the Chicago Bears to go undefeated this year, it was hard to imagine anyone predicting the previously 1-6 Miami Dolphins to be the ones to beat them. Rex Grossman once again struggled mightily when facing a strong pass rush. Grossman was picked off three times and fumbled once against a Dolphin secondary that had struggled mightily against the pass all year. This is now the second time in three weeks that the Bears should have lost. With a three-game road trip on the horizon, Chicago could be in some trouble in their quest for home field advantage throughout the playoffs.
-In an embarrassing showing on Monday night, the Oakland Raiders offensive line was completely dominated by a Seattle Seahawks defense that, thus far, has been mediocre. Andrew Walter, whose mobility will never be confused with Michael Vick, will have little chance of throwing the ball downfield if Oakland does not manage to shore up their line play. Whenever Walter did get a off a throw, it seemed as if his wide receivers were always dropping the ball. Head coach Art Shell and offensive coordinator Tom Walsh definitely have to shorten their quarterbacks drop backs and start pounding the ball with Lamont Jordan, otherwise this season may get even uglier for the Raiders.
-The Terrell Owens saga continues to get more puzzling in “Big D”. After Owens admitted to falling asleep during team meetings, he again decided to put his own image in front of his team’s needs. Following a third quarter touchdown catch, Owens laid the football down in the end zone and subsequently placed his head on the ball while pretending to fall asleep in an obvious attempt to make a joke about his earlier admission. After Owens returned to the sidelines, coach Parcells was seen talking to Owens in apparent anger only to be hit by more Owens backlash.
-Marvin Lewis and his Cincinnati Bengals are quickly becoming the Portland Trail Blazers of the NFL. Chad Johnson is continuing to whine about his lack of catches while T. J Houshmandzadeh is following Johnson’s lead in terms of immaturity. Houshmandzadeh and Johnson are seen constantly complaining to Carson Palmer and voicing their displeasures to the media. All this while their mediocre performance and lack of effort is quickly turning this season into a disaster for the once promising Bengals.
Second Down - Top Ten
Indianapolis- Somehow, it seems that Peyton Manning has found a way to improve his game. While facing a solid pass rush on Sunday, Manning completed numerous long throws against the Pats while on the run. This had always been his biggest weakness.
Denver - a close battle with the Patriots for second place. Denver’s win in Foxborough puts them ahead in the rankings.
New England - You should expect to see Tom Brady and Company come out flying this week after a rare embarrassing performance in Week 9.
San Diego - LaDainian Tomlinson and the Chargers continue to dominate their opponents offensively as they await the return of their linebacking crew.
Chicago - An occasional bad performance is to be expected by such an inexperienced quarterback, but twice in three weeks should be worrisome for the Bears.
New York Giants - The Giants offense is still sputtering, but New York has a two-game lead over the next best team in the division. With a win Sunday against the Bears, they will be in position for the top seed in the conference.
Baltimore - The Ravens are taking control of the AFC North behind a suddenly resurgent ground game and a continuously stout defense.
New Orleans - The Saints passed a huge test on Sunday when they showed an ability to bounce back after the previous week’s defeat to the Ravens.
Jacksonville - Byron Leftwich had better hope his ankle injury improves real soon or he may never get his job back from David Garrard.
Atlanta - The Falcons get a pass in their loss to the Lions, but if they get knocked off by Cleveland, you can expect to hear the questions about Vick’s inconsistencies return.
Third Down - Top Games for Next Week
New York Jets at New England Patriots
Washington Redskins at Philadelphia Eagles
San Diego Chargers at Cincinnati Bengals
St. Louis Rams at Seattle Seahawks
Chicago Bears at New York Giants
Fourth Down - Who I Like and Why
New York Jets at New England - The Patriots will bounce back behind a hard-nosed running attack and the steady play of Tom Brady to knock off the Jets.
Washington at Philadelphia - The Eagles have had two weeks to ponder their lousy performance against Jacksonville. Expect McNabb and Company to come out flying this week against Washington.
Cleveland at Atlanta - Atlanta has been getting away from their reliable running game over the last month. Expect Coach Mora to lean on Warrick Dunn and his other runners this week.
Kansas City at Miami - The suddenly resurgent Chiefs will let Larry Johnson pound their way to a fourth straight victory.
Green Bay at Minnesota - Minnesota’s early season magic is quickly disappearing. I expect Brett Favre and the Packers will go into Minnesota and knock off the Vikings again.
San Francisco at Detroit - The Lions offense is just going to be too much for the worst defense in the NFL.
Buffalo at Indianapolis - Without McGahee, the Bills just do not have the ability to take advantage of an extremely weak Colts run defense.
Baltimore at Tennessee - You know Steve McNair has been looking forward to the opportunity when he could show the Titans that he can still play. Expect the Ravens to be extra motivated this week.
Houston at Jacksonville - The Texans have been playing much better of late; Jacksonville, however, is practically unbeatable at home.
San Diego at Cincinnati - The Bengals’ inability to stop the run is not a good problem to have when facing LT and the Chargers. The inconsistent Bengals are in serious trouble in the very competitive AFC playoff chase.
Denver at Oakland - Mike Shanahan and the Broncos are always motivated against the Raiders. I cannot see Denver experiencing a letdown this week.
Dallas at Arizona - After a heartbreaking loss in Washington, expect the Cowboys to bounce back in the desert.
St. Louis at Seattle - St. Louis needs this game far more then Seattle does. I have a feeling the Rams will surprise the division-leading Seahawks.
New Orleans at Pittsburgh - More bad news for the defending champs: Drew Brees and the high scoring Saints will be too much for the Steelers to handle.
Chicago at New York Giants - The Dolphins and Cardinals have given the rest of the NFL a blueprint for success against the Bears. The Giants will apply constant pressure on Rex Grossman on their way to victory.
Tampa Bay at Carolina - After their bye week, I expect the Panthers to get back over .500 this week. Carolina’s defense is not a recipe for success for the 31st-ranked Bucs’ offense.
First Down - Top Stories from the Past Weekend
-The battle for AFC supremacy in Foxborough failed to live up to the huge amount of hype that was associated with the Sunday night match up between the Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots. Peyton Manning was as sharp as ever, continually marching the Colts offense up and down the field against a young Patriots secondary. His counterpart for New England, Tom Brady, had an uncharacteristically bad performance. Patriots head coach Bill Belichick also seemed out of sorts in this match up as he seemed to outthink himself at times.
-While very few people realistically expected the Chicago Bears to go undefeated this year, it was hard to imagine anyone predicting the previously 1-6 Miami Dolphins to be the ones to beat them. Rex Grossman once again struggled mightily when facing a strong pass rush. Grossman was picked off three times and fumbled once against a Dolphin secondary that had struggled mightily against the pass all year. This is now the second time in three weeks that the Bears should have lost. With a three-game road trip on the horizon, Chicago could be in some trouble in their quest for home field advantage throughout the playoffs.
-In an embarrassing showing on Monday night, the Oakland Raiders offensive line was completely dominated by a Seattle Seahawks defense that, thus far, has been mediocre. Andrew Walter, whose mobility will never be confused with Michael Vick, will have little chance of throwing the ball downfield if Oakland does not manage to shore up their line play. Whenever Walter did get a off a throw, it seemed as if his wide receivers were always dropping the ball. Head coach Art Shell and offensive coordinator Tom Walsh definitely have to shorten their quarterbacks drop backs and start pounding the ball with Lamont Jordan, otherwise this season may get even uglier for the Raiders.
-The Terrell Owens saga continues to get more puzzling in “Big D”. After Owens admitted to falling asleep during team meetings, he again decided to put his own image in front of his team’s needs. Following a third quarter touchdown catch, Owens laid the football down in the end zone and subsequently placed his head on the ball while pretending to fall asleep in an obvious attempt to make a joke about his earlier admission. After Owens returned to the sidelines, coach Parcells was seen talking to Owens in apparent anger only to be hit by more Owens backlash.
-Marvin Lewis and his Cincinnati Bengals are quickly becoming the Portland Trail Blazers of the NFL. Chad Johnson is continuing to whine about his lack of catches while T. J Houshmandzadeh is following Johnson’s lead in terms of immaturity. Houshmandzadeh and Johnson are seen constantly complaining to Carson Palmer and voicing their displeasures to the media. All this while their mediocre performance and lack of effort is quickly turning this season into a disaster for the once promising Bengals.
Second Down - Top Ten
Indianapolis- Somehow, it seems that Peyton Manning has found a way to improve his game. While facing a solid pass rush on Sunday, Manning completed numerous long throws against the Pats while on the run. This had always been his biggest weakness.
Denver - a close battle with the Patriots for second place. Denver’s win in Foxborough puts them ahead in the rankings.
New England - You should expect to see Tom Brady and Company come out flying this week after a rare embarrassing performance in Week 9.
San Diego - LaDainian Tomlinson and the Chargers continue to dominate their opponents offensively as they await the return of their linebacking crew.
Chicago - An occasional bad performance is to be expected by such an inexperienced quarterback, but twice in three weeks should be worrisome for the Bears.
New York Giants - The Giants offense is still sputtering, but New York has a two-game lead over the next best team in the division. With a win Sunday against the Bears, they will be in position for the top seed in the conference.
Baltimore - The Ravens are taking control of the AFC North behind a suddenly resurgent ground game and a continuously stout defense.
New Orleans - The Saints passed a huge test on Sunday when they showed an ability to bounce back after the previous week’s defeat to the Ravens.
Jacksonville - Byron Leftwich had better hope his ankle injury improves real soon or he may never get his job back from David Garrard.
Atlanta - The Falcons get a pass in their loss to the Lions, but if they get knocked off by Cleveland, you can expect to hear the questions about Vick’s inconsistencies return.
Third Down - Top Games for Next Week
New York Jets at New England Patriots
Washington Redskins at Philadelphia Eagles
San Diego Chargers at Cincinnati Bengals
St. Louis Rams at Seattle Seahawks
Chicago Bears at New York Giants
Fourth Down - Who I Like and Why
New York Jets at New England - The Patriots will bounce back behind a hard-nosed running attack and the steady play of Tom Brady to knock off the Jets.
Washington at Philadelphia - The Eagles have had two weeks to ponder their lousy performance against Jacksonville. Expect McNabb and Company to come out flying this week against Washington.
Cleveland at Atlanta - Atlanta has been getting away from their reliable running game over the last month. Expect Coach Mora to lean on Warrick Dunn and his other runners this week.
Kansas City at Miami - The suddenly resurgent Chiefs will let Larry Johnson pound their way to a fourth straight victory.
Green Bay at Minnesota - Minnesota’s early season magic is quickly disappearing. I expect Brett Favre and the Packers will go into Minnesota and knock off the Vikings again.
San Francisco at Detroit - The Lions offense is just going to be too much for the worst defense in the NFL.
Buffalo at Indianapolis - Without McGahee, the Bills just do not have the ability to take advantage of an extremely weak Colts run defense.
Baltimore at Tennessee - You know Steve McNair has been looking forward to the opportunity when he could show the Titans that he can still play. Expect the Ravens to be extra motivated this week.
Houston at Jacksonville - The Texans have been playing much better of late; Jacksonville, however, is practically unbeatable at home.
San Diego at Cincinnati - The Bengals’ inability to stop the run is not a good problem to have when facing LT and the Chargers. The inconsistent Bengals are in serious trouble in the very competitive AFC playoff chase.
Denver at Oakland - Mike Shanahan and the Broncos are always motivated against the Raiders. I cannot see Denver experiencing a letdown this week.
Dallas at Arizona - After a heartbreaking loss in Washington, expect the Cowboys to bounce back in the desert.
St. Louis at Seattle - St. Louis needs this game far more then Seattle does. I have a feeling the Rams will surprise the division-leading Seahawks.
New Orleans at Pittsburgh - More bad news for the defending champs: Drew Brees and the high scoring Saints will be too much for the Steelers to handle.
Chicago at New York Giants - The Dolphins and Cardinals have given the rest of the NFL a blueprint for success against the Bears. The Giants will apply constant pressure on Rex Grossman on their way to victory.
Tampa Bay at Carolina - After their bye week, I expect the Panthers to get back over .500 this week. Carolina’s defense is not a recipe for success for the 31st-ranked Bucs’ offense.
posted by marinjos at 9:39 PM
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