Who Ya Got? (Week 4 Inaugural Edition)
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by Tylersalt
And now for a new segment, titled "Who Ya Got" in which I give my picks for the upcoming week in the NFL in descending order of confidence, justify them, and get ripped apart by the community at large. But hey, that's the point, no?
Bye Weeks: Washington Redskins (2-1), New Orleans Saints (0-3), Tennessee Titans (2-1), Jacksonville Jaguars (2-1)
The Picks (home teams in caps)
New England Patriots (3-0) over CINCINNATI BENGALS(1-2) (Monday Night)
Despite "cameragate" and its fallout, nobody, I repeat NOBODY, in the NFL is playing better football than New England right now. Tom Brady, finally with real deep threat receivers for the first time in his career (Donte Stallworth and a resurgent Randy Moss) is playing like the MVP, and the defense has been absolutely shut-down. They demolished two playoff teams from a year ago in the first two weeks (Jets and Chargers), and embarrassed a Buffalo team which granted, is not very good, but were slated for improvement from a lot of experts. Cinci, on the other hand, has obviously forgotten how to play defense entirely, something which they didn't really have a firm grasp of in their past few playoff seasons. Carson Palmer can't do this on his own, fellas. Pats cruise, 38-14.
DALLAS COWBOYS (3-0) over St. Louis Rams (0-3)
As much as it pains me to say this as a die-hard Redskins fan, the 'Boys are quickly establishing them as the class of the NFC -- they're scoring an eye-popping 38.7 points a game. After demolishing Chicago last week and with New Orleans' struggles, who is going to beat them? Perhaps only the Packers have a shot, with possible challenges coming from two inconsistent teams from their own division in Philly and Washington. The Rams had been playing poorly with Stephen Jackson, now he'll miss at least a week, and they don't have a prayer. Cowboys steamroller the Rams, 35-10.
Baltimore Ravens (2-1) over CLEVELAND BROWNS (1-2)
That Ravens defense led by Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, notwithstanding the mini rush the Kurt Warner-led Cardinals put on them this past week, is still one of the best in the biz, and they should be able to easily handle the streaky Browns. Derek Anderson is clearly competent enough to take care of business against sub-par D (see Bengals, above), but it remains to be seen how he will fare against a solid squad like the Ravens. And seriously, they lost to Oakland last week. Ravens take it, 20-7.
SAN DIEGO CHARGERS (1-2) over Kansas City Chiefs (1-2)
This matchup plays directly into the Chargers' hands. Their real weakness is their pass defense (see the Pats game), and that's something the Chiefs will not be able to exploit with Damon Huard at the helm. The Chargers will be able to stuff the box, contain what little of Larry Johnson they see, and LaDanian Tomlinson will continue to heat up into MVP form. The Chiefs ought to be looking very, very hard at the elite college quarterbacks this season, as chances are they'll have a pretty high draft pick to use on one of them. Colt Brennan, anyone? Although he'd probably be completely wasted under the run-wacky Herman Edwards. Chargers roll, 28-10.
Pittsburgh Steelers (3-0) over ARIZONA CARDINALS (1-2)
Seeing a pattern here? Four of my top five picks are elite AFC teams. I wonder why? The wheels are starting to come off in Glendale, which seems to be a bit of a tradition around this time of the year. Kurt Warner relieved starting QB and Heisman winner Matt Leinart near the end of the first half against Baltimore last week and only lost to a last-second Matt Stover field goal. Rookie head coach Ken Whisenhunt has given Leinart the dreaded vote of confidence, but has intimated that Warner could see some more playing time in the coming weeks. The Steelers defense is certainly not the sort of opponent Leinart would look forward to facing the week after getting the hook, and he's making people (like myself) who drafted him expecting big things in his second year throwing to Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin look pretty silly. Side plot: whither Hines Ward? Steelers win this one, 24-6.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS (3-0) over Denver Broncos (2-1)
***GAME OF THE WEEK***
Mr. Endorsement and crew are playing so well, you'd wonder why they wouldn't be even higher on my confidence list. The fact is that Mike Shanahan's crew always plays them tough (they've had a couple of *classic* playoff games in the past few years), and the Broncos are in another league from the three teams the Colts have beaten this year, the Titans, Texans, and (apparently) Saints. We'll see one of the best possible matchups in the NFL in this game, with the Indy dynamic duo of Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne going up against Denver's shutdown corners Champ Bailey and Dre' Bly. Broncos QB Jay Cutler had an MRI on his ankle after their loss to the Jags, but he should be fine for the game. Indy wins a tight one, 21-20.
Seattle Seahawks (2-1) over SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS (2-1)
The 49ers, thought by many to be the breakout team in the NFC this year after a surprise (but ultimately unsuccessful) run at the playoffs last season, could be the worst 2-1 team in the league. The offense has produced in fits and starts, Alex Smith has struggled to find a rythym, and it's been either Frank Gore or nothin' for the boys from NoCal. They go up against an underrated Seahawks defense in an important division game. The Niners' defense is allowing 142.3 rushing yards a game, and welcomes in one of the NFL's elite backs in Shaun Alexander. It could be a long day for the San Francsico defensive squad as Alexander will pound the ball and open up the passing game for Matt Hasselbeck. I'll make SSreporters happy and predict a 24-10 Seahawks victory.
Green Bay Packers (3-0) over MINNESOTA VIKINGS (1-2)
There are two reasons this game isn't higher on the list. One: Brett Favre is due for a bad game. He's just due. And two: The Vikes always play their hated rivals hard. The guys in green will prevail in this one, but it will be a closer game than anyone thinks. Pack 14, Vikes 13, and Favre throws two picks.
Houston Texans (2-1) over ATLANTA FALCONS (0-3)
Joey Harrington played a little better this past week, but how long can it possibly be before the Byron Leftwich era begins in the town previously known as Hot-lanta? The Texans played the Colts hard last week, but they should be able to outscore the worst-scoring offense in the NFC even without the injured Andre Johnson. Atlanta remains winless by a score of 24-7.
CAROLINA PANTHERS (2-1) over Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-1)
These are two teams I just can't seem to get a handle on. Jake Delhomme's injury does not seem to be serious, and he should be fine in time for the game. Jeff Garcia has showing that his success in Philadelphia last season filling in for the injured Donovan McNabb was not a fluke. I see those two as basically a wash. The difference could come down to the Tampa Bay defense being able to stop DeShaun Foster, who had a damn fine day this past week. The TMQ generic prediction makes an appearance: Carolina beats the visiting Bucs, 20-17.
Philadelphia Eagles (1-2) over NEW YORK GIANTS (1-2)
The outcome of this game will depend entirely on which units show up for these games. Will it be the Giants defense from the second half of their win over Washington, when they held the Skins scoreless and without a first down until there were less than five minutes left in the 4th? Or will it be the defense from the rest of the season which was giving up close to 40 points a game? And which Philly offense will show up? The one which couldn't score an offensive touchdown against those same Redskins, or the one which hung 56 points on the Lions last week in those butt-ugly uniforms? The Iggles are picked up by the Phillies' playoff run and win this one, 24-17.
New York Jets (1-2) over BUFFALO BILLS (0-3)
Marshawn Lynch is one of the best things to show up in Buffalo since the wings, but it doesn't change the fact the Bills are ranked dead last in just about every offensive category, and a whole lot of the defensive ones as well, and things just don't look like they're gonna get any better this year considering the sheer number of injuries that they've had. Those injuries now include starting quarterback J.P. Losman, who will be replaced by Trent Edwards (thanks for the update, Silencer76), and rookie linebacker Paul Posluszny (who is on IR now and out for the year). The Jets have some problems on defense, but they should have the chance to work on those against the anemic Bills. Jets win, 24-6.
Oakland Raiders (1-2) over MIAMI DOLPHINS (0-3)
The Raiders are probably going to be better than last year, but their only win is tainted by the same legal trickery used against them by Denver involving a last-second timeout during a field goal. Coach Lane Kiffin has some promise, and has finally made the boneheaded-ly easy decision to play Daunte Culpepper over Josh McCown, but Raiders fans have to be looking forward to the JaMarcus Russell era. Expectations have been high in South Florida for some time now, no more so than with the arrival of Trent Green by trade. However, they have failed to produce offensively, and I see no reason why that should change against a pretty decent Oakland D. Culpepper comes out angry and looking for revenge, and the Raiders take this one 24-7.
Detroit Lions (2-1) over CHICAGO BEARS (1-2)
***UPSET OF THE WEEK***
I know, I know, it's kind of lame to have your 1-point confidence game also be your "upset of the week", but that's just the way it goes. I will no longer trust the Bears until The Sex Cannon is holding a clipboard, and the defense proves that they're still one of the elite units in the league. After getting eviscerated by Dallas last Sunday, the Bears are clearly undeserving of their preseason status as "consensus NFC Super Bowl pick". The Lions may not win 10 games, especially if their D keeps rolling over like they did against Philadelphia last week (although in their defense, it was probably hard to keep your eyes on those ugly uniforms for too long), but it's clear that this is an improved team. I'd improve too if I were throwing to Roy Williams and Calvin Johnson. Looks like Kevin Jones might be on the way back too. Lions send the Bears to the NFC North cellar with a win, 21-10.
Well, that's it for Who *I* Got this week. Who *YOU* Got?
