• The Cycling News forum is looking to add some volunteer moderators with Red Rick's recent retirement. If you're interested in helping keep our discussions on track, send a direct message to @SHaines here on the forum, or use the Contact Us form to message the Community Team.

    In the meanwhile, please use the Report option if you see a post that doesn't fit within the forum rules.

    Thanks!

National Football League

Page 362 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.
It sounds like from the preliminary reports it's an ACL and maybe other structural damage. Nothing short of catastrophic for the 49ers...CJ Beathard to the rescue? I said in an earlier post that I had a feeling this would be a bad year for injuries.

https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/09/23/49ers-jimmy-garoppolo-carted-off-with-knee-injury/

On the brighter side...how about the Gunslinger! Sets all-time record for TDs through 3 games to start the season with 13 TD passes breaking Peyton Manning's 2013 mark. Wow!...this kid is the real deal! And KC is 3-0 to boot! An offensive juggernaut where Mahomes can spread the field out with that cannon of his. This may be the team of the AFC. After all those dreaded years with Smith they may finally have a legit SB contender with the Gunslinger at the helm.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2797189-patrick-mahomes-breaks-peyton-mannings-nfl-record-for-most-tds-in-1st-3-weeks
 
Nomad said:
It sounds like from the preliminary reports it's an ACL and maybe other structural damage. Nothing short of catastrophic for the 49ers...CJ Beathard to the rescue? I said in an earlier post that I had a feeling this would be a bad year for injuries.

https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/09/23/49ers-jimmy-garoppolo-carted-off-with-knee-injury/

On the brighter side...how about the Gunslinger! Sets all-time record for TDs through 3 games to start the season with 13 TD passes breaking Peyton Manning's 2013 mark. Wow!...this kid is the real deal! And KC is 3-0 to boot! An offensive juggernaut where Mahomes can spread the field out with that cannon of his. This may be the team of the AFC. After all those dreaded years with Smith they may finally have a legit SB contender with the Gunslinger at the helm.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2797189-patrick-mahomes-breaks-peyton-mannings-nfl-record-for-most-tds-in-1st-3-weeks

Mahomes is very impressive. The Chiefs this year kinda remind of the Falcons from two seasons ago. Not only does Mahomes have the arm he has the moves. One of the TDs he threw on the run while being harassed on all sides was probably the pick of them. Chiefs defense is another matter but with the way the offense is playing it's not a huge concern at the moment.
 
Any given Sunday!

This has to have been one of the most topsy turvy weekends in memory, and shows just how much parity there is in the NFL. I was 7-7 with my picks, which is terrible straight up.

Tony Romo was right about Buffalo and the Vikings, calling the game a "trap" game for the Vikings before it even started. And I'll say what I did about Mayfield in Cleveland about Allen in Buffalo. I can't see Nate Peterman taking another snap for the Bills this season. It's Allen all the way from here on out. He just has a great arm.

Belicheck rarely, rarely loses to his disciples, but the Lions had the Pats number, specifically their offense. It's like Matt Patrician knew what plays the Pats would play on offense and how to stop Brady. Amazing. Two games back of Miami, who is 3-0 against soft competition, but they are consistent and playing well.

That Saints Falcons game with something. All the talk about Tom Brady playing so well in his old age, well, what about Drew Brees? He made better throws, and played a lot tougher than Tom too, and he just keeps on rolling, and setting records.

After some really nice wins, the Jags lose to...the rebuilding Titans? At Home??

Adrien Peterson is 25 again, and Alex Smith completed only 12 passes, but they were early, and deadly. Rodgers still has to be somewhat hurt, but their OL really had troubles with the Washington front 7.

Nice to see Wentz back for the Eagles, who hold strong in that division. Who thought Seattle's offense would have no problem with the Cowboys? And the Giants took what looked like an easy win.

Who thought the Texans would be 0-3, with Watson struggling, and Watt with no sacks? Raiders 0-3 as well, poor defense (gosh, I wonder why?) but offense almost lazy as well.

Mahomes, and that KC offense are just explosive! Really fun to watch. Even if their defense is porous, they are so potent on offense they can stick with any team or catch up. They look like the easy division winner, and 11+ wins.

Best team in the NFL right now is the Rams. They look almost dominant at every aspect of the game. And while they bent a few times against a potent Charger team, they never broke, or even bent for long.

As to the 49ers, and Garoppolo, I only hope it's not as bad as Bridgewater and he "only" misses this season. I don't know that trading to get Tyrod Taylor, RG3 (or Bridgewater) or picking up Jay Cutler out of retirement, or a 38 year old Matt Schuab is the solution. It almost makes more sense to know that CJ Beathard played okay last year (as a rookie), to run with him, and find a vet to come in and start learning the system as a backup. Now, the elephant in the room is Colin Kaepernick, but I don't see that happening. Shanahan said he wanted QBs that played a similar style for his system (3 step drop, quick read, pocket passer), and Colin didn't fit that. Also, Colin would have to drop his grievance lawsuit, then come into camp, get into football shape, learn their new system, establish himself without being a distraction (impossible, even if the locker room welcomes him), and then, presuming Beathard struggles, somehow rise up and play well, even though he hasn't taken a snap in years, literally. Well 2 years, when the 49ers went 2-14. Kaepernick's next game will be in the Alliance league (AAF) or XFL, where any distraction he creates would be welcome publicity for those fledgling leagues.
 
Re:

Alpe d'Huez said:
Mahomes, and that KC offense are just explosive! Really fun to watch. Even if their defense is porous, they are so potent on offense they can stick with any team or catch up. They look like the easy division winner, and 11+ wins.

Best team in the NFL right now is the Rams. They look almost dominant at every aspect of the game. And while they bent a few times against a potent Charger team, they never broke, or even bent for long.
looking forward to Rams/KC, although it is a way off yet (mid-Nov), so anything could happen by then...
 
Re:

Alpe d'Huez said:
Any given Sunday!

This has to have been one of the most topsy turvy weekends in memory, and shows just how much parity there is in the NFL. I was 7-7 with my picks, which is terrible straight up.

Tony Romo was right about Buffalo and the Vikings, calling the game a "trap" game for the Vikings before it even started. And I'll say what I did about Mayfield in Cleveland about Allen in Buffalo. I can't see Nate Peterman taking another snap for the Bills this season. It's Allen all the way from here on out. He just has a great arm.

Belicheck rarely, rarely loses to his disciples, but the Lions had the Pats number, specifically their offense. It's like Matt Patrician knew what plays the Pats would play on offense and how to stop Brady. Amazing. Two games back of Miami, who is 3-0 against soft competition, but they are consistent and playing well.

That Saints Falcons game with something. All the talk about Tom Brady playing so well in his old age, well, what about Drew Brees? He made better throws, and played a lot tougher than Tom too, and he just keeps on rolling, and setting records.

After some really nice wins, the Jags lose to...the rebuilding Titans? At Home??

Adrien Peterson is 25 again, and Alex Smith completed only 12 passes, but they were early, and deadly. Rodgers still has to be somewhat hurt, but their OL really had troubles with the Washington front 7.

Nice to see Wentz back for the Eagles, who hold strong in that division. Who thought Seattle's offense would have no problem with the Cowboys? And the Giants took what looked like an easy win.

Who thought the Texans would be 0-3, with Watson struggling, and Watt with no sacks? Raiders 0-3 as well, poor defense (gosh, I wonder why?) but offense almost lazy as well.

Mahomes, and that KC offense are just explosive! Really fun to watch. Even if their defense is porous, they are so potent on offense they can stick with any team or catch up. They look like the easy division winner, and 11+ wins.

Best team in the NFL right now is the Rams. They look almost dominant at every aspect of the game. And while they bent a few times against a potent Charger team, they never broke, or even bent for long.

As to the 49ers, and Garoppolo, I only hope it's not as bad as Bridgewater and he "only" misses this season. I don't know that trading to get Tyrod Taylor, RG3 (or Bridgewater) or picking up Jay Cutler out of retirement, or a 38 year old Matt Schuab is the solution. It almost makes more sense to know that CJ Beathard played okay last year (as a rookie), to run with him, and find a vet to come in and start learning the system as a backup. Now, the elephant in the room is Colin Kaepernick, but I don't see that happening. Shanahan said he wanted QBs that played a similar style for his system (3 step drop, quick read, pocket passer), and Colin didn't fit that. Also, Colin would have to drop his grievance lawsuit, then come into camp, get into football shape, learn their new system, establish himself without being a distraction (impossible, even if the locker room welcomes him), and then, presuming Beathard struggles, somehow rise up and play well, even though he hasn't taken a snap in years, literally. Well 2 years, when the 49ers went 2-14. Kaepernick's next game will be in the Alliance league (AAF) or XFL, where any distraction he creates would be welcome publicity for those fledgling leagues.

Kaep won't be back nor will Hoyer who was dropped for Beathard. There are question marks about all of the available QBs so I think the 49ers will stick with the young guy. Injury concerns about RGlll and Bridgewater, motivation concerns about Cutler, Kaep not a system fit and been out for too long without even considering the baggage of the politics, Manziel no chance, Osweiler worth a shot ? Probably not. Jimmy's option of not running over the sideline and taking the hit actually reminded me of one of RGlll's injuries. Silly. The 49ers number three QB Mullen went okay in the preseason so if the season continues to worsen he will probably get the call up. As bad as the QB situation is at the moment for the 49ers, their defense is a bigger issue. 35 points in one half ? Their failure to draft defensive quality is coming back to haunt them and the O line issues have been continual. Don't even mention the secondary and now Sherman and Jimmy Ward are injured again.
 
Good point on that run by JG looking a lot like those runs that almost ruined RG3's career. Silly. Officially an ACL tear. $46m down the drain, so to speak. I wouldn't blame their defense too much, they were playing against the most high powered offense in the NFL right now, or one of them, in KC.

Mahomes numbers are pretty sick right now. 13 TD's, no picks. 66.7 completion percentage. 137.4 passer rating. 9.63 yards per attempt (2nd in league, more on this in a moment). His QBR is 90.7, tops in the league.

Nomad - Good call on the QBs. Though having watched some of the Arizona game, Rosen didn't really outplay Bradford, who did make some very good throws, but he at least moves better than Sam, that's for sure. I also think the Cardinals will throw deeper with Rosen in there. Sam has a very meager 5.00 yard per attempt average, worst in the league. The bigger thing is that when Josh was in there, he wasn't rattled. They play Seattle next week, then SF, which may help him out with some confidence.

In more bad news for the Falcons, safety Ricardo Allen is out for the season with a torn Achilles. This comes just two weeks after their other safety, Keanu Neal's season came to an end. Linebacker Deion Jones, who lead the team in tackles two years ago and also made the Pro Bowl, is also on IR and will be for some weeks. Arguably their three best players on defense, gone.

The Steelers started looking like themselves, as did Tampa, at least on defense.

The Buccaneers are mum on who will start next week at QB. I find that fascinating. Fitzpatrick has thrown for over 400 yards in three straight games, an NFL record. Last night he got burned on interceptions, but so far, he's had a great year. I think what's been most impressive has been his ability to get zip on the ball, or any down field accuracy. He had one of the weaker arms in the NFL for some time. Now, he's at least average in both, if not above that. In fact, he leads the league in yards per pass attempt, if you can believe that, at 11.8, and there's a huge drop to Mahomes at 9.6, with a slew of players just under him in the 9's and 8s. Coupled with his ability to make quick decisions and strike, why not continue to roll with Fitz? Then again, maybe Koetter things Winston can do the same?
 
Re:

Alpe d'Huez said:
Good point on that run by JG looking a lot like those runs that almost ruined RG3's career. Silly. Officially an ACL tear. $46m down the drain, so to speak. I wouldn't blame their defense too much, they were playing against the most high powered offense in the NFL right now, or one of them, in KC.

Mahomes numbers are pretty sick right now. 13 TD's, no picks. 66.7 completion percentage. 137.4 passer rating. 9.63 yards per attempt (2nd in league, more on this in a moment). His QBR is 90.7, tops in the league.

Nomad - Good call on the QBs. Though having watched some of the Arizona game, Rosen didn't really outplay Bradford, who did make some very good throws, but he at least moves better than Sam, that's for sure. I also think the Cardinals will throw deeper with Rosen in there. Sam has a very meager 5.00 yard per attempt average, worst in the league. The bigger thing is that when Josh was in there, he wasn't rattled. They play Seattle next week, then SF, which may help him out with some confidence.

In more bad news for the Falcons, safety Ricardo Allen is out for the season with a torn Achilles. This comes just two weeks after their other safety, Keanu Neal's season came to an end. Linebacker Deion Jones, who lead the team in tackles two years ago and also made the Pro Bowl, is also on IR and will be for some weeks. Arguably their three best players on defense, gone.

The Steelers started looking like themselves, as did Tampa, at least on defense.

The Buccaneers are mum on who will start next week at QB. I find that fascinating. Fitzpatrick has thrown for over 400 yards in three straight games, an NFL record. Last night he got burned on interceptions, but so far, he's had a great year. I think what's been most impressive has been his ability to get zip on the ball, or any down field accuracy. He had one of the weaker arms in the NFL for some time. Now, he's at least average in both, if not above that. In fact, he leads the league in yards per pass attempt, if you can believe that, at 11.8, and there's a huge drop to Mahomes at 9.6, with a slew of players just under him in the 9's and 8s. Coupled with his ability to make quick decisions and strike, why not continue to roll with Fitz? Then again, maybe Koetter things Winston can do the same?

I thought the Steelers/Bucs game was very entertaining. Fitz I noticed likes to loft the ball with his long throws. The last TD it worked beautifully but yes the intercepts beat them. I think they should stick with Fitz for the moment. Nice stiff arm by Vance McDonald for a long TD.
 
NFL.com has their power rankings in, and I love this quote from analyst Eliot Harrison:
Nobody knows anything. That's what I keep hearing, but I will simply say everybody is beating everybody. Consider: The Lions beat the Patriots, but were beaten by the 49ers, who lost to the Vikings, who lost to the Bills, who were blown out by the Ravens, who fell to the Bengals, who got handled by the Panthers, who lost to the Falcons, who lost to the Saints, who dropped one to the Bucs AND should've dropped another to the Browns, who just Baker-d the Jets, who absolutely blasted the Lions. Huh?
He said something else before the rankings I agree with:
Doesn't it feel like the Rams, the Chiefs -- and then everybody else?
Right now it sure does.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000966398/article/nfl-power-rankings-week-4-rams-chiefs-rise-above-chaos

You need to really read between the lines to figure out who may be good, and who may not. For example, as I noted earlier the Dolphins are 3-0, but against questionable opposition. But you can't blame them for that. The Chargers are 1-2. But they lost close games to the Chiefs and Rams...without their best defensive player (Bosa) even suited up.

Vikings play at Rams on Thursday. Despite getting blown out by the Bills, Minnesota remains one of the best teams in the league, so this should be a really good game. But Thursday games are always wonky.
 
I agree with that. In fact, back on September 6, just before the season started I wrote:
Alpe d'Huez said:
...If you look at the entire schedule through week 4, it's ripe for some head scratching results and standings just a month into the season. We easily could see teams that are 3-1 not make the playoffs, or vice-versa, maybe even 4-0/0-4. As well as some lopsided stats from teams, and players that throw a lot of experts and analysts off.
Granted, that happens many seasons, but the scheduling this year made that even more so. Still, I didn't predict that the Bills would beat the Vikings, let along basically blow them out.

The 49ers are steadfast that CJ Bethard is their guy. The team seems unanimous in saying he's more mature, and more confident than last year, when he didn't really play that bad, and ready to go. No change in gameplan, which is Shanahan's style. So confident they are, they worked out Tom Savage, Landry Jones, EJ Manuel, TJ Yates, Kyle Allen, Kellen Clemens, and Matt Simms...then decided to promote Nick Mullens, who has never played a snap (though did okay in preseason games) from the practice squad. He said it was possible they'd pick up a third QB, but won't now because of roster space. I wonder who gets the job on the practice squad?

MIN@LAR - Both the Vikings and Rams are all in for this season. It's Super Bowl or nothing. There is no way the Vikings will play as bad as they did against the Bills, but the Rams are the most stacked, deep team in the NFL right now, at every position. And they're at home.

One factoid. In just three games Kirk Cousins has made more money than Jared Goff will the entire year. As a matter of fact, when Cousins took a single snap in game 1, he was guaranteed $25m in money! On the flip side of this, while the Rams handed our serious cash for Todd Gurley (4 years, $57m), the Vikings are getting a screaming deal on RB Dalvin Cook, who will make a paltry $754k this year. One interesting thought on Gurley's contract is that it's heavily stacked early on, nearly $22m for this year alone. That number drops to "just" $13m in 2020, and $9m in 2021. Why would the Rams do this? Because they know they'll have to eventually pay Goff, and there's a chance that Gurley may age a little, as that happens to RBs more than other players, making him more trade or even cut friendly.

Anyone over maybe 40 might remember when Eddie DeBartolo Jr. owned, and Carmine Policy ran the 49ers in the 80's. They were wizards at working with players to get contracts worked out like this. DeBartolo tried his best to treat players like family, finding what could work for them, and what could then help the team in return. Policy had a judicial doctorate on business law from Georgetown. They were so good at making contracts work, it raised a lot of suspicion (and jealousy) of other teams. Now, it seems, nearly every team tries to mimic what they did to at least some degree. Witness the Rams with Gurley (and I presume Goff in a year or two).

Interesting that Jed York is now the controlling owner of the 49ers, slowly taking over from his father. Jed is Eddie DeBartolo's nephew, and probably the closest to him in personality, and viewed as a very compassionate man. He is heavily vested in social justice and education. In fact, he actually supported Colin Kaepernick and stood by his right to protest. Reflecting his generation in a sense as the first "Millennial" owner, and youngest team owner in the NFL.
 
One thing that was nice to see was Goff pushing the ball down the field more. Last year he threw an awful lot of screens and short outs, with some long throws here and there. Not that the Rams are going to turn him into Kurt Warner and the "greatest show on turf", but he's looking quite good.

That's good about Eric Reid, but one thing caught my eye, his grievance against the NFL wasn't dropped in the process. Interesting.
 
a brief pause from NFL related news....

I'm very excited today, it's the Grand Final in the AFL and for the first time ever those who reside stateside will have a hometown guy to cheer on, Texan and former OSU basketballer Mason Cox picked up the sport 4 years ago and has made his way into the team for the Collingwood Magpies (one of the biggest clubs in Australia (if not the biggest)).

https://www.playersvoice.com.au/travis-ford-conversation-wasnt-expecting/#s9o220Ub489HetfH.97

http://www.espn.com.au/afl/story/_/id/24815489/afl-grand-final-collingwood-mason-cox-inspired-jimmy-stynes

Should be a great game today - if you can catch a stream or see it it will be worth your while - 100,000 people cheering the teams on, the pinnacle of the game with 2 great attacking sides battling it out for the ultimate prize.

:D

And now back to NFL related news
 
Re:

leftover pie said:
a brief pause from NFL related news....

I'm very excited today, it's the Grand Final in the AFL and for the first time ever those who reside stateside will have a hometown guy to cheer on, Texan and former OSU basketballer Mason Cox picked up the sport 4 years ago and has made his way into the team for the Collingwood Magpies (one of the biggest clubs in Australia (if not the biggest)).

https://www.playersvoice.com.au/travis-ford-conversation-wasnt-expecting/#s9o220Ub489HetfH.97

http://www.espn.com.au/afl/story/_/id/24815489/afl-grand-final-collingwood-mason-cox-inspired-jimmy-stynes

Should be a great game today - if you can catch a stream or see it it will be worth your while - 100,000 people cheering the teams on, the pinnacle of the game with 2 great attacking sides battling it out for the ultimate prize.

:D

And now back to NFL related news
Amazing story really. OFC I had to vote Collingwood FTW. Coxy even dumped his Texan accent for full on Aussie. Now THAT'S an improvement! I'd watch the Grandy for sure if we got it here. Go Magpies!
 
Re:

Alpe d'Huez said:
One thing that was nice to see was Goff pushing the ball down the field more. Last year he threw an awful lot of screens and short outs, with some long throws here and there. Not that the Rams are going to turn him into Kurt Warner and the "greatest show on turf", but he's looking quite good
Related to how Goff has been brought along by Mcvey, I must say ATM I was wrong about the success RPO would have in the NFL. About one year ago I said RPO would not stick in the NFL for several reasons, the main reason being that NFL defenders are across the board more athletic than college defenders making it difficult for RPO plays to be successful in the NFL. Wrong, while some elements what I said then I think are correct. According to NFL analyst Bucky Brooks, we are seeing a number of NFL teams with young QBs having success with RPO. Bucky says by infusing easily-learned RPO into playbooks, coordinators are able to make use much sooner of their drafted QBs (who ran RPO offenses in college), then over a course of 4 years introduce the young QB to more pro-style plays. So now Goff, now in his 3rd NFL year, is getting introduced to a larger playbook.

The other interesting thing Bucky said is how the league's (NFL & college) are impacting each other has changed with regard to how the game is played. Decades ago it was all trickling down from NFL to college. Now, the style of play in college is tricking up to the NFL. But NFL coaches have to accept that idea. Maybe Jeff Fisher (former Rams HC) and KC's Andy Reid (with both Mahomes and Alex Smith) were not.

This new blueprint for building a powerhouse (e.g. Wentz-Eagles, Goff-Rams), where teams only have to pay a young QB minimally so they can spread their cap money on other positions, might stick around for quite a while. The only trouble with this is what happens to the roster when teams have to start paying their starting QBs megamillions? Time will tell.
 
Time will tell, like, now. Take a look at Seattle with Wilson and their OL. Or what happened when the Ravens handed huge checks to Flacco just a couple years ago, and he's somewhat underperformed every since. The Giants have also overpaid Eli Manning every contract he's had since his rookie one. Look at how good they've been in recent years. Of course we could create a big list of overpaid QBs. That would be easy.

NYJ@JAX - Jags lost last week in a game they should have won, but weren't blown out. Back to the mean here.
MIA@NE - Regression to the mean here too. But the game could be very close.
PHI@TEN - My upset of the week. Titans are surprisingly balanced, and well prepped with new coach.
HOU@IND - Houston's slide continues, Indy's improvement does too, at home.
BUF@GB - Last week's Bills win a minor fluke they can't repeat.
DET@DAL - Tough game to pick. Cowboys at home.
TB@CHI - Another potential upset, but TB comes a little back to earth against superb D of Chicago.
CIN@ATL - Injuries or not, Falcons win at home behind stellar offense.
SEA@ARI - Josh Rosen's first start meets improving Seahawk defense.
CLE@OAK - Oakland finally gets a win, but very curious to see how Mayfield plays.
NO@NYG - Saints improving every week, one of the best teams in the league.
SF@SD - Chargers are for real, and Niners prep for a rough season.
BAL@PIT - Steelers started to look like them selves, and accepting Bell will never be back in that locker room.

KC@DEN - Mahomes and the Chiefs continue to roll, but I don't see a blowout. Recall last year the team started red hot as well.
 
Re:

Alpe d'Huez said:
Time will tell, like, now. Take a look at Seattle with Wilson and their OL. Or what happened when the Ravens handed huge checks to Flacco just a couple years ago, and he's somewhat underperformed every since. The Giants have also overpaid Eli Manning every contract he's had since his rookie one. Look at how good they've been in recent years. Of course we could create a big list of overpaid QBs. That would be easy.

NYJ@JAX - Jags lost last week in a game they should have won, but weren't blown out. Back to the mean here.
MIA@NE - Regression to the mean here too. But the game could be very close.
PHI@TEN - My upset of the week. Titans are surprisingly balanced, and well prepped with new coach.
HOU@IND - Houston's slide continues, Indy's improvement does too, at home.
BUF@GB - Last week's Bills win a minor fluke they can't repeat.
DET@DAL - Tough game to pick. Cowboys at home.
TB@CHI - Another potential upset, but TB comes a little back to earth against superb D of Chicago.
CIN@ATL - Injuries or not, Falcons win at home behind stellar offense.
SEA@ARI - Josh Rosen's first start meets improving Seahawk defense.
CLE@OAK - Oakland finally gets a win, but very curious to see how Mayfield plays.
NO@NYG - Saints improving every week, one of the best teams in the league.
SF@SD - Chargers are for real, and Niners prep for a rough season.
BAL@PIT - Steelers started to look like them selves, and accepting Bell will never be back in that locker room.

KC@DEN - Mahomes and the Chiefs continue to roll, but I don't see a blowout. Recall last year the team started red hot as well.
As usual, hard to argue, but:
MIA over NE
PHI over TEN
CLE over OAK
BAL over PIT
 
Re:

Alpe d'Huez said:
KC@DEN - Mahomes and the Chiefs continue to roll, but I don't see a blowout. Recall last year the team started red hot as well.
I agree...I don't see a blowout. It was here in Denver last year that Mahomes made his first start & rookie debut in KC's regular season final (resting Smith for the playoffs). A 27-24 win by KC with Mahomes leading a game-winning drive for a walkoff FG. I'm sure the coaches will be reminding the players of this for a little "revenge" factor.

Interestingly, there's not a lot of hype on this game as the city is painted purple with the Rockies securing a playoff spot and playing the Dodgers today for the division title.
 
That was quite the game last night! Both teams came to play, and win. It looked like for over 3 quarters like the Broncos had, or could do enough to contain Mahomes and the Chiefs offense, but what a stellar performance by KC to pull it out. First, what gritty, determined play by Mahomes! But also the KC running game made some great plays. But let's also credit the KC coaching staff, specifically Andy Reid, obviously. He was able to adapt their game plan when Mahomes struggled at times, and it looked like a slightly different offense late in the game. Also credit Mahomes himself for the plays he did change, and execution, and Kareem Hunt for some big runs. The Broncos have to be smarting a little as just a couple plays in their favor could have changed the game.

There were other games, and players that shined as well this week, some thoughts:

I'm starting to think the Bengals, and Andy Dalton are may be for real. They're in first place, with only one loss, at Carolina. They next play Miami, then Pittsburgh, and @ KC, then a bye, and at the Saints. We'll know more then, but they sure looked good yesterday, stepping up when they needed to on both sides of the ball.

Tampa did indeed come back to reality, like I thought, against a rapidly turning great defense in Chicago. The Bears sure feed of Mack's presence. Amazing how one great player can do that. But I'm not sure what Tampa will do at QB now. Winston played maybe worse than Fitzpatrick.

The Bills also came back to reality, despite Josh Allen making some nice throws. Aaron Rodgers just picked them apart, though the entire offense didn't seem in sync from what I saw. He was a little more mobile but still looked slow at times. They play at Detroit, then SF, then a bye before visiting the Rams, then off to New England. We'll know how they, and Rodgers, are playing then.

And Miami came back to earth as well, getting blown out by a very focused Brady and New England. Recall that many years the Patriots have started out looking vulnerable, then by December look like a Super Bowl shoe in.

On the up side of things, the Saints also looked like they should, again, moving to 3-1. Apparently right when their plane got back to New Orleans, Mark Ingram was there waiting to meet them at the gate, giving the team an emotional boost. They play Washington next week, then a bye, followed by five tough games in a row, @BAL, @MIN, LAR, @CIN, and PHI.

Glad I was right picking Tennessee over Philly. Despite their inability to run, their defense kept them in the game, getting to Wentz a lot, and Mariota made some key throws when they needed him to. As I said before, they look like a surprisingly balanced, disciplined, deep and well prepared team under Mike Vrabel. They play @Buffalo, Baltimore, @LAC (who might have Bosa back then). On Nov 11th they have the Patriots at home.

What happened in Seattle with Earl Thomas is one for the books, flipping off the Seattle sideline. I'm not sure exactly who he was upset at specifically, probably the team in general for their rule that they don't negotiate with players who don't show up and play, but then perhaps not negotiating with Earl in good faith? Now, he's going to miss the entire season, then be a UFA, and someone will pick him up for far less than he would have likely made ($8.5m this year). Bobby Wagner seemed to completely support Earl. His playing sure puts Le'Veon Bell's holding out in new perspective, doesn't it? I'd hold out too at this point if I were Le'Veon.

Tough loss for Cleveland. I think the only real frustrating thing now isn't that they suck, because they clearly do not, but how agonizingly close they are to being a pretty good team.

Finally, the Ravens again look solid, and I think the best that division, easily handling the Steelers.
 
Yes that MNF game was stellar. Mahomes turning out to be everything that's been said. TTTO, in practice yesterday he threw a ball 90 yards.

Well, what can I say about Earl Thomas. This. Character shows when the going gets tough. He doesn't like his contract? Boo hoo. He is the 6th highest paid safety in the league making a bit over $10M. Drew Brees is the 7th highest paid QB, Brady the 16th highest, Rivers 14th highest, and the list like that goes on (all from overthecap.com). So, it's not like Seattle has mistreated him financially. Also, Seattle's cap situation is not favorable right now to sign him to a new deal. They only have $4.6M cap room now, but will have over $63M in 2019. Doesn't take much to understand when he should push Seattle for a bigger deal - IF he wants to stay in Seattle.

And as for staying in Seattle, this may be Carroll's last year as HC. After I saw his kiss-a** player-friendly response to Earl's 3-finger salute to the Seattle sideline, Carroll is not doing much to help players exhibit their better self. But the NFL is not a boys choir either. Still, I give Pete's response a thumbs down.
 

TRENDING THREADS