FRO's NFL Performance Rankings week 6

FRO's NFL Performance Rankings week 6
By Jon Wagner, Sr. Writer At-Large

While there are many power rankings out there based as much on hype, expectations, and too often, unrealized and inaccurate projections, at Football Reporters Online, we prefer to rank NFL teams on what's actually happened, taking into account only how teams have performed on the field and who they’ve played. At F.R.O., you won’t find yet another power ranking that doesn’t tell you much. Instead, here are the F.R.O. NFL Performance Rankings:

Week 6:


THE ELITE:

#1 NEW ORLEANS 5-0 -- Week 6: Beat NY Giants, 48-27
Drew Brees toyed with the Giants’ top-ranked pass defense, looking like he was having a simple game of catch in the backyard with Marques Colston and Lance Moore. With Brees leading the way, the Saints lead the league with a very impressive 38.4 points and 430.0 total yards per game.

#2 INDIANAPOLIS 5-0 +1 Week 6: Bye
The Giants’ loss is the Colts’ gain, as they enjoy their Week 6 bye moving up one, to number 2. The latest of Peyton Manning’s five straight 300-yard games to start the season, has the Colts rolling since a comeback win in Miami. And, the Colts are not just about Manning and the offense. Indianapolis ranks second, allowing just 14.2 points per game.

#3 DENVER 6-0 +1 Week 6: Won at San Diego, 34-23
The Broncos weren’t legit after the fluke win in Cincinnati. They weren’t for real after beating up on Cleveland and Oakland. Well, no one is saying that anymore after home wins over New England and Dallas, and wining in San Diego on Monday Night Football. So far, Josh McDaniels has proved a lot of people wrong doing it his way, with his system, without Jay Cutler, and with Kyle Orton, who is 27-12 as a starter. Denver is allowing a league-low 11.0 points per game.

#4 MINNESOTA 6-0 +1 Week 6: Beat Baltimore, 33-31
Minnesota could easily have two home losses already in their first three home games, but as they did against the 49ers, the Vikings pulled one out late against the Ravens to remain as one of only four unbeatens left. It’s going to be difficult to keep the record unblemished with a pair of tough roads tests coming up in Pittsburgh followed by Brett Favre’s homecoming to Lambeau.

#5 NY GIANTS 5-1 -3 Week 6: Lost at New Orleans, 48-27
New York’s ride against the bottom feeders of the NFL ended with an abrupt wake-up call. The Giants still rank first in overall defense and against the pass, but they looked just the opposite in New Orleans. They still luck out however, maintaining a two-game lead in the NFC East, thanks to the Eagles stubbing their toe in Oakland.

SECOND-TIER CONTENDERS:

#6 ATLANTA 4-1 +1 Week 6: Beat Chicago, 21-14
The Falcons look nearly unbeatable at home even though the Bears played them tough. So far, only one bad effort, at New England. Otherwise, Atlanta has looked sharp on both sides of the ball with a stout defense, and a nice run/pass balance offensively.

#7 PITTSBURGH 4-2 +3 Week 6: Won at Detroit, 28-20
After letting a couple of games get away late in Chicago and Cincinnati, the defending champs have righted the ship with three solid wins in a row.

#8 NEW ENGLAND 4-2 +4 Week 6: Beat Tennessee, 59-0
59-0?!? 45-0 at halftime?!? A records five TD passes for Brady in the second quarter?!? 619 yards of offense?!? And, all in the snow, no less? It looks like Brady has answered the questions of what might have been wrong with him after losses to the Jets and Broncos. The Titans are awful, but the Pats look like they’re finally playing up to their high pre-season expectations.

#9 CINCINNATI 4-2 -3 Week 6: Lost to Houston, 28-17
After five games going down to the wire including three wins in the final 22 seconds, there was no comeback this time, as Houston’s Matt Schaub lit the Bengals up for 4 TD’s and 392 yards. Not a huge surprise since Houston’s offense is dangerous. The area of concern is that Cincinnati’s offense was supposed to be equally dangerous, but couldn’t keep up. And now, Antwan Odom, with the second most sacks (8) in the league, is out for the year with a hurt Achilles tendon.

#10 ARIZONA 3-2 +5 Week 6: Won at Seattle, 27-3
The Cardinals move up by five spots for the second straight week. After a slow start, Kurt Warner has regained his old form, and no one in the league stops the run better than Arizona’s defense which has surrendered just 59.6 rushing yards per game.

#11 CHICAGO 3-2 -2 Week 6: Lost at Atlanta, 21-14
The Bears have played pretty well overall, sandwiching their three wins in between a couple of tough losses on Sunday Night Football in Green Bay and Atlanta.

#12 SAN FRANCISCO 3-2 -5 Week 6: Bye
The Niners started strong, very nearly going 4-0 while barely losing in Minnesota. However, the 35-point home loss to the Falcons was a big red flag. We’ll find out soon if the bye week helps San Francisco regroup, as they resume with a couple of tough ones on the road, at Houston and at Indianapolis.

#13 PHILADELPHIA 3-2 -5 Week 6: Lost at Oakland, 13-9
Despite their winning record, the Eagles have a lot yet to prove, having beaten up badly on some of the league’s weaker teams (Carolina, Kansas City, and Tampa Bay), while losing to another one of those teams (Oakland) and getting crushed by the one good team they’ve played (New Orleans).

MIRED IN MEDIOCRITY:

#14 BALTIMORE 3-3 -1 Week 6: Lost at Minnesota, 33-31
It’s been a strange season thus far for the Ravens. Usually known for their defense, they allowed a lot of yardage early on, starting undefeated by scoring over 30 points in each of their first three games. Since then, they’ve lost three games by a total of only 11 points, including the last two in the final couple of minutes by a combined five points.

#15 GREEN BAY 3-2 +3 Week 6: Beat Detroit, 26-0
The Packers can be good if they can keep Aaron Rodgers upright. Thus far, they’ve allowed a league-high 25 sacks, many of which were a huge factor in their only two losses this season (to Cincinnati and at Minnesota).

#16 DALLAS 3-2 -- Week 6: Bye
Despite three wins, the Cowboys actually looked their best in a loss to the Giants. Romo has been struggling with T.O. gone, and all three wins are against weak competition (Tampa Bay, Carolina, and Kansas City –- who Dallas needed, not T.O. but OT, to beat).

#17 NY JETS 3-3 -6 Week 6: Lost to Buffalo, 16-13 (OT)
The early season bloom has come off the rose for both Mark Sanchez and Rex Ryan, who have recently looked like the rookies they are. The Jets’ results mirror the Ravens, only a little worse. After three impressive wins to start the season, everything has turned around with three straight losses, and two of those were against losing teams (Miami and Buffalo) within the division.

#18 HOUSTON 3-3 +3 Week 6: Won at Cincinnati, 28-17
Inconsistency, thy name is the Houston Texans. So far this year: Loss, Win, Loss, Win, Loss, Win. After a slow start, Matt Schaub and the Houston offense have found their rhythm. If the defense can now join them on a more regular basis, the Texans might get out of their pattern and actually string two or three wins together.

#19 JACKSONVILLE 3-3 +3 Week 6: Beat St. Louis, 23-20 (OT)
The Jags have been tough to figure out. They play the Colts tough on the road, then lay an egg at home against Arizona. They get a huge win in Houston and take care of the hapless Titans easily, but they get then get blown away in Seattle and need OT to beat the lowly Rams. So, far it’s all added up to .500, which is better than many preseason expectations.

#20 SAN DIEGO 2-3 -3 Week 6: Lost to Denver, 34-23
The Chargers defense and special teams have let them down. An average of 17.5 points per game allowed in their two wins, but 31, 38, and 34 points, for an average of 34.3 points allowed per game in three losses.

#21 MIAMI 2-3 -2 Week 6: Bye
Lose one Chad and start 0-3? No problem. Try another Chad, unleash the wildcat, win 2 straight, save the season, head into the bye week, and all’s fine again. Not so fast. Look who’s coming to town next: New Orleans. Expect a heavy dose of the wildcat aimed at keeping Brees off the field.


LOOKING TOWARD THE 2010 DRAFT:

#22 SEATTLE 2-4 -2 Week 6: Lost to Arizona, 27-3
There’s no truth to the rumor of the Seahawks petitioning the league to play St. Louis and Jacksonville only. Seattle beat those two by a combined 69-0. Against others, they’ve been outscored 109-49.

#23 CAROLINA 2-3 -- Week 6: Won at Tampa Bay, 28-21
Competition makes all the difference in the NFL. Start 0-3 playing Philadelphia and traveling to Atlanta and Dallas? No problem, play Washington and Tampa Bay. They may not play like NFL-caliber teams, but the NFL still counts them as NFL wins.

#24 BUFFALO 2-4 +4 Week 6: Won at NY Jets, 16-13 (OT)
The Bills exposed Mark Sanchez, picking him five times. As bas as Buffalo has been at times (see the brutal Cleveland loss), they’re probably one late fumble in New England away from being 3-3 and 2-1 in the AFC East. T.O. has yet to be the factor the Bills hoped he would become for them.

#25 WASHINGTON 2-4 -1 Week 6: Lost to Kansas City, 14-6
How bad is the Redskins’ offense? Well, they became the first team to play six consecutive winless teams, and they are still only 2-4, with only a 2-point win over the Rams and a 3-point win over the Bucs. You must find a way to score points in the NFL, and as well Jim Zorn did that in the other Washington (as a quarterback in Seattle), he hasn’t figured out a way to get the Washington in D.C. to even come close to accomplishing the same yet.

#26 KANSAS CITY 1-5 +4 Week 6: Won at Washington, 14-6
The Chiefs finally got a win over… who else? The aforementioned Redskins. Although they’re one game worse than Oakland and lost to the Raiders at home, they get rated a notch higher since they have played better than Oakland overall during the first six weeks, and should have beat the Raiders after statistically dominating them.

#27 OAKLAND 2-4 +2 Week 6: Beat Philadelphia, 13-9
The Raiders can be respectable. They played San Diego tough, and should have beaten them. Although the Chiefs badly outplayed them, they somehow found a way to win. And, they shocked the Eagles at home, although the offense struggled again. But, when the Raiders are bad, they’re horrible. Prior to the win over Philly, they lost three straight games by 20, 26, and 37.

#28 CLEVELAND 1-5 -3 Week 6: Lost at Pittsburgh, 27-14
The Browns won by default in a 6-3 game in Buffalo in which their punter was the game’s MVP. Other than that, they’ve been pretty bad all around, although they’ve generally hung in most losses a little better than the next four teams…

#29 DETROIT 1-5 -3 Week 6: Lost at Green Bay, 26-0
The Lions have allowed a league-high 188 points while beating only the Redskins (which says more about the state of pro football in D.C. that it does about Detroit turning things around any time soon). The ineptitude in the Motor City has now reached 20 losses in 21 games, but hey, at least they can’t go 0-16 again, like last year.

#30 TENNESSEE 0-6 -3 Week 6: Lost at New England, 59-0
How can a team fall so far, so fast? From an NFL-best 13-3 last season to winless and a 59-0 utter embarrassment in the snow up in Foxborough. The Titans are now allowing league-highs 33 points and 405.7 yards per game and seem to have simply quit on head coach Jeff Fisher, who seems to have lost it, donning a Peyton Manning jersey for a charity fundraiser, saying he “just wanted to feel like to be a winner.” At this rate, he may not get the chance, as that stunt has backfired with Titans fans (even though they’re overreacting), and he could be let go before Tennessee can muster their first win. The only reason the Titans are not last (and they may yet end up there very soon), is that they were very competitive while losing three tough games to start the season, before the three horrific efforts that followed.

#31 ST.LOUS RAMS 0-6 +1 Week 6: Lost at Jacksonville, 23-20 (OT)
For the longest period this season, the Rams have been the NFL’s worst team overall, and easily the league’s most offensively challenged team, scoring just 54 points this year. But, they move out of the cellar this week for at least giving Jacksonville an overtime scare on Sunday, while Tampa Bay…

#32 TAMPA BAY 0-6 -1 Week 6: Lost to Carolina, 28-21
Can’t get out of its own way. The Bucs were more competitive against Carolina but they haven’t been in all of their other games aside from a close loss in Washington. Losing their past 10 games dating back to last season, the bumbling Bucs are in the midst of their longest losing streak since 1977, when they were in the middle of their NFL-record 26-game losing streak. Let’s hope Tampa at least gets a win or two before the current streak repeats itself like that.

FRO's FAVORITE FIVE Top Five NFL Moments - Week 6

FRO's FAVORITE FIVE
Top Five NFL Moments - Week 6
by Jon Wagner, Sr. Writer-At Large, Football Reporters Online


HONORABLE MENTION: RAIDERS’ SECRET WEAPON ON KICKOFF COVERAGE? PIGEON POWER!

If they weren’t so embarrassed as 14-point favorites losing to the lowly Raiders, the Philadelphia Eagles might consider protesting their loss in Oakland since the Raiders weren’t flagged for having 12 men… well, make that the usual 11 men… and one pigeon... on kickoff coverage in the fourth quarter. So, the Eagles not only lose one to bad team they should have beaten easily, but a fellow winged creature turns on them. You just can’t make it up. Really, you can’t. Here’s the clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2msmYpNXic

#5: SCHUAB MAKES SURE BENGALS CAN’T STEAL ANOTHER ONE
All five of the Cincinnati Bengals’ games this season had gone down to the wire this season, and the Bengals had pulled four of them out of the fire, including three in the final 22 seconds, for wins. Houston Texans quarterback Matt Schaub made sure that wouldn’t happen again. Schaub passed the Texans from a 17-14 halftime deficit to a 28-17 lead with a pair of third quarter touchdowns, as the Houston defense then held on to win by the same score. Schaub finished a great day completing 28 of 40 passes for 392 yards, while throwing 4 touchdowns and just one interception.

#4: EDDIE GIVES DENVER TEAMMATES HIS ROYAL TREAMENT
He did it so well the first time, Eddie Royal provided an encore a quarter later. After a 93-yard kickoff return gave Denver a 7-3 first-quarter lead, Royal returned a punt 71 yards a quarter later, to put Denver up 17-10 in San Diego, making him the 11th player in NFL history and the first Bronco ever to return both a kickoff and punt for a touchdown in the same game. The Chargers would regain the lead, 20-17, on what else, a kick return –- a 77-yard punt return by Darren Sproles with 1:03 left in the half. But, Kyle Orton’s two second-half touchdowns keyed a 34-23 comeback win to keep the surprising Broncos undefeated at 6-0.

#3: CARDS STYMIE SEAHAWKS IN SEATTLE

Last week, Seattle Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck made the number 5 spot on this list for his great performance at home against Jacksonville. A week later, he’s on the list for helping the Arizona Cardinals defense make themselves feel at home in Seattle. After averaging 29.3 points per game at home (in three previous home games), Seattle was held to just three points in an easy 27-3 Arizona rout. The Cardinals held the Seahawks to just 7 first downs all game, while allowing only 128 total yards, including just 14 rushing yards on 11 carries, and 114 passing yards, and forcing two turnovers (a fumble and an interception). A week after directing a 41-0 win over the Jaguars, Hasselbeck was limited to just 10 of 29 for 112 yards.


#2: FEELIN’ BREESY IN THE BIG EASY

True, the New York Giants’ secondary was depleted by injuries, but New Orleans Saints’ quarterback Drew Brees was very impressive, going 23 of 30 for 369 yards, 4 touchdowns and no turnovers in a 48-27 thrashing of the G-Men in the Big Easy. Brees did pretty much whatever he wanted to do against the Giants’ ineffective two-deep zone, leading New Orleans to 34 points and 315 yards by halftime against a New York unit that came to The Superdome ranked easily as the NFL’s top defense. After directing a game-opening 15-play touchdown drive, Brees completed all six of his passes on a 6-play, 80 yard touchdown drive on the Saints’ next possession, en route to a near-perfect 17 of 20 for 247 yards and 3 TD’s by halftime. Brees made it look effortless, like a kid quarterback playing touch football in the street, all day long.


#1: BRADY’S SNOWY, RECORD-SETTING SECOND QUARTER

Whether or not the Tennessee Titans, as it seems, have simply quit on the season, and whether the weather –- as in early season snow in October in Foxborough -- had a lot to do with it, New England Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady was about as good as any passer could be on Sunday. Check out THIS stat line: 29-34, 380, 6 TD, 0 INT, 152.8 passer rating. Now consider that Brady didn’t even play the final 25 minutes of the game. As close to flawless as his overall performance was, that’s not the reason alone that the Patriots’ superstar earned the top spot for the Week 6 Favorite Five. No, it was because of a different five –- as in establishing a new NFL record for touchdown passes in a single quarter. Yes, five times in the second quarter, in the snow, no less, Brady threw a pass that a Patriot receiver took to the end zone for a score: first, a 40-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Randy Moss; back to Moss 57 seconds later on a 28-yard score; 2:39 after that, a 38-yard TD pass to running back Kevin Faulk; 4:27 later, a 30-yard strike to wide receiver Wes Welker; and finally, 1:41 later, a 5-yard touchdown toss, again, to Welker. A 35-0 quarter and a 45-0 Patriots halftime lead… wait, that’s worth repeating, since it now marks the biggest halftime lead in NFL history! … FORTY-FIVE TO NOTHING… AT HALFTIME! The game ended as a FIFTY-NINE TO NOTHING Patriots’ beatdown of the Titans. Amazing. This isn’t a college football mismatch on the schedule! THAT’S where you see 45-0 at the half and a 59-0 final (which tied the largest margin of victory since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970; the Los Angeles Rams beat the Atlanta Falcons by the same score in 1976 … You just NEVER see a blowout to this degree in the NFL. In fact, you have to go back to 1920, when a team like the Rochester Jeffersons beat a squad called Fort Porter 66-0 to have seen a whopping worse than this. Just incredible. Even more so since the Titans were 13-3 last year. From that, to 0-6 and a 59-0 loss. Wow. Here are some other impressive facts and figures on the Pats’ utter dominance… Brady’s 6 TD’s tied his own Patriots’ record… New England possessed the ball for 18 more minutes, an even 39 minutes to Tennessee’s 21… After a missed field goal on their first possession of the game, the Patriots scored on their next nine. They scored a touchdown followed by a field goal in the first quarter, and then scored touchdowns on all seven times they had the ball in the middle two quarters. In the fourth quarter, New England lost the ball on downs at the Tennessee 6 and on its last drive, at the Titans’ 41 after going a 4-yard rush and three kneel-downs by backup quarterback Brian Hoyer. So yes, it was 59-0, and it still could have been much worse… Now, here’s the real amazing thing about Brady’s performance (as if a 5-touchdown quarter wasn’t enough). Even in a game that was so lopsided, the Titans actually matched the Patriots in one of the most key statistical categories: each team rushed the ball for 193 yards (Tennessee on 36 rushes, New England on 30 carries); and the Titans had 6 rushing first downs to the Patriots’ 9. The difference though, which helped to account for a Patriots’ club record 619 total yards, was the in the passing game, led by Brady: New England had 21 passing first down to just one for Tennessee, while the Patriots outgained the Titans 426 to -7 (no, that’s not a typo with an extra character, that’s a MINUS 7 passing yards for Tennessee). Just one more number from this game that’s hard to believe.

AFC South Wrap Up Week 6

                       AFC South Wrap Up Week 6
 
By Rafael Garcia
Sr. Contributing Writer Football Reporters Online
Southeast Region
 
Houston 28 Cincinnati 17
In the NFL a lot of us try to find a reason why our team is not playing well. We all know they have to have certain components that work together and believe in each other. When the chips are down and they are not in sync all you need is a good quarterback to right the ship. Matt Schaub is becoming one of those quarterbacks. In a season where the job of the head coach and status of some players are in question, Schaub is maturing before our eyes. When his running game was not working he was just fabulous. He was 28-40 for 392 yards and four touchdowns with a passer rating of 124.2 with one interception. Andre Johnson caught eight passes for 135 yards and Owen Daniels had seven for 78 yards and two touchdowns. While Steve Slayton was held to 43 yards on the ground, he chipped in with 102 receiving yards on six catches, one for a touchdown. The defense was also huge in posting their third straight shutdown of the run game. Last week Cedric Benson ran wild on the Ravens but this week was held to 44 yards on 16 carries with a touchdown. In the past three weeks the run defense has given up 44, 45 and 46 yards respectively. They are playing lights out and are led by the likes of DeMeco Ryans (12 tackles), Brian Cushing (three forced turnovers, including a pick late). Next week they host the Niners and are looking to get to 2-2 at home.
 
Jacksonville 23 St. Louis 20
After getting stomped by Seattle 41-0 last week the Jags came back with a purpose. Maurice Jones-Drew ran a career-best 33 times for 133 yards and three touchdowns. Mike Sims-Walker was benched last week for curfew violation and came back with 120 receiving yards of his own. David Garrard looked sharp finishing 30-43 for 335 yards but he was picked off twice and sacked three times. It was said that Jones-Drew had expressed his displeasure with the play calling. So if he wanted the ball more he got it in a big way. At halftime he had only 11 yards but got 122 more in the second half. The Rams stayed in the game despite all that effort from Jacksonville as Marc Bulger was back after missing two weeks. He went 22-30 for 213 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Torry Holt was playing his first game against the Rams and had 101 yards receiving. Steven Jackson had 128 yards rushing and receiving. But in the end, it came down to a Josh Scobee field goal with eight minutes left, and the Jags found themselves at 3-3 with Houston. They must still play with more consistency because you cannot stay in playoff contention losing big one week and winning the next. What happened against the Seahawks and then the Rams happens all too often to this team and they must find a way to string a couple of consecutive wins together. 
 
New England 59 Tennessee 0
Yes sir you read that correctly. This was not a test or a rehearsal for the Titans. They showed the kind of ineptitude that has not been seen in this league In quite some time. Players were playing as if they were disinterested or were on the sidelines laughing It up with one another. The lack of pass coverage brings up questions about the coaching. Kerry Collins flat out stunk up the joint. Yes I know that receivers are dropping passes too but at some point It has to fall on the leader of the team. Collins was a miserable 2-12 for -7 yards folks. Chris Johnson actually had over 100 yards rushing but so what. They are dead last in scoring in the league with only 84 points. I mean the Pats got 59 in one game against them. The defense is faring no better and fans don’t want to hear that Haynesworth being gone makes that huge of a difference. Yes they have injuries in the secondary, but players are drafted to get the job done, and It just Isn’t happening. For the most part they have the same players from last year but you can’t tell watching blunder after blunder. Mistakes are a part of this teams makeup right now. They have no go to receiver and they cannot count on the running game as well. Now they have a quarterback controversy even if they didn’t want one. When do you find out if your $50 million dollar investment has anything to offer? Why not put Vince Young in now to see If he can Ignite your offense in some way. He may not be the answer long term but this would be the time to showcase him while giving him the starting job back he wants so badly. He Is scheduled to make over $14 million dollars next year and most would say that is not going to happen. The year Is shot now so take the chance because In the NFL you can suck In the first half and make a run in the second. Sure It may not get them into the playoffs but they need to find a way to win. This brings me to my last point about Jeff Fisher. I have been a fan of his since he was hired by the organization. He has earned his place and respect in Nashville but time is not on his side. Just this past week Owner Bud Adams gave him a vote of confidence, but It was for this season only. He said that he would not fire a coach in mid-season but has done it before. He and his coach have formed a bond and that has allowed Fisher to have control of this franchise unlike most NFL head coaches do. So If this ship Is sinking then he captain must take the blame now. He keeps talking about how well this team does In practice or how he believes In his players and coaches. Defensive coordinator Chuck Cecil Is looking like he Is In over his head and special teams are horrible. Changes are In need and fast in Nashville because fans won’t take It anymore . The Titans don’t want to end up like the Raiders with their well past over 80 owners calling all the shots. That’s why they hire these guys so they can get the job done and when they don’t Its time to get another.

NFC South Week 6 Wrap Up

                         NFC South Week 6 Wrap Up
 
By Rafael Garcia
Sr. Contributing Writer Football Reporters Online
Southeast Region
 
  New Orleans 48 N.Y. Giants 27
Wow Is a word you might want to use when describing the Saints offense. Maybe you could use the words awesome or unstoppable. Well they were all that and more In a battle of two unbeaten powerhouses. When the dust settled It was the G-men looking for answers. Drew Brees was simply marvelous In the first half alone. He threw where he wanted to and to whomever he wanted to. His first touchdown pass was to Jeremy Shockey from 2 yards and I guess you could say It was Shockey’s hello to his former team. He would go on to throw three more and finished the day 23-30 for 369 yards and four touchdowns. The Saints were also stout on defense keeping Eli Manning off balance all day. When they had the lead the Giants still tried to run they shut that down. Their defense limited New York to just over 23 minutes in time of possession. They would not let the running game beat them even though they were playing a monster in running the football. The Giants just could not move the ball consistently so they were never able to keep up. Three different receivers had at least 70 yards receiving for New Orleans and they kept making the big play on the arm of Brees. At times when It looked like it might turn into a game the Giants would make another mistake. Pierre Thomas and Mike Bell ran with purpose and helped compliment the passing game. If the Saints can maintain a strong defense they will go deep into the playoffs with the offense they have.
 
Carolina 28 Tampa Bay 21
This was another chance for Carolina to win another game and for Jake Delhomme to play a better game. They got the win but Delhomme continued his struggles going 9-17 for 65 yards, one touchdown and TWO more interceptions. With no passing attack the Panthers tuned to their one two punch in the backfield. DeAngelo Williams ran 30 times for 152 yards, two touchdowns, and his running mate Jonathan Stewart added 110 on 17 touches. As for the Bucs, they had great special teams play and that was it. Sammie Stroughter ran a kickoff back 97 yards for one score and Tanard Jackson picked off Delhomme and ran it back 26 yards for another score. The offense was horrible as Josh Johnson fumbled five times but was lucky to lose only one. He went 11-17 for just 147 yards and his offense only got 245. So head coach Raheem Morris continues to look for his first win of his NFL coaching career.
 
Atlanta 21 Chicago 14
Here was a game that the Bears should have won If they just stayed away from inside the Falcon 10-yard line. They turned the ball over twice and were stopped on a fourth down try In the last minute of the game when they could have tied it. Jay Cutler had a good day with 300 yards In the air and two touchdowns but could not overcome the mistakes that should have made this an easy Bear win. Matt Forte was one of the culprits as he fumbled not once but twice from the one and veteran lineman Orlando Pace moved early on a fourth and one to make it fourth and six on a late drive where they could have tied it. Needless to say they could not convert. The game was full of defense as each took turns stopping the other. Michael Turner decided the game when he scored the winner from five yards with just over three minutes left but only got 30 yards on 13 carries and Matt Ryan could not fare much better. He threw for two touchdowns but also threw two picks as his team out gained the Falcons to no avail. It was the second straight year that they have played a thriller and the second time the Bears went down in defeat. The Falcons kept pace with New Orleans for the division lead staying only one game behind.  
 
 

Seven & Out – Week #6

Seven & Out – Week #6
By Michael – Louis Ingram, Associate Editor, Director of Scouting
FRO/BASN
 
PHILADELPHIA (FRO/BASN): Each week, the League confesses seven deadly whims; and we’re here to decipher the sins – from the wins…
But first, a tip of the hat to 7& reader Rob Daniels - who offered a significant aside to the question in last week’s column, “How many of Kurt Warner’s 50 300 yard games did he win?” Daniels said, “31 out of 50.”
You know, Rob – I can roll with that. Thirty – one up and nineteen down means Warner’s passing stats were integral to his team’s overall success, and not filler for some fantasy freak.
The holidays are coming, and I have your address, Rob. Rest assured Rasta Claus will send you something to put under the tree…
 
Today’s Menu:
 
New England quarterback TOM BRADY passed for 380 yards and ties a franchise record with six touchdown passes in the Patriots’ 59-0 win against Tennessee.  Brady threw five touchdowns in the second quarter and became the first quarterback in NFL history with five touchdown passes in a quarter.
 
(In all likelihood, Brady will also be the first QB to get bitch-slapped in the regular season the moment the opportunity presents itself. This ain’t the fuckin’ BCS! New England is up 45 – 0, yet they’re still throwing the ball, and Brady’s still in the game.
 
I’m all for whippin’ dat azz, but if Brady had wanted to show what a real leader looked like, he could’ve just audibled and ran the ball the whole second half. When you add the new pom-pom rule {don’t hurt my Tommy!} it further taints whatever accomplishments Brady had earned thanks to his cheatin’ ass head coach.
 
You’d think Belicheat’d know better by now, after having the Giants beat the shit out of his 18 – 1 ass! Showing up an opponent should have been a lesson learned, but noooooo!
 
Stay tuned, y’all; because what comes around…)   
 
 
Arizona quarterback KURT WARNER threw for 276 yards in the Cardinals’ 27-3 victory over the Seattle Seahawks.  Warner (30,032) surpassed 30,000 career passing yards in his 114th career game, tying Pro Football Hall of Famer DAN MARINO for the fewest number of games to accomplish the feat in NFL history.
 
 
(Kudos to Warner for this milestone, but does this make him a Hall of Famer? I’m slightly leaning to yes – but there are at least three who’d better be in Canton before Warner even entertains a thought: try Ken Andersen, Randall Cunningham and Ken Stabler.)
 
 
New Orleans quarterback DREW BREES passed for 369 yards in the Saints’ 48-27 win over the New York Giants.  Brees has passed for 15,310 yards in 53 games since joining the Saints in 2007, becoming the fastest quarterback to reach 15,000 passing yards with a team.  The previous mark was 56 games set by Pro Football Hall of Famer DAN MARINO (Miami) and MARC BULGER (St. Louis).
 
 
(It seems each week we find at least one bullshit stat – and when it comes to Brees, all of these fantasy foreplay numbers still hide the fact Brees is only 55-51 career as a starting quarterback; oh, and the last time Brees was 5-0 out the gate, the team ended up 8-8 – and out of the playoffs. As Eugene “Mercury” Morris would say, “Call me if you’re in my neighborhood” – come December.)  
 
 
New Orleans had seven different players score a touchdown against the New York Giants to improve to 5-0.  The Saints became the fourth team since 1970 to have seven different players score a rushing or receiving touchdown in a game.  The Seattle Seahawks (10/30/1977 vs. Buffalo Bills), Cincinnati Bengals (12/17/1989 vs. Houston Oilers) and Jacksonville Jaguars (12/23/2007 vs. Oakland) also accomplished the feat.
 
(I’ve a feeling the Saints are gonna need some of those points a couple months from now; especially away from the Dome Depot.)
 
 
Jacksonville wide receiver TORRY HOLT had five receptions for 101 yards in the Jaguars’ 23-20 overtime win against St. Louis.  Holt, who had 12,670 receiving yards in 10 seasons with the Rams, became the first player in NFL history to post 100 yards in his first game against a team for which he had at least 10,000 receiving yards. 
              
 
(Playing well – and winning – is the best revenge…)
 
 
Holt also reached 13,000 receiving yards (13,066) in his 164th career game, becoming the third-fastest to accomplish the feat.  Only JERRY RICE (154) and MARVIN HARRISON (162) reached 13,000 yards in fewer games. 
 
 
(Told you the brother was smooth- next stop, Canton.)
 
 
Minnesota quarterback BRETT FAVRE threw for 278 yards and three touchdowns in the Vikings’ 33-31 victory over Baltimore.  Favre has now passed for at least two touchdowns in 11 consecutive games at the Metrodome (eight with Green Bay, three with Minnesota), tied for the third-longest streak (JIM EVERETT, Anaheim Stadium, 1989-90) with the most consecutive games with multiple TD passes at one stadium. Favre (Lambeau Field, 1994-96) and KURT WARNER (Trans World Dome/Edward Jones Dome, 1999-2000) each had a streak of 12 games, the longest in NFL history.
 
 
(They say it’s better to be lucky than good; well if Minny is 8-0 at midseason, luck won’t have anything to do with it.)
 
 
Pittsburgh quarterback BEN ROETHLISBERGER led the Steelers to a 27-14 victory over Cleveland.  Roethlisberger has now won all 10 of his starts against the Browns and is only the second player since 1970 to win each of his first 10 regular-season starts against one team.  The last player to start 10-0 against one opponent was Pro Football Hall of Famer JOHN ELWAY (against New England).   
 
 
(Well, it’s a lot easier to lead your team to victory when the referees are as blind as fucking BATS! Even Stevie Wonder could see that was not a first down, but, then again, the Seattle Seahawks know about getting screwed by referees when playing against Roethlisberger and the Steelers. I’m still waiting for his ass to score that touchdown from the “Get Jerome ‘Bus’ Bettis a Ring” Super Bowl, let alone get the “first down” against Cleveland.
 
If I’m a Browns fan, especially after watching the first down farce magnified on the big screen, I’m even more insulted. {Sir, let me confirm your order:  That’s One Royal Screwing, Hold the KY – with a side of Disrespect; you wanna be fried with that?)
 
 
Always remember, gang – once the point is made, roll a seven – you crap out!
 
 
mike@footballreportersonline.com
  

Brees-ing Past Marino's Mark? FRO's 2009 Drew Brees Watch

Brees-ing Past Marino's Mark?

FRO's 2009 Drew Brees Watch
By Jon Wagner Sr. Writer at Large Football Reporters Online

One year after passing for the second most yards (5,069) in an NFL season, only 15 yards behind Hall Of Fame quarterback Dan Marino's single-season record of 5,084 yards in 1984, New Orleans Saints' quarterback Drew Brees is again poised to take aim at Marino's record. FRO follows Brees' prusuit of Marino each week, throughout the season:

Brees’ 2009 Avg. Yards Per Game: 280.00
Avg. Yards Needed To Pass Marino: 307.08

WEEK DATE OPP/RESULT COMP-ATT % TD-INT YARDS REMAINING
1 Sun 9/13 vs DET W, 45-27 26-34 76.5 6-1 358 4,727
2 Sun 9/20 at PHI W, 48-22 25-34 73.5 3-1 311 4,416
3 Sun 9/27 at BUF W, 27-7 16-29 55.2 0-0 172 4,244
4 Sun 10/4 vs NYJ W, 24-10 20-32 62.5 0-0 190 4,054
5 Bye
6 Sun 10/18 vs NYG W, 48-27 23-30 76.7 4-0 369 3,685
7 Sun 10/25 at MIA
8 Mon 11/2 vs ATL
9 Sun 11/8 vs CAR
10 Sun 11/15 at STL
11 Sun 11/22 at TB
12 Mon 11/30 vs NE
13 Sun 12/6 at WAS
14 Sun 12/13 at ATL
15 Sat 12/19 vs DAL
16 Sun 12/27 vs TB
17 Sun 1/3 at CAR

PF-PA COMP-ATT % TD-INT YDS
TOTALS; 192-93 110-159 69.2 13-2 1,400

THE FANTASY FIXX-Week 6(last minute help!)

THE FANTASY FIXX-By David Ortega for Football Reporters Online

“Craving more fantasy football notes and numbers, get your weekly fix here.”-Thee Prodigy


Target Practice: Week Six in the NFL

Once again if you are hoping to set a winning lineup for the coming weekend, you’re going to need the recipe for success. And like all good recipes, you need some tasty ingredients that will make your mouth water.

Not sure if this guy is for real or if that guy can do it again, then dig a little deeper and take a look at the numbers; numbers don’t lie. With week six approaching fast, there’s no time to stumble, take aim because you’ve targeted the right place and we’ve got your fix.

Who’s worried….
Put him in a new uniform and in a new city and the old Braylon Edwards returns making one exciting grab after the other. Monday night was a trip down memory lane for some and a reminder of what Edwards is capable of doing when he gets the opportunity. It looks like the change of scenery is working well for Braylon who finished Monday’s game with five catches, but most notable were the 11 total passes thrown his direction. His total numbers in week five didn’t set any houses on fire, but it looks like this Edwards and “Kid Sensation” could just be getting started.

It took one question about the chemistry between he and his quarterback to spark the Bronco’s second year receiver Eddie Royal. Last week when asked, Orton responded that there were no issues, that he and Royal had a great mix; 15 passes and 10 receptions later and I would say he was right.

It certainly appears that Wes Welker is back or at least Tom Brady seems to think so. Welker has been slowed with a knee injury this season, but that has not stopped his quarterback from calling his number. In Welker’s last two games he’s only total 134 yards receiving with 14 catches, but the truth is Brady has looked his way 26 times. At some point Welker will start putting up his normal numbers, and as long as he’s healthy enough to go, expect to see Brady look his way.

Keep your Eye on these gems…
Last week the rookie in Philly, Jeremy Maclin blew up for big yards and two scores. On the afternoon, McNabb pulled the trigger on his newest weapon eight times and the two connected twice for long strikes; a 51 yard touchdown pass and a 40 yard touchdown pass. Over the past two games Maclin has been targeted just 15 times, but after Sunday’s showcase you can bet that number will rise.

In Denver with so many weapons in the passing game there hardly seems to be any chance for any other receivers not named Marshall or Royal. Well that doesn’t appear to be the case for wide receiver Jabar Gaffney. He’s not been the most productive option in Denver, but he has no fewer that four targets in a single game this season and eight last Sunday were the most. With the offense seeming to be heating up (48 pass attempts last week), Gaffney could become more relevant than what most thought.

WEEK 6 FANTASY SLEEPER

WEEK 6 FANTASY SLEEPER
By William Queen for Football Reporters Online
 
Panthers running back DeAngelo Williams has perhaps the most potential of any player in the NFL this week; taking the spot of this week’s fantasy sleeper.
 
Williams came into the season with remarkable expectations for just a 4th-year back, but has come out flat in the Panther’s opening games. Averaging just over 50 yards rushing per game, Williams has Carolina fans wondering where exactly their offense went.
 
However, he has a huge opportunity this Sunday, facing off against the Buccaneers; the 5th worst rush defense the NFL has to offer. So if there’s one game that Williams should step up in, it’s this one. Looking back to 2008, the last time that Williams lined up against Tampa Bay, he broke out for 186 yards and 2 touchdowns on the ground. Look for him to do the same this Sunday.
 
DeAngelo Williams is only one piece to puzzle in Carolina. Quarterback Jake Delhomme has thrown only 3 touchdowns in compression to an embarrassing 8 interceptions, leaving head coach John Fox with practically no other option but to hand it off to Williams. Besides, Delhomme threw 2 picks vs. Dallas, the 28th ranked pass defense; he doesn’t have anything on the Buccs.

DeAngelo Williams has a chance to tear the Buccs up this weekend, it's just a matter of if he can seize that chance and take full advantage of it. If all goes well, then look for Williams to have a solid 18 fantasy points this week.