Every Sunday evening throughout the 2011 NFL season I’ll compile quick-hit reactions from the day that was in football. I vow to always overreact, side with sensationalism over rationalism, and draw conclusions based on small sample sizes instead of cold, hard facts. It’s the only way I know how to write…

DIDN’T SEE THAT COMING…

- “If only the Rams could now somehow beat the Saints on Sunday, this would be the greatest sports weekend EVER,” uttered the random St. Louis fan on Friday night after the Cardinals defeated the Rangers in Game 7 of the World Series. How do the previously winless Rams defeat a team in the Saints that just racked up 62 points on the Colts? Well, that’s pretty easy. When you can’t stop Steven Jackson even though you know he’s going to get the ball every down, you lose two turnovers over on your side of the field, and you don’t protect your quarterback, you’re going to lose to most opponents regardless of whether or not they have any wins. The Rams won this game because of Jackson and their defense, which sacked Drew Brees six times and returned one of his passes for a game-clinching touchdown in the fourth quarter. Chris Long absolutely abused Charles Brown, who should have been given more help because he clearly needed it. The Rams clearly haven’t checked out and they’ll continue to fight every Sunday. That was apparent for anyone who saw Jackson flip out on his offensive line late in the second half following yet another false start penalty. What a sweet first win this was for a city that is on cloud nine right now.

- It’s not really shocking that the 2-6 Panthers lost another game. But considering whom they were playing and given that they were 3.5-point home favorites, it was a little surprising to see Carolina go down in flames to Minnesota on Sunday. Christian Ponder’s 102.7 passer rating and 8.4 yards per attempt were both season-highs for the Vikings, who apparently just should have started the kid from Week 1 and bypassed acquiring Donovan McNabb altogether. Ponder threw for 236 yards and a touchdown on 18-of-28 passing while earning his first career win thanks in large part to Olindo Mare’s inability to hit a 31-yard chip shot. The miss, which came with under a minute left to play, cost the Panthers an opportunity to force overtime. Good thing Carolina GM Marty Hurney spent so much money on Mare this offseason. Dude was totally worth it.

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It looks like I’m starting to inch closer to respectability with my NFL predictions. The Steelers, Chiefs and Broncos (by a small miracle) covered last week, while the Packers were a fourth-quarter dud against the Vikings.

That gave me a 3-1 Sunday for Week 7, which puts me at 13-15 on the year. I need one more 3-1 effort today to get me back to .500 and then I’ll really tear things up in the second half. Just you wait and see. Oh, just you wait and see.

Saints @ Rams, 1:00PM ET
After they dropped 62 points on the Colts last week, I’m sure public bettors have been racing to the window to take the over with the Saints today. The Rams have allowed the second-most points this year, just behind…yup, the Colts. But 48.5 points seems way too high for me, although I understand why oddsmakers have jacked up the total given the Saints’ offensive output last weekend. New Orleans plays things more conservatively on the road and I don’t see St. Louis helping cover the over with A.J. Feeley at the helm. I like the under.
THE PICK: UNDER 48.5

Dolphins @ Giants, 1:00PM ET
No matter how well Brandon Marshall tries to spin it, the Dolphins have checked out. Reggie Bush says the team stinks, while Yeremiah Bell says that Reggie Bush stinks. The funny part is that half the locker room seemingly agrees with Bush while the other half agrees with Bell. That’s not good for locker room dynamics and considering the Dolphins have to hit the road to face a well-rested New York squad, I like the G-Men to roll today. Of course, the last time I picked the Giants they lost outright to the Seahawks at home, which caused one of our loyal readers to request that I don’t pick them anymore. Sorry snd_dsr, but I’m going back to the well.
THE PICK: GIANTS –9.5

Lions @ Broncos, 4:05PM ET
The Lions are a complete mess and I get three points? Sign me up! Detroit is better than Denver but Detroit also has zero running game, its quarterback is banged up and its defense can’t stop the run. Oh, and they have to travel cross-country to play a team that seemingly has new life under Tim Tebow. For at least one more week I’m going to UNLEASH THE TEBOW!
THE PICK: Broncos +3

Bengals @ Seahawks, 4:15PM ET
Seattle’s quarterback situation is an abomination but no matter how ugly things can get for the Seahawks, they usually play well at home. Seattle is a tough environment for any quarterback to play in, nevertheless a rookie. Andy Dalton has certainly surpassed expectations to this point, but I think he’ll make a couple of big mistakes to cost the Bengals today. Seattle’s defense hasn’t played poorly this season and if their offense can muster double-digit points I think they win outright.
THE PICK: SEAHAWKS +1

Check out the most current NFL Football Betting odds.

Andre Johnson insists that if his injured hamstring isn’t ready by game time on Sunday, he will not play against the Jaguars this weekend.

Johnson has been out since October 2 when he hurt his hamstring during the Texans’ 17-10 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. He caught four passes for 36 yards before leaving the game after being attended to on the field by team trainers. While he returned to practice on a limited basis on Wednesday, Johnson doesn’t sound optimistic about his chances of returning this weekend.

“I felt a lot better in practice, but not where I want to be,” said Johnson, who still feels a “tugging” in the back of his leg. “If I don’t feel like I can play, I’m not going to go out there. I definitely won’t do anything to put myself in any danger.”

While that news might sound deflating to Houston fans (as well as fantasy football owners), it’s probably the mindset Johnson needs to have. If he pushes too hard too soon he could wind up aggravating the injury or making it worse, which would shelve him a lot longer than had he just let it heal. With the Texans in prime position to win the AFC South this year, they’re going to need Johnson down the stretch and into the postseason.

Patriots @ Steelers, 4:15PM ET
This is an intriguing matchup not only because of the two teams but also due to the individual matches within the game. The Patriots arguably have the most efficient passing attack in the league, but they’ve struggled defending the pass for much of the season. Thanks to Ben Roethlisberger and the big-play ability of Pittsburgh’s receivers, the Steelers could strike for a long score at any point. I think this one will live up to the hype and with a whole slew of garbage matchups on the Week 8 schedule, I hope it does.

Cowboys @ Eagles, 8:20PM ET
It’s time to see how many of the Eagles’ problems Andy Reid was able to iron out over the bye week. Philadelphia looked great against Washington the week before its bye, but Dallas will provide a more difficult challenge than the Redskins did. DeMarco Murray is coming off a breakout game and the Eagles haven’t been able to stop the run all season. If Murray can get going again, the Cowboys have a chance to potentially put the nail in the coffin of their bitter rivals.

Lions @ Broncos, 4:05PM ET
The Lions have more pressing issues to worry about than whether or not Ndamukong Suh is a dirty player. Matthew Stafford (ankle) is hobbled, Jahvid Best (concussion) is out for another week and the defense can’t stop the run. The Broncos might not be the better overall team in this matchup but Tim Tebow has breathed new life into Denver and will be fired up to play at home. This will not be an easy road trip this weekend for the Lions.

Vikings @ Panthers, 1:00PM ET
Rookie quarterbacks will be on display this Sunday in Carolina when the Panthers host the Vikings. Outside of the two interceptions he threw to Charles Woodson in the third quarter last week, the Vikings had to be pleased with Christian Ponder’s first professional start. If Minnesota wants to give Ponder an opportunity to notch his first win, then the Vikes better get Adrian Peterson revved up. Carolina’s run defense has been bad all year and it would be wise to keep Cam Newton on the bench considering how bad Minnesota’s pass defense is.

Chargers @ Chiefs, 8:30PM ET Monday
This matchup certainly got more interesting over the past few weeks. After starting the year 0-3 the Chiefs have rattled off three-straight and who can forget the beating they gave the Chargers on Monday night last season? Of course, they won’t have Jamaal Charles this time around but Jackie Battle is starting to come on as KC’s leading rusher. The Chargers’ offense was blanked in the second half last Sunday against the Jets, leading to speculation about whether or not Philip Rivers may be hurt. If he’s not, then it’s time for him to step up on Monday night in what has turned out to be a pretty big divisional game.

Jaguars @ Texans, 1:00PM ET
Blaine Gabbert has received most of the attention this year in Jacksonville, but it’s been the Jaguar defense that has stolen the show. They absolutely dominated the Ravens on Monday night and thanks to strong play out of linebackers Daryl Smith and Paul Posluszny, Jacksonville ranks sixth in yards allowed this season. The Jags’ defense will certainly be tested this weekend, especially if Andre Johnson returns from the hamstring injury that has held him out for nearly a month.

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Four spreads of note:

Patriots –3 @ Steelers, 4:15PM ET
Even though both teams have five wins on the year, I think this line is set right. The public is a huge supporter of the Patriots and the Steelers have played inconsistent football all season. That said, New England’s defense can be had through the air and Pittsburgh’s passing game is among the top 5 in the league. If Ben Roethlisberger can protect the football and connect on a couple of big plays, there’s absolutely no reason to believe Pittsburgh can’t win this game outright – especially at home.

Cowboys +3.5 @ Eagles, 8:20PM ET
It’ll be interesting to see where this line winds up at kickoff. After weeks of being crushed by Philadelphia’s poor play, people started to hop off the Eagles bandwagon. But maybe Philly’s week off has made folks change their perspective on Andy Reid’s squad. That said, Dallas is 5-0 against the spread in its last five games against Philadelphia and 5-2 ATS in its last seven road games versus the Eagles. Philly’s run defense is brutal so if the ‘Boys can get DeMarco Murray going again, they may pick up a huge divisional win on Sunday night.

Lions –3 @ Broncos, 4:05PM ET
Matthew Stafford is presumably questionable for this game with an ankle injury but the Lions are 3-point favorites. That’s interesting considering the Broncos are at home and have old Uncle Mo on their side. Despite his poor play for 56 minutes last week, Tim Tebow has breathed new life into the Broncos and considering Detroit has to travel cross-country, has no running game, and can’t stop the run, I’m a little surprised to see them favored by a field goal. Maybe oddsmakers feel as though they have one more week before the public starts to jump off Detroit’s bandwagon.

Bengals –3 @ Seahawks, 4:15PM ET
This isn’t a very attractive game from a fan’s standpoint, but it’s an intriguing matchup betting-wise. The Bengals are 4-2 but they’re about to travel cross-country to a hostile environment with a rookie quarterback. I know Andy Dalton has played fairly well this season but the Seahawks are always a different animal when they’re in their home digs. Just knowing what we do about the Hawks and how they play at home, I would take the points here (even with Cincinnati coming off a bye).

2011 NFL Week 8 Point Spreads & Totals:

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When Ndamukong Suh and the rest of the Detroit Lions show up to Allen Park on Wednesday, the next comment out of their mouths in relation to their war of words with the Atlanta Falcons should be, “We’ve moved on.”

This little exchange between Suh and the Falcons is rather inane. I would expect players like “Rodney” White and Todd McClure to be upset if opposing players were taunting Matt Ryan as their quarterback lies on the ground withering in pain. They’re right – the alleged taunts were uncalled for and I find it rather humorous that Suh called Ryan’s injury “karma” for the Falcons when a) Atlanta wound up winning the game, 23-16 and b) it appears as though Matthew Stafford emerged from the game with a more serious injury than Ryan did.

But Suh is also right when he suggested that the Falcons’ complaints were akin to the kettle calling the pot black. For years Atlanta’s offensive linemen have been accused of blocking past the whistle and cutting defenders well downfield in attempts to “clean them up.” It was much worse when nasty guard Harvey Dahl (now with the Rams) was around, but it’s nothing new for the Falcons to be called dirty.

That said, so what? It’s time for the Lions to move on because they clearly have bigger problems to worry about. Suh has the right to defend himself and he did that. But the Falcons have a bye this week, which means Roddy White has all the time in the world to respond to anything Suh says. Thus, the big DT and the rest of his teammates would be wise to drop the situation and devote their focus to more pressing issues.

Not only is Stafford’s health once again up in the air but the team has also lost two straight and Jim Schwartz looks like a man without answers. He has a top-5 pass rush and an overachieving secondary but that means very little when opponents can shred you on the ground and run towards victory. Plus, thanks in large part to Calvin Johnson, Detroit’s passing game is solid but they can’t stay balanced because they don’t have a running back and they couldn’t run-block even if they did.

Furthermore, Schwartz and his players would likely benefit from turning it down a notch. Schwartz is trying to change the mentality of a franchise that has been losing for over a decade and in some respects, it has to be refreshing for fans to see their head coach and players get so fired up. But after a post-game scuffle with the 49ers and a pre-game scuffle with the Falcons, tension seems to be building in Detroit and if Schwartz doesn’t get his team re-focused, the Lions’ previous 5-0 record might vanish in a heartbeat.

Good teams manage adversity and the great ones overcome it. Last season the Packers were a walking infirmary and they found a way to overcome all of their injury issues to win the Super Bowl. Not only do the Lions have injury concerns because of guys like Stafford and Jahvid Best, but they also have serious weaknesses on both sides of the ball that teams are exploiting.

For years the Lions have been irrelevant but their 5-0 start gained everyone’s attention. Now let’s see if they can handle the adversity that often comes with overnight success.

Anthony Stalter (under TheScoresReport) and I (under fantasytips) will be tweeting throughout Week 8. Feel free to ask us questions, call us names, whatever…

Brett Favre told SI.com’s Peter King that he wasn’t sure if he was going to be able to play against the Packers yesterday because of a groin injury. Favre claims he suffered the injury last week in practice and then re-aggravated it in pregame warm-ups.

“I told T-Jack [backup Tarvaris Jackson] and [offensive coordinator] Darrell Bevell I may not be able to do it,” he said. “I didn’t know if I’d be able to drop back very well. After I aggravated it, there was no way I was going to be able to move around in the pocket very much. We never called one bootleg the whole game. But we made it through OK.”

And now, I wondered, how was the groin four hours and a lot of lost adrenalin later?

“It’s throbbing right now,” he said.

Oh…come…on. Look, I don’t doubt that Favre injured himself in practice (he is 60 years old after all) and then re-injured himself during pregame warm-ups. I also don’t doubt that he told Jackson and Bevell that he was hurt and might not be able to play.

But I don’t buy for a minute that he was going to hold himself out. He wasn’t going to allow a groin injury to get in the way of beating the Packers at Lambeau and if anything, I’m willing to bet that he wanted people to know that he was hurt just so he could build the moment up even more.

Some are going to look at this as the “gritty” Brett playing through pain; I’m sure ESPN is already salivating thinking about the story. But I think this guy has a lot of people fooled.

Maybe I’m being to cynical and over thinking this, but it’s Brett’s comments that bug me the most. If King asked him how he was feeling and Brett said, “Well Pistol Pete, I’m a little sore because of a groin injury I suffered last week,” then I wouldn’t question him because the comment would have been more fly-by.

But no, Brett made damn sure to note that he might not have been able to play. To me, that’s just another prima donna move by one of the more underrated prima donna athletes of all-time.

If the Ravens were going to knock off the undefeated Broncos on Sunday, they would need their defense would have to step up and play inspired.

Baltimore has struggled defensively the past couple weeks, but held Denver to only one score in a 30-7 rout in Week 8. The Raven defense harassed Broncos’ quarterback Kyle Orton for much of the contest and limited him to 23-of-37 passing for 152 yards and no touchdowns.

The Ravens’ secondary has struggled all season, but was great today. Part of their success came from Orton’s inability to stretch the field vertically, but credit Baltimore’s defensive backs for not allowing the big play. They also benefited from a relentless pass rush, which produced two sacks and five QB hits.

If the Ravens are going to make the playoffs this season, how they played Sunday is how they’ll have to play every week. They don’t have the defensive talent like they had in years past, so perfect execution is a must and that’s how they won today. Plus, while he didn’t set the stat sheet on fire, quarterback Joe Flacco was efficient and kept the chains moving all game.

As for the Broncos, this loss will serve Josh McDaniels’ squad well. Good teams learn more from losses than they do wins, so now we’ll see what McDaniels and his coaching staff is made of. The Broncos host the Steelers (who will be fresh coming off their bye) next week on Monday Night Football and if they can produce a win, it would go a long way in proving that McDaniels and his crew can make adjustments when their team needs them.