Bills 38 Raiders 35
-The Raiders had no business losing this game. The were up by three scores at half time and have an excellent rushing offense. Their defense just melted down in the second half of the game, letting the Bills score on all five of their second half possessions, while the offense stalled until they were forced to place catch-up. This Raiders team has talent, but they have to get better at closing out football games. They had similar problems last season.
-I don't know if this Bills team is going to be any good this year. They have good signs with their passing offense, but the quality of their opponents makes them look like they might be an empty calorie 2-0 team. This week's game against the Patriots is sure to be a solid litmus test.
Packers 30 Panthers 23
-The Packers got unlucky to start this game off, but then turned in two and a half quarters of dominance before letting the Panthers make the score close during garbage time in the fourth quarter. This team is elite, and showed it by fighting back and winning a game where they fumbled their first kickoff and went right down 10-0.
-The Panthers looked good early, but the Packers really put the clamps down on Cam Newton during the middle of the game. After starting out 10/12 with a touchdown in the first quarter, he proceeded to follow that with 7/17 performance with three picks in quarters two and three before the game was out of reach. The Panthers might have some hype right now and will probably beat Jacksonville next week, but the schedule gets much tougher from there.
Lions 48 Chiefs 3
-The Lions are an offensive juggernaut right now. Matthew Stafford seems to be fulfilling his promise here in his third season, and Megatron remains uncoverable. As long as no one gets injured, this Detroit team can score with anyone.
-The Detroit defense looked good here, but don't overstate the results. This Kansas City team is having all sorts of problems right now, and when Jamaal Charles got hurt early in that game, it was basically all over.
-The Chiefs season is over. They have lost three of their best players for the season already, and didn't have an abundance of good players to begin with. They already had a difficult schedule to overcome heading into this season, but it's basically a lost season now. Todd Haley will be lucky to have a job by week twelve.
Browns 27 Colts 19
-The Browns should have done a better job in this game on Sunday. They matched up well against the Peyton Manning-less Colts and should have had no problem dominating this game on the ground. Instead, Peyton Hillis was held to just 94 yards on 27 carries for just a 3.5 yards per carry average. This isn't a good sign for the Browns, as the Colts aren't any good this season.
-The Colts looked better on Sunday, but still aren't any good without Peyton Manning. Kerry Collins just isn't an adequate replacement. Manning covered up numerous holes on this Colts team.
Buccaneers 24 Vikings 20
-The Vikings should have won this game, but they didn't have enough offensive success to hold onto this game in the second half. The running game is quality, but Donovan McNabb and the passing offense don't look good at all.
-The Buccaneers showed heart by coming back to win this game in the second half. They did a much better job of running the ball in the second half and getting to the ground and pound offense they need to commit to with LeGarrette Blount to help open up their passing attack.
Saints 30 Bears 13
-The Saints offense was too much too fast for the Bears, and they managed to score 30 on the way to the win. Drew Brees and company look to be in tip top shape here early on even without Marques Colston. Darren Sproles has done a better job than Reggie Bush did here in Sproles' first season.
-The Bears offense had one of their horrible protection games, with starter Lance Louis out to start the game and Gabe Carimi going down midgame. Mike Martz refused to change his game plane even though he was without his offensive starters, and proceeded to have Cutler drop back to throw 52 times, while calling just eleven rushes. Martz should get a stern talking to from Lovie Smith this week and run the ball more next week at home against the Packers.
Jets 32 Jaguars 3
-This game went exactly as you would predict. The Luke McCown led Jaguars were unable to move the ball against the Jets and their excellent defense, while the Jacksonville defense couldn't overcome horrible field position all night against an average Jet offense. Not much analysis to deliver here.
Steelers 24 Seahawks 0
-Speaking of not much analysis. You never want to into Pittsburgh the week after they get embarrassed. Especially if you are starting Tarvaris Jackson at quarterback. That's all there is to say here.
Titans 26 Ravens 13
-This is going to be one of the two games I watch on Game Rewind this week, and I don't understand how this game turned out the way it did. The Titans would win games like this against better teams occasionally when Jeff Fisher was the coach, but I figured that might stop happening after all the turnover on the roster and the coaching staff. I'm going to have to see if it was one of those games for the Titans, or if the Ravens shot themselves in the foot on this one.
Redskins 22 Cardinals 21
-This was a game with a deceivingly close final score compared to the way it was played. The Redskins moved the ball up and down the field, but shot themselves in the foot over and over in Arizona territory. The Cardinals on the other hand, scored three touchdowns, but two of them came on drives that lasted a combined total of three plays. They didn't sustain drives most of the game, and just hit a few big plays on the way to their scores. The game should have been far less interesting based on the way the offenses performed.
-Neither of these teams is really any good anyway, and while the game was close, I'm not sure either team is going to make a big impact this year. The Cardinals do have a leg up on the rest of the NFC West already though, as they have two out of divisional wins.
Cowboys 27 49ers 24
-Hate to admit it, but I was impressed with Tony Romo on Sunday, especially when it came out on Monday that he was playing with a cracked rib and a punctured lung. Gutty performance, but it is going to be tough to repeat later in the season. The Redskins next week should do a better job that the 49ers on the defensive side of the football.
-If the 49ers are going to win more games this season, its going to be necessary for them to get Frank Gore going in that offense. He's their best offensive player easily, and they need to rely on him, not Alex Smith, to keep the offense in motion.
Broncos 24 Bengals 22
-This game was closer than it should have been because of the Broncos injuries at receiver. They got far enough down the depth chart that Tim Tebow was playing receiver, and that should tell you all you need to know about the day's events.
-That said, The Broncos almost lost this game. Andy Dalton was moving the Bengals offense effectively and A.J. Green showed why he was the first receiver off the board in this years NFL Draft. The Bengals offense might be better sooner than anyone expected.
Texans 23 Dolphins 13
-The Texans looked strong again here Sunday, even though they were without the services of All-Pro back Arian Foster for most of the day. The passing game does a great job moving the ball up and down the field with an Andre Johnson focused passing attack, and the offensive line does a great job opening holes no matter who the running back is.
-I thought the Dolphins would be better this year, but their young corners seem to have taken a step back this season. The pass defense just hasn't been good, and the offense has had major issues with putting points on the board after they move the ball. They can still turn it around, as their schedule starts to get easier from here.
Patriots 35 Chargers 21
-The Patriots offense was excellent once again, but the story of this game is really that the Chargers turned the ball over three times in the Patriots' 35 yard-line. It should have been a much closer game, but the Chargers failed to punch the ball into the endzone when they had the chance, and you just can't do that against the Patriots and their offensive juggernaut right now.
Falcons 35 Eagles 31
-The story that is being taken away from this game is that the Falcons won because Michael Vick got injured, but that wasn't entirely the case. The Falcons moved the ball efficiently on their last two drives to get themselves the points they needed to win the football game. They had a good game plan, using their tight end and running backs to attack the Eagles' weaknesses away from their cornerbacks. The Falcons are going to keep winning games this season.
-The Eagles offense looked good again with Vick on the field, but once he was gone, the offense went down the tubes. If he's gone for an extended period of time here, they are going to have major problems down the line.
Giants 28 Rams 16
-This is the other game I'm going to be watching on Game Rewind, as I'm going to be charting it for the guys over at Football Outsiders. I've already watched it once, but I'll really be able to dive into the game as i watch it to chart it, and will write a bigger blog post about the game later in the week.
That's it for now guys. Hopefully I'll have more coming tomorrow in the form of at least one game rewind as i also work on my week three fantasy rankings.
-Fred "Big Derf" Tobin
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