Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 1340 of 1503)

Think back to last April when so-called experts were saying the 2007 NFL Draft class lacked elite prospects outside of star receiver Calvin Johnson. In my latest column for Bullz-Eye.com, I note it only took nine weeks of the NFL season for Adrian Peterson, Patrick Willis and a host of other rookies to prove the critics wrong.

Here’s a look at the top and bottom five in the NFL through nine weeks:

1. New England Patriots (9-0)
Previous Ranking: 1
Sunday’s showdown with Indy was another prime example of how good a team has to be for four quarters in order to beat the Patriots. Tom Brady and Co. can turn the game around in an instant and you’re left saying, “I thought we had them down, didn’t we?”

2. Indianapolis Colts (7-1)
Previous Ranking: 2
The Colts beat the Patriots for three quarters, both offensively and defensively. They took away the Pats’ deep ball, flustered Brady and moved the chains, even without stud WR Marvin Harrison. However, obviously no lead (not even a 10 point lead with just over nine minutes to play) is safe when playing New England.

3. Dallas Cowboys (7-1)
Previous Rank: 3
You gotta love the way TE Jason Witten trucked towards the end zone after his helmet popped off in the Cowboys’ win over Philly Sunday night. There was no way in hell he was going out of bounds – what a tough S.O.B.

4. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2)
Previous Rank: 4
The Steelers are in a perfect position right now. Nobody is really paying attention to them (although their dismantling of the Ravens on MNF may draw onlookers) and they just keep rolling along. There are going to be some tremendous battles in the AFC come postseason time.

5. Green Bay Packers (7-1)
Previous Rank: 5
Great line by Brett Favre after the Packers win in Kansas City on Sunday: “Maybe we’re the Saints of 2006. Maybe it’s time to start believing, rather than keep wondering about how we’re doing this.” The media does this every year with a surprising team. They question, and question and question how good they are instead of just saying it: The Packers are a good team – there’s no smoke and mirrors.

28. Oakland Raiders (2-6)
Previous Rank: N/A
I think it’s JaMarcus Russell time in Oakland. However, lets not kill the kid if he struggles behind a weak offensive line while trying to pick up the game. Nobody should expect miracles from Russell, but I’m intrigued to see what the kid can do.

29. San Francisco 49ers (2-6)
Previous Rank: 28
Alex Smith looked lost on Sunday without Frank Gore behind him. His receivers didn’t help him, but Smith overthrew open receivers on several occasions. At least Vernon Davis is healthy and playing well again, because this team needs something to hold on to.

30. New York Jets (1-8)
Previous Rank: 30
Kellen Clemons showed on Sunday that he belongs in this league. Jets fans have plenty to look forward to for the rest of the season as far as being somewhat competitive. Or if not competitive, at least every few weeks Leon Washington will return a kickoff for a touchdown; that guy is amazing and often overlooked.

31. Miami Dolphins (0-8)
Previous Rank: 31
BYE Week: 55, Dolphins 10.

32. St. Louis Rams (0-8)
Previous Rank: 32
BYE Week 55, Rams 28.

According to Yahoo! Sports, the NFL is investigating allegations that the Colts pumped in crowd noise for their game against the Patriots on Sunday.

Observers at the game said there seemed to be a “skip” in the sound during the game Sunday, which the Patriots won 24-20. That might confirm the long-held suspicion among many people in the NFL that the Colts play loud crowd noise to help distract opponents when the other team is on offense.

In addition, New England quarterback Tom Brady also commented on how loud it was in the RCA Dome.

“I don’t know how you measure levels of being deaf, but we couldn’t hear anything out there,” Brady said.

This is the latest in a string of incidents between the teams that have fueled the growing Colts-Pats rivalry. In the past, Colts General Manager Bill Polian has vehemently argued that the Patriots have bent the rules in terms of use of replay challenges and the pass interference rule.

Bill Belichick had this to say in respose to the allegations that he’s cheated to gain an advantage: “Let me just finish editing these tapes of opponents’ defensive signals and I’ll be right with you.”

Quick hit thoughts from Week 9:

Patriots 24, Colts 20
It’s amazing how this game changed at the drop of a hat. The Colts were moving the ball well, flustering Tom Brady and halting the Patriots big play attack. Then seemingly out of nowhere, Brady calmed himself, hit Randy Moss for a huge play and the defense – which had played spotty virtually all game – came up with a big strip and recovery of a Peyton Manning fumble. Thanks for coming, drive home safely. In the end, this game turned out to be a bit over hyped in terms of an offensive explosion, but the biggest take away might have been that the Patriots can be had. The Colts let this one get away, but credit New England for always playing four quarters.

Packers 33, Chiefs 22
There’s just something unique about the Packers this season. KC jumped ahead late in the game, but Brett Favre hooked up with Greg Jennings on a 60-yard touchdown pass to give the Packers the lead. Then, when they needed a big stop, Green Bay got a huge defensive play when Charles Woodson intercepted Damon Huard and returned it 46 yards for the game-sealing touchdown. There’s just no quit in these cheese heads.

Lions 44, Broncos 7
Do the Lions remind anyone else of the 2005 Bengals? Good offense, bad defense on paper, but one that forces a ton of turnovers and comes up with huge plays. Dwayne White might turn out to be the most underrated free agent signing of the offseason. Every game he seems like he’s involved in a big play for the Lions defense. These guys are definitely for real and it’s amazing to think about a possible Detroit-Green Bay battle for first place in three weeks.

Vikings 35, Chargers 17
Ho-lee-crap. Adrian Peterson (296 yards, 3 TDs) is amazing. He didn’t just rush for 296 yards and three scores against a poor defense; he did it against a damn good Chargers front seven. Speaking of amazing, Antonio Cromartie’s Devin Hester-like return off a Vikings missed field goal was sweet. Cromartie returned it 109 yards, which is now the longest touchdown in league history. Sadly for the Chargers, however, that was about the only positive from this embarrassing loss.

Saints 41, Jaguars 24
All of a sudden the Saints are in prime position to march (pardon the pun) back into the playoff race in the NFC. Drew Brees (445 yards, 1 TD) finally looked like Drew Brees again, Marques Colston (10 rec., 159 yards) finally looked like Marques Colston again, and Sean Payton finally…okay point taken. The bottom line is, New Orleans destroyed a very good Jags defense and is steam rolling back into contention.

Browns 33, Seahawks 30 OT
Too bad this game was on opposite the Indy-New England game, because it was exciting. Just when it appeared that the Browns defense was going to blow a fantastic second half comeback, they came up with a huge stop on a 4th and 1 from their own 44-yard line in overtime. The stop gave the Browns the ball back and after an impressive 34-yard screen pass to Jamal Lewis, Phil Dawson kicked the game-winning 25-yard field goal. These aren’t your daddy’s Cleveland Browns, folks.

Titans 20, Panthers 7
LenDale White (100 yards, 1 TD) might just turn into a quality back yet. He’s in shape, running hard, and has become a reliable back, which is huge considering Vince Young continues to struggle. Once again, VY was bailed out by another fantastic defensive and special teams performance. He can’t continue to throw for only 100 yards and multiple interceptions if the Titans are going to make a postseason run. Other than that, Tennessee might be the most underrated team in the AFC.

Redskins 23, Jets 20 OT
The Redskins won ugly, although after being crushed by 45 points a week ago, I’m sure they’ll take it. Clinton Portis was unbelievable, rushing for 196 yards and one touchdown, and rookie LaRon Landry made some fantastic plays on defense. This was a tough loss for the Jets, but at least Kellen Clemons played well. It’s obvious he has more tools and a brighter future than Chad Pennington. It should be noted, however, that Pennington showed major class by wishing Clemons luck before the game.

Bucs 17, Cardinals 10
Tampa just needs to keep things simple. Keep the ball on the ground, don’t turn it over, and play good defense. Ernest Graham (124 yards, 1 TD) was excellent, Jeff Garcia didn’t throw any interceptions, and the defense held Arizona to only 23 yards rushing and forced two turnovers. That’s it. That’s all the Bucs did to win. Football is a simple game, isn’t it?

Bills 33, Bengals 21
It sounds like Chad Johnson is going to be okay after being carted off the field on a stretcher following a huge hit in the second half. At the end of the day, the only thing that matters is that these players are healthy and can go home to their families. Massive props goes to J.P. Losman, Marshawn Lynch, and Lee Evans. All three were outstanding and Lynch might have had the run of the day, bouncing off several defenders while taking it 38 yards to the house. Buffalo also got a fantastic effort from its run defense, holding the Bengals to only 28 yards on 17 carries. Cincy’s defense is a disaster.

Falcons 20, 49ers 16
This recap is going to be similar to the Bucs-Cardinals one. The Falcons finally got a solid rushing performance out of Warrick Dunn (100 yards, 1 TD), forced four turnovers and came up with huge stops when they needed to. The 49ers moved the ball fine, but just couldn’t generate points when they got inside the red zone. San Fran has completely fallen apart after such a promising start, although it doesn’t help that Frank Gore, Alex Smith and Vernon Davis have all missed considerable time.

Texans 24, Raiders 17
Nice win for Houston, especially without Matt Schaub. Sage Rosenfels wasn’t spectacular, but he managed the game well and the Texans just hitched their trailer to Ron Dayne (122 yards, 1 TD) and grinded out a win. It’s got to be close to JaMarcus Russell time with how bad Josh McCown looked (3 INTs). Other than a surprisingly good running game, the Raiders just flat out have issues.