HOTTEST TEAMS MIDWAY THROUGH THE NFL SEASON; PART II

 

                                                        PART II

           

5) BUFFALO BILLS-

            ANOTHER YEAR, ANOTHER SEASON FILLED WITH HIGH EXPECTATIONS FOR QUARTERBACK JOSH ALLEN AND THE BUFFALO BILLS.  AT THIS POINT THERE IS TWO THINGS WE ARE USED TO HEARING WHEN IT COMES TO THE BILLS.  JOSH ALLEN IS A TOP 3-4 QB IN THIS LEAGUE UP THERE WITH THE LIKES OF MAHOMES, JACKSON, AND JOE BURROW.  THE OTHER IS CAN THE BILLS FINALLY TAKE DOWN MAHOMES AND THE KANSAS CITY CHIEFS.  THE LATTER HAS OBVIOUSLY YET TO BE DETERMINED AND THE FORMER, AS WE HAVE SEEN SO FAR THROUGHOUT THIS SEASON IS STILL VERY TRUE.  THE BILLS HAVE LOOKED VERY STRONG THIS SEASON FOR THE MOST PART, BEATING UP ON TEAMS THAT WE EXPECT THEM TO, SUCH AS THE JAGS, TITANS, AND SEAHAWKS.  THEY PUT 47 UP AGAINST THE JAGS, 34 ON THE TITANS, AND SCORED 31 ON SEATTLE.  NO DOUBT THE OFFENSE HAS LOOKED GOOD AT TIMES, BUT THEY ALSO WEREN’T DOING IT ON A CONSISTENT BASIS. 

            AFTER BUFFALO PARTED WAYS WITH THEIR EX-ALLSTAR WIDE RECEIVER STEFON DIGGS, ELECTING TO SHIP HIM OFF TO HOUSTON IN THE OFFSEASON WAS A MOVE THAT NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE UNDERSTOOD.  I GUESS THE THOUGHT WAS THAT MAYBE THEY WERE READY TO FULLY UNLEASH RUNNINGBACK JAMES COOK ALONG WITH POSSIBLY RUNNING A LOT OF TWO TIGHTEND SETS (DALTON KINCAID & DAWSON KNOX).  THEY DID BRING IN SOME BODIES AT THE WR POSITION WITH NFL EXPERIENCE, SIGNING CURTIS SAMUEL, MACK HOLLINS, AND MARQUEZ VALDES-SCANTLING.  ON TOP OF THAT THEY ALREADY HAD KHALIL SHAKIR (STANDOUT FROM BOISE STATE), PLUS THEY ALSO DRAFTED WIDEOUT KEON COLEMAN (FLORIDA STATE) IN THE SECOND ROUND OF THIS PAST NFL DRAFT.  I THINK THEY FELT REALLY GOOD ABOUT WHAT THEY HAD, BUT REALLY, SHAKIR PROVED TO BE THE ONLY ONE GETTING INVOLVED ENOUGH TO HELP ALLEN AND YOU COULD TELL JOSH WAS GOING TO GO BACK TO WHAT HE LIKES TO DO BEST, PLAYING HERO BALL. 

            BUFFALO’S OFFENSE HAS 336.5 YARDS PER GAME SO FAR RANKING OUTSIDE OF THE TOP TEN (13^TH).  THEY ARE SCORING 28.8 POINTS A GAME (5^TH) AND ARE IN SECOND PLACE IN THE TURNOVER MARGIN (+1.4 PER GAME) WHICH BODES WELL FOR ANY TEAM THAT IS TRYING TO FIND TRACTION WHILE ALSO TRYING TO STAY IN THE MIX WITH THE STILL UNDEFEATED KANSAS CITY TEAM FOR THE TOP SPOT IN THE AFC.  JOSH ALLEN IS SOMEHOW JUST BARELY OUTSIDE OF THE TOP TEN IN PASSING YARDS (11^TH) WITH 1,766 YARDS, EVEN WITH THE STRUGGLES THEY HAVE SHOWN FROM THEIR RECEIVERS EARLY ON THIS SEASON.  THEIR RUNNINGBACK JAMES COOK IS NOT IN THE TOP 20 IN RUSHING YARDS, THOUGH HE IS TIED FOR 3^RD PLACE IN RUSHING SCORES WITH 7 TOUCHDOWNS.  ALLEN ALSO HAS A BIG PART IN THEIR OFFENSES RUSHING SUCCESS AS THE BILLS RANK 12^TH IN RUSHING YARDS PER GAME (122.3 YPG).

            ONE THING YOU CAN SAY ABOUT THEM FROM A DEFENSIVE PERSPECTIVE, THAT IS VERY HELPFUL FOR BUFFALO IS THAT THEY ARE FINDING WAYS TO GET THE BALL BACK ON DEFENSE, RANKING 5^TH IN TAKEAWAYS WITH 14.  THEIR ALSO ONLY LETTING UP 18.3 POINTS PER GAME TO TEAMS (6^TH) AND THEY ARE GETTING TO THE OTHER TEAMS QB ENOUGH TO CAUSE SAID TURNOVERS.  BILLS ARE TIED FOR 12^TH WITH 20 SACKS SO FAR.  IF THEY WANT TO SUCCEED, THEY NEED TO CONTINUE WITH THEIR PASS RUSH AND TURNOVER SUCCESS WHILE THEY CONTINUE TO GET HEALTHY ON THAT SIDE OF THE BALL.  IT ALSO HELPS THAT THEY MADE A MOVE IN TRADING FOR A RELIABLE TRUE NUMBER ONE WIDEOUT IN AMARI COOPER THAT CAN HELP KEEP THEM MOVING THE CHAINS AND KEEP THEIR DEFENSE OFF THE FIELD AND FRESH.

            EARLY INDICATIONS SEEM TO SHOW THAT EVEN WITH ALL THE OFFSEASON HYPE OF A DIVISIONAL RIVAL THAT MAYBE THIS IS STILL BUFFALO’S DIVISION AS THEY ARE THE ONLY TEAM OVER .500 IN THE AFC EAST AS OF RIGHT NOW.  THEY DID HOWEVER ALMOST SLIP UP AND LOSE TO THE CARDINALS IN WEEK ONE, ALONG WITH ALMOST LETTING A WIN SLIP AWAY TO THE JETS IN WEEK SIX.  THEY ALSO BLEW OUT THE MIAMI DOLPHINS (31-10) AMONG A LOT OF CONTROVERSY ON A PRIMETIME THURSDAY NIGHT GAME WHEN THE WORLD WITNESSED YET ANOTHER CONCUSSION TO DOLPHINS QB TUA TAGOVAILOA.  TUA HAS SINCE RETURNED AND WE’D EXPECT THAT THEY WILL BE GIVING THE BUFFALO BILLS THEIR ALL THIS UPCOMING SUNDAY AFTERNOON. 

            BUFFALO IS GETTING READY TO FACE THEIR HARDEST STRETCH OF GAMES THE NEXT SEVERAL WEEKS STARTING WITH A HEALTHY MIAMI TEAM, THEN THEY HEAD DOWN TO INDY TO PLAY JOE FLACCO AND THE COLTS WHO STILL LOOKS LIKE A PRO BOWL CALAIBER QB.  THEN WE WILL SEE A MUCH ANTICAPATED REMATCH IN A RIVALRY TYPE GAME BETWEEN MAHOMES AND ALLEN BEFORE THE NINERS COME TO TOWN.  BUFFALO STILL HAS TO PLAY THE RAMS, LIONS, THEN THREE STRAIGHT DIVISION GAMES AGAINST THE PATRIOTS TWICE AND ONE MORE GAME AGAINST RODGERS AND THE JETS.  IM NOT SO SURE THAT BUFFALO WILL BE CONSIDERED THE TEAM TO BEAT IN THE AFC, BUT HEY, YOU NEVER KNOW.  THEY DID GET DEMOLISHED AT THE HANDS OF THE RAVENS, SO I BELIEVE IT MAY WIND UP COMING DOWN TO ANOTHER LAMAR VS MAHOMES AFC CHAMPIONSHIP.  SO, IF THE BILLS WANT TO STOP THAT KIND OF TALK, THEY HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF BUSINESS IN WEEK 10 WHEN BIG RED AND THE CHIEFS COME TO TOWN.

 

4) WASHINGTON COMMANDERS-

            WAIT, REALLY?  THE COMMANDERS?  YES, I SAID IT, IT IS NOT A TYPO.  THE WASHINGTON COMMANDERS LOOK LIKE A TOP TIER TEAM.  I KNOW THAT SOUNDS A LITTLE STRANGE GIVEN ALL THEIR RECENT HISTORY OF FAILURES WITHIN THE ORGANIZATION.  THEY HAVE HAD BAD COACHING, A TERRIBLE OWNER, AND SO MANY DISAPOINTING SEASONS ALONG WITH DRAFT BUSTS AND A GUY THAT ENDED UP HAVING HIS CAREER END DUE TO MANY INJURIES (QB RGIII).  THAT ALL SEEMS TO BE BEHIND THEM AT THIS POINT.  WE DO HAVE ANOTHER TEN WEEKS REMAINING SO MAYBE WE JUST FORGET THIS WAS EVER WRITTEN IF IT ALL BLOWS UP IN SMOKE. 

WASHINGTON HAS A ROOKIE QB THAT HAS ALREADY BEEN SLOWLY ERASING LAST YEARS HISTORIC ROOKIE PERFOMANCE BY TEXANS QUARTERBACK C.J. STROUD, AMASING AN ALL-TIME HIGH COMPLETION PERCENTAGE IN THE FIRST FOUR GAMES OF AN NFL CAREER (82.1%).  FURTHERMORE, DANIELS ALSO BROKE AN ALL-TIME COMPLETION RECORD FOR A ROOKIE QB IN A GAME, COMPLETING 91.3% OF HIS PASSES (21-FOR-23).  THIS KID IS CERTIANLY SOMETHING SPECIAL AND THE REST OF THE LEAGUE SHOULD NOT TAKE HIM LIGHTLY, ESPECIALLY THE REST OF THE NFC EAST.  WHAT MAKES HIM EVEN TOUGHER FOR OPPOSING TEAMS IF HIS ABILITY TO RUN IF NEEDED, HIS VERSATILITY IS GOING TO HAVE ANY DEFENSE ON ITS HEELS AND HELP THE COMMANDERS ASSERT THEMSELVES RIGHT IN THE THICK OF THINGS FOR A PLAYOFF OPPORTUNITY AS SOON AS THIS SEASON.  DAINELS IN CURRENTLY IN 2^ND IN COMPLETION % TO ONLY JARED GOFF OF THE DETROIT LIONS (71.8%).  HE IS ALSO RIGHT BEHIND JOSH ALLEN IN PASSING YARDS, THROWING FOR 1,736 (12^TH).  WASHINGTON HAS GATHERED SOME SAVY VETS TO HELP OUT THEIR ROOKIE BY ADDING NAMES LIKE TIGHTEND ZACH ERTZ, RUNNINGBACK AUSTIN EKELER, AND BRINGING BACK IN JAMESON CROWDER (CURRENTLY ON IR).  ON TOP OF ALL THAT TALENT THEY ALREADY HAD A TOP OPTION ON THE OUTISDE IN TERRY MCLAURIN (SCARY TERRY) WHO CAN FINALLY SHOWCASE JUST HOW “SCARY” HE CAN BECOME WITH A TRUE FRANCHISE QUARTERBACK THROWING HIM PASSES.  MCLAURIN RANKS 4^TH IN THE LEAGUE WITH 579 RECEIVING YARDS, TIED FOR 12^TH WITH 4 TDS, ALONG WITH 72.4 YARDS A GAME (9^TH).

            ENOUGH CAN’T BE SAID ABOUT HOW GOOD THIS OFFENSE HAS REALLY BEEN THIS SEASON.  WASHINGTON RANKS 3^RD IN THE LEAGUE WITH 412.4 YARDS PER GAME, 3^RD IN RUSH YARDS PER GAME (165.8), PLUS THE PASSING ATTACK IS GOOD ENOUGH TO BE A TOP TEN UNIT AS THEY ARE IN 9^TH IN PASSING YARDS WITH A ROOKIE UNDER CENTER (230.5 YPG).  I THINK THAT IT SHOULDN’T GO UNNOTICED THAT THIS IS NOT ONLY COMMANDERS HEAD COACH DAN QUINN’S FIRST YEAR THERE, BUT ALSO THAT ITS KLIFF KINGSBURY’S FIRST YEAR BACK IN THE NFL AFTER THE ARIZONA CARDINALS PARTED WAYS WITH HIM WHEN HE WAS LET GO AT THE END OF THE 2022 SEASON.  HALFWAY THROUGH THIS YEAR THEY ARE COMMANDING EVERYONES ATTENTION AND LOOK MORE THAN CAPABLE OF BEING A PLAYOFF CONTENDER.  DAN QUINN AND HIS DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR DO NEED TO FIGURE OUT THEIR ISSUES ON THAT SIDE OF THE BALL TO CATCH UP TO THE OFFENSE.  THEY ARE RANKED 11^TH IN TAKEAWAYS AND HAVE 21 SACKS, RANKING 7^TH IN THAT CATEGORY, THOUGH THEY NEED TO DO A MUCH BETTER JOB AGAINST BOTH THE RUN AND PASS TO LIMIT THE YARDAGE THEY’VE BEEN ALLOWING THIS SEASON.  LASTLY IT IS WORTH NOTING THAT THE COMMANDERS ARE ONLY CONCEDING ROUGHLY 21 POINTS A CONTEST, THAT PLACING THEM IN 10^TH LEAGUEWIDE (20.9 PPG).

THE COMMANDERS ARE SITTING PRETTY IN 2^ND PLACE IN THE NFC WITH A 6-2 RECORD AND HAVE ALREADY BEATEN TEAMS SUCH AS THE BENGALS, CARDINALS, AND THE BEARS.  THEY PLAYED A STRONG 60 MINUTES AGAINST THE RAVENS THOUGH ENDED UP LOSING BY A TOUCHDOWN AND ALSO LOST ON OPENING WEEKEND WHEN THEIR ROOKIE WAS TESTED AGAINST A TALENTED TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS TEAM.  THEY HAVE THREE DIVISION GAMES IN STORE FOR THEM OUT OF THEIR NEXT FOUR CONTESTS.  THEY ALSO HAVE THE STEELERS AND THE FALCONS WHICH ARE BOTH CURRENT POSSIBLE PLAYOFF TEAMS FOR THIS SEASON.  THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES FOR WASHINGTON IS MORE THAN LIKLEY THEIR KEY DIVISION MATCHUPS AS THEY STILL PLAY DALLAS AND PHILLY TWICE.

3) BALTIMORE RAVENS-

            I HONESTLY WANTED TO PLACE THE CHIEFS HERE, I REALLT DID.  THE FACT REMAINS THE CHIEFS BEAT THE RAVENS TWICE NOW IN THE PAST EIGHT MONTHS AND I HAVE TO TAKE THAT INTO CONSIDERATION.  THE RAVENS FOUGHT TOOTH AND NAIL AND SHOULD’VE ACTUALLY BEAT KANSAS CITY IN WEEK ONE, BUT THEIR TIGHTEND LIKLEY’S FOOT WAS ON THE WHITE LINE, THUS HE WAS OUT OF BOUNDS AND THEY DID NOT SCORE THE GAME WINNING TOUCHDOWN.  I AM BY NO MEANS A BALTIMORE RAVENS FAN, STILL, THAT GAME HAUNTED ME.  I AM NOW GOING ON ALMOST 5,500 WORDS AND THIS ARTICLE IS HONESTLY BECOMING MORE OF A NOVEL THAN A READABLE PIECE, SO I WILL BE EXTRMELY GREATFUL FOR ANYONE THAT TAKES THE 3.5 HOURS IT WILL TAKE TO READ IT.  WITH THAT BEING SAID I WILL DO MY BEST TO KEEP THESE LAST THREE TEAMS SHORTER THAN THE OTHERS.

            THE RAVENSE ARE OBVIOUSLY ONE OF THE TOP ELITE NFL TEAMS AND IM SURE FANS OF BALTIMORE OR NOT WE CAN ALL PRETTY MUCH AGREE ON THAT.  LAMAR IS ALREADY A TWO-TIME MVP AND HIS NUMBERS THIS YEAR ARE PROBABLY GOING TO DEFLATE THOSE OTHER TWO MVP SEASONS AS HE HAS ALREADY AMASSED OVER 2,000 YARDS AND ON PACE FOR ROUGHLY 4,200 YARDS BY THE END OF THE YEAR.  LAMAR ALSO HAS THROWN FOR 17 TDS AND LIMITED HIS TURNOVERS TO ONLY 2 INTERCEPTIONS.  WHAT HE HAS BEEN ABLE TO DO SO FAR THIS SEASON IS COMPLETELY INSANE.  ON TOP OF LAST YEARS SUCCESS IN THE REGULAR SEASON AND PACING THE ENITRE LEAGUE IN RUSHING YARDS, THEY WENT OUT AND MADE SURE NOT A SINGLE TEAM WOULD OUT RUSH THEM BY ADDING DERRICK “KING” HENRY.  IV’E SAID IT BEFORE AND I’LL SAY IT AGAIN, THIS MOVE SHOULD BE AN ILLEGAL OR PENALIZED MOVE BY THE NFL WHEN YOU ALREADY HAVE A GUY LIKE LAMAR JACKSON ON YOUR TEAM.  NONETHELESS THE RAVENS ARE AVERAGING 200 YDS A GAME ON THE GROUND THIS SEASON, WHICH IS ALMOST 40 YARDS PER GAME MORE THAN THE NUMBER TWO TEAM IN THAT CATEGORY.  WHAT THEY ARE ABLE TO DO IS COMPLETELY ABSURD, BUT KUDOS TO THEM FOR SIGNING THE KING OF GROUNDWORK.  HENRY IS ON PACE TO POSSIBLY BEAT THE ALL-TIME SINGLE SEASON RUSHING RECORD AND WILL MORE THAN LIKLEY BEAT HIS OWN.  HE HAS 946 RUSHING YARDS THUS FAR AND AVERAGES A LEAGUES BEST 118.3 YPG, ALONG WITH 6.5 YPC, AND ALSO LEADS ALL RUSHERS WITH 9 TDS.

            THEIR OFFENSIVE SCHEME HAS THEM IN FIRST IN THE LEAGUE WITH TOTAL YARDS PUTTING UP A WHOPPING 452.1 YPG. IN ADDITION TO THAT BALTIMORE IS ALSO AVERAGING THE 2^ND MOST POINTS PER GAME (30.3).  THEY HAVE AN OFFENSIVE THAT WILL SMACK YOU AROUND CONSISTANTLY WITH NO REMORSE THAT’S THE RALITY.  THEIR DEFENSE IS WHERE YOU CAN GET TO THEM.  YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO RUN ON THEM AS THEY HOLD TEAMS TO A LEAGUE BEST 69.9 YARDS A GAME, BUT YOU CAN CERTIANLY THROW ON THEM WITH THEM GIVING UP AN UNPRECIDENTED 291.4 YPG (32^ND).  IT IS PRETTY CRAZY, TO HAVE THE NUMBER ONE RUN DEFENSE AND BE DEAD LAST IN PASS DEFENSE.  RAVENS ALSO HAVE NO PROBLEMS ANNOYING OTHER TEAMS

 QBS AS THEY ARE CURRENTLY IN 4^TH PLACE IN THE LEAGUE IN SACKS (24).  NEEDLESS TO BE SAID THE RAVENS ARE ONE OF THE FAVORITE TEAMS TO MAKE IT BACK TO THE AFC CHAMPIONSHIP AND POSSIBLY EARN A SUPER BOWL BERTH FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A HANDFUL OF YEARS.  BALTIMORE IS IN 6^TH PLACE IN THE AFC HEADING INTO WEEK 9 WITH THE PITTSBURGH STEELERS A GAME IN FRONT OF THEM, BUT I DON’T SEE THE STEELERS WINNING THE AFC NORTH.  I THINK I WILL JUMP ABOARD THAT TRAIN WITH THIS OFFENSIVE MACHINE LED BY THEIR MACK TRUCK OF A RUNNER IN DERRICK HENRY.

 

2) KANSAS CITY CHIEFS-

            I KNOW THIS IS THE ONLY UNDFEATED TEAM REMAINING THIS SEASON WITH A PERFECT 7-0 RECORD.  HOWEVER, I DON’T SEE THEM THREE PEATING.  LET’S LOOK AT A FEW REASONS WHY THIS IS MY BELIEF.  ONE REASON IS BECAUSE THEIR STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE, YES KANSAS CITY BEAT THE BALTIMORE RAVENS IN WEEK ONE, ALTHOUGH THAT GAME CAME DOWN TO THE LAST PLAY AS TIME RAN OUT AND IT VERY WELL COULD’VE WENT TO OVERTIME AND ENDED DIFFERENTLY.  THE FACT REMAINS THEY DID WIN THAT GAME, WHICH IS ULTIMATLEY THE REASON WHY I HAVE THEM RANKED NUMBER TWO IN THIS ARTICLE.  THEN KC’S NEXT TOUGH MATCHUP CAME THE FOLLOWING WEEK WHEN THE CHIEFS BEAT THE CINCINNATI BENGALS IN A HOME GAME WHERE KC WON BY ONE POINT IN A GAME THAT HAD A CONTROVERSIAL CALL GO THE CHIEF’S WAY.  AGAIN, THE IMPORTANT THING IS THE FINAL RESULT OF THE GAME AND WE MUST GIVE CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE. ESPECIALLY WHEN THERE HAS BEEN ALL THIS TALK OF JOE BURROW BEING THE BETTER QUARTERBACK BECAUSE OF HIS PAST SUCCESS AGAINST PATRICK MAHOMES.   

            THIS SEASON THE KANSAS CITY CHIEFS HAVE LOOKED PEDESTRAIN AT TIMES ON OFFENSE, BUT THEY DO RANK JUST OUTSIDE OF THE TOP TEN IN YARDS, COMING IN AT 11^TH (348 YPG).  THEY ARE RANKED 13^TH IN RUSHING (122.1 YPG), 12^TH IN PASSING (225.9 YPG), AND ARE 9^TH IN POINTS (24.7 PPG).  ALTHOUGH, ALL THINGS BEING CONSIDERED, SUCH AS THE FACT THAT KC DID LOSE BOTH THEIR TOP WIDEOUTS IN RASHEE RICE AND THE RECENTLY ADDED MARQUISE “HOLLYWOOD” BROWN TO INJURIES, I THINK THERE IS SOMETHING TO SAY ABOUT THEM STILL BEING RANKED IN THE TOP 15 PASSING ATTACKS IN THE LEAGUE.  THOSE PLAYERS NOT BEING AVAILABLE TO MAHOMES IS A HUGE REASON WHY THEY HAVE LOOKED LIKE A SUBPAR OFFENSE MOST OF THIS SEASON, PLUS THEY DID ALSO LOSE THEIR TOP RUNNINGBACK IN ISIAH PACHECO.  THE GOOD NEWS FOR ANDY REID’S TEAM IS THAT THEY FINALLY SEEM TO HAVE GOTTEN TIGHTEND TRAVIS KELCE GOING, THEY SIGNED RUNNINGBACK KAREEM HUNT, AND THEY BROUGHT IN VERTERAN ALL PRO WIDE RECEIVER DEANDRE HOPKINS VIA A TRADE WITH THE TENNESSEE TITANS THAT HAD THEM SEND A CONDITIONAL 2025 5^TH ROUND PICK.   

THE CHIEFS HAVE BEEN MUCH BETTER ON DEFENSE THAN OFFENSE SO FAR THIS YEAR.  I’M SURE THAT IS NOT A HOT TAKE GIVEN THE FACT THAT PEOPLE HAVE EYES AND HAVE SEEN THAT THE CHIEFS HAVE ONLY REALLY PLAYED THREE TEAMS THAT HAVE BEEN PLAYOFF CALIBER TYPE TEAMS SO FAR THIS SEASON AND IN REALITY, TWO OF THOSE TEAMS HAVE ACTUALLY BEEN FAR FROM THEMSELVES THIS SEASON.  SURE, THE BENGALS PLAYED KC IN WEEK TWO BUT THEY ARE CURRENTLY A 3-5 TEAM THAT IS SITTING IN 9^TH PLACE IN THE AFC.  THE OTHER TEAM IS THE SAN FRANSCICO FORTY-NINERS AND THEY HAVE BEEN DISMANTLED BY INJURIES WHICH HAS RESULTED IN THEM SITTING AT 4-4 RIGHT NOW.  ALL’S I’M SAYING IS THAT I FIRMLY BELIEVE THE CHIEFS HAVE HAD QUITE POSSIBLY, ONE OF THE EASIEST SCHEDULES IN THE NFL, IF NOT THE EASIEST SO FAR THIS YEAR AND I DON’T THINK IT IS ALL THAT SURPRISING SEEING THEM UNDEFEATED THROUGH THE FIRST 8 WEEKS OF THIS SEASON.

LET’S GET TO THE DEFENSIVE NUMBERS FOR KANSAS CITY.  LIKE LAST YEAR, CHIEFS DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR, STEVE SPAGNUOLO HAS THIS DEFENSE PLAYING THEIR BUTTS OFF AND CURRENTLY HAS THEM RANKED 5^TH IN THE LEAGUE IN OVERALL YARDS ALLOWED TO OPPONENTS (295 YPG).  THE CHIEFS ARE ALSO HOLDING TEAMS TO UNDER 18 POINTS (17.6 PPG) A CONTEST AND RANK 5^TH IN THAT CATEGORY AS WELL.  I THINK THE MOST IMPRESSIVE DEFENSIVE STATISTIC SO FAR FOR THIS CHIEFS TEAM IS WHAT THEY’VE BEEN ABLE TO DO ON THE GROUND, CEDING THE SECOND LEAST RUSHING YARDS PER GAME TO ADVERSARIES, ALLOWING JUST 82.3 YPG (2^ND).  AGAIN, THEY HAVE NOT PLAYED THE TOP ELITE TEAMS JUST YET (OUTSIDE OF BALTIMORE RAVENS), BUT THEY WILL HAVE A FEW CHALLENGES TO FACE IN THE UPCOMING WEEKS AHEAD STARTING WITH BAKER MAYFIELD AND THE TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS THIS UPCOMING MONDAY NIGHT.  TAMPA BAY WILL BE WITHOUT THEIR TOP TWO WIDEOUTS, THOUGH BAKER HAS BEEN HAVING AN INCREDIBLE SEASON TO THIS POINT AND I EXPECT HIM (EVEN WITH BACK UP RECEIVERS) TO BE A HANDFUL FOR THE CHIEFS DEFENSE.  THE FOLLOWING WEEK THE CHIEFS WILL MEET THEIR DIVISIONAL FOES, WHO HAVE BEEN PLAYING DEFENSE PRETTY MUCH BETTER THAN ANY OTHER TEAM THIS YEAR, THE DENVER BRONCOS.  IN YEARS’ PRIOR (SINCE PEYTON MANNING ERA) THIS WOULD BE AN EASY FEAT THAT KC COULD PROBABLY WRITE OFF AS AN AUTOMATIC WIN, HOWEVER, SEAN PAYTON AND COMPANY HAVE BEEN LOOKING BETTER AND BETTER EVERY SINGLE WEEK ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BALL.  THE BRONCOS WILL BE READY TO PLAY PLUS MANY MAY’VE FORGOTTEN THAT DENVER HAD ACTUALLY BEAT THE CHIEFS IN ONE OF THEIR TWO MEETINGS LAST SEASON. 

AFTER THAT THEIR SCHEDULE DOES NOT GET EASIER AS THEY WILL PLAY THEIR RECENT RIVALS IN THE BUFFALO BILLS IN BUFFALO.  I WOULD’NT TAKE THAT GAME LIGHTLY EITHER, NOT THAT THEY WILL, WE ALL KNOW HOW GREAT QB JOSH ALLEN IS, BUT NOW THEY POSE A TRUE DOWNFILED THREAT ON THE OUTSIDE AFTER TRADING FOR WR AMARI COOPER.  FROM THAT PONT ON THE CHIEFS WILL HAVE THREE MORE DIVISION GAMES, ONE AGAINST EACH RIVAL, RAIDERS, CHARGERS, (BACK-TO-BACK HOME GAMES) THEN THE BRONCOS AGAIN THE LAST GAME OF THE YEAR.  THEY WILL ALSO PLAY THE TEXANS AND STEELERS WHICH COULD PROVE TO BE TOUGH GAMES FOR KC.  ALL-IN-ALL I DO THINK THAT BOTH THE BRONCOS AND CHARGERS ARE STARTING TO SHOW SOME FIGHT IN THE AFC WEST AND ARE TREDNING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION TO GAIN SOME MOMENTUM, HOWEVER THIS IS STILL OBVIOUSLY THE KANSAS CITY CHIEFS DIVISION FOR NOW.  THE CHIEFS WILL MORE THAN LIKELY END THE SEASON ON TOP OF THE WEST WITH A RECORD OF AROUND 15-2 AT BEST OR 13-4 AT WORST.

 

1)       1)  DETROIT LIONS

LADIES & GENTS, I WOULD FIRST LIKE TO SAY THANK YOU AND I GREATLY APPRECIATE EACH AND EVRYONE OF YOU THAT ACTUALLY MADE IT THIS FAR READING THIS INCREDIBLY LONG ARTICLE, IT MEANS THE WORLD TO ME.  THAT BEING SAID LET’S GET BACK INTO THE NUMBER ONE TEAM ON MY LIST, THE DETROIT LIONS.  DETROIT HAS LOOKED NOTHING SHORT OF THE BEST OVERALL TEAM IN THE LEAGUE THIS SEASON AND IF THEY END THE SEASON THE WAY THEY HAVE PLAYED UP TO THIS POINT IT WILL NOT BE SURPRISING AT ALL TO WATCH THEM HOIST THEIR VERY FIRST LOMBARDI TROPHY IN THEIR FRANCHISE’S HISTORY.  THE LIONS WERE FOUNDED BACK IN 1930, NOT ONLY HAVE THEY NEVER WON THE SUPER BOWL IN THEIR NINETY-FOUR YEAR EXISTENCE, BUT THEY’VE ALSO NEVER EVEN PLAYED IN ONE.  THAT’S SAYING A LOT FOR A TEAM THAT IS NORTORIOUS FOR HAVING ONE OF THE BEST PLAYERS THE LEAGUES’ HISTORY HAD EVER SEEN (BARRY SANDERS).  THE LIONS HAVE AN OVERALL RECORD OF 591-707-34 PRIOR TO THE START OF THE 2024 REGULAR SEASON AND ALSO OWN A POSTSEASON RECORD OF 9-14, INCLUDING LAST YEARS LOSS IN THE NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME.

DETROIT HAS ONE OF THE BEST COMPLETE OFFENSES IN THE ENTIRE LEAGUE THIS SEASON AND HAS ALREADY SCORED 234 TOTAL POINTS IN SUCH TIME.  THEY CURRENTLY LEAD THE NFL WITH 33.4 PPG AND ARE RANKED 6^TH IN YARDS (385.1 YPG).  LIONS ALSO LEAD ALL NFL TEAMS IN TURNOVER MARGIN WITH +1.4 (T/0 MARGIN PG).  DETROIT HAS ONE OF THE BEST OFFENSIVE LINES IN THE GAME, PLUS A RUNNING GAME THAT FEATURES TWO OF THE BEST RUNNING BACKS IN THE LEAGUE.  YES, IT SHOULD BE ILLEGAL TO HAVE BOTH A DOWNFIELD BRUISER DAVID MONTGOMERY AND A PASSING DOWN BACK (ANKLE BREAKER) IN JAHMYR GIBBS (7^TH IN RUSHING YARDS).  DETROIT IS 6^TH IN RUSHING YARDS (156.7 YPG) PLUS MONTGOMERY IS CURRENTLY TIED FOR THIRD IN RUSHING TOUCHDOWNS THIS SEASON, (7 TDS) WHILE GIBBS IS TIED FOR 6^TH WITH 6 SCORES OF HIS OWN.  THEIR QUARTER BACK JARED GOFF IS AT THE HELM OF THIS OFFENSE THAT IS ALSO RANKED 10^TH IN PASSING YARDS (228.4)  AND HAS HAD HIS OWN SUCCESSES THIS SEASON AS HE IS CURRENTLY NUMBER ONE IN COMPLETION PERCENTAGE, (74.1%) WHICH SHOWED BACK IN WEEK FOUR IN A HOME MONDAY NIGHT MATCHUP WITH THE SEATTLE SEAHAWKS WHEN THE WORLD SEEN GOFF COMPLETE 100% OF HIS PASSES (18/18, 292 PASS YDS, 2TDS, 1 REC TD).

            THE ONE AND ONLY FLAW I THINK I SEE WITH THIS TEAM THAT COULD POSSIBLY HURT THEM WOULD BE THEIR DEFENSE.  THEY WERE ALREADY GIVING UP AROUND 350 YARDS A CONTEST, (349.4 YPG) THAT RANKS 20^TH LEAGUEWIDE, MOSTLY A RESULT OF THE PASS DEFENSE (247.6).  THEIR RUN DEFENSE IS CURRENTLY 5^TH BEST, ONLY ALLOWING 101.9 YPG.  THE OTHER PLUSES FOR THIS DEFENSE IS THAT THEY HAVE BEEN HOLDING OPPONENTS TO JUST 19.1 POINTS PER GAME (8^TH), WHILE ALSO ACCUMULATING A TOTAL OF 15 TAKEAWAYS (2^ND) THROUGH THE FIRST HALF OF THE SEASON.  THEY WILL BE NEEDING A LOT OF HELP WHEN IT COMES TO THEIR PASS RUSH (T-12^TH) WITH ONLY 20 SACKS THIS SEASON AND NOW IT WILL BE MORE DIFFICULT THAN EVER TO GET BETTER AFTER LOSING THEIR BEST PASS RUSHER AIDAN HUTCHINSON A FEW WEEKS BACK AGAINST THE DALLAS COWBOYS AFTER SUSTAINING BRUTAL LEG DAMAGE THAT BROKE BOTH HIS TIBIA AND FIBULA.  ONE OPTION FOR THE LIONS IS TO MAYBE SWING A TRADE THAT COULD LAND THEM ANOTHER PASS RUSHER BEFORE THE NOVEMBER 5^TH TRADE DEADLINE THAT IS COMING UP QUICK.

PRIMED FOR A POSTSEASON/SUPER BOWL RUN THE LIONS HAVE BAISCALLY BEEN THE MOST DOMINANT TEAM IN THE ENTIRE LEAGUE THIS SEASON, EVEN BEING IN WHAT HAS LOOKED TO BE THE TOUGHEST DIVISION IN ALL OF FOOTBALL.  DETROIT STARTED THIS SEASON BEATING A PRETTY GOOD LOS ANGELES RAMS TEAM (SINCE HAS BEEN PLAGUED BY NUMEROUS INJURIES, INCLUDING THEIR TOP TWO WRS) IN AN OVERTIME VICTORY (26-20).  WEEK TWO WAS THIS TEAMS ONLY LOSS SO FAR, WHEN THE BUCCS CAME BACK INTO TOWN AND GOT THEIR REVENGE FROM LAST YEARS PLAYOFF LOSS TO DETROIT (16-20).  THEN WAS THE LIONS CLOSELY CONTESTED WIN IN ARIZONA (20-13), FOLLOWED BY THE MONDAY NIGHT WIN AT SEATTLE (42-29), (GOFF’S PERFECT GAME) THE BLOWOUT IN DALLAS (47-9), (ON JERRY’S BIRTHDAY) THE TWO POINT WIN THAT TOOK AWAY THE VIKINGS UNDEFEATED RECORD (31-29), THEN YET ANOTHER DISMANTLING TO THE TITANS (52-14).  THIS UPCOMING GAME MAYBE THEIR BIGGEST CHALLENGE TO DATE AS THEY WILL HEAD TO LAMBEAU FIELD TO TAKE ON THEIR NUMBER ONE RIVALS, THE GREEN BAY PACKERS.  IT DOESN’T END THERE IN TERMS OF TOUGH MATCHUPS FOR THE LIONS AS THEY WILL PLAY THE HOUSTON TEXANS ON SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL NEXT WEEK.  ON TOP OF THAT THEY STILL HAVE BATTLES AHEAD WITH THE COLTS, BEARS (TWICE), BILLS, NINERS, PLUS TWO MORE VISITS AS THEY HOST THE PACKERS IN WEEK 14 AS WELL AS THE VIKINGS IN WEEK 18.  AS I HAVE PREVIOUSLY STATED THIS NFC NORTH DIVISION IS THE TOUGHEST IN THE NFL (EVERYTEAM IS OVER .500) WITH ITS 4^TH PLACE TEAM CURRENTLY CHICAGO AT 4-3.  IF THEY WANT TO WIN THE SUPER BOWL IT IS PIVOTAL FOR THEM TO WIN THEIR DIVISION AS WELL AS THEIR CONFERENCE TO MAINTAIN HOMEFIELD ADVANTAGE FOR THE PLAYOFFS.  I THINK THEY SHOULD WIN THE NORTH AND SEE THEM ENDING OUT THE REGULAR SEASON WITH A RECORD OF 14-3 AT BEST OR 13-4 RECORD AT WORST.

HOTTEST TEAMS MIDWAY THROUGH THE NFL SEASON

 

                                        PART 1 TEAMS 10-6

 

A LOT OF PEOPLE MAY NOT AGREE WITH THESE RANKINGS.  THEY ARE NOT YOUR TYPICAL NFL.COM OR ESPN.COM RANKINGS.     I MASHED UP A LOT OF STATISTICS TO COME UP WITH THE ORDER THAT I CAME TO.  IT IS BASED ON A PLETHORA OF THINGS SUCH AS OFFENSIVE YARDS PER GAME, POINTS PER GAME, ALONG WITH DEFFENSIVE STATS: YARDS PER GAME ALLOWED, POINTS PER GAME ALLOWED, TURNOVER MARGIN PER GAME, TOTAL SACKS AND TOTAL TAKEAWAYS.  IN ADDITION TO ALL OF THAT I ALSO FACTOR IN THE LEVEL OF COMPETION IN EACH OF THESE TEN TEAMS STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE THUS FAR.

 

10) ARIZONA CARDINALS- 

            THE CARDINALS, IN MY OPINION ARE PRETTY UNDERATED THIS SEASON.  MANY PEOPLE MAY NOT SEE THEM AS A BIG THREAT, HERE’S WHERE I BELIEVE THOSE PEOPLE MAY BE WRONG.  WEEK ONE SHOWED THAT THE CARDS CAME INTO THIS SEASON HOT AND READY TO PROVE THEIR DOUBTERS WRONG.  YES, THEY DID END UP LOSING, BUT BOY WAS THAT AN IMPRESSIVE WAY TO KICK OFF THE SEASON, GOING INTO BUFFALO AND STARTING OUT 17-3 OVER THE BILLS, SMACKING THEM IN THE MOUTH IN THEIR OWN BUILDING.  IT WASN’T UNTIL THE END OF THE THIRD QUARTER THAT BUFFALO TOOK THEIR FIRST LEAD OF THE GAME.  JOSH ALLEN DID WIND UP PROVING TO BE A LITTLE TOO MUCH AS HE WOUND UP WITH FOUR TDS, 2 PASSING PLUS 2 ON THE GROUND.  BIG PROPS TO THE CARDS HERE, MANY WOULD’VE THOUGHT THE CARDS WOULD BE BLOWN OUT ON THE ROAD HERE. 

IN WEEK TWO THE CARDS BLEW OUT THE RAMS AT HOME IN A MATCHUP THAT PUKA NACUA DID NOT PLAY AND COOPER KUPP GOT HURT IN, THOUGH IT WAS STILL A 41-10 VICTORY FOR KYLER AND COMPANY.  NEXT UP WAS A LOSS AT HOME FOR ARIZONA, HOWEVER IT WAS ONLY A 20-13 FINAL AGAINST A MUCH SUPERIOR DETROIT LIONS, SO I AGAIN GIVE THEM MAJOR CREDIT HOLDING A TEAM OF THE LIONS CALIBER TO ONLY 20 POINTS.  THE NEXT FOUR WEEKS SHOWED US THAT ARIZONA COULD BEAT THE 49ERS IN SAN FRAN, (NO MCCAFFREY + SOME DEFENSIVE INJURIES) THE CHARGERS IN A COMEBACK VICTORY, AND THE DOLPHINS WITH THE RETURN OF TUA TAGOVAILOA.  MIAMI ACTUALLY LED THE ENTIRE GAME, THOUGH ARIZONA KEPT IT PRETTY CLOSE, IT WASN’T UNTIL ONE SECOND LEFT IN THE GAME THAT THE CARDS KICKED A FIELD GOAL TO SEAL THE COMEBACK VICTORY BEHIND A MONSTROUS GAME BY KYLER MURRAY (26/36, 307 PASS YDS, 2 TDS).

ARIZONA IS CURRENTLY IN FIRST PLACE IN THE NFC WEST AND KYLER MURRAY IS NOT ONLY FULLY HEALTY, BUT IS GAINING TRACTION WITH HIS NEW NUMBER ONE TARGET, MARVIN HARRISON JR.  HE ALSO HAS OTHER GREAT WEAPONS AROUND HIM ON THIS OFFENSE THAT IS CURRENTLY RANKED 12^TH IN YARDS PER GAME.  TREY MCBRIDE IS QUITE POSSIBLY THE BEST TIGHT END IN THE LEAGUE THIS SEASON, THROUGH THE FIRST EIGHT WEEKS HE HAS COMMANDED 56 TARGETS WHILE REALING IN 42 RECEPTIONS, (BOTH RANK 2^ND AMONG ALL TE’S) WITH 446 RECEIVING YARDS (3^RD AMONG TES).  THE CARDS ALSO POSE QUITE A THREAT WITH THEIR RUNNING BACK JAMES CONNER, WHO HAS 557 YARDS ON THE GROUND THIS SEASON AND HAS CARRIED THEM ON HIS BACK FOR 39 FIRST DOWNS THIS YEAR (557 RUSH YDS RANKS 8^TH AMONG RBS, 39 1^ST DOWN RUNS RANKS 2^ND TO ONLY DERRICK HENRY).  THIS TEAM HAS AN OFFENSE THAT I BELIEVE WILL CARRY THEM TO A PLAYOFF GAME THIS SEASON BEHIND AN OFFENSIVE LINE THAT HAS ONLY GIVEN UP ONE SACK IN THEIR LAST FOUR GAMES.  THEY ALSO HAVEN’T GIVEN UP ANY IN THE PAST THREE WEEKS, WHICH IS THEIR LONGEST STREAK SINCE WEEKS 12-14 OF THE 1975 SEASON.

 

9) ATLANTA FALCONS-

            ATLANTA CAME INTO THIS SEASON WITH A MUCH DIFFERENT MINDSET THAN THE PAST SEVERAL SEASONS.  THEY CHANGE SEEMINGLY EVERYTHING ABOUT THE OUTLOOK OF THIS TEAM FROM THEIR COACHING STAFF, THEY WENT FROM A RUSH FIRST OFFENSE TO A PASS HEAVY TEAM.  THEY WENT AHEAD AND DRAFTED THEMSELVES A QUARTERBACK FOR THE FUTURE IN MICHAEL PENIX JR., THEY ALSO BROUGHT IN A PROVEN VERY GOOD VETERAN QB IN KIRK COUSINS, SURROUNDED HIM WITH A PLETHORA OF TALENT, PLUS THEY BROUGHT IN TWO HUGE AQUISITONS RIGHT BEFORE THE SEASON BEGAN TO HELP BOLSTER THEIR DEFFENSE.  WITH YOUNG TALENTS SUCH AS RUNNING BACK BIJAN ROBINSON, TIGHTEND KYLE PITTS, ALONG WITH WIDEOUTS DRAKE LONDON AND DARNELL MOONEY, IT IS NO WONDER ATLANTA’S OFFENSE IS PRODUCING THE LEAGUES 7^TH RANKED YARDS PER GAME WITH KIRK COUSINS AT THE HELM.  KIRK IS THIRD IN PASSING YARDS, (2,106 PASS YDS) FIFTH IN YARDS PER GAME, (263.3 YPG) AND TIED FOR FIFTH IN PASSING TDS (14 TDS).  THE FALCONS ALSO HAVE A HECK OF A WIDEOUT IN DRAKE LONDON WHO IS ONE OF THE TOP RECEIVERS IN THE NFL THIS YEAR.  AMONG THE MAJOR RECEIVING CATEGORIES THIS SEASON DRAKE HAS 48 RECEPTIONS, (T-4TH) 68 TARGETS, (5TH) 525 YARDS, (13TH) 5 TDS, (T-4TH) WITH 28 FIRST DOWNS. (28 FDS) NO DOUBT DRAKE LONDON HAS BEEN MASSIVE FOR THIS OFFENSE THIS YEAR. 

            ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE BALL ATLANTA DEFINITLEY NEEDS SOME WORK AND IF I AM BEING HONEST, THIS OFFENSE HAS LARGLEY BAILED THEM OUT OF SOME STICKY SITUATIONS SO FAR THIS YEAR.  WHEN HEAD COACH RAHEEM MORRIS AND GENERAL MANAGER TERRY FONTENOT DECIDED TO BRING IN ALL-PRO, PRO BOWL VETERAN SAFTEY JUSTIN SIMMONS AND TRADE FOR A PREMIER EDGE RUSHER IN MATTHEW JUDON THEY EXPECTED THIS DEFENSE TO IMPROVE IN WAYS THAT THEY REALLY HAVENT YET SHOWN.  UP UNTIL NOW THE BEST PART OF THIS DEFENSE IS THAT THEY HAVE BEEN ABLE TO TAKE THE BALL AWAY TEN TIMES (T-11TH).  ATLANTA MAY HAVE THE OFFENSE TO BE ABLE TO HANG IN THERE WITH THE BEST TEAMS IN THE LEAGUE AND ARE CURRENTLY IN FIRST PLACE IN THE NFC SOUTH.  THE FALCONS HAVE NOW WON FOUR OF THEIR LAST FIVE GAMES AFTER STARTING OFF THE SEASON 1-2.   IF THEY CHOOSE TO ADD SOMEMORE TALENT TO THEIR DEFENSE WITHIN THEIR D-LINE OR LINEBACKERS PRIOR TO THE NOVEMBER 5^TH TRADE DEADLINE, THEY WILL BE A VERY SCARY TEAM FOR ANYONE TO HAVE TO FACE IN THE PLAYOFFS.  FLACONS SHOULD MORE THAN LIKLEY WALK AWAY WITH THE NFC SOUTH TITLE AT THE END OF THE SEASON, ALREADY OWNING THE DIVISON WITH A 4-0 RECORD AND ONLY HAVE TO PLAY THE POROUS PANTHERS AND STRUGGLING SAINTS ONCE MORE EACH.  THEY DO ALSO HAVE A FEW TOUGH CHALLENGES AHEAD WHEN THEY FACE TWO OF THE BEST DEFENSES IN FOOTBALL THIS YEAR IN BACK-TO-BACK WEEKS AGINST DENVER AND THE LOS ANGELES CHARGERS IN WEEKS 11 & 12, A MEETING WITH THE MINNESOTA VINKINGS IN WEEK 13, THEN THEY WILL CERTAINLY HAVE THEIR HANDS FULL WHEN THEY PLAY THE SENSATIONAL ROOKIE JAYDEN DANIELS AND THE WASHINGTON COMMANDERS COME WEEK 17.

 

8) HOUSTON TEXANS-

            HOUSTON DOESN’T FEEL QUITE THE SAME AS THEY DID LAST YEAR, AM I RIGHT?  THEY HAVE BEEN WINNING GAMES, SURE, BUT WHEN YOU CONSIDER THE TEAMS THAT THEY HAVE PLAYED THIS YEAR, THEY REALLY JUST WON THE GAMES THEY’RE SUPPOSED TO.  THEY BEAT THE 4-4 COLTS TWICE, THEY TOOK DOWN THE BEARS WITH ROOKIE CALEB WILLIAMS WHO WAS PLAYING IN HIS SECOND START IN THE NFL, TEXANS ALSO BEAT THE PATRIOTS AND THE JAGUARS...UMM...YEA, THEY BETTER BEAT THOSE TEAMS.  THEY ALSO WON A CLOSE GAME AGAINST BUFFALO, WHICH I GUESS WE CAN GIVE THEM THEIR CHIPS WITH THAT WIN.  THEY WERE ROUTED BY THE VIKINGS, WHICH I THOUGHT THEY WOULD HONESTLY PUT UP MORE OF A FIGHT THAN LOSING 34-7, THEN THERE WAS THEIR LOSS TO THE GREEN BAY PACKERS.  THAT GAME HONESTLY COULD’VE WENT EITHER WAY AND IF NOT FOR A MINOR MISTAKE ON HOUSTON’S END, THEY WOULD BE A 7-1 TEAM RIGHT NOW INSTEAD OF 6-2.  HOUSTON HAS LOOKED MUCH BETTER FROM A DEFENVISE STANDPOINT THAN LAST YEAR.  THE OFFENSE HAS HONESLTY COOLED OFF QUITE A BIT FROM LAST YEARS PROWESS. 

HOUSTON HAS NOW LOST TWO OF QUARTERBACK C.J. STROUDS BEST RECEIVERS IN NICO COLLINS AND SUPERSTAR STEFON DIGGS.  THIS OFFENSE DOES CURRENTLY RANK 9^TH OVERALL, (351.4 YPG) AND 8^TH IN PASSING YARDS (232.5 YPG).  ON OFFENSE THEIR MAIN FLAW UP TO THIS POINT HAS MORE SO BEEN THEIR RUN GAME.  HOWEVER, I DO EXPECT THEM TO TAKE A BIT OF A HIT TO THEIR PASSING ATTACK NOW, UNTIL WIDEOUT NICO COLLINS IS ABLE TO RETURN FROM INJURY.  STEFON DIGGS ON THE OTHER HAND HAD WORSE LUCK, GOING DOWN TO A NON-CONTACT INJURY THIS PAST WEEK WHEN HE SUFFERED AN APPARENT TORN ACL.  IT WAS CRAZY TO SEE THIS WHEN HE STARTED TO RUN HIS ROUTE, HE TURNED TO CUT AND JUST STARTED LIMPING.  THIS TRULY MAKES FOR A WILD ENDING NOT ONLY TO HIS SEASON, BUT ALSO TO WHAT COULD POSSIBLY BE HIS TIME WITH THE HOUSTON TEXANS.  WE WILL HAVE TO SEE IF THEY OFFER HIM A NEW DEAL IN THE OFFSEASON AS THIS SEASON WAS ACTUALLY THE LAST YEAR ON HIS DEAL DUE TO BUFFALO TRADING DIGGS TO HOUSTON THIS PAST SUMMER WITHOUT EITHER TEAM EXTENDING HIM BEFORE OR AFTER THE BLOCK BUSTER TRADE WAS MADE. 

HOUSTON HAS DONE A VERY GOOD JOB WITH THEIR DEFENSE THIS YEAR, HOLDING OPPOSING TEAMS TO ONLY 280.3 YARDS PER GAME (2^ND IN NFL).  THEY ALSO HOLD THE 8^TH BEST TURNOVER MARGIN PER GAME (+0.5), THEY HAVE 12 TAKEAWAYS (T-8^TH) AND HAVE BROUGHT DOWN THEIR OPPONENTS QUARTERBACKS 27 TIMES (3^RD IN NFL).  HEAD COACH DEMECO RYANS HAS THE TEXANS RIDING HIGH IN A BAD AFC SOUTH DIVISION AND THEY ARE SITTING IN SECOND PLACE IN THE AFC BEHIND THE KANASAS CITY CHIEFS.  WITH AN UPCOMING SCHEDULE THAT HAS THEM HOSTING THE LIONS, DOLPHINS, AND RAVENS, WHILE ON THE ROAD AGAINST THE JETS, COWBOYS, AND THE CHIEFS, I THINK IT IS PRETTY FAVORABLE FOR HOUSTON.  ONE OF THE MOST COMMON SAYINGS IN THE NFL IS ANY GIVEN SUNDAY AND FOR GOOD REASON AS UPSETS CAN COME AT ANYTIME.  HOWEVER, I WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED IN THE SLIGHEST IF THE TEXANS WIND UP ENDING THE SEASON WITH AN 11-6 RECORD.

         

 

7) DENVER BRONCOS-

            THIS TEAM BEING RANKED INSIDE ANYONES TOP TEN FOR ANYTHING RELTATED TO NFL RANKINGS MAY SEEM A BIT ARBITRARY AT FIRST, TRUST ME I KNOW.  THOUGH THE FACTS ARE RIGHT THERE IN FRONT OF OUR EYES, YOU JUST NEED TO LOOK AT THEM PLAY.  MOST WON’T GIVE THIS TEAM A CHANCE OR THE BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT UNLESS YOU HAPPEN TO BE A DIRECT FAN OF THESE DENVER BRONCOS OR YOU RESIDE IN DENVER, COLORADO.  IT HAS BEEN A BIT OF A ROLLER COASTER RIDE FOR THE DENVER FANS SINCE THEY BROUGHT IN HEAD COACH SEAN PAYTON ON FEBRUARY 3, 2023.  THEY RUSSELL WILSON CHAPTER DIDN’T GO AS EXPECTED, A LOT WAS MORTGAGED ON THAT SUB PAR MOVE AND ALAS THEY WILL BE FEELING THOSE FINANCIAL AFFTECTS FOR A LITTLE WHILE, EVEN WITH DENVER MOVING ONWARDS WITHOUT HIM.  NONETHELESS, THE BRONCOS HAVE SEEMINGLY FOUND THEMSELVES THEIR QUARTERBACK OF THE FUTURE AND BOY DOES HE LOOK LIKE HE COULD BE SOMETHING SPECIAL. 

THE NFL IS NOW EIGHT WEEKS SO FAR AND ROOKIE QB BO NIX, WHO WAS THE LAST OF THE QUARTERBACKS TAKEN IN THE FIRST ROUND, HAS BEEN LOOKING BETTER WITH EACH AND EVERY WEEK.  BO HAS BEEN COMPARED TO ONE OF THE GREATEST NFL QBS OF THE PAST TWO DECADES, DREW BREES, AND THAT HE IS STARTING TO LOOK THE PART IN SMALL SMAPLE SIZES.  BO NIX CURRENTLY LEADS ALL ROOKIES THIS SEASON WITH 12 OVERALL TOUCHDOWNS, 8 PASSING TDS AND 4 RUSHING.  DENVER’S ROOKIE HAS NOW BROKEN AN ALL-TIME FRANCHISE RECORD FOR MOST WINS AS A ROOKIE QB, SURPASSING DREW LOCK AND MORE NOTABLE THEIR LIVING LEGEND QB JOHN ELWAY.  MOST PEOPLE MAY NOT REALIZE IT, BUT THAT IS DEFINITLEY SOMETHING SPECIAL AS THE BRONCOS HAVE NOT HAD ANY SUCCESS DRAFTING QBS SINCE JOHN ELWAY, WHICH IS WHY THEY HAD BEEN LOOKING TO OUTSOURCE FOR VETERAN QBS VIA TRADES OR FREE AGENCEY SIGNINGS AROUND THE LAST 20 YEARS OR SO.  NOW LET’S PUT THINGS IN RETROSPECT HERE AS BO HAS BEEN ASCENDING IN PERFORMANCE THE LAST FEW GAMES, THE BRONCOS ARE STILL FAR FORM OFFENSIVE JUGGERNAUTS.  THIS OFFENSE THAT HAS BEEN LOOKING DECENT STILL RANKS 25^TH IN THE LEAGUE AS THEY ARE PUTTING UP AN AVERAGE OF 307.3 YARDS PER GAME.  BOTH THEIR PASSING ATTACK AS WELL AS THE GROUND GAME ISN’T EXACTLY A TOP TEN UNIT JUST YET, BUT THEY SEEM AS THOUGH THEY MAYBE TURNING THE PAGE ON THEIR OFFENSIVE WOES.  THEY HAVE HAD VERY STRONG O-LINE PLAY IN THE PAST FEW GAMES NOW.  THE RUN GAME HAS BEEN MORE EFFICENT, THEY ARE PROCTECTING BO WHEN HE DROPS BACK TO PASS.  IN FACT, THE BRONCOS O-LINE HAS ONLY ALLOWED 11 SACKS (T-2^ND) THIS SEASON, 1.4 TIMES PER GAME (T-2^ND), WITH A LEAGUE LEADING 4.01% SACK PERCENTAGE. 

NOW WE GET TO THE REAL REASON WHY THE BRONCOS SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS A POSSIBLE PLAYOFF CANDIDATE.  WHAT IS THAT OLD SAYING WHEN IT COMES TO WINNING CHAMPIONSHIPS, OH RIGHT, DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS.  LET’S NOT GET TO CARRIED AWAY, THE BRONCOS AREN’T GOING TO BE HOISTING A LOMBARDI THIS SEASON OR NEXT, BUT THEY ARE PLAYING GREAT DEFENSE AND I THINK IT MAY BE TIME THEY GET A LITTLE RECOGNIZATION FOR IT.  DENVER IS ONLY ALLOWING 282.6 TOTAL YARDS PER GAME TO THEIR OPPONENTS THIS SEASON (3^RD). THEY’RE ONLY ALLOWING 15.0 POINTS A GAME (3^RD), HAVE A TOTAL OF 12 TAKEAWAYS THIS SEASON WHICH IS TIED FOR 8^TH BEST IN THE LEAGUE, ARE RANKED 4^TH IN PASS DEFENSE (176.3 YPG), ALONG WITH BEING RANKED 7^TH IN RUSH DEFENSE (106.4 YPG).  LASTLY, THE BRONCOS ARE TAKING QBS DOWN LEFT AND RIGHT SEEMINGLY GETTING IN THEIR OPPONENTS BACKFIELD WITH EASE AND HAVE PRODUCED 30 SACKS (2^ND).  WHEN IT COMES TO THIS TEAM THE DEFENSE HAS OBVIOUSLY BEEN THE MOST PROMINENT PART OF THEIR SUCCES TO THIS POINT IN THE SEASON.

DENVER HAD INITALLY STARTED THE SEASON 0-2 WITH TWO HEARTBREAKING LOSSES 26-20 ON THE ROAD TO THE SEAHAWKS IN A GAME THAT STARTED TO SHED SOME EARLY LIGHT ON HOW GOOD THIS DEFENSE COULD BE THIS YEAR AS DENVER HAD TAKEN SEATTLE DOWN IN THEIR OWN ENDZONE TWICE FOR TWO SAFTIES IN THE SECOND QUARTER.  THEN THE BRONCOS FELL TO AT HOME TO A GREAT PITTSBURGH STEELERS DEFENSE 13-6.  FROM THAT POINT THE BRONCOS SEEMED TO TURN THE CORNER AND WON THREE OR THEIR NEXT FOUR GAMES AGAINST THE TAMPA BAY BUCS WHO WERE RUNNING HOT (HELD TB TO 7 POINTS), TOOK DOWN AN INTERESTINGLY BAD NEW YORK JETS TEAM IN EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY.  THEY BEAT THE RAIDERS AT HOME WHILE SCORING 34 POINTS, FOLLOWED BY A LOSS TO ANOTHER DIVISION RIAVL LOS ANGELES CHARGERS TEAM.  AFTER THAT THEY BEAT DOWN TWO BAD NFC SOUTH TEAMS TO WIN 5 OUT OF THEIR LAST 6 GAMES.  SO YES I UNDERSTAND THEY HAVEN’T PLAYED ANY ELITE TEAMS AS OF YET, BUT THEY ARE ABOUT TO PUT THIS DEFENSE TO THE TEST IN THE NEXT FEW GAMES AS THEY WILL BE FACING THE BALTIMORE RAVENS IN BALTIMORE THIS SUNDAY.  AFTER THAT THE BRONCOS HEAD TO ARROWHEAD TO PLAY THE SUPER BOWL CHAMPS AND DIVISION FOES, WHO DENVER FINALLY BEAT LAST SEASON FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE PEYTON MANNING WON DENVER THEIR LAST DIVISION TITLE AND SUPER BOWL.  TWO ROAD CHALLENGES THAT WILL UNQUESTIONABLY CHANGE THE TRAJECTORY OF THIS TEAM GOING FORTH.  THEY WILL STILL HAVE TO PLAY SOME DECENT TEAMS WHEN THEY WILL MEET THE FALCONS, THE COLTS, BENGALS, AND STILL HAVE THREE MORE DIVISION GAMES REMAINING DOWN THE LINE.  THE BRONCS TRULY HOLD THEIR OWN FATES FOR A POSSIBLE PLAYOFF BIRTH THIS SEASON AND AS OF RIGHT NOW THEY ARE THE NUMBER FIVE SEED IN THE WAY TOO EARLY AFC PLAYOFF PICTURE.

 

6) GREEN BAY PACKERS-

            GREEN BAY IS A TEAM THAT HAS BEEN ONE OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL IN THE NFL, SEEMINGLY FOR THEIR ENTIRE FRANCHISE’S HISTORY.  THEY DON’T EVER LOSE A BEAT, FROM BRETT FAVRE TO AARON RODGERS, TO JORDAN LOVE.  THIS GREEN BAY PACKERS TEAM HAS BEEN ONE OF THE MOST CONSISTENTLY GREAT OFFENSIVE TEAMS BEHIND THREE QBS THAT HAS SPANNED OVER THE PAST 31 YEARS NOW.  WITH MATT LAFLEUR AS THEIR HEAD COACH AND AN ARSENAL OR SKILLED POSITIONAL PLAYERS SUCH AS RB JOSH JACOBS, WRS JAYDEN REED, CHRISTIAN WATSON, ROMEO DOUBS, AND THE RECENT EMERGENCE OF TIGHTEND TUCKER KRAFT, THE PACKERS LOOK LIKE A SURE-FIRE PLAYOFF TEAM FOR QUITE POSSIBLY THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE.  THEY DO HAVE TO PLAY IN THE NFC NORTH, WHICH IN MY PERSONAL OPINION IS THE TOUGHTEST IN THE ENTIRE NFL.  THEY HAVE TO DEAL WITH THE DOMINANT DETROIT LIONS, THE MIGHTY MINESSOTA VIKINGS, AND THE BUDDING CHICAGO BEARS.  THIS DIVISION COULD POSSIBLY BE THE VERY FIRST TO SEE ALL FOUR TEAMS ENTER THE PLAYOFFS THIS YEAR DEPENDING ON WHAT HAPPENS IN THE EAST AND WEST DIVISIONS THE REST OF THE SEASON, THAT’S JUST HOW GOOD THESE TEAMS IN THE NORTH ARE.

            PACKERS HAVE ONE OF THE BEST OFFENSES IN THE LEAGUE AS THEY RANK 5^TH IN BOTH TOTAL YARDS (387.4 5^TH) AND RUSH YARDS (156.9 PER GAME, 5^TH).  THE PACKERS PASSING OFFENSE ALSO RANKS TOP TEN (230.5 PER GAME, 9^TH) AND COULD VERY WELL BE IN THE TOP TEN IF NOT FOR JORDAN LOVE MISSING SOME TIME THIS SEASON WITH A FEW INJURIES.  THEY ALSO RANK 6^TH IN THE LEAGUE IN POINTS (27.0 PER GAME).  EVEN WITH QUARTERBACK JORDAN LOVE MISSING SOME TIME THIS SEASON HE IS CURRENTLY TIED FOR 3^RD IN PASSING TOUCHDOWNS (15 TDS). RUNNINGBACK JOSH JACOBS HAS BEEN ABSOLUTELY TORCHING TEAMS THIS YEAR AS HE’S 4^TH IN TOTAL RUSHING YARDS THROUGH THE FIRST EIGHT WEEKS WITH 667 YDS.  JACOBS ALSO RANKS 7^TH IN YARDS PER GAME (83.4 YPG).  THIS OFFENSE HAS SOME ELITE LEVEL TALENT AND SEEMS TO BE ROLLING ON ALL CYLIDERS AS OF LATE.  THEY NEED TO KEEP LOVE HEALTHY AND THEY CAN COMPETE WITH THE BEST TEAMS IN THE LEAGUE.

            DEFENSIVELY, THE PACKERS ARE ALSO NOT TOO SHABY.  THEY ARE ALLOWING JUST 21.3 POINTS PER GAME (11^TH), AND HAVE TALLIED 21 SACKS, WHICH RANKS 7^TH OVERALL AND ALSO LEAD THE LEAGUE IN TAKEAWAYS.  ONE OF THE BEST MOVES OF THE OFFSEASON FOR GREEN BAY WAS SIGNING FREE SAFTEY XAVIER MCKINNEY, WHO STARTED HIS CAREER WITH THE NY GIANTS.  MIDWAY THROUGH THIS SEASON MCKINNEY PACES THE NFL IN INTERCEPTIONS WITH 6.  PACKERS HAVE HELD TEAMS TO JUST 111.6 YARDS PER GAME ON THE GROUND, 10^TH BEST IN THE NFL TO THIS POINT.  THEY STARTED THE SEASON ON THE ROAD IN INTERNATIONAL PLAY AGASINT THE PHILADELPHIA EAGLES WHEN JORDAN LOVE WENT DOWN TO INJURY PRIOR TO THE GAMES END.  THOUGH THEY ULTIMATLEY LOST THAT GAME THEY LOOKED PRETTY DAMN GOOD.  THE FOLLOWING WEEK THEY HAD TO START THEIR, AT THE TIME, NEWLY AQUIRED BACKUP QB MALIK WILLIS THEY HAD TRADED FOR FROM THE TENNESSEE TITANS.  WILLIS ACTUALLY LOOKED PRETTY IMPRESSIVE FOR SOMEONE WHO HAD ONLY BEEN IN GREEN BAY FOR ABOUT 14 DAYS PRIOR TO GETTING HIS FIRST START FOR THEM.  THE PACKERS WON WITH THEIR BACKUP AT THE HELM AGAINST THE COLTS 16-10, THEN MALIK HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE A “REVENGE GAME” AGAINST HIS OLD TEAM IN HIS SECOND START.  THE PACK WOUND OUT BLOWING OUT THE TITANS AND WILLIS GOT TO HAVE THE LAST LAUGH WITH A 30-14 WIN ON THE ROAD.  WEEK THREE WAS A LITTLE BIT OF A WEIRD ONE FOR GREEN BAY FANS.  THEY STARTED OFF TERRIBLE BUT CLIMBED ALL THE WAY BACK TO ALMOST BEATING THEIR DIVISIONAL RIVAL MINNESOTA VIKINGS, WITH A FINAL SCORE OF 31-29.  JORDON LOVE REGAINED HIS FOOTING THE FOLLOWING WEEK AND THE PACKERS HAVEN’T LOST A GAME SINCE CATCHING FIRE ON THEIR WAY TO WINNING FOUR STRAIGHT AND THUS NOW WINNING SIX OF THEIR LAST SEVEN GAMES.

            JORDAN LOVE HAS NOT PRACTICED YET THIS WEEK BUT IS STILL LOOKING TO BE GOOD TO GO FOR THIS SUNDAY.  THAT IS A GREAT SIGN FOR THE PACKERS SEEING HOW THEY ARE ABOUT TO GO ON THEIE TOUGHEST 5 GAME STRETCH OF THEIR SEASON STARTING THIS WEEK.  THIS UPCOMING GAME COULD IS QUITE POSSIBLY THE MOST MEANINGFUL GAME OF THEIR SEASON AS THEY PLAY HOST TO THE CURRENT NFC LEADING DETROIT LIONS AT HOME.  THIS GAME COULD BE FOR ALL THE MARBLES IN TERMS OF WHO COULD WIND UP WINNING THE NFC NORTH TITLE AT THE END OF THE SEASON.  NEXT UP WILL BE ANOTHER DIVISION GAME AGANST THE UP-AND-COMING BEARS ON THE ROAD.  FROM THERE THEY WILL HAVE TO DEAL WITH BACK-TO-BACK TEAMS THAT ARE STARTING TO GET HEALTHY IN THE NINERS AND THE DOLPHINS, LUCKILY FOR THE PACK BOTH GAMES OUR ON THEIR HOME TURF.  THEN IT WILL BE A TRIP SOUTHEAST TO THE MOTOR CITY WHEN THEY WILL PLAY THE LIONS AGAIN.  ONCE THOSE GAMES ARE IN THE REAR VIEW, THEY WILL FACE TWO WEAKER OPPONENTS IN WHAT SHOULD SURELY BE WINNABLE GAMES WHEN THEY MATCHUP WITH SEATTLE FOLLOWED BY THE NEW ORLEANS.  THEIR REMAINING TWO GAMES WILL BE BACK TO INTER-DIVISIONAL PLAY WITH THE VIKINGS AND THE BEARS.

            GREEN BAY DEFINITLEY SEEMS LIKE A TEAM THAT CAN POTENTIALLY CONTEND FOR A SUPER BOWL AS SOON AS THIS YEAR.  I THINK THE MAIN OBSTICLE FOR THEM IS HOW THEY FAIR AMONG THE BATTLES IN THEIR DIVISION.  THE LIONS ARE 6-1 AND LOOK ALMOST UNBEATABLE AS OF LATE, THE VIKINGS HAVE LOST TWO STRAIGHTS, THOUGH STARTED THE SEASON 5-0 WITH A STRONG DEFENSE AND AN OFFENSE WITH ONE OF THE BEST PLAY CALLERS AND SUPERSTAR RECEIVER JUSTIN JEFFERSON.  THOSE TWO TEAMS ARE NEVER FUN TO SEE, LET ALONE HAVE TO PLAY THEM TWICE A YEAR, AND WHO KNOWS, MAYBE EVEN A THIRD TIME IF THEY ALL WIND UP IN THE PLAYOFFS.  AS I PREVIOUSLY ALLUDED TO THE BEARS ARE ALSO ON THE RISE AND WITH THE DEFENSE A TOP 8-10 UNIT THIS SEASON AND THEIR PRIZED ROOKIE QUARTERBACK CALEB WILLIAMS STARTING TO FIGURE THINGS OUT ITS CERTIANLY NOT AN EASY DIVISION TO NAVIGATE THROUGH.  THE PACKERS ARE 5^TH IN THE NFC PLAYOFF PICTURE AS OF RIGHT NOW AND IF WE’RE BEING COMPLELTEY HONEST WITH OURSELVES THE NFC IS LOOKING LIKE MORE OF A POWERHOUSE SO FAR THIS SEASON THAN THE AFC WITH SEVEN OF THE TOP EIGHT TEAMS HAVING THREE LOSSES OR LESS AND ONLY HAVING FIVE TEAMS UNDER .500, COMPARED TO THE AFC HOUSING EIGHT SUCH TEAMS.  TO FINISH MY THOUGHS ON THE EARLY DOMINANCE OF THE NFC THIS YEAR, WHO KNOWS GREEN BAY COULD WIND UP IN 1^ST PLACE BY WEEK 18 OR THEY COULD COMPLETLEY MISS THE PLAYOFFS.  THE NINERS ARE GOING TO GET HEALTHY, THE RAMS HAVE STARTED TO GET HEALTHY, AND EVEN THOUGH THEY HAVE LOOKED POOR SO FAR THIS YEAR, I DON’T KNOW THAT WE CAN COMPLETEY COUNT THE COWBOYS OUT EITHER. 

MY TOP 10 WIDEOUTS THROUGH WEEK 7

 

EMERALD CITY & the 12TH MAN

 

SEAHAWKS HISTORY:

        The Coffee Capital of the World, Rain City, Transplant City, or as most know it as Emerald City is the home of the NFL’s 28^th franchise.  The “12^th man” refers to the fans of the Seattle Seahawks (used for many football teams) who were established as an NFL team at the start of the 1976 season.  The Seahawks were one of two expansion teams that first appeared in the NFL in 1976, the other team being the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.  Upon joining the league, the NFL placed Seattle in the NFC West Division while having placed the Tampa Bay Bucs in the AFC West Division.  The Seahawks are the only NFL team to have ever switched conferences two times as the following season Seattle and Tampa Bay swapped conferences, placing the Hawks in the AFC West and the Bucs in the NFC North.  Seattle had been Division rivals with the Oakland Raiders, San Diego Chargers, Kansas City Chiefs, and Denver Broncos from 1977-2002 before their departure, which placed them back into the NFC West.  Seattle is also the only NFL team in the league's history that has played in both an AFC Championship and NFC Championship Game.

        During the Seahawks' inaugural season, they started slow losing their first five games before picking up their first win as a franchise.  Ironically Seattle's first win came against their expansion brothers, Tampa Bay, when they won 13-10.  Their only other win that season came when they played the Atlanta Falcons three weeks later.  In year two they again struggled to open the season, losing four straight games before grabbing their first win, yet again over the Buccaneers 30-23 in what became known as the “Expansion Bowl II”.  These Seahawks undoubtedly had many great players in their team history, though none better than Hall of Famer wideout Steve Largent.  Steve Largent was drafted by the Houston Oilers in the 1976 NFL Draft but was traded to Seattle in the preseason, thus never playing a game for Houston.  This move would become one of the most successful in the Seahawks’ franchise.

 

PETE CARROLL ERA:

        Carroll served as a defensive specialist coach at the collegiate level and in the NFL.  He started his coaching career at Iowa State, where he spent a year (1978) before moving to Ohio State for one season in 1979.  Pete was initially a secondary coordinator for both Ohio & Iowa State until he caught North Carolina State’s eye when they brought him in to be their defensive coordinator from 1980-1982.  His next opportunity was a one-year stay, yet again, this time it was at Pacific in 1983 as their DC.  Then Pete finally got his chance in the NFL as a defensive backs coach with the Buffalo Bills.  After spending a season with Buffalo, some time with Minnesota (1985-1989), and a three-year stint with the New York Jets, long-behold Pete Carroll got a shot as Head Coach for the Jets.  Unfortunately, it was only a one-season gig as their HC, and his next chance didn’t come until three years later when the New England Patriots hired him to fill their HC role where he lasted from (1997-1999).  Two failed attempts as an NFL HC led coach Carroll back to the NCAA to become USC Trojans Head Coach from (2001-2009).

        Pete Carroll spent a total of thirty-six years coaching for eleven different programs.  Along his way to finding long-term success with one organization, coach Carroll had spent many years serving six college teams and five NFL teams before becoming a mainstay with the Seattle Seahawks.  While coaching for Seattle, Pete Carroll enjoyed a successful tenure of fourteen years from (2010-2023).  Carroll was quite triumphant while accomplishing a few huge milestones for this team and organization over his longevity in Seattle.  In his first year as Seattle’s head coach the Seahawks won the NFC West; in doing so, they became the only team in NFL history to win their division with a record of 7-9.  On top of winning their division, they also beat the odds in a major way while upsetting the previous Super Bowl Champs (New Orleans Saints) 41-36 in the wild-card round of the playoffs.  Year three (2012) marked Pete Carroll’s biggest achievement yet as the Seahawks head coach when he led them to an 11-5 record while also going undefeated at home. 

 

SEATTLE’S SUPER BOWLS; LEGION OF BOOM:

The following season the Seahawks tied their franchise's best all-time regular season record 13-3, while making it to the pinnacle of the sport.  Seattle’s dominant defense, Legion of Boom (LOB) brought them to a place that Seattle had never seen before, the Super Bowl.  They met the Peyton Manning-led Denver Broncos, who had the number one offense in the NFL in 2013 and had also broken several records that season: leaguewide and franchise records.  Seattle ended up doing the unthinkable and upset the Denver Broncos and eventual Hall of Famer Peyton Manning in not only beating the NFL’s number one offense but routing them 43-8.

After Pete Carroll brought the Seahawks their very first Lombardi Trophy it was obvious that the whole city of Seattle believed in this team and was completely locked in.  However, it seemed like their success was only getting ready to grow.  Carroll and Seattle’s defensive coordinator Dan Quinn had one of the best defenses of all time with the Legion of Boom (LOB).  This group of monstrous supremacy was led by cornerback, Richard Sherman and safeties Earl Thomas & Cam Chancellor.  The Seahawks' next season was almost as fruitful as their previous one as they wound up finding themselves at the pinnacle of the sport for the second consecutive season.  Though, unfortunately for them, the outcome was much different this time around as they ran into Bill Belichick and Tom Brady’s dynasty, the New England Patriots.  To coach Carroll’s displeasure his former team, the New England Patriots proved that they weren’t yet done with their preeminence and Carroll’s team suffered defeat in Super Bowl XLIX.  Still, to this day, there are whispers both in the NFL and in the streets of football fans everywhere about how that game ended and that maybe if Seattle had only elected to hand the ball off to their running back (Marshawn Lynch) they would have ended up winning their second straight Super Bowl.  Instead, they chose to pass the ball from the one-yard line as we watched Russell Wilson throw it into the hands of the Patriots cornerback, Malcolm Butler.

       

CURRENT SEATTLE SEAHAWKS:

        The 2024 NFL season is now just four weeks away from the regular season-ending.  As for Seattle, they have had some ups and some downs, starting the season 3-0 but then started to unravel through the course of the season.  Seattle has now won four in a row and looks primed for a playoff run with new head coach Mike Macdonald.  Mike is best known for his awesome defensive-minded style and was the Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator last season.  Mike isn’t the only new coach in Seattle as they also replaced their defense and offense coordinators when they hired Ryan Grubb as their OC, who spent the last two seasons as the Washington Commanders' OC and quarterback coach.  On the defensive side, Seattle brought in Aden Durde.  Coach Durde served as the Dallas Cowboys defensive line coach for the past three seasons.  Before their recent win streak started, the upside of this season for Seattle had been within their first three weeks of the season when they beat the Broncos (26-20) in a comeback win at home, followed by a meeting with the New England Patriots when they outlasted the Pats on the road in O.T (23-20).  Week three was a complete routing of a subpar Miami Dolphins team without their star QB Tua Tagovailoa (24-3).  Then things certainly started to take a turn for the Seahawks as the Detroit Lions proved to be a little too much for Seattle in a (42-29) loss on Monday Night football.  Then in weeks five and six Seattle dropped two straight games at home to a bad New York Giants team (29-20) and the Seahawks' NFC West divisional opponents, the San Francisco Forty Niners (36-24).

        Seattle is now up one game in the NFC West over the Los Angeles Rams.  However, they still have some work to do before we can write them into the postseason.  They have one of the most difficult schedules left of any NFL team.  Seahawks will be playing two of the top NFC teams in the next two weeks with back-to-back NFC North opponents.  The only good you can make of this schedule is that they will be playing host to both Green Bay and Minnesota.  After that, they must face a tough defensive team that just terminated their head coach, the Chicago Bears.  When all that is said and done they will take a trip to L.A. in week 18 when they will duke it out with their division rivals, the Rams.  The Rams just came off a win and could stay hot now that they are healthy once again.  I also wouldn't completely count the Cardinals out, but Seattle will have to lose three of their last four games for the Cards to catch them at this point (Seattle swept Arizona).  Mike Macdonald's team is in a good place right now, I didn't see them winning this division coming into the year.  I still have less faith in them than the Rams or Cardinals but they do have the lead as of right now.

        The Seahawks’ offense is currently ranked 13th in the NFL in total yards per game (344.4), they are actually third-best in the NFC West in that statistic.  They are also ranked 15th in points per game (23.2).  Their passing offense is 3rd in the league with 249 yards per game thanks to the NFL’s 2nd best quarterback in total passing yards Geno Smith (3,474 yards).  Second-year wideout Jaxson Smith-Njigba is surely coming along well as he is currently tied for 9th in receptions with 75 and also ranks 6th in receiving yards (911 yards).  Defensively they have dramatically dropped in almost every category since the start of the season, however, they still pose the tenth-best pass defense, allowing 212.5 yards per game.  Just remember that they have a first-year head coach, they’ve been battling injuries to numerous starters on their defense, and they have beaten most of the teams that have looked weaker than them.  The exception comes with the loss to the Giants who've been very bad so far this year.  However, it is not how you start the season, but how you finish that matters most.  One last note is their O-line play, it has been a little better as of recently, though that is one thing to watch for with these next couple of games coming against good defensive units.  Particularly when they host the Minnesota Vikings with Brain Flores dialing up more blitzes than any other DC this season. 

NEW YORK, NEW YORK; BIG BLUE EDITION

 

            I will do my best to keep this one short and sweet as there isn’t very much for me to say about a franchise that has been in dismay for the past couple of seasons.  I know that the fans of Big Blue would have my head if I did not mention that the New York Giants did make the Playoffs just two seasons ago, but that is already starting to feel like a lifetime ago.  This past offseason the Giants team was dismantled, well maybe that is going a little too far, but then again, they did lose quite possibly the best offensive player that they’ve had in recent memory and maybe since I’ve been alive.  That’s right, that is just how good the Giants’ now ex-running back Saquon Barkley had been for New York.  Don’t get me wrong here, I know that this is the same team that once had tight end Jeremy Shockey, wideouts Amani Toomer, Victor Cruz, Hakeem Nicks, Plexico Burress, and of course Super Bowl hero David Tyree.  The running backs that these G-men have had over the years were also pretty good like Brandon Jacobs, Ahmad Bradshaw, and eventual Hall of Famer Tikki Barber.  Over the last two seasons, Barkley had accounted for roughly 70-80% of the Giants' offense and is already the first or second option on his new team, the Giants division rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles.

            The G-men have already gotten off to an unfavorable start this season with a 2-4 record and I don’t see them turning it around anytime soon.  They opened the season in the worst possible way, taking an absolute beating at home from the Minnesota Vikings 28-6.  They also lost two divisional games to both the Washington Commanders in a close 21-18 game and of course, losing another closely contested game to the Dallas Cowboys in primetime 20-15.  These Giants did manage to beat a better Seahawks team on the road, one where they were without their superstar rookie receiver, Malik Nabers in a 29-20 upset.  This past Sunday night we all witnessed the Giants drop another primetime matchup when the Cincinnati Bengals and all-star quarterback Joe Burrow came to town.  It was a bittersweet loss because Big Blue’s defense showed up, holding two of the league's top wideouts to under one hundred yards each, but their offense was terrible.  Cincy held the Giants to 190 passing yards and only 4.2 yards per play, they only allowed NY to score seven points total (NYG missed a FG).  Not only that, but the NYG were somehow only able to convert 5/15 third downs and ran over 70 offensive plays (74 total plays).  The Giants need to do something quick to turn their awful play around, I mean they were only penalized just twice in that game for only 9 yards and led the game in time of possession (34:07).  That would normally be a recipe for success but not for this team.  New York also found themselves only punting the ball four times, which would make you think that they led their team to a lot of scoring drives, on the contrary, they just elected to go for it on fourth down five different times in the game and a surprising twist had them converting on three of those attempts.  Three scoreless quarters with seven points in the third quarter is terrible, especially against a defense that ranks 23^rd in yards allowed per game (356) and 26^th in points allowed per game (25.3).

            On the other side of the ball, the Giants have been decent thus far.  Through the first six weeks of the season, New York’s defense is holding opponents to 314 yards per contest, which ranks tenth in the league.  They rank fifteenth in rush defense allowing 116.3 yards a game, twelfth in pass defense, giving up 197.7 yards through the air, and are only letting teams score 20.2 points per game, ranking ninth in that category.  It’s largely noticeable that their offense is holding them back from any success as of right now.  You need to score points in the NFL to have a chance to win games and right now they are only putting up 16 points per game (29th).  The Giants are 20^th in the league in total offense with 319.3 yards per game, their passing attack is 18^th with 213.5 yards per game, and the run game is pushing them to just over 100 yards per game on the ground (105.8) which ranks 24^th in that statistic.

            On the bright side, the Giants could be getting their number one draft pick back in their lineup for their week seven inter-divisional game against the Philadelphia Eagles.  The G-men have been without their rookie wideout Malik Nabers for the past two weeks now, due to a concussion he sustained in the Thursday night matchup against the Cowboys in week four.  The Giants are a bit banged up right now and have hopes that they will be able to get their starting running Devin Singletary back from a groin injury soon that he also sustained in week four.  New York is anticipating that their kicker Graham Gano will be back sooner rather than later from his hamstring injury.  Though for their O-line it seems like they may have lost their starting left tackle, Andrew Thomas.  It was reported earlier today that Andrew Thomas is exploring season-ending surgery for a foot injury he experienced this past week against the Bengals.  I like the Giants coach Brian Daboll and think that Big Blue’s head coach is doing everything he can to right the ship, but I also feel that it is ultimately too much for him and this team to overcome this season.  This NFC East is one of the toughest divisions in all of football, with everything that has been happening In East Rutherford, New Jersey I don’t expect Daboll to go anywhere anytime soon.  With the emergence of Washington’s rookie quarterback, this is starting to seem more and more like a three-team division in the short term, though these G-men do have some interesting pieces that could put them right back into the mix next season.

LOS ANGELES HASN'T LOST ITS CHARGE

 CHARGERS HISTORY:

        Welcome to Los Angeles, the city big enough to carry two NFL franchises, the Rams and the Chargers.  The Chargers were initially established in the city of Los Angeles back in 1960.  Upon their entrance to the city of Angels, the franchise got off to a hot start in the AFL with the Chargers winning ten-plus games in both their first two seasons in the league while making it to back-to-back AFL Championship Games.  The outcome wasn’t what they had hoped for as they had lost both years to the same Houston Oilers team.  Originally the Chargers started their franchise in Los Angeles but the following year the Chargers were forced to move to San Diego due to the team’s competition in La La Land with the Los Angeles Rams who had already set up shop in L.A. fourteen years before the Chargers arrival.  The Chargers were a regularity in AFL Championship Games early in their franchise history, appearing in five within their first six seasons.  They ended up going 1-4 during that Championship run and wouldn’t appear in any others nor would they make the playoffs for the next fourteen seasons.

        Since the Chargers have been in the NFL, they haven’t yet tasted true success other than that one AFL Championship win in 1963.  The Chargers have only made it to the Super Bowl once in 1995, though they wound up losing to the San Francisco 49ers.  They also haven’t had a Head Coach that has lasted longer than six seasons since Don Coryell (San Diego HC 1978-1985).  In fact, the Chargers only ever had two Head Coaches last at least seven seasons in franchise history (Don Coryell & Sid Gillman 1960-1971).  Long-time Chargers coach Sid Gillman had a lengthy decorated tenure as he led them for 11 seasons.  Gillman is the winningest Head Coach the Chargers have ever had and possesses a record of 85-53-6.  Coach Gillman had left the team and his coaching duties nine games into the 1969 season because of a hiatal hernia before coming back to coach them for the first ten games of the 1971 season.

 

LOS ANGELES CHARGERS PART II:

        After such a long history of San Diego being the home of the Chargers, the team decided to give The Big Orange another go at hosting their NFL franchise.  In 2017 the Chargers decided to pack up and move the organization about two hours north (123 mi) up I-5 N to head back to where the team was originally founded.  Upon moving back to L.A. they haven’t been a great team, only registering two playoff appearances in the past seven years.  Before this season the Chargers have only had two head coaches since their move back.  Now with this year's new GM Joe Hortiz, along with first-year head coach Jim Harbaugh it sure appears that this team will be heading towards a brighter future.  Los Angeles came into this season seeking a playoff run as the Chargers are two years removed from their last one.  No doubt he has done a great job so far, giving life to their run game while also getting this defense back on track.  They currently are sitting in sixth place in the AFC, while having the best-scoring defense in the league.  

 

        The Chargers Defensive Coordinator Jesse Minter, who also served as Head Coach Jim Harbaugh’s DC last season in Michigan has the Chargers defense ranking in the top ten for just about every defensive statistic.  The Charger’s General Manager did a good job in the offseason making some savvy moves, inking some very good veterans to deals.  They completely bolstered their running back room by signing both Ravens' previous running backs Gus Edwards and the explosive but often injured runner J.K Dobbins (who led the league in yards per carry for a handful of weeks early on this season).  That move came after Harbaugh decided to go out and hire Greg Roman who spent four years with Dobbins and Edwards in Baltimore under Jim’s brother John Harbaugh.  They also made sure they got one of the top backups at the quarterback position for insurance in case Herbert went down, which proved to be helpful as he was banged up in pre-season, dealing with foot/ankle injuries, he also had to leave the field in multiple games this year missing a few snaps here and there.  Another big move by the Chargers was signing the great veteran O-lineman guard Bradley Bozeman.  It’s almost as if John Harbaugh sent a gift basket of talent to celebrate Jim’s return to the NFL as Bozeman also played for Baltimore his first four years in the league before signing with Carolina for two years.

 

        Harbaugh was instantly given the keys to LA among inking his name on the dotted line when he took this Head Coaching job.  It should come as no surprise that he probably had a lot of say in who the team would be drafting.  The first thing the Chargers did was draft the overall best offensive lineman in the 2024 NFL Draft (LT Joe Alt).  Then they figured it only made sense to go out and try to address their lack of weapons on the outside after moving on from both Keenan Allen and Mike Williams.  Now the Chargers got themselves two young studs to add to their receiver corps that will hopefully grow into stars soon.  Ladd McConkey (already their best offensive weapon) out of Georgia and Hall of Famer Jerry Rice’s son Brenden Rice who was drafted to L.A by way of USC.  The Chargers also found themselves adding depth to their defensive backs as well as their front seven through the draft. 

 

        If the Chargers indeed make the playoffs this year, I will not be surprised.  Herbert needs to stay healthy and they need to get their ground-and-pound game back on track.  Early on they were ranked 11^th in rushing offense through the first four weeks of the season.  Dobbins is out with another injury and they've faltered to 19th on the ground.  Their air attack has looked better recently and they've also been putting more points on the board, but they do rank 25th in passing and 20th in scoring.  The Chargers' defense has kept them in a bunch of games this season they had almost no shot of winning like earlier this year against KC when they could’ve possibly upset the Chiefs at home, but to no avail as they fell to the Champs 17-10.  Then last week against the Falcons terrible defense that they only scored one touchdown by way of a pick-six.  However, I will not count Sunday Night against the Chargers for the fact their top receiver rookie Ladd McConkey along with Dobbins were hurt, plus Herbert had to leave the game for a few snaps.  The Chargers are still holding off the Broncos for the 6th seed, while also having a two-game lead over the likes of the Dolphins, Colts, plus they also own a tie-breaker over the Bengals.  They should be able to make it into the postseason with only two tough games ahead when they take on the Buccaneers and the Broncos in the next two weeks (at home), the last two games are both road matches against two weaker teams (Patriots & Raiders).