The Not So Beastly NFC East

Let's start with the Cowboys getting dismantled, and I mean outplayed and outcoached by the Arizona Cardinals. Maybe people will no longer call me crazy when I say I'd rather have Matt Ryan (who doesn't turn the ball over) on my team than Tony Romo (who's turnover streak has reached 20 straight games and this was only his 5th career game w/o an interception).

The Cowboys officially have an awful defense. Outside of DeMarcus Ware, there really aren't any Pro Bowlers on that squad this year. The Offense, Owens was held in check by the 'Zona Defense. Jason Witten was the ever-consistent bright spot. Romo had about 6 fumbles that he turned over, one including an Arizona Cardinals TD. The real score of this game Ladies and Gentlemen (even if we count all but one of the turnovers taken away as field goals) the Cardinals win this game in regulation, 37-21. If that isn't a blowout, I don't know what is.

You can go ahead and say "well the refs made the right calls," come on, this is Ed Hochuli we're talking about. Whistle Blown? They took care of that a long time ago. Tuck Rule? Maybe, but it looked more like Romo had the ball knocked out of his hand.

Later on in the week I'll rank the NFC Quarterbacks... see where I put Romo, it won't be in the top 10. On another note, Marion the Barberian had a very lousy game outside of the meaningless touchdown, where most Cardinals fans will rightly say "They let him score to get the ball back". Dallas should be greatful, somewhere in an alternate universe they are 0-5... and forty years from that point they'll still be playoff winless, too. This year? Not happening.

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Out on the West Coast, most San Francisco fans sold their tickets to Eagles fans. The final count was that the stadium was packed but more than half were rooting for the visitor. Sounds a lot like last time, when there were next to no 9ers fans in the stadium at half time.

Correll Buckhalter, definitely the most all-around backup Runningback at least in the NFC. I mean think of it, who else is as good a receiver and runningback.... and if you even think Reggie Bush I will MIND CRUSH you, because he is a Receiver-Back (his own hybrid Wide Receiver position just to make the Saints fans happy). Then again, the last time the Eagles played the 9ers, Westbrook posted a 100/100, rushing just 17 times for 117 yards and 2 TDs, and catching 7 balls for over 100 and a TD. The score was different, San Fran scored a meaningless last second TD to soften the blowout of 38-24.

This was a season saving victory for the Eagles, who now have to face an Atlanta team after the bye week who is also coming off a bye week at that point. So for now we tell Matt Ryan "Only you can prevent yourself from being flat on your back the entire game"

Action Jackson was once again stellar, catching 4 3rd Down conversions and a couple of 25+ yard plays. Through 6 games he has 29 Receptions for 433 Yards and a TD. If he were to keep on pace with that production (Provided no one triple teams him like Pittsburgh did), he'll finish with 77 Receptions for 1154 yards and 4-6 TDs. While this likely won't happen, reaching the 1,000 yard mark would likely make him a shoo-in for R.O.Y.. Anyone who can literally run off Nate Clements' pants and run around with them all game and is a rookie, is a pretty darn good player.

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The Skins are one step closer to reverting to the old and deeply entrenched history of being awful without Joe Gibbs. I think we need to see where they are when they're playing good teams, that loss against the Giants makes the Giants look pretty good right now.

This team needed this win more than they knew it. Not only is the fact that they lost to what everyone acknowledges to be the worst team in football, bad enough. Their offense turned the ball over three times and was awful for almost the entire game. The two bright spots on their team today was the job the Defense did against Steven Jackson and Clinton Portis on the ground. This Redskins team didn't get outplayed at home, but they did get outcoached.

So for now we hold off the accolades and we hope that the Redskins don't start to play like this every week. In the end, they're back to what I thought they were, at worst 7-9, at best 10-6. It's just too bad for them that 10-6 doesn't make the playoffs this year... but then again Dallas might not go 8-8.

Dallas Cowboys

The game helped the Cowboys in many ways:
1. It helped T.O. be happier than he was, we still need him to be happier but he is getting better.
2. We do have a running game. After we played the Redskins I was afraid that we were loosing our running game but we had 198 yards on the ground this game. even though it is against cincy it is still good.
3. Felix Jones is looking better and better, he was definitly our best draft pick.

Things to watch:
1. our defence. i mean yes we held cincy to 2 touchdowns, but they had 3 field goals and a recovered onside kick. And we had our first interception....ouch. Come on this is cincy, not the best offence in the leauge, we need to stop teams from getting into field goal range.
2. Romo needs to stop giving the other team the ball, he did it twice in this game, he can't let that happen again

Week 4 Power Rankings... Big NFC East Letdowns

1. Tennessee Titans:

• They're like the 2000 Ravens with a lot more offensive firepower and a little bit less of a defense... but only a sliver.
  

2. Buffalo Bills:

• Young team, Young QB, Young RB, Young Defense, Young Everything... and they're 4-0. Their defense has the best players you've never heard of.

3. New York Giants:

• Bye Week, 3-0... Seahawks up next... they could be here until they face the Steelers.
  

4. Pittsburgh Steelers:

• Huge comeback win over a young, up and coming Ravens team.
  

5. Dallas Cowboys:

• They are who we thought they were. T.O. is still the team killer, Tony Romo is a turnover happy QB and Wade Philips is going to be in the same place in January, crying his eyeballs out at another playoff loss.
  

6. Washington Redskins:

• Skins are getting better every second on the game clock. Jason Campbell might be the best QB in the NFC East by the end of the year.
  

7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers:

• Three Defensive Touchdowns in 3 weeks have put them over the edge in their last two games.
  

8. San Diego Chargers:

• They've won 13 of their last 16 including playoffs.
  

9. Philadelphia Eagles:

• Getting 5 Starters back next week is a big boost to a team that looked very mediocre without Shawn Andrews, L.J. Smith and most importantly, Brian Westbrook. Having Kevin Curtis and Victor Abiamiri just adds Ice Cream to the Cheesecake.
  

10. Carolina Panthers:

• With Steve Smith and Muhsin Muhammad they're probably the favorite to be the no. 2 seed in the NFC.... if they can keep Jake Delhomme upright.
  

11. Denver Broncos:

12. Jacksonville Jaguars:

13. Green Bay Packers

14. Chicago Bears

15. New York Jets:

16. New Orleans Saints:

17. Indianapolis Colts:

18. Arizona Cardinals:

19. Baltimore Ravens:

20. San Francisco 49ers:

21. Atlanta Falcons:

22. New England Patriots:

23. Minnesota Vikings:

24. Seattle Seahawks:

25. Miami Dolphins:

26. Kansas City Chiefs:

27. Cleveland Browns:

28. Oakland Raiders:

29. Cincinnati Bengals:

30. Houston Texans:

31. Detroit Lions:

32. St. Louis Rams:

Week 4 NFC East Predictions

Dallas @ Washington:
This is going to be a very hard fought game, Dallas' juggernaut Offense goes up against the Skins who are Solid in all three phases of the game. The three key matchups are:

• Dallas' D-Line vs. Washington O-Line
  
• Advantage --> Dallas
• Washington Offense vs. Dallas Defense
• Advantage --> Washington
• Tony Romo vs. Redskins Pass D
• Advantage Dallas

Final Verdict:
This is going to be a game that will be competitive until around half-time or the end of the 3rd Quarter. The Washington Defense without Jason Taylor is a HUGE hamper to their Pass Rush and this will put them back big time. The Skins have won in Dallas a grand total of 12 times in this long and storied rivalry... they've won just 1 time in the last 14 years, making them the 2nd easiest Home Game for the Cowboys outside of the Green Bay Packers, during that span. The Redskins will put up points but at the end of the day the final score is, Cowboys, 45-31.

Extra predictions:

• Romo continues his current streak of 3 straight games with a Red Zone INT, and throws at least 2 interceptions and loses a fumble.
• Marion Barber finally gets over 100 yards in a game
• Felix Jones gets another touchdown be it kickoff or rushing.
• Devin Thomas gets an Offensive Pass Interference call to push his streak up to 4 games.
• Bold Prediction - DeMarcus Ware gets 4 Sacks
  

Eagles @ Bears:
You know it's going to be a long day for the Bears when all the experts say that even if - and yes that is an unlikely IF - McNabb and Westbrook are out, the Eagles will still win easily. McNabb I would say would be more likely to play than Westbrook at this point (but Westbrook I would assume will play). Here are the key matchups:

• Brian Westbrook vs. Bears' Defense
• Advantage: Eagles
• Westbrook scored both of the Eagles' Touchdowns in their meeting last year, where the bears went 98 yards in under 2 minutes to clinch the victory with a game-winning TD.
  
• DeSean Jackson vs. Charles Tillman
• Advantage: Eagles
• Tillman has always struggled even with Safety help against the little speedy guys. See Steve Smith.
• Matt Forte and Kyle Orton vs. Eagles' Defense:
• Advantage: Eagles
• The Eagles lead the league in Sacks, Sacks per play and Run Defense. If they keep that up, their average place in Pass Defense (14th) will be a lot better. The Bears have no offensive weapons at any position that can't be shut down by the Eagles.. Fantasy Owners will want to sit Matt Forte at all costs, this week is not going to be pretty. The Bears just might never make it past the 50 yard line.
  

Final Verdict:
At the end of the day, this should be a game for the Eagles just like their game at home against the Rams was. Expect a similar stat line from the Eagles' Defense, somewhere from 7-10 Sacks, a couple of fumbles and 3-4 picks. If the game on paper were to be on paper, then the final score would be about 52-0, Eagles. But since I'm going to allow for human error from both teams, I'll go conservative and predict a final of Eagles - 41, Bears - 3.

Extra Predictions:

• Brian Westbrook gets the 50+ yards he needs to pass 5,000 rushing on his career.
• DeSean Jackson draws triple coverage for a second consecutive game.
  
• Asante Samuel gets at least 1 Interception
• The Eagles get at least 7 sacks.
• Forte rushes for under 25 yards on 10+ attempts.
• Bears offense gets 0 trips to the red zone
• Bold Prediction - Orton throws 5 Interceptions.

Redskins Take Care of Arizona, Look Ahead Towards Bitter Rival Dallas

Leaving home to go behind enemy lines always feels better when you have a two game win streak under your belt. The Redskins have continued to improve week to week, beating both New Orleans and Arizona after their loss to the Giants. Going into Dallas, the Redskins have 987 total offensive yards, 7 touchdowns, 6 sacks, 4 interceptions, and 2 forced fumbles.

However, a big part if the Redskin's win on Sunday, Jason Taylor, will be out for the game against the Cowboys. He was (unintentionally) kicked in the calf during the second quarter, and although he came out for a brief time, he finished the game on it. Said Taylor, "It was obviously more serious than I thought it was, I kind of blew it off as just a bruise and it ended up getting worse. I did finish the game with it, but I didn’t play very effectively. It was hurting." After the game, the injured calf swelled up, and early Monday morning, Taylor underwent a 20 minute long procedure to ensure that no nerve damage would occur further down the season.

Jim Zorn's comments about the situation were; "He’s going to be fine. Our problem is that he’ll miss the Dallas game. I can’t tell you beyond that." Taylor's backup, Demeteric Evans will most likely get the bulk of the playing time, but other players that could see action are Chris Wilson, Erasmus James and Rob Jackson. Taylors comments on the upcoming game were, "They have won before I was here, and they can win without me for sure. They can do it this week."

I Completely agree with him. This is usually very interesting, and usually close, and this year, the Redskins match up very well with the Cowboys. Shawn Springs is one of the only CB's that consistently matches up well with Terrell Owens, and our LB corps should do a good job on Witten, as they should be getting saftey help through out the game. I have quite a few keys to the game, so here they are.

1. Stop Marion Barber--- this guy is a beast. every NFL team he plays has trouble with him, and if the Redskins don't contain him, he could single handedly beat us. Short version: keep him under 100 yards rushing and don't let him rack up YAC (yards after contact).

2. Block for Portis--- Our O-Line has done a much better job of this our last two games. The result of that? Two wins. Keep this up and it will be three.

3. Disrupt Romo, Catch the Ball --- If he feels pressured, he WILL make mistakes. His mistakes are generally throwing it to the other team. Out secondary has to catch any of these easy ones.

4. DON'T KICK IT TO PACMAN!!!!!--- I realize not alot of teams are thinking about this when they go in to Dallas to face their high powered offense, but do not let Pacman Jones get a big punt return. Momentum is a killer.

Things that didn't make it on the list but should be considered:

-Jason Campbell has to take what the defense gives him, not make the mistake of forcing balls in to well covered recievers.
-Keep Romo from completing the deep ball. Make him take 5 yard passes.
-Get Cooley in the Endzone. You gotta get the ball to your playmakers, and they gotta get in the endzone. Only good things happen when Cooley gets the ball.

Final Prediction: Redskins win, 31-27

I am really looking forward to watching this game. It should be a good one.

Sources: nfl.com, redskins.com

Week Three NFC East Rankings. (Not to Be Confused with Standings)

Here are the rankings (non-record wise) of the NFC East.

1. Dallas Cowboys-- Wow, look at them. They beat a team in last year's NFC Championship. They appear to be the best, talent-wise, and although some of you try to make the argument for the Eagles having this top spot, you have to wait for Dallas to lose for Philadelphia to move up. Why? Because the Eagles lost to them! That was the deciding factor in my mind as to who got the top spot between the two of these teams.

2. Philadelphia Eagles-- I am very impressed with their win against Pittsburgh. What is keeping them from the top spot? Their loss to Dallas.

3. Washington Redskins-- These guys moved up significantly not only our power rankings, but in everyone else's too. They have improved week to week, and as I said before, they will be a team nobody wants to play in weeks 16 and 17. (Watch out Eagles and 49ers!)

4. New York Giants-- Who have they beaten? Washington in their first game played them dead even for most of the game. They blew out the worst team in the league (St. Louis), and had a close call with Cinci. So if the Giants are 3-0, why are they fourth in my ranking? Simple. They look like a team that can be beaten easily. Their first real test this season comes in week eight when they take on the Steelers. Until then, they stay here (unless something drastic happens). If the win that game, they move up.

Week 4 Power Rankings: Chargers have life!

1. Dallas Cowboys:

• 3-0, it's just like last year, except no elite teams for them to face in the AFC. For now at least, they're the top team to beat in the NFL. If it weren't for Derek Anderson, Tyler Thigpen and Big Ben, I'd have said that Romo was the worst QB in week 3. Has Jason Pfannschmidt gone nuts, you ask? No, I'm just pointing out that Romo threw yet ANOTHER red zone interception and turned the ball over twice, fumbling deep inside his own territory. Miles Austin looked very good against Al Harris. Oh wait that's right, every big receiver looks good against Al Harris.
  

2. Philadelphia Eagles:

• At 2-1, we have number one 'b' in the power rankings. The defense completely devoured the Pittsburgh offense... looks like they've got a chip on their shoulder after that poor defensive showing in Dallas. Brian Westbrook's day to day status is extremely good news. Kevin Curtis makes the first step in his return this week as he begins practicing with the scout team. The Eagles hope to get him back after their week 7 bye. Jim Johnson is by far the best defensive co-ordinator in the league.
  

3. Tennessee Titans:

• With Vince Young, they're a 7-9 or 8-8 team, with Kerry Collins they could go 14-2. I don't see them relinquishing their 2 game lead in the division at all. The Titans are for real.

4. Denver Broncos:

• Coming in at number five we have the Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall show. Let's hope this show doesn't get cancelled, because Marshall is on pace to set records. The defense needs to get better, for one week, Reggie Bush doesn't look like a total bust at the running aspect of Runningback. Look at it this way, they're a missed call and a missed field goal away from being 1-2.
  

5. New York Giants:

• The Champs are here to stay, they're not anywhere near capable of repeating, but it's nice for NY fans to know that while the Yankees suck their G-Men will be making the playoffs as the 6th Seed in the NFC.

6. Buffalo Bills:

• Three weeks in, it is time to crown the Bills the AFC East Champs, because no matter how bad they play the rest of the year, a 6-10 record would win this division... kinda like the AFC West last year. But mark my words, they're a 3rd or 4th seed.

7. Green Bay Packers:

• If Al Harris is gone for the season that's a huge hit to their defense. The game was over when Ryan Grant fumbled.

8. Arizona Cardinals:

• They lost to a good home team, but they got cheated by 2 calls that created a 14 point swing for the Redskins. A missed call concerning the play clock and a missed call concerning pass interference.
  

9. San Diego Chargers:

• They are a missed call and a play on defense away from 3-0. They always start out bad, but they had a huge day offensively and their turnover happy defense got their mojo back. Antonio Cromartie now has 5 INTs in 2 career MNF Starts. L.T. is now 3rd all-time on the Rushing TD list with 117, behind Marcus Allen (123) and Emmitt Smith (164). It's funny how he's played half of the seasons they played though. On the bright side of things, they've only lost one game to the AFC and the other loss was to the NFC so that doesn't put them behind by much in the grand scheme of things.

10. Pittsburgh Steelers:

• Big Ben probably went back to the Locker Room post-game and yelled at his O-Line for their awful job across the board. And if a QB ever were to have the right to let his big guys up front know how he feels, it's after he gets pressured on every pass play, gets knocked down 11 times, gets hit 21 times and sacked 9 times.

11. Tampa Bay Buccaneers:

• If they can get their running game going they've got the best chance of anyone in the NFC South to win the division.

12. Jacksonville Jaguars:

• They pulled out a huge clutch win against Indy, this not only saved their season, it might be the beginning of their ticket to the playoffs

13. Indianapolis Colts:

• Their defense let them down at the very end.... are we really at the point where it's 1 and done for Indy?

14. Washington Redskins:

• They know what it's like to be the Broncos.... in the sense that they'll gladly take a free game given to them by poor refereeing. Their season ends in 2 weeks if they don't win 1 of the next 2.

15. Carolina Panthers:

• Their Offensive Line is looking more and more like a liability in the passing game. Stick to what you're good at, lobbing the ball to Steve Smith, running the ball with Jonathan Stewart. If they can stick to that game plan they'll win the NFC South.

16. New Orleans Saints:

• They missed a great chance to beat an elite team.... not much is going for them right now... I think I smell 2007.

17. Baltimore Ravens:

• They've gone in the complete other direction than anyone would've thought, rookie coach, rookie QB, aging defense.... a win against the steelers would make them 3-0 and 3-0 against the divsion.

18. New England Patriots:

• This might be their last week in the top 20, they looked awful against the Dolphins.

19. San Francisco 49ers:

• Mike Martz has their offense rolling again........ oh wait that was against the Seahawks and Lions.

20. Chicago Bears:

• They will have to play the perfect game to beat the Eagles next week at home. Fantasy Owners of the Eagles' Defense will want to play them over anyone... this could be a game where the bears turn the ball over 5 times.

21. Minnesota Vikings:

• The Gus Frerotte experiment worked... for at least 1 week.

22. New York Jets:

• NY Fans, fear not... Anyone who has their head in their hands can look up to the bright future of Brett Favre getting comfortable with the offense at or around week 6.

23. Atlanta Falcons:

• Michael Vick, who? This team has one of the easiest schedules in the NFL, they've got as good a chance as anyone in the NFC South to win the division. We're finding out that it was the Quarterback, not Roddy White and Michael Jenkins, who were the problem. Matt Ryan is a fixture there for the next 10-12 years.

24. Seattle Seahawks:

• I have a tryout scheduled for this Friday @ 3:15 to play their Flanker position at Wide Receiver... that's how desperate they are... It's only week 3, but it looks like they'll be picking in the top 10. Congratulations Percy Harvin, you're going to be drafted by this team.

25. Miami Ronnie Browns:

• They beat the Pats 35-13... the Miami Dolphins scored 3 points... the only things separating them from the Browns of Cleveland are a win and about 500+ miles
  

26. Oakland Raiders:

• The Raiders lost last second to a team that is probably going deep into the playoffs.. in the mind of a Raiders fan, that is like winning a playoff game. Why? Because when they actually win a game, it's like winning the super bowl for them.

27. Houston Texans:

• It's beginning to look like last year was indeed a fluke. If you look on the bright side, they've only lost to the 2 teams that will be in the top 4 seeds in the playoffs this January, in the Steelers and Titans.

28. Cleveland Browns:

• If we take the positive side of things, the teams they've lost to, are a combined 7-1.

29. Cincinnati Bengals:

• They've improved a lot on Offense, and with a young defense, they're a rebuilding project on their Defensive and Offensive lines, away from being a good, solid team again.

30. Detroit Lions:

• This might just be the worst Lions team I've seen in a long time... yes worse than 2006.

31. Kansas City Chiefs:

• Operation Tyler Thigpen was a disaster... I think that might be the worst stats of a Quarterback in his first start.... 1/11 for -1 yards, OUCH!

32. St. Louis Rams:

• This is one of the last few times they will be the St. Louis Rams. There's a good chance that they'll change ownership by the end of the season... Just picture 2010 opening day when they are once again the Los Angeles Rams.... or for that matter they could upgrade the name of the team... It's going to work for the Oklahoma City Thunder... at least have a smashing awesome team name while your team sucks... they won't be moving from this spot all year.. because they won't win a game this year.
  

Best in the East... Position by Position Breakdown

Quarterback:

• I think most fans will agree that McNabb takes care of the ball better than any QB in the NFL... if you disagree, then you're wrong, he takes care of the ball better than any QB in NFL History... and we're talking about an All-East team, so he'd have the same weapons as Romo and Manning.
• McNabb is the pick.
  

Runningback:

• Westbrook does everything better than all the backs in the NFC East.
  
• Westbrook is the pick.

Fullback:

• Mike Sellers is one of last, best all around FBs.
  

Wide Receiver "X" Position:

• This is a very tough decision, both Burress and T.O. play this spot, Burress still hasn't reached the peak of his career. Owens peaked about 3 years ago but won't start to fade for at least this year.
• T.O. is the pick by a very slim margin.

Wide Receiver "Z" "Flanker" Position:

• This is the spot that Santana Moss, DeSean Jackson, Amani Toomer and Patrick Crayton play. Moss had one amazing year and he just had a big day against a rookie Corner. Patrick Crayton is probably not even worth considering, Toomer is good but is past his prime. DeSean Jackson made Ken Hamlin and Pacman Jones look like garbage last week, he was doubled the whole game and excelled.
• This is so close, I'll say you can make your pick between Jackson and Moss, but I'll give the edge to Jackson.. Who has the biggest upside?
  

Wide Receiver "Slot" Position:

• Sam Hurd, Antwaan Randle El, Jason Avant and Steve Smith occupy these spots. With the way Sam Hurd gets so little time on the Cowboys, he could start for some teams. In my humble opinion, he is better than Patrick Crayton, but then again, Crayton might be the worst flanker in the NFL.
• Steve Smith over Sam Hurd and Jason Avant by a little.
  

Tight End:

• The NFC used to have the greatest tight ends in the NFL, but now you can only argue about Chris Cooley and Jason Witten. Honestly, Jason Witten is probably the best Tight End in the NFL.
• Witten is the pick

Left Tackle:

• This is a 3 man race between Chris Samuels, Tra Thomas and Flozell Adams.
• Adams gets the pick.

Left Guard:

• No one is overly amazing at this spot, surprisingly, Kyle Kosier and Todd Herremans are the only ones you can really consider for this spot. Kosier is injured right now and Herremans can play any position on the line other than Center.
• Herremans is the pick, but not by much.

Center:

• Gurode wins by a land slide's land slide.

Right Guard:

• This is a lot like the Center spot, Shawn Andrews is the best guard in the NFL and it's not by a little bit, he hasn't given up a sack since mid-2005, which is amazing at the guard position.

Right Tackle:

• Colombo, Runyan or McKenzie? That is the question, Runyan is the oldest, Colombo is the youngest and has upside, McKenzie is just a good solid RT.
• Marc Colombo by a very small portion.

Moving on to Defense... (this will move around all of Dallas' players to the 4-3 scheme, but I'll treat them like they'd have the same success)

Left End:

• DeMarcus Ware, Next.

Right End:

• Giants fans will say Justin Tuck... even if Osi was healthy, it would still be Trent "The Hunter" Cole. He's the most underrated DE in the league by far.
• Cole gets the nod.

Pass Rushing DT:

• Mike Patterson was voted one of the players most likely to go to the pro bowl this year, thus far, only Fred Robbins is his competition.
• Patterson by far, due to the lack of a huge presence from anyone at the DT position.

Run Stopping DT:

• Bunkley, Ratliff or Canty? Yes I know I'm considering 2 Dallas players, remember, the DE's in the 3-4 are glorified DTs.
• Bunkley and the Eagles have given up an average of under 3 yards per carry thus far.

Strong-side Linebacker:

• This would be between Brandon Short, Bradie James, Chris Gocong and Marcus Washington. Spencer is out the window, James has been only solid thus far, Washington is too injury prone. Chris Gocong has a sack, a forced fumble and a defensive touchdown.
• Gocong gets the pick.

Middle Linebacker:

• This would be between Pierce, Stewart Bradley, London Fletcher and Zach Thomas. Bradley has an amazing upside to him and he's probably the best young middle linebacker with the perfect balance of speed, power and size. Fletcher is the easy pick though.
• Fletcher wins.

Weak-side Linebacker:

• Omar Gaither, Rocky McIntosh and Anthony Spencer are the names here. Lance Briggs is the best WILL in the league but Gaither knocks on the door.
• Gaither over a solid guy and a bust.

Left Cornerback:

• HAHAHA, this is like C, LE and RG.
• Asante Samuel is probably the best Cornerback in the League. Terrence Newman isn't anywhere close.
  

Right Cornerback:

• Ellis Hobbs is the only starting Corner who is worse than Anthony Spencer. Sheldon Brown is the most physical of them all. Carlos Rodgers is good but is injured too often to gauge where he's at. Sam Madison is old and gets beat way too often.
• Pacman Jones gets the pick here because he should be a starting corner and he's got more potential than anyone in the East.

Nickel Cornerback:

• This is another joke position, Lito Sheppard is only here because the Eagles have the best Corner Trio in football.
• Lito Sheppard gets the nod.

Free Safety:

• Brian Dawkins, Ken Hamlin, Kenny Phillips and some 7th round guy on the skins. Dawkins and Hamlin are close.
• Dawkins is still the best FS in the NFC, but Hamlin isn't behind by a whole lot.

Strong Safety:

• LaRon Landry, Quintin Mikell and Roy Williams are the ones worth talking about here. Landry has the best all around skills but he is injured right now. Mikell has been playing the best out of them dating back to when he was a starter back in week 7 of last year.
• Mikell gets the pick because he's forced a fumble and has a sack and a million and a half solo tackles. He's looking like he's going to be anchoring that SS spot in Philly for a long time.

Kicker:

• Again this is a Laugh Out Loud spot, Nick Folk... it isn't even close.

Punter:

• See Kicker, LE, RG, C, NCB... Feagles is the most consistent.

Kick Returner:

• Felix Jones... next

Punt Returner:

• By the end of the year, no one will be kicking to DeSean Jackson or Pacman Jones... I say both of them
  

Final Count is:
Eagles 14
Cowboys 10
Redskins 2
Giants 1

Week 3 Power Rankings are here!

Sorry for the lateness, here's week 3...

1. Dallas Cowboys:

* They beat an elite team in September, nothing they haven't done before... Let's see how they're playing in December before we crown them.

2. Green Bay Packers:

* After Sunday, we finally found out that A-Rod doesn't stand for Alex Rodriguez or Andy Roddick. A-Rod stands for Aaron Rodgers. Greg Jennings might be the hottest receiver in the NFC.

3. Philadelphia Eagles:

* They played their hearts out on Offense this week. Not bad putting up 37 points against a star studded Defense without your top 2 receivers and playing half the game without the NFL's best Guard.

4. New York Giants:

* After two weeks and two weak opponents, they've knocked the rust off. They've got the easiest schedule of the NFC East for the month of September. If they have any hope of making the playoffs, they need to be 4-0 after September. After realizing that they have beaten only the Redskins and Rams, they fall from the top spot... With the shift of power to the NFC we will see that they are

5. Denver Broncos:

* Jay Cutler is playing the best football of any QB in the NFL. He has a league leading 6 Touchdowns to just 1 INT. Brandon Marshall comes in after the 1 week suspension and now leads the league in receptions.

6. Buffalo Bills:

* Make no mistake, for right now they're playing the best football of anyone in the AFC East. Let's see how they do against Brett Favre and Matt Cassel down the line before we crown them the AFC East Champs.

7. Tennessee Titans:

* Thus far the are leading the NFC South. There's no doubt in my mind that with a healthy Vince Young they'd be 0-2 instead of 2-0.

8. Arizona Cardinals:

* Kurt Warner is looking like MVP Kurt Warner again, it's nice to have two all-pro receivers for him again. Except I'd say that Fitz and Boldin are better right now than Holt and Bruce ever were and that's by a very small margin... Fitz might receive 1,600 yards this year and boldin might have 17 or 18 TDs.

9. Pittsburgh Steelers:

* They've got to do better than a 10-6 win over the browns, this is an offense with too much firepower and it sounds like at some point this season they might lose Ben for a couple of games.

10. San Diego Chargers:

* They truly got cheated out of a win, I expect they'll blow out the Jets to make sure they can't get cheated out of a game. I say this loss to Denver changes their season for the better.

11. Indianapolis Colts:

* They came back from a 15-0 deficit to beat the Vikings... but then again this is THE VIKINGS... they need to step it up to get back into the top 10.

12. New Orleans Saints:

* Week 1 they look like vintage 06 saints. Week 2 they look like early last year.

13. New England Patriots:

* I'm putting them here because they are by far the worst team that is 2-0, Losing Tom Brady throws out about 5 wins... that brings them down to 9-7 or 8-8.

14. Carolina Panthers:

* Jonathan Stewart in 100 degree weather is a good mix for the Panthers. They might be on their way to an NFC South Division win... too bad they don't stand a chance winning against any NFC East Team, except maybe the Redskins...

15. Chicago Bears:

* Their Defense is for real, if they hold up, they might go 10-6 at best... too bad you'll need to go 12-4 to make the playoffs this year as a wild card in the NFC.\

16. New York Jets:

* Brett Favre looked so-so against the Pats Defense, he did a lot better considering last time he played them in 2005, the Pats won 30-0 and picked him off 5 times.

17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers:

* Brian Griese and a strong Defense is a good mix to win.

18. Washington Redskins:

* Too bad they play in the NFC, let alone the East... last year 9-7 was good enough, this year 9-7 will put them in the bottom half of the NFC.

19. Atlanta Falcons:

* They're in a division where 10-6 will win the Division, they had a bad day against Tampa, they'll rebound thanks to a semi-easy schedule.

20. Jacksonville Jaguars:

* This was kind of alarming, I fully expected them to rebound against the Bills but they just gave up in the 4th Quarter.

21. Minnesota Vikings:

* The Tarvaris Jackson era has ended, so much upside and talent, yet not enough production. Jeff Garcia is available, they should go out and get him.

22. Baltimore Ravens:

* They get an unexpected bye week, who knows, they might be semi-decent this year.

23. San Francisco 49ers:

* Two years ago they beat the Seahawks twice and went 7-9, this looks like a similar type of year.

24. Houston Texans:

* Young Offensive Line, young QB, all they really need is an RB on offense and to start building on defense, in 5 years with good drafting, they could be a force to be reckoned with in the South.

25. Cleveland Browns:

* They're in trouble, Derek Anderson looks like a 1 year wonder. Look on the bright side though, they've lost to Pittsburgh and Dallas, that's not too bad.

26. Seattle Seahawks:

* Wouldn't it be funny them signing Koren Robinson again? That's like the Eagles signing T.O. for a second go around... They could really use him, then again in the spot where they'll be drafting, Percy Harvin will be a great pickup at 7th Overall.

27. Cincinnati Bengals:

* I don't know what is going on with Carson Palmer, but he better get this turned around fast.

28. Detroit Lions:

* They had a shot and a lead in the 4th Quarter. Maybe they start Drew Stanton by the end of the year?

29. Oakland Raiders:

* They've moved up three spots, their opponents up until December were all bad last year, but 29 looks like their spot for the rest of the year.

30. Miami Dolphins:

* Chad Henne starting any time this year means they pick in the top 5, but then again that's the perfect place to get a Percy Harvin or Jeremy Maclin.

31. Kansas City Chiefs:

* They're rebuilding, it's going to be like this, this year.

32. St. Louis Rams:

* I've got my money on them to move in the next 5 years, they're on pace to give up 640 points and a shade under 8000 yards.

One Great Game

The eagles vs. Cowboys game was probably one of the best games i have seen a in a long time. You can't get much better than 7 lead changes.
Here are things that i noticed about the teams.
Cowboys:
- they need to get in their grove fast. yes when they get in there groove they are amazing but getting in the grove late in third quarter is not helpful.
-Keep the ball, Romo made 2 really bad mistakes which hurt alot. Especially the one in the end zone. Come on either get the ball and keep it or kick it out of bounds, don't throw it.
-watch the deep ball, yes they didn't have Williams but they others you are just as good and Mcnabb was able throw some deep passes to wide open people.
-get to Mcnabb, what more can be said
Eagles:
-keep getting the ball to Westbrook, he is a beast, Whether running or catching.
-Keep McNabb healthy, as of last night i think he is the #1 QB. He can pass, run, and avoid tackles so well. So many times i had written the play off as a sack and then just like that the eagles have made 10 yards.


All in all i think that these 2 teams are going to be the best in the NFL this year, can't wait till next game

Marcus Washington

Marcus Washington, a line backer for the Washington Redskins, pulled a hamstring during this season’s opener against the Giants. He made 5 tackles before his injury. He missed the first 2 practices of last week, but came to Friday’s. He was very limited in reps. “He’s a veteran guy and he doesn’t need a lot of reps,” Zorn said. “The younger guys--they need more reps. But Marcus is a very good football player and we wait until the last minute with him.” His return is listed as questionable. “I'm trying to see what I got,” Washington said. “It felt OK. I don't want to do anything crazy and set it back. It's still going to be a game-time decision.” Marcus did not play this week against the Saints. Coach Zorn decided that Washington needed to sit this one out. Marcus has been injured quite a bit. He is very injury prone. Washington played the 2006 season with a bad hip and a dodgy elbow - both required surgery after the season. Last year, a hamstring injury kept him out of four games and limited him in others.

Dallas Wins Electrifying Monday Night Game.

Any reservations I had about the Cowboys Offense are out the window after tonight. In what was for me a heartbreaking loss to the much hated Dallas Cowboys, the Cowboys proved they are a good team by winning in the 4th Quarter. The Dallas Defense... well I hate to paraphrase the Denny Green quote, but I'm going to go ahead and say it anyways, "The Boys are who we thought they were, and we let them off the hook." Here are three positives to take away for each team:

Cowboys:

1. Romo only threw 1 INT
2. The defense bended but didn't break
3. Marion Barber ran the ball well in the 4th Quarter

Eagles:

1. DeSean Jackson now has more yards in NFL History than any rookie Wide Receiver after week 2 and is the 1st rookie since the merger (and since 1940) to record 100 yard receiving games in his first two career games.
2. Donovan McNabb is quite obviously healthy and is back to being an Elite QB.
   
3. In a game where the top 2 receivers and the best guard in the NFL didn't play, they almost beat the most talented team in football.

Some notes on Dallas heading into the rest of the season:

• No respect for opponents, whatsoever. It starts all the way from the Head Coach Wade Philips who, when asked how he would stop the Eagles' Offense from going up and down the field every drive was quoted saying, "They haven't done much, they've scored off of a penalty and a turnover." Right, and they've got more points and more yards offensively than your team. Pacman Jones was quoted earlier in the week when being asked whether the Eagles were a contender in the NFC East as saying, "Man, they did that against THE RAMS."
• Penalties, penalties, penalties. The Cowboys should not be Anyone's favorite to win the NFC until they stop committing stupid and unnecessary penalties.
• Romo threw an interception. He fumbled twice in one play.
• Pacman got absolutely destroyed by DeSean Jackson, who had a big night.

Notes on the Eagles heading into the rest of the season:

• This was a heartbreaking loss. It doesn't matter that you almost beat the most talented team in football, it doesn't matter that you put up 37 points. No matter how many positives came out of this game, you still lost.
• DeSean Jackson has the 4th most receiving yards in the NFL and is the only receiver other than Calvin Johnson who has 100 yards in both games.
• Brian Westbrook leads the league in Touchdowns with 5.
• This was a fluke from the Philly Defense, they will not give up this many points or yards, again.

Redskins Get Big Win Against Saints

The Redskins came out of this week of NFL action with a win and an overall record of 1-1. They beat the New Orleans Saints 29-24. In case you missed it, the Skins were down by 9 in the 4th quarter and came back with two scores, one of them a Portis run, the other, a 67-yard Campbell to Moss pass play. I'd like review what I correctly predicted to be the key match ups in this game:

"1. Santana Moss vs Tracy Porter. Watch for the Skins to test the Saints CB Tracy Porter early and often. Especially watch for any time that Santana Moss gets this guy one on one.

2. Redskins Offensive Line vs. the Saints Defensive Line. I believe that Clinton Portis is a major key in the Redskins success in this game. And where does the run start? The Offensive Line!

Another guy to keep your eye on is arguably the Skins best playmaker, Chris Cooley. He got one catch in the Redskins loss to the Giants on Thursday. Look for that to change. The Skins need Cooley to win this game."

Both of these factors were keys to the Skins victory, in fact, the game what won on a 67-yard touchdown pass caught by Moss. Guess who was covering him? That's right, Tracy Porter.

The Offensive Line did an outstanding job blocking for Portis, who had 96 yards on the ground in 21 carries and two HUGE touchdowns. As I said before, the run starts with the O-Line, and they really could not have done a better job against the Saints front four.

My man Chris Cooley had 5 catches for 72 yards. All five catches came at critical points in the game for the Redskins. With the performance that he had today, I don't see how Washington can win without a solid effort from him.

Two other standouts were Jason Campbell, who, with his 321 yard and one touchdown performance, is starting to show us that he belongs in this league, and Chris Horton, a rookie out of UCLA who replaced Reed Doughty (Illness) had two picks and a fumble recovery. It will be interesting to see who gets the start next week at that position.

Jim Zorn made better play calls on offense this week and really gave Jason Campbell more responsibility. On the Defensive side of the ball, the Redskins really handled Reggie Bush and the Saints run game well, and did a very nice job against a former player in the NFC East, Jeremy Shockey.

Overall, Washington played MUCH better then they did against the Giants, and as long as they continue to improve gradually each week, will be the team NO ONE wants to play late in the year.

Sources: Redskins.com, NFL.com

Week 2 - NFC East Talk

It's Friday (yay!) and that means it's time to preview this week's matchups in the East. Can Washington pull an upset over the Saints? Will New York take care of business? Who will win the big game down in Dallas?

New Orleans @ Washington:

The Saints are huge favorites to blow this game out. Washington was one of the least ready teams in week 1. They were by far the worst of the teams featuring new coaches, with Atlanta and Baltimore both winning their games by a touchdown or more. However, the skins will continue to improve, and going up against a so-so Saints Defense will help.

Final Verdict:
Skins jump out to a 14-10 lead, but trail 17-14 at the half. Saints pull away in the 4th Quarter, 31-17 is the final.



New York Giants @ St. Louis Rams:

The Rams are a team in serious need of rebuilding, they're the franchise, I believe, is the most likely to move to a new city in the next five years. That being said, I don't think it gets much better this week with The Plaxico Show coming to town. The Giants need to show that their bad offensive performance against the Skins was the rust coming off.

Final Verdict:
The G-Men show no mercy, this game is not going to be pretty at all. The Rams' corners had a tough time against the depleted receivers of the Eagles, but are facing all the Giants' Starters and the G-Men lead 24-7 at the half. Final Score is 41-16, Giants.



Philadelphia Eagles @ Dallas Cowboys:

These are the two biggest contenders in the NFC East. Yes, they both had weak opponents week 1. Nevertheless, both teams did their job. Great teams blow out opponent's that they're supposed to blow out. Last year, when the Eagles showed up here their defense - not Jessica Simpson - made the Ravens look better offensively than the Cowboys, holding Big D to 6 points.

This is another defensive game, the Eagles look like one of the best teams in the league defensively and Marion Barber has never had a good outing against a healthy Eagles D. Romo has averaged 2.33 Interceptions per game against philly and has thrown at least 1 INT to Lito Sheppard in all of his games against Philly. McNabb hasn't thrown a pick to Dallas' D since 2005 when Roy Williams took it back to the house for a 21-20 victory that ended McNabb's season. Fantasy Owners will want to start the speedy young DeSean Jackson who matches up extremely well against Dallas' Anthony Henry.

Final Verdict:
This is probably going to be one of the best games of the year. It's either going to be the 2nd coming of the Dallas Monday Night Massacre or it's going to be Dallas by a slim margin. Never go against Defense, ever. I like the Eagles to make this a statement game, pulling out to a 20-10 lead at the half. Final score, Eagles get stuck on 38, winning 38-17. Fantasy Owners will want to sit Romo this week... Jessica Simpson will be present.

NFC East division winner preview?

I am going to go over and analyze this week's Dallas Cowboys vs. Philadelphia Eagles match up.

Both teams are coming off overrated wins. This will be an interesting game considering the fact that neither Dallas or Philly was really tested last week. McNabb unquestionably looked really good, but the lack of any receiving talent will really test his ability to put points on the board. On Dallas, its the other way around. While Romo is a great QB, he has the uncanny ability to be very unpredictable, an example of this would be last season, where he put up record breaking numbers the first half of the season and then suddenly almost lost to a terrible bills team that was 0-6, throwing ints that weren't remotely close to his intended targets. As a cowboys fan this has been very frustrating. If Romo plays well I believe that the game will be over in the 3rd quarter. However if he plays an average game, McNabb's experience should be able to tip the scale in the Eagles favor.

5 keys to success:

Dallas

1. PLAY DEFENSE! (The cowboys rely on their offense WAY too much)

2. Give Romo time (They did this great against a terrible Brown's D)

3. Pressure McNabb (He doesn't have any good jump ball receivers, you pressure him, he throws picks)

4. Don't commit stupid/any penalties!!! (Do I even need to comment!)

5. Balance the offense (Owens AND Barber are a deadly combo)

Philadelphia

1. Shake up Romo (He is emotional, if he goes down, so does the offense)

2. Get the ball in Westbrook's hands (The guy is a beast, nuff said)

3. Throw the long ball (This is what Philly does well, and with a slow Anthony Henry and a rusty Pacman Jones the Eagles could put up some quick points in this dept.)

4. Let McNabb play. (The guy is not a rookie, if he gets in his grove he is one of the NFL's best)

5. If in doubt go to LJ (The Eagles TE is quickly becoming one of McNabb's favorite targets, I have been very impressed by this guy!)

I think the winner of this game will end up winning the NFC East.

My prediction is that Dallas will indeed win, not because I am a Dallas fan, but because with Feilx Jones and Marion Barber on the ground and then Romo throwing to T.O, Witten, Crayton and potentially Glenn it will simply overpower a Eagles team that just doesn't have the reviving talent to match up.

Dallas wins 35-24

Skins-Saints Game a Big Deal?

The Redskins went back to practice after last weeks loss with much work to do. Two of their major focuses were converting on third downs on offense and, for defensive backs, catching the ball when its thrown in their direction. Washington isn't making any excuses either. Athough some of the play calling may have been questionable, Santana Moss says "We have to make the play work, regardless of what’s called. I feel like last week we had opportunities to make plays, but we didn’t make the play. We need to get the first down, or get the extra yard. It’s not always all on Jason."

The main thing I will be watching when I turn on the television is what team shows up. Will it be the first half team that couldn't move the ball or stop the Giants offense, or will it be the second half team that shut out the Giants in the last two quarters?

New Orleans has a strong offense, headed up by Reggie bush who had 163 total yards and one touchdown Sunday against the Buccaneers, but their defense is not great. I believe that if the Redskins can stop Saints from scoring and Jason Campbell is smart with the ball, the Redskins can win this game in convincing fashion.

Here are the key match ups for you to keep your eye on:

1. Santana Moss vs Tracy Porter. Watch for the Skins to test the Saints CB Tracy Porter early and often. Especially watch for any time that Santana Moss gets this guy one on one.

2. Redskins Offensive Line vs. the Saints Defensive Line. I believe that Clinton Portis is a major key in the Redskins success in this game. And where does the run start? The Offensive Line!

Another guy to keep your eye on is arguably the Skins best playmaker, Chris Cooley. He got one catch in the Redskins loss to the Giants on Thursday. Look for that to change. The Skins need Cooley to win this game.

Prediction: Skins win 24-17

Sources: www.redskins.com, www.nfl.com, www.saints.com

NFC Rankings After Week One

Interesting first week of play. I'm definitely going to disagree a bit with what was said below. Well, here they are.

1. Dallas Cowboys-- Looked very good against a weak team without most of its players. In my opinion, their offense looked better then their defense. Still, the cowboys are one of the most talented teams in the league, and that's why i have them at my top spot.

2. New York Giants-- Played a better team then the Eagles did. It was a tough decision for me to put them at 2 instead of 1, considering how close all of the teams in this division are, but, their offense looked at best average in the second half which is why I have them at number 2.

3. Philadelphia Eagles-- Destroyed a WEAK St. Louis team. Their Wide Receiver play was good and McNabb looked like he was back to his old self. Still, I have my doubts about this team, and seeing as they played the easiest team to beat out of all four NFC East teams, they get my third spot.

4. Washington Redskins-- The only team with a loss in the NFC East. They played the Super Bowl champions of last year, and to be honest, did fairly well. They only allowed one touchdown, and shut down their offense in the second half. However, the skins offense was BAD, mostly because of poor play calling, in my opinion. If the playoffs started tomorrow, they would miss it. However, we still have 16 weeks left.

After all is said and done, the Power Rankings speak:

1. New York Giants:

• After all is said and done, I know they aren't the best team in the NFL. On the other hand, I subscribe to the Pete Prisco (Sportsline.com senior NFL writer) way of not dethroning the champs until they've actually lost... for at least now, Giants fans can say anything they want.

2. Philadelphia Eagles:

• Yes, they beat the rams, but the rams were better on defense last year than the Browns, and for the Eagles' offense to put up 38 and for their defense to give up 3 to a healthy Rams' offense speaks the loudest.

3. Dallas Cowboys:

• Dallas played a very good game, the penalties and interception by Tony Romo, also due to the fact that they only put up 28 points puts them at no. 3.

4. Pittsburgh Steelers:

• They would have had the 2 spot, had it not been for the fact that their defense played sloppily in the second half and let the Texans make it look almost respectable. With Indy and New England on the mend and San Diego looking mediocre, their tough schedule just got a whole lot easier.
  

5. Denver Broncos:

• I know they only beat the Oakland Raiders, but Eddie Royal is the DeSean Jackson of the AFC right now and this was without Brandon Marshall. My analysis is that they're Super Bowl bound.

6. San Diego Chargers:

• They got upset, let's see how they respond, they're by far the most talented team in football.
  

7. Buffalo Bills

• They absolutely dominated a very good team in Seattle, forget Brett Favre and the Jets, the Bills are winning the AFC East.

8. New York Bretts:

• Without Brett, the Jets are a sub .500 team, with him, they are a wild card/AFC East contender/sexy but unlikely super bowl surprise. In reality, Darelle Revis won this game for the Jets with his 1 hand interception with :05 left in the game.

9. New Orleans Saints:

• The Saints seem to have joined a few other teams such as the Eagles, Redskins, Buccaneers and Panthers. What do they all have in common? simple they have one up year, one down year. Except the Saints tend to hang with the Eagles, when they're up, they're super bowl contenders, when they're down they're 8-8. Reggie Bush may not be a bust after all.

10. Green Bay Packers:

• Aaron Rodgers was amazing. As a matter of fact, if Brett Favre was still in Green Bay playing as the starter, Aaron Rodgers would have been traded to the Patriots by the end of the 3rd Quarter of the Pats/Chiefs game on Sunday afternoon.

11. New England Patriots:

• I've always personally felt that Tom Brady is what makes the Patriots tick, we'll give them a couple weeks and see how they do. They will only go as far as Matt Cassel takes them.

12. Indianapolis Colts:

• This is the 2nd worst Peyton Manning regular season performance I can remember in recent history. What was the worst you ask? Last year vs. the Chargers... which will probably be another great game later on in the season.

13. Chicago Bears:

• I felt and still feel like this team just doesn't fit, but seeing that they convincingly took down an Elite team in good fashion, they get the nod here... just remember they ARE at the 13 spot.

14. Atlanta Falcons:

• I've got to be honest, this is the one game, where I was happy to have called the outcome wrong. Matt Ryan it looks like is on his way to erasing the Michael Vick past of Atlanta.

15. Tennessee Titans:

• This team needs to get something going offensively, just maybe they will see how much of a bust Vince Young really is. Prediction: Kerry Collins keeps the starting job all year.

16. Arizona Cardinals:

• San Fran has been a game they've been losing for the last few years. The most important thing to take away from this? They're the only team in the NFC West that isn't winless and they start off a season 1-0 in the division. It's always too early to speculate in week 1 but right now, they look like the 3rd or 4th seed.

17. Minnesota Vikings:

• They've got to get better in the passing game. Tarvaris Jackson is going to get himself hurt if he doesn't learn how to become a passer. Run defense gave up yardage which hasn't been a problem for them in the past. The hype is over, they're still an 8-8 team.

18. Carolina Panthers:

• This is the one I just don't understand, they're not a good football team. The coach has fallen out of favor, they have one of the worst Front Offices in the NFL, this is a fluke, ladies and gentlemen.

19. Jacksonville Jaguars:

• They lost to THE TITANS... So much for winning the division off the Colts, starting out 0-1 in your division, you can kiss the AFC South goodbye.

20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers:

• Michael Strahan said it best on FOX - "They were the one team in the playoffs last year that we knew we were going to beat." They're back to the 2006 Bucs.

21. Baltimore Ravens:

• This is a young team on Offense and a team that's going to be rebuilding it's defense on the go in the next couple of years. Good start for a team and a city that needed consistency from the QB position.

22. Cincinnati Bengals:

• Nothing has gone their way, Carson Palmer has never been the same since his ACL injury. It's a shame too, they've got great talent at WR and I truly pity guys like Ocho Cinco who are going to have to play there for the next 4 years.

23. Seattle Seahawks:

• It's the end of an era, the Seahawks' run was a good one, peaking in a Super Bowl XL appearance. Injuries and rise in competition in their division make this the year.

24. Detroit Lions:

• They need a runningback, quite desperately. While they're at it, they could throw in a new GM, Coaching staff and Defense.
  

25. Houston Texans:

• They played an Elite team and didn't have a chance. They've got two weeks to prove last year wasn't a fluke and then they're back to being the same old Texans.

26. Cleveland Browns:

• They've got something in common with Houston, something about flukes.

27. St. Louis Rams:

• When your defense is going up against the no. 1 Offense and your offense is going up against the no. 1 defense, it's hard to do much of anything. Losing Drew Bennett and Orlando Pace early on didn't help and Marc Bulger's play screamed "I need an offensive line"

28. San Francisco 49ers:

• They don't look better than last year at all. Defensively they're good, but, this team is going to be rebuilt from the ground up next year.

29. Washington Redskins:

• So the Jim Zorn era got out to a rocky start to say the least. The fact they couldn't put up points on a vastly depleted Giants defense against a team that isn't going to the playoffs was bad enough. This is their down year, they look like a 4-12 team.

30. Miami Dolphins:

• They're better than last year, but were it not for a great play by Darelle Revis of the Bretts, they would have had a shot at winning this week.

31. Kansas City Chiefs:

• They're rebuilding, they can only get better.

32. Oakland Raiders:

• If I was a betting man - which I'm not - I would put a lot of money on the Oakland Raiders holding this spot for the next 5 years. The Raiders will never win more than 5 games while Al Davis is alive.
  

Eagles take care of business, get important win.

Going into today, the Eagles were 3-6 in season openers under the Andy Reid era. After today, they looked like a confident football team that absolutely dominated a team that they were supposed to beat.

On Offense, Donovan McNabb surpassed Neal O'Donnell as for the least interceptions per pass attempt in NFL History. The big story was the young receiving corps, led by DeSean Jackson who played morel like a 3rd year vet, taking 6 receptions for 106 yards and averaging 12.0 yards per punt return. This was the first time since 1960 that the Eagles had 3 receivers go over 100 yards in the same game.

Quintin Demps was the standout on special teams, throwing a punt out of the endzone for Akeem Jordan to catch at the 1 1/2 yard line and later downing a punt at the 2. DeSean Jackson was oh so close to breaking it on punt returns, twice.

Defensively, it was much better than Eagles fans expected and it's hard to imagine that heading into next week, the Eagles don't have the no. 1 defense, holding the Rams to 86 net yards of offense. It was a day where new starting Strong Safety Quintin Mikell had a sack and a forced fumble.

The secondary was purely amazing, Asante Samuel dropped 2 INTs he should have caught, and defensed a total of 7 passes. The Linebacker corps spearheaded by first year starter Stewart Bradley, couldn't have played better, holding Steven Jackson to 40 yards rushing on 14 attempts... an average of just under 2.9 yards per carry.

Plays you didn't want to miss:
1st Quarter:

• DeSean Jackson's first NFL reception goes for 47 yards. (Torry Holt tacks on a 15 yard penalty for running into an official while on the sidelines)
• Jason Avant picks up a 31 yard gain on a 3rd and 8.
• Brian Westbrook barrels over O.J. Atogwe en route to an 18 yard run which puts the Eagles in position for a 5 yard L.J. Smith TD catch.

2nd Quarter:

• Donovan McNabb and Hank Baskett connect on a 90 yard TD, putting the Eagles up 21-0 with less than 2:00 to go in the first half.

3rd Quarter:

• Sheldon Brown puts perhaps the biggest hit I've ever seen a Cornerback get, on Steven Jackson, knocking him 180 degrees around in mid-air and knocking his helmet off.
• DeSean Jackson almost brings one to the house, returning a punt 60 yards.

4th Quarter:

• The big question a small faction of Eagles fans had was answered, yes, Kevin Kolb did replace Donovan McNabb in a game... after he went 21/33 for 361 yards and 3 Touchdowns in 51 minutes of regulation. Kolb went 5/6 for 53 yards and ran out the last 9 minutes of clock.

Aside from plays and stats, what this all came down to was the Eagles executing and blowing out a team that they were supposed to, the first real test is next week @ Dallas, where they are 7-2 in the Andy Reid era. Oh, what the critics will say when Dallas falls... it's only 8 days away.

-J.

Playing on last years adrenaline

"My first Super Bowl I was real giddy...I’ll be honest with you" said the Giants number two receiver Amani Toomer when he arrived with what would be the championship team at Super Bowl XLII. The NY Giants. The reality is all of us Giants fans were giddy. A wild card team making it to the super bowl to verse the undefeated New England Patriots was something we dream about and watch in movies about teams that played in the 80's. But, then it got better we came on the field and actually started giving the Pats a run for their money. Fast forward we're in the fourth quarter and all hope seems lost their is just no way we are going to be able to win this game. So, Eli has one last desperate chance and hikes the ball and out of nowhere we see the patriots defensive line come out of nowhere and go to sack Eli! But, miracles of all miracles Eli scrambles...(Eli scrambling? believe me I was just as surprised as well probably that lineman) and just lobs this amazingly impossible throw out there. Out of nowhere Tyree jumps with all his might, and a pat or two with him, and grabs at the ball. His hands high above his head make contact with the ball and he starts to get a grip on it. Bur, wait the ball starts slipping out of his hands above his head he is going to lose the ball, and the game. Just as it seems like he is going to drop it though, he pulls the ball down onto hs helmet, and successfully catchs the football. Amazing.

It was moments like these that made last season one that we will all remember for a long time. But now its a new season one that is with out Micheal Strahan or Oci Umenyiora, the two biggest assets to our defnsive line. True we do still have Antonio Pierce and Mathias Kiwanuka. The reality is though, Pierce cannot be everywhere at once and with Kiwanukas minor injury too much can't be expected of him. We need to play like we did in the playoffs, expecting to lose every game. We won the super bowl so every team especially the ones in our own division is gonna want to beat us that much more.

At this point we have nothing to be proud of. Yes, we beat the redskins....barely. I mean those first two drive were amazing. The long and short of it is we kicked butt. Then, something happened or didn't happen all i know is that after we had last years adrenaline wearing off we played terrible. I mean seriously we are talking about the REDSKINS here. How can you let them almost tie! How do u spend an entire half without scoring at all! Here is the long and short of it. We suck and we need kick butt and work even harder to get anywhere this year. Winning the super bowl only makes the next season harder. Yes, we won last year...who gives a crap?! We need to start getting our heads out of our last year super bowl winning butts and actually play some smash mouth football.

Now do not misunderstand I do think we have what we need to win and go all the way two years in a row. We still have a pretty solid offense as long as Eli can stay focused and throw good consistent throws we should do fine. We have Plaxico Burress and Amani Toomer. Two solid guys who catch something as long as its in their direction. Not to mention Plaxico at 6'5" has an almost unfair height advantage over most corner backs in the league. If we play consistent offensive and conatain them with good solid defense I think we will hold our own and do fine.


Sources:
http://www.mahalo.com/Super_bowl_quotes
http://www.nfl.com/teams/statistics?team=NYG

Whats the Word on Jones?

It's official, Adam "Don't call me Pacman" Jones, recently reinstated by the NFL, will start for the cowboys on Sunday versus the Browns because of an injury to CB Terrence Newman. Even though Jones has been indicated in participating in questionable activities off the field, he is unquestionably talented and athletic. With 62 tackles and four interceptions in his last season, his presence should make a difference in the game against Cleveland.

On defense, I think the Cowboys will be too much for the Browns, and on offense, there is no question that Dallas is incredibly talented. That's why I'm picking the Cowboys to easily move past the Browns 24-13.

Sources: nfl.com, cowboysblog.dallasnews.com

Eagles' WR Drafting Woes About to change.

Under the Andy Reid era, the Eagles have been one of the best teams at drafting players. Donovan McNabb, Lito Sheppard, Brian Westbrook, Shawn Andrews and Trent Cole are just a few of the big names, only one of which (being Trent Cole) has not been a First Team All-Pro.

Nevertheless, if you look at how they've drafted Wide Receivers over the years, it's been pretty bad. In 2000, when they selected Todd Pinkston out of Southern Miss with the 36th selection, fans immediately hyped him up. All the while, the Eagles passed on Laveranues Coles, Jerry Porter and Dante Hall to name a few names. None of them have been consistent No. 1 Wide Receivers but Jerry Porter is the only non-pro bowler.

In 2001, They landed Freddie "Fred Ex" Mitchell who vowed to lead the Eagles into the promised land by making game winning catches and being a number one option for number five. Mitchell never panned out and in the process the Eagles passed on:

* Reggie Wayne, Chad Ocho Cinco, Chris Chambers, Steve Smith and T.J. Houshmandzadeh, all of whom are Elite Receivers and have been to Pro-Bowls.

In 2003, they traded back in the 3rd round and just missed their target of Kevin Curtis and had to settle for Billy McMullen. Four Years Later, Curtis showed Eagles fans exactly what he can do with starting time, going for 77 catches, 1100+ yards and 8 Touchdowns.

In the 2005 draft, they sent off backup QB A.J. Feeley for the 35th selection overall when they picked Georgia Bulldog, Reggie Brown. The jury is still out on him, but down the road he still has the potential and work ethic to be a much better receiver.

This past year, three years since Andy Reid drafted a receiver, it's beginning to look like he has finally got it right this time. Cal Bear, DeSean Jackson played through the preseason doing everything that was asked of him, never once have we seen "MeSean" that was present in Cal. He plays every play as if he's having to prove his worth, know why? Thirty-two teams passed on him at least once and half of them passed on him twice and took other receivers over him. Being picked 49th overall, he described his relief when he was picked by the Eagles.

Redskins Opener: Hope for the season?

Thursday's 16-7 loss to the New York Giants showed us a few things about the Redskins.

1. They have a rookie coach, shown by the bad play calling and bad clock management.

2. Jason Campbell is not yet completely used to or comfortable with the new offense in place.

The loss was one that we can afford to have, it being the season opener, and really doesn't do to much damage. The NFL is a league of ups and downs, and losses are expected, unless you cheat. It all depends on getting up and brushing yourself off after you fall. The fall that the Redskins had on Thursday night was a relatively minor one, and as long as the can recover, they still have more then enough talent to do something big this year. They have Shawn Springs coming back soon, and 6'3 Malcolm Kelly should also be in the mix in two to three weeks. And let's not count Jim Zorn out yet either. Remember, the legendary coach Joe Gibbs started 0-5 in his first season as the Head Coach of the Skins and finished that season 8-8. However, the owner of the Washington Franchise decided to stick with Gibbs, and through the next 12 years he made the playoffs eight times and won the Super Bowl thrice. So instead of losing faith in a man who has many of the same quality's as Gibbs, support him at least through this season, and in the off-season we can look back on the year and form opinions about whether he should stay or leave then.

Here are some important stats from the game:

Total Offensive Yards: 209

Total Rushing Yards: 84

Total Passing Yards: 125

Turnovers: 0

Sacks: 2

Time Of Possession: 24:17