Just like last week, here are 20 football impressions from this weekend and going forward:
20. As proven by the Bills benching EJ Manuel and going and getting Kyle Orton, Manuel is not the answer to Buffalo's problems...and by the way, Kyle Orton is not the answer either. Orton is a journeyman throughout his career and always will be.
Oh and Texans fans, don't be fooled by that win Sunday, Fitzpatrick still sucks. If he's the answer at QB then I don't want to know what the question is.
19. Good Lord the Raiders are bad. The Dolphins aren't all that good and the Raiders still blew them out. Do the Raiders even pretend to try anymore?
18. Steve Smith Sr. torches the Panthers after they cut him and the Ravens send the Panthers limping back home. You know what they say about revenge...a dish best served cold.
17. Bridgewater played a good game on Sunday and Minnesota beat Atlanta, but let's see how he does when he plays a few games and teams get film on him.
16. Speaking of Atlanta...and New Orleans...can EITHER of these teams win outside their domed stadiums? Sure doesn't seem like it.
15. People mouthing off about Aaron Rodgers not having it anymore and the Packers maybe not being the same team that they have been...what does 38-17 over Cutler and a trendy Bears team tell you?
14. Nebraska readers, please cut the crap about how the four letter network hates Nebraska just because they aren't going to MSU for GameDay (they are going to Bama/Ole Miss even though I might have picked LSU/Auburn for the GD spot also). That's a load of bollocks. I like Mike Welch and was listening to Drop the Mike on 93.7 The Ticket out of Lincoln this afternoon...enough with the BS about how ESPN hates Nebraska, Mike. What exactly has Nebraska proven over the first five games to say they are worthy of a GameDay spot?
I will never understand the dislike Nebraska fans have for Herbstreit either. That's still alive and well Sure, he miffed Nebraska fans during that best team ever show years ago to get a reaction. So what? It's been seven years, get over it already. It's not like Nebraska has given him anything positive to talk about.
13. That said, Ed Cunningham is one of the worst football analysts on television. Straight up. This guy said that Minnesota is a favorite to win the Big 10 West on Saturday. That makes me heartily chuckle.
12. Michigan's firing of Brady Hoke I am sure cannot come soon enough for most Michigan fans. I know a couple of Detroit connections and Michigan fans have about had it with him. He gets Michigan better than Rich Rod did, but that said he isn't doing anything with his recruits even though he gets them to Ann Arbor.
11. Pittsburgh is the most schizo team in the National Football League. Beat Cleveland, play terrible against Baltimore. Beat Carolina, then somehow lose to Tampa Bay with Mike Glennon at the controls.
10. A big surprise for the Huskers to me has been the re-emergence of an offensive line that is actually blocking for our running game. Ameer is putting up the huge numbers, but his o-line is doing a lot of the work. They will, however, face a much stiffer test against the Spartans on Saturday. Chances are if Nebraska is even or better in turnover margin they have a good chance to win...only lost three times in the Pelini era in that scenario (Texas 2009 CCG, Northwestern 2011, UCLA 2013).
9. I think for the first time possibly ever, Father Time might be catching up on Brees. That's a team he normally owns, the Cowboys, but he did absolutely nothing except for a five minute stretch in the early part of the fourth quarter.
8. San Francisco 26, Philadelphia 21, but Philly really got dominated for much of that game. They didn't even score an offensive touchdown, gave up 407 total yards and didn't have a single play in the Niners end of the field for much of that game. The Niners began to maybe show flashes of the team they still could be.
7. FSU beat NC State coming from behind, but I'm not all that impressed with them quite yet. This does not look like the same Florida State team as last season. They can be had by somebody before the season ends (Notre Dame possibly in a couple weeks).
6. Arkansas should never have lost that game against A&M. Somehow, Arkansas secondary lets not one but TWO huge plays in the fourth quarter get behind them. That should be the first rule defensively in playing with a lead...NO big plays over the top.
This begins a brutal stretch for A&M...that game begins a stretch of four straight games vs SEC West opponents (at Mississippi State this week, Ole Miss at home the week after and then at Bama).
5. Ole Miss is by far the most overrated team in the top 10...in the top 20 for that matter. A prime example of why polls until the middle of October are beyond stupid. They only were ahead of Memphis 7-3 entering the fourth quarter and 10-3 with 9:34 left. For that matter, they only pulled away from BSU late and BSU isn't very good either. I'm not completely sold on Nebraska's team quite yet, but I know this; I'd take us to beat Ole Miss.
4. Texas beat an awful Kansas team 23-0, has Baylor this week and suddenly John Harris of UT has the nerve to pop off about Baylor who has beat them three of the last four years. Check out this quote, "I mean, they're still Baylor." He then went on to say, we are who we are, we're still Texas, yada yada yada.
Normally I let Longhorn attitude and arrogance roll off my back and it's not even newsworthy to me simply because that's who they are, and they'll never ever change but this makes me laugh. Sure, John...you're still Texas, they're still Baylor, and you've lost three of the last four years to Baylor. In my world, you win on the field before you run your mouth. Considering that Charlie Strong enforces discipline whenever someone doesn't play by his rules, I'm sure he is not amused.
3. Speaking of Kansas, Charlie Weis gets canned. Talk about a revolving door. Turner Gill lasted just two years there (absolute disaster), and now Weis doesn't even make it through season three (disaster #2).
2. Last week, I sort of laughed at how Jerry Jones was popping off about the Cowboys good start. This is no laughing matter now because they absolutely mugged the Saints from the word go last night. I think for those who watched that game last night, what they found is what I've said last week, Dallas has its best offensive line in years. That's what happens when you have three offensive linemen starting who were drafted in the first round.
Now what happens is that Tony Romo has much less of a chance of getting creamed on every play, DeMarco Murray has much less of a chance of getting hurt either and their offense is rolling. Are they really a Super Bowl contender...probably not, but they are definitely overachieving.
1. Logic would say Brady wins tonight, but going back to that whole offensive line thing, his offensive line is terrible. That's not a good recipe in such a hostile environs like Arrowhead, you have to be a cohesive offensive line to be able to function in that building where you can't hear anything. In addition, the Chiefs have Tamba Hali and Dontari Poe who can relentlessly pressure Brady and force him into mistakes. The Chiefs also get a boost tonight because Jamaal Charles is apparently probable. I say Kansas City wins tonight.
Until next time....
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