Well it was definitely an interesting week 3 in the NFL with upset, controversial calls and some pretty serious injuries. I am pretty sure I got hammered on picks this week but that’s because one week of the year the NFL goes all parity whacky and the “Any Given Sunday” theory kicks in. Let’s get to it shall we?
The Great Brain Robbery – I call it this because so many things happened at the end of the Packers/Seahawks game that I am pretty sure the replacements had their brains stolen and replaced with rocks before the game started. Ignore the fact Golden Tate committed such an obvious case of offensive pass interference that a four-year-old could have thrown the flag. Ignore the fact M.D. Jennings should have should have BATTED the ball down instead of trying to intercept it. Ignore the bullshit roughing the passer call that kept the drive alive for the Seahawks. Ignore the fact that the guy who signaled touchdown counts his previous coaching experience as high school and junior college and his call overruled a guy who actually reffed a Sugar Bowl. Ignore the fact the head referee went straight to the replay instead of coming down to talk to both officials to get their takes on the situation before going under the hood to look at the play and make a final decision. No, you know what, don’t ignore any of that. Count that all in and realize the Packers got jobbed out like the Brooklyn Brawler in an 80’s WWF match.
Stand by your man – The NFL released a statement to try to placate everyone and only succeeded in pissing everyone off. Pass interference should have been called, but wasn’t, and since that is the case the referee on the field made a judgment call and he made the right one. That’s right, the NFL is standing by the call and apologizing for nothing. Predictably, Twitter and Facebook exploded with outrage and more than likely not a godamn thing will change anytime soon. Hopefully the NFL gets a deal done but expect at least one more week of replacements and the circus sideshow they bring. Let me be clear, I don’t blame the replacements. I blame the NFL who basically threw them in the deep end of the pool with a 400 pound book chained to their waists and told them to swim for their lives.
Matt Schaub is a tough bastard – In a perfectly legal hit, Matt Schaub of the Houston Texans got his helmet knocked off (better his helmet than his head). Unfortunately those helmets are on so tight sometimes, well you get things like part of your ear getting ripped off at the same time. Schaub missed one play before come back out to finish the game. Your seat at the Man Council awaits you when you retire from football, Sir. Also, despite the fact the hit was perfectly legal, Joe Mays was fined $50,000 and suspended for one game. It was not a helmet-to-helmet hit. He wasn’t trying to kill the quarterback. It was a clean shot that just happened to knock his helmet off. This stuff happens, and clearly stuff like this is more important than having the real referees on the field.
Other Injury News – Darrius Heyward-Bay got knocked the F*(! out and spent about 10 minutes on the turf before being carted off. Here’s hoping for his speedy recovery. The Jets also suffered a huge blow as Revis is out for the season with a torn ACL. This really hurts the Jets as Sanchez is playing subpar football and they really needed Revis on the defensive side. The countdown to Tebow time is officially on.
They are who we thought they were – The Chargers lost at home to a very good Falcons team. I’ve spent many years watching this Chargers team, and this loss leaves me with little doubt they are a paper tiger in the AFC West. You take care of business at home if you are a playoff contender. The Falcons didn’t just beat them, they smoked them. The windows for Phillip Rivers probably closed the day LDT left town and they have been living on past glory ever since. The Eagles lost to a sneaky good Cardinals team, but that was bound to happen. When you turn the ball over as much as the Eagles do you are going to lose a game, that’s just the law of football. If they can fix the turnover problem they can get the season turned around, but if they don’t Reid will be looking for work at the end of the season.
NFC Worst Best – What the hell happened to the NFC West? Tired of being picked on as the worst division in football, they are currently fielding 3 legitimate playoff contenders right now. If you had told me the Cardinals would start the season 3-0, I would have asked you if you had gone off your meds. Has anyone checked to see if Kurt Warner came out of retirement and secretly replaced Kevin Kolb? Seattle is playing excellent defense and despite a hiccup against the Vikings I still think the 49ers are one of the best teams in the league.
Upsets, upsets, who’s got the upsets? – The Titans shocked the Lions in overtime, which was an awesome game to watch the end of by the way. The Vikings beat the aforementioned Niners and Oakland beat the Steelers. I don’t know if you can call the Chiefs beating the Saints an upset, more like a nail in the coffin of their season. Of 113 teams to start the season at 0-3, only 3 of them have made the playoffs that year. Sorry Saints fans, you are in for a long year. The real winner here is Sean Payton who can basically ask for the moon the next time his contract comes due and he’ll get it. I wouldn’t be shocked if Drew Brees needed a “knee surgery” or had a “high ankle sprain” that stubbornly refused to heal as the Saints decided to throw in the towel and tank the season for a high draft pick.
R.I.P. Steve Sabol – The NFL lost a good one last week as Steve Sabol of NFL films fame passed away after an 18 month battle with brain cancer. Sabol pioneered such things as slow-motion replay and miking up players during the games. NFL Films and Inside the NFL are a big reason why I love football today. Thanks to John “The Voice of God” Facenda who could make any game, even a blowout, seem dramatic coupled with Sabol’s vision and pioneering in turning the NFL into a televised sport, I would eagerly sit in front of my TV to catch the highlights of the games from that weekend. You’ll be missed Mr. Sabol. You’re filming games in football heaven now.
Weekly Picks (Home Team in Caps)
Mr Ross
RAVENS over Browns, FALCONS over Panthers, LIONS over Vikings, BILLS over Patriots, CHIEFS over Chargers, Seahawks over RAMS, Niners over JETS, TEXANS over Titans, Bengals over JAGUARS, CARDINALS over Dolphins, BRONCOS over Raiders, PACKERS over Saints, BUCS over Redskins, Giants over EAGLES, Bears over COWBOYS
Last Week 8-8
Season 27-21
Mrs Ross
Ravens, Falcons, Vikings, Bills, Chargers, Seahawks, Niners, Texans, Jaguars, Cardinals, Broncos, Packers, Redskins, Eagles, Bears
Last Week 7-9
Season 25-23
