A few thoughts on the NFL
Surprises: I don’t think that anybody at the beginning of the season would have told you that the Tennessee Titans would be as dominating as they are. The Tennessee Titans are a complete team and are a much better team with Kerry Collins as quarterback. Vince Young is riding the bench after some “problems.” This team is so much better with Young sitting instead of playing. Surprised?
I have no idea what happened to the San Diego Chargers. I don’t know whether it is the coaching change with Norv Turner as head coach, but they have a solid quarterback in Philip Rivers and an all-world running back in LT . Their hard-nosed defense that was a signature of the team two or three years ago has completely evaporated.
The Arizona Cardinals are playing some really good football. Yes, the Arizona Cardinals are playing good football. I don’t think I’ve ever said that before in my life. Kurt Warner is playing like he did 10 years ago. He is the key to their very potent offense. They have two excellent wide receivers. Steve Breaston, their third wide receiver, is catching everything thrown to him and Tim Hightower is playing some solid football as running back. He has replaced Edgerrin James as the starting running back. Their defense is just okay, but when you have a potent offense, okay can get you deep into the playoffs.
The New York Jets are also playing some actually fabulous football with the addition of Brett Favre. Okay, fabulous is probably an overstatement, but their defense and now their offense are both solid. Their offense is not spectacular. Maybe sometime in the future it will be spectacular, but right now it is at least solid. They have an excellent opportunity to make the play-offs.
I guess I have to add the Indianapolis Colts to this list of surprises. I think everybody expected them to be one of the best teams in the league. Marvin Harrison is still recovering from his knee injury and doesn’t have the explosiveness that he used to have. At the beginning of the season, Peyton Manning was still recovering from his own knee injury. With their offense struggling as it is, though, the Indianapolis Colts simply don’t have the defense to dominate a game. Their offense has clearly played better the last three games.
Finally, I have to include my Dallas Cowboys. I’ve talked about the Dallas Cowboys often on this blog. Their offensive line is terrible. The Cowboys’ defense is completely unable to stop the run. Because the offense has been anemic, they’re on the field too often. The secondary, without Roy Williams and Terence Newman, has been nothing short of awful. They have to put it together now in order to save the season.
No surprise: The New York Giants are playing like they never have the summer off. They’re playing the same type of dominating football that they played throughout the playoffs. They are the most dominant team in the NFL.
The Baltimore Ravens and the Pittsburgh Steelers are playing the type of hard-nosed, run-oriented football that we expected. Both have outstanding defenses. They’ll be on the hunt for the Super Bowl down the stretch.
