Week 9 Wrapup

This week in the NFL was a proving ground for all those teams on the bubble of making the playoffs; those teams that have the potential to make the playoffs but aren't guaranteed to make it. Oakland's playoff chances continue to dwindle as they got upset by Tim Tebow and the Broncos with a 163 yard and 2 touchdown performance by Willis McGahee, the Ravens finally swept the Steelers in a season series with a 23-20 victory on Sunday night, and the Eagles continue to lose somehow after being beaten in the fourth quarter by Da Bears.

The highlight for this weekend though had to have been the replay of Super Bowl XLII through the Patriots vs. Giants game. An eerie similarity fell between the two games. Brady was under duress for most of the game, the Patriots didn't run the ball, a spectacular catch was made on the game winning drive, Eli won the game with little to no time left on a fade route. It's painful to recollect the game on which this matchup was based. The ruining of a perfect season never goes down well. I'll dive real deep into this game in another article this week and share my terrible thoughts.

So now onto what I took from this week's games:

1) Who You Calling a N00B
Is it just me or is it that the younger a player is and the less experience a player has equates to the crazier stats they put up and more impressive plays they flash. Demarco Murray, Cam Newton, Andy Dalton, Julio Jones, Tim Tebow (not a rookie but a first time starter), and Matt Stafford (again not a rookie but has yet to play a full season) are all becoming household names for their respective teams. Then, players like Roy Helu, Shonn Greene, Victor Cruz (reppin ZooMass boi), and John Skelton say hey we want to join this party. I'm also going to delve deeper into the topic of rookies in another article this week but man were they all impressive this week. Andy Dalton continues to put wins on the board for the Cincinnati Bengals (6-2!) and Demarco Murray has put up 466 yards in the past 3 games for the Cowboys after a 139 yard showing in Seattle this week.

The most impressive had to have been Julio Jones of the Atlanta Falcons though. This was the reason Atlanta traded so many draft picks for this rookie. He is a big play threat at all times. Long receiver, good speed, great vertical, and soft hands make him a constant threat, and he proved that threat to be a reality after catching 4 passes for 131 yards and 2 touchdowns to output a yards per catch of 43.7.

2) Are The Cheeseheads About To Go Unbeaten?
Face it. Aaron Rogers looks pretty unstoppable. The Packers have picked up right where they have left off from last season after winning the Super Bowl and sit at 8-0, the only team without a loss in the league. The Packers had a great game against the team that I cheer for with Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Chargers. It was a shootout from start to finish and the typical San Diego Chargers errors lost them the game (Rivers had 3 interceptions). Rogers put up his typical superhuman stats; 21 for 26 (80.8% completion rate) for 247 yards and 4 touchdowns, all while targeting 7 receivers throughout the game; and continues to watch his QB Rating rise.

The remainder of Green Bay's schedule is winnable. With teams like the Vikings, the struggling Raiders, and Tampa Bay in their near future the Packers have a shot at that 16-0 mark reached by the Patriots in 2008. My feeling is though that eventually there will be a loss for this team. The probability of an undefeated team is staggeringly low. Regardless of going undefeated or not through this season they have a good shot at a repeat as Super Bowl champions.

3) AFC East Shakeup
There are 4 teams in the AFC East, the Patriots, Jets, Dolphins, and Bills. 3 of those 4 teams currently have a record of 5-3 (Pats, Jets, Bills). Here is how everything plays out at this point within the division:

The Jets have beaten the Dolphins and the Bills but have lost to the Patriots

The Patriots have beaten the Jets and the Dolphins but have lost to the Bills

The Bills have beaten the Patriots but have lost to the Jets

Technically that leaves the Patriots still in first place of the division because they have less losses to AFC teams over all than the Jets (Patriots are 4-2 in the conference while the Jets are 4-3). This coming week, the Patriots get a rematch against the Jets who are currently on a three-game win streak. I'll talk more about this upcoming game in my Patriots article later this week (I also need time to think about game factors).

The AFC East game that did catch my attention though was the Bills vs. Jets game. This was much more what I was used to seeing. Buffalo struggling to move the ball downfield, the Jets controlling the clock and tempo of the game, Jets defense being stingy and not allowing big plays, and the Bills lost. That's what I was used to before this season. The Bills need to get back on the track they were traveling on and fast. The AFC East is for any team to win. If the Bills want to be in the running for the top of the division or even for a wild card birth they need to get back to winning.

The only thing that is certain in this division is that the Dolphins got their first win of the season this past week against Kansas City. Matt Moore finally stepped up to the plate and threw for 3 touchdowns and 244 yards while keeping his team composed and in check. Brandon Marshall sure seemed happy about the win and he expressed it in his late game touchdown grab

4) I Might Have Been Right
I don't know if you read my post from last week but I did predict the Ravens to win the Super Bowl this year. Their game Sunday night was a clear step in the right direction. Finally for the first time in forever the Baltimore Ravens were able to sack up and sweep the Steelers in their season meetings (2 games a season). And they did it the right way; with defense.

Flacco threw for 300 yards and a touchdown which are now seemingly average numbers for quarterbacks this season. Fits right in seeing as how Flacco is a mediocre quarterback. Ray Rice had a tough go against the always hard Pittsburgh front 7 (ranked 10th in rushing defense), only putting up 43 yards and a touchdown. But these are all good things. This shows that the players are falling into their rolls. Flacco is commanding his team and controlling the game with smart decisions with a lackluster receiving squad. Rice gets done what is expected of him, about >75 yards per game and I'd say a touchdown every other game would be acceptable.

The defense is where the Ravens win their games though. When you have players like Ray Lewis, Haloti Ngata, and ball-hawking strong safety Ed Reed your defense is balanced. Then if you build off of that with players like Terrell Suggs and Bernard Pollard your defense is scary and can become the focus of a teams game preparation. This squad was able to hold the Pittsburgh offense to under 400 total yards with 289 of it coming through the air and forced two turnovers (fumble and interception). It did come down to the last quarter as Big Ben started charging the Steelers for a comeback but in the end the Ravens defense held out for the win.

Fun Stat of the Day:
The San Francisco 49ers have yet to let up a rushing touchdown this season. Wow.

Leave a comment below or find me on Twitter @iedlund or on Facebook and let me know what you think and if you have some suggestions/input/corrections/guitar solos.

The League

As soon as the NFL was unlocked you want to know what the first thought that crossed my mind was? Fantasy Football baby. Now don't get me wrong, I am still fairly new to the game (I've only been playing since '07ish) but when I'm in, I'm all in and want that title as league champion (which I was back to back my first two seasons). This year we decided to change things up a bit with a live draft a month before the first game of the season, have a 12 person league, and some deep rosters. A little risky but it's all we could manage for a time to get everyone together. 

A lot of people don't really understand how in-depth this type of game can get; all the angles to consider. You have to look at team schedules, past performances, projected stats, injury prone players, people coming back from season ending injuries; the list could go on forever. The biggest factor that I have found to consider is time. The lockout has only been over for around 2 weeks and players have been flying all over the map. These trades have crucial impact on individual players. The other time aspect to consider is time between end of lockout and week one. Training camps have taken a huge toll and whats taught to players normally is now crammed into a month's worth of work. Consider this; Donnovan McNabb was traded to the Minnesota Vikings very recently. Something that I would think about that would make a decision to draft him or not could be the timing between the offensive line and him. They have to get used to how a brand new quarterback calls plays, audibles, drops back, and the timing of his release. And they only have a month to do it; ontop of conditioning, individual workouts, and learning a playbook. That's how in depth fantasy football can get. I'm just beginning to realize that the people who are consistently good in multiple fantasy football leagues are pretty smart when it comes to sports. 

So this year I decided I need to really get into the pre-draft research because a live draft takes out a lot of insider resources, a.k.a. the internet and Adam Schefter, and separates the diehards from the wannabes. I've been reading magazines, doing mock drafts, analyzing picks and recognizing patterns, yet I still feel like I am completely hopeless. Why? Because there is a wildcard in every league. The one person that does the completely unexpected and just shits on your draft. Luckily I have a high draft pick so I have some guarantees. 

So I'll provide my readers with a little bit of insite from my brain with some sleepers, busts, top rookies, all that fun stuff. Hopefully it's useful.

NFL MVP: Adrian Peterson, RB, Vikings: The addition of McNabb and the loss of Sidney Rice makes A.P. the best option on every down for the Vikings. Expect McNabb to rely heavily on the veteran running back.

Return to Fantasy Prime: DeAngelo Williams, RB, Panthers: He has a lot to prove after only playing 6 games last season due to injury. With Cam Newton most likely the future of this franchise, I think Williams will want to add his two cents and help get the team off the ground.

Biggest Bust: Peyton Hillis, RB, Browns: So did anyone know who Peyton Hillis was before last season? I know I didn't. The Browns do not have a strong offense and now that opposing defenses know what he is capable of he will become their primary target.

Top Rookie: Daniel Thomas, RB, Dolphins: Ronnie Brown is gone. Ricky Williams smokes a bunch of weed. That leaves a lot of work for Thomas to do and expect him to carry that load well.

Sleeper 1: Danny Woodhead, RB, Patriots: Woodhead solidified a spot amongst the tandem of Patriots running backs with his breakout season last year. He's small, quick on his feet, and strong enough to break a few tackles. 

Sleeper 2: Lee Evans, WR, Bills: You probably know him most for his wide open, game-winning, touchdown... dropped pass. He has a lot to prove still even though he is the first string wide receiver for the Bills.