Category: Fantasy Football (Page 198 of 324)

Redskins pull off upset of day, beat Cowboys 26-24

Clinton PortisIt hasn’t taken Jim Zorn long to earn the respect of Washington’s faithful. Zorn’s Redskins beat the previously undefeated Cowboys 26-24 in Dallas on Sunday.

The score was close, but the game really wasn’t. Washington dominated in nearly all facets of the game, including on the ground where Clinton Portis rushed for 121 yards on 21 carries. The Skins dominated the time of possession battle 38:09 to 21:51 and didn’t turn the ball over once. Jason Campbell was also solid, throwing for 231 yards and two touchdowns on 20 of 31 passing. He also made two great tosses to Santana Moss in the first half that allowed Washington to build a 17-10 halftime lead.

The Redskins really won this game in the trenches. They held the Cowboys to only 44 yards on the ground and also did a nice job on Terrell Owens. While he caught seven passes for 77 yards and a touchdown, Washington didn’t allow T.O. to beat them deep.

Speaking of Owens, he mentioned last week that as long as the Cowboys won, he wouldn’t be upset if he didn’t have great numbers. But clearly Dallas got him plenty of opportunities today and they lost. Did offensive coordinator Jason Garrett sacrifice his game plan so that T.O. could get his touches? Or was it just an aberration that Garrett only attempted 11 rushes the entire game despite the Cowboys running the ball very successfully in previous weeks? Hmm.

Either way, Zorn and the Redskins have been impressive so far this year. The Cowboys are arguably the best team in the NFC and Washington soundly beat them on their home turf. The NFC East is a beast of a division.

Linehan to be fired? Bills dismantle Rams 31-14

Scott LinehanIt didn’t look good early, but the Bills managed to stay undefeated on the 2008 season with a 31-14 victory over the still-winless St. Louis Rams.

Peter King of SI.com reported on Saturday that if the Rams were to lose, head coach Scott Linehan would be fired. Things looked promising for St. Louis early as they built a 14-6 halftime lead and headed into the fourth quarter up 14-13. But Jabari Greer intercepted Trent Green, who Linehan decided to start over Marc Bulger earlier this week, on a brutal pass attempt to start the fourth quarter and returned it 33-yards for a touchdown.

Buffalo then added a 39-yard Trent Edwards-to-Lee Evans touchdown and a 45-yard Rian Lindell field goal to put the game away midway through the fourth quarter. Edwards finished 15 of 25 for 197 yards and a touchdown.

It’ll be interesting to see whether or not the rumors were true and Linehan will get his walking papers following this defeat. The Rams are an absolute mess and clearly a dysfunctional team right now. If Linehan is fired, whoever takes over needs to earn the respect of the players fast or else things are going to unravel even more than they already have in St. Louis.

Chargers sneak past Raiders 28-18

The Chargers scored 18 25 fourth quarter points to beat the Raiders 21-18 28-18. San Diego was still able to win despite training 15-0 in the second half and turning the ball over four times.

LaDainian Tomlinson’s toe must be feeling better, because the back rushed for 106 yards and two touchdowns, including a 41-yard run to ice the game with just over a minute to play. LT essentially saved a poor passing day by Philip Rivers, who struggled to throw for only 180 yards and two picks.

Raiders’ second-year QB JaMarcus Russell looked better today, throwing for 223 yards and a touchdown, but once San Diego’s defense clamped down in the fourth quarter, Oakland could do nothing offensively. Michael Bush was their leading rusher, gaining only 48 yards on 14 carries. Rookie Darren McFadden did play, but was limited to only 20 yards on seven carries due to injury.

So what happens to head coach Lane Kiffin now? I’m sure by tonight a report will surface that he’ll be fired on Monday, but who knows what Al Davis will do. He obviously doesn’t have a replacement ready for Kiffin, so maybe this charade will go on for another week.

The following edits were made to this post: In the first paragrah, the score was changed from 21-18 to the correct final score, 28-18. Also in the first pargraph, the number 18 was changed to 25.

Titans stay undefeated, top Vikings 30-17

The Tennessee Titans are now 4-0 on the season after beating the Minnesota Vikings 30-17 on Sunday. Rookie Chris Johnson rushed for 61 yards on 17 carries and scored two touchdowns, including one to put the game away with only four minutes remaining.

Keith BullockIt was over when…
Gus Frerotte was picked off by Titans CB Nick Harper with the Vikings backed up to their 2-yard line. Chris Johnson ran it in from 6 yards out on the next play to give Tennessee a 13-point lead with under 4 minutes remaining.
Game ball
Johnson scored two of the Titans’ three rushing touchdowns, including Tennessee’s final score to put the game out of reach.
Key stat
Tennessee’s defense showed why it’s considered one of the best in the league, forcing three fumbles and coming up with four sacks and an interception. The Titans scored all three of their touchdowns off Vikings turnovers.
Noteworthy
The Titans have their first ever 4-0 start and have won seven straight dating to last season. … Two of the league’s most aggressive defenses forced a total of seven fumbles, six of which were recovered by the opposing team. … Frerotte attempted 43 passes without throwing a touchdown. He finished with 266 yards passing.

The Titans are playing about as well as any team right now defensively. They allowed Adrian Peterson to reach pay dirt twice, but held him to only 80 yards on 18 carries. They also smacked Gus Frerotte around and came up with a huge interception after the Vikings cut the lead to 23-17 midway through the fourth quarter.

Minnesota continues to fall behind in games and not have enough offensive firepower to comeback. Peterson can only do so much before the passing game has to produce bigger plays. And the Vikes continue to have problems turning the ball over in crucial situations.

Brees, Saints cruise over 49ers 31-17

Drew Brees threw for 363 yards and three touchdowns as the Saints routed the 49ers, 31-17 in New Orleans on Sunday.

Drew BreesIt was over when …
Saints cornerback Tracy Porter intercepted J.T. O’Sullivan in the end zone with just under 10 minutes remaining and New Orleans leading 28-9.
Game ball
Running back Deuce McAllister had only two rushing attempts on the season but was more involved in the offense in Week 4, scoring his first touchdown of the year. McAllister finished with 83 total yards.
Key stat
O’Sullivan had two interceptions and lost a fumble, partly because of pressure caused by defensive end Charles Grant, who recorded two sacks and was a menace in the backfield. O’Sullivan was also sacked six times, and has now been taken down by opponents 19 times this season.
Noteworthy
Saints receiver Lance Moore matched his 2007 touchdown total with a pair of scores. … 49ers running back Frank Gore was held without a touchdown for the first time this season. … Saints quarterback Drew Brees had his second three-touchdown game of the season. He had three touchdown passes against the Buccaneers in Week 1.

Apparently the Saints weren’t as bad as they played the past two weeks and the 49ers weren’t as good. When Lance Moore racks up seven catches for 101 yards and two touchdowns, you know you have issues in the secondary. Brees did whatever he wanted to San Fran’s secondary, which had played well against top wide outs Calvin Johnson and Roy Williams last week.

The Saints also did a nice job against J.T. O’Sullivan and the 49ers’ offense, which had played well the past two weeks. They gave up a fair amount of yardage threw the air, but a lot of that came after they had built a 28-9 second half lead, too. The Saints are now 2-2, but trail the Panthers (3-1) and Bucs (3-1) in the NFC South.

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