Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 1477 of 1503)

So what did we all learn from week one in the NFL?

Well, home field advantage meant very little for at least one week (11 out of 16 road teams were victorious), Pittsburgh’s defense is still very, very good and Terrell Owens might not be the hands on favorite anymore to ruin Dallas’ season after Drew Bledsoe threw three interceptions against Jacksonville. Oh yeah, and the Raiders are going to be bad again this year – real bad.

Here is a look at the top and bottom five in my opinion after one week of play:

1. Pittsburgh Steelers (1-0)
Hard to go against these guys after the defense allowed only 30 yards on the ground to Miami’s Ronnie Brown. Here’s a tip for anybody playing the Steelers this season: know where Joey Porter and Troy Polamalu are on every play or else you will quickly find out how both of them can turn a game around. Right Miami?

2. Indianapolis Colts (1-0)
The Colts had a nice win on the road in a distracting situation. However, they better figure out that run game sooner rather than later or else teams are going to start shutting down that passing attack. It won’t be this week against Houston, but Jacksonville is looming in week three.

3. Cincinnati Bengals (1-0)
The Bengals defense looks like they’re for real again this season. Regardless of how bad a shape Kansas City’s o-line is in, allowing Larry Johnson to rush for only 68 yards is impressive. Cincinnati’s passing attack will be there this season, but if for some reason it comes down a bit after last year, having Rudi Johnson carry the load isn’t such a bad thing.

4. Seattle Seahawks (1-0)
Nine points against Detroit? Shaun Alexander was held to what? Relax, the Lions are tough in home openers and they are a more physical team now under Rod Marinelli. Plus, Seattle has never been a great road team and hey, you try to win while fighting two big curses in one season (Madden cover jinx and Super Bowl loser melt down syndrome)!

5. Baltimore Ravens (1-0)
My surprise playoff team in ’06 laid the wood to Tampa Bay and the rest of the Bucs this weekend in a 27-0 shellacking. The offense can move the ball now and the defense looks stronger than ever. Has Michael Pittman figured out where he is yet after the hit he took from Ray Lewis?

28. Cleveland Browns (0-1)
The problem isn’t with talent, because the Browns have it – but only giving the ball to Reuben Droughns 11 times is ridiculous. Is there a problem with play calling in Cleveland maybe?

29. Tennessee Titans (0-1)
This team has a real issue at quarterback. I understand that Kerry Collins is still learning the system, but come on Tennessee, you couldn’t even beat noodle-arm Chad Pennington last weekend.

30. Houston Texans (0-1)
Hey, the Texans were up 7-0 against the Eagles. Good try Houston.

31. Green Bay Packers (0-1)
Brett Favre gets shut out for the first time in his career while head coach Mike McCarthy stands there with a deer-in-the-headlights look on his face. Is it just me or does McCarthy look nervous on the sidelines like a kid who doesn’t want to get called on in class?

32. Oakland Raiders (0-1)
So, Jerry Porter wasn’t really laughing on the sidelines when Aaron Brooks was sacked for the seventh time Monday night because he wasn’t even paying attention to the game? That’s much better Jerry.

What players hold the most impact on their respective teams chances at a Super Bowl title?

Check out Bullz-Eye.com’s Top 50 NFL Power Players list to find out.

Feel like we disrespected a player or completely left him off the list? Post a comment and let us hear about it.

Here’s a sneak peak at the top five:

1. Peyton Manning, QB
Indianapolis Colts
One of the smartest and most physically tooled quarterbacks in the entire league, Peyton Manning has led Indy to the playoffs six out of the past seven years. Without RB Edgerrin James, Manning’s role becomes even bigger than ever and once again the Colts’ title chances are resting on his strong right arm.

2. Tom Brady, QB
New England Patriots
It appears that every single year the Patriots give Tom Brady less and less to work with, yet he still finds a way to lead his team into the playoffs. This season, he may not have one of his most reliable receivers in Deion Branch (just traded to the Seahawks), but does it ever matter? The one constant for New England’s continuing Super Bowl aspirations is having Brady locked and loaded for another season.

3. Shaun Alexander, RB
Seattle Seahawks
Is there any doubt that the reigning MVP is an impact player on his team? Seattle is an excellent team with legit hopes of returning to the Super Bowl in 2006, but without Shaun Alexander they would crumble.

4. Donovan McNabb, QB
Philadelphia Eagles
When Donovan McNabb sat out with a variety of injuries in ’05, the Eagles’ playoff hopes stood right next to him on the sidelines. It appeared that the whole Philadelphia team fell apart, defense included. Since 2000, McNabb has led the Eagles to four conference title games and one Super Bowl. Nobody should fall asleep on Philly this year with McNabb healthy again.

5. LaDainian Tomlinson, RB
San Diego Chargers
LaDainian Tomlinson was productive when Doug Flutie was the quarterback in San Diego, he was productive before Drew Brees was any good, and he’ll be productive with first-year starter Philip Rivers taking over in ’06. He’s the Chargers’ best player and head coach Marty Schottenheimer obviously knows that, which means his team’s fate will rest solely in LT’s hands, not his young QB’s. Judging by their opening 27-0 pasting of the hated Raiders, that setup should work just fine for the Bolts.

So what are local beat writers saying in the wake of their team’s losses?

Porter seen celebrating the Raiders getting beat?
Nancy Gay from the San Francisco Chronicle posted this little tidbit in her game updates from the Raiders 27-0 loss to the Chargers last night:

Porter, the inactive receiver, was seen laughing and pumping his fist along the bench when Brooks was sacked a seventh time…

So let me get this straight Jerry – you throw a fit and demand to get traded in the offseason because your head coach wants you to workout with the team and not by yourself in Miami; then you celebrate as your team’s quarterback is getting pummeled?

It’s nice to see another wide receiver with some class in the NFL.

Is Bledsoe masking an injury as to not be replaced by Romo?
Gil LeBreton of the Star Telegram is suggesting that quarterback Drew Bledsoe is possibly hiding an injury to hold off backup Tony Romo from taking his job. LeBreton is making this assumption by the way Bledsoe was throwing during the Jacksonville game:

The errant passes, whether they were in the flat to tight end Jason Witten or deep over the middle to Terrell Owens. The way that Bledsoe’s right arm didn’t appear to be following through on his second-half throws. And on the sideline between Cowboys possessions in that second half, when Bledsoe began throwing practice passes.

No healthy quarterback, already in the game, in temperatures above 80 degrees, ever starts throwing warmup passes.

LeBreton also made a reference in this article about Tom Brady taking over in New England when Bledsoe was hurt and perhaps Romo is on the same course.

Now, I knew people in Dallas were anxious to see Romo, but I didn’t know they were delusional too.

Delhomme takes some criticism from home paper
In order for the Panthers to truly be considered a Super Bowl-caliber team, quarterback Jake Delhomme has to play better than what he showed against the Falcons, says Charlotte Observer columnist Scott Fowler.

DeShaun Foster never broke a big play and rookie DeAngelo Williams never really got a chance. The wide receivers were average without Smith, who was inactive with a hamstring injury.

But the quarterback is in charge out there, and Delhomme must be better for Carolina to win.

First off all, what an obvious statement here by Fowler – in order for the team to get better, the starting quarterback has to play better (he said this twice in his article by the way)? Good call chief.

Secondly, as obvious as the statement is, Fowler is right. Delhomme has danced out of public criticism ever since he led the Panthers to the Super Bowl in 2003. In ’04 Steve Smith got hurt so nobody took any heat for the Panthers playing so poorly. In fact, John Fox and his players were commended on putting up such a fight when they started off the season 1-6, only to finish 7-9.

Last year Delhomme threw three picks in the NFC Championship game and then Sunday’s game he barely looked for any of his options before whipping the ball out of bounds. Although there might be something to that last statement considering Steve Smith was standing on the sidelines – maybe Delhomme was still trying to get the ball into #89’s hands.

Williams’s guarantees victory over Bears
Nicholas J. Cotsonika of the Detroit Free Press writes that Lions wide receiver Roy Williams guarantees victory over the Chicago Bears this weekend.

“We will win this game,” Lions wide receiver Roy Williams told reporters Monday. “You all can take that as a guarantee or whatnot, but we will win this game.”

Score one touchdown this season Roy, then you can start considering threatening teams.