Oct 20 2008
Thoughts on Week 7 in the NFL
The AFC is looking like a conference that has three or four legitimate Super Bowl contenders and everyone else is muddled together. Let’s start in the AFC South, home of the NFL’s lone undefeated team, the Tennessee Titans. They just have an insane defense that makes up for their lack of passing game. Tennessee’s running game with Chris Johnson and LenDale White isn’t bad either. The pair combined for 317 yards and 4 touchdowns on 35 total carries on Sunday. How sick is that? The Chiefs only had 272 total yards. At this point in the year, Tennessee is the best team in the league. Just when it looked like the Colts were finally back, they took one on the chin at Lambeau Field. They were just thoroughly outplayed by the Packers and it won’t get any easier for them with Tennessee, New England, Pittsburgh, a resurgent Texans squad, and San Diego in the next five weeks. Indy’s season could be over by Thanksgiving. Speaking of the Texans, they struggled to hold onto a win against the Lions. Hey, at least the won. Houston has a favorable schedule over the next month or so and may be able to sneak back into the playoff hunt. The Jaguars had a bye.
The AFC North is clearly Pittsburgh’s to lose, and I don’t think there’s any chance of that happening. The Steelers manhandled the Bengals on Sunday despite playing with a ton of injuries. They’re probably the second-best AFC team right now, but they have the potential to be better than Tennessee because their offense will be a lot better once “Fast” Willie Parker comes back. On the other hand, Cincy may be the worse team in the NFL. At least the Lions have started to get more competitive. Cleveland is also starting to play a lot better and only lost by three in Washington. It looks like they’re starting to resemble last year’s team a little bit more. If they can somehow get hot and spring an upset or two, they’ll be back in the playoff race. The Ravens smashed the Dolphins in Miami, but I don’t know if their offense is good enough to keep them in the playoff hunt.
Like Pittsburgh in the AFC North, the AFC East is Buffalo’s division to lose. I wrote early on that the Bills were going to win this division and it looks like they may run away with it. Buffalo scored a pretty impressive win over the Chargers on Sunday and I think the Bills are going to be fighting for a first round bye. Miami was pretty lackluster and unimpressive this week against the Ravens. With tough games on the horizon, the Dolphins may be buried pretty soon. The Jets lost in overtime in Oakland, so now people will hopefully recognize that this team is nothing special. The Patriots scored a big win over Denver. It’s tough to get a read on them, but Matt Cassel may have finally become decent enough to make the Pats into a competitive team.
The Broncos should be able to run away with the AFC West. However, it’s games like the one they played against the Pats that give me second thoughts about how good they actually are. The Chargers are really inconsistent and could easily end up anywhere from 10-6 to 6-10. They’re kind of a disappointment. The Raiders beat the Jets, but still aren’t anything spectacular, and the Chiefs got blown out by the Titans. It’s pretty much going to be a coin flip between Denver and San Diego for the division title.
The NFC East teams become less and less impressive each week. Dallas got crushed by the lowly St. Louis Rams. The Redskins barely got by the Browns. The 49ers hung with the Giants all afternoon in New York. Somehow all three of these teams are letting the idle Eagles hang around. Dallas looks like they’re on the verge of an implosion and the ‘Skins are fading a bit. It’s going to be tough for the Birds to catch the G-Men unless they sweep the season series. Overall, this division is wide open as all of these teams are pretty even.
The NFC North is another competitive division. The Packers, Bears, and Vikings all have a legitimate shot at the division crown. Each week, a different team looks like they’re the best in the division and then they take a step back the next week. Green Bay was very impressive in a win over Indy. Chicago edged Minnesota in a 48-41 shootout in Midway. Who woulda thought that would happen? I really have no idea which one of these mediocre teams will emerge. The Lions are just terrible.
The NFC South is also pretty up in the air. All of these teams can win at home, but they all suck on the road. Carolina dismantled New Orleans at home to claim a tie for first with Tampa Bay, who beat Seattle on Sunday night. The Falcons had a bye week. I ultimately think Atlanta will fade and it will go down to the wire with Tampa Bay and Carolina.
The NFC West is barely worth my time. The Cardinals, who had a bye, are the class of this division. Unless the Rams, who are two games back, can come on strong and sweep the season series with Arizona, the Cards will cruise into the playoffs. Even though they’ve been playing much better, I don’t know if St. Louis is going to keep playing this well for the rest of the year. The 49ers and Seahawks both suck. A lot.
Projected AFC Playoff teams through Week 7: Buffalo (East; Last Week’s Projection: Buffalo), Pittsburgh (North; Last Week’s Projection: Pittsburgh), Tennessee (South; Last Week’s Projection: Tennessee), San Diego (West; Last Week’s Projection: San Diego), Indianapolis (Wild Card; Last Week’s Projection: Indianapolis), Jacksonville (Wild Card; Last Week’s Projection: Jacksonville)
Projected NFC Playoff teams through Week 7: New York Giants (East; Last Week’s Projection: New York Giants), Green Bay (North; Last Week’s Projection: Green Bay), Tampa Bay (South; Last Week’s Projection: Tampa Bay), Arizona (West; Last Week’s Projection: Arizona), Carolina (Wild Card; Last Week’s Projection: Dallas), Washington (Wild Card; Last Week’s Projection: Washington)
