NFL: Week Five
Well, it had to happen sooner or later. Earlier this year, I predicted that my picks would be south of B Money and Sibs, a team managed by Jeff Mester’s kids, but right now we are neck and neck. (Give the kids a week.) However, I neglected to foresee the possibility that I was going to lose to a one-year old. (Almost, I think.)
Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you Mommy and Me, a team co-managed by Theo Shriber, featured here. Yes, his mother Amy knows a lot about football, but she swears the picks are generally made by which part of the keyboard Theo slams when she’s making picks. Swallow that with your lunch, which I assume is a healthy portion of humble pie.
Congrats, Theo. Oh yeah, you too Amy.
A very strange week ended appropriately enough, with Pittsburgh winning on a last-second field goal. I should have seen that coming when the entire staff of Inside the NFL predicted a San Diego win. Some great plays across the league: Pittsburgh linebacker James Harrison completely hurdled LaDanian Tomlinson on one of the most athletic plays I’ve seen in a while, and Anquan Boldin scored after breaking what appeared to be 75,698 tackles. Lots of other great plays all over the league, of course.
I spent Sunday – which, yes, was my birthday – at Candlestick Park watching my 49ers get punked by the Colts. It was fun to watch Peyton Manning, though his posturing at the line, pretending to change the play every play, gets old quick. (By the way, does anyone else think that Haley Joel Osment is going to look a lot like Peyton Manning when he’s done growing up? Just me, then? OK.) I must say, the 49ers hung in there for awhile, and even though Alex Smith’s stats were…well, putrid, stats don’t reflect that he showed some poise, a very strong arm, and hopefully it’s a starting point. Ahem.
What to make of the Dallas beatdown of Philadelphia? A team that had to rally to beat the 49ers, got beat by the Raiders then trounces Philly? I have to write this off as Dallas feeling that this was a game they absolutely had to win, and Philly not feeling nearly the same way about the game. The same can absolutely be said for Green Bay’s smackdown of the New Orleans Saints, with the caveat that New Orleans isn’t very good, and soon to be much worse after losing Deuce McAllister for the year.
On the flip side, I look at the previously unbeaten teams that lost this weekend – Tampa, Washington and Cincinnati – and I think, yeah…that sounds right. Cincy is clearly the best of the three and they aren’t the class of the AFC. The best teams in the AFC right now are clearly Indy, New England, San Diego and Pittsburgh – regardless of record, those are the most complete teams. Cincy is just outside looking in. (And yes, I didn’t mention Baltimore – what a pathetic display that was, losing to the Lions with tons of penalties, sloppy play everywhere…yikes.) In the NFC, a much weaker conference, Tampa still is extremely young and over-reliant on a rookie running back. Washington is all defense, and can beat teams that it can hold to under 20 points, but that’s not going to do it all season long. Unless you are Indy, currently holding teams to less than six points a game for the season. That’s truly insane. And with that offense – hey, it seems just fine that Indy is the only undefeated team out there right now.
I must say, of all the things I enjoyed about the games this weekend, hearing the ESPN broadcasters refer to the Pittsburgh coach as “the slobbering Bill Cowher” ranks right up there. Dude, drooling just ain’t cool for a man in his forties.
On a more serious note, I hope that Mike Martz gets better. As someone who really likes to make fun of that guy, I really had hoped that he’d leave the team because he’s a crap coach, not because he’s ill. Damn reality and its infringement on my ability to be a jerk!
Here’s a chilling thought of its own. I look at running backs Ahman Green and Fred Taylor and I have the same thought – old man, at the end or at least downside of his career, broken down by football. Green is 28, Taylor is 29.
Wow.
A few things I heard on sports radio that I thought I’d pass along. One – and this is something I’ve heard considerably – is that Detroit players simply don’t think that Joey Harrington can ever be their leader. Some have suggested he should drop the Y in his name, but I don’t think that’s gonna do it. And frankly, there is no reason they should rally around the guy – he flat out stinks. So, if I were Matt Millen, I’d be quarterback shopping. Anyone hear what Chris Simms is up to? Phillip Rivers?
Two, if you heard Brian Cox (who I must admit I like as a radio host) describe his own experience with a sports hernia, you’d be very, very concerned about Donovan McNabb. Without getting too graphic, let’s just say that I never want to hear the phrase “bone-crippling, staggering pain” paired with “your little man and the hole” ever, ever again.
Finally, for those who haven’t heard yet…the dream is just about over. That’s right…I’m going back to work. I almost made it a full year without earning a dime, and I hate to say it, but it was one of the best years of my life. I’ll be working at Wells Fargo running projects for the Internet Services Group, a group that I believe fellow Greebytime Pick ‘Em participant Raging Buckeyes - aka Tom Pendolino – also works in. He informs me that the Pick ‘Em has made it through the Wells Fargo firewalls, which is good news all around.
Alright – onwards and upwards. Until we meet again…