Every Monday, our very own DLamp will be taking a look at what just happened the day before in the NFL, and looking ahead to the Monday night game(s).
For every high, there must be an equally crushing low.
For every Cardinals fan who cheered when Dansby ran that ball in to ice the game, there was a Packers fan balling his/her eyes out.
And for every Bengals fan, like myself, who had high hopes going into Saturday’s games, there was a Jets fan who knew they were going to demolish my team. As Shank Graham’s second miss fell falcidly into the net, I ripped off my Chad Johnson jersey and threw it across the room. “F*ck this, let’s go outside and throw around a football”.
But I still love this game. Still love the thrill of catches (even there are few for my team DAMNIT PALMER WHY CAN’T YOU THROW ALL OF A SUDDEN?!) and the ‘oh!’ that emenates from the TV audience when someone uses the ‘hit stick’.
So for my terrible low of having my team eliminated, there is a high: more football to be played next weekend!
What caused Pete Carrol to turn pro?
To quote the great Krusty the Klown: “They drove a dumptruck of money up to my house!”. That, and he just wanted to pay his players for all their hard work…legally for once. But it really is a strange move. I mean, Pete was a demigod down in southern California (take it from someone who lives 5 miles from USC). He could (and did) do basically whatever he wanted, and all was good. He could recruit just about any high school player he wanted, and had a system set up to be successful for years. Now he is in charge of the Seahawks, which is a lot of work. He’s got to find a replacement for Hasselbeck who’s getting old/worn down. He’s got to replace Walter Jones’ hall of fame talent. And he’s got to fix the defense. But I guess all that work is worth it for a dumptruck full of money. (Note: if you haven’t seen it yet, check out this funny postgame satire Sanchez did of his former coach going pro.)
Why is this all falling on Donovan McNabb?
Because he’s the QB? Or because he’s black? Probably because he’s the QB, but I just wanted to get you ready for all the black QB talk that will be coming your way. Is it unfair? Probably. I mean, that defense gave up all those points to the Cowboys the last two weeks. The o-line allowed them to harrass McNabb all day. Andy Reid would rather eat a bucket of smelts than worry about clock management. But in the NFL, at the end of the day, all praise and ridicule falls onto the QB’s shoulders. Just ask McNabb’s opponent for the last two weeks, Tony Romo. The only difference is, most teams don’t have a very capable, younger option sitting on the bench. And I’m speaking of Kevin Kolb, not Mike Vick. Kolb looked really good filling in for McNabb when he was hurt (shocker!) earlier this season. At some point, McNabb is going to get shipped out much like Brees did for Rivers, or Favre did for Rodgers. It’s a part of the game. But these two losses to the Cowboys should not be the reason why. They should do it only if it gives the team a better chance of winning (either short or long term). And it has nothing to do with him being black.
Who does God love more: Breesus or his Disciple Warner?
That will be the big question this week, won’t it? Warner looked amazing this past week (it’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s…’99 Warner!) and we know the Saints are capable of putting up points with the best of them. So should we all buckle our seat belts for a nother shootout in the divisional round? Probably. People are talking about how the Saints D is better against the pass than the Packers D, but I’m not buying it. Do the Saints have anyone better than Charles Woodson? I think not. The Pack actually had a very good D all season, and they still got torched by ’99 Warner. If ’99 Warner shows up again, it doesn’t matter who’s on the other side, points is gon’ be scored! And you know who wins? Us, the football fans!
Out of the 8 remaining teams, what is the juciest Super Bowl matchup?
My, personal, vote is for SD and NO. Two teams that haven’t been to the big game in a long time (in the case of NO, never), and two QBs that were once on the same team. I’d love to hear all the talk about SD GM AJ Smith and his decision to let Brees go in favor for his young QB in Rivers. And hey, anytime we can get more Rivers on TV shooting lasers out of his eyes, I’m all for that. There are other intruiging matchups out there (Warner vs. Favre in The Old Man Bowl, Peyton vs. Favre in The Press Box Circle Jerk Bowl, or Romo vs. Sanchez in The Kinda Mexican Bowl) but I think the feel goodidness of NO making it plus the direct history between the two QBs really makes for the best drama.
Is Sanchez the new Joe Flacco?
Flacco, as a rookie, led his team to an unexpected conference championship birth last season, and now it appears Sanchez might be on the brink of that in his rookie campaign. But I’m not buying it. Yeah, the jets have a similar formula as the Ravens (great run game, stout defense, Rex Ryan) but I think they’re just getting lucky. They backed into the playoffs against two teams with nothing to play for, and then met a Bengals team that didn’t know what to do with their own success. I think that all adds up to the Jets falling to the Chargers this week. Sorry, “Sanchize”, maybe next year.
Fantasy Question of the Week
How does the top 10 of fantasy drafts shake up next year?
Here is my top 10, off the top of my head, not necessarily in order:
Peterson, Johnson (Chris), MJD, Rice, Benson, Gore, Turner, Jackson, Johnson (Andre), Williams
Think having DeAngelo at the end there is crazy? I don’t. Despite his injuries this year and the constant threat of Jonathan Stewart stealing carries, I still think he’s a top ten back.
Monday Night Playoff Sneak (Preview) Attack
Ari @ NO – Wow, it’s really hard to pick against AZ after ’99 Warner showed up last week. Especially after the Saints ran out of gas so badly at the end of the season. In fact, you know what, I’m not going to. Let’s see it Cardinals. Let’s see you shock the world once again. Pick: Cardinals
Bal @ Indy – Okay, enough of this upset business. Even though the Colts did their usual dance of resting starters that leads to early playoff exits, I like Peyton to end that trend against the Ravens this week. Pick: Colts
Dal @ Min – Dallas is the hot team right now (see: ’07 Giants, ’08 Cards, ’04 Steelers) so I’m going to pick them to pull off the upset of old man Favre this week. Pick: Cowboys
NYJ @ SD – I already said it above, I don’t think the Jets are as good as they’ve looked recently. Give me Marmalard and those skyscraping receivers ftw. Pick: Chargers
Playoff Prediction Record: 2-2