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      Packers far from dead in NFC

      October 19, 2008 /

      Aaron RodgersThe Cowboys brought them back to earth in Week 3, the Buccaneers physically abused them in Week 4 and the Falcons shocked them in Week 5. Yet after putting together back-to-back wins the last two weeks, the Packers look far from dead in the NFC.

      In their latest win on Sunday, Green Bay absolutely crushed Peyton Manning and the Colts 34-14 at Lambeau. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers continues to play well (and continues to out play Brett Favre for those compelled to keep debating that topic) as he completed 21 of 28 passes for 186 yards and a touchdown. He finally got some help from Ryan Grant (105 yards, 1 TD), who had really struggled over the past couple weeks.

      Speaking of struggling, after shredding Baltimore’s defense last Sunday, Manning was brutal. He eventually wound up with 229 yards, but he threw two interceptions, both of which Green Bay returned for touchdowns. He also did his best Jake Delhomme impersonation, bitching to the refs after most of his incompletions. Worse yet for the Colts, Rodgers and the Packers did whatever they wanted to the Indy defense.

      Nobody is counting the Colts out in the AFC, but with Manning at less than 100%, the defense is going to have to step up and the entire team has to play more consistently.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Hey NFL coaches: The kicker freeze doesn’t work

      October 19, 2008 /

      Tom CableRemember when Mike Shanahan’s call-a-timeout-the-millisecond-before-the-kicker-attempts-a-field-goal strategy swept the nation last year? Yeah, well it doesn’t work anymore and coaches might want to think about scraping the idea after Raiders’ head coach almost cost his team a win Sunday against the Jets.

      After Brett Favre somehow marched the Jets into field goal range with under 30 seconds to play in Oakland, Jay Feely set up to attempt a game-tying 52-yard field goal. He wound up booting the ball off one of the uprights, which should have given the Raiders a 13-10 win, but that trickster Cable fooled everyone and called a timeout. Of course Feely kicked his next attempt straight through the uprights to force overtime.

      Granted, Cable still earned his first victory as a NFL head coach when the Raiders eventually won 16-13 on a remarkable record-setting 57-yard field goal by Sebastian Janikowski in overtime, but it should have never come to that. It seems that freezing the kicker backfires more than it benefits and in worst-case scenarios, it could wind up costing teams wins.

      Kickers even admit that it helps them settle down and relax. So why continue to do it if you’re an NFL head coach?

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Hard to get a read on how good Redskins really are

      October 19, 2008 /

      Jason CampbellIn the midst of their four game winning streak this season, many football enthusiasts (myself included) were ready to put the Redskins at the top of the NFC as one of the conference’s best teams.

      But after losing to the Rams last week and almost choking away a win against the Browns on Sunday, it’s hard to tell how good Washington really is at this point. Clinton Portis (175 yards, 1 TD in the 14-11 win over Cleveland) is off to a great start and QB Jason Campbell has done a remarkable job in his first year in the WCO. (He’s still yet to throw an interception.)

      Still, the Redskins weren’t overly impressive today, in fact, they looked ultra-conservative and had Derek Anderson been able to do anything in the first half, Washington might lose the game against Cleveland despite an outstanding day by Portis and the defense. For a team that is starting to receive accolades as one of the best in the NFC, you’d think they would put more points on the board than 14. (Granted, the score was a lot closer than maybe it should have been because the Browns scored off a Portis fumble late in the fourth.)

      The bottom line is that good teams find ways to win, especially considering victories are so hard to come by in the NFL. But part of me wonders if the Redskins are setting up for a second half collapse just based on two blasé performances the past two weeks.

      Side note on Clev/Wash game: Portis/Cleveland’s defense saved Romeo Crennel’s ass late in the fourth. The Browns were down 14-3 late in the fourth and Washington stopped them cold on the goal line on three straight plays. Instead of kicking the field goal and making it a one-possession game, Crennel foolishly went for it on fourth and goal and Anderson had a pass battled down. Had Portis not fumbled and Washington goes down and scores (or runs out the clock), Crennel’s decision would have looked even more boneheaded. Instead, Portis coughs it up and the Browns scored and added a 2-point conversion to slim the lead to 14-11 and thus, Crennel comes out looking okay. But he’s clueless.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      The warning signs for the Cowboys were there weeks ago

      October 19, 2008 /

      Wade PhillipsFor the second straight week, the Rams produced the upset of the day (or at least the upset of the early games) as they smoked the Cowboys 34-14 in St. Louis.

      While the Rams have been a nice story the past two weeks under interim head coach Jim Haslett, the story of this game has to be how out of sync Dallas looked offensively without Tony Romo (broken pinkie finger). Despite having a plethora of options in the passing game, Brad Johnson was absolutely brutal until late in the third quarter when the Rams’ defense was playing off the ball and allowed easy completions.

      What happened to “American’s Team?” They thumped the Packers in Green Bay and everyone said they were easily the best team in the NFC, if not in the NFL. But in hindsight, something that many overlooked was how bad the defense looked against the Eagles on Monday night in Week 2. Dallas was absolutely shredded and is a fumbled exchange between Donovan McNabb and Brian Westbrook away from being a .500 team. The warning signs were there, but people were so enamored with all of the individual talent Dallas had on offense that they overlooked the underlying issues on defense.

      The Cowboys obviously need a healthy Romo to get the offense back in sync. But more importantly, Wade Phillips needs to start making some wholesale changes on defense or else the ‘Boys won’t make the playoffs playing in a stacked NFC East.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

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