Which of the teams that played on Thursday night is going to end up signing Josh Freeman? My money's on the Browns. Hoyer's out for the year, and they have absolutely no faith in Brandon Weedon. E.J. Manuel's only out for a couple weeks, so if given his choice, I think Freeman takes the rest of the year in Cleveland over a few weeks in Buffalo.
The Bucs are one of four teams with a bye this week, and all four of them needed a week off. The Steelers are also winless (and there's a Pirates game on Sunday). The Vikings only have a win because they played the Steelers. Ditto about the Redskins, who played the Raiders. And, of course, the contrived Washington name "controversy" had to again come to the forefront, with the President weighing in and people interpreting his comments as him telling them to change the name, even though that's not what he said at all. I guess they've gotta think about something in Washington while they're busy NOT governing the country. Anyway...
Saints (4-0) at Bears (3-1): New Orleans-This is the first real test for undefeated New Orleans. The Saints' only road game this season was one they almost lost in Tampa Bay. The Bears are also a better home team, and they return to Soldier Field for the first time since Week 2. Monday night's performance was too impressive, though. I'm starting to become a believer in the Saints. I still don't think they're as good as they do (their cockiness is one of the reasons I can't like that team), but I do think they'll pick up a road win over a good Bears team.
Patriots (4-0) at Bengals (2-2): New England-Two of the best teams in the AFC go at it. Last week, the Patriots got a nice road win in Atlanta, and I don't know what happened to the Bengals in Cleveland. If Cincinnati truly wants to be considered "elite," they can't lose games they're supposed to win. They also need to find a way to win games like this one. I can't say I see it happening, though. New England always manages to pull out these early-season games against teams looking to make a statement.
Lions (3-1) at Packers (1-2): Green Bay-The Lions moved into first place with that win over the Bears last week. Green Bay, however, was unable to lose because the Packers had their bye week. Did that cure whatever was ailing Aaron Rodgers and Co.? I don't know. But I do know the Packers are better than 1-2. Coming off the bye, at home, against a division rival, I see the Packers getting back to .500.
Chiefs (4-0) at Titans (3-1): Kansas City-Who would've thought that both of these teams would be tied for first place in their divisions at the end of September? Yet here we have the undefeated Chiefs against the one-loss Titans, who could easily be undefeated themselves. Believe it or not, this is a big game. The winner is going to stick around the playoff chase all season. But, in fairness to the Titans and their start, Kansas City's the better team. The Chiefs move to 5-0.
Seahawks (4-0) at Colts (3-1): Seattle-Right up there with 49ers-Texans as the best interconference matchup of the weekend. My stance on Seattle hasn't changed. The Seahawks aren't the same team on the road. With that being said, though, that comeback last week in Houston was very impressive. If they manage to do it again, maybe I'll jump fully on that Seahawks bandwagon. Picking against them hasn't worked well for me, so I'm going to take Seattle this week, even though I have a feeling it's going to screw me in the end.
Jaguars (0-4) at Rams (1-3): St. Louis-Every time we get a couple matchups of good team vs. good team, it has to be balanced out by Jacksonville vs. St. Louis. The good news for the Jaguars is that this game isn't in Jacksonville, where they've scored a grand total of 5! points this season. As it is, though, they're a welcome visitor for a Rams team that needs a win if they have any hope of keeping pace in the NFC West.
Ravens (2-2) at Dolphins (3-1): Baltimore-This is a tough one. The Dolphins lost in New Orleans on Monday night, which most people expected. The Ravens, meanwhile, lost in Buffalo, their second road loss in as many games. I'm still not ready to give up on Baltimore, though. Last week's loss brought Miami back to Earth a little bit. As a result, I'm going with the Ravens.
Eagles (1-3) at Giants (0-4): Giants-You want two teams that need a win, you're no going to find a better matchup. The Eagles looked overmatched against Denver last week, and are 0-3 against the AFC West. Fortunately for them, they're back in the division against a Giants team that's an absolute mess. It's already been a long season for both of these teams. It's about to get a lot longer for one. Hopefully that one is Philadelphia.
Panthers (1-2) at Cardinals (2-2): Arizona-Basically a coin flip here. Arizona got a win in Tampa last week, while Carolina was sitting at home. The Panthers, though, are also coming off a victory, that 38-0 thumping of the Giants. Since the game's in Phoenix, I'll go with the Cardinals.
Broncos (4-0) at Cowboys (2-2): Denver-NFL, if the Cowboys' two AFC home games are against Denver and Oakland, and it's their year to play an AFC team on Thanksgiving, why are we being subjected to the Raiders on the holiday? Not that CBS is complaining too badly. It's still a national game. Peyton Manning's start has been historic, and the Broncos' offense is clearly the best in the league. The Dallas defense thinks they can stop it though, or, at the very least, slow it down. Even if they do, Peyton Manning is still Peyton Manning. And the unheralded Denver defense isn't given enough credit. Amazingly, though, even after they lose, the Cowboys will still be in first place in the NFC East at 2-3.
Texans (2-2) at 49ers (2-2): San Francisco-I've got a feeling this one is going to be a war. That's what happens when you've got two great defenses in a primetime showdown. It's also what happens when you get two good teams that are badly in need of a win. Houston, especially, needs a victory after back-to-back losses against Baltimore and Seattle. The 49ers had lost two in a row before getting that win in St. Louis last Thursday. I think that got the 49ers back on track. They were embarrassed by Seattle in their last Sunday night game. I don't see it happening again.
Chargers (2-2) at Raiders (1-3): San Diego-Thanks to the Tigers and A's, the start of this one got pushed to 11:30 on Sunday night, and only a masochist would subject himself to a Chargers-Raiders game at that hour. So maybe that's Baseball's gift to us all. (My question, though, is why didn't they just swap home games?) Anyway, no one wants to watch this game, and I suspect very few will, even though it's now a national telecast on NFL Network. The Chargers are better than the Raiders. I'll leave it at that.
Jets (2-2) at Falcons (1-3): Atlanta-Remember last year when the Jets got all those national games because the NFL actually thought they might be worth watching? Well, those days are far behind us. Things haven't gone that well for Atlanta against the AFC East so far. In their last two games, the Falcons have lost to the Dolphins and the Patriots. There's a big difference between the Jets and the Patriots, though. Atlanta snaps its losing streak on Monday night.
BYE: Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay, Washington
This Week: 1-0
Last Week: 9-6
Season: 41-24
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