San Diego Chargers 23, Indianapolis Colts 21

This was probably the best game of the season thus far, with the highlight being the stellar performance of Antonio Cromartie.  It was as if he had to earn Peyton Manning’s respect.   Envision yourself in the mind of Peyton Manning during this game.  After the first pick where he forced the ball into shark infested waters (ala that stupid commercial) he was probably thinking, “that’s a fluke, the guy is decent but he’ll never make a play like that again.”  After the second pick he had to be thinking, “this is an early Christmas for Antonio, I mean, the sun shines on a dog ass every now and then.”  After the third monster one handed stick um grab, Peyton had to know at that point, that Cromartie is the next great corner in the NFL.

The Chargers won, but the discussion I had with multiple people this weekend is how good would the Chargers be had they made the right decision and kept Drew Brees around?  Right now Phillip Rivers is playing even worse than he did as a rookie which wasn’t that good in the first place.  At this point the Chargers brass have to be questioning his arm strength and the utter lack of a big play passing game for the Chargers.  Is former NCSU QB Jamie Barnett available?

On another note, the Blickees First Lady who is just getting into football had the quote of the week.  My wife, who has been watching football “casually” (which is giving her too much credit) has already picked a favorite team. (the Colts because Dungy and Peyton are such good guys)   She indirectly experienced true sports fan disappointment for the first time this weekend.  (She was nodding off when Viniteri missed the kick)  I awoke her by screaming “Oh MY.”  She perks up wondering what happened.  When told her Viniteri missed the kick and her response was, “Oh no, he’s got to go, the Colts need to get rid of him!”  So much to learn young flower. 

Dallas Cowboys 31, New York Giants 20

This year has been unfortunate for the NFL’s elder players.  We have witnessed the downfalls of many players in the mid to late 30s who were once dominant players at their respective positions.  Marvin Harrison, Joey Porter, Shaun Alexander, Ty Lawand Steve McNair are examples.  This game showcased Sam Madison a former dominant corner who still has the mentality that he is a shut down corner, yet has lost the physical attributes.

Who’s idea was it that Madison should play Terrell Owens man to man in bump and run coverage for the better part of the game?  I understand the reason for bump and run; Terrell Owens manhandled an Eagles team that played off of him last week.  However, you’ve got to know as a coach that if Madison misses the bump or TO gets a good break, that you are toast at that point.  Two pieces of crisp toast later, TO had beaten Madison for TDs.  (in Coughlin’s defense, one play there was deep help, however, the safety who I believe to be Gabril Wilson, bit on the underneath route ran by Crayton and left TO alone deep, which is a really big safety no-no.)

On another note, I must give credit where credit is due.  Tony Romo is phenomenal.  What “IT” is, he’s definitely got it enough to piss me off every time he give that “it’s TOO EASY” grin in between plays.

Philadelphia Eagles 33, Washington Redskins 25

So basically, the Eagles, don’t want to be good at winning which results in championships and they don’t want to be good at losing which results in good draft picks.  We would rather be great at mediocrity this year which results in no championships and mediocre draft picks that usually don’t help your team make big leaps.  I’m not suggesting we should throw games, I’m merely suggesting a change in strategy.  Maybe a free agent signing or trade to fill some holes?  We are on a rigid time schedule here with McNabb not getting younger and Reid’s days being numbered.

McNabb played great late and Westbrook was phenomenal.  Meanwhile the defense is really struggling which leads me to believe we’re going defense hard in the draft.  (Portis gashed the Birds for 137 yards on 30 carries, and Campbell passed for 3 TDs)

Cincinnati Bengals 21, Baltimore Ravens 7

When the Bengals hold a team to 7 points, they must have the worst offense in recent memory.  Enter the Ravens.  McNair’s arm had evaporated into a pile of mush and Kyle Boller is the same player now that he was as a rookie.  I’m not one to place blame, but considering how long Billick has had to build this into a serviceable offense and they are practically at the same place they’ve been for the last 5 years, someone needs to be held accountable.  Why not the Mastermind behind the worst show on field turf.

Pittsburgh Steelers 31, Cleveland Browns 28

The Browns are good but couldn’t pull this one out against the Steelers.  Roethlisberger is on a mission to prove that distractions and injuries caused his sub par season last year and he is doing an excellent job.  Their defense makes it uncomfortable to move on offense and the fact that the Browns were able to put up 28 points is a testament to how good they are on offense.  Pats Steelers is going to be another great game this season.

Green Bay Packers 34, Minnesota Vikings 0

Adrian Peterson is hurt.  I wonder if newspapers have a permanent clipboard in Microsoft Office with this line on it ready to paste 24/7/365.  He is dynamic when he plays.  When he plays.  Time will tell whether he’s destined to be Emmitt Smith or Terrell Davis.

I also must give credit to the Packers who I’ve been down on all year.  Their defense is a serious problem.  Yes, they barely beat my lowly Eagles, but what I forget is that even though we made it easy with turnovers, when we had the ball, we couldn’t drive against this juggernaut. 

Arizona Cardinals 31, Detroit Lions 21

Kitnastradomous and the Lions suffer a setback against an up and down Cardinals team.  The Lions defense is eerily similar to that Bengals defense from a couple of years back that led the league in takeaways.  You don’t know if their good or if they just get lucky every other week. 

The best part about the Lions resurgence is that the Thanksgiving game between the Lions and Packers will actually mean something and will be between teams with winning records. 

Jacksonville Jaguars 28, Tennessee Titans 13

Lendale White goes down.  Vince Young throws the ball 41 times.  The Titans lose.  By no means is this a final judgment, but again I ask, do the Titans win because of Vince Young or in spite of him?  Is he destined to be Mike Vick, or can we expect greater things from him? 

On the other hand it is his second year so he is experiencing growing pains.  He has single handedly won games for the Titans as a rookie and this year.   However, this Titans D is really good and with one TD versus 8 INTs in the last 4 starts, Vince Young does not get a free pass nor credit for the Titans fast start this season.

Denver Broncos 27, Kansas City Chiefs 11

The Broncos rebounded well from an embarrassing lost last week.  Selvin Young rushed for 109 yards, further strengthening the theory that the Broncos running game should be nicknamed “Plug and Play.”  I mean how great would the Eagles be if we could just <insert running back here> for 100 plus yards on any given Sunday.

Meanwhile the AFC West is the best worst division in football with both the Broncos and Chargers underachieving and the Chiefs over achieving resulting in 5-4, 4-5 and 4-5 records respectively. 

St. Louis Rams 37, New Orleans Saints 29

The best thing about this game is that the greatest show on turf finally put the tents back up which resulted in the Rams first win of the season.  The worst thing about this game is that Reggie Bush didn’t play so I can’t rail on him this week.  Wait, Reggie Bush did play.  (7 rushes for 17 yards, 5 catchs for 27 yards)  I rest my case Your Honor.

Buffalo Bills 13, Miami Dolphins 10

The biggest question at this point is will the Dolphins win a game?  Don Shula is quick to discredit a team that threatens the undefeated 72’ Dolphins record, where is he when his own team threatens another record owned by that special Fins team?  If this Fins team can go 0-16, they will be only the second team in league history to have a donut on one side of the win-loss column.   Yes they are two completely different donuts, but if ESPN can quote useless records and stats why can’t I?  Seven more losses and the 07-08 Fins will be carved next to the undefeated Dolphins team on the left side of the Donut trophy.

Chicago Bears 17, Oakland Raiders 6

How fitting and cute.  Bears whipping boy Rex Grossman gets back on the field and leads the Bears to a victory.  Has this recent stint on the bench quelled Rex’s gun slinging mentality?  Is Rex now willing to throw something besides caution into the wind?  I doubt it.  However, this performance may give us the wonderful opportunity to hear Lovie say in the face of intense scrutiny, without a smirk and with the ultimate resolve, “Rex is our quarterback.” 

Lovie should seek a career in politics after football.  Any man that can get on national TV and show unwavering loyalty to a plan destined to fail is surely qualified to be President of the United States right?

Seattle Seahawks 24, San Francisco 49ers 0

The 49ers offense turns in another dud performance.  The progress or lack thereof of Alex Smith definitely plays a significant role in the 49ers underperforming.  I’ll give him another year before they bring someone in to turn up the heat.

Atlanta Falcons 20, Carolina Panthers 13

Losing to the Falcons shows how sad the Panthers QB situation really is and how far their defense has fallen.  Unfortunately the Panthers have no one to blame but themselves for the current situation.  How long do you stand pat with Jake Delhomme as your starter without bringing a young gun to compete with him for time or at least be prepared to step in and win games.  David Carr is not that young gun as it is quite obvious he is suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder from his repeated exposure to blindside collisions from his years with the Texans.  Anytime you have to sign Vinny Testeverde, your quarterback situation needs to be reevaluated, period.

Weekly Awards

Fred Taylor Hot Potato Award

It was very close between Peyton Manning and Phillip Rivers but Manning gets the nod because the Colts lost.  Given, he was playing without 7 starters and Craphonso Thorpe was playing, but 6 INTs is 6 INTs no matter how you spin it. 

BrooklynWHAT Gangster Performance of the Week and the OkaySports MVP award

Antonio Cromartie.  Need I say anymore.  He doesn’t need street credibility or anything else to win the BrooklynWHAT award.  That gangsta one handed interception standing alone would garner praise on the most hallowed street corners in America.  Furthermore, his three picks in the first half kept the Colts out of the end zone in a barn burner where 2 points were the difference.