NFL Week 9 Review

In a week that saw three games go to overtime, it seemed like every game this week was either closely contested or a complete blowout. 

Tennessee got a week off at just the right time, allowing them some additional practices to incorporate Randy Moss into their offense.  So far it doesn't seem like he's caused an issue with his new team yet, but give it time.  Randy will be Randy. 

Denver, St. Louis, San Francisco, Washington and Jacksonville were the other teams resting this week.

• The game started out ugly for the Patriots and they never recovered.  Thanks to a muffed kick-off return on what should have been their first possession of the game, the Patriots found themselves down 10-0 just under 4 minutes into the game. 
• The Patriots talked all week about how they wouldn't let this become a trap game.  They realized they were on the road, Cleveland was coming off a Bye week to prepare for them and in their previous game they had beaten the defending Super Bowl Champion Saints.  They may have said all the right things, but on Sunday they sure looked like a team that was not ready to play.  They fell into the trap even when they saw it coming.
• The Pats have been decent at stopping the run, but this week they seemed completely uninterested in tackling.  Payton Hillis took advantage by steamrolling for 184 yards on the ground, plus another 36 through the air.  If you're not from Cleveland and don't play fantasy football then you probably haven't heard of him.  Get to know him, he's legit.  Despite his large frame, the guy is fairly fast and agile.  If he can't run around you then he'll just run through you.
• Is Josh McDaniels like the David Khan of the NFL?  He traded away Hillis for Brady Quinn last year.  Not sure if Quinn is even still in the league, while Hillis could be on his way to the Pro Bowl.  Then Denver trades a 4th round pick for Laurence Maroney, who rarely plays for them.  If you are a team that wants to dump a bad contract and get something of good value in return, look no further than Denver!
• How often do you ever get to see a rookie QB outplay a former MVP 3 time Super Bowl Champ?  Brady may have ended up with more yardage and TDs, but Colt McCoy looked better.  Brady was off on several throws. 
• It didn't help that his rookie Tight Ends kept dropping passes either.  Gronkowski had two drops in a row that killed a drive early in the game, which seemed to foreshadow how the rest of the game would play out.  He was also responsible for the early turnover that put them in a big hole to begin with, as he was the one to call for a fair catch on the kick return, which confused Sammy Morris into not attempting to recover the ball until it was too late.
• Maybe Tampa Bay coach Raheem Morris' claim that his Bucs were the best team in the NFC wasn't entirely true.  However, they did manage to put up a pretty good fight against a good Atlanta team (which might be the best NFC team) on the road.  They dropped to 5-3 and their schedule gets tougher the rest of the way, meaning they are unlikely to look like contenders by the end of the season.  But they have shown great improvement and could contend within the next couple of years.
• One of the biggest issues for the Bucs is stopping the run, and Michael Turner made sure to point that out by rushing for 107 yards and 2 TDs.
• Roddy White left in the first half with an apparent knee injury, but he returned in the second half and appears to be ok.  Atlanta better hope so, as White has established himself as one of the best WRs in the league.  Losing him would be a huge blow to their playoff hopes.
• The Bill still can't catch a break.  They didn't lose in overtime again this week, but it was another close one that wasn't decided until the 4th quarter.  When you play the Bears you expect Jay Cutler to turn the ball over a couple times to give you a chance, but he shockingly did not throw an interception.  He did fumble once on the only play of the game where he was sacked.
• Steve Johnson failed to record a TD for the first time since week 2, but the Bills can't complain about his 11 catch 145 yard performance.  He may win the Miles Austin award for off the radar guy that explodes with a breakout season and becomes an elite guy.  Now just imagine what he could do with a better QB.
• A rough day for the AFC East was salvaged when the Jets pulled out a win in Detroit.  Then again, it shouldn't take a last minute drive plus overtime to beat the Lions, but that's just the way it is in this wacky NFL season.
• That 4th quarter drive to tie the game was basically handed to them by a dumb Personal Foul penalty that gave them most of the yards they needed to get into FG range.  You can't make emotional mistakes like that late in a game.  This is why Detroit is the worst team in football over the past few years.
• Matthew Stafford looked good against a very good Jets defense, but left the game after re-injuring his shoulder.  He might be out for the season.  Tough blow for Detroit.  As talented as he projects to be, it's tough to build around a guy that can't stay on the field.
• The Vikings may have saved their playoff hopes, and their coach's job, with a miracle comeback victory over Arizona.  Brett Favre threw for a career high 446 yards and connected on a game tying TD with Visanthe Shiancoe with under 30 seconds remaining in the 4th quarter.
• They can celebrate their victory all they want, but looking back at the game they'll realize how awful they looked for over three quarters of this game.  They trailed by two scores late in the 4th quarter until Favre seemed to take over the play calling himself to lead the team back. 
• After the game some of the players were asked if they fought hard for this win to help Coach Brad Childress retain his job.  They replied that they won the game for themselves, not for their coach's job security.  This doesn't seem like a team that cares if Childress stays.  The fans clearly want him gone, as they showed earlier in the game by chanting for the team to fire Childress and waving signs saying "Fire Chilly."
• Count Percy Harvin amongst the players that probably wouldn't mind seeing Chilly gone.  Harvin and his coach reportedly had to be separated by teammates earlier in the week over an argument regarding Harvin's ankle injury.  Earlier reports stated Childress questioned Harvin's effort in practice.  Both of them are now claiming the argument was started when Childress asked Harvin to get an MRI on his ankle, but that explanation sounds a little fishy.
• Now that Randy Moss is gone, it's down to a two horse race between Favre and Childress as to who can create the most drama.  This week it looks like Childress has inched closer to the lead.  He's also easier to get rid of before the season ends.
• As if the Panthers didn't have enough trouble moving the ball on offense, now they've been attacked by the injury imp.  DeAngelo Williams was inactive again for the game, but then they lost backup Jonathan Stewart early in the game to a concussion.  Then QB Matt Moore went down with an injury.  As far as I have heard, Jimmy Clausen didn't leave with an injury, he was just pulled for being terrible.  Some rookie named Tony Pike replaced him, getting his first action of his career.  To no surprise, he did nothing to create optimism for the team's future success this season.  Good luck Carolina!
• Pierre Thomas and Reggie Bush continue to miss games, despite rumors of their impending return.  The Saints continue to send out guys they found on the scrap heaps.  This time it was Julius Jones picking up the slack, with 68 yards on only 6 carries.
• Miami made it interesting in the first half, but Baltimore took control in the 2nd half when their defense prevented the Dolphins from scoring.
• Ronnie Brown finally played well (9 carries, 59 yards and a TD), looking good in the first half.  Then Miami abandoned the running game, despite the fact that they weren't down by that much until the end of the 4th quarter and couldn't get much going with their passing game.  Ricky Williams contributed nothing (2 carries, 1 yard) after looking like the better RB for most of the season.
• Chad Henne is not a good enough QB to carry a one dimensional offense.  Despite having a weapon like Brandon Marshall at his disposal, he was very underwhelming.  His three turnovers didn't help either.
• Ray Rice had a huge day. He only rushed for 83 yards, but added 7 catches for 97 yards.  He was easily the biggest weapon for the Ravens attack, as nobody else contributed more than 4 catches.
• Frustrating day for Matt Schaub and the Texans.  A booth review overturned what should have been a TD reception for Arian Foster.  Another example to add to the controversy of what should be considered a catch, which has been debated all year.  This is similar to the Calvin Johnson play from earlier this year that cost the Lions a win against Chicago.  The NFL needs to step in and re-evaluate the rule.  By the letter of the law maybe it wasn't a catch, but from watching the play, common sense says it should have been.  Once again a team loses a game because of confusion over a vague rule.
• Philip Rivers is just short of 3,000 yards for the season and they are only 9 games in.  He's on pace for a ridiculous 5,233 yards!  Dan Marino's record of 5,084 yards in a season may be in jeopardy.
• Even more surprising is that he's putting up historic numbers on a bad team.  Despite a win this week, the Chargers are still 4-5.  You can argue that being behind all the time (plus the fact that they have no running game) forces the Chargers to throw all the time, which has contributed to his record pace.  It should also be noted that he is doing this despite his two top WRs and Antoinio Gates all missing time with injuries.  Plus, Vincent Jackson has yet to play due to his holdout (which could end later this month).  You know you're a good QB when you can make someone named Seyi Ajirotutu look like a star.  I wish I could pronounce his name, cause it looks really fun to say!
• Ryan Mathews injured his ankle for like the 10th time this season.  Maybe they should let him sit out a few weeks to let it heal, rather than limit him in practice all week and blame that on the reason he's failed to live up to expectations.
• The Giants showed why the NFL needs a mercy rule.  Is it possible to be accused of running up the score in the first half?  The Giants led 35-0 at the half, and while they seemed to let up a little in the second half, the Seahawks never had any chance of coming back.  Hey, at least they finally scored in the 4th quarter, while preventing NY from scoring.  So there is progress!
• Charlie Whitehurst made his first start, throwing for 113 yards, 1 TD and 2 Interceptions.  Hurry back Matt Hasselbeck!
• It's truly a sad state of affairs when a team has to wish for their washed up struggling QB to come back from an injury.
• The RBs for the Giants seemed almost the reverse of their typical production.  Bradshaw still got the majority of the carries (19-11), but only managed 3 yards per carry.  Meanwhile, Brandon Jacobs averaged over 7 yards per carry.  Bradshaw also scored on two short TDs, which is usually Jacobs' role. 
• When's the last time an Oakland vs KC game meant anything this late in the season?  Oakland won in OT, to pull themselves into a tie for first place in the division.  Well, in the win column anyway. They still have one more loss than KC due to not having had their Bye week yet, so they've played more games.  But still, who would have thought these two long struggling teams would be fighting for first place? 
• The Chargers are only 1 game back in the win column, so if they have their usual 2nd half surge then they could make this an intriguing three team race.
• The Denver Broncos won't be part of that race.  They still suck.
• What happened to the KC running game?   They entered the week as the top rushing team in the league, going up against one of the worst run defenses in the league.  Thomas Jones should have been able to plow through them with ease, but he managed under 2 yards per carry.  Jamaal Charles was better, but was limited to only 10 carries (why??).  They at least got him involved in the passing game, but if they are looking for a reason why they let this one get away they can blame the fact that they couldn't grind more time off the clock with their running game
• I don't know who this Jacoby Ford guy is, but apparently he's really fast.  He scored on a 94 yard kick return, and also made some spectacular highlight catches.
• When is the last time you saw Payton Manning down by 2 points with under a minute left and all his timeout remaining... not win the game?  The Eagles stuck a knife in the Colts to clinch the game when Asante Samuel intercepted Manning on the last real play of the day. 
• In the comical aftermath of the interception, Samuel ran around for nearly 10 seconds trying to waste more time off the clock before he eventually fell to the ground to allow the play to end.  The Eagles knelt down on the last play of the game to end it.  So there really was no need for Samuel to have tried to run more time off the clock when one kneel down would have ended it anyway.  He risked costing his team the game if Indy had managed to strip the ball away from him.  He thought he was being clever, but he's lucky it didn't backfire.
• DeSean Jackson and Mike Vick didn't waste much time showing they have recovered from their injuries.  It took less than 2 minutes of the game for them to connect on a TD.
• You have to feel sympathetic for Austin Collie.  He just returned from an injury, only to be carted off the field after a vicious helmet hit.  He must have been knocked out for a bit, but TV cameras did show him slightly moving his limbs while he lay on the field.  Let's hope he's ok.
• I hate to pick apart a play where a player may have been seriously injured... but that play should not have been ruled an incompletion.  Collie caught the ball, turned up field and took a couple steps before contact was made.  It should have been ruled a catch and a fumble.  A penalty for a hit to the head is legit, but that's not even the penalty they called.  The ref called the penalty for hitting a defenseless receiver, but Collie caught the ball, he wasn't defenseless!
• After the Cowboys were crushed by the Packers, Owner Jerry Jones vented to the media, claiming that there will be consequences for this disastrous start.  Jones never makes coaching changes mid-season, but this season seems pretty much over already.  Wade Phillips can't feel too comfortable with his job security right now.
• Note: the Cowboys fired Phillips Monday afternoon.
• Green Bay scored 4 offensive TDs in a span of about 12 minutes in the 2nd quarter.  Some teams don't even get that many possessions in one quarter!
• Dez Bryant caught another TD pass to give him 4 on the season - 3 of which have come with Kitna as QB.  So at least those two have developed a rapport for the few times Dallas gets near the redzone.
• The Steelers seemed to have their Monday Night game well in hand through most of the game, but their defense started slacking a bit in the 4th quarter when they allowed the Bengals to score 2 TDs to close their deficit to a one score game with plenty of time left.  The Bengals marched down the field on their final possession, getting all the way to the 12 yard line before finally stopping them.  They'll take the win, but they are clearly the superior team and would have liked if that game hadn't become as close as it ended up being.
• After a 10 catch, 141 yards, 2 TD performance is it a stretch to say that T.O. has been one of the best WRs in the league this year?  Count me amongst the people that thought he only went to Cincinnati to goof around and do reality shows with OchoCinco and never actually saw him performing at an elite level again.  I stand corrected... so far.  It's still early enough that you can't count out one of his infamous meltdowns from derailing his season.  On the bright side, it's too late for him to derail the team, as they are already so far off the tracks.
• Who says a kicker's job is easy?  Injuries to Kickers this week forced some teams to make unusual decisions on the fly. 
• Lions Rookie DT Ndamukong Suh missed a PAT attempt that cost his team a point.  The game ended up going to OT, so you could make the case that with a healthy kicker (who makes a PAT 99% of the time) Detroit wins that game.
• Wes Welker barely converted a wobbly PAT for the Patriots in the 4th quarter of their loss to the Browns.  He also had a pretty poor kick-off that gave Cleveland the ball with great field position for their game clinching drive.
• Every division in the AFC has two teams tied in the win column for the division lead.
• AFC East - Jets and Patriots (6 wins)
• AFC North - Steelers and Ravens (6 wins)
• AFC South - Titans and Colts (5 wins)
• AFC West - Chiefs and Raiders (5 wins)
• The AFC South is the most competitive division, with last place Jacksonville (4-4) only 1 game out of first place.
• Buffalo may have the worst record at 0-8, but there are other teams that are worse than they are.  The Cowboys are more talented, but clearly more dysfunctional.  The Panthers are the league's most pathetic looking team so far.