Week 8 Picks

Last week looked as if I was going to be at the bottom of the pack for picks. Thankfully I climbed out of the basement and over the half way point.

The most notable game last week, Raiders @ Broncos! 59-14....COME ON MAN! That's just beyond a beat down! It's downright embarrassing for the Broncos, and on their home field too! It has many asking, "Where has that Raiders team been the past few years?" This week the Raiders take on the Seahawks. Can they continue to dominate?

Picks for the week:

1. 49ers (Game in London)
2. Jaguars
3. Redskins
4. Jets
5. Rams
6. Dolphins
7. Chiefs
8. Titans
9. Cardinals
10. Raiders
11. Patriots
12. Saints
13. Colts

I have a few questionable picks this week I realize. I am picking a few games on my heart rather than my head, which could lead to a little bit of trouble! So let me explain some of my choices.

The Cowboys started out Monday night's game on a high note. Energy was up, things were going well as Eli Manning threw two quick interceptions to give the Cowboys 10 quick points. The first quarter was going all Dallas' way; but in true Cowboys fashion, everything went wrong. The biggest blow to the Cowboys was delivered by Giants linebacker Mihttp://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=4740832728670288285chael Boley, who with a hard, but clean hit, broke Romo's left clavicle. This put back up quarterback, Jon Kitna, at the helm. He hadn't seen regular season action in over two years and his rust showed. It is the fact that the Cowboys just aren't good to begin with, but with a backup quarterback who has little practice time with his first string, I just have to go with the Jaguars.

I took the Dolphins over the Bengals for one reason and one reason only. The Dolphins are 3-3, their 3 wins have happened on the road and they are visiting Cincinnati this week. The Bengals have been more than disappointing this season as well.

My friends might kick me in the butt for picking the Raiders this week, especially if they lose. But after the high of the way they played last week, the Seahawks still aren't an unbeatable team. They are still mediocre even behind Carroll.

I took the Saints over the Steelers and I have no logic for doing so. This is a classic, heart leading my head in choices. I am almost sure that the Steelers will win this game, but I really just don't want to pick against the Saints. I know they have been struggling as of late, but they are at home playing a top team, I just have to think that they have their act together and can pull off a win.

The Colts are facing the Texans and they have an ax to grind after their loss to them this season. It was a devastating loss for Peyton and the Colts, look for them to come out guns a blazing!

***Notes***

• Stafford returns to action for the Lions this week after being out with a shoulder injury
• R. Bush will not return to the Saints as he had hoped
• Favre is possible to start Patriots; Moss makes his return to his former team this week

Week 7 Picks

Last week I did well! I only missed 4 games! But that was the only thing really good about last week.

Last week the only thing memorable is the amount of violent hits that receivers took, notably Eagles' wide receiver, DeSean Jackson. It was this hit, that I believe, really sparked the need for the NFL to take action against these violent hits. To read more about what happened and what is now being done about it, read the last post on this blog, Helmet to Helmet Hits.

Week 7 Picks:

1. Steelers
2. Falcons
3. Chiefs
4. Eagles
5. Bears
6. Saints
7. Ravens
8. 49ers
9. Rams
10. Seahawks
11. Patriots
12. Broncos
13. Packers
14. Giants

This week I think there is really only that is worthy of the "must see" tag. The Vikings @ Packers is the one. Favre is returning to Green Bay and that's always a mixed emotion for the Cheese Heads. Expect a lot of cheers and a lot of boos, especially with the way he's been playing lately! I think that for the sole reason of Favre's play that the Packers can take the win here. Favre is still playing distracted over the sexting incident and his elbow issues as well.

There are some honorable mentions this week.

Bengals @ Falcons: This game has the potential to be a really good game. The Bengals have been letting me down in terms of expectations this year so I am not really calling them worthy right now.

Giants @ Cowboys: This game will likely not be a great football game. It has the potential to be very one sided. The Cowboys have a lot to prove and are in the position where they are moving closer and closer to that true state of panic. They were anticipating going to the Super Bowl in their own brand-new, multi-million dollar facility. That idea is far from becoming a reality and is on the brink of fantasy at this point.

In other news, Colt McCoy looks to make his second NFL start in as many weeks with the Browns. Although on a bye week, Matthew Stafford is set to return for the Lions after being sidelined with his shoulder injury. Kolb is still listed as the Eagles starter in the absence of Vick due to his rib injury. However, Reid has said that when Vick's injury is not longer a question the starting spot is his.

So far this year, this blog has been dedicated strictly to the NFL. I do have another blog dedicated to NBA's Sacramento Kings and I have yet to decide if this will remain strictly football come Wednesday's NBA tip off extravaganza! We all know where my heart truly lies, but I will try not to slip in at least my picks for the week on here!

Helmet to Helmet Hits

I will be the first to admit that more than half the reason I enjoy watching football is because of those "OHHHH!" moments when someone gets laid out on a hard hit. I can't help it. It's the same reason so many people watch NASCAR (for the wrecks). No one wants to see someone seriously hurt by them though.

This weekend has spurred the NFL to seriously review the rules regarding some of these egregious hits. While watching the games it seemed like between my Twitter timeline and in-game scrolls every other game had a player listed as "return questionable" "out" due to head injury. The biggest hit seen and heard around the world was to Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson by Falcons' Dunta Robinson. The hit left both players sidelined the rest of the game with concussions. If you haven't seen this video, click here to view.

There is a new rule effective immediately that says that these types of flagrant hits to a player's head will result in the suspension of the offender, without pay. For how many games? I don't know I suppose it would depend on the nature of the hit. This rule may have some fearing mass suspensions and player union disputes, but I do not foresee this being anything like that of the NBA's new enforcement of technical foul rules. Football is a tough, aggressive, and dangerous sport. I do not think that the league will be using this new rule in abundance. Thankfully, we do not see these types of hits every game. The fact that at least three of these type of hits were made this weekend is a bit of an anomaly. Hard hits are going to happen, and more often than not they are good, clean hits. Players who do not purposely intend to hit a guy so hard that it sends his head popping off his shoulders like a game of Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots should be okay here.

The NFL has made a lot of changes lately to rules to protect players. I am not against seeing the league suspend players for excessive force if you will. These type of hits can very easily become career-enders as a "best-worse case" scenario, but it can also cause a player to lose their life. When the safety of your players is being threatened beyond the scope of the game, it becomes an issue. These type of hits are unnecessary and although there is no way to tell how bad these hits will be when you are heading full speed at a guy, the intent to "rock him" and create a big play and momentum, there has to be a better way. As you can see from the Robinson hit on Jackson, no one benefited from that hit; both teams lost their players for at least the remainder of the game, the Eagles will more than likely be without Jackson next week, as it would be a real stretch for him to come back and play, sure Jackson dropped the ball and the Falcons eliminated the gain, but it cost them 15 yards. It was later given back only 2 plays later when the Eagles' Dunlap was flagged for a personal foul 15 yards. The scoring drive ended with a missed Eagles field goal.

How do you think this new rule will change the game? It has been suggested that instead of the rule that all players wear mouth guards as this is an equipment problem as much as it is a sportsmanship issue. It has also been suggested that the NFL widen their field to match the Canadian Football League field dimensions.

I completely disagree with the widening of the field suggestion! That would change the whole game and not for the better!

Week 6 Picks

Week 6 finally holds more than one "must see" game! Hooray! First my picks:

• Chargers
• Texans
• Ravens
• Saints
• Eagles
• Giants
• Bears
• Packers
• Steelers
• Jets
• 49ers
• Vikings
• Colts
• Titans

I have a problem picking the Chargers over the Rams. Yes, it is true that the Rams lost in true epic failure fashion to the Lions! Yes, that is right! I said LIONS! The score was 44-6, it was a slaughter! All this after 2 solid games and big wins for the Rams they drop one to the Lions. I just do not know what to say about it. The Chargers are not really playing much better. They had some serious issues on special teams last week against the Raiders.

Now for my "must see" games.

1. Ravens @ Patriots: This is game one without go to man, Randy Moss in New England. Who will step up to take on that number one receiver role? I have to take the Ravens still. I think this is one of those classic rivalries that are only appreciated by sports fans who have teams involved in those epic, heated rivalries! I'm pulling for Ray Lewis and the Ravens.
2. Falcons @ Eagles: While many were hoping to see Vick start due to the fact that the Eagles are hosting Vick's former team. However, Kolb is set to start. Many Eagles fans are still hoping to see Vick clock some time though. I still maintain that the Eagles are a better team with Vick at the helm. Either way, it should be interesting to watch. I do worry though that the Falcons do not have what it takes to pull out these wins on a regular basis. They have been barely coming out on top for the last two weeks and they wait until late to do it. Yes, a win is a win, but at some point you won't be able to dig yourself out of a whole.
3. Browns @ Steelers: This game isn't a "must see" for the match-ups. It is going to be the first chance to see the Browns' rookie quarterback Colt McCoy start. It is also the return of Big Ben for the Steelers following his 4-game suspension for violating the league's personal conduct policy. I feel for McCoy in this game. Your first start shouldn't have to be against the brutal defense that is the Steelers' defensive line. I hope that his offensive line can protect him, otherwise I am not sure what other options are available with your first and second string quarterbacks injured! A part of me would love to think that a Cinderella win is possible, but that's living in Never Never Land!
4. Raiders @ 49ers: The Battle of the Bay! What Bay Area fan doesn't look forward to this game. It's a classic battle that is reminiscent of the gladiator days! Well, I can only imagine! The Raiders are coming off of a great win last week. The 49ers, well they are still looking to not be worse than the Lions! For the first time in 31 years that the Niners have been this bad! I wasn't even alive when they were this bad! My mom, a die hard Niner fan, was only 15 when they were this bad! I do not understand how a team that finished the year 8-8 can come out so flat! Fans were so excited for this year because they thought they could climb from the mediocre ranks and into a top tier team. If that hope is to stay alive they had better start winning some games.
   
5. Cowboys @ Vikings: Why you ask? Because this game is almost the make it or break it game for each team. Both have started out 1-3! The Cowboys, yeah well I could have expected this from them since they have pretty much crushed the hearts of their fans for years! But the Vikings? I think it's funny personally because I do not like Favre, but that's on a personal level. Professionally, he's a talent that no one can argue! But his constant indecisiveness with his retirement really rubbed me the wrong way. I think he is playing a dangerous game of Russian Roulette given his age, his injuries, and the game. He's old for football age and the wear and tear that this game puts on its players, especially its quarterbacks, is starting to show on Favre. Forget the latest scandal swirling around any discussion anyone could hope to have about him and the game, it is all about these supposed sex-ting photos he sent to a former Jets reporter. So this game means something to each team. A loss could easily mean the end of a teams season given their respected divisions!
   

I hope I can do better than 50% on my picks! I'm stuck at the .500 mark for the past 2 weeks now!

Week 4 Review Week 5 Picks

Okay, I promised to post by Monday at the latest and I'm late! Sorry! It's been one of those weeks. Here were my picks for last week:

• Titans
• Ravens
• Bengals
• Packers
• Saints
• Falcons
• Seahawks
• Jets
• Colts
• Texans
• Chargers
• Eagles
• Bears
• Dolphins

My results: 7/14 50% that's not good!

My biggest upset of the week is definitely the Bengals loss to the Browns! This game was my "give me" game! Boy was I wrong. The Bengals were supposed to be a top team this year with the addition of T.O. with Chad Ochocinco, but thus far they are just 2-2 like many other teams in the league, but they dropped to the then 0-3 Browns. But as they say, "Any given Sunday!"

Is there any bigger surprise than the Rams coming out and winning two in a row? They are tied with Arizona and sit right along next to them at the top of the NFC West, although a tie breaker goes to Arizona since they beat the Rams already. But come on! Did anyone expect the Rams who couldn't win a game last year to save their lives to come out and go 2-2? I know I didn't! Nor did I expect the decent 49ers team from last season to come out 0-4 just like the Lions have.

In what I believe is the biggest blow out thus far this season the now 2-2 Dolphins lost to the Patriots at home 41-14. I thought for sure that after losing to the Bears last week at home that the Dolphins would come out and at least be competitive. Chad Henne threw for four interceptions in that game! It was pretty ugly.

Week 5 Predictions:

This week has a few games that my picks are made, but my heart is not in them due to injuries of what I consider to be key players in either the offense or defense. So some of these picks are made half heartily.

• Ravens
• Jaguars
• Colts
• Rams
• Falcons
• Bengals
• Panthers
• Packers
• Giants
• Saints
• Chargers
• Cowboys
• 49ers
• Jets

This week marks the end of Big Ben's 4-game suspension for violation of the NFL's personal conduct policy. Although the Steelers have a bye week this week it can definitely shake things up in week 6 picks.

The Eagles vs 49ers game is a tough call for me because I do not think that the Eagles are as good of a team without Vick as their quarterback. I think Kolb is a bad fit for that team and with no official word on Vick's return due to the rib cartilage injury he suffered against the Redskins last week, I just don't know. Not to mention the 49ers have to have a fire lit under them after coming out 0-4, that's unacceptable to their fans and taking on a shaken up offense of the Eagles in San Francisco this week, well one can only hope. I realize that the Chiefs are the sole undefeated team left in the league, but I didn't pick them this week. They are taking on the struggling Colts on the road. I have faith in Peyton and think he will pull out the win for his team allowing the '72 Dolphins to pop that champagne very early this year!