A monster week of both pro and college football has led me to the following conclusions...
1) I've got some explaining to do for last week's thoughts: This week's roundup is a little late just based on the fact that I've been far too busy eating crow for my previous proclamations. OK, so USC didn't dominate Ohio State, but don't you think the Buckeyes and their fans would take a absolute drubbing as opposed to the way they actually lost? And with Lane Kiffin backing up his talk, if it were possible, both teams deserved a loss for how that game played out. If Tennessee is anything less than a 4 touchdown dog heading into The Swamp this weekend, I'll be shocked and appalled. (edit: BetUS.com has the Vols as a +29.5 underdog. Good work, boys) One more thing; Mark May, you trying to claim that Jimmy Clausen had anything to do with Notre Dame's loss to Michigan is embarrassing and should be investigated as slander. We get it Mark, you hate Notre Dame and love the warm feeling you get from Pete Carroll's underoos, but that comment makes as much sense as a ESPN analyst who starred at Pittsburgh relentlessly singing the praises of USC. Send this team to Texas or Florida where a team knows how to close a game out so we can hear the excuses flow like the inevitable river of tears that would precede them.
2) Did the Bills seriously let Tom Brady run the 2 minute drill?: Thank you to the Buffalo Bills for making my loss in fantasy football this week even more brutal by handing Tom Brady extra points. I've got no problem with taking an absolute beating in a weekly match up, especially when the draft was out of my control. (Autopick drafts = fail, takes every bit of fun out of it) But to force me to monitor how many tackles Eric Weddle records because Brady tacks on about 17 fantasy points in 2 minutes and give me false hope is downright unforgivable. Was there any doubt that when they got their early Christmas present from Leodis McKelvin that the Pats were taking that ball into the endzone? I don't care if Brady is throwing with his left arm, he's getting that team the lead no matter what. Props to the Bills for shutting the Pats down for the most part, but I'm having trouble figuring out which loss was more brutal to watch, the Bills or the Buckeyes. A game like that is just the kind of spark the T.O. bomb needs to start it's irreversible ticking.
3) "Roughing the passer" penalties have got to go: Let me get this straight, Brian Urlacher lowering his shoulder into Aaron Rodgers with the ball 10 yards down field - OK, Vince Wilfork performing a textbook perfect form tackle just as the ball is leaving Trent Edwards' hand - instant flag. Message to the NFL's contracted officials: football is a contact sport. The quarterback is a football player and is therefore subject to contact. Granted, you can't blatantly bury the QB well after the play, but when it comes to bang-bang plays in backfield, swallow the whistle please. If the QB is not allowed to be touched at any point during a play (as the rule more or less stands right now) then here is my suggestion; make QB runs a penalty. It's not as ridiculous an idea as it may sound. If the NFL is hellbent on protecting their precious QB's, then having the QB make a dash for the first down and actively seeking contact should be a flag. It's only fair; if the quarterback can't be hit in the backfield, they can't leave the backfield. At this rate, we're only one Tom Brady-esque injury away from seeing red jerseys under center in live game action.
4) Denver and Cincinnati both deserve a loss for their performances: It takes alot to disturb me, but when I read some of the comments that Broncos fans were posting following their 12-7 win on Sunday I felt physically ill. How can you possibly celebrate a game like the one they played? Kyle Orton threw one of the worst passes of the weekend, into triple coverage, and karma paid him back for being thrown away by the Bears by sending Brandon Stokley to run the tipped pass into the endzone. Sure it was a miraculous play, but that game was embarrassingly bad for both teams. The Broncos and Bengals are still awful on both sides of the ball and there seems to be little standing between these teams and the bottom of their respective divisions. Celebrate if you must Denver fans, but that was a hollow victory if I ever saw one.
5) It's going to be very tough to stop the Steelers from repeating: Does any team in football do low scoring, defensive football better than the Pittsburgh Steelers? The Titans aren't exactly dynamic on offense, but the Steelers are the epitome of "bend not break" defense. They will give up yards to you (sometimes) but if you want to get into the endzone, you're in for a fight. And on offense, Big Ben is as clutch as any player in the league when it's crunch time. Realistically, Roethlisberger led his team on a game winning drive twice against Tennessee but a Hines Ward fumble kept them from ending it in regulation. The Steelers are not flashy in any sense of the word, but you'd be hard pressed to find a team that is more efficient. Note to all struggling franchises in any sport: you want to turn things around, start following Pittsburgh's model.
6) Again, Penn State will play for the National Title: I might repeat this one every week of the season until someone can prove to me otherwise. After watching Florida beat on Troy and Texas dismantle Wyoming, my prediction is only reinforced in my mind. If for some odd reason either of these teams were to lose a game before the end of the season, that's it, they're out of the picture. You can't play teams like Troy and Charleston Southern (Florida) and Louisiana-Monroe and Wyoming (Texas) and have any leeway to lose even a single game. At least when Penn State schedules a cupcake, like Syracuse last weekend, they find one in a major conference. Plus they get Ohio State at home; if the Buckeyes can't close at home, good luck doing it at Beaver Stadium during a "white out".
7) Dan Hawkins will be out of a job in less than a month: Colorado is bad. Painfully bad. The kind of bad that comes from redshirting the presumed starting QB in favor of the coach's son. Hawkins' Buffaloes are dead last in the Big 12 North and the conference overall and their doesn't appear to be any relief on the horizon. Sure, they get Wyoming next week but as we saw in Colorado's opener, they are capable of losing to a team they should be able to handle. Then come the good times; at West Virginia, at Texas, and home for Kansas. Well, there's 0-3. With the accusations of nepotism swirling around him and an possible 0-6 record, Hawkins might want to start updating his resume and looking for a new house. I hear there might be some property opening in South Bend pretty soon.
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