Time for our look back at Week 9 in the NFL. The halfway mark has come and gone. Well, actually week 8.5 would be the halfway mark, except that doesn't exist. What do we do?!?! OK, I'll admit it, I didn't have a clever open this week, so let's just get on with it, shall we?
Overrated Story of The Week: The Bears Stink
-Anywhere you turned this week, all the rage was that the Bears stink. Their defense is terrible. They're a shadow of their former selves. Lovie Smith is in trouble. They traded too much for Jay Cutler. Their malcontent defensive tackle lost his mind. And so on, and so forth. But, if you would recall what a certain blogger said after Week 1, let me remind you...
Urlacher's loss will absolutely cripple a Bears D that is already a shadow of its former self. Nobody can fill that hole in the middle of the Cover 2, so it looks like from here on out the Bears will have to outscore teams to win.
- Yours Truly
We were on top of this from Day 1 at RSS. Of course, we get so much wrong here with regards to NFL predictions, we have to show you when we're right to produce a shred of credibility. We knew the Bears D was already an average unit coming into the season (thanks to the inherent Chicago pessimism of Y2), and Urlacher's injury just made it worse. Of course, the sudden demise of players like Vasher, Tillman, and Harris hasn't helped as well as puzzling personnel moves (no 1st or 2nd round picks 2 years in a row... including a trade for bust Gaines Adams... what is Jerry Angelo high on??) We needed to get past the Lions/Browns/Seahawks shallow wins on the sked to realize the Bears aren't very good. Even though Cutler has played well, there are too many glaring holes all over the field on the O-Line and the D to make them a contender for a playoff spot this year. And maybe too many holes in the front office and coaching staff to keep it that way.
Underrated Story Of The Week: The Colts Are Unbeaten, But They're Vulnerable
-That's two straight unspectacular home wins by the Colts the last two weeks. Of course, Peyton Manning has been awesome, but do you get the sense that this year's Colts are really elite? I don't. Their defense, while statistically great, just lost Bob Sanders for the season... again. You have to feel bad for a guy that makes Yao Ming look durable. How will that unit respond? Will a consistent running game ever show up? For my money, New England, Pittsburgh, and even Cincinnati in the AFC are legitimate contenders to beat Indy.
The Texans in all honesty should have beaten the Colts on Sunday. That is, if they had a running back that was capable of holding on to the football. Oh, and a field goal kicker that could make a clutch kick. This could be more intuition than anything, but if I were a betting man, I wouldn't put my money on Indy to make another Super Bowl trip back to Miami just yet.
3 Stars:
3rd Star: Kansas City Chiefs
-You don't get a star for anything you've done on the field. You get a star for finally cutting ties with outcast and generally bad dude Larry Johnson. Johnson is nothing but trouble and any team picking up is taking a big chance in bringing him in once he clears waivers. LJ had one good period, but run-ins with the law, coaches, fans and everyone else in-between has marred his career. When fans are signing a petition to get you to not break the franchise rushing record... that's a bad sign.
2nd Star: Kurt Warner (QB-Cards)
-OK, so we've documented the struggle of the Bears, but 5 TDs is still impressive, especially since you just come off a game where you threw 5 INTs. After a slow start, the Cards are asserting themselves at the top of a once again weak NFC West.
1st Star: Josh Freeman (QB-Bucs)
-So, this is pretty unexpected, isn't it? Josh Freeman is the 3rd different starting QB for the Bucs this season, but the 1st to actually win a game. 3 TDs and 0 INTs speak volumes for the maturity level of the former K St. signal caller. Sure, the Bucs are still terrible, but unlike the other really sucky teams, at least it looks like the Bucs have hope, especially in the classic orange!
Fab 5:
1. New Orleans
2. Minnesota
3. Indy
4. Cincinnati
5. Pittsburgh
-A thought about our rankings: The Saints stay at #1 because they're my favorite team... oh, and they're unbeaten. I still think Minny is a better team than Indy, especially without Bob Sanders. Denver's fall might be a little delayed, but it's beginning. The real power division might be the NFC North. The Pitt v Cincy showdown will go a huge way to crown a trendy AFC favorite.
11 Random Observations:
1) Good on the Fox NFL Sunday team to take their show to Afghanistan. Job well done. Although Terry Bradshaw doesn't sing like he used to, case in point...
Did you know he had a Top 15 hit on the country charts?? Is this not the most random factoid of the 20th century??
2) People keep asking me if I'm concerned that the Saints have had to come back from deficits in their last 3 games... I ask them if they ever remember the Saints being 8-0... then I proceed to stick a pin in my Saints voodoo doll to make sure I'm not dreaming, somehow, it's real. Somehow, I know that this will end badly like it always does, and yes I'm hoping some sort of reverse jinx kicks in here.
3) If there is one concern though, it is the Saints shaky run defense... but they are missing 2 of their top run stuffers in Sed Ellis and Scott Fujita, so it's not a huge concern.
4) Yes, Houston should have won... but could they please once win a meaningful game for this franchise. Geez. I think I'd rather be Detroit or Cleveland than to be constantly teased like this.
5) While the Vince Young Era 2.0 is a smashing success, the same evidently can not be said for the Alex Smith Era 2.0. It's a shame for Mike Singletary after his team looked capable of doing some damage this season. It'll be a disappointing 7-9 win season by the bay, remember they play in the NFC West.
6) People are trying to Frogger their way through traffic to climb back on the bandwagons of New England. Not so fast my friend! Oh, wait, wrong football. New England faces their first challenge in a month against the Colts. They have a very easy schedule and have beaten Tennessee, Tampa, and Miami the last 3 weeks. Yawn.
7) If you don't believe in the Bengals, you should now. Even as a Wild Card, this team would have the toughness with a renewed D and Cedric Benson would be a tough out in the playoffs. Baltimore... not so much. At least they have the Bears as company for Dominant Defenses Anonymous.
8) The Lions played the Seahawks this weekend. Just sayin....
9) Eric Mangini just had another secret QB derby this week before naming Brady Quinn the starter. In a related note, the sun will come up tomorrow, and LeBron James is a day closer to leaving Cleveland.
10) I love the endless supply of power rankings, crystal balls, midseason awards, and the ad nauseam supply of verdicts that the pundits feel compelled to give this time of year. I think the only thing more meaningless than NFL Power Rankings is the BCS.
11) Sure, the Colts v Pats hype isn't on the level of the Favre Bowl... but the hype will be pretty insufferable.
What Happened In Week 8 That Will Change The Season: The Giants Are Done
You think Eli regrets that picture after Sunday's game? Who would have thought that the G-Men's blowout at New Orleans was a sign of things to come and not an abnormality. Losing 4 games on the bounce is a stunner for the once mighty force of the NFC. Yes, injuries could be blamed, but every other NFL team has to fight through them as well. Yes, Plax isn't there, but what happened to the new Steve Smith and Hakeem Nicks? Yes, Eli Manning has been awful recently, but what happened to the man who's one of the highest paid players in the league? The Giants slide has taken the league by surprise, and is one of the more unexpected storylines of the season. Their paralyzing loss on Sunday against San Diego has to be a killer blow for their season. (Good for the Chargers to show up Eli Manning after their history above). Like Chicago and Baltimore, this is a team that needs it's swagger back, but it doesn't look like it's coming anytime soon.
Check back for the beginning of the Top 10 Games of the Decade Countdown, we promise it's coming soon!
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