NFL Week 8

NFL Week 8

Matt Driffill

There were blowouts abound this week. And if it wasn’t a blow out, it was probably a Bills game which is comparable in boringness. 6 games were decided by 28 points or more. So I’d like to take this opportunity of unexciting NFL action and have an old fashioned random sports blurb moment.

--You may have heard about the World Series this week. Phil Ivey is looking to make a serious run at bringing the bracelet back to a pro. No no, I joke of course. We got the Yanks and the Phils in what is setup to be an awesome baseball series. The defending champs returning the WS and the MLB’s best (and most expensive) team going to their first championship since 2003 when they lost to the Marlins.

These two met in inter-league play earlier in the season and it produced two really exciting games (1 walk off for the Phils and another for the Yanks), and another less exciting game won by the Phillies. In that three game series Texiera hit over .400 with 2 HR and Brad Lidge blew two saves.

So (surprise), I like the Yankees in 6. I know it looks bad. Real bad. Yanks lost game 1 at home with their ace on the bump. But Pedro back in NY gives me good feelings and Pettitte’s now the all-time leader in post-season wins.

I told everybody I talked to that whoever won game 1 would decide it all. If it were the Yanks I said NY in 6. I said if PHI won that it would be them in 5. I’m going back on my word because I don’t want to believe the Yankees will lose. I won’t believe it!

Of course I’m partial and of course I think/hope the Yankees are going to win. But if there is an NL team to beat them it’s the Phillies. Great starters and a scary good lineup. Their bullpen is going to be what kills them in this series however. In any case it should be a really fun Fall Classic.

--Since I spend all my time getting yelled at by the Minnesota Vikings, I haven’t had any time to write about the MLB, or college football. In the meantime I forgot altogether about the NBA, and never put together a preview.

I won’t get into too many details, so I’ll just throw out a few predictions.

1. •I like the Cavs over the Lakers in the finals
2. •I like LeBron to win MVP in his contract year
3. •I like Vinny Del Negro to win Coach of the Year
4. •Despite Blake Griffin’s injury, I like him to come back and win Rookie of the Year
5. •My sleeper pick is the Knicks. They’ll be so pumped up for the offseason that the might play well

I’ll write a lot more about the NBA after the Super Bowl, much to your dismay I’m sure.

--There was an article on ESPN this week about how disappointing the college football season has been. While my favorite team is the AP and BCS #1 and Tebow is still the front-runner for the Heisman, I have to agree. How could it not be described as disappointing?

1) The Big 3 were supposed to challenge each other all year in a Heisman race for the ages. Instead Bradford’s been injured twice while McCoy and Tebow have done nothing to impress. It’s as if nobody wants to win the Heisman, not just out of them, but in the entire country. Eric Barry has a serious argument in how well Tennessee has played I think. This is certainly the type of year where a defensive player could take advantage of struggling stars.

2) There was supposed to be a dog fight (as much as their could be I suppose) in the Big 10 between Ohio St and Penn St. Instead both have premier quarterbacks that have disappointed, and both teams have suffered losses. And no offense to Iowa, I’m sure they have fans somewhere, but they’re boring. And more importantly, their uniforms aren’t as nice as the Buckeyes’ or Nittany Lions’ unis.

3) A lot of people figured this would be a down year for the mighty USC Trojans because they graduated so many players last year, but I didn’t think there was a chance that they wouldn’t run the table in the Pac-10. After three straight years of “Did they really lose to them?” games on the road in the Pac-10 I thought Pete Carroll would officially pay attention to his inferior conference opponents. Well he officially didn’t and they are officially out of the national title talks again despite the talent they have year in and year out.

So basically I am disappointed. I wanted Tebow, Bradford, and McCoy to be putting up video game numbers. I wanted Florida to go out and destroy everybody who came in their way. I wanted Oklahoma and Texas to be undefeated when they met for the Red River Shootout. I wanted USC, Texas, and Florida to be undefeated so the BCS would finally be altered. All we have left is the SEC championship and then the National championship. Hopefully they don’t disappoint.

--Has anybody heard anything about college basketball? I feel like NCAA basketball and I are breaking up, but through like e-mail or something. Like it doesn’t want to tell me and ESPN knows when I’m watching and they don’t talk about it when I’m tuned in. Isn’t there some kind of preview or something coming up? Who’s good this year? I am so lost with that right now.

And on that note....

.....onto the picks...

Last Week (7-5-1)

Season (57-42-1)

Home Teams in Bold

Houston (-3.5) at Buffalo

Did the Bills really scratch and claw their way back to a sniff of a .500 record. St. Fitzpatrick is really working his magic. Even funnier than his inability to play quarterback at a high level is how my older brother (and huge Trent Edwards supporter) is almost mad that the Bills are doing better with Fitzpatrick. I can tell when I talk to him that he’s not excited about his boy being put on the back burner. I just feel bad for my dad who recently was duped into purchasing a Tredwards jersey.

And yes, for those of you keeping a tally of my family’s recent Bills jersey records, my twin-brother bought a Losman jersey and now my dad an Edwards. And for good measure, I bought an orange Clinton Portis jersey a week before he was traded from the Broncos to the Redskins.

Chicago (13.5) over Cleveland

Why do I keep picking Chicago when they continue to suck? The same reason why Darth Vader ended up turning his back on the dark side. I know that there’s some talent in there somewhere Chicago. You’ve been routed a few times, but I know there’s more to come from you. And what better matchup to change your allegiance from the emperor to your only (one-handed son) than at home against the Browns?

Dallas (-9.5) over Seattle

The Cowboys are kind of like Sarah Marshall. They’re sexy, they’re flashy, and everybody knows everything about them. They got some talent and they know it. Sometimes they even show it off for everybody in the country. However, you know if you love them that they will cheat on you with a super famous English rock star and break your heart. Soon after that they will try to get back into your life with some convincing wins, but you just got to let it go and move on. Fortunately, Seattle is more like the wife on the webcam who just offers nothing. Dallas by 30.

St. Louis (+4) over Detroit

Why not right? Everybody’s time has to come eventually and who better to break Steve Spagnola’s coaching virginity than the Detroit Lions who could be out with Stafford and Calvin Johnson yet again. I think Detroit’s substantially better, and have played like it so far, but is Detroit 4 points better than anyone? If anyone I suppose it’s the Rams, but I feel like this is the week.

Indianapolis (-12) over San Francisco

I like Indianapolis over everyone! Frank Gore and Co. let me down last week as I lost a crucial fantasy game in division and will have to go on quite a tear to make the playoffs in the highly respected “Douchebags” division I’m in. I like Alex Smith over Shaun Hill because he’s not as lame, and a product of Urban Meyer. Mostly because he’s not lame. However he’s still Alex Smith, and is taking on the undefeated Colts at home. The line should be 17.

Miami (+3) over New York Jets

Same line as the last time they played when the Dolphins covered (and won) so why not let that party roll, right? Both teams looked good last week as the Jets rolled the Raiders and the Dolphins played tough against the undefeated Saints. Unfortunately for the Miami fans out there, the Fins choked like an early Jenna Jameson film. I don’t see it in this one because the Jets aren’t as good as the Saints and Sanchez is no longer going to eat hot dogs during games. Stay tuned to see how this affects him.

New York Giants (+2.5) over Philadelphia

Can the Giants lose three in a row? No. The Eagles have had two of the league’s shittiest teams on their plate the last two weeks and haven’t impressed. I though they’d be Super Bowl bound at the beginning of the year, but their offensive line isn’t getting it done. I don’t like their chances the rest of the way and I am not sure if both wild card sports will be coming out of the NFC East. I mean only six of these teams can make the playoffs; Vikings, Saints, Giants, Cowboys, Cardinals, Packers, Bears, Falcons, Eagles, and 49ers. Amongst others. Should be an exciting playoff race.

Denver (+3.5) over Baltimore

The Ponies are still getting no goddamn respect! I supposed a win in Baltimore over the Pesky Ravens would solidify Denver as a real threat. They have to be the first undefeated team to be an underdog five weeks in a row right? Well, a good counter argument would be that they’re the first undefeated team with no talent. Moving on....

Jacksonville (+3) over Tennessee

Rumor has it that Titans coach Jeff Fisher is shaving his mustache for two reasons. A Halloween gag and karma. Obviously I can’t agree with this move and have to go against my word and take the Faguars on the road. Allegedly the owner wants Vince Young to start, but the coaches, FIsher included, want Kerry Collins to start. I’d like to take this opportunity to announce that it doesn’t matter at all. Neither are good and neither can win games. They should really institute some wild cat with Johnson and White. Really. No sarcasm there I swear.

San Diego (-17) over Oakland

I don’t like 17 point lines, but I especially don’t like JaMarcus Russell taking the snaps. I can’t believe there’s actually a discussion that could save Jake Delhomme from being the league’s worst quarterback, but Russell challenges him (so do a few others, but mainly these two I say). The Charges are still looking to catch the Broncos down the stretch and may need to cash in some style points along the way.

Arizona (-9.5) over Carolina

Kind of obvious that the Super Bowl hangover is finally over. The Cardinals are on a hot streak and finally look like the team that took the NFC by storm last January. The NFC is wide open as I suggested a few paragraphs up, and as we saw last year, anybody can come in and take supremacy of that conference. Except of course Carolina. Whose loss to Buffalo last week officially puts them amongst the league’s worst. It’s not all Delhomme, but it’s mostly Delhomme. Some responsibility has to fall on coaching for leaving that clown in forever? Nobody could get away with playing this bad halfway through a season. Nobody.

Minnesota (+3) over Green Bay

Brett Favre returns to Green Bay. I don’t care that much about all of this, but I do hope that redneck ass clown loses. Despite the Broncos being on a bye week last week I feel like they won when I saw Favre throw a couple of interceptions at the end of the game. I smiled like Richard Jefferson after being traded from the Nets to the Spurs. Okay, I’ll leave the NBA out of this. Minnesota 27, Green Bay 21.

New Orleans (-10) over Atlanta

Reggie Bush said their team could run the table. I don’t think this is newsworthy. I think it would be bigger news if he said, “I think we’re good, but I definitely see a couple of losses coming on our way.” That would have been a much bigger deal. He also could have made news by saying, “I am thinking about making a sex tape featuring an X-girlfriend of Ray-J’s just to prove a point. I’m flashy enough to get away with it too.” New Orleans 38, Atlanta 24

Enjoy da footyball!!

Trademark. SportsMeister