9.29.2012

My Week 4 NFL Picks

Week 4 and after the huge debacle on Monday Night Football, the NFL has done what they needed to do to bring the real refs back.  These guys will make up to 220K a year for 16 games plus playoffs, for most of them this is their part time gig that also gives them benefits and a retirement package.  Why in the world would anyone want to play do anything else but ref?  Honestly if my future son sucks at sports, I'm going to suggest that he becomes a NFL ref, the benefits and pay is great!  Either way I'm glad to have them back, all refs make mistakes but the other refs seemed to slow down the game with their indecisiveness.  Now we will just get bad calls quicker and keep the game moving.  I wonder if the lockout will effect refs since they didn't get an offseason.  Will they still be in shape?  Or were they at home drinking beer and eating Papa John's while watching their replacement fail miserably?  Eh either way, lets get to the picks.

Ravens over Browns - I just didn't think the Browns had the fire power to get the win here, they are a young team and they have some potential.  Trent Richardson has the ability to take the shine as the best RB in the AFC North in a couple years if he keeps it up.  The Ravens were predicted to win by 13.5, I wouldn't have taken that bet, I figured it would close but still a win for the Purple and Black.

Lions over Vikings - Hill or Stafford, it doesn't matter, I think the Lions have a better team, plus they are at home.

Patriots over Bills - I doubt this will be a blow out, but I think the Patriots will make sure to finish this game better than they have their last two.

San Francisco 49ers over Jets - tough loss last week but I mentioned in my post that I felt weird about that match up. Oh well its over, they should be more focused and learn no to take any match up for granted.  The Jets are missing their Peyton Manning of their defense and that will help ease the the pressure for the Niners WRs, but the 49ers will win this game on the ground and the Jets will have a hard time getting things going against this tough defense.  Chants for Tebow might start as early as 3rd Quarter.  It could be a problem for the Niners if he comes in.  The Niners haven't done well against backup QBs in the past, I assume its due to a different play style and lack of planning for it.

Falcons over Panthers - Falcons at home and they are hot.  The Panthers are who we thought they were.  But they will compete, mistakes against a tough ATL defense will slow them down early. Falcons stay undefeated.

Chargers over Chiefs - Flipped a coin... who knows both of these teams are flip flop teams, plus its a divisional match up so its even tougher to pick.

Seahawks over Rams - I think the Seahawks showed the world on Monday how good their defense was, even if they lost their defense played great all night long against a high powered offense.  So against the Rams I think this defense will have a field day.

Texans over Titans - The Titans would need a miracle or 200 yards from CJ0K to even compete in this one.  The Texans have the best defense and offense combination in the league right now and they will remain undefeated after this weekend.

Broncos over Raiders - This will be a classic QB battle, but I think the Broncos defense will help Peyton to a nice divisional win over Carson Palmer and the Raiders.

Cardinals over Dolphins - Defense will win this one against an inexperienced offense.  Plus Reggie Bush isn't 100% so the offense will be slowed somewhat by that.

Bengals over Jaguars - The Bengals defense hasn't looked much like it did last year but their offense has looked electric and that offense will be way too much for the Jaguars to handle.

Saints over Packers - This is one of my Under Dog picks, but 0-4 Saints, that just doesn't sound normal.  Most people are picking the Packers because they are home and have something to prove to the league after that horrible call that costed them the game.  But I still feel like Brees and the Saints have more to prove.  Sean Payton's job is officially secured, now Drew Brees needs to get his team together.  I'm looking for a shoot out from this game.  Last Touchdown wins the game.

Redskins over Buccs - Maaaaaan, I can't call it for real on this one, both teams are primed to win, the Redskins are a scoring machine and the Buccs are a team that's letting teams get busy.  I look for the Redskins to take advantage of that early, probably let the game get close in the 3rd and 4th, but end the 4th Quarter strong and get the win.

Eagles over Giants -Sorry again Giant fans homies, but I'm going to go out on limb and say that the Eagles will rally at home and even with a few turn overs they will finish this game with a win like they did against the Ravens in Philly.  I'm just giving them the edge because they are at home in this divisional matchup.  This is another under dog pick.

Bears over Cowboys - I went back and forth about this pick but at the end of the day I took the under dog Bears to grind this game out for a win, especially if Forte and M.Bush are both in the back field this week.  I don't see a high scoring affair but I do see a good amount of turnovers by both offenses.  The least turnovers wins the game.


9.26.2012

Very Angry NFL Coaches (#ReplacementRefs)

I found this great photo gallery on deadspin with some awesome shots of the coaches around the league yelling at the NFL's Replacement Refs.  Everyone is angry, even Obama.

Check out the orignal full post here. "32 Photos of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling at the Scab Refs"

Ken Whisenhunt, Arizona Cardinals


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Mike Smith, Atlanta Falcons


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

John Harbaugh, Baltimore Ravens


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Chan Gailey, Buffalo Bills


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Ron Rivera, Carolina Panthers


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Lovie Smith, Chicago Bears


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Marvin Lewis, Cincinnati Bengals


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Pat Shurmur, Cleveland Browns


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Jason Garrett, Dallas Cowboys


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

John Fox, Denver Broncos


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Jim Schwartz, Detroit Lions


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab RefsVia.

Mike McCarthy, Green Bay Packers


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Gary Kubiak, Houston Texans


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Chuck Pagano, Indianapolis Colts


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Mike Mularkey, Jacksonville Jaguars


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Romeo Crennel, Kansas City Chiefs


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Joe Philbin, Miami Dolphins




Leslie Frazier, Minnesota Vikings


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Bill Belichick, New England Patriots


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Aaron Kromer, New Orleans Saints


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Tom Coughlin, New York Giants


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Rex Ryan, New York Jets


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Dennis Allen, Oakland Raiders


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Andy Reid, Philadelphia Eagles


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh Steelers


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Norv Turner, San Diego Chargers


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Jim Harbaugh, San Francisco 49ers


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Pete Carroll, Seattle Seahawks


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Jeff Fisher, St. Louis Rams


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Greg Schiano, Tampa Bay Buccaneers


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Mike Munchak, Tennessee Titans


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

Mike Shanahan, Washington Redskins


32 Photos Of 32 NFL Coaches Yelling At The Scab Refs

9.23.2012

My Week 3 NFL Picks


Week 3 of the NFL Season and I'm going to spotlight the AFC Championship rematch.  Who would have thought the Patriots who had "the easiest schedule in the NFL" would be 0-2 right now?  Many sportscasters  were predicting a 15 win season for them, well I guess we can say that isn't going to happen.  The Ravens missed the chance at a Superbowl appearance last year thanks to a TD catch that couldn't be held on to and a muffed field goal.  Last week the Patriots lost to the, now 2-0, Cardinals thanks to a muffed field goal.  No quite payback, but I'm sure Ravens fans felt good about it.  Tonight the two teams meet again after a both facing tough losses for a prime time Sunday Night Football game.  The Cardinals showed the NFL how to stop Brady, but the Ravens don't care about stopping Brady, they just want to hurt Brady.  The animosity runs deep between these two teams.  I think the Ravens defense will rally around this animosity and around the "what ifs" from last season to make this a very tough game for Tom Brady.  I also think this will come down to the wire.  The Ravens defense will outlast the Patriots offense and the Patriots young defense will be exploited by this new Ravens offense.  Patriots 24 - Ravens 27 for a Ravens win and the Patriots will be under .500 at this point in the season for the first time since the Brady era begun (more than likely, I didn't research this).

Here's the rest of my picks and a quick run down.

Panthers over Giants - I obviously picked this one wrong, but I was leaning on the fact that the Giants had to travel in the short week and they had multiple injuries and a very tough game last Sunday.  The current champs proved me wrong.

Cowboys over Buccaneers - They get the home field advantage, I'd probably pick the Buccs if this was in Tampa.

Colts over Jaguars - Colts look like they are starting to get things moving better and have the home field advantage.  I think they have a young team, but a better team than the Jags.

Dolphins over Jets - I'll just take the home team in this one.  Divisional match ups are always tricky, especial between two teams that lack any real identity.

Lions over Titans - I think the Lions will get it together and the Titans still have some figuring out to do.  High scoring affair but the Lions are much more high powered, so they get the W.

Saints over Chiefs - The Saints have to be the better team in this match up, plus they need to try to save face from the first loss at home this season.

Bears over Rams - Maybe this is the bounce back game the Bears need, they looked confused last week.  As for the Rams, I don't believe that they are who we saw last week.  They have a history of beating the Redskins when they aren't favored to win.  Plus I think that win was written in as part of the RGIII deal.

Bills over Browns - I really don't know here, both teams are iffy.  Ground battle game, but in the end the QB with the better arm will seal the deal.

Redskins over Bengals - I would say this is the toughest defense for Robert Griffin III so far this season, but in his home opener he will shine.  With Garcon out, DC native Josh Morgan will attempt to redeem himself.  Skins defensive line will beat the Bengals o-line to disrupt the passing game.

The San Francisco 49ers over Vikings - I hate games that look this easy on paper, they usually turn out as upsets but I believe the new Niners offense will be too much for a lacking defense and their defense will be too much for the Vikings offense to handle.  Moss returns to his original NFL home and has a big day.

Eagles over Cardinals - The Cardinals defense is a sleeper this year, but I don't think they will last all 4 quarters against the Eagles offense.  The Eagles get the edge.  Plus the Eagles defense is also very good in my opinion and will make the Cardinals offense look as bad as we know it is.

Falcons over Chargers - This is a tough pick, I'm going with the hot team with the new offense.  But this isn't a game I would bet money on, it could go either way.  It should be an entertaining game to watch.

Steelers over Raiders - Why not... The Raiders are still figuring things out, the established Steelers team should walk away looking like a top of line team.

Texans over Broncos - Peyton Manning as his old self could make this go the other way, but with this game I'm going to stick with one of the best defenses in the NFL and say the Texans grind this one out.

Ravens over Patriots - Did you not read the paragraph up top? LOL.

Packers over Seahawks - If the Packers lose this game then the Aaron Rodgers is cursed and needs to do what he has to do to clear himself of that.  The Seahawks have a nice defense a decent offense and the 12th man tonight, but if everything goes right the Packers offense should be too much and their front line should be able to contain the run on Monday Night Football.







9.20.2012

Mike Sando's NFL MVP Watch as of Week 2

Before the season started I posted John Clayton's QB Rankings which I could say are very easy to agree with based on what we knew about the individuals.  In a similar list but definitely in a different order Mike Sando from ESPN has listed his MVP Watch based on the players that have been the most valuable to the success of their team after two weeks.  Its a bit early to crown anyone but its interesting to see some new names at the top of the list.  Below is his top 10, mainly QB's but one LB made the list.  It's good to finally see the 49ers #1 pick finally starting to pan out.  First time with the same Offensive Coordinator for more than one season, first time with multiple legit receiving weapons, and a Coach that is fully backing him.  Its amazing what a good supporting cast will do for a player with potential.



1. MATT RYAN 

Quarterback | Atlanta Falcons ... Next Game: 9/23 at SD ... Last Poll: 3

Ryan has set a quick early pace while leading the Falcons to a 2-0 record. He leads the NFL in Total QBR by a wide margin thanks to five passing touchdowns, one rushing touchdown, two sacks and zero turnovers. He has never finished a season with 30-plus scoring passes or a completion percentage higher than 62.5. His quick start and the Falcons' overall strength put Ryan in position to enjoy a career year both in production and team success.

2. ALEX SMITH 

4. PHILIP RIVERS 

 Quarterback | San Diego Chargers ... Next Game: 9/23 vs. ATL ... Last Poll: NR

Rivers makes his 2012 debut on the list. He ranks second to Christian Ponder in completion percentage (73.8) and has led the Chargers to their first 2-0 start since the 2006 team won its final 10 games to finish 14-2. A home game against Ryan's Falcons provides Rivers with a stage to prove he belongs on this list, and possibly higher than fourth. Trips to Kansas City and New Orleans await from there, part of a road schedule that appears manageable for Rivers and San Diego.
 

5. ELI MANNING