Week 9 - POWER RANKINGS

Here are my Power Rankings heading into Week 9

1. Baltimore Ravens
2. New England Patriots
3. Pittsburgh Steelers
4. Indianapolis Colts
5. New York Giants
6. New York Jets
7. Atlanta Falcons
8. New Orleans Saints
9. Philadelphia Eagles
10. Kansas City Chiefs
11. Green Bay Packers
12. Houston Texans
13. Miami Dolphins
14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
15. Tennessee Titans
16. San Diego Chargers
17. Oakland Raiders
18. St. Louis Rams
19. Seattle Seahawks
20. Minnesota Vikings
21. San Francisco 49ers
22. Jacksonville Jaguars
23. Chicago Bears
24. Washington Redskins
25. Arizona Cardinals
26. Denver Broncos
27. Cincinnati Bengals
28. Cleveland Browns
29. Detroit Lions
30. Dallas Cowboys
31. Buffalo Bills
32. Carolina Panthers

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly - -Week 7

Good

The Oakland Raiders. Who saw this coming? The Raiders came out and destroyed the Denver Broncos on Sunday. Oakland posted 59 points and Darren McFadden led the way with 4 touchdowns in the route. The Raiders are 3-4 with have put themselves in a good spot to make a run at the division. Can they keep this going? Probably not, but this type of win should do wonders for their confidence.

Bad

New Orleans Saints: The Superbowl hangover is in full swing. Lowly Cleveland did its part to affirm AFC supremacy by shocking the Saints in New Orleans. The Saints need a running game ASAP. The talented Drew Brees simply cannot do it all on his own. The Saints used to cause headaches with the backfield of the versatile Bush and the capable Thomas, but injuries have forced them into a one-dimensional offense. Chris Ivory is now their lead back but he’s been relatively ineffective and New Orleans brought in noted smoker Julius Jones to help the running game. He had 1 carry for 6 yards in Sunday’s loss. The Saints have big questions to answer if they want to keep Tampa and Atlanta from taking the top spots in the division.

Ugly

Jay Cutler QB Chicago Bears. The Bears are who we thought they are. Chicago thought its ills would disappear with the appearance of Jay Cutler. When that didn’t work out, the team brought in offensive guru Mike Martz. The Redskins do not have a lot of talent, but they’re a much better coached and disciplined team than Chicago. Cutler threw a slew of interceptions to DeAngelo Hall and then had the audacity to disparage Hall after the game by saying he’d throw at him all day if they played again. Hall has had a lot of ups and downs in his career but he destroyed Cutler on Sunday. Cutler’s bravado appears less like confidence and more like arrogance. A little humility may do the Bears’ QB well. He’s got an electric arm but he’s also an interception machine with a penchant for holding the ball too long. Maybe the Bears should consider benching him to bring him back to reality.

Week 6 - The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Good:

Deion Branch, New England Patriots. Branch proved Bill Belichick right and me wrong. Branch put up solid numbers and gave Tom Brady a versatile passing option. Randy Moss is certainly one of the all time greats, but he evolved (or aged) into a deep threat and not much more. Branch caught nine passes for 98 yards and a touchdown on Sunday against Baltimore. Typically, receivers are not able to jump into the lineup with such ease, but Branch’s rapport with Brady was obviously still there. New England held Ray Rice to 88 yards and no touchdowns. Not too shabby for a Pats D that ranks among the worst against. Deion Branch helped the Pats keep pace on offense to pull out the win in overtime.

Bad:

The San Diego Chargers. Prior to the season almost everyone gave the AFC West to the Chargers. At 2-4, San Diego may still win the division but that speaks to how weak the division is and not how strong the Chargers are. San Diego lost Sunday to the St. Louis Rams. The Rams were coming off a drubbing at the hands of the Lions the week prior, game in which the team lost their top receiver, Michael Clayton, for the year. The Chargers submitted 7 sacks to the Rams. They also lost Antonia Gates and Malcolm Floyd to injury. If the Chargers lose either of those guys for an extended period, it will place even more pressure on QB Phillip Rivers and could place their playoff hopes in jeopardy.

Ugly:

The Dallas Cowboys. The team has as much talent as anyone else in the league. They’ve outplayed each one of their opponents with the possible exception of the Bears but Dallas cannot get out of their own way. Every time this team does something good, it’s nullified by a moronic penalty or a turnover. The problems start with Jerry Jones. His only successes as an owner have come when he relinquishes his hold on the team. The talent base of the current team was largely put together under the Parcell's regime. He went cheap before the season letting veterans who played large roles on special teams and doing the little things go for league minimum un-drafted rookies. Jones failed to address the lack of a Free Safety and opted to go with Alan Ball, an undersized converted corner at the position. Ball is an absolute abomination. Jones allows Phillips to continue as head coach because Phillips allows him to do all those Jerry things, show up in the locker room, take credit, and run the show. On the sideline, Phillips always looks clueless. Offensive coordinator, Jason Garrett fell in love with screen and swing passes against the Vikings. It wasn’t all the long ago Garrett was being courted by many NFL teams. The easy wins are over. Other than Jacksonville and Detroit, it’s hard to say who this team can beat. Colts, Giants (x2), Eagles (x2), and the Saints…America’s Team looks good on paper but does nothing a winning team needs to. I have a feeling that the Giants defensive front will have Romo running for his life come Monday night.

Power Rankings Week 5

NFL Power Rankings - following Week 5

1. Pittsburgh Steelers
2. New York Jets
3. Baltimore Ravens
4. New England Patriots
5. Atlanta Falcons
6. Indianapolis Colts
7. New York Giants
8. Tennessee Titans
9. Houston Texans
10. Washington Redskins
11. Philadelphia Eagles
12. New Orleans Saints
13. Kansas City Chiefs
14. Chicago Bears
15. San Diego Chargers
16. Miami Dolphins
17. Minnesota Vikings
18. Green Bay Packers
19. Cincinnati Bengals
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
21. Dallas Cowboys
22. Denver Broncos
23. Jacksonville Jaguars
24. Oakland Raiders
25. San Francisco 49ers
26. Detroit Lions
27. St. Louis Rams
28. Arizona Cardinals
29. Seattle Seahawks
30. Cleveland Brown
31. Carolina Panthers
32. Buffalo Bills

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly - Week 5

Good:

The Detroit Lions. Sure they played the Rams, but the Lions put on a show. The Lions have hung tough against each opponent thus far and should have beaten the Bears in week 1. The Lions poured on 44 points in the win. Back-up QB Shaun Hill threw for 3 TD’s and no interceptions and did a nice job of spreading the wealth. Detroit also scored on a kick return and interception return. The Lions may only be 1-4, but no one in the NFL should take them lightly.

Bad:

The Dallas Cowboys. Once again, the Cowboys outplayed their opponents but could not get out of their own way. Over 130 yards in penalties and 3 turnovers offset Romo’s 400 passing yards and 3 TD, Austin’s 166 receiving yards and Jones’ 100 rushing yards. The Cowboys’ failed to address their aging offensive line, Free Safety, and coaching issues in the off-season and the chickens have come home to roost. The Cowboys have had their biggest successes when Jerry Jones takes a back seat to real football minds, until he earnestly realizes this, the team will wallow in mediocrity. Home Super Bowl? Don’t kid yourself. Let’s focus on being .500 for the time being.

Ugly:

Jake Delhomme. Delhomme replaced the injured Seneca Wallace and reaffirmed his washed up status. Delhomme was 12 of 23 for 97 yards 0 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. One of those interceptions was taken back for a touchdown (good to see Jake hasn’t lost his touch). In a gesture of mercy towards the good fans of Cleveland, Delhomme re-injured his ankle. The Browns signed Delhomme as a place holder for the QB position until McCoy was ready to take the helm. Thus far, Jake’s 33 of 60 for 324 yards with 1 touchdown and 4 interceptions. In the last 2 years, Browns fans have seen Derek Anderson, Brady Quinn, Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace under center. Seneca has been the best of the group and he’s a career back up. Not exactly a tough act to follow for the rookie McCoy, he’s like the bizarre-o Steve Young.

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly - Week 4

Good:

The Giants Defense: With their backs against the wall, the Giants D came out swinging. They put relentless pressure on the Bears’ triumvirate of QB’s. Cutler left the game with a concussion, Todd Collins regretted his decision to not stay retired, and some guy named Hanie was taking snaps by the end of the game. This defense showed its potential Sunday night, they won this game. Bradshaw aside, the offense looked rather pedestrian. Kolb, McNabb, and Romo should take note: if you hold onto the ball against this D, you may end up seeing stars on the sidelines too.

Bad:

The Seattle Seahawks. Matt Hasselbeck posted a 58 QB rating and the team ran for a total of 64 yards. The bright spot for the offense came in the form of Brandon Stokley. The recently signed receiver led the team with 64 yards off 4 receptions. (So much for the Mike-Williams-as-a-fantasy-sleeper pick) Defensively, Seattle fared better. They managed 4 sacks and a pick but gave up 20 points against a Rams offense that lacks a true receiving threat and has a banged up Steven Jackson. Seattle overachieved early. They’ve settled back into their expected futility.

The Ugly:

Derek Anderson, QB, Arizona Cardinals: Are we sure this guy didn’t sell his soul to the devil for his 2007 season? Based upon his lone productive year (3,700 yds, 29 TD’s), Anderson manages to convince teams to keep taking a chance on him in hopes that he will recapture that glory. The Cardinals released Matt Leinart prior to the season solidifying Anderson’s place as the starter. Sunday, the Cards benched Anderson after a lackluster 7 of 14 for 64 yards with 2 picks effort in favor of Max Hall. Hall replaced Anderson to throw for a paltry 82 yards and was sacked 6 times. Larry Fitzgerald and Steve Smith (Carolina) should start some sort of support group for victimized wide-receivers.

Week 16 Selections

Straight Up Winners in BOLD
ATS winners in ( )

San Diego @ Tennessee (-3) - Doesn't it concern you that Vegas has the TITANS favored here? Rumors along the Charger front are that the starters will play at least the first half and part of the second half. I am anticipating Rivers, LT, Gates, and Jackson all to be off the field in the fourth quarter. This game bears no significance to the Chargers playoff standing. They will be the #2 seed, have a bye in the first week, and play a home game in the divisional round. End of story. The starters have to play at least the first half to keep their game sharp, but anyone that is banged up a bit (Merriman, Phillips, Weddle) will definitely get some time to heal up over the next two weeks of the regular season and into the first week of the playoffs. The Chargers are much more dangerous with healthy players than they are with a record of 13-3 vs 12-4 or 11-5. That being said, I think the Titans offense will throw the kitchen sink at the Chargers defense. Chris Johnson will get plenty of touches, and VY will make things happen in and out of the pocket. The Titans are a dangerous team, and when Jeff Fisher has never won against the Chargers, wouldn't this be a bit of a Cinderella win for him. I think so. TITANS over the CHARGERS 30 - 24.

Seattle (+14) @ Green Bay

Oakland (+3) @ Cleveland

Kansas City @ Cincinnati (-14)

Buffalo @ Atlanta (-9)

Houston (+3) @ Miami

Carolina @ New York Giants (-7)

Tampa Bay (+14) @ New Orleans

Jacksonville (+8) @ New England

Baltimore (+3) @ Pittsburgh

St. Louis @ Arizona (-14)

Detroit (+12) @ San Francisco

Denver @ Philadelphia (-7)

New York Jets (+6) @ Indianapolis

Dallas @ Washington (+7)

Minnesota (-7) @ Chicago

Power Rankings

Entering Week 12 in the NFL here are my Power Rankings:

1. Indianapolis Colts (10-0)
2. New Orleans Saints (10-0)
3. Minnesota Vikings (9-1)
4. New England Patriots (7-3)
5. San Diego Chargers (7-3)
6. Cincinnati Bengals (7-3)
7. Arizona Cardinals (7-3)
8. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-4)
9. Philadelphia Eagles (6-4)
10. Dallas Cowboys (6-4)
11. Green Bay Packers (6-4)
12. New York Giants (6-4)
13. Denver Broncos (6-4)
14. Houston Texans (5-5)
15. Jacksonville Jaguars (6-4)
16. Atlanta Falcons (5-5)
17. Miami Dolphins (5-5)
18. Baltimore Ravens (4-6)
19. San Francisco 49ers (4-6)
--------will not make playoff's------
20. Carolina Panthers (4-6)
21. Tennessee Titans (4-6)
22. Chicago Bears (4-6)
23. New York Jets (4-6)
24. Washington Redskins (3-7)
25. Kansas City Chiefs (3-7)
26. Seattle Seahawks (3-7)
27. Buffalo Bills (3-7)
28. Oakland Raiders (3-7)
29. Detroit Lions (2-8)
30. St. Louis Rams (1-9)
31. Tampa Bay Buccanears (1-9)
32. Cleveland Browns (1-9)

Week 9 Aftermath

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of Week 9 in the NFL:

THE GOOD-

-Good for you Tampa Bay, Josh Freeman played great and got the first win in front of the home crowd. Good for you.

-The Dallas Cowboys; congratulations winning in Philadelphia was huge for you guys. Tony Romo and Miles Austin only hooked up one time in this game, but it was the 49 yard game winning touchdown catch by Austin that sealed it for the Cowboys in Philly.

-The Saints and The Colts; both games were in jeopardy, and you both came out victoriously.

-Cincinnati Bengals- Okay, you guys are for real...end of story.

-Arizona Cardinals- Gigantic win over the Bears, but can you guys start being consistent so I can label you as a team to beat, not a team that competes 2 out of every 3 weeks.

-San Diego- Phillip Rivers is a beast, this defense is beginning to look more formidable and the chemistry is growing each week. Imagine if Merriman was back on the juice...

-Lastly, the Steelers. Coming off the bye week, you did not disappoint in Denver. Mendenhall closed out the game nicely...see ya Willie P.

THE BAD-

-San Francisco 49ers - 34 points to the Titans? At home? Come on Singletary.

-The Eagles - Andy Reid, the game management was pathetic, PA-THET-IC!

-HOUSTON- I had you! Kris Brown, oh so reliable Kris Brown!!!

-Baltimore- I expected much better out of you. Benson gets another 100 yard rushing game, first time you guys have allowed the same back to rush for 100+ yards in the same season since 1997 (Jerome Bettis).


THE UGLY-

-Green Bay - That was ugly. Protect your quarterback and you guys win that game. Still...Ugly.

-Mike Smith - You are the head coach of a National Football League team and you wanted to fight DeAngelo Hall??? Conduct unbecoming of a NFL head coach...Do you have some CABLE in you?

-Denver - You guys are sinking like the titanic. Baltimore first, now Pittsburgh. Ouch.

-Chicago - The Bears have given up 30+ points in the first half of a game two times this season, compared to a total of 5 dating all the way back to 1920. That's worse than ugly.

-Detroit - How do you jump offsides? What are you possibly thinking?

Week 7 Sunday Recap

Let's take a quick look at the game that took place today:

-New England, Indianapolis, Green Bay, and New York Jets all dominated as I predicted they would.

-Pittsburgh's defense looked sharp scoring two touchdowns to give the Steelers the 10 point victory over the Vikings. Minnesota played well, kept themselves in the game, but turnovers killed them.

-San Diego looked like they are on their way back to old form. Phillip Rivers threw for 3 touchdowns, and the defense had 4 sacks, 3 interceptions, and a blocked punt returned for a touchdown.

-Houston beat the 49ers by 3, the 49ers were led by Alex Smith after Shaun Hill got benched after a dismal first half. Smith connected on 3 touchdown passes to tight end Vernon Davis, but threw an interception late in the 4th that allowed the Texans to move to 4-3.

-Buffalo won in Carolina, an ugly win at best, but a win is a win and now the Bills are 3-4 and feeling good on the flight home to Buffalo. The Bills defense had 3 interceptions, 2 sacks, a fumble recovery, and were the main reason that the Bills won this game. Both teams looked bad all game.

-New Orleans scored 22 points in the 4th quarter and survived a scare in Miami. Miami had the Saints, but poor play calling in the 4th quarter cost them the game in my opinion. Chad Henne showed his rookie arm off late in this game as well.

-Dallas looked terrific at home today. Tony Romo out performed Matt Ryan, and the Cowboys defense came up with key 3rd down stops, one that led to a Patrick Crayton punt return. Atlanta has work to do this week in practice, that's a tough loss heading into a road game against New Orleans.

-Cincinnati dominated Chicago. Carson Palmer threw for 5 touchdowns and Cedric Benson ran 37 times for 189 yards and a touchdown. Chad Ochocinco had a great game with 10 catches for 118 yards and 2 TD's. The Bears were horrible from the opening whistle to the closing seconds in the 4th quarter. Cutler threw 3 interceptions, the Bears ran the ball 9 times with running backs, and the defense recorded no sacks, forced fumbles, or interceptions.

-Arizona looks like they are back to where they were last December and January. Very impressive win in the Meadowlands against the Giants. The Cardinals defense shutdown Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw, as well as put a lot of pressure on Eli Manning forcing him to commit a late interception that ended the Giants chance to tie the game. Very impressed by the Cardinals, and hopefully the Giants have a short memory because they head to Philly for a tough divisional matchup.