Games to Watch:
Panthers at Falcons (-1)
Injury Report
Panthers: LB Thomas Davis (71 tackles, 2 FF) Q
Falcons: WR Brian Finneran (13 rec, 109 yards) P
The Spin
Who ever would've thought the Panthers would be 8-2, and the NFC South would all be .500 or better? Not me, but don't be fooled by the Panthers' record: they've beaten two teams (Atlanta and Arizona) who are above .500. That said, the Panthers' tandem attack of Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams has combined for 1295 yards and 12 touchdowns, and they rank 6th in rushing offense. However, the Falcons are even better. Michael Turner has been a Pro Bowler so far this year, with 971 yards and 9 touchdowns, ranking him third in the league in yards and 4th in touchdowns. Jerious Norwood is a good 2nd back, and has over 300 yards this year, as well. Jake Delhomme and his 9 interceptions shouldn't have much trouble agains the 22nd ranked Falcons pass defense, and Matt Ryan has been phenomenal all year. Everything is about even in this one, but the difference is going to be rush defense.
Players to Watch
Panthers: LB Jon Beason (84 tackles)
Falcons: RB Michael Turner (971 yds, 9 TD)
The Pick
The difference in this one is going to be the skill of Panther linebackers Beason, Davis, and Na'il Diggs (by the way, maybe my favorite name in the league, Nail), and the inability of Atlanta to mix up the run. The Panther's attack with Stewart and Williams will propel them to victory.
Panthers 31- Falcons 23
Jets at Titans (-5.5)
Injury Report
Jets: Healthy!
Titans: DE Kyle Vanden Bosch (15 tackles, 3 FF) Q
The Spin
The Jets have got to be the happiest team in the league. They're leading the division, beat the Patriots last week for only the second time in their last 13 tries, and they did it in Foxborough too. Now, they have an even tougher test in the undefeated Titans. The Titans are mystifying the sporting community at 10-0, with Kerry Collins leading the team (who would've thought Kerry Collins would be quarterbacking the top team in the league), an offense ranked 20th in the league in yards per game, and a defense ranked only 6th. They've been living on the edge in their last few games, beating Jacksonville by 10 (after trailing until the 4th), the terrible Bears by a touchdown, and Green Bay in overtime. I don't think there's any chance the Titans go undefeated this year, but most people have been saying that for four or five weeks now, and the Titans keep proving us wrong. That being said, they're still obviously a great team, and most likely the best in the league. Chris Johnson is in the running for Rookie of the Year, and their defense has been terrific. Kerry Collins shouldn't have trouble with the Jets defense that let Matt Cassel throw for 400 yards and 3 TD last week. For the Jets, Brett Favre's consistency has been a problem his whole career, and this year is no exception. The ex-Packer is 4th in the league with 18 TD's, but leads the league in picks (12). The Titans are 6th in pass defense, and I'm unsure about Brett Favre being able to lead the Jets against a team with one of the best coverage units around.
Players to Watch
Jets: Brett Favre (18 TD, 12 INT)
Titans: Lendale White (11 TD)
The Pick
The Titans have found a way to win every week so far this year, and they haven't always looked good doing it. I think that trend is going to continue. The Jets got away with bad defense last week, due to a great game by Favre. However, the Titans have a better pass defense that Favre's gonna have a tougher time with. They won't be able to bail out the defense by scoring 34 points. I think this one's going to be close (The Jets are still a great team), but look for the Titans to prevail. The spread on this one is 5 and a half, and I think that's gonna be right around what this game will be. The Titans proved last week they can pull away when the game's on the line, and the Jets almost choked a 24-6 lead. I think this one's going to be within a touchdown the entire game with the Titans ending on top by 6, just covering the spread.
Titans 27- Jets 21
Bears (-5) at Rams
Injury Report
Bears: The Bears are healthy, and expect Kyle Orton to start this week
Rams: OT Orlando Pace O; RB Steven Jackson (525 yds, 4 TD) O
The Spin
The badly-beaten-Bears (like the alliteration?) battle the 2-8 Rams this week, in St. Louis. Both teams are coming off humiliating losses last week: the Bears 37-3 to the .500 Packers while the Rams lost by 19 to the 3-7 49ers. If the Bears win, they're looking at staying at the top of the NFC North, and continuing their improbable run towards the playoffs. If the Rams win, they'll lose any shot at the 1st pick in the draft (so long as the Lions keep it up). Kyle Orton wasn't 100% last week, and it showed. Orton went 13-26 for 133 yards, his lowest completion percentage of the year, and his 2nd lowest yard production. Marc Bulger leads the Rams (yikes) with his 28th ranked passer rating. Bulger leads only Ryan Fitzpatrick of the Bengals and Jamarcus Russell of Oakland when it comes to being a good quarterback. With Steven Jackson out, the Rams will be forced to pass, and with starting OT Orlando Pace out, look for this Bears defense to pounce with pressure, forcing a bunch of turnovers, and getting some sacks. This Bears Defense will have a field day come Sunday.
Players to Watch
Bears: DE Alex Brown (25 tackles, 1FF, 3 sacks)
Rams: QB Marc Bulger (72.7 rating, 7 TD, 8 INT)
The Pick
The Bears' defense is going to look as good as they ever have, playing possibly the weakest offense in the NFL. Look for this defensive line to get pressure on Bulger, forcing him to make a lot of bad decisions. I can't see the Rams putting up many points, and I don't think the Bears offense will be great, but maybe they can find a way to feed off of the defense's success.
Bears 27- Rams 10
Patriots at Dolphins (-1)
Injury Report
Patriots: Tedy Bruschi (60 tackles) Q
Dolphins: Healthy
The Spin
At the end of last year, the Patriots were arguably the best team of all time in the NFL, and expected to repeat their success of the previous year. The Dolphins were 1-15, arguably the worst team of all time. Last year when the two teams played each other, Tom Brady threw a Patriots-record 6 TD passes, and had a perfect, let me say that again, PERFECT quarterback rating. Now, both teams are tied in the AFC East at 6-4, one game back of the Jets. And, get this, the Dolphins are favored. This is a tale of two seasons for both the Patriots and the Dolphins, who both need to win this game to stay in the hunt for the Division. The Dolphins have been led by a new, and improved, Chad Pennington, who has a QB rating of 92.8, good enough for 7th in the league. Pennington has 8 receivers he's looked to this year, with Greg Camarillo and Ted Ginn Jr. getting most of the touches. For the Pats, after losing Tom Brady, Matt Cassel has shown that he's better than just a mediocre backup. Last week he threw for 400 yards, and 3 TD against the Division leading Jets. The thing that impressed me the most about Cassel was his final drive. The Pats got the ball on their own 38 with 1:04, needing a touchdown to tie the game. Cassel delivered a 16 yard pass to Randy Moss with 1 second left on the clock, to give them exactly what they needed. The fact they lost the game I attribute to losing the coin toss. If they had won the toss, they probably would've drove down and kicked a field goal. My look on this game is that the Dolphins are a team that is overachieving and the Patriots are a team that is underacheiving.
Players to Watch
Patriots: QB Matt Cassel (2200 yards, 10 TD): Let's see if Cassel can follow up his career game last week, with another big game when the Pats really need it.
Dolphins: RB Ronnie Brown (605 yards, 9 TD): Last time these two teams met, Brown had four (FOUR) touchdown runs and over 100 yards rushins, with a pass TD as well. Let's see if he can repeat those astonishing stats.
The Pick
The Patriots are a very good team, they're only missing Tom Brady from being amazing, but Matt Cassel is starting to get more comfortable in the starting role, and I think this is a very good, and underrated Patriots team. On the other hand, the Dolphins have won their past 4 games, but only one of them over an above .500 team (Denver). I look for Matt Cassel to have another big game, and the Patriots defense to rebound from their embarassing performance against the Jets last week. The Dolphins offense doesn't have any playmakers, and I look for them to not have a great week. I like the Pats to win this one.
Patriots 35- Dolphins 21
Still to come....... New York Giants at Arizona
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3 comments:
Although it is difficult for me to say this, the Bears defense will most certainly not have a field day. It doesn't make a difference if they are playing the Rams or not. The bears have averaged .8, read that again, .8, that is under one sack in their last five games. They have shown no signs of being able to get any pressure on opposing quarterbacks. This doesn't mean I am saying the Bears will lose, but the problems with the defense start with the defensive line putting pressure on quarterbacks, and this has not been happening for the Chicago Bears. Even against the Falcons, the Bears totaled zero sacks. The Falcons have one offensive lineman with more than three years NFL experience. The defense should do some decent things, but the Bears D will not have a field day come Sunday.
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David, I understand where your coming from and I must agree that the Bears have not been great as of late with putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks, but you also have to put into account the Rams offensive line. They're awful. They've already let up over 30 sacks and have been dominated day in and day out. They can't control the defensive line of the Chicago Bears, and no matter how weak you think the Bears are, they're still going to get to Bulger a few times.I don't see a field day occurring either, but they should have the upper hand on a much weaker offensive line of the St.Louis Rams. This is a must win game for a franchise that has based itself off of dominant defense, and no doubt they'll be pumped up and ready to go when Sunday comes around.
So far you are right, they are having a very solid day with three sacks, but it is definitely due of the weak Rams offensive line as well as the Rams coaching. The Rams might want to start throwing the ball instead of throwing screens for losses every time. So far this is a solid game for the D, but in no way is this a field day.
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