Tagged As: NFL, Giants, Cowboys

New York Jet (7-3) 34 – New England (6-4) 31

It was a battle of upstarts with two surprising starters in a game for the AFC East lead. Matt Cassel thought he would be sitting behind a legend in the making, but instead through for 400 yards in a losing effort for the resilient Patriots. Brett Favre was supposed to be a retired legend, but instead came back and found a home in New York. He threw fro 258 yards and two touchdowns and helped lead the Jets to victory, while Jay Feely’s 34 yard field goal won the game in overtime.

Denver Broncos (6-4) 24 – Atlanta Falcons (6-4) 20

The Denver Broncos were able to pullout a victory besides a triage at running back and throughout the defense that left Denver with P.J. Pope, Tatum Bell, and Peyton Hillis as the running game and a linebacker core void of any of the season’s starters. The Falcons put up a fight, but the running game was not as lethal as many though it would be and Matt Ryan showed a bit too many rookie moments to pull out a victory. The Broncos were able to keep a comfortable distance in first place of the AFC West while the Falcons fell to third place in the NFC South despite a 6-4 record.

Philadelphia Eagles (5-4-1) 13 – Cincinnati Bengals (1-8-1) 13

The Eagles were the up coming team everybody was sure would at least give the Giants a run for their money. That was two weeks ago though. In the past two games, Philadelphia lost a heartbreaker to the New York Giants and tied the worst or second worse team in the league. This was the first tie in the NFL in six years and should have been a loss for the Eagles. Donovan McNabb threw three picks and fumbled. Only the Bengals’ own in ability to play a coherent professional football game gave the Eagles a chance for a tie.

Highlights from the game…

Green Bay Packers (5-5) 37 – Chicago Bears (5-5) 3

The loss to the Titans was excusable. The Bears put up a good fight and stopped the run and made the Titans beat them through the air. The loss to the Packers was inexcusable. This is not because of how the Packers played, but because the atrocious defense by Chicago. The Bears stopped the run-heavy Titans, but looked lost every time Ron Grant touched the ball. The Packers played great defense, leaving a slightly hobbling Kyle Orton no options. Aaron Rodgers did not have great stats, but made the big plays at the right times. Green Bay dominated with the ground game and held the ball for 37:28 minutes to the Bears 22:32. This game was great for Wisconsin, but soul crushing in Chicago.

First the Cubs, now the Bears…

Indianapolis Colts (6-4) 33 – Houston Texans (3-7) 27

An offensive explosion is hardly a surprise against the Texans, so the Colts win improves their record, but does make anybody believe in their team anymore. The fact that the Texans scored 27 points is not a huge negative either. Houston has been able to score all season long. Still, Peyton Manning is doing a good job of bring the Colts back from the brink of a losing season. Manning had 320 yards and two touchdowns. Joseph Addai had a good game as well, with 105 yards and a touchdown. Sage Rosenfels continues to solidify the injured Matt Schaub’s place a starter. Meanwhile, Steve Slaton continues to impress and push Ahmed Green down the depth chart. He ran for 156 yard and a touchdown with 11.1 yards per carry.

New Orleans Saints (5-5) 30 – Kansas City Chiefs (1-9) 20

Drew Brees continues to lead the best offense in the league. He only continued to excel with 266 passing yards and a touchdown in a season that projects him to finish with over 5,000 yards and nearly 30 touchdowns. Tyler Thigpen looks like the future with another solid effort that ended with 235 yards and a pair of touchdown passes to Dwayne Bowe. The Chiefs season is looking better for its glimpses of the future, while the Saints season is looking better with the Saints first road win of the season. The team will need a near perfect record and a lot of luck to make it to the playoffs this season, but New Orleans at least has its offense back on track.

New York Giants (9-1) 30 – Baltimore Ravens (6-4) 10

Eli Manning looked human behind the center, but the running game trampled the vaunted Ravens D with 207 yard between three backs. Brandon Jacobs could not be tackled with 6.6 yards a carry and two touchdowns and Ahmad Bradshaw and Derrick Ward took turns pushing the pile forward. The Ravens tried to pull out another surprise win, but this was the first real team they’ve played in six weeks and the Pop Warner experience did little to prepare them for a big boy team. Joe Flacco was the leading rusher with 57 yards as well as the starting quarterback. He took his rookie thumps with two picks and only 164 yards on short passes. The Giants put some distance between them and the rest of the NFC East and the Ravens lost a chance to remain tied for the lead in the AFC North.

Tampa Bay Bucs (7-3) 19 – Minnesota Vikings (5-5)

Jeff Garcia has continued to confound the experts around the NFL. How does a 38-year-old quarterback who made a career by being elusive in the pocket, scrambling, and making big plays survive. He threw fro 255 yards and no touchdowns, but was able to engineer long drives in the second half that limited the Vikings game plan to hand the game off to Adrian Peterson. Peterson gained over 70 yards in the first half, but finished with only 85 yards. He was not stopped at the line, but was simply kept on the sidelines as Garcia continued to excel in the ever-interesting Bucs offensive project. The loss for the Vikes puts them in a three way tie for first place in the NFC North, and the Bucs win keeps them within striking distance of the first place Panthers and another win closer to the playoffs.

Carolina Panthers (8-2) 31– Detroit Lions (0-10) 22

The Lions put together an impressive statistical game…at least for Detroit. Dante Culpepper looked more like an NFL quarterback with 207 passing yards and a touchdown, but his two picks reminded everyone that he is in just his second game back. Rookie running back Kevin Smith ran for 112 yards on 24 carries in a much overlooked season. The Panthers made the game look like a Friday Night Lights special with only 98 passing yards, but 264 yards rushing. Jonathan Stewart ran for 130 yards and a touchdown and DeAngelo Williams ran for 120 yards and two touchdowns. John Fox could not have been happy with the “close” score, but cannot be to upset with a fourth straight win that keeps them in first in the NFC South.

San Francisco 49ers (3-7) 35 – St. Louis Rams (2-8) 16

Coach Mike Singletary finally won his first game as head coach of the 49ers in a season that will most likely end with a search for a new head coach. Shaun Hill (whose throwing style reminds more a high school quarterback than an NFL starter) threw for 213 yards and two touchdowns on just 20 passes. Frank Gore ran for 105 yards and two touchdowns for another great performance. The Rams threw 53 times and only completed 34 passes for 295 yards. Marc Bulger managed to only put one pass in the end zone, while throwing two picks. Antonio Pittman averaged a very respectable 6.8 yards a carry for 95 yards. The Rams line looked pathetic as always, giving up four sacks to the 49ers.

Arizona Cardinals (7-3) 26 – Seattle Seahawks (2-8) 20

In a role reversal of seasons past, the Cardinals were one quarter from a blowout. Arizona was up 26-7 entering the fourth thanks to the stellar performance of Kurt Warner (395 yards, one touchdown) and a suffocating defense. Anquan Boldin (13 catches, 186 yards) and Larry Fitzgerald (10 catches, 151 yards) were too much for the Seahawks secondary. Matt Hasselbeck’s return to the starting lineup was marred by three picks and an ineffectual running game. The Cards are without a doubt going to win the NFC West and Seattle, without a doubt, has missed its window.

Tennessee Titans (10-0) 24 – Jacksonville Jaguars (4-6) 14

Jacksonville tried to outrun Tennessee and succeeded, but could not pullout a much needed victory against the still-perfect Titans. The Jaguars had 140 rushing yards to the Titans 114, but Kerry Collins put three balls in the end zone from the pocket as Tennessee remained the only perfect team left in the NFL. The Titans put pressure on Jacksonville’s David Garrard to keep him missing receivers (he only completed 13 of 30 passes) and on the ground (he was sacked four times). Maurice Jones-Drew continued his end zone spree with two more touchdowns. He has six in the last three games and is the primary running back inside the 20 for the Jaguars. Chris Johnson and LenDale White combined for a solid effort to balance the offensive attack for the Titans for their 10th win in a row.

Pittsburgh Steelers (7-3) 11 – San Diego Chargers (4-6) 10

It is hard to believe, but in 2008 there can still be a first in the NFL. The Steelers won the first game to end 11-10 in the 12,837 games that preceded it. Philip Rivers finished with a disappointing performance that ended with only 159 yards and two interceptions. LaDainlian Tomlinson had a lackluster game with 18 carries and 57 yards, but still managed to score a touchdown.

Ben Roethlisberger threw for 308 yards in a solid effort that made up for last week. That was more because he threw no picks as opposed to his touchdown total, which was also zero. Willie Parker scampered for 115 yards on 25 carries. The Steelers scored their 11 points on three Jeff Reed field goals and a safety in the second quarter after the ball was knocked loose in the end zone and Offensive Tackle Marcus Mcneill recovered the ball to save the defensive recovery, but give up the 2-pointer. After the game was over the referees admitted that a defensive touchdown that was nullified on the final play of the game. The Steelers would have like to have the score, but the win counted whether it was 11-10 or 18-10.

Dallas Cowboys (6-4) 14 – Washington Redskins (6-4) 10

The Dallas Cowboys celebrated Tony Romo’s return with a 14-10 win against their division foes. Romo’s performance was far from great (19/27, 1978 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 picks) and the rest of the Cowboys did not fair much better. Something happened in the second half though, and Dallas proved they could over adversity and win instead of just winning with bombs and blowouts. Marion Barber was one who can not be blamed for his performance. He ran for 114 yards on 24 carries and had a touchdown to close the fourth quarter. The Redskins could not get the passing game going (only 162 yards through the air) and did not run the ball much (Clinton Portis only had 15 carries). While Dallas found something, Washington lost something. The Redskins’ troubles started in Week 6 after losing to the Rams. They then beat the Browns and the Lions, but have lost the last two weeks to teams on the edge of falling apart (the Steelers and then the Cowboys). The Redskins need to find something to resuscitate a team that can no longer close the important games.

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