QUOTE: “Learning is not attained by chance, it must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence." ~Abigail Adams, 1780
GAME OBSERVATIONS
The Bears defense is so inconsistent; one week they shut down the running game of the Titans, and the next week they cannot handle the Packers. They define a .500 team—very inconsistent. Teams cannot play the Tampa two scheme with safeties that miss too many tackles.
9 of the Bears’ 11 possessions were 5 plays or less. They could not convert 3rd downs and just had no sense of urgency in this game. They were dominated.
The NFC North has a three-way tie for first place, and I am not sure if there is anyone worthy to endorse. The Vikings have the healthiest team, but they make too many mistakes to win close games.
The Vikings just don't have enough of a passing game to beat a good defense like the Bucs. They did not have any answers for the speed and athletic ability of the Bucs’ defense.
When the Vikings cannot win solely on the legs of Peterson, they don't have another option. There is no faith in Gus Frerotte executing a passing game, and their passing game is simply not sophisticated.
The Bucs are similar to, but not as good as, the Titans. They can play in close games and seem to like doing so. They have the kind of defense that can win in the playoffs, especially if they get a home game.
Congratulations to Mike Singletary. He had his team motivated for another week and went into halftime ahead 35-3. Forget who they beat; they won a game and that is what counts most.
The Rams are back to being the Rams of old. Down 40-0 last week at the half and this week down 35-3. That is a bad college score. They need a major overhaul badly. This is not Scott Linehan's fault; this is not Jim Haslett's fault—this is the Rams’ fault.
Speaking of major overhauls, the Lions allowed two backs to gain over 100 yards rushing. I admire the will and toughness of Rod Marinelli, but this is not working. And the Lions might have the worse tackling safeties in the NFL. Check out how much money the front office has invested in safeties during the Matt Millen era.
Marvin Lewis has to feel really bad today. He did not challenge the Frostee Rucker recovery for the touchdown, which clearly was a score and ended up costing the Bengals points. The Bengals game management at the end of the half was awful. Not challenging that sure touchdown was a huge blunder.
I think this is going to be a long week for Andy Reid in Philadelphia. His team does not match up talent wise and now he is struggling to beat bad teams on the road. Remember the 49ers game? They are closer to the Bengals than they are to the Giants in terms of talent.
One thing the Giants-Ravens game proved is that the Giants are a great team. The other thing it proved is that when you have a top offensive line you can beat a great defense. Great offensive lines win football games. Another 200 yard rushing game. Wow.
Jay Cutler of Denver was just amazing yesterday. His accuracy along with his ability to make plays under pressure was outstanding. He has led the Broncos to two road wins and has saved the season for the Broncos
The Broncos now have a clear path to the AFC West. A two game lead with six games to go, and the Chargers are one of their opponents. The Chargers need to be in position to make that season-ending game meaningful. For once their defense played well in the run game.
Matt Ryan of Atlanta reminded me of Rich Gannon yesterday; his accuracy and his poise was sensational and his ability to mentally handle the game was impressive. He is no longer a rookie and is going to be a Pro Bowler very soon.
I have a sense that with Joseph Addai back and healthy, the Colts have a good chance to be a wild card team. For the Colts, it is about relying on their offense to win games and not their defense. When they have Addai back, they can control the ball and keep their defense off the field.
Between the Colts, the Broncos, the Jets Pass Defense, and the Chargers, I am not sure who has the worse defense, but two of those teams will make the playoffs.
John Madden was talking about Flozell Adams having a penalty history last night, and the facts don't lie. What he failed to mention is that Adams has a hearing problem going back to Michigan State, and everyone knew it was a penalty problem when he came out.
The Texans don't have enough toughness to win tight games; they are missing something and need to spend the next few weeks getting a handle on this problem.
Miami finds ways to win and seems to be enjoying playing in tight games. They are getting better and, yes, they have as many wins as the Redskins right now.
Do you realize the Skins have only 18 touchdowns this year and the Lions have 19? The Skins the last two weeks seem to be struggling to pass protect.
Kurt Warner is just amazing. He is in some zone and the Cards seem to be able to win games on the road now. The T-Day with the Birds will be another shedding moment.
The AFC East is a long way from being over. The Jets have the Titans and the Broncos the next two weeks as the Dolphins have the Pats and St. Louis. The Pats have to play Miami and Pittsburgh. Watch out for the Fins.
Each week, the Titans prove that they can win the game in any style. In the last two weeks throwing and now coming from behind. This team has met every single challenge so far.
I did not like the body language of Jack Del Rio on the sidelines yesterday. He seems very disgusted with his team right now.
