It’s week 4 and I have some good and some bad news for you, my loyal reader. I’m going to go the traditional route and tell you the bad one first: We already have 3 weeks of NFL action in the books. Sucks, doesn’t? (NFL season is just the best. Hands down. I can’t think of anything that gets a collective that is as diversified as NFL fans, more excited than football season (except for maybe Christmas, but c’mon it’s unfair if you have to go up against the Big Guy). As a matter of fact I challenge you, the reader, to come up with something that means more to a specific group of people than the NFL season means to sports fans (e-mails and comments are welcome). Can’t be done. Anyway moving on.
But cheer up, fellow football fanatics. Here is the good news. We’ve got a slate of tasty (I’m talking mouth-watering) games coming up this Sunday. The Fan’s perspective proudly presents 3 delicious games ( You want a reason why God loves football? Well, hang on, because here it is: Each one of these 3 games is played at a different time [1 p.m., 4 p.m. and a Monday Night game] which means even people like me who live in Austria, that have no Direct TV and have to watch the games on crappy live streams on the internet where they have to literally pray that the stream works, can catch all three of these blockbuster games live. So there you have it, the definitive proof that God does indeed love football.) to watch for this Sunday. Get the kids inside ’cause dinner is served!
(One more note on watching live football streams or for that matter any live streams on the internet before we move on to the games. It sure is something when you have 5 people crammed around a computer screen watching a live sports stream. You have guys not daring to move , because they fear that too sudden movement will make the stream, which most of the time is blurry and halting anyway, disappear for good err bad, whatever. Nobody is allowed to touch the mouse or even look at it askant once the stream “works”. It really is a hassle. But still I have to say I’m really glad they are there (try www.myp2p.eu for live sporting events ranging from football to badminton, no joke, I’m 80% sure they once showed a badminton game), because with out them I wouldn’t be able to follow my favorite teams at all and that would suck more than Jenna Jameson (I felt like we went too long without a porn joke. Gotta have them in there from time to time to spice things up a bit.). But now without further ado let’s look at the games. Yum-yum!)
Baltimore at New England
Oh, golly what a game! The 3-0 Ravens, who have emerged as this year’s AFC powerhouse so far and who might even be the best team in the whole league, visiting the so- far- less- than- impressive Pats. There are so many storylines in this game it makes my head spin. Possible passing of the torch concerning AFC supremacy (I hope no, but it sure could be). Belichick signing and then immediately cutting former Ravens linebacker Prescott Burgess (picture to the right) the week before they play them,
- Could this man be the MVP of the game when not even playing in it!?
just like the Jets did with O’Connell, to maybe pick his brain about the Ravens defense (http://espn.go.com/boston/columns/blog?post=4512599&name=reiss). Can Brady finally find his 2007 form against a Ravens pass defense that is just 4 spots ahead of the Falcons defense and is 16 spots worse than last year (talk about missing a coordinator, sheesh!) ?
Speaking of that Ravens defense, it seems like everybody has gotten so used to always talking about the Ravens D that their surprisingly stellar offense has been flying under the radar so far this season. Sure, you have to take it (the Ravens are currently the 2nd best offense in the National Football League according to www.pro-football-reference.com) with a grain of salt since the Ravens haven’t exactly faced the cream of the crop so far this season (Kansas City, San Diego, Cleveland), but still they are slashing through opposing defenses like a scorching samurai sword through a chunk of margarine (Damn, I’m starting to get hungry!). They have a young and confident quarterback in Flacco as well as a young and up-and-coming Runningback in Ray Rice. Plus , let’s not forget the miraculous resurrection of McGahee. Now combine those things with the fact that the Ravens have a pretty darn good O-line and what you get is the recipe for a successfull team: A top 10 defense, a competent QB and the ability to run the ball. (Kids, if you’re talking notes at home those are THE 3 most important features an NFL team has to have to succeed in this league.)
Hence, all signs are pointing to the Ravens and still I do believe that the Pats will come through in this game. It means more to them. I really do believe that. They are right now facing a crisis. Sure, they pulled out a win against Atlanta, but not a very convincing one. They still needed a lot of breaks in that game. They need to prove to us the fans and more importantly to themselves that they are a better team than what they have shown so far and they can only do so by beating an overwhelmingly good opponent like the Ravens. Furthermore, don’t forget that New England flourishes in the role of the underdog. We saw it in that first Superbowl against the Rams, they love it when nobody believes in them. Personally I think that the players are tired of being anticipated to win. Excpectations were too high for too long. Belichick is still at his best when he has to face adversity and this game will be about as testing as it gets.
As far as the Ravens are concerned, this could be at best a statement win to solidify there NR 1 status in the AFC and at worst just a bump in the road to what seems like a Superbowl season so far (you heard it here first folks, the Ravens are going to the Superbowl).
I guess, after reading those last two paragraphs it’ll come as no surprise that I’m picking the Pats in an upset over the Ravens. The official TAF (The Average Fan) Pick: Baltimore 24 – New England 27
New York at New Orleans
Just when you got done taking some sedatives to recover from a dramtic Pats-Ravens finish it’s time for a battle between the league’s top offense and the second best defense as two unbeaten heavyweights clash together in what should be an epic fight. This delicious late afternoon game features two teams who couldn’t be any more different. On the one side you have an offensive juggernaut with a polished and proven QB who seems like he’s the best in the business right now and on the other side you have the trash-talking, hard-nosed defense that flies around the field like a bunch of mad dogs and a rookie QB who hasn’t had to actually win a game yet. I hate to use the old cliché, but the Jets really are only asking him to “manage” the game and limit his mistakes and so far he has down a good job doing that.
But here’s the catch.
Time to shine, pretty boy! Show us what you're made of!
You can only go so long before your QB has to prove that he’s capable of stepping up when it matters most (after all there’s a reason why it’s the most prestigious position in football). This will be that kind of game. If the Jets want to win this baby then Sanchez will need to make plays, because I’m telling you, that Saints D ain’t a pushover either. They have vastly improved since last year (Iin 2008 they were ranked 26th in team defense. This year? 14th! Talk about making a leap.). That’s the first key to the game: Can Sanchez make plays when they need him to.
The second key will be the much talked about Jets D. Can they hold the Saints offense in check!? Because if not, then there is no way in hell the Jets win this game. They certainly won’t be able to outscore them.It’ll be interesting to see how well Brees will handle Rex “Blitzkrieg” Ryan’s defensive schemes. So far the Saints haven’t faced a defensive unit nearly as aggresive as this Jets D. They are basically blitzing on every down, which means Brees will have to get the ball out of his hands quicker than he is used to. In addition to that their Nr. 1 receiver Colston will be blanketed by the best cover CB in the game right now (In case you wondered. That’s Darrelle Revis. That guy is a stud. So far in 3 games this guy has held Andre Johnson, Randy Moss and Justin Gage (alright that last one might not be that impressive, I’ll give you that) to a combined total of 96 yards and 12 receptions!!! Think about that for a moment. That’s an average of 32 yards and 4 reception for the opponents BEST wide receiver. Needless to say that none of them caught a TD. This guy is the defintion of a shutdown corner.) This means Brees will have to spread the ball around even more and look for other options.
So in the end this game will come down to two things:
1. Can Sanchez be the kind of player he was groomed to be at USC, namely somebody who isn’t afraid to go all out when the spotlight shines the brightest.
2. How will the Saints offense handle the pressure of (basically) every down blitzes and rushes.
Personally I have to give the edge to the Saints in this game, because I think that A) playing in a dome is still a significant advantage for the home team (I can already see Sanchez getting rattled by a raucous Saints crowd and in effect messing up the snap count at least five times) and that B) the discrepancy between the teams’ offenses is much bigger than between the teams’ defenses. That’s why I will pick the Saints to win this game by a rather large margin. The official TAF Pick: New York 14 – New Orleans 31
Green Bay at Minnesota
Right when you thought it couldn’t possibly get any better there is one final gourmet meal waiting for you. Fresh out of the oven we have the Packers visiting the Vikes in an NFC North showdown that will be unmatched (Well, of course except for when they’ll meet again on 11/1/2009 at Lambeau. Anybody got goosebumps yet?). It’ll be the first time Brett “Should I stay or should I go!?” Favre will go up against his long time employer and this time it’ll even be in a Vikings Jersey. I wouldn’t be surprised if the earth would stop revolving around the sun on Monday. Seriously, in a million years could anybody have foreseen the way this whole thing evolved. If somebody had told you in 1998 that Favre would ever play in a uniform other than green and gold, you would have called him nuts. But if this same person would have said to you: “In 2009 Brett Favre will A) still be playing and B) will be wearing a Vikings jersey”, you would have dragged that person to a mental institution. Favre was a demi-god in Wisconsin.
It just doesn't look right.
Now?
Not so much.
(http://staff.onmilwaukee.com/sports/articles/burnfavre.html – See what I mean?).
Packers fans have made a complete 180 on Favre. Last year they were kind of dissapointed, but they blamed the Packers organization more than anything else for the whole mess and most importantly they still respected and to some degree loved Favre. But now that love has turned into utter hatred.
I can’t wrap my head around this. Why? Why would you do that if you’re Favre? You are beloved and adored by a whole fan base and generation of fans (and don’t forget a certain television announcer *cough cough* John Madden). You are basically a folk hero and you could probably get away with man slaughter in Wisoncsin. You’ll never get a speeding ticket in your whole life no matter how fast you cruise around Lake Michigan. You already have your ring so why not just retire. But nooooo. He had to come back and I guess it’s somewhat understandable if you’ve never done anything else you’re whole life , but still it’s just mind-boggling to me how he basically pissed away his whole reputation and pissed off one of the most loyal fan bases in all of sports. Anyway, enough Favre talk for now. We’ll get back to him later and this time you’ll like what I have to say about him even more, Packers fans. I promise.
As far as the actual game is concerned it all comes down to matchups. Fact is that the Packers don’t match up well against the Vikes. They don’t have a good run defense ( ranked 23rd), which should make it easy for AP to run wild (bad matchup NR 1). They’ll have a tough time passing on a Vikes pass D that is currently ranked 4th in the league and can create a lot of pressure with a very solid D-line (bad matchup NR 2). They are 23rd in third down conversion which is never a good sign and to make matters even worse Minny is 1st (!) in third downs allowed (bad matchup NR 3). (The Vikings have only allowed their opponents to convert 22.2% of their third downs. Now granted they have played Cleveland, Detroit and San Fran, but still that is pretty darn impressive if you ask me.)
Those are three bad matchups for Green Bay and I know Packers fans don’t want to hear this, but this game has rout written all over it. But there is one thing that the Packers have going for them and that is that they are playing against, you guessed it, Brett Favre (We’ve come full circle now in this preview. Kinda neat isn’t it!?) If there ever was a player who was capable of single-handedly ruining his teams chances of winning a game it’s Brett (with the exceptions of Russell and Delhomme, compared to them even Favre is still in Triple A). Consider this: In three games so far Brett Favre, a guy who has thrown a record setting 311 INTs over his whole career, has only thrown one pick. Only one. He is as due as a milk carton sitting in a college student’s refrigerator. I can easily see him throwing three picks in this game and you know one of those three will be returned for a momentum changing TD.
And how sweet would it be for Packers fans to finally get their revenge for all the pain and suffering that Favre has inflicted on them (on the other side Vikings fans would finally get to see the real Brett Favre)!? It would be about as sweet as a fresh bowl of ice cream and as we all know: Revenge is a dish best served cold.
The official TAF pick: Green Bay 28 – Minnesota 27
I think you tipped wrong at the Patriots – Ravens game. My guess would be more in the direction of shootout for Baltimore
I don’t understand why so many people hate favre he is doing a good job and loves the game so let him play as long as hes able to and wants to…
But I see your point.
I liked the game prieviews, would like to see some more