The Detroit Lions made a dramatic comeback last week against the Browns. After being down 24-3 after the first quarter, the Lions tied it up in the second quarter. At halftime the Lions were down 27-24. The Lions defense turned it up in the second half, giving up just 11 points the rest of the way. But the most impressive part of the win was the final drive.
Down 37-31 with 1:46 left, the Lions needed a touchdown to win. Stafford led the ball downfield and had just 8 seconds left to heave the ball in the endzone. Stafford scrambled, avoided tacklers, and somehow stayed alive. As he threw the ball, Cleveland Browns defensive lineman C.J. Mosley drilled Stafford. Pass incomplete...but wait...pass interference on the defense. One more play. But can Stafford throw the ball? After being clobbered, Stafford got up holding his non-throwing shoulder. It looked like a separated shoulder. He heads to the sidelines. As Culpepper comes on the field, he gets in the huddle and brings the team to the line of scrimmage. What! Time out Cleveland? What are they thinking? Culpepper hasn't thrown a pass in a game in weeks. And when he did, he looked terrible. Oh wait; I can't believe what I'm seeing! Stafford is back on the field! He brings the team to the line of scrimmage. Stafford back, looks. Touchdown! Touchdown Pettigrew! Stafford looks to the sidelines and says, "I think it's separated" referring to his shoulder. Kick is up, it's good. Lions win!
This drive showed leadership from Stafford. This could be the beginning of a great career or a story for him to tell his co-workers at Target, after 4yrs in the league. If you have not seen the final drive, I suggest you click this link. Enjoy! It's brought chills.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Weekend Watchers
The NCAA season is wrapping up and surprisingly Week 11 of the NFL season started yesterday with the Dolphins and Panthers. Here are a few games to look at over the weekend:
NCAA
#10 Ohio State @ Michigan-This game isn’t on most people’s radar. Ohio State has dominated this game, winning five in a row. The importance about this game however is, if Michigan loses 42-7 again, will Rich Rodriquez be there to try and win next year. The exit strategy has already begun with the NCAA investigating possible practice violations. Rich Rod seems to be more worried about getting one more win to become bowl eligible, than beating Ohio State. Stay tuned on the Rich Rod saga. Noon, ABC
#25 California @ #17 Stanford-California Coach Jeff Tedford is having a difficult time trying to figure out how to stop Stanford’s offense. At the same, with RB standout Jahvid Best still out to injury, he needs to fine a way to score points as well. Stanford has been playing their best football recently. They have beaten then-No.7 Oregon 51-42 and just last week upset No.11 USC 55-21 to move into second place in the Pac-10. In order to go to the Rose Bowl and face Ohio State, they need to win out and have Oregon lose one of their final two games. This is an intriguing match up. 7:30pm, Versus
NFL
Atlanta @ NY Giants-This game is the battle of two struggling teams. The Falcons have lost three out of their last four games. More importantly the Falcons may be without RB Michael Turner, who sprained his ankle last week. The Falcons rushing game has been struggling even with Turner in the lineup. They have the seventh-worst rushing defense in the league. On the other side, the Giants own the seventh-best rushing attack. Despite that, they have lost four in a row. Coughlin gave the team four days off during their bye week, and hopes that that extra time did the team some good. Tune in Sunday to find out. 1pm, FOX
Indianapolis @ Baltimore-We all know by now what happened in the Colts last game. They remained undefeated and Peyton Manning looked great. This week they will face a Baltimore team that has struggled this season. Baltimore is coming off of a game that was totally opposite to the one the Colts played, but they did win. The Ravens need QB Joe Flacco to play like he played earlier in the season. This would be a huge win in the right direction for the Ravens. 1pm, CBS
NY Jets @ New England-Coach Belichick was the talk of the NFL this week regarding his decision in last week lost against the Colts. What was he thinking? Does he have confidence in his young defense? All those questions can be erased if his Patriots shut down the Jets this week. The Jets seem to be a long way away from their win over the Patriots earlier in the season. The Jets are 2-5 since that week two win and are giving up a ton of rushing yards for a Rex Ryan run defense. The last six opponents have averaged 126 yards rushing. Along with their defensive struggles, QB Mark Sanchez as looked a lot more like a rookie and less like the Sanchize, which is what they were calling him earlier in the season. With a record of 4-5, the Jets need this win to even consider going to the playoffs. 4:15pm, CBS
San Diego @ Denver-This should be a good game, it’s the “Battle for first place”. San Diego has recovered well since their slow start, winning four straight games and looking good doing it. On the other side, the Broncos have looked not so good losing three straight games after starting 6-0. With a fourth straight loss on Sunday, Denver would fall in the division standings and come closer to missing the playoffs four straight season’s. The Broncos could be without to major players, WR Brandon Marshall and QB Kyle Orton. If Chris Simms has to start, it would be difficult to win. Simms hasn’t started a game since Sept. 24, 2006 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Stay tuned to that injury report. 4:15pm, CBS
NCAA
#10 Ohio State @ Michigan-This game isn’t on most people’s radar. Ohio State has dominated this game, winning five in a row. The importance about this game however is, if Michigan loses 42-7 again, will Rich Rodriquez be there to try and win next year. The exit strategy has already begun with the NCAA investigating possible practice violations. Rich Rod seems to be more worried about getting one more win to become bowl eligible, than beating Ohio State. Stay tuned on the Rich Rod saga. Noon, ABC
#25 California @ #17 Stanford-California Coach Jeff Tedford is having a difficult time trying to figure out how to stop Stanford’s offense. At the same, with RB standout Jahvid Best still out to injury, he needs to fine a way to score points as well. Stanford has been playing their best football recently. They have beaten then-No.7 Oregon 51-42 and just last week upset No.11 USC 55-21 to move into second place in the Pac-10. In order to go to the Rose Bowl and face Ohio State, they need to win out and have Oregon lose one of their final two games. This is an intriguing match up. 7:30pm, Versus
NFL
Atlanta @ NY Giants-This game is the battle of two struggling teams. The Falcons have lost three out of their last four games. More importantly the Falcons may be without RB Michael Turner, who sprained his ankle last week. The Falcons rushing game has been struggling even with Turner in the lineup. They have the seventh-worst rushing defense in the league. On the other side, the Giants own the seventh-best rushing attack. Despite that, they have lost four in a row. Coughlin gave the team four days off during their bye week, and hopes that that extra time did the team some good. Tune in Sunday to find out. 1pm, FOX
Indianapolis @ Baltimore-We all know by now what happened in the Colts last game. They remained undefeated and Peyton Manning looked great. This week they will face a Baltimore team that has struggled this season. Baltimore is coming off of a game that was totally opposite to the one the Colts played, but they did win. The Ravens need QB Joe Flacco to play like he played earlier in the season. This would be a huge win in the right direction for the Ravens. 1pm, CBS
NY Jets @ New England-Coach Belichick was the talk of the NFL this week regarding his decision in last week lost against the Colts. What was he thinking? Does he have confidence in his young defense? All those questions can be erased if his Patriots shut down the Jets this week. The Jets seem to be a long way away from their win over the Patriots earlier in the season. The Jets are 2-5 since that week two win and are giving up a ton of rushing yards for a Rex Ryan run defense. The last six opponents have averaged 126 yards rushing. Along with their defensive struggles, QB Mark Sanchez as looked a lot more like a rookie and less like the Sanchize, which is what they were calling him earlier in the season. With a record of 4-5, the Jets need this win to even consider going to the playoffs. 4:15pm, CBS
San Diego @ Denver-This should be a good game, it’s the “Battle for first place”. San Diego has recovered well since their slow start, winning four straight games and looking good doing it. On the other side, the Broncos have looked not so good losing three straight games after starting 6-0. With a fourth straight loss on Sunday, Denver would fall in the division standings and come closer to missing the playoffs four straight season’s. The Broncos could be without to major players, WR Brandon Marshall and QB Kyle Orton. If Chris Simms has to start, it would be difficult to win. Simms hasn’t started a game since Sept. 24, 2006 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Stay tuned to that injury report. 4:15pm, CBS
Is the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry dead?
I read an interesting article on detnews.com earlier this week about the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry and it got me to thinking, is this rivalry dead? This Michigan-Ohio State rivalry really began in 1969, the year Bo Schembechler arrived. The year before he arrived, Michigan got trampled over, losing 50-14. That loss led to the resignation of then head coach Bump Elliot. Bo, who was an assistant under Woody Hayes, from day one, had beating Ohio State on his mind. He understood that the results against Ohio State had to get better. Leading up to the 1969 game, Ohio State had piled up a 22-game winning streak and was the top ranked team in the nation. Michigan came out of that game with a 24-12 upset win and it lead to what the rivalry is today. Well, I think it’s still a rivalry.
Michigan leads the overall series 57-42-6, but as of recently Ohio State has dominated the series. During the ten year battle of Bo-Woody, the series was competitive. It went back and forth every year. Bo finished that ten year battle with a 5-4-1 record against Woody and Ohio State. Then Earle Bruce came in for Ohio State from 1979-1987 and he had a 5-4 record against Michigan. If you have only one school in the rivalry winning every year, then it becomes no rivalry anymore. Since Jim Tressel’s hiring in 2001, his record is 7-1 against the Wolverines. When John Cooper was there at Ohio State his record was 2-10-1 and Michigan fans were happy. Now Buckeye fans are happy. This rivalry has gone so far down since the so called “game of the century” in 2006. Going into that game the two teams were one and two in the country respectively. That game finished a 42-39 Ohio State win, but if you look back Ohio State really took control of that game from the start. Now Michigan is no where near being the number 1 or 2 team in the country. Last year Michigan lost this game 42-7. Never in my young years have I not looked forward to this game. Michigan needs to spice up this rivalry again. 40 years ago they brought in Bo Schembechler to spice the rivalry up; I think it might be time to do it again. Please Michigan; hire someone that can bring the Bo and Woody rivalry spirit back.
*Note- On a sad note. I want to send out my condolences to Ohio State and Detroit Lions great Chris Spielman and his family. Chris’ wife, Stefanie, lost her long battle with breast cancer on Thursday. During her 12 year battle, she helped raise over $6 million through the Stefanie Spielman Fund for Breast Cancer Research. For her work, she was inducted into the Ohio Women's Hall of Fame in 2002. Stefanie Spielman is survived by her husband and their four children, Madison, Noah, Macy and Audrey.
Michigan leads the overall series 57-42-6, but as of recently Ohio State has dominated the series. During the ten year battle of Bo-Woody, the series was competitive. It went back and forth every year. Bo finished that ten year battle with a 5-4-1 record against Woody and Ohio State. Then Earle Bruce came in for Ohio State from 1979-1987 and he had a 5-4 record against Michigan. If you have only one school in the rivalry winning every year, then it becomes no rivalry anymore. Since Jim Tressel’s hiring in 2001, his record is 7-1 against the Wolverines. When John Cooper was there at Ohio State his record was 2-10-1 and Michigan fans were happy. Now Buckeye fans are happy. This rivalry has gone so far down since the so called “game of the century” in 2006. Going into that game the two teams were one and two in the country respectively. That game finished a 42-39 Ohio State win, but if you look back Ohio State really took control of that game from the start. Now Michigan is no where near being the number 1 or 2 team in the country. Last year Michigan lost this game 42-7. Never in my young years have I not looked forward to this game. Michigan needs to spice up this rivalry again. 40 years ago they brought in Bo Schembechler to spice the rivalry up; I think it might be time to do it again. Please Michigan; hire someone that can bring the Bo and Woody rivalry spirit back.
*Note- On a sad note. I want to send out my condolences to Ohio State and Detroit Lions great Chris Spielman and his family. Chris’ wife, Stefanie, lost her long battle with breast cancer on Thursday. During her 12 year battle, she helped raise over $6 million through the Stefanie Spielman Fund for Breast Cancer Research. For her work, she was inducted into the Ohio Women's Hall of Fame in 2002. Stefanie Spielman is survived by her husband and their four children, Madison, Noah, Macy and Audrey.
Is It Time To Trade Calvin Johnson?
A few weeks ago, I posted a poll on this very page asking whether it is time to trade away Calvin Johnson. Many of you thought I was losing my mind. When I initially put the poll up, I was 100 percent opposed to trading Calvin, but things have changed since then. Since I put the poll up, the Lions have lost to the lowly Rams and have looked horrendous in every game since. They gave up a 17 point lead against the Seahawks and if they lose this week against the Browns, then we’re back to square one. There has also been one important addition to this argument. Calvin Johnson’s body language has gone sour. As fans we always joke about a player becoming “lionized”. What this means is that, the stench of losing so many games as begun to affect the player on the field and off. Calvin is one of those players we thought we didn’t have to worry about. When he was drafted, like all players, he was excited to be here. Just last year, despite the 0-16 season, he still showed fans that he was dedicated to help in the team’s turnaround. If you look at Calvin Johnson’s body language lately, he looks like he doesn’t want to be here anymore. At start of the season at certain events he stayed around and signed autographs. Now he leaves right after the show or appearance is over. Just two weeks ago, as Matthew Stafford attempted to talk to Calvin on the sidelines; Calvin literally ignored him and wanted nothing to do with him. Just last week Calvin didn’t seem to go all out on every play like we’re used to seeing him do. He dropped passes and didn’t run his crisp routes. I admit, maybe he’s still injured but you have to wonder, what is going on?
Pro #2-This team is trying to build something. Calvin is one of the only players that we have, but having just one player does not help us now. If we were one player away, then I would not suggest trading him. Last year the Falcons turned their season around. They did that however with young players that are growing and learning together. Quarterback Matt Ryan, OT Sam Baker, WR Roddy White, and RB Michael Turner are all good young players and they are learning together. Trading Calvin would gain us multiple first day picks in the next two drafts. It would probably be a first round pick this year, second round pick in 2011, and maybe a third round pick this year. Those players could be the core of a winning team. All those players would be young and learning together. GM Martin Mayhew, President Tom Lewand, and Coach Jim Schwartz have already shown that they can draft pretty well. They drafted QB Matthew Stafford (1st rd), TE Brandon Pettigrew (1st rd), S Louis Delmas (2nd rd), LB DeAndre Levy (3rd rd), DT Sammie Lee-Hill (4th rd), and LB Zack Follet (7th rd). These six players have all shown some signs of ability and future for the Lions. If they can trade Calvin and get extra picks for next year, just imagine what six to eight more players could do for this roster. Think about it!
Con #1-Calvin is one of the best wide receivers in the league. The way he catches the football is great. The Lions just drafted, what we hope to be, our franchise QB in Matthew Stafford. It would be a disservice to Stafford to then turnaround the next season and trade the best and most proven commodity away. Having a full off-season with Calvin knowing who will be throwing him the ball next season would be significant. It would allow the franchise QB (Matthew Stafford) and the franchise playmaker (Calvin Johnson) to be on the same page going into the next season.
Con #2-I have been racking my brain with this next con for a few weeks now. Is Calvin a leader? Fans loved Barry Sanders. He was the only player in the ‘90s that gave fans something to look forward to every Sunday. But I have heard fans also say that Barry was not a leader. He did not express himself to owner William Clay Ford Sr. about what the team needed to win. Players were let go, traded, free agents not signed, but yet Barry said nothing. He just did is thing, gave the ball to the ref, sat down, and didn’t say anything. Could Calvin be the same way? I haven’t heard of any meetings with the GM or coach regarding what he thinks the team needs to do. And I’m not referring to a T.O. like rant. I mean something positive. I haven’t heard any reports of Calvin sitting down with Stafford and explaining things to him. I haven’t seen any reports of Calvin running extra routes after practice with Stafford or any other QB for that matter. He just does his thing, gives the ball to the ref, sits down, and says nothing. Hmmm…sound familiar?
Please leave comments under the comment section. Or you can email me at davidhulljr@gmail.com
Pros and cons to trading Calvin?
Pro #1-The Lions are looking at another top five pick. Next year is the final year of Calvin’s contract. This means, if the Lions sign him to an extension, they would have three players accounting for more than 50 percent of our salary cap. Those players would include QB Matthew Stafford, next year’s first-round pick, and WR Calvin Johnson. The roster must have 53 guys on it not just three. I can hear many of your voices rumbling. Your saying, “well, let’s trade down to maybe pick ten”. Trading out of that pick will not be easy because there are a lot of quarterbacks coming out this year. The Lions already have a quarterback. No one will trade up with us when they know they can just wait for their QB to fall to them. If we trade Calvin it would save us money. Pro #2-This team is trying to build something. Calvin is one of the only players that we have, but having just one player does not help us now. If we were one player away, then I would not suggest trading him. Last year the Falcons turned their season around. They did that however with young players that are growing and learning together. Quarterback Matt Ryan, OT Sam Baker, WR Roddy White, and RB Michael Turner are all good young players and they are learning together. Trading Calvin would gain us multiple first day picks in the next two drafts. It would probably be a first round pick this year, second round pick in 2011, and maybe a third round pick this year. Those players could be the core of a winning team. All those players would be young and learning together. GM Martin Mayhew, President Tom Lewand, and Coach Jim Schwartz have already shown that they can draft pretty well. They drafted QB Matthew Stafford (1st rd), TE Brandon Pettigrew (1st rd), S Louis Delmas (2nd rd), LB DeAndre Levy (3rd rd), DT Sammie Lee-Hill (4th rd), and LB Zack Follet (7th rd). These six players have all shown some signs of ability and future for the Lions. If they can trade Calvin and get extra picks for next year, just imagine what six to eight more players could do for this roster. Think about it!
Con #1-Calvin is one of the best wide receivers in the league. The way he catches the football is great. The Lions just drafted, what we hope to be, our franchise QB in Matthew Stafford. It would be a disservice to Stafford to then turnaround the next season and trade the best and most proven commodity away. Having a full off-season with Calvin knowing who will be throwing him the ball next season would be significant. It would allow the franchise QB (Matthew Stafford) and the franchise playmaker (Calvin Johnson) to be on the same page going into the next season.
Con #2-I have been racking my brain with this next con for a few weeks now. Is Calvin a leader? Fans loved Barry Sanders. He was the only player in the ‘90s that gave fans something to look forward to every Sunday. But I have heard fans also say that Barry was not a leader. He did not express himself to owner William Clay Ford Sr. about what the team needed to win. Players were let go, traded, free agents not signed, but yet Barry said nothing. He just did is thing, gave the ball to the ref, sat down, and didn’t say anything. Could Calvin be the same way? I haven’t heard of any meetings with the GM or coach regarding what he thinks the team needs to do. And I’m not referring to a T.O. like rant. I mean something positive. I haven’t heard any reports of Calvin sitting down with Stafford and explaining things to him. I haven’t seen any reports of Calvin running extra routes after practice with Stafford or any other QB for that matter. He just does his thing, gives the ball to the ref, sits down, and says nothing. Hmmm…sound familiar?
Please leave comments under the comment section. Or you can email me at davidhulljr@gmail.com
Monday, November 9, 2009
Yzerman enters the Hall
Tonight is a great night to be a Red Wings fan. No, the Wings haven’t won the Stanley Cup yet. Nor are they playing a game tonight. Three members of the 2002 Stanley Cup championship team are going into the Hall of Fame: Luc Robitaille, Brett Hull, and #19 Steve Yzerman. To enter into the Hall of Fame is a huge achievement and a top to cap off a great career. For the many Red Wings fans, with Yzerman going into the hall, it feels like an achievement for us as well.
When Yzerman joined the team in the 1983 draft, he wasn’t even the Wings first choice. Then GM Jim Devellano wanted to draft Pat LaFontaine, until LaFontaine was drafted third by the Islanders. Despite this, Yzerman that season became the youngest player to become an All-Star at the age of 18. In 1986, Yzerman was named captain, making him the youngest captain in team history, 22. Despite his early success, the team considered trading Yzerman after he initially didn’t fit Coach Bowman’s style of play. After adapting to Bowman’s style, Yzerman led the Wings to great success. In 1995 he led the Wings to the team’s first Stanley Cup appearance since 1966. Although the Wings lost, they were headed in the right direction. In 1997, Yzerman finally took the team over the hump by claiming the team’s first Cup in 42 years. As a player he won three Stanley Cups, one Lester B. Pearson Award (MVP), and one Conn Smythe Trophy (Finals MVP). He also made it to 10 All-Star games, finished 6th in points, 8th in goals, and 7th in assists. Number 19 became the man and will always be the man.
For the many Red Wings fans, Yzerman brought hockeytown back. He put the prestige back into the Wing Wheel. When the Wings won the division in 1988, they hadn’t won one since 1937. He is one of the main reasons why the Wings are still the dominant team that they are today. As a kid, I never paid attention to the game of hockey. I only watched football and basketball. That is, until Yzerman took the Wings to the Cup finals in 1995. From that day forward I became a fan and actually watched hockey.
THANKS STEVIE Y FOR 22 GREAT YEARS!
When Yzerman joined the team in the 1983 draft, he wasn’t even the Wings first choice. Then GM Jim Devellano wanted to draft Pat LaFontaine, until LaFontaine was drafted third by the Islanders. Despite this, Yzerman that season became the youngest player to become an All-Star at the age of 18. In 1986, Yzerman was named captain, making him the youngest captain in team history, 22. Despite his early success, the team considered trading Yzerman after he initially didn’t fit Coach Bowman’s style of play. After adapting to Bowman’s style, Yzerman led the Wings to great success. In 1995 he led the Wings to the team’s first Stanley Cup appearance since 1966. Although the Wings lost, they were headed in the right direction. In 1997, Yzerman finally took the team over the hump by claiming the team’s first Cup in 42 years. As a player he won three Stanley Cups, one Lester B. Pearson Award (MVP), and one Conn Smythe Trophy (Finals MVP). He also made it to 10 All-Star games, finished 6th in points, 8th in goals, and 7th in assists. Number 19 became the man and will always be the man.
For the many Red Wings fans, Yzerman brought hockeytown back. He put the prestige back into the Wing Wheel. When the Wings won the division in 1988, they hadn’t won one since 1937. He is one of the main reasons why the Wings are still the dominant team that they are today. As a kid, I never paid attention to the game of hockey. I only watched football and basketball. That is, until Yzerman took the Wings to the Cup finals in 1995. From that day forward I became a fan and actually watched hockey.
THANKS STEVIE Y FOR 22 GREAT YEARS!
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Weekend Watchers
It’s that time again, time for another big football weekend. Last week we had some good NFL and College football games, and this week will be no different. Let’s take a look at some of this weeks key match-ups.
College
#8 Oregon @ Stanford: Oregon is coming off an impressive win over USC. The Ducks put up 613 total yards against the Trojan’s 16th ranked defense. 386 of those yards amazingly came from starting QB, Jeremiah Masoli. That win moved the Ducks to 8th in the BCS standings and into sole possession of the PAC-10. Could a let down really happen just one week later? The Stanford Cardinals are coming off a bye and have been much improved this year. They are looking to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2001. With that extra motivation, Harbaugh should have his team well prepared to face those Ducks. FSN 3:30pm
#16 Ohio State @ #11 Penn State: This game is huge. Both teams are 4-1 in the Big Ten and this game will determine who will be in second place. Second place, who wants second place? Well, look at it like this … For Ohio State, who plays Iowa next week, if they win Saturday and then beat Iowa, then they’re headed to the Rose Bowl. With Pryor struggling most of the year and a coach under scrutiny because of it, a Rose Bowl bid would silence the dogs. For Penn State, if they win Saturday and if Iowa wins out and gets into the National Championship Game, then they would be in line for a Rose Bowl bid with just Indiana and a struggling Michigan State left on their schedule. I think this is a much see. ABC 3:30pm
#9 LSU @ #3 Alabama: What’s new, another big-time SEC match-up! With Florida at 8-0 overall and atop the SEC East, Alabama is trying to keep pace with the Gators in order to face them in the SEC title game and earn a trip to the BCS title game. Before they can face the Gators, they have to tame the Tigers of LSU. LSU has played good this year but has one blemish on their record, a loss against Florida. With a win this week LSU could possibly look forward to a rematch against those same Gators in the SEC title game. If LSU wins out, including a win in the SEC title game, with a win against two top five teams, then they would surely be headed to the National Championship Game. CBS 3:30pm
*Note-As you can see, with these games in the same time slot, a trip to Buffalo Wild Wings might be necessary.
NFL
Ravens @ Bengals: Coming off the bye week, the first place Cincinnati Bengals are still feeling pretty good after their impressive 45-10 stomping of the Chicago Bears. More importantly, at 3-0 in the division, the Bengals look to remain undefeated in the division and stay atop the AFC North all by themselves. A win this week would also give the Bengals the tiebreaker over the Ravens, while a loss for the Ravens would put them two games out of first place. The Ravens need this game. After snapping their three game losing streak last week against the previously undefeated Broncos, the Ravens must continue to play better. After playing great the first few weeks of the season, they hadn’t played as good since. With a win this week and a Pittsburgh loss on MNF, the Ravens would be in a three-way tie for first place and back in the driver seat. CBS 1pm
Cowboys @ Eagles: Great Sunday Night Match-up. The 100th meeting (including playoffs) between these two teams, and oh yea by the way, this is a battle for first place. Both teams struggled early into the season. The Cowboys started 2-2, but after their bye week they’ve had two impressive wins, one against the Falcons (37-21) and the other against the Seahawks (38-17). The Eagles had to make it through the injury of Donovan McNabb and recover from an embarrassing loss to the Oakland Raiders. McNabb seems to be back on track after throwing for 240 yards and 3 touchdowns in last week’s game against the Giants. Both teams are ready. This looks to be an exciting game. Sunday Night Football-NBC 8:20pm
Steelers @ Broncos: After last week’s great Monday Night match-up, it looks like we are in store for another one. The 5-2 Steelers go to Denver to face the 6-1 Broncos. After starting off slow, the Steelers are trying to go for their fifth straight win and snap a three game slide against the Broncos. A win would keep them within striking distance of the Bengals, who are currently in first place. The Broncos have played great all season but didn’t look good last week, suffering their first loss of the season. A rushing defense that gives up just 86.1 yards a game, gave up 125 yards last week and now has to face Rashard Mendenhall, who is having a pretty good year rushing. This should be a real good game. Both coaches are familiar with each others philosophies. Plus Tomlin and the Steelers are coming off a bye, and had two weeks to look at tape and dissect the Broncos. Monday Night Football- ESPN 8:30pm
*Extra Note-I'm looking for a new, exciting, and unique title name for my weekend watchers post. Please leave some suggestions in your comments. Thanks!
College
#8 Oregon @ Stanford: Oregon is coming off an impressive win over USC. The Ducks put up 613 total yards against the Trojan’s 16th ranked defense. 386 of those yards amazingly came from starting QB, Jeremiah Masoli. That win moved the Ducks to 8th in the BCS standings and into sole possession of the PAC-10. Could a let down really happen just one week later? The Stanford Cardinals are coming off a bye and have been much improved this year. They are looking to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2001. With that extra motivation, Harbaugh should have his team well prepared to face those Ducks. FSN 3:30pm
#16 Ohio State @ #11 Penn State: This game is huge. Both teams are 4-1 in the Big Ten and this game will determine who will be in second place. Second place, who wants second place? Well, look at it like this … For Ohio State, who plays Iowa next week, if they win Saturday and then beat Iowa, then they’re headed to the Rose Bowl. With Pryor struggling most of the year and a coach under scrutiny because of it, a Rose Bowl bid would silence the dogs. For Penn State, if they win Saturday and if Iowa wins out and gets into the National Championship Game, then they would be in line for a Rose Bowl bid with just Indiana and a struggling Michigan State left on their schedule. I think this is a much see. ABC 3:30pm
#9 LSU @ #3 Alabama: What’s new, another big-time SEC match-up! With Florida at 8-0 overall and atop the SEC East, Alabama is trying to keep pace with the Gators in order to face them in the SEC title game and earn a trip to the BCS title game. Before they can face the Gators, they have to tame the Tigers of LSU. LSU has played good this year but has one blemish on their record, a loss against Florida. With a win this week LSU could possibly look forward to a rematch against those same Gators in the SEC title game. If LSU wins out, including a win in the SEC title game, with a win against two top five teams, then they would surely be headed to the National Championship Game. CBS 3:30pm
*Note-As you can see, with these games in the same time slot, a trip to Buffalo Wild Wings might be necessary.
NFL
Ravens @ Bengals: Coming off the bye week, the first place Cincinnati Bengals are still feeling pretty good after their impressive 45-10 stomping of the Chicago Bears. More importantly, at 3-0 in the division, the Bengals look to remain undefeated in the division and stay atop the AFC North all by themselves. A win this week would also give the Bengals the tiebreaker over the Ravens, while a loss for the Ravens would put them two games out of first place. The Ravens need this game. After snapping their three game losing streak last week against the previously undefeated Broncos, the Ravens must continue to play better. After playing great the first few weeks of the season, they hadn’t played as good since. With a win this week and a Pittsburgh loss on MNF, the Ravens would be in a three-way tie for first place and back in the driver seat. CBS 1pm
Cowboys @ Eagles: Great Sunday Night Match-up. The 100th meeting (including playoffs) between these two teams, and oh yea by the way, this is a battle for first place. Both teams struggled early into the season. The Cowboys started 2-2, but after their bye week they’ve had two impressive wins, one against the Falcons (37-21) and the other against the Seahawks (38-17). The Eagles had to make it through the injury of Donovan McNabb and recover from an embarrassing loss to the Oakland Raiders. McNabb seems to be back on track after throwing for 240 yards and 3 touchdowns in last week’s game against the Giants. Both teams are ready. This looks to be an exciting game. Sunday Night Football-NBC 8:20pm
Steelers @ Broncos: After last week’s great Monday Night match-up, it looks like we are in store for another one. The 5-2 Steelers go to Denver to face the 6-1 Broncos. After starting off slow, the Steelers are trying to go for their fifth straight win and snap a three game slide against the Broncos. A win would keep them within striking distance of the Bengals, who are currently in first place. The Broncos have played great all season but didn’t look good last week, suffering their first loss of the season. A rushing defense that gives up just 86.1 yards a game, gave up 125 yards last week and now has to face Rashard Mendenhall, who is having a pretty good year rushing. This should be a real good game. Both coaches are familiar with each others philosophies. Plus Tomlin and the Steelers are coming off a bye, and had two weeks to look at tape and dissect the Broncos. Monday Night Football- ESPN 8:30pm
*Extra Note-I'm looking for a new, exciting, and unique title name for my weekend watchers post. Please leave some suggestions in your comments. Thanks!
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