Fantasy
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Atlanta handled Washington pretty easily, 31-17, as Michael Turner exploded for 166 yards and a pair of touchdowns on just 18 carries. Matt Ryan struggled again—he’s not playing that well, folks, regardless of the hype—but Turner and the defense picked him up. A blatant out-of-bounds hit on Ryan by former Falcon, and lifelong punk, DeAngleo Hall caused a mini-riot on the Falcons sideline. Leading the charge to get to Hall was Falcons Coach, Mike Smith. You think the players don’t notice and appreciate that? Atlanta might not catch New Orleans for the division title, but they’re in pretty good shape as far as a wild card berth is concerned. However, if they want to win a playoff game, Ryan’s play must improve. As for the Redskins, the highlight shows can put up all the graphics they want about how much the offense has improved under Sherm Lewis’ watch…but the only thing that matters in this league is the win column, and they’re not improving there. It all starts with ownership. Always has. In every sport.
How long will it take before people realize the Bears aren’t winning anything? When they got Jay Cutler, all the talk was about how that was the missing piece to the puzzle. Chicago hasn’t even found an end piece to that puzzle at this point. Their defense was embarrassing once again, allowing Kurt Warner to call his shots all game…and that was without Anquan Boldin! Cutler was playing catch-up all game, so he did accumulate some gaudy numbers, but as he was doing that, Matt Forte was running the ball five times all game. That should tell you all you need to know about how Chicago’s game-plan went on Sunday. Much as I would like to heap the blame on Cutler, it’s difficult to perform when your defense gives up touchdown after touchdown. Arizona will make the playoffs because they’re in a weak division and somehow, they’ve learned to play on the road this season (4-0). Chicago isn’t going anywhere with that defense and that coach. At what point do questions like, “Why is Cedric Benson playing so well now that he’s left Chicago?” or “Why is Kyle Orton’s team in first place and why is he having a better season than our fancy new quarterback?” get answered? Is it a coincidence that these players are performing THAT much better having left Lovie Smith’s Bears?
On the other hand, we have Benson’s new team, the Cincinnati Bengals. They denied Ray Lewis and his flock of Ravens their revenge, beating them for the second time this season. The 17-7 win was no fluke—the Cincy D outplayed the Baltimore D and the Carson Palmer to Chad Ochocinco connection has clearly been reestablished. Palmer’s health and the running of Benson are the reasons this offense is playing so well, but a motivated Ochocinco is the icing on the cake, the thing that makes this team a genuine threat against anyone. The Ravens gave up 369 yards of offense and could convert only one of ten third down chances of their own. But it was Cincy’s defense that pressured Baltimore—when you don’t have the ball often enough, you are forced to score every time. Baltimore couldn’t do it. Benson’s running helped the Bengals gain a 20 minute advantage in time of possession and the defense did the rest. Cincy goes to Pittsburgh Sunday…the border rivalry will have some extra juice to it. I can’t wait to see that game.
The Colts remained undefeated by hanging on against the Texans, who deserved better. Peyton Manning threw for over 300 yards and a touchdown but he threw the ball 50 times, 40 in the first half alone! But of course, the little things are what separate teams like Houston from teams like Indy. The Texans committed 13 penalties, several of which aided Colts’ scoring drives. And of course, there’s the kicker. Houston’s Kris Brown had already hit a 56-yarder in the game, but that was in the middle of the contest. When it came down to it, with no time left, down three…he couldn’t hit a 42-yarder. There are losses and there are losses that stay with you. The Texans have to win games like these if they’re going to take the next step, and as easy as it is to blame the kicker, the penalties were just as crucial. Dot those “i”s and cross those “t”s…or you’ll be 8-8 forever.
Jacksonville is 4-4 all of a sudden, and in playoff contention halfway through the season. Pretty interesting considering how bad they’ve looked in their losses. But before both Jags’ fans get excited, consider the fact that they’ve beaten Houston, Tennessee, St. Louis, and Kansas City—hardly Murderer’s Row. With the underrated Mike Sims-Walker and Maurice Jones-Drew, they DO have weapons...but not enough all-around players to compete for a wild card spot. Kansas City lost, but they’re winners in my mind for getting rid of the poisonous Larry Johnson. Well done.
It almost looked like the Saints were bored, so they spotted Carolina a big lead just to make it interesting. I know that wasn’t the case, but seriously—can anyone beat these guys? The New Orleans offense puts so much pressure on the other team’s offense that eventually, the Saints defense finds a way to take advantage of it. The New Orleans D scores every game! It’s insane! The Saints aren’t going undefeated, but they’ll have home field advantage throughout the playoffs and honestly, who’s going to beat them in the Dome?
Tom Brady to Randy Moss. How great was that stiff arm that Moss put on Vontae Davis? New England is looking strong, but how will that defense handle Peyton Manning this week? I think those two teams, along with Pittsburgh and Cincy, are the Final Four of the AFC right now. That’s a formidable conference.
Green Bay and San Francisco have revealed themselves—they’re not for real. Not this season. You can’t lose to Tampa and Tennessee like that and say you’re ready to take the next step. Major, major disappointment for those two teams, but at the same time, some hope for Tampa and Tennessee. Josh Freeman played a gutsy game for the Bucs and Vince Young is 2-0 since being installed as the starter for the Titans. It’s too soon to say those two are anything resembling saviors, but so far, so good. Those fans will take what they can get at this point.
Seattle beat Detroit and I think Matthew Stafford just threw another interception. Guh.
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